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This journey was truthfully exasperating. The Summoner was very weak and regaining his energy slowly, despite his fairly young age, and the Demon hadn’t been submitted to as mundane a task as walking in many centuries. Even worse, the boy was often too exhausted to march through the whole day as they were trying to get back to the Suou’s family lands, and his demonic companion had no other choice but to take his weight on his back and carry his supposed master this way until the sky started turning violet.
At least the area they were traveling through was pleasant and not too dangerous, with many streams of clear water and old ruins sheltering them for the night. Well… it was giving the Summoner a safe place to rest; the Demon did not need such trivial things. Lately he was brimming with energy, if not for this mortal tied to his leg he would fly far away and perhaps even taunt the entire town with his melodies straight from Hell. Except that would most likely kill the person that he had been carrying on his back for the last couple of days. That would be a horrible waste of the energy he already put into this whole ordeal.
Their journey was moving along quite slowly, but inevitably they were nearing their destination. And the Summoner seemed to get tired even more often. There was a pang of guilt in the Demon’s chest. Did he take so much from this boy that this much was dangerous for his life?
On one of those days, Leo felt that Tsukasa had fallen asleep on his back. He continued walking for a couple of hours, sensing that the sun was still up. Finally, when it was down he stopped by the low, overgrown rock walls, perhaps remnants of someone's old house, and gently put his Summoner on the soft grass, the wall protecting them from being seen from the road.
"Sena isn't going to appear anymore, huh… How dull."
The Demon sighed deeply and looked around for some wood to light up. He didn't have anything better to do, so he might as well prepare some food for the human. He was often taking on the role of his caretaker now out of sheer boredom. He figured that normally it would be a Celestial's role, but their grumpy companion wasn’t able to maintain his form in this world anymore.
Soon enough, with a simple snap of his fingers, the fire was warming up him and the sleeping boy, so he looked at him with a frown, murmured a few words again, and a lump of fresh roasting meat appeared over the fire. That wasn’t too much to put that kid into any sort of a coma or anything, right?
The demon stood up and swiftly moved above the Summoner, observing him in silence, trying to sense for the signs that he was still alive. He could hear the blood rushing in his veins, the whistles of air in his lungs, and - what was the most important - he could feel the weak energy still coursing through Tsukasa’s nerves. He was fine, and soon there was also a small sigh and a grunt, the boy was waking up from his long rest.
“Mnn… What, what are you doing?” He sounded both disturbed and confused, so Leo reached to his blindfold to take a peek at Tsukasa’s face.
“Oh, you’re alive! Just started considering if I should leave you behind here to rot,” the demon answered cheerfully and shrugged his arms then turned, jumping on the top of the collapsing wall. Tsukasa moved slowly and looked around, deciding to not bother with his hellish companion, by now he was used to the demon’s evasive behavior. Then he noticed the roasting meat and slowly sat up while Leo observed him from above in silence.
“You used magic for it, didn’t you.” It wasn’t a question, and the demon was quiet for a moment, thinking of an answer.
“I see no problem. It didn’t kill you, right?” Leo’s voice was slightly defensive and Tsukasa shook his head, a small smile on his face.
“No. I was thinking it’s rather kind of you to prepare a meal for me, Leo,” he said calmly and the demon flinched, hissing quietly.
“I don’t recall letting you use my name now, Summoner,” he growled dangerously, and Tsukasa looked up, his eyes closed, still smiling.
“You disliked your demon name too, and we’re rather close enough now to not send curses when referring to each other, don’t you think?”
“You’re just a half-dead mortal.”
Tsukasa sighed loudly, the look on his face turning sour. Leo sat on the edge of the wall, his legs hanging in the air. He reached to his long hair flowing in the air and put it behind his back and fixed his jacket, exhaling loudly as well.
"You have some nerve, you know? All this cockiness after I carried you for all these hours? No thanks? You made a demon into your packmule, I'm looking forward to being finally free from you and flying away wherever I want to again, wahaha!" He laughed and stood up, taking a few steps left and then right on the wall, his steps light as if the demon didn't weigh anything.
"Ah, truthfully I expected you to leave by now," Tsukasa responded, sitting closer to the fire and wrapping arms around his shoulders, staring into the fire. "Or were you worried? Got scared that a bit of fire can kill me?"
"Tch--." The human sure was starting to feel comfortable around him, wasn’t he? Leo sat down again, but this time facing the other side, putting one leg over another. "You can keep thinking about me whatever you want to, human. I've been keeping you alive for long enough, I don't need to spoonfeed you too, do I?"
There was a chuckle in response.
"No, you certainly don't have to. Thank you, Leo." His name, again. It was making the Demon feel ticklish, and he considered for a second coming down and shutting this little mouth up again. Unfortunately, he couldn't exactly leave either, the boy was way too easy a target to any possible threats, and if he died Leo would have to leave this world as well. He already risked everything once to somehow preserve this kid's existence, and it led to this. He didn't have a simple way out of it anymore.
So there was a silence between them for a long while, and Leo started humming some simple melody to occupy himself. Oh, how much he wished his body needed rest so he could close his eyes for a moment and fade into nothingness instead of being submitted to all this boredom.
"Leo, why won't you come down here to eat and chat?" After a couple of long minutes Tsukasa spoke again, clearly starting to eat the meat from the fire. "Demons can indulge in food, right? And I can't imagine myself getting up there on my own, haha."
The demon decided to ignore him. It seemed like he wasn’t the only one bored, but despite their long journey, it’s not like Leo knew how to interact with mortals. Before this mess in the dungeon, he only appeared around his Summoner as he pleased, usually to just mess with him or to make Izumi more stressed. Most of the time he had been enjoying his time on Earth, until… Why exactly did he stop doing that? Just because of this Summoner who oddly reminded Leo of himself, centuries ago?
He was slowly forgetting about Tsukasa’s offer when he suddenly heard a violent wheeze. It was very rapid and loud, he turned around without thinking even for a moment. Tsukasa was curling in on himself, the piece of meat laying on the grass next to him and his body was shaking as the boy struggled to breathe.
“Summoner?!”
The Demon took off his blindfold to see everything clearly and jumped down, reaching the boy in a split second. He didn’t exactly know what to do, could he even help the suffering mortal? He looked at Tsukasa’s face, all twisted up from coughing. If he asked what he should do, it’s not like the human would respond… He only helped him lean forward more, Leo’s hand gently stroking Tsukasa’s back. His body arched forward, gasping for air. Was he dying? Did the demon use too much magic in the end? He hit his back a couple of times until the coughing finally stopped.
Tsukasa kept quiet for a while, taking deep whistling breaths. Slowly, he turned his head towards Leo. His face was so red it almost matched his hair color, and tears were hanging at the corners of his eyes. Without a doubt, he was in a lot of pain, yet a weak smile curved on his lips.
"You actually care about me," he said quietly, nearly whispering, and Leo straightened up quickly as if he was hit with his own hellish whip.
"Do you want to die so badly?" he hissed, though his eyes were still examining Tsukasa's curled-up body. "I wouldn't even pee over your dead body. If you want proof of that, I can go and drain that rotting flesh out of the last bits of life you have left."
Tsukasa glared at him and the Demon relaxed a little bit. That was more like it. Sena warned him that the Summoner would act quite differently from the naive brat he took to the caves a couple of days ago. Perhaps he had to get used to that impertinent attitude now and put the boy properly in his place once in a while.
"If that is truly the case…" Or so he thought, because Tsukasa spoke again, his voice calm. "Then why are you looking at me like that now…?"
"... What?" Leo was caught completely off guard with that question. Only after a moment, he realized that he wasn't wearing his blindfold, so whatever expression he was making now could be seen by the human very easily.
Sadly, he had no mean or threatening rebuttal prepared, so he just looked away with a scoff and put the laced cloth over his eyes again. Meanwhile, Tsukasa straightened his back and after a second of thought, he laid down on the springly grass behind him.
"Are you feeling guilty, Leo?" he asked emotionlessly. "Is it because of what happened in the dungeon?"
"Are you kidding me now?" This time Leo answered almost immediately, shaking his head. He sat on the ground more comfortably, his legs curled up in front of him as the Demon leaned forward, staring at the fire still crackling on pieces of wood. "Mikejimama would kill both you and Sena. You should feel lucky that it was him anyway. I just got to use a bit of magic to mess around so that pink brat was satisfied… He was pretty sharp though, for your cousin. Is it where all of this family’s intelligence went to? Wahaha!"
"And we have our ancestors to thank for that, right," Tsukasa mumbled in annoyance and rolled away from the demon, perhaps regretting talking to him at all. "And that messing around nearly killed me, but perhaps you forgot about that already."
Leo didn't answer right away, but he glanced to the side where the boy was laying down. His demon eyes were covered and Tsukasa wasn't facing him, so there was no way for him to see the complicated expression Leo was wearing at the moment. It's not like he intended to take any responsibility for what happened, he was still convinced that he saved them, and the fact that Sena put some protective spell on Tsukasa was a lucky coincidence.
But it was a fact that his summoner was in a bad state. His skin was pale, cheeks sunken a bit and there was very little remaining magic coursing through him. Most of this kid's life energy belonged now to Leo, whether any of them wanted it or not. The demon's entire existence craved Tsukasa's mortality, his soul. And he planned to take it for himself and enjoy the rest of his time on Earth before someone pulled him back to Hell.
But now, he realized that Tsukasa had one leg already in Hell as well, and perhaps Leo's plans should be adjusted a little.
Because... the brat wasn't completely indifferent to him now.
The demon groaned loudly, making the boy who’d been looking away for a while flinch in surprise.
"W-what again?" he slipped and turned his head to look at Leo, who was shaking his head, just long hair flapping left and right along with his long, thin tail.
"What? Stop whining and lemme tell you!" the demon exclaimed, pointing his finger at the young summoner. "You're gonna kick the bucket sooner than later, and you're going to Hell, you know? And there is no more shit place than Hell!"
He might have been a demon, but he didn't wish for anyone to end up as a soul tormented in Hell.
Tsukasa didn't answer right away, sitting up as if he wanted to protest, a characteristic defiant look in his eyes. Except it seemed to disappear in a second, his lips trembling as he looked at Leo and to his surprise, large tears fell down the boy's cheeks as he bit down on his lip. Was he… afraid?
"He-hey…"
"Are you satisfied now, then?!" he yelled, and perhaps that was a fatal mistake because together with it, a small whine got released as well. "...I don't want to die, not like this. I haven't done anything wrong, I followed every instruction, and yet… yet…
"What was Onii-sama's sacrifice for?!"
The boy didn't finish, more sobs leaving his lips, and Leo looked away as if giving him at least some dignity. In a situation like this, it was difficult to act like neither of these was his fault. Of course, Leo never had any interest in being summoned, he hardly even sought visits to Earth, perfectly satisfied with getting a taste of mortal pleasures without putting himself in vulnerable positions. He didn't doubt that a bookworm like Tsukasa would never make a careless mistake.
"Dying must be pretty scary, huh…" he said quietly, looking up at the starry sky. It was so different from anything he knew, perhaps even prettier than always-sunny Heaven. "Thinking of, I was your age when I got suddenly thrown to The Void too."
"...The Void?" Despite sobbing, Tsukasa picked up, his voice smaller than ever. "Are you trying to tell me that all that there is after death… is nothingness ?"
"Ahah, no! The Void is the place all young demons go!" Leo shook his head, risking to take a peek if the boy was still crying. "It's the dullest place to exist, I hate it! There is nothing but mist and rocks there, and all these damn brats preying on anyone weaker than them, it's easy to get stuck there. It's far worse than anything in actual Hell, brr."
"..."
The summoner lowered his head and didn't respond, getting lost in his thoughts. Honestly, if Leo heard that from the demon that caused his death, he would be probably horrified as well, guessing how he felt now wasn't so hard for once.
Leo leaned slightly towards the boy, fingers delicately brushing on Tsukasa's cheek as he wiped away his tears. The summoner flinched but didn't reject his touch. It seemed like he didn't have it in himself to be angry anymore. Maybe the thought of dying was just this terrifying.
"Either way, once you're there I'll get you out."
"Hah?!"
The exclamation was so loud the echo carried it into the dead of the night, and this time Tsukasa immediately leaned away, the frown back on his face as if he remembered again who he was talking to. Which was better than tears and sobbing, so the demon smiled a bit. The boy looked quite scandalized, his hands clenched into fists.
"I will punch you," he snapped suddenly. "Keep lying to me and I will no longer care that you're an ancient vicious demon and will smack that crooked smile off your face, even if it were the last thing Tsukasa Suou is going to do in his life."
"Ah…" The demon opened his mouth, but no words escaped his mouth right away. Luckily he put the blindfold back over his eyes already, because he was probably wearing the most stupid and shocked expression on his face. It was something only this mortal was able to do, after long centuries of his life. Leo vaguely wondered if he wasn't in some way weak against this boy, having been summoned by him. But now, he was simply unfair, wasn't he? "Oh, come on! You can pin on me everything that happened to you until now if that makes you feel better about yourself, but have I ever lied to you, stupid?!"
For a six-century-old demon, he suddenly lacked his extensive vocabulary of insults, but the demon was too frustrated, so he only clicked his tongue and stood up, tail smacking the air madly. With one jump he was on the wall of a ruined hut again, crossing his arms on his chest, clearly offended.
Tsukasa first followed his gaze after the demon, but soon it slid down with a heavy sigh. He supposed it was his cue to lay down and get some energy before another day of their journey. He still felt so weak. At least thanks to his companion's care, his stomach wasn't empty and the fire warmed his body up. Surprisingly, without Leo around, he wouldn't get far in this state—.
" Oh, goodness gracious, " The boy gasped in a sudden realization and looked up at the angry demon again. "You truly do care about me, don't you? My fate after death was long decided, or so you said, and all you've done until now, all your strange machinations… You never wanted for me to become a soul tormented in Hell, but one of your brethren." Leo wasn't responding, so Tsukasa swallowed before continuing, doubt clouding his mind for a moment. "I am… I cannot be wrong about this, can I? Even if that was your vile plan, with Onii-sama gone you could just drain my lifeforce to the last bit. And yet we are here… on our own."
The demon continued to be awfully quiet. It was so uncharacteristic Tsukasa had to wonder if he hit the bullseye just this once. Leo was impossible to read this entire time, but one thing was pretty clear. He never actively sought to harm his summoner, and having the excuse of using Tsukasa as an energy source made him never question demon's motives. Assuming that a demon was capable of any form of kindness was like expecting snow in summer, and yet… It felt like the boy was still missing one crucial piece to solve this puzzle.
"Ohh congratulations," Leo finally said something, and Tsukasa looked up at him again. The demon's voice was filled with sarcasm and his wide grin was visible even in the darkness. "It only took you a couple of months to get this, huh. You mortals are so slow."
"Aha!" Tsukasa exclaimed, a cheerfulness he couldn't bring out for a while now back in his voice. Just with this little confirmation, things continued to click nicely in his mind. "You're back to your insults, so I certainly got it right, fufu. So it's not only that it's in your nature, but you also get defensive when someone is to discover your true feelings, and it appears that besides being able to care you're also lo—."
He wasn't meant to finish, even though he was so close to finding that final puzzle piece. The summoner got momentarily lost in his theorizing when the shadow fell above him. Long, hot fingers reached to his cheeks, pulling the boy forward and he only managed to register the dark, lace blindfold covering his vision and the warm touch on his lips. It was invasive and unwelcome, and Tsukasa needed a long second to realize that he got pulled into a kiss. Perhaps the very first one he ever shared with anyone, and it emptied his head of all thoughts, his feelings and shock manifesting on his captive, reddening cheeks. It nearly felt like the demon decided to take the last bits of his life, in the end.
Tsukasa didn't protest, nor did he try to pull away. But perhaps some least defiant part of him accepted at this moment that his life belonged to that powerful, capricious demon with a kind heart and horrible, taunting laughter. Just a little, though.
After long seconds, Leo was the one to lean away, his bastardly smile spread on his face as he pressed his dark nail against Tsukasa's lips slightly, absorbing the sight of a flustered, dumbfounded summoner.
"Shut up and go to sleep, my little Summoner." The low whisper sent a shiver through Tsukasa's body, and he exhaled shakingly when his face was finally freed from Leo's hold. "Or I'll make sure to put you to rest, and you do~n't want that."
Tsukasa nodded, heart fluttering in his chest, and satisfied, the ancient demon got up and in a blink of an eye was sitting on the wall again, his silhouette illuminated by the bright moon, his back turned away as if he was never down on the ground—stealing kisses—in the first place. The boy slowly raised his fingers, tracing his lips which still seemed to burn from the sensation of touching those of a demon, and slowly, he fell back on the grass, the cold under him slowly bringing his thoughts some clarity.
Or maybe it was making him even more stupid, he didn't exactly need to care in his possibly last days of life.
"However, an eternity with you…" Tsukasa Suou mumbled, his voice trembling so much perhaps not even demon ears could decipher it. "... Maybe it wouldn't be that horrible, Leo."