2 Lost

He slammed his bedroom door behind him, breathing heavily. The world had changed, and no one except him had noticed it.

Gritting his teeth, he threw the mirror onto his bed and slumped onto his chair. His body still hurt all over. Looks like demons didn't have any regenerative perks. Why couldn't that damn gorilla have any mercy on him. Were all demons like this?

He forgot that the gorilla in question wasn't a demon at the time.

He grabbed his horns. They were mostly smooth, but had rough parts too, probably where they had sustained damage. He stood up, unfolding his wings. His massive wings weren't suited for the small room he was in, but they would feel more comfortable. Was it possible to fly with them? He tried to flap them, finding out that he somehow knew how to! Quite easily as well, as if he'd done it hundreds of times before. The flaps of the massive wings had knocked over a lot of his belongings though. He folded them back in, despising the uncomfortable weight on his back. He despised the horns on his head, the ears, his hair, he hated everything about himself as he was.

And how was he meant to adapt to this world? He knew next to nothing about what had been changed, and there wasn't really any way to find out without embarrassing himself.

He thought for a moment. Oh, right. Internet

He was relieved to find out that the internet was more or less the same. He needed all the cat videos he could get to cope. And the cats of this world were more or less the same! Sure their eyes were either pitch black or a crimson red but it was the best he could hope for considering the circumstances he was in.

He took as much advantage of the Internet as he could; researching general history, social norms, and-

Lucine put a chair in front of his door to make sure no one could come in, closing the windows and drawing the curtains.

WOMEN. The only good thing about this was that demon girls existed too.

A few tissues later, Lucine concluded his research on that particular topic. It seemed like demons got intimate in a few more ways than humans did. Lucine had no idea a tail could even be used like that. It seemed like wings weren't just for flying as well...

As far as Lucine could tell, demons were a lot more emotional than humans. They were impulsive, and decided things on the spur of the moment, rather than thinking things through. Of course, this would probably vary from person to person, but the general picture was that demons were a reckless bunch.

He glanced at the clock. 23:43

He leant back in his chair, stretching. Well, he had time to spare. It would be fun doing a bit more research...

***

Groggy and disorientated, he woke up on his chair, groaning and wishing everything from yesterday had just been a weird dream. Surprisingly, his wings were wrapped around him, cocooning him like a butterfly. It was a strange way to sleep, and yet somehow it felt natural for him. It probably helped that it was very warm.

He swiped the mirror off his bed, trying his best to find anything to admire in his newly demonified face. He stared at the mirror. The demon stared back. Although his human face was still recognisable, this wasn't who he was. He wouldn't accept it. He was going to get back home no matter what.

But first, he should get changed. There were strange holes on the backs of the shirts, presumably for his wings to fit through. He definitely needed to rip them bigger though; they were a pain to fit through.

Stubborn and unwilling to bend to the wills of the world, he opened his front door, letting the light stream in. The sun's rays were dimmer, but they hit him even harder.

"If there's a god up there, l'm gonna make them regret ever putting me to the test. I'm gonna carve my name into that heart of yours,"

He breathed in. He breathed out. He walked forward, his face ablaze with human determination.

***

The small girl watched Lucine walk out of his house, on his way to school. Why were his wings unfolded? Usually he outstretched them in all of their beauty, brimming with confidence. But now that his wings were closed, it seemed like he, too, was closed off.

She caught a glimpse of his face.

A completely alien expression was on his face, and she had no idea what it was. She had never seen it on Lucine, or on anyone else. It was an expression of rage, yet at the same time it was cold and calculating.

Her mouth twisted upwards in what could have been called a smile. Had the beat down from yesterday really knocked a few of his screws loose?

Her tail drifted from side to side as a confused expression overtook her. How should she cheer him up? But did she even want to go near him? He might smash her into the floor if she pissed him off this early in the morning, especially with him looking like that.

Oh well! It would be fun getting beat by Lucine if it meant he would touch her.

***

A voice came out of nowhere

"Lucine!"

Followed by a sharp pain on his back. Reeling from the impact, he collapsed onto the ground, with a rising fear in his stomach, his heart racing. Was he being attacked?

He heard a familiar giggle from behind him

"Aww, that actually knocked you over? Come on, you're better than that. And, don't act like you're hurt or anything! My horns didn't even pierce your skin, and I made sure to miss your wings. Although, I can't say I didn't damage your shirt."

It was a childish, female voice that he vaguely recognized.

He rose slowly, turning around, his heart skipping a beat. His wide eyes fell upon a girl who looked about the same age as him, but was still only tall enough to make it up to his shoulders. Her eyes, a metallic silver, gazed into his yellow eyes. She was grinning mischievously, with a piece of his ripped shirt on her dangerously sharp horns. Her eyes, a metallic silver, contrasted with her black hair, making her look bolder than ever. It didn't matter that she was a demon now, Lucine would have recognised her anywhere.

This version of Asrin Corvo hadn't lost any of her charm.

"You-!" He struggled to find any words. "-The hell did you do to my clothes?" He reached back and could feel his bare skin on his back. "How am I meant to wear this to school?"

She smiled, punched him on the arm, hard, and started walking off.

"That's not my problem. You're the genius, figure it out yourself."

"Oh, I've figured it out all right. Step 1 is murdering you."

She looked back and winked. "Come get me then, big boy."

He really did want to murder her.

***

Asrin was in deep thought. Lucine was a lot more violent today. He had gone to the death threats straight away. What had happened? She walked until Lucine couldn't see her anymore, and ducked into an alleyway. Her eyes narrowed and she looked at the options. Could it have been the way he got thrashed by Gemu?

She sighed. Should she go deal with Gemu so he stopped acting up? No, there was no point. Lucine'd do it himself one day.

But that probably wasn't the reason he was on edge.

There was something about the look on his face when he turned around. He had seemed panicked, as if he was scared of something.

She stumbled across a terrifying thought. Did he hate her? No, that couldn't be true. That just didn't make sense. Besides, from what she could tell, this was going on before she came into the picture. She had to find out, so that she could help him! After all, this was all for his own good.

She waited for Lucine to pass her in the alleyway, so that she could follow behind and take note of the every move of her beloved.

***

Sitting at his seat at the back of the classroom, Lucine started thinking about the situation he was in. Everyone else at school was the same as Asrin. Most had silver or red eyes, while a few exceptions had pitch black eyes or yellow, like himself and Lucina, while hair colours seemed to be a lot more random than that. Regardless, they had all changed.

The truth sunk into him then. He was alone here. Lucina, Fugo, everyone had turned into a demon, and, judging by the way everyone else in the room was acting, there was nothing wrong!

Wait. Think about it logically. If everyone else thought it was normal, while it was just him thinking differently, there were two possibilities. Either he was insane, or he was the only person who changed, from human to demon. Or rather, he swapped with someone who was a demon. Pieces started clicking in his brain while he thought about things properly without being distracted by his disgusting reflection.

He had the same name, the same family. He still went to the same school and knew the same people. The fundamentals were still the same. To everyone else, the only thing that had changed was him, while for him everything else had changed except his mind. Meaning…

He had been swapped into a different world.

And it was because of that mirror!

Shit! How had he not realized? That thrashing really must knocked a screw loose…

Or was he just thinking slower than usual?

If the bodies had been swapped, then that means they would both have different brains. That would explain why he was dumber than usual, since from what he'd seen on the Internet, demons were not as intelligent as humans, making decisions based on personal emotions instead of facts.

No, that was probably bullshit.

How could he still have his memories if it was a different brain? But how could his brain be switched without him noticing?

He caught sight of his reflection in the window, destroying his train of thought. The scowl on his face grew even stronger.

And still, even his face could not destroy the one question that loomed over him.

What exactly had happened?