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“Would a kiss be suitable?” Sitri had asked, and Isaac didn’t know why he’d agreed.
He could blame it on the way that Sitri had looked at him, just him, not William for once, a look accompanied by a tiny smile that promised all kinds of things he couldn’t quite understand but had his heart racing.
It could have been because of the way that Sitri smelt; Sitri had moved close enough that he could pick up on his scent. The smell was rather summery and green with a faint hint of something spicy and exotic, like the gifts his father sent his sister from India.
It had all begun after another particularly nasty squabble between Dantalion and Sitri. This time it was over seating arrangements for some trip to the theatre that Reverend Cecil had been able to arrange in London. Reverend Cecil had only four tickets, and William had invited Isaac immediately. The other would be for the reverend, so there was only one more seat left, and William wasn’t saying whom else he’d invite. Swallow had to spend the evening with his fiancée’s family for dinner, so he was out, and William really didn’t have any other friends.
“Perhaps you could convince William to invite me?” Sitri had asked him sweetly, straight after Latin.
“Well,” Isaac scratched his head, feeling torn. He liked Sitri, but William was his best friend, and this seemed all rather devious. “I don’t know…”
Sitri had given him that smile. The room suddenly became warmer. “I’d make it worth your while.”
“I don’t…” he took two steps backward, and Sitri advanced on him, all delicate with graceful limbs, until his back was against the wall.
“Maybe you could talk to William again. He never really listens to me…and,” Isaac swallowed as Sitri moved his face in closer, close enough so he could almost feel Sitri’s warmth on his cheek, and the summery smell was everywhere. He had to resist the urge to loosen his collar.
“If you get an invitation for me, I would be very, very pleased.” Sitri’s voice was like honey and just a little husky. “I’d be happy to give you some token of my appreciation.”
“What?” It was more statement of bewilderment than any real question.
“Would a kiss be suitable?” Sitri moved in closer, his lips practically brushing Isaac’s cheek and then pulled back and gave him a smile. “If you get an invite for me, I’ll give you a kiss.”
“Ahhh yes…umm, I’ll...I’ll try my best.”
“Lovely,” Sitri gave him an encouraging smile, brushed his hand down his glossy pale hair and left.
Isaac pressed his fingers against his lips; his heart was racing. It really wasn’t a sin to kiss another boy, was it?
~***~
William gave him a look of irritation. “I don’t think I’ll invite either of them. If I pick one, the other won’t stop pestering me, and I have little patience for that.”
It was a little amusing that William had only thought of Sitri and Dantalion when he asked and equally sad. William’s determination to study left him little time for friends. “Well, if you tell one of them at the last minute, then the other won’t know, right?”
“But why would I want either of them along? They are so trying, Isaac.”
“Because, umm…” Isaac racked his brain. “What if we get attacked again?” He seized on that idea when a look of uncertainty crossed William’s face and pushed his point. “It could happen! We need someone who can protect us.”
William frowned, and Isaac continued before he could come up with some clever argument against the idea.
“I think you should invite Sitri. He would look better at a theatre, you know. He’s far more refined looking and wouldn’t draw attention. If you want, I can tell him? Dantalion won’t notice in that case, and by the time he knows, we’ll be gone.” Dantalion barely paid Isaac any notice, the same as Sitri until just recently.
William sighed, shook his head and after moment of consideration. “Fine, but if Dantalion finds out…” William glared at him.
“I’ll be the soul of discretion.” Isaac put his hand over his heart. He wasn’t doing a bad thing, despite Sitri’s enticement; his reason for bringing along a demon was sound. It was William’s safety he was looking out for.
~***~
Isaac got the kiss the day after they returned to Stratford. Up until then, he’d almost convinced himself that he’d dreamt the offer. But then Sitri had dragged him into an empty classroom during lunch.
“I always follow through with my promises,” Sitri had said a little roughly, and before Isaac could so much as blink, warm gentle lips were against his, and his senses were enveloped by that summery green smell. His eyes fluttered shut as a hand was pressed against his right cheek, and the kiss deepened before a peek of a tongue invaded, and he leaned in, wanting more. Then it was over.
When he opened his eyes, Sitri gave him one more of those pretty smiles and then left. It took about ten minutes before Isaac felt he was fit enough for respectable company.
~***~
But he was willing to sacrifice a good mark for something a little more…important, and since this was the only class that Dantalion didn’t share with William, he knew Sitri would jump at the chance. Or, he hoped so.
“Umm, Sitri,” he addressed the demon as he sat under a tree, his hair almost pure white in the shade. “If…well, if you give me…” He shifted his feet and wasn’t quite able to give eye contact. “If you offer me a kiss…then I’ll let you partner up with William for the nature ramble.” Isaac wrung his hands, “That is…if you want.”
“That would be acceptable,” Sitri said pleasantly, and Isaac chanced a look up, and Sitri was giving him a tiny secret smile, the one he really loved. The one he was starting to crave.
“Well…brilliant.”
~***~
This time he knew what to expect, and it didn’t make his nerves any better, especially since Sitri seemed so composed and calm. This time he nervously held onto Sitri’s hand as those lips were pressed against his, and he brushed his other hand through one long lock of silky hair as Sitri shifted his face and deepened the kiss, delicate fingers on his shoulders. When Sitri pulled back, his heart was beating so hard he thought it would jump out of his chest. His body was very much enjoying this experience, in every respect. He was sure he was beet red.
“Thank you,” Sitri murmured and then he was gone.
This time Isaac was convinced he’d committed some sin, but since he’d been spending time hanging with demons from hell, did it really matter?
~***~
He’d searched high and low for Sitri after Michael had revealed himself at William’s trial, through the library, the classrooms, backstage behind the theatre, down by the boat shed, the kitchens, dorms, and even the stables, but he had no luck until he found Sitri sitting against the tree. It was the same one they had kissed near before. Sitri’s head was down, hands held tightly around his drawn up knees, tears streaming down his face.
Isaac debated with himself if he should leave, but that decision was taken away from him when Sitri said, voice hoarse,“I couldn’t protect him.”
Isaac sat down next to the demon. “Well, he is the chief of the angels. And I’m the one who called him with the medallion, so it’s my fault as well.” He had no idea that an angel could be so cruel. “I don’t blame you for hesitating against the golden sword, and I know William doesn’t blame you.” William was always very fair.
“Dantalion beat him. I was too afraid...” Sitri said tonelessly, almost as if all that Isaac had said fell on deaf ears.
Yes, Dantalion did beat Michael, almost killed him. It had scared Isaac how fierce he’d been. It wasn’t the first time he’d seen him so enraged; he’d seen him that night at Sabbat. But this time the duke seemed so much angrier. There was something wild and dark in Dantalion’s eyes which was entirely opposite to Sitri. It was a terrible thing to think, and he’d never say it to a soul, most especially William, and he was grateful that Dantalion had saved him, but he didn’t feel safe around him, not the way he felt safe around Sitri.
“That doesn’t make him any better than you,” Isaac said, but he knew it was feeble comfort and Isaac continued, “Dantalion was lucky; the angel was almost certainly having a bad day. He’s a seraph…I mean, they are tremendously strong. Even...even I know that.” He’d been afraid as well and totally powerless to help; though he wanted to save William, he didn’t even try. And to think, Isaac had expected Sitri to fight, when he knew that Michael had defeated Lucifer. To say their ranks were different was an understatement. Maybe if William had chosen Sitri then, it would have made a huge difference, but Sitri hadn’t even pleaded with William to elect him with so much at stake. Perhaps Sitri had given up, perhaps he thought it would be futile to try. William was incredibly stubborn.
Sitri said nothing, just kept looking at him with a mixture of incredulity and sadness. Maybe he was just an ordinary human, but...
“I’d choose you, if I was William. I’d choose you if I could.” Sitri closed his eyes.
There was silence for a bit. A crow cawed nearby, and in the distance he could hear running water, the brook that fed into the river. There was a strange hum in the air, a power, and it was as though the rest of the world ceased to exist.
Sitri spoke, low, but precise, his eyes locked on him “You know so little. You are a naive and foolish boy for saying such things to a demon. We never forget.” The hum stopped abruptly.
“Even so…I would.” He knew that promises and words held more weight for demons, but he didn’t care because it was true.
“Because I give you smiles, some kisses and I’m pretty to look at?”
“No…because you’re…good and you truly care about William. You didn’t harm him even when Michael offered you heaven if you took his soul, and I could tell how much you wanted to return home.” Sitri gave him a surprised look and Isaac continued, “And... you like biscuits, and you…follow through with your promises. And anyone who keeps their word would make a splendid emperor. You know, so many politicians don’t.”
“Foolish and naive,” Sitri said again, sighing in exasperation, but he leaned his head against Isaac’s shoulder, and without thinking, Isaac turned and kissed the top of Sitri’s forehead. When Sitri didn’t move way, he took Sitri’s hand in his, feeling brave and worried and wishing dearly he could make Sitri’s sadness go away. They sat like that until it got dark.
~***~
William had gone onto Cambridge. Isaac had scraped in enough to be sent, especially with his family’s assets, but he didn’t think he could face another four years of schooling. Thankfully, his father had offered him a position in the company in Calcutta, and he’d agreed. He’d always wanted to see the world.
He leaned on the railing and watched as a trio of tiny sea fairies danced on the wake that the liner ship made. Even though the demons had left, he’d never stopped seeing fairies and goblins and other peculiar creatures he’d never been able to identify. He suspected it was the same for William, though his friend had never acknowledged them. William was particularly popular with the smaller supernatural critters; fairies would pull at his blond hair and brownies played mischief with his items, much to William’s exasperation.
Isaac couldn’t wait to see what creatures he’d see in India. He was going to have so many adventures and see so many new things. He wondered if the fairy folk were much different. Maybe he’d see flying monkeys or some type of Indian elf?
Those notions inevitably sent his mind drifting to thoughts of Sitri with sadness; maybe he’d never see the beautiful demon again. He’d never even got to say goodbye. One day everything was normal with demonic pestering and squabbles, the next Dantalion, Camio, and Sitri had disappeared from their lives. Nobody at Stratford had any memory of them, other than William. It was as if they never existed.
It was with that heavy thought that he headed back to his cabin.
His tin of cinnamon biscuits that his dear sister-in-law Clara had packed for the trip was open and sitting in the lap of a certain demon.
“Hmmpflo,”Sitri said, mouth full.
Isaac closed his eyes, counted to ten and then opened them again. No, it wasn’t some invention of his mind. Sitri had swallowed the biscuit and was wiping his lips. “These are really good,” Sitri said in satisfaction.
That was all Sitri would be able to say for the next few minutes as Isaac, oblivious of the tin crashing to the ground and Sitri’s muffled protest, pulled the demon into a hug, face mashed up against his shoulder (he’d grown a bit since school, much taller than William).
Stiri stopped struggling and leaned into him for a moment and then pushed him back and said accusingly, “You’ve ruined the biscuits.” Fortunately, he hadn’t really; they were still in the tin probably smashed into pieces, but that was his least concern as he inhaled the summery green scent that had haunted his dreams for a year.
“I’ve missed you. You haven’t changed a bit. Where have you been? Did you go back to hell? What happened? Did William pick a candidate? Where did the angels go? Is that why you left? William wouldn’t tell me a thing. Are you an emperor now? If you are, did you get a crown? How are Camio and Dantalion? Can I kiss you? Because, because that would be very lovely, because I really enjoyed-”
The words tumbled out of his mouth one after the other, and Sitri dragged him down onto the bunk so they were sitting side by side and then stopped his babbling with the kiss he’d asked for.
This one was slow and exploratory, and Isaac shivered as a finger traced his collarbone and further down beneath his collar. Isaac still really didn’t know too much of the particulars, but he’d heard enough, and he knew…and hoped that this kiss would end in something far more wicked and sinful. Not that he worried too much about this type of sin anymore, after facing demented murderous angels, heaven’s silly rules and the church’s Bible could go stuff it.
Sitri drew away slightly, and Isaac couldn’t resist rubbing the tip of his nose against Sitri’s affectionately before drawing back, waiting for the demon to speak.
“I’m not emperor,” Sitri said calmly, much more calmly than he would have imagined considering how much Isaac knew Sitri wanted to be chosen. “But I needed to sort many things out in hell after the new emperor ascended, and it took a while.” Sitri shook his head, his eyes seemingly clouded in memory.
Isaac wanted to know who had been chosen; he wanted to know what things had needed sorting but decided to go with what was far more important. “Why are you here?”
“Because,” Sitri smiled as he gently brushed his thumb along Isaac's right eyebrow, there was a fond look on his face. “You said you’d choose me, didn’t you? Being around demons and developing your magic has made you stand out among humans to the lesser demons and other…creatures who like to prey on humans. You need a protector, and you chose me.”
“But…what about William? He also has magical powers, and all the little critters flock to him.” And he had Solomon’s soul.
“He will be perfectly fine. He made his own choice. He has his own guardian.”
Isaac looked at Sitri, all delicate features and big blue eyes and thick lashes. He was gorgeous, beautiful, an angel; he’d not seen any mortal girl or fairy that could measure up, nor any man. But much more importantly, Isaac knew he was good, that there was kindness there that he’d always wished William could have seen.
Of course, now he felt differently. If William had seen how kind-hearted Sitri was, how much Sitri cared, then Isaac would never have had Sitri here in this ship cabin waiting for him, of that he was certain. Nobody who knew Sitri’s heart could possibly deny him.
He pressed Sitri’s right hand, palm flat against his chest, roughly. He wished he could make Sitri see his faith, that he might not be as powerful as William or could make Sitri emperor, but he would do anything he could to keep Sitri happy. He would treat him like royalty and cherish him the way his brother cherished his wife. “I will always choose you, Sitri. Always.” He couldn’t stop the smile that broke free; he was so glad to have Sitri in his life again.
But then doubt filled him. Isaac had always found it easy to be cheerful. The world was full of amazing magical things to marvel over, and life was truly splendid, especially now with Sitri to love, but Sitri was perfect and he, well, with his big bushy eyebrows and unruly red hair. He knew he was plain even by human standards, and it wasn’t like he was really that good at casting spells. In the end William had surpassed him, which Isaac thought a little unfair because he knew William would never do magic while he had ambitions for Westminster. He brushed his thumb along Sitri’s wrist. “But do you want to choose me? I’m just a regular human and a bit of a queer sort at that.”
Sitri hand against his chest warmed up, and he felt that hum, like that one time in the woods after Michael’s attack. “Silly, foolish, sweet boy,” Sitri shook his head and said wonderingly, looking at the space where they touched. “You’d give me your soul if I asked, wouldn’t you? Just like that.”
Isaac nodded and held Sitri’s hands against his chest tighter; like that it felt so right. “I know you’d take good care of it.”
Sitri shook his head slightly, and then smiled beautifully, giving him a look that he’d only ever seen Sitri give William, like he was the most precious thing around. But William wasn’t around; he was miles and miles away working hard studying law. Sitri was looking at him, him alone, simple son of a merchant, Isaac James Morton. He didn’t think life could possibly be anymore marvellous.
But he was very wrong, because they started kissing again, and when Sitri pushed him down flat on the bunk and crawled on top of him, it was the best thing ever, and he shivered in delight as Sitri showed him how much more wonderful life truly could be.
~***~