A Dark Kiss ((Kamukura X Komaeda))

Act 3; Honesty

The demon exhaled, running his hands over the sleeves of his new shirt.
It was peasant clothes they were lucky to get for no charge in return for trading their higher quality robes, and they would be enough to blend in, but they'd yet to feel natural for Komaeda. How many years had he been wearing the Church robes? Clothes such as the ones he wore now felt scratchy on his skin.
"Do I look the part enough?" Kamukura adjusted the cuff of his shirt and rose his eyes to Komaeda, who merely forced a smile and nod.
A few people were giving glances to the men, most likely because of Kamukura's hair being out of the norm, but nobody stopped to carry out their suspicions.
But still, the man couldn't help but hold his breath whenever someone passed by.
"I know you want to show me beauty but..." He looked around the town, finding nothing but the average village filled with average people. "I don't see anything beautiful here. These people at their core are still terrible."
"Are you positive about that?" The demon followed his eyes, and moved an inch closer, almost making Komaeda jump.
They had kissed, it was only a test, that didn't mean they were a thing, and it didn't change that he was still fairly uncomfortable about a demon attempting to stand so close.
Perhaps he had clung to Kamukura when they had first met, but it was only out of desperation that he was the only one not attacking him at that moment in a fifty-foot radius, and he obviously had to hold on when flying, but that's it.
Or... Was he just making excuses?
No, Komaeda would return to that idea later, there were more important things to figure out at that moment other than if he was attracted to guys.
"Of course I'm positive, they would... Kill you in a heartbeat if they knew." Without thinking, Komaeda wrapped his arms around himself in a tight hug as a form of comfort perhaps. "They'd probably kill us both in the most gruesome ways. Of course, I deserve it, I'm... I'm such a low being of a human, they wouldn't even hesitate if they discovered I summoned a demon. You could have killed me too, I begged you to take me to Hell, and you didn't. Out of everyone, why did it have to be a demon to show me kindness?"
Kamukura remained quiet to his rambling, only giving a slow blink before turning, focusing his attention elsewhere, not appearing to care in the slightest for his self-deprecation.
Without warning, he started off, urging Komaeda to snap out of his incoherency and hurry after, needing to run to catch up and walk beside him.
As though he would just let a demon wander off in a village full of humans, that was simply asking for trouble, wasn't it?
"Wait, where are you going?" Whispering only loud enough for Kamukura to hear, it was impossible to avoid the curious gazes of the people walking by.
What could they have been thinking? Perhaps admiring the demon's beauty, or taking an interest in two men walking so close together?
He wasn't exactly planning to ask, or allow himself to make eye contact with any of them.
"You still believe everyone is dark at their core, so I would like to see for myself," He stated calmly, as though it were no big deal. At first, Komaeda wanted to argue, 'nobody would speak to a demon', then quickly recalled that only he knew the truth of that, and admittedly, Kamukura did do pretty well hiding his demonic traits.
Aside from his... Lack of social skills, but that could be explained easily by the fact he had never spoken in Hell.
Something still nagged the man about simply approaching the townspeople, but he couldn't think of a better reason not to, it was part of their deal after all, and Komaeda had yet to follow through on showing him the human world.
As if on cue, a ball rolled onto the street, stopping Kamukura abruptly before he tripped over it, and nearly causing Komaeda to fall into him.
Before he could say anything about the sudden stop for a ball, a few small children ran into the road, one of them picking it up with a playful laugh, only to lay his eyes on the demon and fall silent.
The children that followed after the first all froze up, eyes wide.
Were they afraid, perhaps?
It would be obvious why, who wouldn't have been scared?
But suddenly, one of them smiled brightly at Kamukura.
"Hey, you have pretty long hair for a guy! Your mom must be really nice for letting you grow it out!" He stood before the demon without fear, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Yeah, you're lucky," Another child pouted. "Mom says boys have to have short hair, but I like it when mine grows out."
He sighed out in annoyance before turning to one of the other boys and whispering something to him.
One of the younger children moved past the others without a word, allowing herself to stand before the demon a mere foot away. She was shorter than his knees, couldn't have been more than three or four in age, unlike the others who were perhaps nine or ten.
The little girl's eyes were full of wonder, and they grew even bigger as she rose to look upon Kamukura.
Something flickered across her face, something Komaeda couldn't read physically, but somehow he knew exactly what she was feeling.
Looking into the demon's eyes, it was the same as when he had first looked into them himself. Seeing his inner soul, the mind flooding with his own thoughts.
A long moment of silence fell between them before she suddenly moved from her statue state to grin happily and hold her hands up to him, grabbing with her small fingers.
Her attempt to speak to him was no more than garbled, muttered words, to which Kamukura did not respond to.
He merely watched the child intently without moving a muscle. Not until one of the boys took her arm with annoyance did he shift his eyes to the other kids.
"Come on Himiko, mom is waiting. She'll get mad if I leave you behind again."
The little girl, Himiko's, face fell, and she looked like she was about to cry, but the boy paid her no mind before he picked her up, carrying her in one arm, and the ball under the other.
"See you later, mister!"
One of the kids gave a wave, following the main kid back from where they had first come from.
They all started off once more, except for one.
His fluffy brown hair unbrushed, and clothes slightly too big for his thin body. With a couple blinks, he cocked his head to the side.
"You're new here, right?"
Although his eyes were moreso directed at Kamukura, rather than Komaeda, and the demon offered a short nod in response.
The kid fell quiet for a moment, lowering his gaze to his feet, before looking up once more.
"Say um, what's your name?"
"Izuru Kamukura," The demon held his hand out in a short gesture, with no intention of having the child actually take it, as he didn't lean down to his height.
The kid allowed himself to process it before smiling, "That's a neat name, I'm Makoto. Hey, could I ask something else?"
Komaeda looked to the demon, then to the child, and back, almost in disbelief of what he was witnessing.
Kamukura gave another short nod, and Makoto looked hesitant at first before inhaling and looking away.
"You're not a uh, human, right?"
Komaeda felt his blood run cold, but the demon held no reaction. If he did feel afraid, he had the best pokerface in the world.
When Kamukura didn't reply, the child continued, slowly.
"I-I mean, I don't want to sound rude, I'd get in trouble if I was just making assumptions. It's just, your eyes. I've never seen anything like them."
Komaeda hadn't even considered his eyes, he knew Mother Peko had red eyes as well, so he had considered it as something normal, but... If he made such a mistake like that, how long would it be until he was outed?
"My eyes are my eyes," Kamukura ushered, "I am as human as you."
"Sorry..." The child twiddled with his fingers, avoiding looking at the demon, when the call of a woman caused Makoto to flinch and look behind him. "That's my mom, I should go now. I'm sorry again!"
With a wave, he hurried back, and at first, Komaeda thought that would be the last of him until he paused, looking back once more, fairly hesitant to speak.
"Just... You seem nice, so avoid the Church, okay? They're nice too but I don't think Father would like seeing a demon."
Before either man could even respond, the child hurried off, vanishing between the buildings.
Although Komaeda made an attempt to follow after, he was stopped by Kamukura placing a hand atop his shoulder, like he knew exactly what the man was thinking.
He wanted to catch that kid, vow him to silence after figuring it out, but there would be no point, would there?
They would only have to hope the kid didn't run off and tell everyone he could.
Exhaling, Komaeda relaxed his shoulders, and Kamukura lowered his arm, where the man turned to the demon.
"I wasn't aware you had a full name,"
"You never asked,"
"Well, that's usually something you tell someone when they first ask your name."
"You never asked that either," He raised an eyebrow, matter-of-factly. "I distinctly recall you said, 'I don't even know your name'."
He opened his mouth to make a rebuttal, but Kamukura was right, he was so rude he never even asked his name.
Seeing he had lost this fight, Komaeda crossed his arms and looked to his feet, accepting the defeat.
Perhaps it was rude to not ask at first, but, he'd been rude to Kamukura almost the entire time they'd been together, hadn't he?
Then again, he didn't exactly plan to be actually spending time with the demon he had summoned out of his own desperation.
"Like this," Kamukura moved to stand before him, holding out his hand. "My name is Izuru Kamukura, and you are?"
He looked to the demon, then down to his hand, pausing a short moment before setting his hand atop the man's.
"My full name is Nagito Komaeda, It's... A pleasure to meet you?" He ended it in a question, fairly unsure if they were acting or supposed to be serious.
The demon lightly squeezed his hand in acknowledgment before releasing, and attempting what looked to be... A forced, and fairly lopsided smile.
Demons didn't seem to be good at smiling, did they?
Or maybe it was just this demon in particular.
"Anyway," Komaeda averted his eyes. "What's with you and holding hands anyway? Is it like a demon thing?"
"Not at all," Kamukura's eyes muddled with confusion just then as he tilted his head. "I was under the assumption it was a human thing. You seemed fairly eager to hold my hand when I arrived, I was merely trying to be polite with customs."
"You're-" What was he even supposed to say to that?
He sounded like a child, even the way his eyes sparkled in a hint of disappointment.
"It's not like that," He finally sighed, "I just, I was scared, it doesn't mean anything for humans. At most, shaking hands is for greetings, and holding hands is for lovers or parents and their kids. You don't need to offer your hand any time you do anything."
"Shame," The demon turned his back, his black locks flowing like a cape as he moved. "I was fond of it."
Sounding genuinely upset, Komaeda couldn't help but feel guilty. It wasn't harmful at least.
"Alright, look, you don't have to stop if-"
"Wait," The demon suddenly cut him off, picking up his nose to give a sniff. They didn't still smell like the barn, did they?
"What is it?" He started, but Kamukura didn't respond. He was as frozen as a statue as he picked up something Komaeda didn't.
It was just like...
Just like last night, something caught him on edge.
He reached out to touch the demon, hopefully awakening him from his mysterious trance, but Kamukura pulled him close and hushed the man before he could complain.
What was going on, what just happened?
Pressing himself against the wall, keeping an almost death grip of a hug around Komaeda, the demon peered out over the main street they had just come from, and Komaeda couldn't help but wiggle loose just a bit to do the same.
If his heart wasn't beating fast enough from being held so close, it was definitely going wild now, but with fear this time.
A carriage lay parked by the town entrance, the door wide open as Peko stepped out, her pristine robes catching the attention of everyone around her.
"That is the nun from earlier, correct?" Komaeda's ear tingled as Kamukura whispered, but he wouldn't say anything about it or try to let it show how such a demon was getting to him.
"Yeah..." He bit his lip and pulled back before she happened to catch a glimpse of his fluffy hair. "But how is that possible? You said you were flying for hours, she must have been right on our tails if she's here already."
"The storm..." Kamukura narrowed his eyes in thought. "It had affected my sense of direction. If she arrived so quickly, then I might have gone in a circle. There's a chance we're not as far as we thought we were."
If he were not a holy man, Komaeda would have yelled a few obscene curses.
What was he to do? Kamukura, she didn't see, but she definitely knew Komaeda's face.
And just his luck, Peko's voice was coming closer as she spoke to one of the fellow nuns.
Running would just be asking to be chased by this point now, flying would cause the entire town to fall into hysteria. Komaeda could feel an onslaught of a panic attack with every passing second until Kamukura suddenly released him.
"I have an idea. Pull your hood up," He gestured to the sweater he was wearing before pulling up his own.
With the demon covering his face, his long hair gave off the appearance of him being a woman. Komaeda followed after, but once he pulled his hood up, Kamukura wrapped his arms around the man's neck, pulling him close. So close, their lips were almost touching.
And he remembered the kiss; the way it felt, how there was a chance... He wanted to do it again.
But what was he doing? Why was he following a demon's plan?!
Despite Komaeda attempting to back away, Kamukura held him in place.
"Don't struggle," He whispered quickly. "Simply pretend we are lovers. And do not speak, if she approaches us, stay where you are with your hood up, and let me talk."
It took a moment, but the plan finally clicked in Komaeda's brain.
Perhaps... It could work.
He stayed still, allowing Kamukura to hold him how he was, although looking into his eyes as they stayed in such a position...
He could feel the thrumming of his heart, and it didn't take but a few seconds to relax himself against the demon.
"We are only acting," It almost sounded like Kamukura was attempting to joke, "You need not be so close if you are uncomfortable standing like this with another man."
The sound of Peko's voice was growing louder, closer, she could be turning any moment, but it oddly became the last thing on his mind.
He didn't say a word in response, he still wanted to feel somewhat proud, whatever pride he had left that was.
But hopefully, he would understand without words as Komaeda pressed their lips together for a second time.
It didn't really matter anymore, did it?
He was no longer a part of the Church, so he was not bound by the rules anymore.
But this would be his coming to terms that perhaps he was not as attracted to women as he thought he was.
The demon didn't stop him at all, rather, he accepted it, embraced it, the hold he had on Komaeda tightened, and he dug his claws into his shoulder.
Not enough to cause too much pain, but he certainly was seeming to enjoy it as well.
"This is the only town close enough to run to on foot," One of the nuns walked behind him. "If he escaped the village, he has to be here. There's nowhere else."
"And you're sure he's not in the village?" Peko followed after.
"Yes, Mother. Every townsfolk was searching throughout the night. Every basement, attic, store, and underbridge was checked. People even scoured the catacombs."
Peko gave a hum, and the footsteps of the nuns came to a halt.
Of course they were noticed, luck was not on his side.
"Ah, excuse me?" The call of the Nun urged him to break the kiss, but he was careful not to turn around, letting Kamukura handle it as he said.
"Yes?" He kept his voice in a soft whisper, perhaps his attempt at sounding more feminine. In reality, he had a very noticeable man's voice, as cool and collected as possible, but it was... Passable at least.
"I'm sorry for interrupting Miss, and to you as well, Sir, but have you seen someone we're looking for?"
Peko approached, and he could feel his heart pounding as she stood right behind him.
It only took one pull of his hood if she got suspicious...
Still, he bit his lip, keeping quiet as the Nun offered a paper out for Kamukura to take and examine.
"He's to be tried for crimes against God," She explained politely, allowing him to take a look at the sketch that had been done.
Kamukura acted like he was looking at it carefully, before nodding and handing it back.
"I am afraid not, I would have remembered seeing someone with such fluffy hair."
"I see..." She hesitated before suddenly handing the paper to Komaeda, "And you Mister? Does his face ring a bell?"
Alarm bells were certainly going off in his head, but as best as he could without shaking, he took the paper and looked down on it.
They had sketched him almost perfectly, but his eyes looked cold, likely an attempt to make him look dangerous.
Quickly shaking his head, he handed it back, careful not to say a word.
Peko had been someone he grew up with, someone that knew him likely more than he knew himself. If he said a single thing, it could be all over.
"Are you sure?" She placed her hand over his, pushing the paper back for him to see again. "He wouldn't be hard to miss. Would you please take another look?"
"He said he has not seen him," Kamukura interjected, his voice cold, but still attempting to sound hospitable. "Might you go ask someone else?"
Peko remained silent a long moment before she finally pulled the paper back, folding it gently and tucking it into her sleeve.
"Very well," Finally, it seemed like she was backing off, but the hope didn't last long. She made a gesture to the other nuns that he couldn't see quite so well, and then without warning, Komaeda was being pulled back, losing his footing and falling to the ground.
One of the nuns pulled his hood down, while two more kept Kamukura pinned to the wall.
"Of course," Peko exhaled, almost looking disapointed. "You've always been a reject, you couldn't even hide your hair well enough. I thought that blond looked familiar."
Komaeda had no response, or more like, he was too afraid to talk back. Her eyes turned to the demon, appearing confused before she seemed to understand.
"Ah, release him," She ordered the sister nuns, who were quick to obey and let go of Kamukura. "You won't want to be tainting your fingers with a demon."
As Peko moved close to him, she examined him carefully, then pulled his hood down as well, catching his sharp eyes, filled with more emotion than Komaeda had seen yet.
"A male demon, at that," The woman wiped her hands on her robes, as though merely pulling his hood down was enough for her skin to have been infected. It nearly took him by surprise, Peko not being struck by looking into his eyes as he and Himiko had been. "Chain them both up, we'll execute the demon tonight, and Komaeda in the morning."
"No-!" Komaeda tried to struggle, but a couple nuns quickly held him down. Still, he wouldn't just stand by and let that happen! "You can't kill him, he hasn't done anything wrong!"
"He is a demon!" Peko snapped back, "That is enough! Instead of begging for him, you should be crying for your own life! You're nothing but wasted potential, you could have become a Monk, but you let yourself fall, and you fell so far you summoned a Hell's spirit. Do you know what that means?"
He didn't reply, or couldn't really. Komaeda was biting his lip so hard to make sure he didn't cry in front of her that he though he was going to break skin.
Peko approached slowly, and kneeled beside him, a sad look upon her face,
"I tried to be there when your parents passed away, Father Fuyuhiko and myself, we wanted what was best for you. We trained you so much, and wanted you to grow up being someone we could be proud of. But when you summoned that demon, you rejected not just the Church, but us as people. Where did those eyes so full of hope go?"
He turned away from her for a long minute to think; what was he doing, really?
She was right, they had tried to be there for him, but not in the ways he needed. He needed someone beside him to pull him up, not someone above him to drag him to their expectations.
Well...
Perhaps he figured it out.
Komaeda looked back to her, her red eyes waiting for him to speak. After a long inhale, he looked back to Kamukura, standing on his own, watching the scene before him, as though he were... Waiting for something.
He could have run, could have spread his wings and flown away, and yet he stood there.
"I had nothing to hope for," Komaeda was... No longer talking to Peko. "Nobody accepted me, nobody heard me. I wanted to give up, and turn myself over to death while I was still free of sin. So I summoned a demon. But he didn't hurt me, his words didn't scar my heart like everyone else that spoke to me. And it hasn't been very long yet, but I haven't completed my end of the deal, but he already completed his. For either of us to die now, I couldn't handle it because... Because he's my hope!" He had to lower his eyes, too embarrassed to look at Kamukura as he said that. "He's the only beautiful thing in this world right now, and I'm probably a disgusting fool for falling for him so quickly, but I don't know what I'd do if that one sliver of happiness was taken from me so soon. Please, please don't kill him. We'll go far away, you'd never see me again, I just... I just don't want to lose this hope I'm clinging to."
He didn't realize he was crying until the salt touched his lips, and the nuns remained quiet.
Even Peko stayed silent for a long moment before she sighed and stood up.
"Beautiful words, but I can't let that happen-"
"I was waiting for that," Kamukura interrupted her without a second thought. The man didn't look up as his footsteps came closer. "I felt your heart when you first looked into my eyes. You captured the feelings of a demon when you took my hand and accepted my mark."
Carefully, Komaeda pulled up his shirt sleeve, revealing to the rest of the nuns the black feather etched across his skin. A few gasps were heard, and the nuns holding him quickly let go, but nobody said anything.
"And now that you have returned them with your kiss and words here, that means you belong to me completely."
Looking up at that moment, Komaeda saw the demon features melting back into reality; his horns that stood tall, and his wings that spread out, he almost looked like a dark angel.
"Do you hear me, Komaeda? Do you belong to me?"
"... Yes."
He reached his hand out for the demon to take, and he thought he saw a smile flash over Kamukura's face before he lurched forward, pulling the man into his arms.
Peko gave a cry, but it was already too late to stop them as they took to the sky.