Chapter 35: Sacrifice
He should have noticed.
The way the sound of the forest disappeared without a trace should have given enough of a hint for both of them to understand. Hell, Shizuo alone should have noticed what it was that had approached them.
But right now, in the midst of their heated conversation Izaya found no one to blame.
Because he hadn't noticed either.
Slow, but even steps.
When did they start following Izaya?
He didn't know.
All he knew was that they were suddenly there.
And stopped, right behind his back.
No one moved.
Not Shizuo, nor Izaya or their perpetrator.
And that fact alone was enough to send chills down Izaya's spine. Be it the critters, the various creatures roaming hell, or any other living being, they all had charged them with animalistic stupidity.
Like dogs, trying to win against a human wearing a gun. It was a misconception easily made by unintelligent life forms.
The mimic had been the one harboring the worst potential so far and its greed had been its downfall.
But whatever it was that encroached on Izaya from behind, was silent. Slow.
And not moving like a simple animal.
"What do we have here?"
And suddenly it spoke.
And Izaya's worst fear came to mind as a hand of gray touched his shoulder.
"A demon and a human?" the coy voice whispered with dreading danger and the pressure on Izaya's shoulder increased.
A demon.
The kind that Shizuo had talked about. The kind that was killing humans for fun and saw nothing but pleasure bringing flesh lights and sources of consumption in what they probably viewed as walking flesh bags.
Izaya didn't dare turn, despite having the demon this close to his body. His curiosity had shut off the second he met Shizuo's gaze, and that's where it remained as he hoped for an instruction.
For a way out.
A quick movement on Shizuo's part maybe- but Shizuo didn't.
"Don't you know any shame?" the demon suddenly spoke, and Izaya saw it from the corner of his eyes. A tongue. Longer than it was supposed to be slithered like a snake's across his collarbone.
Shizuo couldn't move.
Adrenaline filled Izaya's veins faster than he liked and his throat constricted as he realized why.
This demon knew that Shizuo wanted to keep Izaya safe. Was it a hunch? A gamble it was willing to take? Did it hear them talk?
Izaya didn't know, couldn't conclude anything from the scarce pieces of information he had been given- but he knew it was true the second the thought crossed his mind and another quickly joined in the same horrifying fashion.
This demon was playing with him.
He was enjoying Shizuo's demise.
And he was going to kill Izaya the second Shizuo tried to move.
Fast.
He had to act-
But how?
In what way?
There was no way he was going to outrun the perpetrator. There was no way he would win in an attempt to tear himself away either.
Coiled like a spring, ready to act upon the slightest opening, Shizuo glared at the demon behind Izaya with fiery intensity.
Izaya had to act-
And he had to do it quick-
It might have been stupid, really, it probably was.
Shizuo had told him to not move. Was trying his best to get him out of this god damned situation. And yet Izaya was doing exactly that-
He moved.
Only his head, and looked towards the darkness of the forest.
"Kill him!"
Loud, unexpected and nonsensical the order brimmed in the nightly air as Izaya looked at nothing. Nothing at all.
But so did the demon behind his back.
It was a fraction of a second, not even enough to blink, but to Shizuo it was more than enough.
Raw power met force of opposition in proximate reach- Izaya's left ear grew numb from the impact and his breath stilled as fast as the droplets of blood rushing by.
Whether he had called Izaya's bluff or simply waited for an opening was nothing Izaya could tell, but the second he saw the opening, Shizuo moved.
The rushing sound of plants breaking and earth being split in half cut the silence of the eerie forest. A breather was what Izaya expected, maybe even a relieved smile on Shizuo's lips after having blown the demon's head off.
But none of that seemed to be close to happening as his body shifted-
Fast-
The dashes from before.
Shizuo had taken Izaya with him.
One chased the other with no room to breathe in between. A gasp for air was all that Izaya managed and suddenly it was there.
Another impact from the side- this time directed at Shizuo.
Arms curled around Izaya's body at the powerful impact and the earthly ground shifted like water of the sea as Shizuo's back met it first-
And Izaya saw it.
Just for a fraction of a second.
The demon, as he rushed towards them.
Horns of four sat on his head. Two straight and two curled. Slit eyes black on red of an even number of four decorated his face along with a jaw too broad to call humane. Plates of black metal shielded his body in various spots and blood, albeit way less than Izaya had hoped for, sept from the side of his neck.
It was just a scratch, nothing more than that on the side of his throat and Izaya's guts dropped as he realized just how strong this demon had to be if Shizuo's attack had done no more damage than that.
Limbs too long, sharp and powerful were brought from the back and the dangerous claws glittered in the light as he moved his body, made for combat only-
Shizuo's wing was quicker than his body and before Izaya knew it, it blocked off all sight-
But not for too long.
The sound of flesh tearing ruptured through the air and the wing spread to parts of three as easily as cutting a cake.
Another dash, to the far left, forced Izaya into Shizuo's body and his eyes searched desperately for Shizuo's.
Pain.
Shizuo was in pain-
"RUNNING AWAY? REALLY?!" the demon gargled from afar with a sense of humor that sent chills down Izaya's spine.
"Shizuo-"
But there was no time for words to be exchanged, no moment left to search for the right content. Pressure, increasing only softly, pulled Izaya closer, and served all the answers he needed.
Shizuo was going to protect him. Even if it killed him.
And faster than they both liked the demon rushed close.
Fast- faster-
Dash after dash followed and Izaya's ability to breath suspended for the moments the air clashed with his body at full force.
A blow from the right, another from the top, the left- the bottom-
The bastard was aiming for Izaya, and Izaya's guts dropped at the realization.
This demon-
Shizuo could probably kill it easily.
Alone.
But his presence was his handicap.
Shizuo was faster than the demon, just by a breath's hair, but he was. It was the only reason he could keep evading, the only reason he could move with Izaya and remain largely intact.
Were he alone, he could easily beat this bastard to a pulp. Izaya knew. He could tell from his movements-
But the demon was exploiting Izaya's presence.
The hits he wouldn't get in at any other occasion were directed at Izaya, knowing that Shizuo had to dodge or block if he wanted his human to survive.
Fire was what came next, breathed from the depths of the bastard's throat and Shizuo turned his back towards the source of danger-
Because there was no other way to shield Izaya from the searing heat- and suddenly it was there-
Blood.
Claws running right through Shizuo's shoulder and he cursed.
Devilish laughter brimmed in the air as Shizuo took his distance in a quick succession of leaps-
Maybe it was the taste of victory, so close to the demon's tongue, maybe the way he got drunk on his own display of power, but just for a minute the demon stopped.
A grin decorated his expression as the fire he had blown stuck to most plants around and cast crude shadows across the ground.
"Out of breath?" he snickered and Izaya's eyes drew back to Shizuo.
Blood was seeping from his shoulder- avidly and fast.
He couldn't doge with Izaya at hand- couldn't attack if he wanted to make sure he stayed safe-
"Shizuo-" Izaya breathed, but the demon still made no advances to abandon him.
Why?
For fucks sake, why the hell was this demon so bent to protect him?
He was going to die-
If this kept up, he really was, and he still wasn't considering casting Izaya aside.
The bastard was fast, uninjured apart from the graze to his neck and Shizuo in constant defense, suffering one injury after another.
He was fighting a losing lane-
One whose tides were not going to turn by themselves-
And so he moved.
It was suicidal. Really.
Izaya himself wasn't quite sure why he was so hellbent to act- but he was.
And so he pushed himself off.
Quick.
Away from Shizuo.
And the demon laughed.
Thinking he had a chance to finally tear Izaya to shreds.
And Izaya looked at Shizuo.
Eyes telling much more than words Izaya glared at Shizuo and yelled at the top of his lungs- "FIGHT-"
And the bastard approached.
Fast, within the blink of an eye. Izaya faced the gruesome enemy head on.
A smile crept across his face, the claws were raised- but for once, the one single instance of his downfall, he left Shizuo out of his sight.
Because he was sure he would win.
Because he thought a demon that had not fought back once was just covering in fear and going to run.
But that assumption couldn't have been more wrong.
Clutched by the back, the bastard's claws barely grazed Izaya's face before he was torn away.
Ashes and fire mixed in a wild cocktail of doom and ear numbing screeches filled the air brimming with heat.
Eyes avid and mad with power the bastard looked at Shizuo, now clinging to his back. Pupils drawn to slits and all emotions of fear had suddenly vanished from Shizuo's expression and it seemed at that single instance that the bastard realized he had picked the wrong fight.
A low guttural scream left the demon's gargling throat as Shizuo clutched his head and torso.
Fire burst, wings smaller than Shizuo's unfolded and a tail peaked forth, stabbing Shizuo from head to toe as he exerted his pure, untamable strength.
The cut to the bastard's neck served a well indicated marker for the skin's starting point as it ripped.
Blood, splattered, muscles tore and the sound of a spine breaking introduced the finality of sudden silence as the demon's torso and head parted in different directions.
With a soft thud, sounding much gentler than it was supposed to be, the horned top rolled off into Izaya's direction and he stilled.
His heart was beating out of his chest.
For a moment he almost feared the bastard was going to move still- maybe grow some legs from his severed head like a living nightmare- but instead he saw nothing but glassy eyes.
Dull.
And grey.
It was only when he noticed Shizuo's movement, rapidly nearing the ground as he sunk to his knee that Izaya realized the fight was truly over-
And Shizuo injured-
"Shizuo!" Mouth moving faster than his legs he quickly stumbled over to the demon's side. Blood was pooling on the ground and his expression was far from relaxed. Izaya's own knees met the ground and his voice held every bit of worry he felt for Shizuo.
And Shizuo's gaze held the same as he spoke first.
"Are you okay?"
And somehow Izaya felt his throat constrict at the question.
If he was okay?
God damn, Shizuo had taken so much damage just to protect him from that demon. He should be mad. Annoyed maybe, or harbor at least a fraction of a god damn demon's resentment, and yet- why was he like this?
Swallowing hard, Izaya answered the question with a quick nod before addressing Shizuo's shoulder.
"You are bleeding-" he announced, and it was as if his confirmation of safety had reset their entire interaction.
A hard gaze, unreadable and stoic avoided Izaya's eyes as Shizuo merely shrugged.
"Who cares?"
Who-
Incredulous unfiltered anger sept past Izaya's lips as he scolded.
"I do, idiot-" and a glance, almost apologetic, spread across Shizuo's eyes.
Fire, much quicker than expected burst from Shizuo's lips in a clear line as he directed it towards his skin.
Blood, both that of his own and the bastard's, disappeared upon contact and a couple of words quickly spelled were cast immediately after.
Holy magic.
Izaya didn't need to be a genius to understand the action of one of spite.
Shizuo was using magic that drained him on purpose just to present his usual uninjured self.
"See? I'm fine," he argued with the point of a stubborn teenager and Izaya frowned.
"You are a goddamn amoeba!" he announced, only meeting confusion upon his statement.
"A what?" Shizuo repeated, unfamiliar with biology nor any of the cells that made life work.
But Izaya was not in the mood to explain as he continued his rant. "What did you even think you were doing?" he spat, "Trying to shield me and face him- He almost killed you!"
Anger was the only emotion displayed on Shizuo's expression at the exchange.
"Weird way to be grateful if you ask me," he tried to counter, but Izaya was smart enough to counter a trick question when he saw one.
"You know this is not about gratitude," he glared and the slightest tint of frustration colored his words. "Why are you doing this?" He wanted to know. So desperately.
"Why bother with a human like me?"
All former actions of gentleness aside, this right now, was more than simple sympathy over a human soul.
And Shizuo knew it as well.
"No reason." The demon answered, but his ambiguous answer was more than enough for Izaya to smell the lie hidden within.
"Bullshit. No reason wouldn't make you sustain injuries for my sake," he hissed and reached for Shizuo's torn wing.
Resting on the ground it had retained its form despite the holy spell and Izaya could only guess why. Because it was harder to fix than the shoulder.
He didn't mean to hurt the demon by touching his wing, but nonetheless the hand that snatched his own acted as if he were handling acid.
"Stop touching me," Shizuo hissed, and somehow Izaya suddenly felt oddly convinced of a theory.
A theory he hadn't yet considered, opening an array of possibilities and his breath stilled.
Shizuo's memory loss, the way he looked out for him, his eyes.
Right now, filled with a pain and longing that seemed too similar to Izaya's to cast aside caused a simple conclusion to form in his head.
Shizuo, was the same as him wasn't he?
And as soon as the hunch of what he couldn't put into words appeared he couldn't help but just know he was right.
And an urge, stupidly simple and tremendously risky, spurred him into motion as he closed in.
Shizuo had expected a lot.
A snarl. Madness. More scolding.
Izaya's lips meeting his own in a kiss wasn't part of any of those.
An incredulous expression made of confusion, madness, anger, fear and sorrow swirled in Shizuo's eyes, and quicker than expected he backed away.
Confidence of no reason surged in Izaya's mind as he kept his challenging gaze.
"Why did you back away?" he asked, awfully quiet and gentle, and Shizuo's gaze narrowed.
"I'm a demon," he spoke, albeit too quick to sound as threatening as he had probably liked to be. His words were supposed to sound like something bad, something to avoid, but somehow Izaya felt nothing but a thrill.
And his gaze revealed more than words ever could as Izaya finally understood.
to be continued~
I hope you liked this fighting scene as much as I loved writing it xDDD I tried my best to make it impactful without being confusing- do tell me if I succeeded xD
As for the next chapter- well, things are gonna get very interesting next friday xDDD