Colton dodged the blade as it came toward his side. It wasn’t hard, he was already better than all of his guards. The only one who still gave him some trouble was Azira, and she had the day off. Instead, he was left training with four guards who’d just learned where the sharp end of their weapons where. It left him irritated and bored with the fight. He had another hour to go before he could send them away without his father coming down on him about ‘slacking’.

 

            Perhaps tomorrow he could just do his routine for longer instead of trying to fight them. He dodged the next blade as it came toward him, surprised to find the second guard, Aamon, at his back. He ducked under it and turned to knock Aamon away with the hilt of his blade.

 

            The third, Lennox, came from his right. Colton moved to block and almost stumbled over something, a tiny human boy in his path. He blinked down at the blonde, forgetting the four guards he was fighting.

 

            “Why are the pretty people trying to hit you?” The blonde boy asked.

 

            “Why are you in my palace, again?” Colton knelt beside the boy. “We had this talk last time.” There was a healing bruise on the boy’s chin, one that wasn’t there the last time he’d seen the human.

 

            “I don’t like New Home. And I wanted to see my friend.”

 

            “I said I’d come visit you.” It had only been two weeks.

 

            “But it’s been forever. I thought you forgot.” The boy complained.

 

            “I didn’t. Promise.” Colton sighed and got to his feet, his gaze traveling to the four guards who were watching. They were smart enough not to question the four-year-old human in his palace and how it got there, but they still held the confusion on their faces. “Practice is over.” He ordered them. “Get out.”

 

            The four guards’ gaze shifted to the human a moment before they bowed and hurried from the room. Colton hoped they’d not report this to his father.

 

            The boy waved.

           

            Aamon waved back.

           

            Colton sighed and rubbed his eyes. “We need to get you back home.”

 

            “I don’t want to go home. I don’t like it.” The boy pouted.

 

            “It just takes some getting used to.” Colton reassured. He knelt by the boy once more. “I’ll come by and visit. I promise.” Though he’d need to do something about the kid just showing up at his doorstep.

 

            “You said that last time and you didn’t come.”

 

            “It’s not been very long.” He sighed. “I’ll come soon.”

 

            “It’s been forever.”

 

            “Two weeks is not forever.” For him it was only a handful of hours in his life.

 

            “It feels like it. When is soon?” The boy bounced on his feet. “Is tomorrow soon?”

 

            “Next week.”

 

            “I don’t want to go home. I want to stay here.”

 

            “You can’t stay here. It’s not safe.” The boy wasn’t even half their size, someone was bound to step on him or eat him as a snack.

 

            “Nowhere’s safe.” The boy complained.

 

            Colton wasn’t going to win a fight with a four-year-old. He got to his feet and held out his hand. “Come on.” There was one way he’d be able to assure the kid didn’t keep showing up on accident in the middle of… interesting situations.

 

            The boy held up his arms. Colton stared for a long moment before sighing and picking up him. He hoped he wasn’t like this when he was that age… The boy’s arms wrapped around his neck.

 

            Colton wasn’t sure what to do about that. He wasn’t used to touching that didn’t lead to other things. He wasn’t used to the flutter of something in him at the boy’s trust in him. He covered the human’s eyes before teleporting them back to the house.

 

            “I don’t get to see the weird birdies.” The boy frowned as Colton dropped his hand.

 

            “What weird birdies?” Colton set the kid on the grass.

 

            “The weird birdies that stare at me when I come to see you.”

 

            There weren’t any weird birdies that he’d see when he teleported. There were weird… Colton supposed they could be considered birds, things when you moved through the other plane.

 

            “I see…” He rubbed his eyes. “No weird birdies today.” He knelt in front of the boy.

 

            “That’s okay. I’ll see them next time I come visit you.” The kid smiled.

 

            “About that…” Colton tipped the boy’s chin up so he could catch his gaze. He smiled, reaching in and building up a wall around the memories of him. “I’ll come check up on you. I promise. Know you have a friend out there who… who is watching over you.” He blocked everything else. How to walk on the other plane, who he was… his memories of the other demons the palace.

 

            Once he finished the boy blinked several times before frowning.

 

            “Are you one of New Dad’s friends?” The kid asked.

 

            “No.” Colton shook his head before getting to his feet. “You were playing and you tripped. I just wanted to be sure you didn’t hurt yourself.”

 

            “What did I trip over? There’s nothing here.” The boy examined the ground.

 

            “Your own two feet.” Colton smiled. “I’ll see you around, kid.” He started down the sidewalk.

 

            It was odd the feeling of sadness that came over him at leaving the boy. He wasn’t sure why he wanted to go back for him. Colton shook his head a bit. He’d go visit… just to keep an eye on him.