Among Demons : A Siren's Voice

Ch. 8 : Kindness And Admiration

I was stunned when I woke up again to find that I had actually slept through the evening and all through the night. And thanks to all of my crying and emotional release, my body felt so much lighter and re-energized, though I hadn't expected to nearly hibernate once I passed out.

Not long after waking up, Nyla had greeted me with another bottle of that blueberry-mint potion, calling out a cheerful ‘good-morning’ before she commented that breakfast was almost ready. She also placed a wicker basket on the foot of the bed as I sat up, smiling when she told me that it held more clothes for me. She then moved towards the door, calling out over her shoulder that she’d be right back if I needed help finding the lounge room and I nodded, smiling thankfully.

I then moved to climb out of bed, testing how much more my body had healed in my sleep.

The soreness and ache from yesterday was still there, though not as strong. And the tightness around the knife wound on my side was still there too. Yet I could tell that the size of it was now much smaller than it had been yesterday, with the uncomfortable tightness centered around a thinner portion of my body. The edges of the knife wound were also not as red and tender either, with some sections already scabbing over around the bandage. The stinging, bruising throb that covered most of the rest of my body was gone completely, allowing me to move without flinching. My head even felt clearer, with no tension or pressure ringing behind my eyes as I showered. Once I was out I took the time to examine my naked body again in the mirror, smiling when I finally recognized my own reflection a little more now.

Gone was the panicked and paranoid woman that stared back at me with bruising coating every inch of her body. Gone was the weak and fearful gleam that screamed from her eyes as they looked back at me, warning me of my impending torture and death. My skin wasn’t pale or gaunt anymore. My hair, no longer brittle and lifeless. My body now showed the few curves I had, my figure no longer looking sickly and near breaking like it had been while I was a prisoner.

I could happily see the old ME again, even if so many things had changed since then.

I shook my head as my mind started to wander down that dark road again, not wanting to get sucked into those thoughts just as the day started.

With a towel wrapped around me, I stepped back into the room and looked into the basket, smiling when I found another two dresses and a long cute skirt along with a few jeans and t-shirts.

I unfolded the dresses and looked them over, feeling slightly embarrassed and childish about my own preferences before I shook it off.

Ever since I was little I had always preferred to wear dresses and skirts instead of jeans, shorts or even overalls. My dad had been the first one to take note of this and made it a point to take me out shopping on every birthday to find more dresses for me to wear. So finding more dress options within the basket made me happy, and I quickly pulled out a cute beige one with yellow and pink swirls around the skirt, while the bodice was covered in a delicate floral lace.

Nyla returned as I finished slipping into the slim light brown flats that had been left with a few other shoe choices.

Together, we walked back into the large lounge room where everyone else was already gathered. They greeted me warmly and Devin motioned to an empty seat between her and her brother at the table. Nick nodded and smiled as I moved closer and I caught Devin looking between the both of us with an unreadable yet happy emotion playing in her eyes. Her fiance and Nyla’s both placed each loaded breakfast plate in front of everyone before taking their own seats. And as soon as I took my seat, light conversation picked up, with some talking about their plans for the day and others of their job responsibilities that needed their attention.

It was so comforting and strangely soothing to hear the soft buzz of friendly chatter. It made me miss the old days at breakfast or dinner with my dad and nephew, hearing them talk about their day at school or work and all the future plans they were looking forward to. Yet my heart, still lost in those memories, ached once I realized that those happy, noisy moments in my childhood home were gone…

My dad was dead… my nephew was missing… and I was unable to do the one thing that made me a Demon…

“I was thinking,” Devin started, helping me shake free from the bitter taste left by my bitter thoughts. “Would you like to come with me to the Demon Village?”

I froze, my eyes going wide while I stared at her serene smile.

“I have to go through and check up on a few things while I’m there.” She continued, calmly forking up another bite of food while my own fork remained suspended in front of my face. “And I thought that, maybe, you’d like to tag along and do a bit of shopping for yourself.”

Nyla jumped a bit in her chair across from me, beaming as she leaned forward to speak.

“It’d be better to have your own things, right?” I nodded along, feeling my brows scrunch up as I wondered how I would be able to get anything when I didn’t have a single penny. “We’ve got an aid fund that you can use to buy enough to keep you comfortable. SO you don’t need to worry about money or anything.”

“It’s something we use to help everyone we take under our wing.” Devin said, smiling when I turned to look at her again. “You don’t need to pay it back at all or worry about any limits when you shop either.” With widening eyes and a growing smile, I nodded, listening as she continued. “It’ll help you feel a little better to have your own stuff, even if you decide not to stay with us. You can even buy yourself a duffle bag or something so you can carry all your stuff whenever you choose to go.”

I moved back to stare at my plate, my mind buzzing with two very big thoughts that made it hard for me to fully focus.

One the one side, regardless of whether I was going to stay or not, having my own things sounded so much better than constantly borrowing things from them. And since they have that aid fund specifically for people in my situation, why not accept their kindness and use it?

On the other hand, the thought of stepping foot into the local Demon Village was so incredibly thrilling to me. My dad had told me about such an amazing place that was built by Demons, for Demons and had everything you could think to have available exclusively for Demons and Human allies. He had told me of the one time he had visited as the place himself, after my sister left us the second time. And his mind had been blown away with how much thought and effort our Matron put in to make such a safe and highly protected place.

I looked back up at Devin and nodded eagerly, smiling as I ate with a bit more energy than I did a moment ago.

Once done and the dishes were left in the hands of Nyla and her fiancé, Devin took my hand and led me out of the room and back into the main hallway. We walked in the opposite direction from where the room I had been sleeping in was, and through a set of large double doors. They clicked electronically when she opened them and I was stunned to see a small fingerprint reader sitting on both door handles as they closed. I was then led away from the staircase that sat across from the doors, moving to the left where a small space with a loveseat and elevator sat.

We rode it in silence until it stopped moving and dinged, the doors opening to reveal a softly buzzing lobby with a few Demons walking around. Some carried papers, folders, or large packets. Some pushed a metal cart with different sized boxes on it or looked to be walking in to start their workday. A large reception desk sat to the right of us, facing some fancy looking doors with large, stained glass windows depicting the sunset. And as soon as Devin stepped out of the elevator and moved towards the two Demons working that large desk, everyone's eyes moved towards us.

“Good morning, Lieutenant.”

“Morning, Ma'am.”

“It's good to see you again Ma'am.”

“Thank you for the help yesterday.”

“We're so excited for your big day.”

On and on the greetings and kind words flowed from everyone that noticed us. And I couldn't help but be amazed at the amount of admiration, respect and overall kindness that was being shown for Devin as we calmly moved through the lobby.

She knew all of their names, welcomed back a few that had returned from their respective vacations, thanked those that cheerfully talked about her upcoming wedding and answered every question with a warm smile, regardless of whether it was work related or not. It was clear that everyone enjoyed working here and understood that Devin not only held a strong and highly distinguished position, but that she was available for them for anything they needed. The calming and almost homey atmosphere that seemed to surround the building eased more of my anxiety and doubt. I also felt like my trust in Devin and her close friends grew stronger thanks to that.

After all the questions and congratulations were spoken, Devin turned to me and nodded towards the doors, waving a set of keys that one of the receptionists handed her.

Those keys turned out to belong to a nice deep blue Honda that belonged to Devin. Inside her car I smiled when I caught sight of the different boxes and swatches of wedding decorations that were piled into the back seat. She sheepishly apologized for the mess and muttered about the chaos she had gone through with Nyla when picking a color scheme and theme for both of their respective weddings. And while she drove us out of the parking lot, she went on about the differences between their ceremonies and how she had butted heads with Nyla for wanting almost the complete opposite style of ceremony as her Fairy friend.

“Nyla comes from a huge family and naturally planned to make her wedding an event capable of inviting everyone close to her.” She started saying, smiling softly as she drove. “So her wedding and reception is pretty big, with about 350 invited guests and their plus ones coming to celebrate with her.” My eyes grew wide at the amount of friends and family that would be gathered in one place, questioning if I’d ever become close to that many people. “You’ll get to see the mass of Fay during the wedding and reception yourself.” My head whipped towards her as she smiled bigger, amusement in her eyes. “If you stay with us, let us help you, then you’re naturally going to tag along with us until you no longer need us. So, after talking it over with Nyla, if you do choose to stay, then we’ll both have you as a guest in both our weddings.”

I smiled back at her as she stopped at a red light, taking the chance to mouth out a ‘thank-you’ before she returned to the steering wheel.

“But anyway, Ny’s been bugging me throughout all of the planning that I need to make my wedding bigger, invite more guests or at least make it grander than hers. But I don’t want anything like that. I never did.” I nodded along, agreeing with her and beginning to picture how I would plan things myself. “And I’m not close with anyone other than the friends you’ve already met. My brother is also my only family too, so I went with a much smaller, more intimate wedding ceremony and opened the reception to all of our workers and the friends of friends.”

Again, I nodded in agreement, envisioning a beautiful ceremony with only those I cared about as witnesses.

It hadn’t been something that I had thought about before, since I was always focused on raising my nephew, helping my dad and taking care of our cozy little home. But now as I thought about it, it made me smile, my mind picking out my favorite colors, the flowers and decor I would like to use and the location of it too. I also wondered if I would ever get the chance to see this vision come to life… or if I would find someone to share in such a romantic and special moment.

“This is it.”

My eyes blinked away the image that had taken over my mind, refocusing on the sight in front of me, a smile breaking out even wider than before as I took in the large gate and brick fence that protected the Village specially created for Demons. My heart thumped with excitement as we paused by the guarded gate, speaking to the Demons on guard duty here before the large metal doors swung open. I noticed the fancy plaque on the side of the guard hut, right by the door and wondered what the fancy golden letters ‘L.D’ stood for as we slowly entered.

I wrote down the question on my notepad and waited for Devin to park the car, tapping her shoulder to catch her attention.

“Oh.” Devin’s smile was a little sheepish and embarrassed as she unbuckled herself, a light flush coating her cheeks before she turned away. “Uh, that’s the aliases of the Matron that helped finish the Village…” She looked back at me, clearly seeing the second silent question in my eyes when she sighed. “Lady Divine… it’s what everyone calls her since no one knows her actual name.”

I nodded and started following her out of the car, pausing for a moment when the irony clicked in my mind.

My dad, ever the scholar on all sorts of random topics, had had a fascination with names and their meanings when we first took in my nephew. And one of the things that he had taught me was the uniqueness of Demons and their surnames. He had also told me that Demon parents would sometimes pick rare and hardly used names based on their meanings too. So I knew that Devins name was not only gender neutral, but had several meanings with Irish, English and Latin origins. And one of those meanings was Divine.

I looked her over again as I followed her around the car, stepping up onto the sidewalk. But I shook the crazy thought out of my head, chuckling to myself and thinking that it would be too lucky of me if that theory was true. Sure, the names were a funny coincidence, but to have it be a fact? No, that would be too much. At least for me, since I was never this lucky.

I mean, who would ever think that THE Matron would go around undercover, taking in Demons in-need and actively protecting them… Yeah, there was no way that Devin was the Matron.