The Short Demon King

Chapter 19

The backyard door slid open. Kevin poked his head out to check I was still there, then slowly stepped outside. He carried a small plate of food with him.

"Want some?" he asked.

"Sure..." I answered cautiously.

I took the plate from him and ate very slowly, looking up occasionally to check if he left or not. He fidgeted with his shirt's sleeves, contemplating what to say next.

"Maya and I talked it out before she left... and we decided it would help us figure out what to do if we knew a bit more about you and your... kind? Is that what you call the other demons?"

I finished chewing and stabilized the plate on my lap. At this point I had no reason to withhold information from them, so I might as well explain all of it.

"I guess you could call them that," I answered.

"Are there other creatures like you? Other... realms?"

I nodded. "From what I've been told, there are four realms. The Living Realm, Soul Realm, Demonic Realm, and Angelic Realm."

"A Soul Realm?"

"Yeah, it's what connects my realm to that of the angels. It's where human souls end up after they die. And it's believed to be what formed the other two connected to it. I've never been there myself though, so I can't tell you much about it or the Angelic Realm."

"Oh wow. That's... a lot to take in." Kevin hesitated, the gears in his mind turning as he struggled to make sense of it all. "Wait, is that how you understand my language and such?"

"Yep, demons know every language you humans created based on our interactions with souls. We don't have a good way to write though, so I can't really read well. We aren't really known for our general intellect anyway. We mostly focus on physical strength to survive."

"And that's why you have such long fangs?"

"Exactly. The strong survive and the weak die. That's also why I have heightened senses."

"That's how you kept hearing me wake up each morning!" he realized.

"Yep, and why I freaked out at the party. I'm sure Maya told you about that too."

"I almost forgot about that with everything else going on! That must've been really tough to adjust to... Are you alright now?"

I froze for a minute, completely caught off guard.

He still cared. Kevin still cared about my well-being despite everything that transpired. Despite what I truly was. How did I ever get lucky enough to stumble upon such nice humans?

"Thanks for your concern," I couldn't help but smile, "but I'm better now. Especially after getting to talk to you like this. How do you always manage to soothe my nerves?"

He blinked a couple times, before stuttering, "I- uh... don't know? I didn't know- I mean, I had no idea I did that..."

"Sorry, didn't mean to confuse you. It's just nice talking to you. That's all. I'll miss it when you eventually kick me out."

"Hey! Who said we were kicking you out?"

"Well I just assumed you were. Why would you ever let a monster stay in your house? Don't you think I'm dangerous?"

Kevin leaned back against his chair and stared at the sky. He contemplated his response for a bit. I watched him, curious what went through his head.

He finally looked back at me and answered, "I think... I think you could be dangerous. But that doesn't make you a complete monster. You may be stronger than us, but what would be the point of attacking us? Didn't you say you needed help finding a way home?"