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For as long as they could remember, the Gaap family had access to the place where their ancestors first gained their silver coats and their Wind Blades.
It was frozen over now, the lush lake surrounded by pillars of stone and greenery dull and grey. Solid blue ice as far down as the lake went was only broken up by patches of snow on top and the top part of underwater columns just barely visible from above the ice. Ice willows lined the lake, their silvery leaves paying homage to events long passed and snowglides snoozed in the branches, purring deep purrs that echoed the lake around which they lived.
Normally, that would make a place beautiful. And it was indeed still beautiful, visually.
What nobody would tell anyone was that the lake was alive.
It sang deep hums that shot through the earth around it. It groaned, creaks that rattled the ice. It whispered, “Come find me” to anyone who listened properly, and screamed “go away” to those that dared take it lightly.
So far, only Goemon Gaap’s family had ever tried to listen. Pondering the depths, meditating with the Song of Ice surrounding them, the lake called “Crystal Eye” watched over them as they slept for the Gaap family coming of age ceremony. Slept on the banks of the frozen lake.
The song the ice sang was unnatural for demons. They were the ones in control, they were the ultimate apex predators who could change the weather if they saw fit, bring about life and death. When it rained it was believed that a powerful water elemental was distraught. When it snowed the Crocell’s were nearby, and when a cloud vanished it was the will of a higher demon.
It was believed that nobody could create a truly haunting song, no singular demon could hum with such power as to make the lake tremble in fear, just as it terrified countless Gaaps. Yet here, a sound like no other played constantly.
Gaap had been there for his coming of age ceremony, and a couple of other occasions, and each time, the sound bore its way into his soul. He couldn’t sleep next to the lake like his grandma could. His father had only ever managed one step onto the ice before cowering back as it spoke. Those who were coming of age could pull back their silver coat for their family and demonstrate the power of their wind blade and could sleep (or stay awake) on the lake banking like a normal demon. Gaap didn’t sleep that night.
Those who were brave could try to walk across. Nobody had ever made it the full way across. Even his grandma had trouble with ten metres. The surface to cross was fifty meters, so the bravest member of his family ever only reaching ten metres meant that he had no chance of walking across it in his lifetime.
It was a weird day that day. It was fully clouded over in a homogenous grey. Gaap had gone out to meditate again with his ear-muffs when he saw something through the trees: a basket.
A singular picnic basket sat next to the lake, along with a chequered blanket, a cushion and an unidentified blue mass.
Gaap had to warn whoever was there about what the lake was. It nearly drove members of his own clan mad, so other demons?
The blue mass hummed, catching Gaap’s attention. A relaxed melody, a stark contrast to what should have at least been nervous self-reassurance.
“And who do we have here?” A distinctly red demon asked.
Gaap froze, before relaxing a bit. A familiar face was nice, but they were not someone he wanted to cross. Rumour had it that Opera was the only one Sullivan had chosen who was strong enough to complete his security devil contract. Not only were they strong, but their ears were pretty flat and their tail bristled.
“O-Opera?”
“That’s me . Who are you ?”
“Goemon Gaap. I live nearby, I came to warn whoever was here about the lake.”
“Goemon?” The other demon asked. It was Iruma. “It’s nice to see you! Fancy joining us for a picnic?”
Gaap held up his hands, and took a step back.
“I would like to, but we’re a bit close to the lake for comfort- What are you doing?”
Iruma had immediately gotten up and was moving everything away from the edge of the ice.
“Increasing the chance of you accepting?” Iruma asked in return, smiling.
“I suppose I have to now, de gozaru.” Gaap let out a breath and the steam rose like smoke. Seeing proof that he was still breathing kept him mentally grounded.
“Can I ask why you and Opera don’t seem to like this lake very much?”
Two faces jolted to face him, surprised.
Gaap proceeded to explain the lore behind the lake, with Opera occasionally nodding whilst they prepared the picnic blanket and laid everything out. They couldn’t deny how eerie the place was, however if ordered they’d still try to cross it.
“I guess I just don’t see it that way. I think it’s beautiful how it happens around us. We don’t have to control everything, we can sit back, eat and listen. The ice is probably so old it knows a lot of secrets, secrets bigger than anything we could imagine, and that’s okay. We’re all allowed our own secrets.”
Gaap paused, trying to process what had just been said. He knew what Iruma had said, and agreed with it, yet at the same time, it contradicts the very essence of being a demon. It was a way of thinking he had never thought of: Leave the secrets be, just let it happen. Despite being a demon he didn’t have to be powerful or all-knowing all the time, mystery has its charm as well.
Iruma continued eating as if he hadn’t just dropped a bombshell, and shortly, he was done. Gaap hadn’t eaten, he was okay with the tea, and for that reason he had already finished.
“Goemon? Do you trust me?” Iruma asked innocently. All three of them knew the answer.
“Always.”
“Opera, why don’t you put on some slow waltz music? Goemon?” Iruma faced his friend again and tied a clean handkerchief over his eyes, tying it properly with the help of a spare hair tie.
“I want to show you something amazing.”
Iruma put a hand on one of Gaap’s and with his other he brought Gaap closer, holding the taller demon gently.
1.. 2.. 3..
1.. 2.. 3..
1.. 2.. 3..
Iruma was glad that they had learnt to dance at some point. They danced on the spot, Gaap still blind to the outside world and slowly losing his sense of direction. Slowly, the beat of the waltz was the music he could focus on more, and soon enough, Iruma guided them both in a direction.
1.. 2.. 3..
1.. 2.. 3..
1.. 2.. 3..
Iruma guided Gaap’s hand to a fallen column and removed the makeshift blindfold. Opera was on the other side of the lake, and pretty soon, Gaap realised what they had done after looking at the bits of scattered snow on the lake surface.
He hadn’t walked across, he had danced across, mostly calm and in the arms of the person who had introduced the concept of ‘friendship’ to him.
What was friendship, anyway? Hanging out together, helping each other grow, truly knowing each other to overcome obstacles better, that was all par-for-the-course according to Iruma, but if he said he wasn’t giddy at the idea of beating Az and Clara to something involving Iruma he’d be lying. And slow-dancing across ones terrifying place of ancestral origins to waltz music was something he’d happily add to his mental list of things he had beaten Iruma’s army to. There was one problem now.
“Iruma? How do we get back across? Around or…”
“The same way we came. Do you want the blindfold again?” Iruma asked, mildly concerned but still wearing a smile.
“N-no thank you…”
And back to the other side they waltzed.
Unbeknownst to anyone, Goemon’s father had watched his son slow-dance with another male across the most terrifying place of all, as if it was nothing. He couldn’t say anything to anyone for fear of seeming insane, but he knew what he saw.
And what he saw in those moments was what his son had excitedly described as ‘friendship’: A concept so powerful and foreign that it had transformed the tiny runt that was Goemon Gaap into the bravest demon he had ever known.