This is my present for @hnknagiftexchange! Happy Valentine’s Day @missterryrighter! I really hope you like it :)
Diligent. Refined. Tenacious. These were only a few words that merely gave a brief idea of the kind of man he was. Gray Ringmarc was a man of order. He was prim and precise - the was no room for error, no room for nonsense and not a hair was to be out of place. He simply would not stand for it. There was no time to be wasted on menial distractions, not when it could be well spent elsewhere.
And if Gray Ringmarc would not stand for setbacks, he certainly would not stand for this.
"Sir“, he stated coolly with an icy glare, practically boring a hole into the demon’s skull, "would you mind coming down here?”.
The silver haired incubus, clinging precariously to the sturdy chain of the large lighting fixture in room, cowered under the piercing stare of his furious subordinate and merely shook his head vehemently. The only thing Nightmare Gottschalk hated more that paperwork was medicine. And if all it took was the sight of a syringe to have him seeking sanctuary in a chandelier, it was perfectly fine because desperate times call for desperate measures, damnit.
“Sir”, Gray started once more with an exasperated sigh, “you just need to have one shot”. He shouldn’t have been surprised, really; the very concept of cough syrup sent his employer running for the hills, so an injection was most likely perceived as a death sentence.
"NO! I DON’T NEED IT! YOU CANNOT DO THIS TO ME!“, Nightmare screeched petulantly. His face grew ashen once more as his steel orb warily skimmed over the offending armament his caretaker had clutched between his fingers.
A ray of sunlight caught the metal needle, causing it to glint sharply and whatever Nightmare had planned to say, died in his throat as another gargantuan wave of terror wracked his body. He visibly stilled for two seconds before grasping the chain with a vice-grip. An agitated look took over his features, wild eye darting around the room for an escape.
"Sir, if you could only come down for just a moment-”, Gray was cut off by another shrill shriek from the horrified demon.
"ABSOLUTELY NOT, YOU- YOU SADIST!“, he wailed with watery eyes, "I WILL NOT COME DOWN UNTIL YOU’VE PUT THAT WEAPON OF DESTRUCTION AWAY!”.
Gray willed himself to inhale a deep breath before he calmly conceded, returning the syringe back to the miniature kit it came in, “Very well, Lord Nightmare. Now, would you please come down?”.
Usually, the situation landed up with a weeping Nightmare, exaggerating over the pain of the shot that he received only after at least an hour of Gray chasing him and holding him down. However, with the deadline for several stacks of untouched paperwork approaching and an assembly right around the corner, Gray thought it would be best to not squander the precious time they had left - especially when another, easier way of giving Nightmare his medication sprung to mind.
Nightmare eyed him skeptically, eyebrows furrowed with mistrusting irises burning holes in the dark-haired man’s head. Gray stared back at him with a blank face, unflinchingly.
"I will head out to run a few errands. I trust by then you would have completed today’s paperwork", the topaz eyed man stated, already standing in front of the door.
Nightmare opened his mouth to let out an indignant cry of protest, before he made eye-contact with his second hand, who glared at him sharply with a menacing smile on his face and placed his hand on top of the small first aid kid he had pocketed earlier. The incubus’ eye shot open with petrifying realisation of the underlying threat in his companion’s eyes and managed to croak out weakly, “Of course”.
"Very well", Gray smiled curtly and left forthwith, purposefully ignoring the distressed cry his employer let out once he left.
Gray never necessarily had to run all the errands by himself. There were many employees who took care of most of the work and they could actually take over more of his responsibilities, but he preferred contributing as much as he could. If he didn’t, he felt restless and the chore that he would have handed off would be nagging him for the rest of the day. So, instead, he indulges in a few chores and loves the feeling of complete satisfaction that settles in his bonse when he’s done them.
Today, he was going to buy some ink - with all the new paperwork that had just come in, there was no doubt it would be needed. He also need to stop near the market and pick up a bit of grocery for dinner.
After a small stop, he managed to get enough ink to last the pending paperwork and any emergency paperwork brought on later. One task done and another to go, he headed straight to the market to buy the missing ingredients for dinner.
Within half an hour, Gray was done and was about to head to the tower. He was actually ahead of his crowded and strict schedule which filled him to the brim with a sense of completion.
He caught a sudden quick movement from the corner of his eye, which was followed by a rustle that came from the alleyway he was passing. He swiftly turned, on guard - ready to attack the culprit. Instead of a human, he was met with a ball of fur.
The small creature tilted it’s head up at him, it’s sapphire eyes shining, before twining around his legs and letting out a quite mewl. It took him everything in his entire body and soul to just drop all the bags on the pavement and scoop up the tiny kitten in his arms.
The authoritative voice in his head, his dutiful conscience, berated him - he should be on his way back to the tower. And Gray Ringmarc, ever the time-poor man he was, almost swivelled on his heel.
At that exact moment, the small ebony cat rubbed it’s face against his leg affectionately and purred loudly. Any ounce of willpower left in him was promptly defenestrated and in less time it took to blink, Gray was on his merry way to the tower with crumpled bags tucked under one arm and a small kitten cradled by the other.
When he returned to the tower, Gray made a beeline for his personal quarters. The bags were still held firmly to his side, as was the kitten.
He decided to drop off his new adorable feline friend before heading to the office, no matter how difficult it was for him - and it was almost downright impossible. He shook his head and reminded himself to focus.
Heading for the kitchen, he pulled out a packet containing a few pills from his pocket and placed them on the counter with the other ingredients. Gray, put on a ruffled pink apron and got to work.
While he expressed impressive prowess in combat and organisation, it didn’t extend to his culinary skills. Not even in the slightest - another “tragedy” that frequently befell Nightmare, though he was not sure he would take it over his medicine.
Regardless of the fact his culinary abilities were akin to that of a two-year old, Gray had to prepare this meal. Not due to any particular obligation, but rather the fact that he was about to incorporate some medication the sick incubus required.
After twenty minutes, a bubbling forth of green which he called ‘soup’ was set on a tray, accompanied by slices of bread he picked up from a bakery on his way. After placing it on a trolley, he added a pitcher of water and a glass before removing his apron and wheeling it off.
Nightmare looked like death incarnate.
That was the first thought that occurred to Gray as he brought up the trolley to the demon’s desk. The incubus was sprawled haphazardly across the wooden table, pen barely hanging from his fingers. His face was white as a sheet and his entire body was haunched over, next to a pleasantly surprising pile of completely paperwork.
The dream-demon stirred when he heard his subordinate entered and managed o weakly prop his head up, to watch him with his lone red-rimmed eye. He grimaced when his sight landed on the green concoction which reminded him of sludge.
"Sir, it is best if you take a break and eat dinner now. You’ve worked hard", the lizard announced, smiling slightly. All of the days work had been completed.
"I don’t wannna", Nightmare moaned, shifting his head and burrowing his face under his arms. Gray sighed. Well, almost finished.
Ten minutes and several shrieks later, Gray left the room, wheeling a trolley with an empty bowl and the most pleased expression on his face.
His work was done for the day.