Chapter Text
Tommy tapped away mindlessly on his phone. Scrolling through his socials in an attempt to keep himself from falling asleep. Entertaining his mind with meaningless opinions of politicians with too much time on their hands. He could not help but laugh at the endless slander they spoke about their fellow peers. In person, these people were respectful and polite with one another. But the moment they were behind a screen, all of them went away without a moment's notice.
He sat on a stool, perfectly positioned so he could lean his whole body against the cashier counter. Propping his elbows up on it to get a better angle to stare at his phone, it also helped the soreness that settles into his limbs.
He had been working for almost eight hours already. Stocking shelves and helping the occasional customer that strolled through the aisles. The convenience store was usually very quiet at this hour. Most sane people would be curled up in their beds.
Tommy was luckily not sane, he liked working this late at night. Aside from the occasional drunk or insomniac that stumbled on, it was quiet. He prefered it that way, no annoying exchanging of meaningless pleasantries or forcing to smile at strangers he would never see again.
At this hour the streets were dead quiet, apart from the rain that had begun to flood the streets. He could hear the rain fall from the roof onto the sidewalk just out the window. It was a comforting sound. Tommy always enjoyed the rain, but he was already beginning to dread the impending walk home.
He let out a long sigh as he grew tired of the media, though he was content to happily sit on his phone for most of his shift. He would rather at least find something entertaining. So he decided to scroll through trending, determined to find anything to catch his drifting attention.
Then he spotted it, a news article. Tommy had never been one for the news. He prefered to ignore the strings of murders and thefts that constantly took place in the city.
Even now, he watched as police vehicles raced past the store. Their lights blinding and sirens blaring as they drove through the streets. Tommy could not help but notice that not only one vehicle drove by, but three in quick succession. He shrugged it off once they were far enough away that he could barely hear them.
The photo on the article was what the press had started to call a "Daemon." Monster Like creatures that had started to make a sudden appearance in the streets of L'manburg.
This one in particular was strange, it almost resembled a giant raven. Black feathers coating it's human-like body structure, the feathers attached to its limbs elongated to look more similar to wings than actual arms. The legs on the creature looked dangerously thin, almost like it was walking on toothpicks. The legs ended with a set of massive talons that looked as if it would cut through bone like butter. The strangest part had to be the face, it's massive beak and sunken eyes that just clearly screamed monster. It perched threateningly on top of a police cruiser.
Tommy shuttered as he read the article, the photo of the Daemon now engraved into his mind. He pressed play on the video, the photo unchanging as the man behind the camera spoke.
"This Bird like Daemon was spotted near the southern end of the city, local authorities tried to terminate the creature but we're unsuccessful. Leaving two officers dead and nine critically injured. It was last seen headed west. Citizens have advised that If you spot it in your local areas. Please retreat to a safe location and call 911, as soon as it is safe to do so. Whatever you do, do not engage."
The video stopped.
There had been sightings of Daemons in the past, Tommy remembers hearing something about a couple of them walking around the streets of L'manburg. He had hardly paid attention to any of it.
From what he gathered of the creatures, they were usually monstrous animals. They still had very humanoid bodies along with hands and opposable thumbs, but their legs took the shape of the animal they presented. For Bird like ones it was long thin legs that were covered in what almost looked like scales. For more beasts like had fur that covered their entire legs, a bending of bone down the centre of the calf before met with a paw or hoof.
The worst part was their faces, the most animalistic part about them. But unlike normal animals, their faces were misshapen in some way. For the bird like Daemon it was the sunken eyes that seemed to have no pupil, just a blackness that terrified him to no end.
His phone alarm went off, almost startling him out of his seat. He must have gotten lost in thought because before he knew it, it was time to close. He let out a sigh of relief as he grabbed his bag, a red one he had since middle school. There was nothing special about its appearance, just a cheap bag one could easily buy from Walmart and yet it still held a special place in his heart. He guessed he was just a tad sentimental.
He opened it and shoved his water bottle inside, along with all the other things he thought he would need to survive. A few granola bars that were 100% expired but food was still food, his wallet that held just a bit of cash, and a first aid kit he had stolen from the highschool nurse. He needed it more than she did, she had like 20. He was sure one going missing would not cause too much trouble.
He shoved on his hoodie, slinging his backpack off one shoulder as he switched off the open sign. Turning off a lot of the lights in the store before making his way outside. The rain fall started to hit against his hoodie and bag the second he was on the sidewalk. He locked the door with the key he had attached to his phone.
After making sure it was locked, he took no time to start making his way back home. The wind already felt as though it was cutting though his body. He shuttered from the cold, tucking his hands on his pockets to try and reserve body heat, last thing he needed was a cold.
The water under his shoes sloshed with each step, the rain seeping into his running shoes. He should have read the weather broadcast this morning, at least then he could have dressed warmer. Maybe he should start leaving his boots in his bag so this could be avoided. His rain boots did have a few holes in them, everything he owned had holes in them, But at least would have lasted longer than his runners had.
He tried not to think about the wetness of his socks or the rain that seeped into his hoodie, his gaze trained in the ground as he walked. He just needed to think of something else, to let his mind wander as his instincts guided him home.
"Help"
Tommy stopped dead in his tracks, the voice was so quiet. Almost like a whisper was spoken against his ear, it made him shutter and his body go tense. He raised his head to look around, only to see no one. His gaze moved to stare down the alley way he found himself in front of. He waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness before he could see something. It was laying back against the furthest wall, leaning back against it.
Was someone injured? Was this some strange trap? His heart started to pound heavily in his chest as he found himself walking closer to the creature. Despite his best efforts he always had a soft spot for helping people when he could. It was something that was going to lead him to his grave one day.
"Hello?" He called out softly, "are you alright? I heard you call for help." He was so very cautious with his footing, taking each step carefully as if not to disturb the person too much. He could not ignore the panic that began to rise in his throat, the way his body tensed and even how his body began to sweat despite the rain.
He watched as once he got close enough, the creature raised its head to look at him. Tommy could feel the fear clawing his chest
Before him sat a hog-like creature, it's fur was a soft pink. It wore a simple white button up shirt that was torn and destroyed. Its black pants lie awkwardly against its misshapen legs, also seemingly torn. It's clothes were far too casual, like any other person would wear. It stared at him with blood red eyes, eyes that promised violence.
It's face was mainly boar-like, it's snout held a septum piercing that was more akin to a bull. The golden piercing was the only thing that still glimmered in the dead of night. What scared Tommy the most about this creature was the fact it was covered in blood, the smell alone making bile rise in his throat. Blood dropped from its mouth, making its pink fur a deep red. The most amount of blood laid along its long tusks, and the right shoulder that it held into protectively.
It looked just as startled to see him. It's eyes glaring daggers into his own. Even as panic overtook him, he could not help but feel bad for the thing. Animals always held a soft spot in his heart, he had crows that could sit against his apartment window. Occasionally giving him shiny gifts in exchange for food, not to mention the stray cat Clementine that was happily curled up sleeping on his couch.
So Tommy did just that, he tried to imagine the beast as a regular pig. Just a small thing that was injured and needed his help to recover, Tommy had always wanted to become a veterinarian.
He took a deep breath as stepped closer, trying to approach it as if it was a feral kitten. He lowered himself closer to the ground, it's gaze following him as he slowly approached. He lowered his voice as he tried to speak to it, but it took him a moment to find his voice through the panic.
"I-It's okay, I j-just want to help you." Tommy jumped when it grunted in response. Tommy moved to kneel in front of the creature, the wetness on the asphalt instantly sinking into his jeans. Setting his bag down as it started at him with an untrusting look.
"I have a first aid kit in my bag, I have no idea if anything in it will help. Your shoulder is bleeding pretty bad and there is a lot of blood on your body. I have no idea what other injuries you have." He pulled the first-aid kit out of his bag, opening it to inspect what he had. The creature seemed to lean forward slightly, causing Tommy to instantly react by flinching. It stared down at the first aid kit's contents before leaning back with a chuff, it almost sounded like a laugh. Tommy knew that the small first aid kit did not contain much to help, though he did have more stuff at home.
Normally when Tommy found an animal that was too injured to walk on its own, he would take it back to his apartment. Let it relax without the elements to worry about, especially with the rain coming down as hard as it did. The thought of bringing this creature home was terrifying, having to help the Daemon to his apartment. Would it try to kill him?
To be honest though, Tommy was freezing. The air was too cold to be in for long. If he tried to treat the creature here, it would probably die from the elements if not it's own wounds. Tommy would probably catch a fever that he did not want. So with a sigh, he pulled a few bandages from the kit along with a cloth before he closed it. He places it back in his bag before shaking his head.
"I can't fucking believe I'm going to do this, but I'm going to need you to walk. If we stay out here for long I am going to freeze. This weather shit. So, if you can understand me. I need you to help me get someplace dry, my apartment is just up the road." The creature's gaze turned to one of confusion before immediate distrust. They both had that in common, neither trusting of the other. There was a long moment after Tommy had spoken before the creature slowly tried to rise to its feet. Tommy could not hide his shock that the creature actually understood him. The rain on its body mixed with the blood as it dripped to the ground. It grunted in pain as it tried to use both legs to stand, Tommy could clearly see the wound that laid against its left leg.
Tommy winced as he leaned down, trying to inspect the wound. This caused a growl from the creature, it pulled it's injured leg away with a huff causing a cloud of hot breath to puff out its nose. Tommy sat there for a moment, just staring up at the creature.
"Look, you don't have to trust me. Fuck, I don't even trust you. But unless you wanna bleed out while we walk I need to at least bandage your wounds." Tommy could not hide the fear that thread it's was though his words, he was fucking terrified of the Daemon that towered over him. It looked reluctant as it slowly brought it's injured leg back into Tommy's reach.
It was clearly a bullet wound, Tommy grimaces at the fact that the bullet was probably still in its leg. He had no way to remove it safely standing out in the alleyway, so instead he used the cloth in his hand to add pressure to the wound. This caused the creature to hiss in pain but not pull away. Tommy wrapped its leg with the few bandages he had, just enough to hopefully slow down the bleeding but not enough to cut off circulation.
He sighed as he rose to his feet, inspecting the daemon one more time. The wound on its shoulder was going to be another problem, but it held it so protectively. It was putting pressure on the wound. Tommy held the cloth out to the beast.
"If you are not going to let me bandage your shoulder, can you at least use this to apply pressure." The beast hesitated for a moment before taking the cloth. Tommy picked up his backpack and sling it along his shoulder, starting to try to show the creature to his home.
God, This feels so wrong.
"We better get going." Tommy started to make his way out of the alleyway, stopping when he heard a few pained grunts behind him. The daemon was slowly following, though with an injured leg it was not going quick enough for Tommy's liking. He let out a huff before he walked back to it, being cautious as he slid an arm around its waist. It noticed his support and wrapped the injured arm around his figure.
Tommy was shocked at its size compared to him. Tommy was at least 6 feet tall and yet this creature towered over him, it let Tommy carry some of its own bodyweight. He let out a grunt as he braced against it.
Once they shifted enough for both of them to walk without too much trouble, they began to make their way up the road. Tommy could not lie, this thing weighs a lot, it was clearly made from pure muscle unlike a regular pig. He had not noticed it before, but now that he was this close to the creature. He could hear the rattling of his breath, could feel how the ribs did not feel quite right in its chest. Tommy wondered how this thing was still walking, it lost a lot of blood and from what he could tell. It had a few broken bones.
Tommy could see the apartment doors just up ahead but there was no way he was going to take the creature through the front door. So instead he gestured to the alleyway, the creature held no resistance as it followed his footsteps. Tommy had done this many times before, mainly to avoid his landlord or other residents of the building. There hardly was any because the place was clearly a safety hazard, but it was cheap and cosy enough for Tommy. It was better than the streets or a fucking foster home.
He let the creature go for a moment, letting it lean up against the wall. Tommy placed his bag down on the ground by its feet. Slowly he climbed the dumpster that was right across the fire escape. The creature watched as Tommy jumped, as far as he could. He heard it chuff in shock as Tommy's hand connected with the ladder, it clicked before it fell. A loud metal shing as it connected with the asphalt. Tommy turned to look at the creature, it had its hand extended as if it was trying to reach out and grab him before he hit the ground. Tommy raised a brow before he picked up his bag.
"Come on, we have a few stairs to climb. Probably going to hurt like a bitch, but I can't just take you through the fucking front door." It groaned in response, something almost human sounding. Tommy could not help but chuckle under his breath as he started to climb the ladder, he offered his hand to the beast but it declined.
Tommy could not support the creature while going up the fire escape. There was not enough room for the both of them to stand side by side, but the fire escape also had railing to support them both. It was a good thing because a few times Tommy could hear the beast's hooves slip on the metal followed by a pained grunt. Tommy slipped a couple times himself, the rain being a pain in the ass. He noticed how the daemons' breathing seemed to only get worse as he climbed. He would have to check his lungs when they were both inside.
As soon as they were in front of his living room window, he opened it with ease. Climbing inside and letting out a breath as he could feel the heat of the dry apartment. He took no time to strip himself of his wet shoes and hoodie. He needed a moment to relish in the comfort of his tiny apartment. Before he was suddenly in vet mode, gathering the materials he would need to treat the daemons' wounds. He could hear a loud thud as the beast's hooves connected with the hardwood floor.
Tommy set a few towels down on the couch, hoping to at least try and preserve what little function it had left. He apologised to Clementine as he moved her to make room, she meowed out in protest as he set her down.
"Come sit," He commanded the beast. Feeling relaxed as the creature made no move to fight back. Tommy stared at it for a moment, the weight of the situation suddenly crashing down on him. There was a Daemon in his home, one of the most terrifying beasts to ever cross L'manburgs streets. Just casually sitting on his couch as if this was a normal situation. Not only that, but it was expecting him to help it.
He took in a shuddering breath as he finished gathering what he needed. He spread all his supplies onto the coffee table, watching as it clattered together in front of him. He watched as the creature leaned back against the couch, it looked so exhausted.
"Hey, look. I know you're probably tired but I need you to take off your shirt. I won't ask you to take off your pants cause, that's fucking weird but we can roll them up so it's not covering your bullet wound." It raised a brow at him and Tommy rolled his eyes.
"Alright then, freeze to death. Make my job of actually treating you harder than it needs to be. It's not like i just let a beast into my fucking home." Tommy froze after he spoke, he let his guard drop too much. The creature already made it clear it could understand him, if he was even the slightest bit disrespectful would it waste no time to murder him. He sighed at the water and blood that covered his apartment floor, he would have to clean that up later.
When he walked back to sit in front of the beast, it had stripped off its shirt and was in the middle of rolling up its pants. Besides the large amount of muscle that covered its chest and scarring, its body looked far too human. The hands were like any regular person, a little larger to be sure. It shocked him that if he thought about it, he could clearly see a human side to the beast. The way it's face would twist with very human-like expressions.
The media depicted these beasts as nothing but monsters, that would tear people apart without a second thought. Yet, it had clearly shown concern for his risky actions, it had shown fear when he first approached it in the alleyway. He knew the media lied about a lot of things, how true had they been about the Daemons. He shook off the thought as he picked up a dry towel and handed it to the creature.
"You should probably dry off and clean that blood off, I don't need you more fucking blood in my apartment than needed." It's gaze wandered to the window, the blood and water that trailed all the way to the couch it sat on. Tommy watched as its pig-like ears lowered just a bit, as if feeling bad for the mess.
Tommy grabbed another small washcloth and positioned himself next to the beast's injured leg. Trying to clean off as much as he could so it would not dry to the creature's fur, the bandages had already been bled through. He unwrapped them and threw them in a trash can he had already brought over from the kitchen. He inspected the wound as best he could without disturbing the wound, he had to get the bullet out of there which was not going to be a pretty process. Tommy was just glad he was able to steal what he needed to treat any wounds. He did not have the best of supplies to work with, but it would have to work for now.
He grabbed the tweezers off the table as he took the beast's hoof into his lap. Trying to steady his trembling hands, he pulled a bottle of water off the table.
"This is gonna hurt," He warned as he looked up at the beast, it was in the middle of cleaning it's hair. The towel was covered in blood as it looked down at him. It looked less than pleased as it wiped the blood from its mouth, letting out a huff.
'You're not going to kill me for hurting you… are you?" It was a question that had been weighing on Tommy's mind. He had no idea what the creature's reaction would be to pain, would it just attack him as a response like the few cats he had treated in the past. It stared at him as if pondering the question, it looked like it was trying to find a way to answer him. Before slowly it reached out towards him, Tommy could not help but flinch as it placed its large hand on his head. It ruffed his hair awkwardly, this creature clearly was not very social. Though he guessed he appreciated the gesture.
"I'm guessing you can't speak." It nodded in response as it pulled it's hand back, Tommy could feel a part of him crave for the beast to place it's hand back. He was just a bit touch starved and if he closed his eyes, he could imagine it was someone else and not some creature that sat on his couch.
"Alright, let's treat these wounds before you pass out from blood loss." It chuffed in response as Tomy focused his attention back to the bullet wound, he bit his lip as he poured the water onto it. He recoiled slightly when it let out a hiss of pain, he had to at least try to clean the wound.
Tommy paused for a brief moment, letting himself calm down as he took a deep inhale of breath. As carefully as he could, he pressed the tweezers against the bullet. He could just see it with what light he had in the room, he had to use a bit of pressure to actually motion the wound out of its leg. Just thankful that it did not hit the creature's bone. It took him a minute before he got a good grasp of the foren object, pulling it out with steady hands. The creature's breath had increased and was gripping the couch so tightly its knuckles turned white, it let out a few hisses of pain as Tommy pulled the bullet out.
He placed the bullet on the table and poured more water onto the wound, before being pressed a bandage to the area. There was nothing for him to try and attempt to stitch together so all he could do was disinfectant it and wrap it in bandages. Though once he had finished wrapping it, the creature let out a breath. Feeling some of the pain it was in lifted with the removal of the foren object.
Tommy realised his shirt was probably covered in blood, but he had no time to worry about it now as he moved to inspect its shoulder.
The creature had stopped holding the wound so protectively once they were in the apartment. From what Tommy could tell, it was a stab wound and not from a bullet. It was odd that the creature had been stabbed of all things, he tried not to think about it too hard as he poured water onto the wound. He wished he had something better than water to work with for cleaning, but cleaning it with water was better than not cleaning it at all.
He tried not to focus on the way the beast was watching his movements. It watched as he used alcohol to clean a sewing needle, then thread some plastic thread through it. The thread was something made for bracelet making, but it was a safer option than actual sewing thread. Tommy noticed how the beast had leaned forward to grab the bottle of alcohol, inspecting it before it moved to pour some on its wound.
"No!" Tommy called out before it could actually pour any on its skin. He grabbed the beast's wrist in a quick movement. It made a growl at him that caused fear to crawl up Tommy's spine, but he refused to let go.
"Don't be a fucking idiot," he hissed "its only for cleaning my tools, if you pour that on your wound it will only make it worst. It kills the bacteria for sure, but will also kill the cells that are trying to repair your wound." It stared at him, as if considering him for a moment before slowly moving to place the bottle back on the table after Tommy had let go of its wrist.
It huffed in annoyance as it leaned back against the couch, looking out the window instead as Tommy moved to attempt to see up the stab wound. He jumped every time the creature winced in pain, Tommy wished he had something to numb the beast with but besides his cleaning alcohol there was not really anything he had to do. It was a painful process from the both of them but Tommy managed to sew up the wound pretty nicely. He took a moment to look at his work, it was by far not professionally done but he never really had practice. He had watched a few videos on stitching protocol but that was about it. He wrapped its shoulder in bandages.
He took a step back and looked at his work, the bandages on the creature's leg and shoulder. He did not notice any other major wounds that needed immediate help, only a few scratches and bruises that he could do nothing about. He did notice a small cut on the creature's snout.
Tommy grabbed a blanket off the back of the kitchen chair, wrapping it over the beast. He then placed a small band aid on the creature's snout. It looked at him with confusion and raised a brow.
"What? I'm treating you for shock and being a good doctor." He proclaimed proudly as he took off his bloody shirt, replacing it with a dry one. It was a black shirt, a dog sat on the front of it wearing shades. The text below says Looking Cool.
He smiled as sat down on the floor again sitting across from the beast. It was only then that he realised how tired he was. Exhaustion washed over him without a moment's notice, but there was no way he could sleep now. They sat in silence, the only sound was the rain that pounded against the window and an occasional shifting from either of them. Normally Tommy had no problems filling the silence with conversation, but it has been a while since he had talked to anyone outside of work hours. It would be more difficult with someone who was unable to speak.
Tommy suddenly got a great idea, would it work? He had no clue. He opened his bag and pulled out a notebook, along with a few different coloured pens from his school days. He offered them to the beast who looked just as exhausted as he did. It's gaze landing on the book before slowly tracking out to take it.
"I thought since you can't talk, maybe you could write? You don't seem the most social to be honest, but I would like to at least know that I won't be murdered in my sleep or if you have any questions. I don't fucking know. This is so weird." He ran a hand across the back of his neck as it stared down at the book. It took a moment before it started to write on the notebook. Once it was done it held it so Tommy could read it.
Yes, I can write. No, I am not going to murder you in your sleep.
Tommy could not help but laugh softly to himself, it was strange it was able to write at all but it wrote in a very beautiful cursive. His own handwriting was not even that good.
"Well, that I guess is a little more comforting. But you still kinda fucking freak me out." It huffed in response, before returning it's attention back to the book.
Why then help me?
Tommy had to ponder that question for a moment, to be honest he had no idea himself. He only acted on impulse, like he did the first time he had brought an injured crow home to nurture it back to health.
"I really don't know. I guess I just fucking felt bad. I would not be able to forgive myself if you fucking died in that alleyway. No one deserves a death like that. Not even, your kind."
An uncomfortable silence fell between the two of them, tension feeling heavy in the air. It had to only be a couple minutes before the beast was back to writing on the notebook again.
What is your name?
He could not help but scoff at the question
"The names Tommy, what about you?" The beast took a moment to think. Tommy found it strange that the beast seemed to hesitate giving out its own name.
Blade
"The fuck kind of a name is Blade?" It shrugged in response.
"So, Blade. If you don't mind me asking. What the fuck happened?" It seemed tense at the question, clearly not wanting to relive the events of the night.
Was attacked, then shot by police.
Tommy seemed to recall the police vehicles that had driven by the store, did they shoot it? And if they did, where were they now. Probably either dead or wounded if Tommy had to guess, it made his stomach tighten. He thought back to the blood that was on the creature's tusks when he had found him in the alleyway.
"Are you hungry at all? Cause I'm fucking starving." Tommy announced as he walked to his kitchen, he did not wait for an answer as he turned on the kettle. Reaching into the cabinet and pulling out two cups of instant ramen. He also pulled out a mug and filled it with water, offering it to the beast who took it with a small nod. Probably something like a thank you that went unspoken.
Tommy waited for the water to boil before pouring it into the ramen cups, bringing them over and setting them on the table. The beast seemed to have moved what towels laid across the couch and carefully placed them on the floor. For being a creature that terrified the city and murdered people, it was a very polite house guest.
Though the ramen was far too hot to eat, Tommy did not care. He eats it quickly, settling the pained anger on his empty stomach. The beast seemed to agree with the silent statement, happily eating at the food given to him. Tommy turns on the small tv that sat across from them, switching through channels before leaving it on a nature documentary. He watched them often, finding entertainment in the knowledge he gained from them. This particular one was focused on the nature of lions.
He pulled his knees to his chest, resting his head against them. As he watched the tv, his quiet company seemed to disappear as his exhaustion claimed his body. Before he is able to stop himself, he closes his eyes and drifts. The events of the night fading to the back of his mind, hopefully for a peaceful rest. Last thing he needed was more nightmares.