Author’s note: Yes this is about Jeron and Sylus. But hoooow? The books will explain. For now it’s just a little one-off 😉

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Once upon a time, there was a little brown bat. Not just any ordinary bat, but one that could travel through dreams. He’d open his mind, close his eyes, and flit his wings into dreams near and far. A discordant mess here, pining love there, he’d seen it all and cherished them even though the dreamer would surely forget.

The little bat was very good at not interfering. A dream was a sacred place for the one conjuring it and it wasn’t his place to involve himself. He was a watcher. An observer. His tiny eyes and ears picking up everything and remembering.

When he awoke, he’d tell his friends the adventures he’d had. Some would be entertained. Others would be deeply concerned. A bat didn’t belong in people’s dreams! Stay out of mine!

So the little brown bat stopped telling his stories. He kept them to himself and collected them in a leather bound tome.

It was lonely, but it was all he had.

Until he stumbled upon the dreams of someone very far away. A squid, eons and lightyears away. The squid dreamed of endless seas and fields of violet flowers. He dreamed of swirling stars and distant worlds. His dreams were bigger than the bat had ever seen. A strange song always floating on the winds. And yet he wasn’t there.

It wasn’t unusual for the dreamer to be away from their dream, but all the time? The bat thought it strange that the squid was so distant from himself.

Still, the bat kept coming back. These dreams were the most abstract and beautiful he’d ever seen. He couldn’t help but be drawn to them.

One day, there was something different about the dreams. Someone was there.

The squid! The squid was finally there!

But he was just a shadow. A strange silhouette skittering about the starlit sea.

Against his own rules, the bat reached out in greeting, but the squid’s shadow vanished.

Sad, but not defeated, the bat decided he’d try again.

Sure enough the squid was there in his next dream! This time violet eyes floated amid the oily form.

The bat tried to greet the squid once more. He met the bat’s gaze before vanishing once more.

The little bat knew he was making progress.

Again he reached out to the squid’s dreams. The shadow had taken shape. Still devoid of detail, but his eyes were brighter. He spotted the bat instantly. A tendril of darkness reached out, but it didn’t get far before the squid was whisked away.

Something was taking him away. The bat felt something strange, something angry, something hateful every time the squid was torn away. The bat didn’t like that. Not one bit.

A galaxy sat low in the sky. A mixture of land and water stretched beneath his wings. A tree stood in the distance. The bat flapped his wings over to find the squid among the branches.

“Hello, squid!” The bat finally heard his voice.

A garbled sound came from the squid. Darkness swallowed the squid and it was gone.

The bat was more determined than ever. There was a long stint of dreams where the squid wasn’t there. Where had he gone? The sound the squid had made still lingered in his mind. Was it a greeting? A warning? Was the squid happy or angry to see him?

The little bat resumed his wandering for a while. Different beings, different dreams. Different colors and concepts. His mind kept coming back to the squid. He had to try one last time.

But he couldn’t find the squid’s dreams anymore.

The little bat was sad. He stopped looking at anyone’s dreams. In fact, he himself stopped dreaming. He kept his wings pinned to his sides and skulked about the waking world. This wasn’t where he belonged.

So he tried, one last time, to reach out to the squid.

A dream was there, but it was blank. A dark, empty void.

“Squid?” The bat called out. “Are you there?”

Silence. Even the song was gone.

“Squid?”

A fearsome roar pierced the silence. That certainly wasn’t a squid.

“Are you okay, Squid? Can I help?”

Sobs. Pitiful sobs came in response.

“Squid?”

The dream shut down abruptly.

The little bat was determined now.

The song upon the wind, it was always there. He wondered what it meant. Even when the squid wasn’t there, the music was. Distant, but there.

An idea came to the little bat.

He had a friend that was good with little machines. He went to his friend. Together, they made a little box that played a little song. The Song on the Wind.

The bat was very smart when it came to certain things. Like how to bring something from the waking world into a dream.

He found the squid’s dream again. It was devoid of anything. The little bat held out his little box and turned the knob. Little tines tinked across little nubs as a wheel turned inside playing the Song on the Wind.

The bat could feel the squid getting closer and closer until a face emerged from the dark. Violet eyes met the box as it sang his song.

Tentacles reached out. The bat offered him the box and, much to the bat’s delight, the squid took it in its tendrils. He studied the object carefully, turning it in his grasp.

“I made it for you.” The bat spoke up. “Do you like it?”

A field of violet flowers on golden stems exploded around them. Stars once more filled the dark sky. The squid, for the first time ever, stood before the bat, whole.

“F-for me?”

“Yes, squid! For you!”

The song ended. A terrible groan filled the air. The squid quickly wound the box up again and the song started once more.

“W-why, though?”

“Because I think you’re very interesting!”

“I-interesting?”

“I’ve never met someone like you before. Your dreams are so enchanting.”

“Someone…”

“What’s that?”

“You called me… someone…”

“Well, you are someone, aren’t you?”

Their gazes met. “Am I?”

The little bat’s heart sank.

The music stopped and the angry groaning returned. The field around them began falling apart, the squid was fading away. The bat lunged forward, wound up the box, and everything returned.

“It can’t play forever.” The squid almost wept as he offered it back to the bat.

“Keep it. I made it for you. Play it when the dark gets to be too much.”

“Why?”

“Why, what?”

“Why have you done all of this for me? You don’t know me. You shouldn’t know me. Why would you want to?”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

The squid looked between the box and the bat a few times. “I don’t understand.”

“That’s okay, little squid.” The bat wrapped his wings around the squid’s tentacles. “I’m not sure I understand either. But this?” He looked at the box. “This I understand.” He looked back up into the squid’s violet eyes. “It’s beautiful.” He pushed the box against the squid’s mantle. “And it’s yours.”

The world started fading away.

“I have to go.” The squid croaked. “I don’t want to. I’m afraid.”

“It’s okay, little squid. I’ll be here, if that helps.”

The squid stared into the bat’s glistening amber eyes. “I-y-yes. I-I would like that. V-very much…”

“Then I will be here.”

The squid smiled.

Darkness returned, the music box floated in the abyss. Loneliness washed over the bat. That was okay, though. He’d see the squid again soon. It was his turn to wake up, anyway.

I have known and tasted many a soul, but there is none like that of Jeron Miles. None could compare to his savory zest. Kind, gentle, fierce. Unyielding in principle.

His soul is a siren calling to my own. The harmony we create is unlike anything I’ve ever heard or felt. So close to oneness, a fine line keeps us apart, yet he is unwavering.

I know his weariness.

I know his sorrow.

I know his pain.

I feel it every time his eyes meet mine and yet still his gaze glimmers with a cornucopia of hope. What lies behind those hazel orbs is a tale of a life yet unlived. Unappreciated. Disrespected. Downtrodden. But there is hope. So much hope. It’s contagious.

He knows my weariness.

He knows my sorrow.

He knows my pain.

And yet still he holds my soul in his hands as if it were some delicate thing worth protecting.

A champion of unparalleled prowess in battle and love. He opened my long shuttered eyes to the chance that love is real.

The serenade of his heart pulses through my veins. He gives me life.

The way he dances in the banquet of war bolsters my own rotten, fragmented being. I’ve fought alone for so long. Shattered and devoid of hope. Life was cheap. Worth nothing more than the dust we are all destined to become. 

And then he rose from the ashes of my ruin and pieced me back together. He says I repay him in ways he cannot name or count, but still I feel I do not do him justice. How can I, a weak, pathetic thing, stand before the radiance of a damn near god?

I threw so much of myself away and yet somehow he’s found me in the rubbish bin of my soul and brought me back into the light.

Gods how his soul has changed me.

I’ve seen his joy.

Felt his love.

Heard his song.

Tasted his soul.

Nothing else compares.

I starve without his presence.

I languish and whither when we are apart.

I am less without him.

My soul a dirge to his hymn.

O, how I want nothing more than to fan his flames and bask in his warmth. To emerge from the dark and feast in his radiance.

I did not know the light until his soul shone upon me. Leading me, guiding me, teaching me. Teaching me that perhaps in this twisted, awful world I am deserving of something I had forsaken long ago.

I can never return to the familiar embrace of cold dark.

His soul is strong. His soul is great. His soul is everything.

But it can still break.

I know the price of a broken soul. The pain. The suffering. The loss. The emptiness.

Never will I allow even a scratch befall his own.

His smile is a strange thing.

What could be so strange about such a common expression? I hear you ask. 

Whats so special about how the corners of his lips curve gently upwards? 

About how his meticulously manicured facial hair moves to match? 

About how his nose wrinkles just a tiny bit? 

About how his eyes light up and his crows feet deepen? 

Whats so special about how his dully pointed ears rise on the sides of his head, pulling thick side burns with them?

He keeps his thick lips closed, hiding his inhuman teeth. He scorns every part of himself that defies his human heritage. He feels lesser for those aberrations. I wish he knew I didn’t see them that way. That I didn’t care. All those strange alien differences between he and I meant nothing when his smile meant everything. When he meant everything.

His face is so soft and round. So smoothe and delicate to the touch. You wouldn’t expect that from a being made of tentacles would you? 

But that’s still just a smile. What makes it so strange?

Oh the things he does to me with such a simple gesture.

His smile is an oasis in a sea of pain and sorrow. His grin is a beacon of hope for my soul. It lights me on fire. Sends a song soaring through my heart. 

What his smile does to me I truly cannot put into words, but what I can say is that I can no longer live without it. There was barely a life before his lips turned upward at my stupid jokes, but now I’m so alive I can hardly contain myself. I’m addicted to his smile. I’m addicted to him.

What greater thing is there in this world than the smile of a loved one? A truly candid grin? Pure, unadulterated joy washing over the one you love?

His smile gives me life like nothing else ever could. 

And I would do anything to protect it. To make sure that through all the pain and suffering, he can still smile. 

It’s so strange, what Sylus’ smile does to me.

It was a particularly hot day and the diner had been packed the entire time. I finally managed to lock the door deep into the dark of night after the last guest had left. I was beat, tired, exhausted. I wanted to go to bed so badly, but as I made my way back into the kitchen, I stopped in my tracks.

Sylus stood at the sink, slowly washing a dish. It was unlike him to be so inefficient. His tentacles hung down his back, idly writhing rather than working. The look on his face belied his own exhaustion.

“Hey.” I made my way to his side. “You know I can get you a bigger apron, right?”

He smiled. “This one works just fine.”

“It barely covers your belly!” I reached around and undid the strained bow behind his back. “There’s barely any slack back here!”

He chuckled.

“Come on, big guy.” I leaned up on my toes to lift the apron off over his head. “Let’s go for a walk.”

“Hm?” He turned to me. God how sunken his eyes were.

“Come on. Some fresh air then bed. How’s that sound?” I pulled on his arm.

He sighed as he put the plate on the drain rack.

“Not far. To the tree and back.”

“Jeron…”

“I just think we need to get out of here for a bit.”

He tossed his rag into the sink. “Alright.” He breathed as he let me weave my fingers between his own.

We made our way out the door at the back of the kitchen, past my truck, and into the green expanse beyond. Into my mother’s field of violet irises we marched, hand in hand. On the far side stood the weeping willow my parents planted when I was a child. This was where we came as often as we could. Life had pulled us away from simple places like this.

Bloody battles and deceitful negotiations were our lives. Wheeling and dealing with Lords and spawns was an everyday occurrence for us. Togetherness was rare, but since being home and away from it all, we’d found some spare few moments to simply be with each other. I aimed to make this one of those precious moments.

I was practically dragging Sylus behind me. He was more of a dead weight than usual. Somehow working the diner took more from him than a bloodbath with our foes. Even after a lifetime in the diner, I felt the same. He was always the type to hide his discomfort, but not now. He was a big guy, but he’d never felt this heavy.

Once I stood beneath the wispy branches, I pulled Sylus to my side. He stumbled forward. I pointed to the base of the tree.

“Have a seat.”

He let loose a deep breath. Releasing my hand, he sat down heavily. Legs out, belly in his lap, tentacles hanging limply around him, his hands wringing together. I smiled. I’d fought so hard to make him mine. I sat down beside him, hands in my lap. Tilting my head back against the bark of the tree, I let loose the stress of the day. He did the same, though it was more of a growl than a sigh.

“You okay?” I slid a hand onto his belly and patted him gently.

“Tired.”

“I know.” I patted him again. “I know.”

Our stomachs growled in unison.

“And hungry, it seems.” He breathed.

The comfort of the moment faded as I accepted he’d have to leave me soon. “Go on.” I squeezed his shoulder before standing up. “Go. I’ll be home in bed. Just snuggle on in when you get back.”

A tentacle wrapped around my shoulders and pulled me back down beside him. He reached through the veil and into his pocket of the Void to retrieve none other than a wicker woven basket with a red and white checkered cloth poking from beneath its lid.

“A picnic basket?”

He nodded as he placed it between us. Reaching back in, he pulled out a blanket, a kettle, and a matching set of cups.

“I came prepared.” He grumbled.

“A picnic?!” I gushed. “How long have you been sitting on this?”

“I forgot when I prepared it, but you know nothing spoils in the Void.”

I stood up and threw open the blanket. He lifted himself on his tendrils before settling back down. Once again, I joined him. Giddy, I threw open the basket. At least a dozen little sandwiches wrapped in wax paper sat delicately inside.

“Sylus!” I cried out.

“Three types. Turkey with cranberry compote on pumpernickel, cucumber with cream cheese on white, and tapenade on whole wheat. I, uh, I made it all myself.”

“Even the bread?” I reached in for a random sandwich.

He nodded as he picked up the kettle. It heated up in his hands until it whistled. Reaching into the basket, he retrieved a small wooden box and offered it to me.

Holding the sandwich in my mouth, I opened it. A variety of tea bags awaited within.

“A little bit of everything.” He muttered.

I bit my sandwich. It was as delicious as I’d hoped. Everything he ever made was amazing.

“Mm.” I fingered through the teabags. “I know you like the black teas.” I caught him cocking a brow as I flipped through until I found a white tea bag. “I’ll have this.”

He snorted.

I set the bag in my cup and he poured steaming water over it.

He retrieved a bag of earl grey and did the same.

I was munching on my third sandwich when the smallest thing caught my eye. Sylus was a big guy. Massive, in fact, but he held that little tea cup so delicately. I don’t know if it was out of instinct or etiquette, but he had his pinky out. He looked so soft and content sipping his tea and nibbling his sandwiches. The Devourer quaintly enjoying his picnic.

I couldn’t help but reach over and run my fingers through his thick sideburns, down through his beard, and caressed his chin. He paused and met my gaze.

I smiled. “Something about the way you just exist makes me so damn happy.”

He leaned over and planted a small kiss on my lips.

“That’s my sweet little squid.” I patted him on the cheek before returning to my food.

He growled and hummed happily as he continued his deceptively adorable ways. Life had returned to his tendrils. They were wiggling and flicking around. Every so often he’d hum his little song. The nameless melody he’d been quietly singing ever since we met.

I never once lost my love for him, but at this moment, I felt myself falling in love all over again.

Stars glistened above. Distant worlds and galaxies hung frozen in time, a side effect of the Void’s presence on Earth. Indescribable colors swirled through the heavens. The broken moon hung gaping open, the Void’s umbilical, a fleshy tendril breeching through space and time, tethering it to our world. Life and death danced all around us.

The seaside air was brisk, the Mist that surrounded our world glistened in every glint of light. The soft chirping of lesser spawns and native creatures filled the air. The limbs of the willow danced on the sea breeze. Heaven and hell all at once.

Between the alien sky and the world I’ve watched warp over time, happiness and comfort shouldn’t have been possible. Only shadows and memories of the past remained. The future was much darker than I could have ever imagined. And yet…

With him at my side? Anything, anything at all was more than possible.

Six sandwiches and a few cups of tea later, I was full and the exhaustion was returning. I started nodding off. Instead of letting my head hit my chest, I leaned over and rested it on Sylus’ belly; my favorite pillow in all the realms.

I heard the clink of his cup on its saucer and felt a wave of familiar magic fill the air. The picnic was gone. It was just us now.

“You must still be hungry.” I murmured. “That definitely wasn’t enough for you.”

He hummed. “It was plenty. For now, at least.”

“Oh come on.” I cuddled up closer to him. “Take me home and go eat.”

“No.” He grumbled as he wrapped his arms around me.

“Sylus…”

I closed my eyes and felt my mattress appear beneath me. We were home. He laid me down on the bed and settled himself behind me.

“This was nice, Sy.”

“Mm.” He rested his chin on my head.

“We should do it again sometime.”

“Mm.”

I rolled over to face him. “How about for our anniversary?”

“Mm.”

“Maybe get some ice cream next time.”

“Mm.” His voice rumbled in his throat and sent a shiver down my spine.

“Let’s not open tomorrow.” I wrapped my arms around him. “How about a quiet day in bed?”

“Mmmmm.” He squeezed me tightly. “Sounds perfect.”

“Good. Because that’s what we’re doing.”

“As you wish, love. As you wish.”

It wasn’t long before we were both asleep in each other’s arms. Waking or asleep. Together or apart. It didn’t matter. He was mine and I was his.

It was small moments like this that solidified that in my heart and soul and made every tomorrow worth living for.