Chapter 22: Mothers Can Be Deadly/Why Demons Fear Her

“Mother! We’re home –!” Bells sang, bursting through the door, dragging Eigis behind her.

Outside the sun was halfway through sinking behind the horizon, and it was almost night. A tall, long boned woman turned from where she’d been preparing a batch of rolls for the oven. She was wearing a ruffled homespun apron decorated with a cross-stitch of daisies over traveling clothes and armor. A welcoming smile lit up her angular, fox like face, making her half moon shaped eyes crinkle up.

“Welcome back. I was just about to go look for you after the rolls were done.”

A long spear wrapped in a worn leather sheath and a pack were ready and waiting at the end of the table. The spear had seen much use, the shaft enforced with metal sleeves and rings, decorated in distinct silver and black braided leather in the shape of eyes.

But then her sharp nose twitched, and she sniffed, her body already tense as she sensed danger. Her half open gaze found Eigis, who was painfully rising to his feet, rubbing at his chained wrists. The demon looked up, and their eyes met.

Bells and Hiryu’s mother had eyes the color of mirrors. Mirrors that reflected death.

His hearts, all three of them, stopped beating. He bent over, gasping for air, unable to breathe, as her eyes opened just a little bit wider. One taloned hand pressed against his chest, where his triple hearts felt as if they were being squeezed by an invisible hand. He sank breathless to the floor.

“Nooo!” Sensing her mother’s deadly intent, Bells flung herself between them, wrapping her arms tightly around Eigis, pressing his head down against her shoulder, hiding him from that terrible gaze. “No, don’t kill him Mother! Please!”

Trembling badly from escaping his own death by mere seconds, the demon allowed her to hold him. He did not even attempt to bite her, although both his mouth and nose were pressed against her warm, delicious smelling skin, just above her collarbone.

“Bells,” said her mother, in a voice that made all three of Eigis’s hearts stop beating again for a horrible second, “Why are you protecting a demon? And why did you bring him into this house?”

“I told you to leave him outside and explain everything first,” Hiryu remarked as he stepped inside. “Hello, Mother.”

Her eyes closed briefly, scrunching up into a smile although humans were not affected by her gaze the same way demons were (unless she was angry at them), her expression softening as she smiled at her son. “I’m so glad you’re back Hiryu, and not dead as I expected. Although you seem to have had a bad fight. But tell me later.” *HAVE HER HUG HIM & BE MORE RELIEVED.

Her expression turned deadly as she returned her attention back to her daughter, who was looking absolutely stubborn, still clutching Eigis tightly.

“Well? Explain yourself?”

“Eigis isn’t a bad demon, Mother,” Bells burst out at once. “He’s very adorable. I mean, he did try to eat Hiryu. But he likes fish better! I’m going to make him into a good demon. And – and – he’s so cute and fluffy! Please, please let me keep him!” She stroked Eigis’s orange ears fondly, tears filling up her eyes. “If you kill him, I’ll never forgive you!”

Her mother’s dark, winged eyebrows rose in astonishment, while her brother smacked himself on the forehead, groaning at his sister’s ridiculous arguments. Meanwhile, Eigis waited, hardly able to believe it that he actually owed his life to this human girl, whose goal in life seemed to be trying to describe him in the most humiliating way possible. He couldn’t decide if he was more disgusted at being protected by one human or mortally terrified of another.