Living With Anti

I: Music Box of Silence

Jack had given Anti a music box as a deal for Anti behaving. Anti thought Jack letting him use his soul and body as Anti's Host and letting him live with Jack was Payment enough, But Jack insisted. Anti listened to the soft, calming, and relaxing music. He felt Comfortable, and not alone as much. But Jack had notice the music from the Box whilst trying to sleep.

It was with great reluctance that Jack woke, turning to stare at the clock that told him it was past midnight. But, the longer he stared at the LED lights, the more he felt awake. Eventually his ears alerted him to the high pitched twinkling sounds that had woken him originally.

Without a second thought, he clambered out of bed and made his way to the hall. Once there, he slowed and padded quietly to the spare bedroom or, more specifically, Antis bedroom. Hed set the room up for the demonic look-alike for two reasons: 1 - so Anti technically had his own room, and 2 - so Anti was well aware that 24-hour cohabitation was not considered appropriate, or acceptable. The last point was a term that the demon actually abided by, surprisingly, and would leave Jack alone at night.

Antis door was open when he reached it, as it always was. He paused at the doorway and peered inside.

He sighed quietly at the sight.

The bedside lamp was on, illuminating the still body on the bed. The demon was curled up at its foot, on top of the sheets, breathing slowly as he stared at the music box that rested by the pillows. The music box was open, making the twinkling sounds that had woken Jack, and a strange figure spun slowly in its center.

This wasn't the first time Antis music box had woken him; for the last month it had played every third night. This wasn't the first time he had stood at the door, either, watching and waiting to see what Anti was up to. But each time the music died, the demon would just continue to lie there, unmoving, and Jack would walk back to his room, feeling slightly concerned for his unwelcome tenant.

Jack stood at the door as the music began to wind down. When it stopped, he remained still. He knew this was the part where he should just walk back to his room, he knew Anti wouldn't set it off again, but, for some reason, he didn't want to move. A part of him wanted to enter the room, wanted to talk with Anti, or do something at the very least.

Just as he was about to lose his nerve, and go back to bed, a shuddering breath broke the silence and Anti trembled for a moment. It was just a moment, and the trembling was only slight, but Jacks concern bolstered his courage and he carefully, quietly, pushed the door open and entered the room.

He paused for a moment, fully expecting Anti to have noticed him and snapped at him, or yelled, or got up in his face and demanded that he get out. But, nothing happened. Anti didn't seemed to have noticed anything. Jack then slowly made his way to beside the bed and sat down on the floor, his back to the bedside table and the lamp.

He watched the demon finally realize that he wasn't alone. He visibly tensed for a moment before recognizing his host, before relaxing slightly. But, there was still a wariness in his eyes that hadn't been there before.

Hoping it would be seen as a peace-offering, Jack carefully reached out to the music box and slowly wound it up again, before placing it softly back onto the bed. Antis eyes instantly flickered to the box and softened, before returning to Jack. He frowned slightly, clearly confused but not wanting to break the silence between the pair of them. In response, Jack gently pushed the box further onto the bed, folded his arms on the mattress edge and rested his head on them, staring at the box and watching the figure spin. From the corner of his eye, he could see Anti returned his own attention to the music box.

The pair of them remained motionless while the music box played for a second time that night. Occasionally, they would glance at the other, wondering what they were thinking, but inevitably returning to the music. When the music died again, Jack looked to Anti, hoping for a hint on what he should do. Anti stared back for a few moments, before blinking and returning his gaze to the silent box.

Deciding that that was what Anti wanted, he wound the music box and let it play for a third time. He watched the demon, uncertain of what to make of the vulnerability he could sense. He felt like he could ask Anti anything, and he would get a straight answer regardless of the question. But, even as questions flooded his mind, he also felt like asking anything was a huge breach of trust this strange creature had with him. Even a generic is everything okay felt wrong to ask. So, he decided to stay silent and watched the figure spin.

As the music box fell silent once more, Jack turned to the demon and found that his look-alike had finally fallen asleep. Anti twitched slightly, but he was, without a doubt, sleeping deeply.

Jack smiled softly and carefully picked up the music box, closing its lid and resting it safely on the bedside table. He opened a drawer and pulled out a spare blanket that was stored in it. Slowly, so as to not wake him, he draped the blanket across Anti up to his shoulders, even tucking it in slightly where a draft might get underneath. Then, once he was sure Anti wasn't going to suddenly wake up on him, Jack turned the lamp off, closed the door, and finally made his own way back to bed.