My Demon, My Love...
Keep Your Eyes Down

More than two weeks had passed since Azlyn and Reve had shared their kiss. They had told no one about what had transpired between them for fear of retribution. This did not stop the rumors from flying as those who had seen Reve carrying Azlyn, naked, to his bedroom speculated with the others about what they had seen.

Azlyn had found a few minutes of free time in her day and decided to use it to seek out Nissa. She needed to see a friendly face other than Reve’s. Not to mention, she could use another woman’s advice on how to handle the rumors flying around about her.

Azlyn wandered into the kitchen and found Nissa washing dishes. She walked over to her and cleared her throat to make her presence known. She was not sure how Nissa felt about her, as she was certain that she had heard the rumors by now.

Nissa slowly turned to face Azlyn. Upon realizing who it was that was standing behind her, Nissa, immediately, dropped the plate that she had been cleaning, then flung her arms open wide and embraced Azlyn in a tight hug.

“How are you doing? Are you alright? What happened?!” Nissa began bombarding Azlyn with questions.

Azlyn was unsure exactly how to respond to Nissa’s questions. There was only so much that she could tell her without implicating Reve any further in the situation. It was bad enough there were rumors going around that they were sleeping together, she did not know if he would get in trouble defending her the way that he had.

“I am alright. Just a little banged up, luckily, nothing worse happened. All just a day in the life of a slave, I suppose.” Azlyn answered, forcing a smile.

“That is true.” Nissa said, staring down at her hands.

Nissa began twiddling her thumbs and shuffling her feet around. Azlyn could tell that something was clearly on her mind, but she was hesitant to discuss it for some reason. There was an awkward pause and just as Azlyn was about to break the silence, Nissa interjected, breaking it for her.

“Could I ask you a question? If it’s too personal, you don’t have to answer.” Nissa asked, carefully.

“Of course, you can ask me anything. You know that.” Azlyn reassured her.

Nissa paused for another moment, taking in a deep breath before beginning again.

“There are a lot of rumors flying around about what happened that day…”

“Yes, I have overheard a few things.” Azlyn interjected.

“I was just wondering if you would clear up one thing, in particular…”

“What is that exactly?”

“Did Prince Reve rescue you that day or was he involved in your attack?”

“What?!”

Azlyn was surprised by the question, it had never even occurred to her that someone may think that Reve could have beaten her and raped her. She had assumed that everyone would automatically understand that he had come to her rescue by the way that she had clung to him when he carried her to safety.

“Some are saying that Reve attacked you, by himself, in the shower and then carried you to his room to finish the job. Others believe that Prince Reve and two guards teamed up on you, for lack of a better term, in the shower. Then the prince grew tired of sharing and took you to his room to be alone. Then there are a small group of people who insist that the prince was, actually, rescuing you from being assaulted by two guards. Then he took you to his room to protect you. I am just curious to know which it is.” Nissa stated, honestly.

Azlyn was not sure how to respond. Reve had not told her what he wanted her to tell people in this situation. She assumed that he would not want people to know that he had harmed two strong, healthy demons in defense of a worthless slave. On the other hand, she could not bear the thought of having anyone thinking that he could have raped her. She did not want him to be thought of in that fashion; he was far too kind to deserve that.

“Prince Reve did not cause me any harm. His majesty kept things from being much worse than they could have been.” Azlyn finally answered after some consideration.

“I knew it!!!!” Nissa squealed with delight.

Azlyn quickly motioned for her to quiet down.

“I am sorry! I am just so excited! I wanted so badly to believe that the prince had rescued you even when most people were telling me that it was merely wishful thinking.”

Azlyn giggled at Nissa’s reaction.

“I cannot imagine why you are so excited.”

“I don’t understand why you aren’t?!”

“What is there to be excited about?”

“Umm…hello…I would be on cloud nine if a prince was in love with me, even if he is a demon!” Nissa cheered.

“What?!” Azlyn bellowed as she let out an explosive laugh.

Nissa crossed her arms and raised her eyebrow, giving Azlyn a knowing look.

“Please! That has to be the most ridiculous thing that I have ever heard! Prince Reve…in love with…me?! Yeah, maybe in my wildest dreams!!” Azlyn continued.

“Excuse me? Exactly why else would he save you then?” Nissa asked, placing her hands on her hips.

“I don’t know. Maybe he thinks that I am a valuable slave and does not want to have to go through the hassle of replacing me. Maybe we have developed something close to friendship; whatever that may be when it exists between a slave and a demon master. Maybe that feeling of friendship, if you can call it that, made him care enough to not want to see me go through something so horrific.”

“Or…maybe he loves you and he does not want anyone else laying their hands on you.” Nissa interrupted.

“That’s absolutely insane, Nissa! Why would the prince ever want me?”

“Why wouldn’t he?” Nissa insisted.

“This conversation is ridiculous. Prince Reve could never love me. He could, very literally, have anyone that he wants in the entire realm; both slave women and demonesses, alike, would gladly fall at his feet.” Azlyn explained, shaking her head.

Nissa crossed her arms in defiance.

“Well, I am still choosing to believe in love! I think there are others that would agree with me. Speaking of which, I was just about to take some lunch out to the stable for Blaz. Do you want to come, and we can get his opinion on this situation?” Nissa offered.

“I will come. But not because of Blaz’s opinion. Only because it has been awhile since I have been out to visit him, and I have the free time currently.” Azlyn agreed, apathetically.

Nissa scooped up the small basket of food that she had prepared earlier for Blaz. Then, she and Azlyn, began walking towards the stables. They walked most of the way in silence, although, Nissa did ask occasional questions or make the random comment in regard to Reve’s behavior towards Azlyn. Azlyn did her best to brush her off and ignore her.

When they arrived at the stables, Blaz was quietly grooming a horse’s mane, humming to himself. Azlyn saw Nissa blush as they approached him and wondered if Nissa had a crush that she had been keeping secret as well.

“Nissa! Azlyn!” Blaz called to them as he noticed their presence.

Blaz quickly dropped the brush he was using and turned, running towards them and embraced them both in a tight hug.

“It is so good to see you guys again! It gets so lonely out here in the stables all by yourself!” Blaz pouted.

“Wow! So, what am I? Chopped liver?” Zareb could be heard calling out from inside one of the stalls.

“Yeah, basically!” Blaz called back. “You just come out here so that you can sneak a nap inside my stalls while I tend the horses.”

Zareb lumbered out from the stall that he had been sleeping in, scratching himself.

“You know that your world would be dull and gray, if it were not for my smiling face.” Zareb joked as he approached them.

Blaz let out a sarcastic chuckle before responding…

“You wish!” Then he turned to face Nissa and Azlyn. “If anyone here is responsible for brightening up my days, then it is surely these ladies here.”

Nissa turned away and blushed. Blaz flashed Azlyn a sly smile and a wink. Azlyn gave a polite smile in return then brushed him off with a wave of her hand.

Azlyn could not begin to fathom what was wrong with her. She knew that Blaz was a completely respectable and appropriate match for her. He was kind, intelligent, and good-looking; Azlyn could do a lot worse. By all accounts, Blaz would be the perfect potential mate.

Nevertheless, none of that seemed to matter to Azlyn anymore. The only one that she found herself thinking of was Reve. The only one that she imagined pressing his lips against hers, was Reve. Reve was the only one that she craved and though she knew that she could never have him; it did not stop her from dreaming, no matter how many times she tried to convince herself that she should not.

“Guess what, Zareb?! We were right!” Nissa, suddenly, exclaimed.

“I knew it!” Zareb responded, matching Nissa’s enthusiasm.

“Great. Not this again.” Blaz scoffed as he rolled his eyes.

“You were right about what?” Azlyn asked, curiously.

“We were right about Prince Reve being in love with you!” Nissa explained with a squeal.

“Are we still on this? I thought I have already been very clear on this, Nissa. Yes, the prince saved me because I am a valuable slave. That was his motivation, nothing more. Any delusions you have of some emotional motivation are simply that, delusions. I am surprised to hear that you are getting in on this ridiculous gossip, Zareb.” Azlyn scolded.

“The only reason that I am involved is that I know this is not a rumor. Prince Reve’s love for you is a fact. I was already suspicious of his feelings for you and his recent actions have only provided me with certainty.” Zareb informed her.

“I don’t understand what you are talking about. This is nonsense.” Azlyn stated.

“Remember the day we first met, and we were all in the stables together? Prince Reve entered and demanded his horse, then he picked you up and carried you off with him.” Zareb asked.

“Yes, of course, I remember that day. It was the day that we became friends.” Azlyn responded.

“Before the prince carried you off, do you remember seeing him change for a moment? His horns lengthened, his eyes darkened, he was very stiff, and his face was almost murderous.” Zareb continued.

“Yes. I remember him acting on his primal instincts for a moment. I also remember hearing him growl really quietly.” Azlyn answered, thoughtfully.

“That growl may have been really quiet to you, but I could hear it loud and clear.” Zareb added.

“What do you mean?” Azlyn asked, her curiosity growing.

“That growl was a warning signal and, similar to a dog whistle, it is only heard clearly by other demons in the area. You, also, would not be aware of this, but his highness released a pheromone at that time as well. This scent covered you and let any demon who were to smell you know that you belonged to him.” Zareb explained.

“Wait?! What do you mean…‘belong to…him?’” Azlyn stuttered.

“Well, Azlyn, all of the reactions that Prince Reve exhibited at that time were classic signs of a demon claiming his mate.” Zareb informed her.

“That can’t be!!!!” Azlyn was astonished. “Demons don’t claim humans as mates! That’s just a fairytale they tell slave children to make them believe there is a chance of rescue from this life!”

“Actually…” Zareb started, carefully choosing his words. “It is not a fairytale. Demonkind does not like to make it well known, especially amongst the slave community, but it has happened before.”

Nissa began squealing and clapping her hands. Azlyn was stunned by what she was hearing. Could there be a chance that Reve was actually interested in her? She had always hoped but had never allowed herself to ever truly believe that he would return her feelings. This had always seemed like too far-fetched an idea to really entertain.