Chapter 6: Clutch

The show began similarly to the night before, though the crowd was indeed noticeably thinner. Riffraff recognized a few of the faces, and at least had a smidgen of appreciation for Keyes altering the set list...somewhat. He still gave the same cheesy introduction, made the same bad jokes and performed many of his “original” pieces, but he also led the two nearly-muted musicians into covers of other songs. The majority were currently-popular tunes that Riff hardly recognized, though they did play one more classical pop-rock song he knew by heart. But the moment he gave even the slightest hint of a solo, he received that familiar glare across the piano and forced himself to back down with a grumble, hoof hovering near the main volume knob on his guitar between every slow, languid strum.

Graceful had a poorly-hidden look of misery, himself, but at least seemed less depressed than the night before. He sang his back-up harmonies faithfully, his voice as beautiful as ever, though it was continuously masked by the harsher tenor of the pianist. Nevertheless, both ponies played their role obediently and were the target of only a few choice stare-downs from the violet unicorn behind the piano. Riffraff could feel Graceful’s frustration at having to keep his vocals so toned down, but he spent a few moments during the break between sets to rub his back slowly, casually doing his best to avoid too many awkward stares from the audience...though they seemed about as inattentive as the crowd from the previous evening.

About halfway through the second half of the show, Riffraff felt his legs beginning to quiver a bit. A biting sensation ran up his forelimbs and he glanced down at his hooves and then winced as he watched the small appendages forcefully shrunk away. Crap...shoulda gone out before the goddamn soundcheck...crap crap crap... He grimaced and closed his eyes, trying to force his mind to focus only on the simple chords required of him for the inanely childish music streaming from the speakers. Don't need 'em anyway...this is easy stuff. I can get through this. But he already felt the unavoidable urge bubbling and writhing inside his chest, seeing flashes of bright light and glimpses of the strange barren tundra that he had begun to assume was the landscape of Amdusias’s home dimension. More than once he felt his hooves scrape across the wrong strings, though he doubted anyone in the audience or even Keyes would notice. He quickly twisted his volume knob down to ‘0’ and continued to fake the strumming through the next two songs as his head swam with an agonizing blend of mental pain, foreign images and a dull hum he knew no other pony in the entire city would hear.

Graceful noticed quickly that his companion was suffering from a lack of his deadly obligation, glancing sideways with visible concern in his expressive silver eyes. He saw three or four thick rivulets of blood running down Riffraff’s flank, beginning to pool around his rear hooves in a small puddle. His voice faltered a few times as he kept looking worriedly at his partner despite his best attempts to keep the wan smile on his features for the audience. Oh gods, Riff, hang in there...we’re almost done...

It didn’t take long for Keyes to realize that not only was the guitar missing, but now the faint background vocals were drifting in and out. The purple stallion grit his teeth through an instrumental section, his eyes burning furiously as he shot daggers at both musicians. But Graceful only glanced up for a moment, looking helpless and almost scared, before turning his eyes back to the guitarist. Riffraff had now begun to shiver violently, nearly to the point of convulsing.

The pianist didn’t show an ounce of concern for the expression on the slim pegasus’s face, however, only continuing to loudly perform his extended finale song. Graceful whimpered and tried to keep up but could hardly even keep himself in front of the microphone as the fear for his companion grew. The crowd didn’t seem to notice, not a single pony gasping or pointing at the shaking guitarist – Grace wondered morbidly if they assumed that the stallion was merely getting “into” the pianist’s terrible music. He could see sweat rolling down Riffraff’s muzzle and blood continuing to pool from both his flanks; the last few minutes of the song quickly blurred into a raucous rush that couldn’t end fast enough, and the instant that Keyes leaped up from the piano with a flourish to yell multiple thank-yous to the crowd, Graceful immediately dropped down to his companion’s side and reached under his wing for the small pouch strapped into place. He winced as he felt his hoof resting in warm, sticky fluid but forced himself to try and ignore it as he gingerly set Riffraff’s guitar aside and helped his companion to stand. He stole a quick glance over his shoulder but saw that both audience and show-pony were enthralled with each other, allowing him to hurry Riff off the back of the stage to stumble toward the rear exit while slipping a cigarette into his muzzle and fumbling to light it even before they left the building, Riff beginning to moan weakly in pain.

The blinding swirl of sights and sounds faded as soon as the diminished stallion inhaled deeply on the half-lit cigarette. He burst through the door before his companion could even push it open and tripped over his own hooves to land with a dull thud on the paved alleyway behind the bar. Hissing in pain, the stallion kept his eyes tightly shut and his teeth clamped down on the smoldering cylinder as Graceful swallowed and paced nervously behind him. “Grace...stop, stop it...your goddamn hooves are like drums in my ears,” he panted, chest heaving with each long, ragged drag. “Just...just get me another one out, get another one and light it...I need it now...”

“But...but Riff, is...that sa--”

“Goddammit, just do it!” he snarled, glaring over his shoulder from the ground, irises turned completely red. Graceful stared and backpedaled with a whimper, his flank scraping against the brick wall behind as he shook his head meekly in denial. His own eyes filled with a mix of concern and fear, wanting desperately to provide some alternative solution for the agonized stallion. But a moment later, he hesitantly crept forward and plucked a second cigarette out with a trembling hoof, trying to ignore the violent shivering of his companion’s wings or the fact his demon-crafted emblem continued to leak crimson fluid, albeit at a much slower pace. Riffraff grabbed the new cigarette away rudely, turning away and lighting it from the half-smoked one still in his muzzle before lowering his head back to the grimy alley ground, swallowing thickly and starting to puff silently at both simultaneously.

Graceful shivered silently a few feet away, afraid to even touch his companion but just as scared of leaving him alone in this condition. The periwinkle stallion tried to hold in his hitching sobs, doing his all he could to not place even the tiniest bit of mental blame on the larger male. He knew Riffraff maintained a tenuous balance between living a life as a normal pony at his side, and having the curse of a contractual link to a powerful demon of Helheim. It isn’t his fault, this isn’t his fault...he can’t help it...I should have had him go out before Keyes came out for the soundcheck, but I was too damn busy feeling up the goddamn bartender...shit, this...this is my fault...

Riffraff stared down the dark alley as his first cigarette dwindled down to only the filter, letting it simply drop out of his muzzle. He could feel his body already settling, the sticky blood on his flanks beginning to dry into a matted blotch in his hide. His vision cleared and the dull throbbing in his mind was quickly fading into the numb haze that accompanied the puffing of too much smoke at once. He heard the barely-audible sniffles and whimpers behind him...but worse, he could hear his companion’s thoughts for a moment, as if the feminine stallion was whispering directly into his mind. A horrible wave of guilt washed over him even as the temporary ability to sense his partner’s thoughts disappeared as suddenly as it had manifested itself. He felt tears welling up in his own eyes and he couldn’t bear to turn his head around, to gaze into the eyes of the frightened, hurt pegasus. “Gracie...it’s...not your fault,” he said hoarsely, shameful tears rolling down his muzzle as he stared into the darkness of the alley, figuring he deserved to remain sprawled across the disgusting alley pathway. “Don’t blame yourself, don’t...ever blame yourself, for anything that happens to me because of that deal I made, okay?” Silence, other than the quiet shuffle of hooves and a soft sniff. “Graceful Melody...I need your word, I need to hear it,” he whispered, paling and still too ashamed to look over his shoulder as the other cigarette, only half-finished, trembled and then dropped from his muzzle to roll a few inches away, the smoke stinging his eyes as he blinked several times.

Finally, he felt a hoof against his back and Riffraff sobbed loudly, the minute touch enough to fill him with a rush of relief. A moment later, Graceful silently laid down across him, his smaller frame protectively covering the larger pegasus, reaching down and quietly brushing away his tears as their eyes met. “I...I promise I won’t blame myself, Riff.” His wings spread briefly before lowering down to further cocoon the muscular stallion-turned-sobbing-wreck. “Are...are you alright? I haven’t seen...you have an attack that bad, I don’t think...”

Riffraff nodded slowly, the motion causing his dented harmonica to scrape gently along the paved ground beneath them. His eyes glanced down at this for a moment before he reached up with a foreleg to hug his partner fiercely around the neck. “I’m so sorry, Grace...I didn’t mean to snap at you. This...is all my fault, it’s never been yours.” He swallowed quietly again. “I never, ever wanna hear you blaming yourself, okay?” He met the smaller stallion’s worried gaze, then silently leaned up to kiss his lips. The physical affection expressed far more than words could, Graceful’s silver eyes sliding shut as he kissed his partner back slowly, the two holding each other tight upon the cold, gravelly asphalt and shutting out the rest of the world in exchange for a few moments in their personal haven.

When they at least broke apart, Graceful’s sniffling reduced to a few lingering tears, Riffraff spoke up softly. “We...we probably need to get back inside, don’t we? Gods, I hope I haven’t ruined this job because of this stupid crap...” The smaller male nodded a bit and carefully lifted his body to straddle his companion, both ponies wincing at the sound of dried blood slowly breaking apart between their bodies. “Horses of...how much did I...”

“A lot,” Graceful said quietly, gazing down with concern at the masculine stallion. “We gotta get you cleaned up and...should probably try and throw a few dozen paper towels on the stage before they stop gasping at Keyes and notice something’s wrong...” He smiled faintly and then held out a hoof toward Riff.

The crimson male glanced up at him, then smiled back as he gratefully took it and let himself be hauled back up. His stance was unsteady at first, stumbling from side to side and closing his eyes as dizziness overtook his sense of balance. “Dammit...” He let his companion gently lead him by the shoulder to the exit door, guided through it and then quickly into the stallions' bathroom. “Horses of Heaven, Grace...I...I dunno what I’d do without you...”

“You’d probably have a lot less sex,” the slender pegasus said kindly, carefully positioning Riff in front of the first hoof-washing station. “Alright, now...use the sink to kinda start cleaning yourself up, Riffy...I’m gonna go deal with the...little mess on stage.”

Riffraff blushed but nodded silently. He began to douse water onto a large strip of paper towels from the dispenser by the door, then glanced up into the mirror as Graceful rolled a thick bundle around a leg several times and then smiled reassuringly at his reflection. “I’ll be right back, okay?”

“Alright” Riffraff mumbled, nodding again and then wincing as he dabbed carefully at one of the open wounds on his flank. Ouch. Gods I screwed up this time around...

Graceful quickly trotted back to the stage, wiping up the small splatters of blood along the way that dotted the trail he and Riff had blazed to get outside. He was relieved to find that nopony was giving the stage a second thought, though, not even one audience member bothering to glance up at the slender pegasus as he quickly dropped several thin paper towels across the coagulating puddle of Riffraff’s now-cooling blood. The feminine stallion looked around nervously, then blinked when he realized that Jet was eyeballing him from behind the bar. A concerned expression crossed the ebony unicorn’s features, but Graceful only smiled meekly at him before placing several more layers of the paper towels down upon the blood as it seeped through the first bunch.

He looked apprehensively around the stage, searching for any other physical signs of Riffraff’s breakdown. It wasn’t the first time the muscular stallion had suffered an attack in public, but it was certainly the worst level to which Grace had ever witnessed it escalate. He sighed and then quickly scooped up the blood-soaked paper towels after most of the puddle had been lifted from the worn stage flooring. He only passed one awkwardly staring earth pony on the way back to the restrooms, smiling graciously but hardly able to hide the thick bundle of crimson-stained sheets as he awkwardly hobbled back to his companion.

He was relieved to find Riffraff still alone in the bathroom, looking more stable and now embarrassed more than anything as his eyes flicked up from examining his flank. “Grace...holy shit, is that mine?”

“Uh...well, you’d know I was lying if I said no, so. Yeah.” The smaller pegasus smiled faintly, then quickly dropped the bunched up paper towels into the wastebasket before trotting to the nearest sink and starting to scrub at his forelegs. “Are you feeling better?”

Riffraff nodded and rubbed the last remnants of the dried blood from his rear leg before sighing. “Yeah. Yeah, I am. Grace, I...”

But he was interrupted when a laughing pair of ponies stumbled into the bathroom, leaning on each other for support as they drunkenly swayed toward the stalls before pausing and then staring at the two musicians. “Duuuude. You guys are like...the guys who are like...on-stage with Keyes, right?” one of them said slowly, eyes drifting in and out of focus as his pegasus companion squinted as well.

“Oooh, they are! Whoa, that guitar you play, what kind is that? It looks like...some antique, is it like...like some ironic statement for the way you play?”

Riffraff stared awkwardly at the two inebriated stallions. “Uh. I...I wouldn’t say it’s...an ironic anything. But...thank you?”

The first pony, a unicorn, stumbled forward and stared at Riffraff, the crimson pegasus and his less-worried, more-amused companion both taking a step back as a wave of nauseating alcohol-infused breath rolled toward them. “Dude. Are you...like...better than Keyes? You like. Don’t even use your horn when you play, dude.”

“He sure is!” Graceful chirped before winking to the unicorn. “And that’s because he uses his horn for other things in, if you get what I’m sayin’.” Riffraff stared morbidly at the slender pegasus, who simply fluttered his wings briefly but otherwise grinned curiously.

The unicorn’s jaw slowly dropped. “Dude. Dude. Duuuude.” He slowly reached out as Riffraff leaned back but found his flank bumping against the sinks, unable to avoid the awkward hoof that pressed against his forehead. “Dude, he doesn’t have a horn. That is SO awesome!”

His pegasus compatriot took an unsteady step forward, giggling childishly and whispering loudly: “I think he meant for SEX!”

The wasted unicorn gasped and widened his eyes. “Dude!”

“I. I have to leave now,” Riffraff said hurriedly, squeezing carefully past the gawking pair. “Um. But. Thank you? Feel free to play doctor with Graceful if you’d like.” With that he bolted for the door, nearly knocking over a mare just coming out of the opposite bathroom. He offered a quick apology and then half-ran back to the stage, wheezing and then scowling mentally at Graceful. Because it’s not awkward enough for me to bleed all over the stage. But. I guess at least they noticed something other than Keyes, right? He snorted softly, then glanced at his guitar, safely tucked into the case as a smile creased his muzzle. The crowd had gathered into their small groupings, just as it had happened the night before. Aside from the two drunk ponies, no one had even seemed to notice him or Graceful...and this time he was grateful.

A moment later, Graceful slipped up to his side, a forelimb snaking around his masculine waist as his eyes joined the larger male’s in gazing across the crowd. “I figured you’d be busy for at least ten minutes,” Riffraff commented playfully, glancing down at him briefly. “Totally threw you an easy bone back there.”

“I thought about it. But they passed out while trying to hold each other up to take a piss, so...I decided against it,” Graceful replied dismissively. “I’m gunnin’ for either you or Jet tonight, sweetie.” He peered through the milling ponies to the definitive figure of the bulky unicorn behind the bar, a smile twitching at his lips as he watched Jet’s muscles ripple and expand with each minute movement.

Riffraff glanced across the room at the bartender as well before asking teasingly, “And if we both say no?”

“The last time that two guys both said no to me on the same night was the night I turned twelve,” Graceful answered airily, waving a hoof. “So I took the next three who said yes to make up for it.”

The masculine pegasus looked down at Graceful with something like amusement and exasperation blended together. “And I’m sure that isn’t exaggeration, either. You’ve always been nasty, haven’t you?”

“Yep.”

“Slut.”

“Demon’s bitch.”

“...ouch. I’m telling Jet you’ve got herpes.”

“...I apologize.” A thoughtful pause. “Though I bet I could still bag him.”

Riffraff shook his head with a smile, squeezing his companion lightly back against his side in return as the two waited patiently on the stage for the crowd to begin departing, intent on sharing a drink and some conversation with the ever-intriguing bartender before collecting their payment for the night.

The companions ended up taking home nearly as much as they had the first night once the servers had all tossed them a few bits as tips for their assistance throughout pre-opening. It wasn’t bad, considering that they’d had to pay back Jet the night before – with the decreased number of attendees, they should have made far less. Graceful sang cheerfully the entire flight back home, Riffraff feeling uplifted himself despite cautiously smoking nearly the whole time back, nervous about having even the smallest urge come over him again that night.

The moment they’d unlocked their motel door and stepped inside, Graceful held true to his word – he hadn’t been able to convince Jet to come back with them, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to let his companion get away clean before they headed off to sleep.

Riff had barely been able to slip his guitar case off his shoulder before Graceful half-shoved him onto the bed, panting softly, his eyes burning with desire. The crimson stallion very nearly wanted to try and push the slender pegasus away but it become excruciatingly difficult when his muzzle pressed down against his lips, studded tongue twisting passionately against his own. And it became all but impossible once one of Graceful’s hooves slid slowly up along his thigh, the other rubbing tenderly along his masculine chest as their muzzles worked together eagerly. The larger male’s eyes fluttered as he groaned softly into his companion’s maw, one of his own hooves clutching into the back of Graceful’s head. Their kiss broke a moment later, Riff gasping quietly for air as the smaller male rumbled hungrily and began to kiss slowly down his toned chest. The masculine stallion widened his eyes when he suddenly felt his partner grip firmly into his semi-aroused malehood, throwing his head back with a half-whimper, half-groan of delight. But just as he tilted his head downward to watch the ministrations of the feminine stallion, a familiar shape began to materialize at the foot of the bed from a cloud of black smoke, the muscular stallion's eyes widening.

Riffraff gave a strangled yelp and grabbed the sheet upon the bed to quickly cover both his now-blatant arousal as well as the overeager Graceful. “Dammit, Amdusias, can’t you freakin’ KNOCK?!”

The demon blinked calmly as his head slowly came into existence, then immediately rearing back as the rest of his body quickly formed beneath him, a horrified expression on his muzzle. “Oh sweet horns of Helheim, what are you two doing?!” The reptilian male covered his eyes childishly and flailed his other arm angrily. “Put something on!”

“All I have are sheets and pillows!” Riffraff retorted through grit teeth before his eyes bulged and he suddenly bucked his hips beneath the sheet as loud slurp sounded from beneath the thin fabric. “Dammit, Graceful, not now!” he choked in a strangled voice out as his cheeks flushed hot, a quiet giggle coming from under the sheets a moment later. “Oh my gods, who the hell does this actually happen to?”

“Apparently those who prefer the company of harlots,” Amdusias muttered, peeking over his scaled arm after a moment. “Are you two decent yet?”

Graceful’s head poked out cheerfully from beneath the sheets a moment later, grinning up at the demon. “I am! Though I don’t think Riffy will be presentable for...” He glanced over his shoulder thoughtfully at the mortified stallion. “Four or five minutes?” He cleared his throat and then peeked under the sheets again. “Maybe six or seven. He’s pretty...excited.”

Riffraff slapped wildly at his companion’s face, but Graceful giggled again and dodged out of the way, his expression playful and his own semi-arousal more than visible. Amdusias made a disgusted face, holding out a hand and pulling a pillow to it with telekinesis before flinging it at the smaller stallion. “Please do me the favor and cover that up!” he half-ordered, half-pleaded, his features almost embarrassed. Riffraff mumbled and covered his face with the other pillow, refusing to believe that the demon holding his contract had just appeared in the middle of...that. Refusing to believe even more that Amdusias looked almost as mortified as himself, rather than the pure disgust and revilement he had expected. Why me...

Once he’d sighed and slowly lifted the pillow, Riff found his partner sitting cheerfully on the ground a few feet from Amdusias, gazing up at him curiously with the other pillow covering his lap. The demon himself seemed uncomfortable with the slender male’s proximity, edging slowly away and then looking morbidly at the crimson pegasus. “Could you perhaps ask your nasty little maiden to not stare at me like I am some piece of meat?” he asked stiffly, taking another step away but finding the room far too small to escape any further from Graceful.

“Now you know what it feels like,” Riffraff muttered, sitting up slightly and shifting his pillow to his covered lap as well. “Are you...still going to lecture us after...seeing that?”

The muscular reptile glared between the two of them, his response surly: “Yes, because what I have to say cannot be deterred even by the most heinous of sights, and I am most assured that what I nearly became witness to was the most heinous of heinous sights.” He muttered under his breath, then looked around the room before grimacing. “Have you two...soiled these sheets yet?”

Riffraff blinked. “Uh. No. No, we haven’t. Soiled the sheets yet.”

“We were about to!” Graceful piped up, tossing his pillow at Amdusias and making the demon flail at it before averting his eyes with a groan as the bright stallion hopped up onto the bed, then promptly curled up with a half-amused Riffraff. “I’m not awkward any more, my stuff goes away faster’n Riffy’s.”

“I...I did not find that to be pertinent,” Amdusias replied pettishly, stealing a quick glimpse nevertheless to reassure himself of the pony’s words. “If we could please discuss your...performance tonight, maggots.” His tone once again became icy, his eyes narrowing slightly. “And I am not speaking merely of your idiotic failure to meet your contractual obligation before the grand display of rotten garbage began,” he added sharply, glaring coldly at Riff. The mild levity that had been in the air quickly disappeared as the demon sat down on the edge of the bed and grumbled to himself for a moment, both hands reaching up to slowly grip into two of the massive horns sprouting back from his skull. “I was infuriated last night. Yet I still lowered myself to...believe that you two truly took this despicable position solely to ensure your ability to provide yourselves with food and shelter. The singular reason I allowed you two to even consider continuing your reprehensible choice of whoring yourselves out to this disgusting little cockroach is because you both attempted to strike back the evening prior. You, filly, you tried to sing a perfect harmony, fitting for you though hardly worth that excuse for a song. And you, soul-seller, you took my gift to you and performed at least a partial solo, you rebelled against this cretin’s demands that you both mute your abilities so that his guttural puling and uninspired key-pounding would be all the more audible to his tone-deaf idolaters.” Amdusias looked genuinely disappointed, both Graceful and Riffraff pressing closer to one another as their ears fell with shame they hardly even realized had overcome them. “And tonight. Tonight...” His eyes glowed, fangs baring slightly as the atmosphere of the room slowly faded into darkness. “You two simply...gave in. You showed no signs of resistance, you merely sat there, lifeless puppets playing the roles of a crudely-drawn backdrop.”

Graceful swallowed thickly and shrunk further against Riffraff, who glanced silently to the side. “Amdusias...”

“I do not even wish to hear you utter my name right now,” the demon growled, reaching out and forcing the larger stallion to look back into his eyes. Riffraff felt his ability to resist quickly fading as the scaled entity glared directly at him, falling limp even as Graceful whimpered softly and clung tightly to his neck. “And now, you will listen. I will not allow my talents to be disgraced in this way! I fully expected you to continue rebelling nightly, proving yourselves to be above the level of that mewling mountebank!”

Forcing his jaws to slowly respond, Riff fought back fiercely against the demon’s hypnotic control to mutter almost painfully: “If...we do...that...we lose...the gig. No gig...no...money...”

The muscular reptile fixed the pony with a sour expression, though his eyes betrayed a hint of wonderment at the stallion’s resistance. “You disgusting mortals and your worthless obsessions.” He snapped his fingers and the crimson pegasus felt his body once more responsive. “It is merely another excuse, and I will not tolerate excuses, not when my domain and reputa--”

“Goddammit, it has nothing to do with your goddamn reputation!” Riffraff yelled, feeling his blood boiling, his emotions exploding beyond his control. “I don’t know how many times I can explain this. We’re not immortal. We need food, we need a place to stay, and in order to have those things, we need MONEY!”

Amdusias reared back slightly in both shock and revulsion. “You...you dare to raise your voice to ME?”

The two stallions looked at each other for a moment, then before the demon could threaten to boil their innards while still within their chests, the two yelled out together: “We need money!”

The demon stared at them, jaw slightly dropped, speechless and aghast for a moment before he snapped back, “Fine, you want money, I’ll get you money! I cannot stand to witness you two insulting MY realm any longer. I will GET you money!”

“Fine!” Riffraff yelled back. “Then...just leave us alone, go away, let us have a goddamn moment to ourselves!”

“I will!” the demon snarled, leaping to his feet, slinging the pillow he’d been sitting on at the two pegasi.

Graceful managed to catch it, before hollering himself: “Fine, good night!”

“I WILL!” Amdusias roared, smoke pouring out from his nostrils.

“That doesn’t even make any sense!” the stallions yelled in unison as the demon stared in disbelief and confusion before growling and simply exploding into a plume of thick black smoke that rapidly dissipated into multiple directions, leaving Riffraff and Graceful Melody to look dumbly at each other before the slender pegasus began to giggle stupidly as his partner only looked dumbfounded.

“What just happened?”

“I dunno, I guess we fried his brain or somethin’.” Graceful shrugged and then peered up at the masculine stallion. “You aren’t...complaining, are you?”

“Well, no, of course not.” Riffraff scratched under his own muzzle, smiling slightly. “Though, I mean. I guess he is showing his...lighter side sometimes, right? I don’t know why, I don’t know what it means, but...”

Grace nodded slowly after a moment. “Well...I dunno, either. But maybe it’s a good thing, I guess. It’s just weird, because...sometimes it’s still pretty clear he despises the very air we breathe, but other times...” He smiled a bit. “He did kind of. Go to sleep with us last night. Sloth or not, that can’t be normal demon-lord behavior.”

“I...can’t argue with that,” the muscular stallion replied softly. “Well, maybe we shouldn’t look too far into it. If it means that he won’t be trying to smash us into tiny chunks of pony-bits, then let’s just hope it lasts.” He smiled slightly and gazed down at his companion with a wink. “But. I believe you were in the middle of something?” The blood-red pegasus licked his lips and threw the sheet to the side as Graceful’s eyes lit up, his wings flapping excitedly as he all but dove onto the larger male.

The two stallions entertained themselves deep into the early hours of the morning, Riffraff finally unable to even hold his head up as he’d grinned stupidly and passed out, unconscious. His partner was only a few minutes behind, however, and the pegasi slept peacefully together several hours past sunrise, their bodies curled together with only a single pillow beneath them, the remaining sheets, covers and furnishings thrown messily about the room. Their dreams were undisturbed by Amdusias or any of his nocturnal thralls, and because they weren’t planning to go by the bar until later in the evening, they had no worries about waking up at any particular hour.

It wasn’t until sometime after noon that Riffraff finally stirred, feeling sore and yet extremely pleased. He smiled to the ceiling, remembering once again why he didn’t mind so much having the subject of all his love and admiration be such a needy little minx. The pegasus sighed happily, then glanced down at Graceful, still snoozing softly against his chest. Not often he sleeps more’n I do...then again, hard to figure out who actually did more work. He grinned sheepishly to himself, then decided he would at least try to make the coffee for once. The least I can do as thanks. Chuckling softly, Riffraff carefully shifted to the side while pulling the pillow under his head forward, easing the smaller male’s forelimbs around it. Graceful eventually clung to the pillow as tightly as he’d been hugging Riff, a smile on his features.

Riffraff shook his head in soft amusement, carefully sliding out of the bed and preparing the coffee in the provided brewer. He yawned and shuffled around the tiny room, wondering idly what other ponies did for entertainment while renting one of these rat-holes. No television, no radio, not even a padded chair or balcony. The remaining choices...Well. We’ve probably done them all by now. He smiled to himself, taking the moment to sit back against the counter and watch the slender pegasus still snoozing peacefully away. They didn’t have a lot of plans for the day ahead – Riffraff had offered the option of taking another tour around Manehattan, though it wouldn’t surprise the powerful stallion if Graceful, for all his love of shopping and flying around a strange, unexplored city, decided he would rather just spend the next few hours curled up in bed and sharing a few duets in the privacy of their own...well, home. Much of a stretch as it is to call our little hotel rooms “homes”.

Riffraff smelled the weak brew beginning to drip into the carafe and he figured it wouldn’t be more than a couple of seconds before the feminine pegasus woke up from the faint aroma. He glanced at the restocked packets of sugar, powdered creamer and disposable cups, poking them slowly as his mind wandered to the strange interaction with Amdusias before he and Graceful had gone on their intimate bender. He couldn’t help but wonder if Amdusias would actually bring them money. He knew the demon even before it had been revealed he was Slothful – Amdusias did not value the physical things to which the average mortal clung. He’d heard him rant before about the depressing ways of “disgusting mortal insects” and how their obsession with “money and paintings and pretty clothes” only drove them further from finding genuine purpose in life. Riffraff wasn’t even sure if the demon would actually stoop low enough to force some unfortunate pony to give up his money. He was fairly certain that, even as a lord of Helheim, the demon couldn’t simply create money out of thin air, either. If he’s actually gonna bring us money...he’s gonna hafta steal it. And he’s never seemed like one to stoop that low... “Should be interesting,” he murmured softly.

“What should be int’restin’?” Graceful asked sleepily, rolling over with a mumble on the ravaged bed. “You makin’ the coffee, Riffers?”

The masculine pegasus gazed over at his companion with a soft smile. “Good...well, afternoon to you too. Yes, I am making the coffee, but since you already said yesterday it was crappy, I’m protected if it tastes crappy today.” He snickered quietly and ripped open a few of the packets to add to his cup, leaving the other one empty for Graceful. “But...just wondering if Amdusias is actually gonna...bring us money. I mean, it’d be pretty cool if he did, but...what are the odds, right? Doesn’t really seem like something he’d actually do.”

Silver eyes cracked open to look back at the smiling stallion, Graceful yawning loudly and then rubbing at his slender chest tiredly. “Maybe, but...maybe he really is serious ‘bout makin’ it so we don’t hafta keep slummin’ ourselves out to this guy.”

Riffraff laughed softly, nodding thoughtfully. “I guess we can hope, yeah. Anyway, what do you wanna do today, Grace?”

His feminine companion licked his lips and eyed Riff playfully. “Well...”

“Oh sweet Heavens, no, no, my...stuff is already about to fall off,” Riffraff said morbidly, shaking his head and then turning around to pour the full carafe into both cups before gripping his own between his teeth and and cautiously picking up Graceful’s with a hoof, hobbling slowly back to the bed on three legs. “‘E c’n p’ay s’m moos’k, ‘kay?” he added between clenched jaws before setting the steaming cup of black coffee onto the tiny bedside table and quickly removing the second paper container from his teeth. “I don’t wanna like...forget how to play actual music.”

Giggling softly, Grace happily swept up his cheap cup of coffee, blowing gently across the top and then taking a long sip as his companion looked on amusedly. The slender male glanced up with a pout. “Whaaaat?”

“Your mouth must be like an insulated, armored bunker,” Riffraff commented with a snicker, sitting down next to Graceful and cautiously lowering his tongue into his own coffee before wincing and pulling his head back. “Ow.”

“My mouth’s not the oooonly thiiiing,” the feminine pony sang out cheerfully, nudging the other stallion lightly. “Anyway, I like that idea. Maybe we could even go outside or find somewhere to play! We could make a few extra coins, maybe.”

Riffraff smiled at the idea. The two enjoyed playing for a crowd, and getting tips was never something about which they complained. “Yeah, though I have the feeling that you’re just hoping someone will ask you to step into the nearest back alley with them.” He tilted his head and studied the grinning pegasus at his side. “Seriously, are your jaws and flank not sore?”

Graceful pursed his lips. “Riff, you are not THAT big.”

The larger male sputtered, nearly dropping his cup and spilling some of the hot liquid over his hooves. He stared at Grace again, the slender stallion giggling. “Have...have you HAD somepony that big!?”

“Pfff, you should meet some of the farmcolts back home.” He flipped a hoof airily, sipping from the cup at the same time. “They grow them stallions biiiig where I come from!” The periwinkle male giggled again, looking up at the horrified stare on his partner’s face and deciding to have a bit of pity for him. “But don’t worry, Riffy...” He reached out and patted one of the mortified pony’s shoulders. “You’re the very best I’ve ever had.”

Riffraff mumbled and cradled his damp cup sulkily, sipping at it but looking somewhat less ruffled. “I would say that only convinces me to make sure we stay away from all the dark alleys if we do go out to play.”

His companion gave a warm smile, leaning over and resting his head on Riff’s muscular foreleg. “Don’t woooorry, I’d invite you to come join in, or at least watch!” He laughed, then took another long slurp from his dark brown coffee. “But okay, okay, if it will make you feel better, no dirty dirty today.” He paused and then held up his free hoof. “But that only counts for ponies other than you.” The feminine male nodded before adding quickly, “And Jet! Pleeeease, can I keep him on the list?”

“What list? What in the hell are you even talking about?” Riffraff mumbled and continued to carefully sip from the coffee. “I needa go have one.”

The smaller male gazed up, a streak of worry running past his features. “Okay, hon...is it...”

“Nah, nah, ain’t bad. Just bein’ careful.” He smiled reassuringly, cradling his mostly-full coffee against his side as he reached past his partner to grab his pack of cigarettes from the nightstand. “Why don’t you hang out here, figure out what you’d like for breakfast...or well. Lunch. I’ll be back in a bit.”

Graceful nodded quietly and rubbed a hoof gently down Riff’s spine. “Alright.” The crimson stallion’s contractual payments had been the only thing to interrupt their activities throughout the night; it was something Graceful understood and accepted, however. He had never yet blamed the masculine pony for the strange obligations that made life more than a bit stressful for them both. It wasn’t even that he felt like he had to forgive Riff, simply because he’d traded his soul just to play a guitar well enough to impress the effeminate singer. He felt a genuine connection with the other pegasus, something that kept him coming back to Riffraff every night, no matter what he did throughout the day. Or the evening. Or part of the night. Graceful smiled softly to himself as he watched Riff carefully nudge the door open with his muzzle, one hoof gripping both coffee and cigarettes as he squirmed through the doorway and then awkwardly headed for the lobby.

The smaller male laughed quietly, resting back on the bed and leaning against the headboard as he quickly finished off the rest of his coffee. His mind wandered to a few subjects other than their impending meal. Graceful was more than aware that his needs and desires didn’t exactly conform to any standard behaviors. He often acted unaware of his own nature, but he knew -- the only reason he didn’t continuously hesitate and question his actions was because his faithful companion had accepted it about him from the beginning, and rarely said anything serious on the subject. And if Riff ever felt the need to speak up, he did, without reservations or qualms. Graceful appreciated his honesty and wasn’t oblivious to the fact he needed to be reeled in on occasion.

As the slim pegasus drained the rest of his coffee, he made a mental list of the things they’d scrounged together with the hoof-full of money they had left over after paying the motel for another couple nights. There weren’t exactly a whole lot of options for lunch, but he figured he could at least throw together a decent enough meal with some of the fresh fruit and various salty snacks. Graceful smiled again, rolling out of the bed and rinsing out the cup in the bathroom to reuse it later. He came back out to the tiny room, tossing the cup next to the coffeemaker and then poking through the scant number of grocery bags to pull out a few apples and one of the packs of variety crackers. We shoulda gotten some cheese, but...I guess it’s okay. The feminine stallion dug through one of their packs to find their silverware collection, plucking out one of the knives and beginning to cut the apples into slices as he sang softly but cheerfully to himself. This is nothing new to us...but...it would be pretty cool if Dusey actually showed up with some money. I’d love to actually cook somethin’ again sometime...

Riffraff returned ten minutes later or so, and the two pegasi sat down together on the bed to enjoy the impromptu lunch. They talked back and forth about the songs they’d been penning for the last several weeks, as well as reassuring each other about the impending show at the piano bar that evening. Graceful had admittedly suggested something interesting: “Why don’t you kinda...like make it a challenge? You know, figure out how much you could get away with with the volume down low. Make him sound better – which isn’t hard considerin’ how crappy he is – without him knowing!”

The muscular stallion liked the idea, though he wasn’t about to admit it quite yet. “That sounds kind of like I’m gonna do extra work to make all those douchebags in the audience like that douchebag even more, without getting any kind of credit myself. Now why the hell would I wanna do somethin’ stupid like that?”

“So you aren’t just sittin’ there all night, lookin’ bummed an’ droolin’ ‘cause you’re playin’ parts for a three year old?” Graceful answered dryly, smiling all the same and gently poking his companion’s broad chest. “C’mon, I’ll do the same thing, it’ll be fun! Well. Maybe about as fun as playin’ like. Board games, but still, better’n nothin’!”

“Yeah, yeah, maybe,” Riff replied mildly. But a smile tugged at his own muzzle and he reached out to quietly push Graceful in return. “Always thinking outside the box, aren’t you?” He shook his head and laughed warmly. “But okay, let’s get this cleaned up -- you’n me gotta shower and get fresh so we don’t smell like. Well. Like we normally smell.” He snickered softly despite himself as Graceful Melody beamed up at him with all the false innocence of a foal.

The two pegasi set out for 88 Pleasures after toweling each other off, once again deciding to fly with Graceful hauling the small satchel of guitar supplies while the larger male carried his guitar case in his front hooves. Even before they arrived, it seemed obvious to the pair that the business in the bar would be even less than the previous night. It was the middle of the workweek and the sheer lack of ponies milling about on the streets below was proof enough that even regulars to the bar might not be making the nightly journey. Even though it seems like only about half the crowd even works a real job. Everypony else looks like they get money from Mommy or Daddy... Riff grimaced but convinced himself that as long as they only spent their precious few bits on the things they absolutely needed, they’d scrape through.

Graceful Melody and Riffraff once again arrived early enough that they were able to help out the staff with setting up the bar and dining area – Jet’s trainee was apparently still under house-arrest, and Delilah and the servers were only too happy to accept Riffraff’s awkward assistance in rolling silverware and straightening chairs. As much as they were encouraged, however, the musicians resisted playing another “warm-up” song on the stage. They didn’t doubt that even Buck had appreciated their performance the evening before, but considering how close they’d been to enraging Keyes thanks to Riffraff’s convulsions, neither pony wanted to risk losing the job.

As the crowd trickled in through the doors, Keyes began his show as he did the two nights previous. Graceful and Riffraff played along with the same dulled obedience, the larger pegasus keeping his eyes closed and idly strumming along while his slender companion all but whispered his simple harmonies, his own gaze glassy and lifeless. Whatever the toll on their own sanity, it did at least seem to please the pianist enough that he nodded – nodded! -- to the two during the break between sets. Though he could just be having an allergic reaction or something. I don’t think common decency was taught at his grade school...

But the grumbling guitarist played along during the second set as well -- his urges were barely tickling the back of his neck, since he’d been sure to run to the back alley just before Keyes’s “dramatic” entrance. The slender male at his side gave him a few concerned glances so often, but as far as he could tell, Riffraff wasn’t going to collapse into pained seizures this time around. He smiled a bit and continued to sing in his almost-bored voice, though with a positive expression on his features. Maybe tonight will actually go alright...

Keyes introduced his finale with almost the exact wording of the previous nights and Riffraff muttered a few choice words under his breath as he tweaked his guitar even lower – hardly a quarter-notch from the ‘0’ position. The pianist had a tendency to attempt evoking some kind of childish excitement with the song by drastically altering the dynamics throughout the performance; apparently this was the sort of musical genius that would get Keyes a spot at the top of the billboards. The crimson stallion sighed as the unicorn began the pompous introductory trills. Here we go... The pegasus started to pluck the watered-down version of Keyes’s main melody, his hooves hardly even moving along the guitar. But as the pianist proudly belted out the first verse, Riff’s ears pricked upon hearing a nearly perfect echo of his own improvised back-up. He glanced sharply at Graceful, who almost immediately looked back with a confused expression. The singer was providing a different harmony and when both ponies closed their eyes to focus, they realized simultaneously that the just-audible reflection of Riff’s guitar had the distinct timbre of...a goddamn saxophone. Riff blinked as a foreign sensation suddenly whispered through his mind, his entire body twitching once. No, no, goddammit, Amdusius, what the hell are you doing?!

As you enjoy telling me...how about you chill out? Riffraff grit his teeth as he instinctively tried to shove a lower hoof into the “mute” feature on the pedal, but the demon lord’s concentrated spell had already synchronized Riffraff’s guitar – and by association, his body – to the reptilian male’s silver saxophone, and he apparently had no intent of allowing the pony to ruin his debut. Ah, no no -- we do not want to muffle this, we want to share it with the world! The pegasus’s grey eyes bulged with the strain of attempting to yank back control of his body, but he felt rather than heard the demon’s own playing grow more intense as he forcibly shoved the pony’s subconscious to the side and overtook his mental controls. He could only stare down in horror as his own hoof fumbled briefly along the guitar’s faceplate before nudging against the three knobs controlling various output gain levels...and a moment later, it simply slid across the whole row to twist them all to their highest settings. The blood-red stallion snarled and closed his eyes, trying once more to shove the demon’s powerful influence back, but he was only rewarded with a brief flash of Amdusias himself, leaning against the alleyway entrance to the bar. He could see the demon’s victorious expression, but also couldn’t help but notice the multiple streams of blood running down from his features and the way his normally-lustrous scales seemed to be steadily dulling.

Dammit, you’re gonna get us fired and get yourself killed and probably kill me in the goddamn process!

A loud hum began to build up in the monitors that faced the two musicians and Keyes, causing the pianist to frown slightly as he shot a glare to the two pegasi. Graceful was pale but still nervously providing his soft harmonies, but Riffraff looked strangely stiff, teeth grit as his hooves trembled against the guitar, each small movement causing a sharp pop or hiss from the multiple speakers facing from the top and sides of the stage toward the audience. The unicorn glared darkly and quickly reached over with a relatively unused hoof to crank his own instrument’s volume higher as he went into a loud but simplistic solo between verses.

Let’s wager on whether or not this worthless bag of slime soils himself... Riffraff poured every ounce of his mental energy into shouting a silent denial back to the demon, but it only served to drain himself of all possible resistance and like a floodgate being thrust open, Amdusias’s influence rushed through the pony’s body at full-strength. He gave a shout of surprise that was instantly drowned out by a thunderous roar of a powerful chord ripping through the violently vibrating speakers. Keyes nearly fell off from the polished bench behind the piano, his eyes widening in disbelief as the crimson stallion’s head was thrown back, hooves suddenly beginning to dance along the strings at such a speed that the movements seemed blurred. The unicorn’s concentration was immediately broken, though it hardly mattered – even at full-volume, the piano had been swiftly drowned out by the deafening snarl of the guitar in Riff’s hooves.

Riffraff himself felt like he was trapped behind impenetrable glass, only able to stare down through eyes that were once his but now belonged to the scaled entity gripping a bloodstained saxophone in both hands behind the bar, watching hooves that were no longer at his beck and call rolling and thumping frenetically along the neck and body of his battered guitar with the fury of a demon scorned. And yet the notes he heard screaming from the speakers were crisp, crystal-clear – they flowed without a single missed key change, forming their own double and triple harmonics as his lower hoof worked the pedal before him flawlessly to echo and loop one melody while snapping off a second simultaneously to create a whirlwind of improvised streams that washed across the audience as a relentless onslaught of constantly morphing melodies.

Amdusias played through his body for nearly four minutes, refusing to give up control until finally, as Riffraff’s hooves released a run of notes so rapid and fierce that the high E-string snapped with a whip-like crack, one of the stage monitors closest to the possessed stallion producing an ear-splitting pop before starting to smoke. A crazed grin spread across the pony’s features as he gave one last powerful strum across the remaining five strings, slamming a hoof onto the effects pedal to cause the jagged harmony to echo in delayed stereo from either side of the stage, ringing out from left, then right, then left before instantly cutting out without so much as a reverberated whisper remaining, the only sound through the entire bar the numbing throb left in everypony’s ears.

Keyes had apparently not found the strength to pull himself from the stage flooring, muzzle working at the air while on his other side, Graceful stared at his companion with something like worry and yet absolute pride. The audience itself had been stunned into silence, every member of the staff frozen in place as well, all eyes centered on the sweating pegasus, his ragged breaths the only sound for several seconds as he slowly dropped back to all four hooves, his guitar hanging loosely from his neck. Riffraff felt a weak mental grin, almost seeing the demon’s fangs gleaming before his eyes, before the control on his body abruptly ended. He stumbled forward and didn’t have to look to the side to already know Buck was there, likely waiting for the pianist to give an inevitable tantrum before less-than-politely asking the two pegasi to evacuate the premises. But Riffraff shook his head quickly before anyone could speak a word, his muzzle twisting into a sour frown as he yanked his guitar from his neck and thrust it into Graceful’s chest before leaping from the back of the stage and storming away toward the back door.

The purple unicorn seemed to gain enough of his senses back to unsteadily regain his footing, then leaning over his bench to weakly grab his microphone in an attempt to salvage his own identity. “You...you get the HELL off my GODDAMN stage, you...you stupid retarded outcasts!” he yelled through the speakers, Graceful blinking and quailing slightly, but then leaning forward and grasping his own microphone to declare defiantly:

“Your music is poo-brain.”

Keyes’s eyes bulged and he spluttered stupidly before flinging a variety of poorly-formed insults at the pegasus while threatening to get him black-listed from every performance venue in Equestria, but Graceful Melody was unperturbed, having said his piece. He purposefully ignored both Keyes and Buck as he carefully packed up his companion’s guitar and effects pedal, then slung both case and satchel over his shoulder and turning to the back of the stage. He paused, then reached back and firmly smacked his own buttocks before hopping down and trotting quickly after Riffraff.

When Riff had first burst through the door leading to the alley, his body had been tense, ready for a fight. But he’d just about bowled the demon over, who had barely managed to take a few steps away from the door he’d been leaning upon. “What the HELL was that, you just got us goddamn FIRED, asshole!”

Amdusias had been too exhausted to even glare, however, only grinning slightly as he’d wiped a hand slowly across his muzzle. “It was...worth it...mortal...” Riff had then actually felt bad for the scaled creature despite his best efforts, grimacing and taking a worried step forward. Blood had begun to run from Amdusias’s eyes, nose, muzzle...he’d even lost some of the strange, slender spikes poking out from his back, upper arms and tail, the same black fluid streaming out wherever one had fallen out. His breathing was shallow, jaw somewhat slack, saxophone splattered with small splotches of his own blood...and yet he looked immensely pleased with himself. “Don’t...worry. You won’t need...foolish money...just allow me...a moment...” The demon wheezed and Riffraff grimaced as he took a step back, though doing so too late to avoid a small spray of blood across his features.

“Dusey...are you...okay? I mean...you coulda killed yourself, you’ve been whining for two years about how I tricked you with my ‘dirty mortal tricks’ so you couldn’t possess me and...yet...”

“Yet I did, and it was...splendid,” Amdusias rasped, grinning toothily before wincing when the door swung up and smacked against one of his legs, Graceful bursting out and immediately hugging his partner. “Be aware of your...surroundings, lavender...” the demon muttered before coughing violently and turning his head to the side to spit a clump of something crimson and fleshy, grimacing but still looking pleased with himself.

Graceful blinked and looked over Riffraff’s shoulder at the demon with concern. “Riff...are you okay? And...and is...he?”

“I’m fine, just. A little tweaked. There goes our steady gig.” The crimson stallion grumbled and ran a hoof through his mane before turning around to eye the smug reptile. “And he’s. Probably like. Close to dying. Except I can already feel him healing. Plus he wouldn’t let himself die without making sure he at least tortured me to death for a few minutes, first.”

“You are most perceptive,” the demon retorted before coughing loudly again and wiping his muzzle clean with the back of his hand once more, then carefully sliding a leg back to stand up. Riffraff made a face and – against his own intentions – quickly came to Amdusias’s side and anchored his flank against the brick wall. The muscular reptile looked surprised, then grumbled and let his hand grip into Riff’s strong shoulder and use the pony as support to slowly regain his footing. The stallion winced but flapped his wings once and remained steady until the demon stood at his full height. The two glanced at each other before Amdusias snorted and quickly leaned down to rub his bloodied hands into the pegasus’s nearly-pink mane, Riffraff glaring up at him morbidly. “You are useful as a towel.”

“And you’re a dick,” Riffraff replied curtly, stepping away but only after watching to see that Amdusias had once again leaned back against the wall for support. He came back to Graceful’s side, then hugged the smaller male close with one forelimb. “Grace, I...am sorry, I know that...”

“Riffy, I would rather not jump in bed with someone for a week than hafta keep playing with that jerk in there,” Graceful interrupted with a smile. “It’s okay. We’ll find somewhere else. We haven’t even gone to try and find that old jazz place, after all. And besides, we can still come back and visit Jet.”

“Do you...even go ten minutes without thinking about another male’s ‘special parts’? Or is it like...a constant stream for you?” Riff asked dryly, but smiling all the same as he closed his eyes and nodded. “But yeah, yeah. Jet’s pretty cool. He might even be able to help us find somewhere else, he seems to know music pretty well, at least...and as much a douche as Buck is...he didn’t get as mad as I thought he would about the other day, so...maybe he’ll give us a reference.”

“Would you two cease your endless prattling?” the demon interjected irritably, closing his eyes as his saxophone blinked out of existence. “Some of us are bleeding out in the alley, here.” He paused and then opened one eye to look at the two glaring stallions. “Do not be cross with me. You could write a song about it. It is your genre, after all, and there are few things that are as bluesy as a demon bleeding out in a depressing, lonely alley.”

Riffraff rolled his eyes but turned his attention back to the scaled entity. “Okay, okay, we’re paying attention to you again.” He received a glare, but the demon’s condition – even if visibly improved – still limited the retaliation that could be brought upon him for the time being. “What...can we even do to help?”

Graceful tilted his head before smiling brightly. “Hey, I can do what I do for Riff when HE feels bad!”

The larger stallion stared stupidly at his companion as a blush rose in his cheeks while Amdusias wrinkled his muzzle before grimacing and gripping lightly into his own ribs. “Perhaps another time, harlot,” he responded mildly. “For now, simply resting will help. I should be strong enough in about ten minutes to finish my goals for this evening, which will surely be remembered this day forth as an absolutely memorable evening.”

The slender pegasus screwed up his muzzle in thought, musing on what the demon might have planned. Riffraff, on the other hoof, was content with leaning back against his guitar case and pulling out a cigarette to shove between his muzzle, lighting it a moment later and closing his eyes to try and relax a bit in the dimly lit alleyway. I guess it could be worse. It was a hell of a solo, after all...

“Truly, it was a hell of a solo,” Amdusias replied, looking slightly amused as he and Riffraff felt a burst of each others mental presence, still lingering in the others mind. “I would know how to gauge the comparison, after all.”

“A hell of a solo,” Graceful echoed with a smile. “Of all the ways to quit that place, I do hafta say that was probably the most epic.”

“Agreed,” murmured the larger pegasus, laughing softly. “Guess we can’t say we didn’t leave with a bang.” He glanced over at the demon, who now stood free from the wall, his scales slightly steaming as his eyes glowed with what was apparently a spell to cleanse his body of the blood pouring from his orifices not fifteen minutes prior. Riff’s eyes betrayed his surprise, and Amdusias looked down at him with an amused snort.

“Have you forgotten? Demon lord, yes?” he said impishly, crossing his powerful arms and then wincing slightly as he popped a few vertebrae along his spine. “Anyway, I have mostly returned to my full strength, which is already more than any of you pitiful mortals can even begin to comprehend.” He rolled his shoulders and then held out a hand as his saxophone once more reappeared within his fingers, though it was once again gleaming and stain-free. “You two may return to your disgusting little hovel now. I will make an appearance briefly.” He cradled his instrument with both arms, then looked at the stallions pointedly as they stared back stupidly, Riffraff’s cigarette hanging from the side of his muzzle as he attempted to discern the demon’s intentions. “Do not try to comprehend me, soul-seller. Now go. If it helps, I will bring good news for you two.”

Graceful immediately perked and smiled brightly. “Really? Alright, cool! C’mon, Riffy, let’s get back and get some dinner, I’m real hungry!”

But Riffraff’s curiosity wasn’t quite as satisfied, and he continued to study the demon thoughtfully. Finally, Amdusias muttered and let his saxophone float against his chest before holding out both muscular arms. “I said begone!” he grumbled before uttering a short string of demonic.

The crimson pegasus snorted, rolling his eyes again. “Please, you aren’t...a...” He blinked and then gave a choked yelp as he realized he was quite literally talking to thin air, considering their sudden change in altitude. He and Graceful immediately flapped their wings to prevent free-fall, both stallions staring down in shock to find themselves hovering somewhere near the elevation of the clouds above Manehattan. “Oh, what the hell. He couldn’t just. Take the time and send us back to the actual motel?”

Riffraff grumbled and began an easy dive in the general direction of their motel as his companion giggled and corkscrewed lazily around him in a slow circle. “Maybe he doesn’t have the address?” he suggested cheerfully, his messy tail occasionally tickling across Riff’s features as the more-agile pegasus easily twirled in a loose spiral around the larger stallion.

“I’m sure that’s it,” Riff muttered, lightly biting at the strands of Graceful’s tail that came close enough to his jaws, then grumbling and crossing his arms childishly around the case of his guitar, which had thoughtfully been teleported with him into the night sky. “The hell is he up to?”

“I ‘unno,” Graceful answered with a gentle lilt, smiling invertedly down at his partner as his body looped slowly above the other winged stallion. “Maybe he’s goin’ to get us money?”

“Right, right, he’s just gonna go to the nearest Helheim bank and make a withdrawal, of course.” The crimson pegasus mumbled moodily, then sighed when Graceful -- now below him -- gave him an imploring look. “Oh, alright, alright. Yes, I’ll cheer up. I just. Don’t want anyone to think that I couldn’t play that solo he stole my body for.”

Graceful laughed and winked at the other male. “And here I thought it was just Lust and Wrath for you, Mr. Prideful Pony!”

Riffraff smiled back despite himself. “Yeah, yeah, alright. Let’s get back and grab a bite to eat while we wait for the spiky, mysterious one.”

Back at 88 Pleasures, Amdusias rested against the rear entrance to the bar – he did so out of boredom, however, no longer needing the support. He most certainly had approached the limits of his body and abilities with the risky takeover of the crimson stallion, but as long as he didn’t push past the point of no return, his body would heal itself relatively fast. Now, he was simply waiting for the distinct, petulant whining he expected to hear any moment now.

Even from outside the building, the demon lord had little trouble discerning the emotions and thoughts of several of the mortals inside. It had been easy enough to pick out the specific signature of the untalented hack daring to call himself a musical prodigy, “waiting to be discovered”, as he loved to explain. Keyes had made it clear to the pony with the rather drab emotions that he wanted his adoring fans to be ushered out as soon as possible, apparently to go and clear his head before he called every contact he had and black-listed the two pegasi who had undoubtedly outperformed, outshone and quite simply outdone the unicorn. Amdusias sensed thoughts of Graceful and Riffraff upon the minds of a few other mortals and he gave a mildly amused expression to the smooth surface of the door. I suppose it would please the smaller one to hear that his latest target apparently harbors both worry and some mottled form of desire for his presence. Nasty little creatures.

He continued to both listen and simply feel for the unicorn’s angry stomping down the hallway that led to the putrid room furnished solely for the whims of the babied pianist. A moment later, he was rewarded with the telltale sound of hooves clomping down the dark passage on the other side of the metal door. The demon waited, listening for Keyes’s entry into his personal lounging area before slipping silently into the back hallway and immediately glancing around. His yellow eyes glowed in the shadows, what few lights that existed flickering unnaturally and dimming even further as the scaled male prowled silently down the hall and approached the door he’d heard shut only a moment ago.

With a snarl, he threw it open hard before slamming it violently behind him, then holding out a hand to rapidly cast a barrier spell that would bar both physical objects as well as sound from leaving the room, a dull amber glow creeping along the walls. The purple unicorn had just opened the larger refrigerator when the door had been shoved open, giving a girlish yelp even as he turned around when it slammed just as abruptly. “Who the hell is d-d--” His voice faltered and the unopened wine cooler in his hoof dropped with a soft slap against the carpeted floors when his eyes fell upon the bipedal demon standing before him. His gaze dragged up stupidly, taking in the massive size of the glowering reptile before taking a nervous step backward, only to bump into the refrigerator. “Who...what are you?” Keyes stammered, legs trembling as he began to breathe rapidly through his mouth, a cold sweat forming along his violet hide.

“I am the one deigning you hardly worthy of my grand presence, and nevertheless also the one who will demonstrate what true musical prowess is,” Amdusias responded coldly, the spines along his back and tail rising slightly with his fury. “You dare to not only mock my domain with your pitiful, less-than-childish attempts at song composition, but also by assuming yourself greater in talent and ability than those who you force to bow at the foot of your mistreated instrument, simply so your own lackluster performance may mire the air all its own!”

Keyes whimpered loudly, his voice cracking as he attempted to cry for help. But the demon gave a cruel smile, his lips curling in dark amusement as he strode toward the shivering pony. He reached a hand out toward a nearby table, grabbing it by the end and barely flicking his wrist to send it smashing into the far wall to crash loudly into several smaller pieces. The pony yelped and dropped down to his stomach as he covered his head with both forelimbs, yelling incoherently as the demon stopped a few paces away. “Now, I will demonstrate true musical ability, puling maggot,” Amdusias muttered before lifting his saxophone to his muzzle.

“Oh gods, oh gods, please don’t hurt me, please!” the stallion howled, shaking his head in denial as the reptile glared down at him with disgust, eyes flaring once again with renewed ire.

“You would dare suggest that my melodic grace and flawless execution would harm you?” Amdusias snarled, his tone incredulous and his muscles bulging as his entire body tensed up, his long, forked tail flicking irritably. “I’ll show you the meaning of pain through music, colt!” With that, he leaned forward and began to play the saxophone as smoothly as if he’d been performing all night, the complex melody streaming from the gleaming bell of the brass instrument effortlessly. At first nothing seemed to happen, only the muted tones of the saxophone absorbing into the soundproofed walls to create a uniquely muffled tone. Keyes slowly lifted his head, swallowing thickly and revealing tear-streaked cheeks and a puddle beneath him that hadn’t originated from his eyes. He stared up dumbly as the demon’s eyes closed and his fingers became a blur along the shining woodwind. The melody was in a low key, each note seeming to vibrate the very molecules in the air around the unicorn as the tune itself became nearly impossible to discern from a continuous stream of multiple notes, almost as if the demon were playing an chord meant for an entire horn section by himself. It wasn’t until he realized that he no longer had to crane his neck to see the reptile’s features that the pony stared down and saw the ground suddenly several feet away.

He gave a strangled cry and whipped his head upward, fear overtaking his features as he flailed his limbs uselessly at the air. Amdusias’s eyes snapped open, black pupils narrowed to slits as yellow orbs glared coldly into pale blue. The helpless stallion continued to levitate until he was level with the demon’s head and then suddenly shrieking in pain as the reptilian creature shifted several scales higher on the saxophone, the piercing notes almost instantly causing the mortal pony’s ears to begin bleeding heavily. Amdusias proceeded to blow a relentless and haunting high-pitched melody, the saxophone threatening to squeak from the sheer force of his breath as Keyes gave an agonizing scream, writhing in midair and shoving his hooves against his ears but only forcing the torrent of blood to spray into the air. His eyes shut tightly but swiftly began to leak tears of blood as his terrified, tortured cries grew more and more frantic while the demon only played the deadly tune with greater fierceness, unblinking eyes watching the purple unicorn twist and convulse wildly.

As the mortal’s blood began to splatter down onto the carpet, Amdusias released one final burst of staccato notes before abruptly ceasing with a snarl and rapidly shifting his hands on the silver instrument to pull it away from his lips and wind back before swinging it with all his might into the unicorn’s side. The unicorn’s shrieking was immediately silenced as the several ribs shattered and the air was forced from his lungs, the force of the impact sending him rocketing across the room to smash violently into the opposite wall with enough power to crack the stone. His limp body hung there for a moment before slowly rolling out of the small crater and crashing down into the broken table beneath.

The demon made a disgusted face, glancing down at the thin sprays of blood now coating his gleaming instrument, forcing it to disappear from his hands a moment later. He surveyed the broken body of the now-silent musician – his side was visibly caved in and enough blood coated his forelegs and skull that it almost looked as though he’d been dunked into a barrel of the sticky fluid. But the demon still spied the slightest movement of his chest and grunted to himself. He didn’t consider himself a demon who delighted in the death of mortals – torture was a different story, of course – and he spat to the side in revulsion before snapping his fingers and causing the seal around the room to dissipate. With a grimace, he opened the door leading to the bar outside, then called out darkly, “Someone may wish to check on the star of the show,” before quickly dissolving into a plume of black smoke that twisted away through one of the ceiling vents without a trace.