Demon Read online

  Kieran stood up to stack his dirty dishes and put the tray away. He was on his way to his Japanese culture class when he received another message. He opened his phone again while he waited for the last few students in his class to file inside.

  But we can always do something over the phone ;)

  Kieran felt his face warm up and quickly put his phone away and pulled out his notebook. The middle of class was probably not the best time to test that particular theory.

  But the thought of it distracted him through the rest of the day.

  * * *

  Takeshi smiled when he felt Kieran’s chaotic energy in the crowd. He came into view only seconds later, but didn’t spot him right away. Takeshi waved at him, and finally got his attention.

  “Hi,” Kieran greeted softly once he was close enough, and the two of them moved over as far as possible so they wouldn’t be run down by people hurrying to the train platforms. His eyes strayed to Takeshi’s hands and then his mouth before he purposefully moved back a few inches.

  Takeshi had told him they could hang out only if they didn’t make contact and risk transferring over more energy than he needed. He felt bad he couldn’t give Kieran what he wanted, but the human didn’t seem to be too mad about it. He had agreed to come out today, after all.

  “Did you get your ticket already?” Takeshi asked as he looked over at the machines. The pass Kieran used to get from his apartment to uni wouldn’t cover a trip to Osaka.

  “Yeah, I can read some characters,” Kieran replied with a smile.

  “Great, then we should be able to make it to the next train,” Takeshi said as he tilted his head toward the stairs that led to the platform. He noticed Kieran look down at his hand again before nodding and moving to join the stream of people.

  “You said I can touch you if I learn to control my own energy, right?” Kieran said as they climbed the stairs. The general noise of the train station made it unlikely anyone else would hear their conversation.

  “I did,” Takeshi replied. “If I use my powers a little more liberally, maybe I can get to a point where I need a weekly top up, too.”

  They found a place along the platform where they could stand without making contact. A few moments later the train slowly pulled in, perfectly on time as always.

  “I want to see you more than once a week,” Kieran muttered, a slight whine in his tone. “Not just for the physical stuff, but I could maybe get some training to help with that too. There are a few weirdos that live in my building that are into the energy stuff. But I’m not sure if they practice the real thing or if they’re just… odd,” Kieran finished diplomatically.

  “There’s probably no harm in trying it,” Takeshi replied with a small shrug.

  They had to pause their conversation as the train doors opened and the typical orderly chaos ensued. Everyone rushed out of the carriage before the people on the platform started squeezing on. People were closely wedged together on the seats, but they managed to stay together when Takeshi offered the small gap on the seat he’d found to Kieran, and then stood over him.

  “It’s not a cult, is it? There could be another demon in charge of it. If anyone else starts feeding off you, you should get out of there.”

  Kieran smirked up at him. “Why? Apparently there’s too much of me for you to handle.”

  Takeshi rolled his eyes. “Not every demon will care about your wellbeing as much as I do. There’s a lot out there that will get greedy if they get their hands on you.”

  “Jealous, much?” Kieran teased as he sat back in the seat and the train took off. It was the rapid pattern to Osaka, so there wouldn’t be too many stops along the way.

  “Behave yourself, or I won’t pay for your ticket into the art gallery,” Takeshi teased in return.

  Kieran made a sound of amusement. “You don’t have to do that, anyway.”

  Takeshi shrugged. “I don’t need to eat or sleep like a human, so I don’t need the kind of food and shelter that money can buy. I mean, money is a nice side benefit of my job, but I don’t really need very much of it,” he explained, hoping no one else on the train spoke enough English to fully understand what he was saying. “I might as well treat you when we go out so you can use your money on things you do need.”

  “Well, I still appreciate it. Don’t feel like it’s expected of you, though,” Kieran added, looking a little awkward. “I do like you for reasons other than money and,” he glanced around as a blush rose on his cheeks, “you know…”

  “Oh yes, I’m positively charming,” Takeshi teased.

  It was Kieran’s turn to roll his eyes. “Keep telling yourself that.”

  * * *

  Takeshi followed Kieran closely through the crowded special exhibit of paintings that had been put up in the gallery. It was only on for a limited time, so the halls were absolutely packed as people moved in an orderly fashion from one painting to the next, everyone taking turns to observe each bit from different angles.

  Kieran paused in front of a painting that was an old depiction of heaven and Earth, with dragons and robed figures in the sky and plainer humans on lush green plains below. A small smile played across Kieran’s lips as he leaned this way and that on either side of the hanging scroll, taking in the full effect of the shimmering ink that had been used for the colours.

  Takeshi was too busy looking at Kieran’s smile and feeling the happy bubble in his energy to pay much attention to the painting itself. Someone sidled around them, giving them a disgruntled look for taking so long. He knew that if Kieran was aware people were privately getting annoyed at him, he’d move on long before he was ready. Part of Takeshi found that unacceptable when he knew Kieran would probably never get the chance to see this painting in person again.

  Takeshi shuffled around to Kieran’s other side and looked up at the painting, choosing to focus on Kieran’s energy instead, since that was more meaningful to him than human appearances. A few more people shuffled past them, and he was glad the silent disapproval was now being directed at him instead. The associated energy wasn’t nice, but he could absorb it with less worry than a human.

  Eventually Kieran took half a step back and looked around. It seemed he’d only just noticed how much time had passed.

  “Oh, sorry, should we move on?” he asked, tucking a curl behind his ear and looking sheepish.

  Takeshi shrugged, trying to look casual. “Take as long as you want.”

  Kieran looked away, possibly shyly, and moved to the next painting. “I just liked the colours on that one,” he said quietly.

  None of the other pieces seemed to capture his attention quite so completely, so it didn’t take them much longer to reach the end of the exhibit. They had intended to move through the normal displays as well, but Kieran insisted they should head back to Kobe soon.

  After letting Kieran grab something to eat, they headed back to the station. On the train back, Kieran was able to settle into a free seat once again and started writing in his assignment journal. The man next to him stood up and offered his seat to Takeshi so they could sit together. Takeshi tried to tell him it wasn’t necessary, but he had already moved to a spot at the other end of the train carriage.

  Not wanting to appear rude, Takeshi squeezed into the small space. He had to press up against Kieran to avoid touching the woman next to them, who would be adversely affected by being in contact with him until they reached Sannomiya station. Kieran glanced at him and gave him a small smile before continuing to write.

  Takeshi did his best to avoid taking more than he needed. He tried to distract himself by offering help with vocabulary and characters whenever Kieran seemed to need it.

  The train trip passed by in a blur, and Takeshi wasn’t sure how he had ended up in Kieran’s apartment, but they’d quickly spread out at opposite ends of the living room to watch whichever drama was on at this hour on his small TV. Takeshi noticed when Kieran’s energy grew sluggish, and looked over to see his eyes were becoming heavier.
He waited until the end of the episode before saying anything.

  “Kieran, don’t you think you should go to bed?”

  It seemed to take him a moment to comprehend Takeshi’s words, and then a little longer to respond. “I suppose so,” he replied. “Will you leave if I do?”

  “Only if you want me to. I don’t really have anywhere else I need to be since I’ve just been living in the back of the host club all this time,” Takeshi explained.

  He’d been brushing off shifts and getting less hours, lately. Kieran was a better source of energy than all the customers he’d come into contact with over the course of a night put together. Takeshi reasoned he could always start again at a different club if all this blew up in his face.

  Kieran got to his feet, and Takeshi stood up as well. “I don’t mind. It’s not like you’re loud or take up a lot of space.” He stepped toward Takeshi and reached out for him. Takeshi considered backing away from the contact, but he didn’t think Kieran would feel particularly good about that. “It just sucks that we can’t do anything else. I really like you.”

  Kieran wrapped his arms around his neck, and Takeshi let his hands rest on the human’s waist. “I told you,” Takeshi murmured, “I can’t become any more powerful or I’ll start drawing bad attention to both of us.”

  Kieran’s sentiment made Takeshi feel good, though. And if he said Kieran was just a meal ticket, he’d be lying to himself.

  Kieran leaned in for a kiss, and Takeshi had neither the heart nor the willpower to deny him. Their lips met softly, as if they were both afraid something would rise up between them if they pushed it too far. But after a few moments, Kieran pressed forward and drew his abdomen up against Takeshi. The energy flowed, which he allowed for a few moments before pulling back.

  “Please,” Kieran whispered as his grip on Takeshi’s arms tightened. “I need this. I need you.”

  Takeshi’s will crumbled. It wasn’t like his power was going to be affected that much by just one night. At least, Takeshi somehow managed to convince himself this would be just for tonight.

  “I need you, too,” he replied. If anything, that was truer for him, since he’d snap back to hell if he didn’t have Kieran’s energy. “We can do this, but you have to promise me one thing.”

  Kieran bit his lip and looked down. “You want me to do energy training, right?”

  “Yes,” Takeshi murmured with a small nod. “At least try the group you already know about. If you can control yourself, then you can control when I take your energy, and how much. Once you’ve mastered that we can do this as much as we like.”

  Kieran nodded slowly. “Ok, I understand. I promise I’ll talk to Chevonne tomorrow and try it again.”

  Takeshi smiled and pulled Kieran flush against him. While he knew the danger of getting greedy, the reason it happened so often was the demon instinct to grow as much as possible in as short a time as possible. It felt good to feed beyond being full. But Takeshi could control himself.

  If he wanted to stay with Kieran, he’d have to.

  Chapter Five

  K ieran took a breath as he prepared himself to knock on Chevonne’s apartment door. She wasn’t always the easiest person to communicate with, and at times she could be plain weird. He took a moment to be thankful for Takeshi’s ability to calm him down, but tried not to let his thoughts linger on what had happened last night. If he wanted more of that, he needed to learn how to become calm like this on his own.

  Kieran knocked on the door before he could change his mind. He heard a thump and a shuffle before the door opened and Chevonne poked her head of tangled blonde hair out the door. “Hello? Oh, Kieran, you’re even more different than last time. Did something happen to you?”

  Kieran blushed, but he guessed her assessment was a good indicator that she and her group weren’t complete crackpots. Maybe they could help him at least start learning what he needed to know, even if they weren’t the real deal.

  “No, I’m fine,” he said quickly. “I feel pretty good actually.”

  Chevonne raised an eyebrow, suddenly not appearing to be quite the airhead she normally portrayed. “Would you prefer to talk about it in private?”

  Kieran wasn’t sure if she disbelieved him because she already knew what he’d done last night, or if she was just offering privacy in a more general sense. “Uh sure, ok?”

  Chevonne stepped back and held the door open for him. He stepped inside, somehow unsurprised to see the chaotic mess that had arisen in the few short months they’d been here. She turned away and moved a pile of washing further down the couch so he could sit, before flopping down herself.

  “How did your energy get to be so low and orderly? Well, low for you, I mean. I can see you haven’t transformed it into any other form, and no amount of… well, ‘activity’ would have burnt it off that much,” Chevonne said, looking away awkwardly.

  “A friend was trying to show me how to manage it,” Kieran lied. “I’m not sure what happened, but I definitely don’t feel worse for wear. He recommended I get help off someone else.”

  Chevonne still looked sceptical. “If you say so,” she managed to say neutrally. “You’re welcome to join us at training again. We were all going to meet for a session tomorrow night. We might be able to give you more helpful instructions.”

  Kieran was glad she had agreed so readily, but then, she was the one who had been trying to convince him to go to another class to begin with. “All right, I’ll see you then. Still in the same room on campus?”

  Chevonne nodded, and stood up when he did. She looked concerned, which wasn’t an emotion he was used to seeing from the usually airy woman. “Are you absolutely sure you’re all right, Kieran? You haven’t been experiencing any other strange symptoms? Visions of monsters, or, um, recurring intimate dreams?”

  Kieran wondered if that was how an incubus, or whatever Takeshi actually was, normally appeared to its victims. Then he wondered how she would know to ask him about something like that. He shook his head, trying to assuage her worries.

  “No, I’m fine. Like I said, a friend just tried to help me.”

  Her brows drew closer together and her tone became much less airy. “How long have you known this friend for? Where did you meet?”

  Kieran couldn’t tell the truth about that even if he wanted to. He didn’t want her to know he’d been to a host club. “Just a guy I met while I was out one night. He’s never hurt me, it’s fine.” Kieran moved back toward her front door before she could ask him any other questions.

  “If you say so,” she repeated quietly.

  “Thanks again, I’ll see you tomorrow,” Kieran added before hastily exiting the apartment and closing the door behind him.

  He hoped going to this class wouldn’t end up being a bad idea.

  * * *

  Kieran felt as awkward as ever as he sat cross-legged on the floor and tried to calm his mind. He was still feeling the effects of his and Takeshi’s most recent night together, so it was easier than it might have been, but his unease had more to do with the company he was in.

  He was sitting in a circle with Chevonne and her strange friends. The fact that the group leader, Chao, was leaning further into his personal space with each passing minute wasn’t helping his focus any.

  “All right, let’s move onto forms,” Chao said in accented Japanese. Kieran was pretty sure he was an exchange student from China, but he had been in Japan longer than most of the other students Kieran was familiar with.

  Kieran waited a moment, then stood when the others started to. They lined up so they were facing Chao, and he began to instruct them in some simple moves loosely based on Tai Chi. Kieran did his best to copy the movements and breathing patterns, but he couldn’t help but feel he was being observed closely from all sides.

  They had made him feel a little like this last time, but it was ten times worse now. Kieran dropped his hands and took a step back. As soon as he did it felt like a weight had been lifted off his sho
ulders. He went to stand at the back of the room behind the others, and continued following at his own pace.

  Eventually he managed to ignore what the others were doing, and simply continued with the same group of movements over and over. Gathering and releasing leaves was the metaphor Chao had used to describe it, and he found that helpful in focusing on what his body was doing, which in turn seemed to focus his mind. Kieran wondered if the odd feeling of peace that was developing was the result of controlling his energy in a way that didn’t rely on a demon draining him.

  Even if he did figure out how to make himself feel better, he didn’t want to give up on what he and Takeshi had. He’d never fallen so hard and fast for someone before. There had to be more to it than just Takeshi’s manipulations of his energy.

  Kieran belatedly noticed the others had stopped moving and were gathering toward the front of the room. Once he’d returned to reality, he imitated the way they lowered their hands and brought their feet back together before joining them.

  “Good work everyone, we had a very good session tonight,” Chao was saying to the small group in front of him. “Let’s pack up the room and head back home.”

  There wasn’t much to put away, they really only had to replace the desks and chairs so the room could be used for classes as normal the next morning. But before Kieran could get too involved in helping anyone out, Chao cornered him at the edge of the room.

  “How did you go today?” he asked, this time in English that was clearly much better than Kieran’s Japanese. It was kind of embarrassing to barely speak two languages when he was surrounded by students who needed to know three or more.

  “I felt a bit strange at the start, but I think I got into a rhythm at the end there,” Kieran replied vaguely, not sure if he should mention the feeling of being watched.

  “How have your energy levels been lately? Chevonne was saying you’ve been a little more drained than usual.”