Illusions

Chapter 7: Peace Offerings

***

Of course, Mitsukai hadn’t hesitated to drag everyone back inside the house once she’d fully regained her composure – on Keiji’s demand, Akuma joined the group, but remained thoroughly uncomfortable in the alien environment. As the six or seven angels all sat down on chairs and sofas in the living room, Akuma made himself comfortable sitting cross-legged on the floor…Keiji immediately bounded into his lap before anyone could give him a cease and desist order against doing so.

The lilac demon stayed silent the entire time as the others talked…Keiji amused himself with fiddling with Akuma’s claws. The conversation, as he’d predicted, centred around him, the boy’s origins, and his people…typical angels.

One woman with flowing golden locks of hair behind her was particularly annoying…speaking as if Akuma wasn’t even there. “Honestly Mitsukai…if I were you I’d be worried about the boy. He might just turn animal when he grows older…”

That so far had been the most insulting comment he’d heard, and Akuma decided to stop holding back in silence. After all, she was being particularly rude. That, and his silence was killing him…he hated biting his tongue.

“I’d hate to say it, but if he grows up to have morals like yours, then he will be somewhat of an animal, yes…” He gave the woman a heated glare. “Since you have no sense of dignity when it comes to badmouthing people in front of them, that is.”

The room went silent…the tension in the air was most obvious to Mitsukai. Keiji turned around on Akuma’s lap, and placed his small hands on his father’s cheeks. “Even though it’s not what she meant…I want to grow up to look more like an ‘animal’…I like your claws and your horns and your fangs and your tail…”

Mitsukai smiled to herself, and Akuma grinned a little, exposing the aforementioned fangs…not particularly wide, but most definitely unnaturally long to be considered your average, everyday canines. They were definitely sharp, too. Very sharp.

The boy grinned back, and turned around in his Dad’s lap. “You know, I think the teachers at school are dumb.”

An older male smiled gently at Keiji, an replied softly…almost in that patronising tone adults so often use on children. “Oh? And why is that, Keiji?”

“Because they always tell us that demons are more like animals than us…”

Akuma’s bright eyes rolled back slightly, but he smirked lopsidedly. “In a way they’re right…unlike you angels, we’ve had to maintain our ‘animal’ attributes throughout our evolution, rather than let our features become refined and redundant.” Everyone’s attention was locked on the demon out of curiosity. All but two had never met a demon before…and they’d expected them to be brash, rude, obnoxious, smelly, and somewhat evil. It turned out that this particular one was anything but. “After all, we constantly contend with and control the worst humans that are thrown off Earth. We need the extra strength and power, and we need what might be generalised as ‘bony protuberances’ as both defence and offence. Thus, you could say, that we are more similar to many animal species, rather than the rather redundant human race.”

Silence hung in the room as a thick cloud of tension, awe and shock for several seconds. Between those pointed purple ears was a mighty mind, it seemed. This demon was not to be underestimated…hopefully, dear little Keiji would inherit that formidable intellect.

The blonde spoke up again, eventually. “We’ve seen what Kazuya thought of you as all those years ago,” she began, a rather smarmy element in her voice, “and from that, I believe we’re justified in thinking of you as animalistic in more ways than just physical appearance.”

Akuma could see this quickly developing into a philosophical argument…but hell, he loved a good argument, especially when there was someone to be taken down. He remained perfectly calm, and let Keiji continue to play with his claws. “You saw me through a child’s eyes, a child’s interpretation.” He smirked slightly. “You of all creatures should know that a demon is quite a frightening being to a five-year-old. I was more than twice his height and built like his father…I don’t think my eye colour helped matters. His hatred and emotional interpretation of my reasons for being there for him resulted in me seeming like somewhat of a Devil…hence the name they bestowed upon me.”

The woman stood corrected, but didn’t interrupt to let him know. He continued. “As Kazuya grew, he became increasingly stubborn, and began to resent my presence during his adolescence. He wanted privacy and freedom, and by then, he’d already come to know me as a ‘source of evil’, as textbooks often referred to my kind as. Thus, I gained my reputation of being the supposed evil force behind a wounded soul seeking vengeance.”

The older man interrupted him at that point; or so he thought – Akuma had already finished with his little tale. He had nothing more to say that was of interest to these people; they were only interested in condemning him for crimes he never committed, or in stereotyping him to the best of their abilities. He’d proved them wrong, and that’s all he’d wanted to do. “That whole soul-stealing issue…since none of us have ever been brave enough to investigate…” He didn’t know how to ask the question – do you eat people’s souls?

Akuma rolled his eyes exasperatedly. “What makes you think it’s anything but a legend? Honestly…I would have thought more of even you. Demons and angels, as far as I know, have the exact same abilities. We’re all here for the same reason after all, aren’t we? You can’t take people’s souls, can you? Didn’t think so…” that, though abrupt, was sufficient enough an answer for these people.

The yawn of a certain young boy stopped the proceedings before they could escalate, and Mitsukai, completely opposed to the idea of an argument arising in her poor little house, jumped at the opportunity for an interruption. “Keiji, bed time!”

Keiji groaned and rolled his eyes, clinging once again to Akuma. “I don’t wanna…”

He stopped with Mitsukai fired a glare at him. He sighed. “Okay okay…only if Otousan takes me though…”

Mitsukai’s guests chuckled…some at the sweet innocence of the boy, others nervously…considering who the child’s father was. Akuma, on the other hand, didn’t even need to look up at Mitsukai for confirmation. He knew that when a mother says bedtime, it’s bedtime – she after all was the primary caregiver for the child. He stood, careful not to knock anything with the sharp claws on the tops of his wings, and picked Keiji up, letting the boy lean over his shoulder. “Alright you…”

Keiji giggled softly and clung to Akuma’s neck. He waved to the others over his father’s shoulder until they disappeared from view around the corner of the hall. Akuma plopped the boy down onto the bed, who scrambled down to get his pyjamas, change into them, and get under the covers as fast as possible.

As he did, Akuma spotted something small, fuzzy and brown hidden beneath the pillow. Curious, he reached down to pick it up…it turned out to be a rather manhandled teddy-bear.

Keiji blushed heavily, and reached up to snatch the plush away. As soon as he did, he shoved it under the pillow and looked up innocently. “You didn’t see anything…”

Akuma simply smirked and picked the bear up again, making Keiji blush even more. Great…now his father knew that he had a stuffed toy! What sort of a man would he think of him as? What sort of a man has a teddy-bear?!

“What’s his name?”

Keiji bit his lip, contemplating. He gave in. “Fuzzums.”

Akuma’s long, slender fingers grasped the bear’s arms from behind and made them move up and down alternately, and placed the bear down on Keiji’s chest as he did so. “Well, Fuzzums says it’s time to go to sleep…” He spoke in the same rhythm as the bear’s arms were moving to.

The boy giggled, and reached out to grab the bear…this time, he didn’t condemn it to a night’s sleep beneath the pillow, but held it in his arms proudly. After fidgeting about in the covers for a few moments, Keiji finally let his elbow slip over the top of the sheets, and fell still, looking up at his father expectantly.

Akuma leaned down, smiling ever so softly, and kissed his son’s forehead. “Konbanwa, Keiji.”

He let out a soft yawn, and snuggled up against the bear’s head. “Good night, Daddy…”

Pride overcame Akuma, and he broke out into a grin accordingly. This was his son…his son…and he was the most magnificent creature he’d ever seen. He ran a hand, ever so carefully, through the boy’s raven tresses, and stood up, preparing to leave as the golden eyes resting against the pillow drifted closed.

As he reached the door, Keiji’s sleepy voice floated up from the bed. “Will you be there in the morning, Otousan?”

He paused for a moment, and thought about it. He nodded, and gave Keiji another lop-sided smirk. “Yes, I will be…don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere…go to sleep!”

Before long, Akuma rejoined the group in the living room, and walked back to his spot on the carpet.

Smiling cheekily, Mitsukai patted the chair of the seat she was sitting on. “Come over here, Akuma-san…don’t sit over there on your own!”

Why not… he thought, and went over to the new perch he was assigned. He hadn’t been sitting on it for even a few seconds before she wrapped her arm around his waist and dragged him down onto the cushion beside her; they managed to somehow fit across the entire thing, though somewhat cramped in the process.

The blonde woman looked on in partially masked horror as she snuggled up to the masculine chest of this…demon. How could Mitsukai do that? It must be hideous…great huge hairy stinky demon after all. They didn’t notice her stares though, and before long, they were making themselves comfortable in each other’s arms on that cramped little armchair.

The conversation from before continued once again, only this time, with a slightly more amiable tone. They’d overheard the saga of putting the boy to bed – and most had decided that demons, perhaps, weren’t the hellish creatures they were made out to be by so many. This one, despite his reputation that resounded even in Heaven till this day, was nowhere near as terrible as they’d thought he was…he was almost approachable. Mitsukai made him look almost cuddly.

Behind them, way off in the darkness of the corridor, no one seemed to notice a pair of brilliant golden eyes, innocent and gentle in the blackness of the unlit hall, watching…with unseen ears listening to every word.