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Description
Sunlight cast itself over the earth, pushing through the canopy of the trees wherever it could. Pierce stirred, the glare having cast directly into his face. Suddenly there was a sharp pain in his side. His eyes blinked open with immediate regret, and he quickly sat up to avoid the light.
“It’s about damn time,” came a grumble to his right. Pierce rubbed his eyes and glanced up at the dark-haired man beside him.
Malachi wore a deep frown. He had been waiting all morning for the kid to get up and had just decided to give him a kick in the ribs. “We need to get going,” he said, deep red eyes glaring accusingly at him. “We’re late. Again,”
Pierce simply nodded and clambered to his feet, wincing at the sharp pain that shot up his side. “Did you have to kick me so hard?” he whined, big blue eyes wide as saucers and filled to the brim with tears about to spill. It took everything he had not to fall back down and cry out the pain, but he knew it would piss Malachi off. He could already see the way the older demon was glowering down at him.
“Suck it up,” Malachi muttered half-heartedly. He knew how sensitive Pierce was, and he didn’t mean him much harm, but on days like today, he had no choice. He couldn’t just expect to be able to sleep through the whole day. Malachi didn’t care if he had worked all night. His eyes rested on Pierce as he pushed his hand through the unruly black mop atop his head. He needed a haircut, really.
As he combed his fingers through his hair, Malachi caught a glimpse of Pierce’s ears. They were finally starting to grow in properly, large and leather-like. Pierce gave them a flick, and Malachi couldn’t help the crooked smirk that appeared at the corner of his lips.
Pierce was only half demon, on his father’s side. Just a few months ago, he had shown practically no signs of demonism. It was just recently that his ears had started morphing, changing into what they were now. His horns were starting to grow as well, sharp little nubbins atop his head, hidden in that horrid thing he called hair. Along with that, he had grown a tail, something that he had found rather embarrassing. Pierce did his best to keep everything hidden whenever he could. Malachi, on the other hand, was both amused and proud of his transformation. He had been beginning to think that Pierce would live in a human-like body for the rest of his life. Unlike Pierce, he would prefer his demonic form over his human one.
Malachi heaved a heavy sigh and walked over to Pierce, tugging on his over-sized hoodie to straighten it out. Honestly, he felt like he was looking after a five year old. Pierce was all but useless at taking care of himself. “I suppose you look presentable enough.. come on,” he said then, eventually having given up on cleaning him up. It didn’t help that he slept on the forest floor.
Pierce couldn’t live in a town, village, city, or anything like it. His deep anxiety kept him from most things. Mordi had promised to take him to see his home, something that Malachi hoped would get Pierce over this fear, but neither of them had heard from Mordi in a while, and the other demon just gave up on the thought. For the time being, the pair slept wherever they could, normally in a dense part of a forest where Pierce felt safe. They had started to make this one their “home” for now, but they would soon be moving on to the next area.
Pierce’s jaws parted in a wide yawn, and he pushed up his sleeves so that his hands peeked through. “Where are we going?” he asked as he began walking. He often struggled to keep up with Malachi. Pierce took more than two steps for one of Malachi’s.
“There’s a rogue demon running around the village to the north. We’ve been asked to find it and either capture or kill it,” Malachi replied, glancing down at the boy. He could hardly be called a boy, at nineteen years old, but Pierce acted enough like a child. He had never had the proper upbringing that most children were blessed with.
This made Pierce frown. “I don’t collect other demons,” he said, swinging his small antique lantern back and forth. “I collect souls,” The lantern was currently empty from his shift last night, but come evening he’d be back off, looking for those stubborn souls that refused to go to Hell. It was really the one thing that Pierce excelled at, and he loved talking to them. Not that they could talk.
Malachi made a sound of clear annoyance. “Do you think I don’t know that?” he asked, casting a sideways glance at him. “It’s what we’ve been asked to do, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
“O-okay,” Pierce replied timidly. Malachi often got very scary. Though for being the full-fledged demon he was, he was very gentle and patient around Pierce. It was almost painful for Malachi to be so kind. It was making him soft.
Pierce picked nervously at the hem of his hoodie. He didn’t want Malachi to be upset with him. He was a nightmare to work with when he was grumpy. Which was almost all of the time, but Pierce’s complaining didn’t really help the fact. As he stared off ahead, Pierce tripped over a tree’s massive root. He squeaked in alarm and hit the ground with a wince. The pain from being kicked earlier immediately returned, along with another few pings here and there from the awkward forest floor.
It took everything Malachi had not to turn and bark at him. “Would it kill you to look where you’re going?” he growled from deep within his chest. “Get up,”
As he pushed himself up into a sitting position, something shiny caught his attention. Curiously, Pierced bushed back some of the leaves and curled his fingers around a small key. He picked it up to examine it.
The key was small and probably at one time silver, now covered in dirt and the like. Pierce’s blue eyes grew wide with amazement as he looked over the intricate pattern. It was no doubt antique, probably left here for a long time. How could someone miss something like this?
“What the hell are you staring at?” Malachi demanded, interrupting his thoughts.
“A key,” answered Pierce. He stood up then, still staring down at the key in his hand. When he finally looked up, he cried out in alarm, dropping the key in his haste. His eyes grew much wider, if that were even possible. His face was paper white.
“What’s wrong now?” Malachi was starting to become impatient.
Pierce’s entire body shook. He looked around quickly, but it was gone. “I.. I thought I-I saw someone..” he stammered. He could tell by the look on Malachi’s face that he had had enough. Pierce took a deep breath and just bent over to pick the key back up. When he turned to look at Malachi, he flinched. It took everything he had not to cry out like he had the first time. Behind the demon stood a dark figure, face hidden beneath a black cloak.
“M-malachi.. there’s someone behind you,”
Malachi threw a glance over his shoulder, eyes rolling. “It’s your schizophrenia. You’re seeing things again,” he snapped.
Pierce shook his head. “No.. no can’t you see it?” he asked, the desperation clear in his voice. It wasn’t the first time he was seeing things, but this one was real. He just knew it.
Malachi grit his teeth. “Pierce, I don’t have time for your bullshit,”
Pierce glanced at the key in his hand. The figure hadn’t been there after he had dropped the key, but as soon as he had picked it back up, the figure returned. A connection was made inside his little mind. “Here, try holding this,”
“If it’s going to get us out of here,” Malachi complained, grabbing the key from him. His eyebrows shot up with expectation as he looked around. His companion’s baby blue’s followed him, hoping that he could see it too.
Malachi snorted and dropped the key back into Pierce’s grasp. “You’re fucking crazy, Pierce. I didn’t see a damn thing,” he said. “Now let’s go,”
Pierce felt small. Malachi hadn’t seen it? He glanced past the demon to the dark figure, standing there faithfully as Pierce clutched the key. “Oh.. okay..” he whispered in defeat. Maybe he really was just seeing things again.
The demon gave a curt nod and quickly strode off with that impossible pace, made even more furious by the setback. He glanced back to see the black-haired boy scrambling after him, almost running to have to catch up. He was still clutching that key, but Malachi knew getting him to leave it would be a pointless battle.
Pierce ran his fingers over the key, trying to cleaning it up as he followed along. The cloaked figure followed behind them, seemingly floating. It didn’t appear to require any effort to move, and unlike Pierce who clumsily fell over everything, it seemed not to notice the random branches here and there.
“Help me,”
“What did you say?” Pierce asked, looking up at Malachi. The demon glared back at him.
“I didn’t say a thing,” he muttered.
“Oh.. I thought you said something,” Pierce sighed. It wasn’t too long before he heard it again, though.
“Help me,”
This time, Pierce looked over his shoulder at the figure. It had drawn back its hood to reveal a rather ghost-like man. He was nearly transparent and seemed to have a hard time materializing. Was he from this world? Pierce slowed, and he saw the man’s lips moving in another weak attempt:
“Help me,”

Description
Sunlight cast itself over the earth, pushing through the canopy of the trees wherever it could. Pierce stirred, the glare having cast directly into his face. Suddenly there was a sharp pain in his side. His eyes blinked open with immediate regret, and he quickly sat up to avoid the light.
“It’s about damn time,” came a grumble to his right. Pierce rubbed his eyes and glanced up at the dark-haired man beside him.
Malachi wore a deep frown. He had been waiting all morning for the kid to get up and had just decided to give him a kick in the ribs. “We need to get going,” he said, deep red eyes glaring accusingly at him. “We’re late. Again,”
Pierce simply nodded and clambered to his feet, wincing at the sharp pain that shot up his side. “Did you have to kick me so hard?” he whined, big blue eyes wide as saucers and filled to the brim with tears about to spill. It took everything he had not to fall back down and cry out the pain, but he knew it would piss Malachi off. He could already see the way the older demon was glowering down at him.
“Suck it up,” Malachi muttered half-heartedly. He knew how sensitive Pierce was, and he didn’t mean him much harm, but on days like today, he had no choice. He couldn’t just expect to be able to sleep through the whole day. Malachi didn’t care if he had worked all night. His eyes rested on Pierce as he pushed his hand through the unruly black mop atop his head. He needed a haircut, really.
As he combed his fingers through his hair, Malachi caught a glimpse of Pierce’s ears. They were finally starting to grow in properly, large and leather-like. Pierce gave them a flick, and Malachi couldn’t help the crooked smirk that appeared at the corner of his lips.
Pierce was only half demon, on his father’s side. Just a few months ago, he had shown practically no signs of demonism. It was just recently that his ears had started morphing, changing into what they were now. His horns were starting to grow as well, sharp little nubbins atop his head, hidden in that horrid thing he called hair. Along with that, he had grown a tail, something that he had found rather embarrassing. Pierce did his best to keep everything hidden whenever he could. Malachi, on the other hand, was both amused and proud of his transformation. He had been beginning to think that Pierce would live in a human-like body for the rest of his life. Unlike Pierce, he would prefer his demonic form over his human one.
Malachi heaved a heavy sigh and walked over to Pierce, tugging on his over-sized hoodie to straighten it out. Honestly, he felt like he was looking after a five year old. Pierce was all but useless at taking care of himself. “I suppose you look presentable enough.. come on,” he said then, eventually having given up on cleaning him up. It didn’t help that he slept on the forest floor.
Pierce couldn’t live in a town, village, city, or anything like it. His deep anxiety kept him from most things. Mordi had promised to take him to see his home, something that Malachi hoped would get Pierce over this fear, but neither of them had heard from Mordi in a while, and the other demon just gave up on the thought. For the time being, the pair slept wherever they could, normally in a dense part of a forest where Pierce felt safe. They had started to make this one their “home” for now, but they would soon be moving on to the next area.
Pierce’s jaws parted in a wide yawn, and he pushed up his sleeves so that his hands peeked through. “Where are we going?” he asked as he began walking. He often struggled to keep up with Malachi. Pierce took more than two steps for one of Malachi’s.
“There’s a rogue demon running around the village to the north. We’ve been asked to find it and either capture or kill it,” Malachi replied, glancing down at the boy. He could hardly be called a boy, at nineteen years old, but Pierce acted enough like a child. He had never had the proper upbringing that most children were blessed with.
This made Pierce frown. “I don’t collect other demons,” he said, swinging his small antique lantern back and forth. “I collect souls,” The lantern was currently empty from his shift last night, but come evening he’d be back off, looking for those stubborn souls that refused to go to Hell. It was really the one thing that Pierce excelled at, and he loved talking to them. Not that they could talk.
Malachi made a sound of clear annoyance. “Do you think I don’t know that?” he asked, casting a sideways glance at him. “It’s what we’ve been asked to do, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
“O-okay,” Pierce replied timidly. Malachi often got very scary. Though for being the full-fledged demon he was, he was very gentle and patient around Pierce. It was almost painful for Malachi to be so kind. It was making him soft.
Pierce picked nervously at the hem of his hoodie. He didn’t want Malachi to be upset with him. He was a nightmare to work with when he was grumpy. Which was almost all of the time, but Pierce’s complaining didn’t really help the fact. As he stared off ahead, Pierce tripped over a tree’s massive root. He squeaked in alarm and hit the ground with a wince. The pain from being kicked earlier immediately returned, along with another few pings here and there from the awkward forest floor.
It took everything Malachi had not to turn and bark at him. “Would it kill you to look where you’re going?” he growled from deep within his chest. “Get up,”
As he pushed himself up into a sitting position, something shiny caught his attention. Curiously, Pierced bushed back some of the leaves and curled his fingers around a small key. He picked it up to examine it.
The key was small and probably at one time silver, now covered in dirt and the like. Pierce’s blue eyes grew wide with amazement as he looked over the intricate pattern. It was no doubt antique, probably left here for a long time. How could someone miss something like this?
“What the hell are you staring at?” Malachi demanded, interrupting his thoughts.
“A key,” answered Pierce. He stood up then, still staring down at the key in his hand. When he finally looked up, he cried out in alarm, dropping the key in his haste. His eyes grew much wider, if that were even possible. His face was paper white.
“What’s wrong now?” Malachi was starting to become impatient.
Pierce’s entire body shook. He looked around quickly, but it was gone. “I.. I thought I-I saw someone..” he stammered. He could tell by the look on Malachi’s face that he had had enough. Pierce took a deep breath and just bent over to pick the key back up. When he turned to look at Malachi, he flinched. It took everything he had not to cry out like he had the first time. Behind the demon stood a dark figure, face hidden beneath a black cloak.
“M-malachi.. there’s someone behind you,”
Malachi threw a glance over his shoulder, eyes rolling. “It’s your schizophrenia. You’re seeing things again,” he snapped.
Pierce shook his head. “No.. no can’t you see it?” he asked, the desperation clear in his voice. It wasn’t the first time he was seeing things, but this one was real. He just knew it.
Malachi grit his teeth. “Pierce, I don’t have time for your bullshit,”
Pierce glanced at the key in his hand. The figure hadn’t been there after he had dropped the key, but as soon as he had picked it back up, the figure returned. A connection was made inside his little mind. “Here, try holding this,”
“If it’s going to get us out of here,” Malachi complained, grabbing the key from him. His eyebrows shot up with expectation as he looked around. His companion’s baby blue’s followed him, hoping that he could see it too.
Malachi snorted and dropped the key back into Pierce’s grasp. “You’re fucking crazy, Pierce. I didn’t see a damn thing,” he said. “Now let’s go,”
Pierce felt small. Malachi hadn’t seen it? He glanced past the demon to the dark figure, standing there faithfully as Pierce clutched the key. “Oh.. okay..” he whispered in defeat. Maybe he really was just seeing things again.
The demon gave a curt nod and quickly strode off with that impossible pace, made even more furious by the setback. He glanced back to see the black-haired boy scrambling after him, almost running to have to catch up. He was still clutching that key, but Malachi knew getting him to leave it would be a pointless battle.
Pierce ran his fingers over the key, trying to cleaning it up as he followed along. The cloaked figure followed behind them, seemingly floating. It didn’t appear to require any effort to move, and unlike Pierce who clumsily fell over everything, it seemed not to notice the random branches here and there.
“Help me,”
“What did you say?” Pierce asked, looking up at Malachi. The demon glared back at him.
“I didn’t say a thing,” he muttered.
“Oh.. I thought you said something,” Pierce sighed. It wasn’t too long before he heard it again, though.
“Help me,”
This time, Pierce looked over his shoulder at the figure. It had drawn back its hood to reveal a rather ghost-like man. He was nearly transparent and seemed to have a hard time materializing. Was he from this world? Pierce slowed, and he saw the man’s lips moving in another weak attempt:
“Help me,”