The Roommates

Esper sat politely in the barstool along the counter, hands tucked neatly in his lap. His head perked up as Umbra entered the kitchen, seemingly sensing his presence.

"Ah, Mr. Umbra, you're awake. Good morning." he said quietly, raising up a hand and waving at him.

Umbra had grown quite fond of Esper in the time he had known him. The nature spirit was shy but exceedingly kind, always addressing Umbra with the respect the fae felt he needed.

Esper was young looking (Umbra assumed he was around sixteen), with a feeble, small frame and a feminine face. His light green hair came a little past his shoulders, and short antlers poked out from the top of his head, wrapped in vines.

Despite the fact that he could theoretically wear anything he wanted (being a spirit with a fluid ability to change forms), Esper had stuck to a long, pink sweater and a teal skirt over a pair of cream-colored slacks. It was a very odd fashion choice to Umbra, but Esper seemed to like it.

"Good morning, Esper." Umbra said coolly, kneeling down to pull a skillet out from one of the drawers. "Did you sleep well?"

"Ah, um, yes, Mr. Umbra." Esper frowned, a blush settling on his cheeks, right below the bandages that were wrapped around his eyes. "Do you think you could cook me breakfast? Because Aunora and I had woken up earlier, and we were both hungry, but I wasn't comfortable taking your food without your permission. Also, it may be useful for you to know that Aunora grabbed something out of your refrigerator and carried it upstairs." Esper fidgeted nervously, awaiting Umbra's response.

Umbra smiled, drumming his fingers on the counter. "Of course I will cook for you, Esper." Esper's courteous way of asking had successfully stroked Umbra's ego, and he felt his mood rise even higher than it had already been. "What would you like?"

"I don't mind, Mr. Umbra. I will eat whatever you fix." Esper said quickly, bowing his head.

"I HEARD SOMETHING ABOUT FOOD!" Umbra flinched at the deep, obnoxious voice of Aunora as the demon horse rushed down the stairs with a loud clamor. "You cooking something, 'cause I want some!"

Aunora reclined against the counter, resting a hand on Esper's shoulder. "So, Black Beauty, you're awake?"

Umbra's upper lip twitched as he glared at Aunora. The woman before him was only slightly shorter than him, but she was built with much more muscle. Her hair was long and colored kelp-green, and she wore a low cut purple shirt with Umbra's black dress pants. The intensity of her red eyes brought her corpse-like skin to life.

Aunora was Victor's zombie, marked by the tattoos on her wrists and stomach. She had been slain by the vengeful arrow of a naga during the trip Umbra met the duo in, and Esper had begged Umbra and his necromancer son to bring her back. Victor obliged, and Aunora was resurrected as a zombie.

For a creature classified as a servant, Umbra observered, she sure didn't do any serving.

"This isn't for you, demon." Umbra said with a certain bitter acidity. "I'm making this for Esper and I. And perhaps Victor and Matthew if they decide to drop by."

Aunora laughed, heavily throwing herself into the stool beside Esper. "Funny, funny, bro. So, like, what are we having? I'm starved."

Umbra gestured aggressively at the flour, milk, salt, butter, eggs, and water he had assembled on the counter. "These crepes are for me and Esper only!" he huffed at Aunora, crossing his arms.

"Calm down, dude. No need to throw a hissy fit."

"I am not throwing a 'hissy fit'! You're the one that's-" he stopped himself in the midst of a tirade, taking a deep breath. "Forget it." He turned back to the stove and started to mix the ingredients in a large glass bowl.

While Umbra wrathfully cracked eggs, his cell phone started to ring.

"Must be Matthew," Umbra murmured to himself as he wiped his hands off and reached into his pocket. "He likes to call me in the morning."

"Good morning, Matthew." Umbra said coolly into his smart phone, taking a break from cooking breakfast.

"Oh hey Umbry! Howyadoin?" Matthew's bright and cheerful voice alleviated the frustration Aunora had brought upon, and Umbra allowed himself to smile again.

Matthew was Umbra's closest (and pretty much only) friend, and they both dearly cared for each other. Together, they were Victor's legal guardians and loving parents- and Umbra enjoyed every minute their strange little family spent with each other.

"I'm doing well," Umbra answered, drumming his fingers on the granite countertops. "How about Victor? Is he feeling okay? Did you make sure he took his medication?"

Victor, stricken with rather severe anemia, was assigned by his doctors to drink a prescription potion every morning to boost his iron levels. Umbra doubted its potency, as Victor still suffered frequently from weakness and fainting, but he drilled into Victor the need for him to take his medication. It was an important habit for a sickly child like Victor to learn.

Matthew chuckled on the other end of the line. "Oh yeah, I made sure he took it. Don't worry. And Vic's doing fine! In fact, I was thinking we could go to the mall today and hang out. I hear they opened up that new ice cream store in the food court!"

"I could use some relaxation. And it will be a good opportunity to get Victor out more. When should we meet?"

"Have you eaten breakfast yet?"

"No, I was just in the process of preparing it."

"Then I'll let you eat first. Just drop by ASAP, okay? Vic and I will be waiting near the entrance. Bye Umbry, love you!"

Umbra lowered his voice, returning the mocking glare Aunora was giving him. "I love you too, Matthew." The phone clicked, and Umbra stuck it back in his pocket.

"Once I get done eating, I'm going to the mall downtown to meet up with Matthew and Victor. Can I trust you two to be alone?" Umbra murmured, whisking the crepe batter he was fixing.

"The mall? Crap, can I go? I gotta get some new clothes." Aunora said, pinching the material of her tattered shirt between her fingers. "I've been wearing the same pair of panties for, like, a month too. I need to buy some more. Not even the sleazy kind either, just something to cover my-"

"That's enough." Umbra said between clenched teeth. "What do you expect to buy these new clothes with, anyway? You didn't even have the money to pay for my mercenary services."

"Well, I was hopin' you'd be a bro and lend me some cash, but since you're saying it all nasty like that I'm gonna assume that's not gonna happen, right?" Aunora said, squinting.

Esper suddenly touched Umbra's hand, mouth twitching. "Mr. Umbra, could you please lend Aunora and I some money? I'll make sure she doesn't spend too much of it, I promise!"

Umbra groaned, trying not to look at the whimpering nature spirit that clung to his hand.

"Fine, whatever. Anything to get Aunora to shut up."

Author's Note- that cute pic of Seraph and Vic is by me! It would have been better in the previous book, but oh well. Its still nice to look at, right?