Chapter Text
Leonard was his longtime friend for the past few centuries, beginning from the time he’d taken him and M.O.T.H.E.R. under his wing as per the previous Demon King’s, Lord Midnight, request. So, of course he prided himself in knowing Leonard the most out of all the demons that his friend was now closely acquainted with.
Only he (well, there was M.O.T.H.E.R. and Lord Midnight as well but they weren’t as active in the current Leonard’s life like he was despite his need for twenty hours of sleep per day) knew of the much younger and unruly Leonard with a temper so quick he’d beat up their colleagues for it. The good old days used to be both entertaining and troubling, all thanks to it. It usually occurred whenever they encountered some demons whispering behind their backs, discreetly (but not really, if you asked him) complaining about Leonard’s country bumpkin ways possibly staining the image that the former Demon Castle used to so proudly uphold. This would more often than not set his friend off into itching badly to beat up others to a bloody pulp just for badmouthing him and a brawl will then break out. Whenever such a thing happened, he’d grab himself a nearby chair and spectate the entirety of it until a responsible someone urged him to stop lazing around and break apart Leonard and his opponent/s.
But those old ordinaries could never last long as change was an inevitable entity that will happen to anyone. And Leonard was no exception to it…
Especially when the latter wished to change himself for the better, so he could fit in better with the rest of them and that there was no need for a resignation letter to land on their monarch’s, at the time, claws. He still remembered the trials and hardships that Leonard went through in trying to improve himself to be more patient, amicable, considerate, and with a serene smile on his face. It was by no means an easy task for his friend, but he was truly happy and glad for him when he pulled through to achieve just that.
Even if he hardly played a part in helping him out, but it was for the best if his friend wanted to do it himself. Still, he didn’t regret to at least give him some moral support whenever he was on the brink of giving up. Each and every time. And as Leonard grew accustomed to his new self, he could see others gradually flock to his friend with none of that hostility but a friendly approach instead. With each of those approaches increasingly becoming more frequent, the latter also grew to appreciate the person, though indefinite and still new at first, he had come to be.
Until he was the Demon Cleric that everyone so respected and was fond of.
But that didn’t mean those would never come with a cost.
Although he never voiced such concerns to Leonard even up to now, there came lingering feelings of unpleasantness when spending time with him. When others hadn’t noticed the tendency that something was amiss with him, he did as one of his oldest friends; at times, the kind personality that Leonard adapted to felt too forced and flat that made him think twice at the thought of him not living life to the fullest.
No matter how wild and aggressive the younger Leonard was as he remembered him to be, at least he was enjoying life as one should. But the current Leonard? Sometimes, it seemed like he was looking at a marionette doing its routinely functions instead of a real, living person; the mere thought of it frightened him enough to consider the idea that one day… perhaps something dreadful might happen to his friend to the point of no return in his own pursuit of perfection–
Hold on, what was he thinking? The desperate need for sleep must be getting to him to even let himself entertain such a notion. And so, Hypnos slumbered the usual twenties hours away then resumed his thinking with the firm exclusion of the last bits, only vaguely mentioning them. For as much as he could.
But then again, perhaps he was just overthinking it all. That he shouldn’t worry so much that he could barely recognize him anymore and instead, accept the new him. After all, Leonard got what he truly wanted; to not only fit in Demon Castle, but to also have a place he belonged to. He achieved it and only kept bettering himself in the aspect he deemed to be necessary for him and everyone else. Even now, in the current Demon Castle, he was quite a positive influence on its residents… though it was a wonder as to whether or not his friend and they realized that fact.
But even then, it was a fact made true and evident in his very own eyes.
With that being said, he Hypnos was at loss; even if he wanted to continue supporting Leonard, a small part of him still hoped for him to even try livening it up a little. Like, you know, try not to be so painfully embarrassed over his own favorite band, Evil Cry, and his fashion interest in punk or metal. At this point of time, he kept disregarding those little aspects, that still stayed with him, in favor of maintaining his reputation and image as the Demon Cleric. All to his chagrin and that in itself was surprising given that he, the personification of sleep, wasn’t the kind of person to be peeved at anything.
And you know what? The denizens of the current Demon Castle didn’t even know his real name, Leonard, because his friend was so desperately hiding it from them! He wasn’t even certain if the current Demon King and Great Red knew of this because Leonard might have very well went through such lengths for his name to be made confidential.
It was an awfully painful sight to see him keep doing this to himself. But alas, there was nothing he could do. His friend will be stubborn about it, after all. All he could hope was maybe, just maybe there will be something or someone that could make him feel alive and to let go of some of those unreasonable fears Leonard had if he wasn’t keeping up with his Demon Cleric persona to a complete absolute.
If only that was made possible...