Chapter 140 Chapter 140
Valerie could almost see the last restraint Maxwell still had on himself snap in half. His fists were shaking, eyes blazing. “Shut. The. Fuck. Up,” he snarled. Now his anger drowned out his guilt. She sensed it, and felt its boiling heat within her heart.
Helplessly, she watched as the two were about to fight, desperate tears pricking at her eyes. Why didn’t anyone listen to her? Why couldn’t they just talk it out like normal people? It wasn’t necessary to tear each other apart.
“Stop it.” she yelled, but they still didn’t listen, glaring at each other as the magic around her began to sizzle and buzz. If they started a fight in her flat, not only would it be destroyed, but other people might be hurt, and that couldn’t happen.
Her tears spilled over, running down her cheeks. “Please, just stop,” she sniffled, tugging at Maxwell’s shirt and gazing pleadingly at Travis. Maxwell’s reddish eyes widened, his strong magic calming. The light that had been glowing in his palms disappeared. Travis scoffed when she hugged Maxwell’s waist, but he didn’t say anything, looking somewhere else.
“Let’s talk about this calmly, okay?” she said, rubbing her teary eyes. Maxwell stroked the back of her head, and she leaned on his chest and heaved a deep sigh.
“If it means that much to you,” he grumbled, not happy with this situation, but at least the worst of his fury had disappeared. Nonetheless, she felt his magic permeating the air, invisible yet ready to strike. It was like a blanket lying over her, and it would have made her feel protected if it hadn’t been for the fact that Travis was her friend and not an enemy.
“Thank you,” she said quietly, feeling relieved that the immediate danger had passed. Maxwell was like a raging storm sometimes when his fury surfaced, and even she had trouble holding him back. She hoped that he’d refrain from hurting Travis.
While she understood Maxwell’s hatred for demon hunters, she thought that he shouldn’t judge Travis too soon. He was a friend of hers and safe to be around. It was obvious that they wouldn’t ever get along, but she hoped they could at least learn to tolerate each other in the future.
Now that the demonic magic had calmed, Mochi dared to stick its head out of the kitchen and look at them curiously. Valerie quickly walked over and picked it up, cradling the small cat to her chest. She petted its head, smiling to herself when it began to purr contentedly.
“You meanies scared our baby away,” she said and cuddled Mochi. “Our cute baby.”
Travis coughed. “Your baby?” he forced out, his jaw dropping to the floor. His gaze moved from her to Maxwell. He stared. “How?” he sputtered.
Maxwell rolled his eyes and sighed. “For a hunter, you are quite stupid.”
Valerie didn’t get what they meant. “What are you talking about?”
“You don’t want to know,” Maxwell snorted. “He’s an idiot. Period.”
“Where exactly did that cat come from?” Travis asked.
She shrugged. “I don’t know, it just appeared after we got bonded for the first time. I assume Mochi was curious about the magic it sensed from the bond? Why else would it follow me around? It’s not like I could ask, obviously.”
Travis threw the cat another look and seemed somewhat intrigued by it, but he didn’t ask any more questions about the matter.
“Why don’t you sit down so we can talk?” she suggested to them, noticing that they weren’t happy about the idea of spending time together. “I’ll get us something to drink, okay? Don’t kill each other while I’m gone, though…” She glared at both of them and then hurried to the kitchen, not really wanting to leave them alone for too long.
As soon as she was gone, the tension in the living room spiked once more.
“I should kill you for being a demon hunter, but I will refrain from it for Valerie’s sake,” Maxwell said and raised his chin arrogantly. “If I wanted you dead, you’d be in a second.”
“Scary,” Travis mocked.
“Shut up, human,” Maxwell snapped.
“I’m not even a human, you idiotic demon.” Travis retorted.
“Yes, you are.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Yes.” Maxwell persisted.
“No.” Travis shouted back.
“Fuck you.”
“No, fuck you.”
“Fuck you ten times.”
“Fuck you ten times more.”
Valerie came back with a bottle of lemonade and three glasses, staring at them in astonishment. “Well, aren’t my boys getting along great today?” she said sarcastically.
“We aren’t.” they shouted at the same time with equally disgusted looks on their faces.
“He’s not your boy,” Maxwell grumbled.
“Yes, I am.” Travis cut in.
“No, you’re not.”
Valerie sighed, knowing that this would be a very long day.
—
It wasn’t until the evening that Travis finally decided to leave, fed up with the demon’s sour attitude. After having listened to their arguments and bickering almost the entire day, Valerie was relieved about this. Having a hot-headed demon and an equally hot-tempered demon hunter in one room wasn’t a good idea.
“Finally, he’s gone,” Maxwell huffed, plopping down on the sofa next to her. He used the remote to turn on the TV and picked a random channel.
Valerie didn’t answer, too engrossed in taking care of her kitty. “Look, Mochi, this one is just like you,” she smiled and held the cat plushie from the amusement park out to it. Mochi sniffed at it curiously, stealing it from her to lie down right on top of it. She snorted in amusement. Of course, it would be used as a pillow; what else would a cat do with a plushie?
Moving her fingers through the light demon’s softly glowing fur, she didn’t notice the irritated stare that a different demon had been sending them. He wasn’t in the best mood after Travis’s visit, and that Valerie yet again was occupied with other things pissed him off.