Wildfires and Whirlwinds

Chapter 5





Move, run, do something other than just sit here, idiot! Pan thought frantically to himself as he sat frozen, staring at the demon that had haunted his dreams for the past two night.



Kyle started chuckling behind him, breaking Pan out of his state of shock, “What, not expecting to see your demon friends so soon?”



“They’re not my friends!” He snapped at his roommate. I don’t even know who the other one is, actually, Pan thought to himself, but the second demon wasn’t his concern right now, the fact that somehow Xane had found him was. Maybe the second demon helped Xane track him down? Or, Pan face paled at the thought, what if it’s another Elemental, and he’s just as ‘curious’ as Xane was?



Not wanting to stay and find out Pan stood to walk away only to pause when Kyle suddenly began looking around at the other buildings, “Hey, one of them is gone, did you see where he went?”



“What?” Pan twisted to look back around to where the two demons had been standing, but now it was just Xane, the mysterious second demon was gone. Suddenly much more worried; Pan gathered up his stuff and started to step away from the table only to run into something hard.



Glancing up, Pan paled even more when he realized it was not something but someone, someone who was currently flashing him a large toothy grin, “Heya, kid.”



Pan stepped back, yelping when he tripped over the bench behind him and went tumbling to the ground, smacking his head against the hard dirt and sending his book bag and books flying. He groaned slightly and rubbed the back of his head, frowning when spiky, red hair filled his vision.



"You alright?"



"Do I look alright?" Pan muttered angrily, pointedly ignoring Xane's proffered hand, instead untangling his legs from the bench before getting up and searching for his things. After only finding a couple of his books, Pan turned to see Xane standing there, holding out the rest of his stuff almost like a piece offering. Glaring at the demon, Pan took the proffered items and sat back down on the bench, scooting farther to the left when Xane sat too closely beside him.



Finally remembering that they had an audience, Pan looked over at his roommate, who was watching the whole exchange with a slight smirk. When he realized the two males had noticed him, Kyle's smirk widened and he offered a hand out to Xane, who was all to eager to shake it in return, "Hey, the name's Kyle."



"Yo, I'm Xane. The sexy beast that I'm sure Pan's told you all about." Xane responded with his usual grin and Pan scoffed, who the hell says 'yo' and 'sexy beast' anymore? Weirdo



Kyle glanced over at Pan before looking back at Xane, "No… In fact he's never mentioned you."



"Really?" Xane turned to look at Pan with a hurt expression on his face, "Pan, you wound me. I thought we had something special."



Choosing to the ignore the demon, Pan stood once again, "I need to get to class."



But Kyle shot that excuse down, "No, you don't, your next class isn't until 1, and it's not even 12:30."



"Then I have homework to do in the library, either way, I'm leaving."



Still with that puppy dog look, Xane pouted, "Oh, come on, don't be like that. I just wanted to talk."



"I'm sorry, I don't talk with molesters. Kyle, I'll see you back at the apartment." Pan moved to step away from the bench only to get pulled back down with a slight thud by an arm around his waist, so he was now straddling the bench with his back to Xane. Shocked at the sudden change Pan didn't react when the arm tightened around his waist, pulling him backwards into the solid chest of the demon. He felt Xane's lips against the shell of his ear, causing a shiver to run down his spine, "Now, Pan, that was just mean."



A nip at sensitive area right behind his ear jolted finally Pan into action, and he began struggling in the demon's grip, frustrated when instead of releasing him Xane just brought around his other arm, securing Pan to the bench even more. "Gods dammit, Xane, get off me!"



"Calm down and I'll consider it." These words were spoken the same as the last, whispered right against the back of his ear and causing that same damn shiver. Which only caused Pan to fight even more, becoming frustrated when he wasn't able to budge the demon's arms even an inch. Making an aggravated noise Pan fell still, silently fuming in the red head's embrace.



"Better now?" Xane was now speaking into the crook of his neck, and Pan had to fight the shiver threat once again threatened to go down his spine.



"Let go of me, you bastard."



There was a slight pause before, "Well, since you asked so nicely…" And then the arms were gone. Pan instantly jumped from the bench and grabbed his things once again. Not looking back to see the other's reaction, mostly because he didn't want either one to see how red his face currently was, Pan walked away. He couldn't believe Xane had openly assaulted him! And that Kyle had seen the whole thing only meant that Pan had quite a lot of explaining to do tonight. Shaking his head to get the feeling of Xane's breath against his ear out of his head, Pan hurried even faster toward the library, extremely glad that it seemed like for once the demon was going to leave him alone.



At least for now… he thought bitterly to himself as he started up the steps of the library's entrance.



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Xane watched Pan hurry away with a smirk playing on his lips. The human was just too much fun to play with, and Xane was having a hard time just sitting there and watching him go, but he had a suspicious feeling that it'd be best to let Pan cool his head a bit before he kept pushing him. Which left Xane in the company of Pan's roommate, while the brunette disappeared around the corner of the nearest building.



Glancing over at the blond, Xane was expecting to see Kyle looking shocked, surprised, anything other than shit-eating grin the human was currently sporting. Arching an eyebrow, Xane returned the grin with a smirk of his own, turning to sit so he was fully facing Kyle.



"So… Is there a reason why you're looking like a little kid on Christmas morning? Because, just to let you know, it's a little creepy."



Kyle's smile faltered a bit and he looked a sheepish, "Sorry. But, seriously, right now you're my hero."



Brow pinching slightly in confusion, Xane asked, "Really? And why is that?"



"Because so far it looks like you're the closest to completing my 'getting Pan laid' plan."



"You… have a plan to get your friend laid? All right, that is just extremely creepy." There was a pause before, "How long have you had this 'plan'?"



Kyle frowned in thought, "Ah… A few years? Ever since we've began living together and that was just after Pan got out of high school."



"Okay, and now the obvious question, why?"



"Well, it started as a joke between us, actually it mostly just me ragging on him. But now it's more so I can be sure he's not a robot."



"Aaaand why would you think he's a robot?"



"Because when it comes to anything of the sexual nature he has nothing, what so ever, just like a robot. Here, you want an example?" A few months after we started sharing an apartment, I took Pan to this party a few blocks over, and about an hour into the party, this sweet ass, amazing looking girl comes over, plops herself in his lap, and begins making out with him. And you know what Pan does?"



Trying not to let the sudden wave of anger and jealousy he was now feeling show on his face, Xane asked through slightly gritted teeth, "No, what?"



"Pushes her away, stands up, goes and gets another beer, like nothing happened." Kyle finished, not noticing the sigh of relief Xane gave, "What normal, hot-blooded male just does that? I mean, if he was gay, that'd be another thing, but he's never even shown the least bit of interest in either male or female. Actually, you know what, your guys' little show back there was the most flustered I've ever seen him."



Xane's mind instantly went back to Friday night, to just how 'flustered' Pan was then, and he smirked to himself, "Really? Well, that is interesting."



Kyle eyed Xane suspiciously, obviously not happy with his reaction, "So, why are you still messing with Pan anyways? The usual stories that go around with demons are just the one-night stands and then that's it, you never see each other again. Not following him around days afterward when you didn't even get any." Kyle paused before asking, "You didn't get any, right?"



"No, I didn't 'get any', and let's just say I have my reasons for messing with Pan."



Kyle looked at Xane expectantly but when the demon didn't continue he shrugged, "Alright… Well, even if you don't want to tell me why, I'll give you a few pointers on how to get with Pan."



"A strange, unknown demon starts molesting your roommate and you're going to give the demon pointers on how to get into said roommate's pants? That seems a little backwards to what the normal response would be." Xane said a little skeptically, but Kyle waved a hand, brushing the comment aside.



"I don't think I need to be too worried since the strange, unknown demon is sitting here talking to me instead of chasing down to continue to molest the roommate, and since you two didn't have sex, even though you obviously want to, that means you respect him to a certain level, at least to the point where you won't force him, unlike what some other demons are known for."



Xane frowned, "Sounds like you've had some bad experiences with demons."



Kyle shrugged slightly, "This is my third year of Demonology, and while Pan might be all wide-eyed and innocent when it comes to how demons really are, like all the kids are in their first year of demon studies, I, on the other hand, am slightly more… desensitized to how demons really are."



"But I pass the test?"



"Yep, you don't act like humans are all lower than dirt and even can hold a full conversation with one, so you pass in my books." Kyle said with a nod.



"Glad to know I have the seal approval. Anyways, back to our previous topic, what are these pointers you have?"



Kyle blinked before, "Oh, right, the pointers. Number one, back off."



"…Excuse me?" Xane asked, frowning challengingly at Kyle.



"You heard me, back off. Pan is as stubborn as a mule, and trying to force him to do anything, whether he actually wants it or not, will just result in him digging his heels into the ground as deep as he can and you two getting nowhere. Well, it'll get you both frustrated and pissy with each other, but other than that not much else. So back off and stop pushing at him constantly."



"Alright…"



"Instead, if you can make him think that it was his idea, not yours, that's when you'll actually get somewhere."



"Okay, what else?"



Scratching the back of his head and chucking slightly, Kyle admitted, "Ah, actually that's about it."



Xane blinked before giving the human a deadpan look, "You're kidding me right? That's all you have?"



"Hey, I've been failing for the past, like, 3 years to get Pan laid, so obviously whatever I've been trying hasn't been working too well. You're on your own now." Kyle answered defensively, and Xane frowned at him, "But doesn't that mean that you're one and only pointer could be a bust as well?"



"Yeah, probably."



"Greeeaaat. Look, it was nice meeting you, but I'm going to see if I can go catch Pan in the library." Xane said, standing up from the bench, only pausing when Kyle grabbed his wrist, before quickly retracting his hand, waving it slightly to cool it off, "Shit, you're really hot."



"Thanks, I've been told that before." Xane gave Kyle his trademark grin, but the human was watching him skeptically now.



"Right…" Kyle glanced down at his hand before looking back at Xane, "Anyways, back to what I was going to say. Even though I can't give you any good pointers, I can help you with meeting Pan regularly without him getting pissed about you suddenly showing up."



"Really?" Xane plopped himself down on the bench and quirked an eyebrow at Kyle, "Please, do tell."



"First years in the demonology department have to write a 15 page research paper on a demon species and turn it in at the end of the semester with updates on the paper throughout. If you offer to be Pan's 'subject' then he'll have to meet with you, whether he wants to or not, at least if he wants to pass his class, that is."



Xane frowned in thought, knowing that while Kyle was right, and he would get to regularly meet up with Pan, but that would mean no more living obscurely. The university would know that there was an elemental living close to or in the city, and then they'd start bugging him constantly so they could get more information on elementals in their records and there goes his relatively peaceful life. Unless…



Coming up with his own plan, Xane said, "Alright, I've just got one condition for this little arrangement."



"And that is?"



"I stay anonymous. No listing my name, address, nothing what so ever in the paper."



Kyle frowned, "That might make it a little hard, the teacher needs something to site the paper to or he'll think Pan's just pulling it out of his ass."



But Xane shook his head, "Won't be a problem. He's not going to be getting information from me, I can take him into the library in D-District and he can get all the information he needs there."



"Like they really have that much info in the local library just sitting there that isn't in the human records? How gullible do you think I am?" Kyle scoffed, but when Xane just arched an eyebrow at the human in response, Kyle asked skeptically, "You are shitting me, right?"



Now grinning, Xane replied, "Afraid not. There are a lot of books in there that I don't think a human has ever laid eyes on, let alone translated it and put into another book."



"Man, where the hell were you when I needed to do my paper?" Kyle shook his head before putting his hand out to shake Xane's, but then remembered what happened the last time he touched the demon's skin and pulled back his hand, "Um, so I guess we have a deal?"



"It seems we do. When should we inform Pan of our deal, since he's a rather integral part to it?"



"Eh, I'll let him know tonight so he can get the ranting and raving done and out of his system, and you two could probably meet up tomorrow. Here," Kyle reached into his bag and pulled out a small notebook and pen, wrote something down and tore off the sheet, before handing it to Xane. "That's both Pan's number, call him at 12:35 tomorrow to set up where you two are going to meet."



Glancing down at the number, Xane asked, "Why 12:35?"



"Because his next class is at 12:45, so that only gives him 10 minutes to bitch before he has to get to class." Kyle replied with a grin, and Xane shook his head, "It seems you've done that before."



"Oh, yeah, tons of times. Pisses him off every time, but, hey, it works." A small beeping sound caused Xane to look around in confusion, glancing back at Kyle when checked his watch, cursing to himself as he hit a button and the beeping suddenly stopped. "Fuck. Speaking of class, I've got to get going."



Picking up both his bag and trash Kyle stood up and stepped away from the bench, "It was great meeting you, and good luck with your conquest."



"Same to you." Xane called after Kyle's retreating back, quickly adding, "Oh, speaking of Pan, what building is in he right now?"



Kyle paused and turned around, "Either look in the library a couple buildings over, or he's already at his next class, and that's in the second science building."



"Which is…?"



"The one shaped like a u, or an n, depending on which way you're looking at it. Where ever he's at, he always takes a window seat, so you should be able to find him easily." Kyle turned back around and waved over his shoulder, "See ya!"



Xane watched as Kyle took off, before standing up quickly heading to the top of the closest building to start trying to find his 'conquest'. And it wasn't long until he spotted Pan making his way out of what Xane assumed was the library and over to a building that was in fact shaped like an n. Grinning once again, Xane sat down on the edge of the building for a another hour or so of 'human watching'.





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Pan was already at the apartment by the time Kyle got home, which was expected since he only had one afternoon class on Mondays while Kyle had two. When he heard the door open Pan glanced up from the couch, where he was currently working on his laptop, offering a half-hearted greeting before going back to work.



"What's up with you?" Kyle asked as he shut and locked the door behind him.



Pan glared at him over his computer, "Do you really need to ask?"



"Oh, right, the demon thing. So, how's that going anyway?"



"I don't know, I haven't seen him since lunch, but obviously even if I don't see him that doesn't mean he's not there, just that he can hide well." Pan mumbled, focusing his attention on his computer once again.



Kyle paused on his way to his bedroom, "You know, he wasn't really hiding. More just… standing at a place that would provide him with the optimal viewing capabilities."



Pan gave Kyle an expressionless look, and the blond just grinned in response. "Oh, and by the way, you're meeting him tomorrow."



"…What?" Kyle could hear the underlying warning tone in Pan's voice, but ignored it, opting to get the confrontation done and over with.



"You're meeting Xane tomorrow. He's supposed to call you some time tomorrow to give you the exact time and place."



Snapping his laptop close harsher than it needed to be, Pan jumped up from the couch, "You gave him my number?! What the hell, man?!"



But Kyle just shrugged, "He needed some way to contact you, that's the easiest way."



"Why the fuck does he need to contact me? I've been trying to get away from the psychotic demon, not give him an easier way to stalk me."



"He's going to be your study buddy."



There was a pause before Pan almost yelled, "What. The. Fuck, dude?! Study buddy?! Why the hell do I need a study buddy?"



Quickly explaining before fists started to fly, Kyle said, "For your research paper, Xane's going to help you write it. So, he's your study buddy."



"I'm going to fucking kill you." Pan started forward, hands clenched, and Kyle quickly took a step towards his room, raising his hands in defense.



"Easy there tiger, attempting to beat me up isn't going to get you anywhere."



Raising a hand to point threateningly at Kyle, Pan responded through gritted teeth, "Oh, there will be no attempt, and I didn't say I was going to beat you up, I said that I'm going to murder you. As in, I am going to rip out your intestines and hang you by them, all while kicking you in the balls, repeatedly."



"Ew, that's just gross, dude." Kyle grimaced, before taking another few steps backwards when Pan started advancing again. "Look, think about this rationally. Do you really think Xane is going to just give up?"



Pan paused on his advance, looking to the side as he thought before sighing, "No."



"Then why not get something out of it? At least if he's helping you with your research you're actually prospering from this whole thing, instead of just being a victim. Much better, right?" Kyle asked hopefully, wincing when Pan's gaze focused back on him, still just as angry as they were before.



"No, because then it actually seems like I want to meet up with him. And I don't. Ever." There was a slight pause before, "You didn't come up with this plan, did you?"



"What? No, of course not."



"Fuck, you did, didn't you? You fucking asshole! I'm going to fucking murder you!" Pan moved forward with his hand clenched and Kyle ran the rest of the way into his room, saying through the crack of the door before he closed it all the way, "Well, too bad, suck it up, move on with your life." And then slammed it shut, jumping when a thud that Kyle guessed was Pan punching the door sounded, before a long and loud string of curses.



Sighing, Kyle walked over to his bed, picked up his headphones and popped them in before laying down. After several minutes of music blaring into his ears, he removed an ear bud and listened for and signs of a pissed off Pan. Hearing none, he sat up and called through the closed door, "Is it safe to come out yet?"



"Fuck you!"



"I'll take that as a 'no'." Sighing, Kyle flopped back down on the bed. Man, this is going to be a long night.





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Author Notes have been deleted as a request of AFF.net