It was quite early in the morning as the figure of a man slowly made its way down the street. The man had nothing aside from the clothes he wore and the pendant he’d had since his birth, signifying his status in the world. The man, however, was no ordinary being. He’d come from worlds away and even with his long dark hair, and blood red eyes no one would be the wiser as to his true nature. A demon from Drachim. As demons so rarely came to Midland, without his wings it was impossible to tell.
As he trudged through the streets, rough as he appeared, the stares of those that lived here were disapproving. He thought to himself, that he must look like a hooligan. He walked aimlessly thinking of how he would support himself in the foreign land where no one close to him resided. He knew he needed a job as a first step.
Something caught his eye as he stopped dead in his tracks. Looking over to the unsuspecting shop, that seemed to be just a bit out of place he could see clearly inside. There were several animals for sale, most of which he’d never seen, as animals in Drachim were quite different. The demon felt a bubble of excitement well up as he eyed a dragon like creature. Entering the shop he crouched down near the excited creature. “Hello, little one. You are very cute.”
It made noises that consisted of growls and chirps, which caused the demon to smile. “Do you want to come with me?” The creature began to spin and chirp even more which saddened the demon and made him frown. “I’m sorry, I’m new to these lands and I don’t yet have a way to provide and care for you.” The small creature whined and the demon turned to see an older gentleman approaching him.
“That there is a dreconik. Feisty young fellows…” The man trailed off. “My wife and I couldn’t help but overhear your predicament...would you like a job working here?”
The demon felt a surge of happiness and bowed to the man as proper in Drachim, “Please sir! It would be greatly appreciated!”
The man and his wife felt a bit uncomfortable at the custom but smiled anyway. The two were of a Midland race known as Satyr, in which they had the features of a goat in various forms. The wife resemble humans the most as her only features were her ears and the curved horns. The husband, however, was more typical of satyr’s with the lower half having hooves and fur.
Over tea, he introduced himself and was able to explain his situation. The two were immensely shocked when he explained that he was from Drachim. Not many demons left the realm it seemed. He learned that the two wanted to head towards retirement but were having trouble finding diligent workers to take care of the place until their son graduated from college with his veterinarian degree. “Nestrio, do you like animals?”
“I do....I have several pets in Drachim.” He answered with a small but warm smile on his face. He was not use to speaking so much at one time and he was a bit exhausted. “I am grateful for a job and will work diligently, I assure you.”
He found friends in the older couple, who offered up the apartments above the pet shop as a home to the young demon. They even took him to get his documents in order while he was a resident. At the end of the day, Nestrio found himself lying on a freshly made bed in a studio apartment with the quiet noises of the dreconik, which he’d named Zarkar. He soon dozed off, thinking about his luck.
----------------
It had been several weeks since Nestrio started working as an employee of the pet shop. There had been a bit of an uproar about his being a demon in the beginning but soon it died down, however, there were still several people who actively avoided the shop. Nestrio had finished the afternoon chores and sat at the counter watching the gaggle of women and men who stood outside of the shop glancing in at the various pets. Once, he’d made an effort to invite them in and they ran away, but they came back everyday.
A person would think he spent most of his time in the shop, which he did, but he had made a few friends...well...one. She came bounding through the door as if she’d run a marathon and blurted the words so fast he didn’t understand them clearly, “NESS THSNNGELHRE!”
“What?” He responded with a bored expression.
“THSAFRKNNGELHRE!!” She said once more. She was about to begin rambling but stopped when Nestrio hit her with a pet care magazine.
“Speak real words.” He scolded.
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly before continuing, “Did you hear that there’s an angel in town?” She watched his face intently, excited to see what reaction a demon would have to news of an angel but was disappointed. “Aren’t you excited, or mad, or whatever?”
“No...why would I be?” Nestrio responded and he began making preparations to feed the birds.
“Because, don’t demons and angels hate each other or something?” She asked.
“No. There were wars...so maybe some...I guess…” Nestrio responded, he assumed that because of the wars there would be a deep rooted animosity but didn’t think it mattered much.
“Well I guess that’s good then.” She said suspiciously.
“What did you do?” Nestrio asked with a scowl.
“I may have...invited him over to meet you…” She said with a laugh that annoyed Nestrio. “You two are the newest members of the community. I thought you could be friends.”
“And if he’s the type who hates demons? I do not wish to get into a fight.” Nestrio reprimanded.
“Sorry, sorry! Until today I didn’t even think of that!” She apologized. Nestrio sighed heavily, he wanted to have a peaceful existence.
“When is he coming?” Nestrio asked with annoyance clear in his usually monotone voice.
“In about 20 minutes!” His annoying friend said cheerfully.
Comments (0)
See all