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Jesse saw it all as if in slow motion: eyes widening in disgust, lips about to form the insults he knew were coming.
He knew he should've left, shouldn't have come here at all, as an infuriated screech filled his ears, almost numbing him to the sting of his hand being slapped away.
"You're one of those! Filthy creature! I should call the guards to have you put down!”
Jesse was up on his feet and backing away before the woman even finished her string of curses, arms held aloft in a placating gesture.
"N-no, ma'am. Not sure what you think I am, but I'm just an exhausted traveler looking to rest his legs. I'm sorry if I got too close there, I didn't mean to offend," he tried to assure her, but his voice was shaking, pitched just a little too high in his sudden panic.
The woman's eyes only hardened. "Lying, filthy scum!"
It had been stupid. There were dozens of benches around the market place, none of them taken except for this one. There had been absolutely no reason for him to sit right next to her. But the vhul had grown desperate, with not a single other soul to be seen and the clouds turning pink in the distance, reflecting the light of the slowly setting sun. Another day nearing its end and no energy to be drained anywhere. If he went another day without, he'd just waste away in his sleep, and even if his life was unrewarding, he was not yet ready to give up.
A soft whimper of fear escaped him as he backed away, trying to make himself as small as possible. But there was nowhere for him to go, just the empty market opening up behind him.
That was until he collided with something and mindlessly reached out to steady himself. A spark of energy, sudden and potent, lit up his nerves and he flinched, quickly withdrawing his hand and cradling it to his chest to avoid touching anything else. He met the woman’s eyes then, who still looked furious, but she wasn’t looking at him anymore.
After a long, tense moment, the woman huffed and stalked off. Jesse just barely refrained from letting out an audible sigh of relief. However, with her gone, Jesse suddenly became aware of another presence right behind him.
He turned slowly, cautiously, trying to appear calmer than he felt, but nothing could have prepared him for what he saw.
Blue skin, painted purple by the sunset's last rays of light, was the first thing he noticed. Then came the horns: dark, massive spirals, their sharp tips curved backwards, though they were no less intimidating for it. And then there were the eyes: luminous, empty depths.
"Are you alright?"
Jesse startled, eyes wide as the deep bass of the oni's voice went straight through him.
"I... I... what?"
"You were shaking," the demon observed. "You still are."
"Oh, I'm..."
He didn't know what he was. He lifted his hand to wipe a stray tear from his eyes, trying to regain his composure.
"Come," the demon said, turning and walking away before Jesse could even parse the meaning of that single spoken word, and he stumbled in his hurry to catch up.
No more information was forthcoming, and Jesse was too befuddled to ask.
The demon’s goal was apparently an inn, and Jesse hesitated as the oni approached the bored-looking woman behind the counter.
"A room for the night," he demanded, barely waiting for the key to be handed to him before he was off, heading up the stairs.
The woman's disapproving eyes followed him before her gaze turned to Jesse who still stood there indecisively. Noticing his hesitation she leaned over the counter, lowering her voice carefully.
"Are you in danger?" she asked, looking entirely too sympathetic.
If she knew that Jesse was no more human than his companion, she wouldn't even have considered asking, so Jesse merely shook his head and left his insecurity behind as he followed the oni upstairs.
The room was small and mostly dark as Jesse entered. The demon stood next to the single bed with his back turned to Jesse, and the next thing he knew, the demon pulled his shirt up over his head, revealing more of that mesmerizing blue-gray skin.
Jesse was about to ask... anything really, when the demon suddenly beat him to it.
"Is it a conscious ability? Or do you only need to touch?"
It took Jesse a moment to realize that the demon was inquiring about his feeding.
"I, uh... no, I don't control it. It's just skin contact."
The demon hummed in acknowledgement as he proceeded to lie down in bed.
"You look tired," he said. "You should get some rest."
Jesse didn’t understand. Did he want a vhul to join him? In bed?
"If you only need to touch, you might as well get some sleep while you're at it."
Everything clicked into place then, and Jesse's eyes widened, blindsided by an overwhelming sense of gratitude.
He was suddenly glad the demon wasn't looking at him, because he was shaking as he pulled off his own shirt. The bed was big enough that he wasn't immediately touching the demon as he got in. Which was a good thing, when Jesse realized that he had never been more nervous about touching someone than in this very moment, the usual fear of being discovered, and possibly killed for it, replaced with something weirdly warm and elated.
"I..." he mumbled, wetting his lips before he tried again. "May I...?"
The oni hummed, shifting to get more comfortable.
It was surreal how much was offered to him, and for a moment Jesse only stared at that broad back, tentatively reaching out with one hand.
The first careful brush of skin against skin sent a spark up his arm, and he was reminded of the moment at the market, that accidental touch…
It was unlike anything Jesse had ever felt before. It was instantly rejuvenating, as if he could breathe more freely just from that simple touch. He could feel the energy traveling up his arm and through his whole body from that single point of contact.
Slowly, starting from his fingertips, he increased the contact until his palm was flush against the demon's skin. The increasing rush of energy blindsided him and he gasped, staring at his hand as if he could see the energy flowing there. And then he realized that he could; a faint golden glow enveloped his hand, slowly travelling up his arm.
That... was certainly new. For a moment he wondered if he should worry, but the energy rushing through his body had him dizzy in the most pleasant of ways. He was allowed this, so there was no way he was stopping now.
Belatedly Jesse realized that he was supposed to sleep, and that he would inevitably lose contact like this, so he scooted closer, little by little, trying to ignore how his whole arm glowed with the increasing proximity.
Jesse felt warm all-around, and despite slowly growing used to the flow of energy, the intensity of it still left him breathless. The demon, on the other hand, hadn't so much as stirred throughout it all, the loss probably insignificant for a creature with such endless energy resources.
The position still wasn't exactly comfortable, so Jesse did the first thing that came to mind, pillowing his head on one of his arms and letting the other rest innocently across the demon's waist.
The sight of his glowing arm against the oni's dark skin was weirdly fascinating. But then the demon stirred as if startled, and Jesse quickly retracted his arm when the oni turned around.
The luminous eyes made it hard to read his expression, but the way they widened was obvious enough. Jesse couldn't blame him. A quick look down confirmed that the glowing had spread all the way across his exposed chest.
"I... did not expect this." The demon sounded so dumbfounded that Jesse couldn't help the chuckle that escaped him
"Neither did I, honestly."
That luminous gaze met his, seemingly surprised. "This does not usually happen, then?"
Jesse chuckled again. "No, would make my life one hell of a lot harder if it did."
The demon hummed. "I was about to say that it was hardly inconspicuous." He paused then, considering his next words. "You have never drained from a demon before, then?"
"Really can't say I have, darling." The pet name slipped out unthinking but the demon graciously ignored it.
That little shared moment between them made the oni seem much more approachable though, so Jesse jumped at his chance. "Why are you helping me?" he asked. "I don't even know your name."
"Hanzo."
"Huh?"
"My name," the demon elaborated.
"Oh, uh... Great. Mine's Jesse... if you wanted to know."
He couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw Hanzo smile. "Now that you know, you can go to sleep."
That wasn't the point at all, Jesse wanted to argue, but instead his mouth opened and closed uselessly.
There was a soft hand at his temple, tucking back stray strands of hair.
"You look better already but you should still get some rest. Go to sleep, Jesse," Hanzo said, and Jesse really saw no reason to refuse.
The situation was weird enough without him having to face his mysterious savior, so Jesse didn't complain when he was turned around and pulled close to the demon’s chest.
He realized he was being spooned, sending an unexpected rush of heat to his cheeks. But this was nice, Jesse decided, as he let himself relax into the embrace, the warm stream of energy coursing through him quickly lulling him to sleep.
Everything else could wait until morning.