A Fairy Tale

Chapter 3

Xander

My body hurt on the way down. Delving always tried to revert me back to my true form. No disguises. No fakes. No freedom. I'd been able to maintain the human form I'd used to walk among the mortals, unnoticed, on my way down here. But the price for being able to keep my disguise left my body feeling raw and unbearably exposed. To the touch my skin felt as if it was on fire. Thankfully the pain only lasted for a few moments before I could finally breathe comfortably again. I breathed in the air which smelled of dirt and the sickening stench of warm blood. The same air that I had grown up surrounded by, wrapped around my lungs causing me to feel suffocated and hot

I quickly signal to Emma, "My body's not gonna last much longer like this, let's go." My feet start moving on the rocky terrain. I feel shaky at first, but the sight of the castle and closure up ahead give me the strength to keep moving.

"I still don't understand why you insist on coming here in that form," she says disgusted. "Your original form is nothing to be ashamed of."

"I'm not ashamed," I make sure to cut her off. "The attention they give me is disturbing." I nod my head over towards the demons that are curiously watching us. "I don't want to be delayed any more so than necessary," I continue forward, ignoring the stares that are directed at me. The landscape around us is rocky and surrounded by red dusty mountains that continue on and on till no end. Shadows move quickly over the ground. I hold my hand over my face as I look up to see demons in the sky with their short webbed wings. They fly back and forth at quick speeds, creating a cool breeze that momentarily blocks out the piercing heat, mercilessly beating from the sun.

We arrive at the entrance to the mansion. The huge rustic brown doors guarded by two soldiers, red demons of a higher class than the grey ones that were merely flying around. The smoky colored walls stretch up four flights. The main floor is meant for visitors and servants whereas the second floor is for business purposes only. My quarters are on the third floor, a level below my father's. I'm tempted to just fly up to my room instead of walking through the long halls, risking facing my father. My thoughts are interrupted as a guard moves his spear in front of my face, blocking me from entering.

"I'm sorry, but peasants aren't allowed in the main house," he glares at me with distaste, spitting on the ground near my feet. He smiles, humored, and looks behind me. He realizes his mistake as soon as he sees Emma wave at him shyly. He looks back at me, his huge eyes indicators that he finally realizes who I am. But it's too late.

I grin, "Really? Well can a peasant do this?" I hold my hand up and curl it around his neck. His spear clangs to the floor as he reaches up, struggling against my hand, clawing desperately to be free. His face turns purple and his feet momentarily leave the ground. In seconds, all that's left of the guard is a pile of ash, the bones too weak to survive the flame of my anger. I turn towards the other guard, "Do you have something else you'd like to add?" He shakes his head and points his spear away from the door, causing it to open. I purposefully pass him closely, stopping momentarily by his side. I hiss in his ear, "Clean up this mess." He bites his lip and silently nods, "Yes sir." I step away from him and go inside, my anger only just calming down when I hear the doors close behind me.

"Was that really necessary?" Emma asks, arms crossed over her chest. I ignore her and keep walking. I just want to be in my room. Alone. Her pounding steps ruin my plans as she follows me.

"Emma," I say curtly. "Go and assign another guard to the door. Preferably one with a smaller mouth." Her mouth opens and then closes, her eyes soften as she sees the mad expression on my face. She closes her hand in a fist and moves it across her chest falling to one knee.

"Yes, my Prince," she bows her head and then stands up. She looks at me one more time, her eyes searching, before she disappears around a corner leading to the soldiers quarters.

I sigh, rubbing my hands over my face. So frustrating. I readjust my cuffs and take a deep breath to calm myself down. Being mad never got me anywhere, but it's so much fun. I smile and start up the stairs leading to the third floor. My hand gliding along the railing as I make my way upwards, careful not to step too hard in case someone finds out I've arrived. I reach the landing and walk down the corridor to the first door on the left.

I place my hand on the soft black wooden door, feeling it cool my hand down considerably. I push it open and sigh in contentment at the familiarity of my surroundings. My bed and armoire are located on opposite sides of the room and are made out of the same black wooden material as the door. The sheets on my bed are scarlet red, a constant reminder of my high position and the cool silk is a small paradise in the humid climate. The bed is like a canopy, it squarely starts off from the footrest to the headboard in a clean cut, the headboard significantly higher up than the bottom. The size is a queen covered with six pillows, each one having a fair share of resting with the weight of my head. I look towards my armoire on the right side of the room and open one of the doors, taking out a crisp black suit and a maroon tie. I quietly shut it closed and walk over to the mirror to my right, next to the bathroom door where I hang the suit and tie.

My skin looks red and irritated from the unnatural environment, my brown hair and blue eyes throw me off. The image of that little boy falling in the ice runs through my mind, the woman running towards him with her honey brown hair leaving a trail in the wind. Signs of love consuming her face and the way she runs desperately to her only son.

I shake my head vigorously, erasing any old memories of my mother before they reach the surface. I glance at myself one more time before I straighten my arms out, moving my legs slightly apart and throwing my head backwards. A black circle surrounds my feet and I feel a fire slowly crawl up my body, wrapping around my legs, through my hips, in my torso and around my arms. The adrenaline rush of my wings coming out across my back renews my hunger of revenge and thirst for blood. An inhuman sound of glee escapes my lips as I look back at the mirror. My true from. My legs are closely related to that of a wolf's, adding a few inches to my height, causing me to tower threateningly over any demon. When I step forward my large paws unsheathe the sharp black claws that help me walk confidently on the rocky terrain. My torso and arms are the same as a humans, the only difference is the abnormally strong muscles protruding from my chest and arms, my hands are curved and show claws that have killed many. My jaws are strong and sharp to the touch, adding power when I smile, showing off the white perfection of my teeth and my sharp fangs. Piercing green eyes gleam back at me with a unfulfilled craving of trouble, jet black hair falls in front of my eyes until I reach up and burn them back into a point. Just like a lion, my hair is full and messed up in spikes, my two horns slightly curled to a point. Each horn is a foot tall, resembling a mountain goats, but much thicker and fuller in size. A perfect crown for a king. I turn slightly to the side to see my 9 foot wings enjoying the free space. All together an 18 foot wingspan, each tip brushes the walls of my room. Unlike the wings of a demon, mine are made up of black feathers bigger than the size of a grown man's forearm.

I laugh with joy as I look proudly upon the image in the mirror.

This is the body of a devil.

***

A/N: To all of you who waited for this chapter, I'm sorry it took so long. I had trouble deciding wether to stick with Xander's POV or to move onto the other main character (who, btw, I am not giving anything away ;).

I spent a lot of time describing his room and his visual appearance because imagery is a huge part of writing. I wanted to make sure I described Xander as accurate as possible compared to how I visualize him. His true form is important to who he is as a character.

I also wanted to apologize for one more thing. I know I said that I'd post twice a week, I won't be able to do that much because of school and work, so I changed it to only once a week. This chapter was a little late but I hope you all enjoy it. I loved writing about Xander and giving you guys a peek of that evil side of him that's sure to show up more.

Thank you! <3