A week's journey away from their section's gathering was all that was left. If Rein had gotten away as Freir liked to believe he had, they would be upon him soon enough. In that time, they had to be rid of the demon. It could go no farther.

"C'mere, lift ya arm up."

Freir grabbed his left arm and lifted it as he applied a new bandage over his wound. He had done the same to his leg making sure it had not gotten infected. However, the demon was quite keen on that as well. It would do him no good if his blood was filled with illness.

He gave his side a pat as he finished.

"I have seen you in better shape."

Ari let out a soft laugh.

"I am healing well, am I not? Or is it now you find me to be a burden?"

"You have always been one."

Again, Ari laughed as Freir smiled. Before long he brought him into a hug, taking him by surprise. It only lasted a moment as Freir's true intent was whispered in his ear.

"Never take his blood and never speak his name, Ari."

He moved away from him as Ari's eyes were wide with questions. Compared to Freir, he was much of a fledgling demon hunter. Freir had done this for over two decades when he had only done it for a half of one. From the moment they encountered it--he-- Ari paused in his thoughts.

Freir had referred to it as he.

Freir knew something about the demon since their very first meeting with it. He had told him to run, to take his blood instead. He had known what this demon was from the very beginning. It was no ordinary one if Freir was taking all of these precautions. He knew something, and that made his blood run cold.

The door opened then slammed with a bang causing Ari to tense.

"Away, away, smelly thing. Get away from my little human." It crouched down in front of him as Freir did as was told suppressing his glower. He was biding his time, Ari knew, so he would bide his as well.

Ari tried to look away from it, but it picked his head up and made him look at it.

"How are you?" it asked.

"I am fine."

It tilted Ari's head to the right and then back to the left. Its finger traced down the wound it gave him with the dagger. Soon it drew its fingers back before giving him a small smile.

"Are you hungry?"

Ari was famished. He nodded his head. There was no point in lying.

It brought a basket from behind itself and sat it in front of him. It was full of fruits, bread, and some meat. His mouth was watering for the taste of fresh food, but he would not be beguiled by the thing.

"Now, what is it that you say when one does good to the other?"

He closed his eyes and simmered down an oncoming hiss.

"Thank... you."

"Very good. See, with a little training look at all the progress that has been made," it laughed and stared into his eyes.

As much as Ari detested its presence, he could not help the swelling curiosity amassing by the day. The more time he spent around it the less he thought of it as an it. It was different from most demons. It could speak. It knew of things such as morals and values even when it had none. Though it had its own reasons, it took good enough care of him to warrant some kind of a thank you.

"Though you may not believe it, I am not so bad as you would like to paint me out to be like."

"Demon."

It flicked its eyes over to Freir with annoyance.

"We need to leave. The other town is but hours away."

"And my little human needs to rest. Go on ahead without him if that is what you so desire. I will not have my food become spoiled for your sake."

It was never going to let him out of its sight. Freir knew that. It would do neither of them any good to upset it. The demon had a temper and that single instance of being shown it had almost gotten them killed.

"Freir, it is fine. Let us stay here for the day until the morrow."

What the demon had said was true, however. His strength had been waning since the encounter with the xems. It was staying for his sake which made him become filled with mixed emotions for the thing.

Again, the demon looked at him. It grabbed a piece of fruit from out of the basket and pressed it up against his lips.

"Eat."

Ari looked at it and then back to them. It grabbed his chin and forced his bottom lip open. A grape fell into his mouth not long after filling his mouth with the bittersweet taste of it.

"As for you, I brought you something out back in the kitchens. Go and fetch it yourself." It did not bother to take its eyes off of Ari. Instead, it focused on his eyes and went down his face before snapping its eyes back up to meet his wary ones.

As Freir left out the room, the demon moved away from Ari giving him his space. Still, it loitered around looking out the window. Sometimes, it would pace as if in thought.

"Your name...human."

Ari looked up at it.

"What is it?"

He pursed his lips and continued to keep his eyes on the piece of bread in his hand. Freir had mentioned something about names. However, he failed to mention its value. He did not know if knowing his name would bring hell down upon him. Ari laughed more to himself at the thought. Hell had already come down upon him long ago.

"Ari," he mumbled.

"Ari, what a simple name for a troubling thing." It dragged its finger down to its lip before it began to tap on it.

"And your friend?" it asked after some silence passed.

"Freir."

It walked back towards him and sat across from him cross-legged. The demon was as interesting as anything could get. It piqued his interest beyond measure and Ari knew he should not dare to become even more so. It was something they had taught him since he was very young.

"You have many questions you would like to ask me, yes?"

Ari tucked in his lips not trying to be tempted by the demon. He tried to look away from it, but his eyes would only find their way back to its burning ones. His curiosity was tearing away at him. The thought of him losing this rare opportunity was searing through his mind.

"...I do," Ari finally muttered with some reluctance.

"Ask me as I will ask you one."

He had many once before, but his mind had gone blank. The way that it stared at him still unnerved him and caused him to become unfocused. No matter what situation he was in with the thing, he felt nothing but unease.

The sound of rain falling down onto the roof of the inn filled the silence. Cold air seeped into the cracks causing goosebumps to go across his naked skin. After his eyes met with its eyes again, it smiled showing its fangs all the while.

"Tell me, are you more intrigued or afraid?"

"I do not know what you mean." Ari cut his eyes away, but the demon pressed its thumb to Ari's chin and brought his head back.

"I believe you do. Your friend is not here, so you do not have to lie."

Ari's lips parted.

"Why are you keeping us here?" he finally asked.

"The demon holiday, Basalda, is approaching and I do not want you mistaken as food to the others. You are mine."

It stared in thought for a moment.

"I am sure that is not the real question you had in mind. With all your commands and false empowerment, I had not believed you to be shy."

"You are a demon, yet you do not act the same as the rest. You feed off of them, yet you...like the taste of my blood. You do not care for human life. We are but little insignificant bugs to you, so why are you treating Freir so kindly?"

"He is your friend. Think of it as a little toy I am giving you."

"And me."

"And you? Do you think the treatment I give to you is kind?"

Ari shook his head for a moment before he looked back into its heated stare.

"In a strange way...yes. Yes, I do."

The demon's lips twitched before one of its eyebrows raised. It took a hand through its long hair before it laughed.

"How so?"

"I have watched you. Since we have travelled you had not taken any blood. Not from me nor from any demons. You had your chance at the inn when you brought the dagger to my neck. You could have killed me for giving you that wound to your cheek, but you did not."

"I did not," it agreed.

"Why?"

"Same reason as you have of me."

"Which is?"

The demon laughed.

"Have you grown so bold now?"

Ari's eyes hardened with resolve to not succumb to his curious mind but he was failing.

"You intrigue me, little human Ari."

His lips parted as he blinked with a slowness about him.

"You have many questions and I have many answers. We can both get what we want from one another, Little Ari."

Before it moved closer, Ari put a dagger to its neck. It laughed and pushed against it, regardless. Blood spilled from its neck causing Ari some wariness as it became closer to his face. After a couple seconds, it withdrew its advances.

"... Your name."

It looked at him.

"What is it?"

"Little Ari, had I not told you? Everything has its price," it grinned sending a shudder through his body. "Would you still like to know?"

Ari watched as it took its thumb across the blade eyeing it with some unfound curiosity.

He lowered his eyes and shook his head. He could not as much as he had wanted to know. Freir had warned him of it. It was dangerous and even more dangerous when alone with it.

"Basalda is near and, soon, you shall have your answer, Ari."

He hated the way it said his name. It was as if he gained some power over him by knowing it. Ari muscled down his distaste and reached in the basket for an orange, but the demon smacked his hand away from it.

"Do not eat that," it hissed. I do not want to taste it."

It picked up a handful of grapes and dropped it into Ari's hand instead.

"Eat this."

Ari gazed at the demon riffled with questions that he dared not ask for fear of what the answer would be. Was it the devil? Was it the incarnation of evil?

"I will allow for you to draw blood from me. It does not matter. It pales in comparison to the amount I will take from you."

It gazed at him.

"Soon, you will be wanting to taste it, wanting more and more of it." It cut its finger with his dagger before grabbing his chin in hand.

Ari moved away from it, but it toppled over him before he could move any further. It watched as his eyes grew wide. He knew it could feel his heartbeat growing faster and the smell the bit of fear escaping him. Unlike most times, it got from over him.

He pressed his back against the wall closest to him trying to steady his erratic heartbeat. Ari had never known of this feeling until it met with this demon.

"To know what you know and what you do not know, that is true knowledge. It is good that you fear me, little human. However, it is ignorant of you to fear the unknown."

Ari's heart slowed.

"Ignorance should be feared, Ari, not knowledge."