“Is that a good book?”

Alice looked up from her book, mentally noting her place, and saw a debonair, handsome young man in a nicely pressed pinstripe suit, smiling down at here. Mutely, she nodded and held the book up to him, showing him the cover. He nodded, the smile getting bigger, flashing Alice a row of white gleaming teeth with unusually sharp canines. Her eyes jumped to his ears (they were pointed slightly) then down to his feet, which were normal, shiny gentlemen’s shoes.

“Anything the matter, Miss?” the gentleman asked. He was still smiling.

“Not much, good sir, although I do wonder what you’re doing here,” Alice calmly replied.

“Oh? I’m here because I am.”

“Obviously, but what I meant was the land of the living, commuting with us mortals. Shouldn’t you be off possessing little girls and wreaking havoc?”

The gentlemen’s eyes widened slightly, his smile even bigger. He motioned to the spot on the bench next to her, Alice scooting over, and he sat down next to her.

“For starters that was a fictional demon, not myself or my familiars. Secondly, it does get tiring, torturing the damned, even my familiars, so I figure I’m due for a break. Besides,” he glanced at her from the corner of his eye, “You mortals do all the work for me.”

“True, but you instigate it,” she replied, “I had no idea one of your…caliber was even allowed to take a break.”

“You don’t think He takes a break once in a while?” he scoffed, pointing upwards, “take the Holocaust for example.”

The couple walking by glowered at them. Alice gave a small wave and an embarrassed smile. After they passed, shaking their heads and muttering under their breaths, she turned towards the gentleman, annoyed.

“You know…you’ve got to be careful about what you say.”

“And why’s that?”

“Ah- because the Holocaust is a sensitive subject, especially comparing it to religion!” The gentleman shrugged, obviously not caring. Alice huffed, folding her arms across her chest and looking away from him. A few minutes passed before Alice, once again, looked down at his feet. She looked away, then back again. This went on until the gentleman coughed, forcing her to look up at his face, blushing slightly.

“Something wrong with my feet, Miss?” he asked, amused.

“O-oh, um…well, er…”

“Yes?”

Alice wrung her hands, glancing around nervously, then continued, speaking in a panicked whisper.

“W-well, uh…where’s your…hooves?”

The gentleman’s eyebrows shot up, the smile getting wider. “My hooves?”

“M-hm. I heard that one knows it’s you by your hooves,” Alive replied, her voice growing confident, “but now that I see you don’t have them, are you really you?”

The gentleman chuckled quietly, patting Alice’s knee. It grew hot instantly, then cold when he removed it.

“Miss, you have your facts wrong; for the most part. The hooves are a dead giveaway for my familiars, as well as other features.”

“The sulfur smell?”

“Bah, the work of fanatics. The familiars they encountered who smelt like sulfur were merely playing by volcanoes around the time of the meeting. Dreadful habit, really.”

“Don’t you have a better handle on them? Your familiars I mean.”

“I don’t run as tight a ship as I should, but thems the works,” he concluded, “How about a nice stroll around the park? Sitting around isn’t good for the health.” The gentleman stood up, brushing dirt off his suit, then offered his arm. Alice followed suit, looping her arm through his and they began walking. They didn’t say much at first, taking in the surroundings. The park had one pond (it was rather large, border line lake). Children, with their parents watching carefully, played at the edge, running off to the jungle gym and sand box when they were done. They passed by the dog park, an area that was fenced off where loud barks, both loud and shrill, erupted from, observing the dogs and their handlers.

“I am quite curious, Miss, as to how you recognized me,” he broke the silence, “Most others are unable to considering they’re looking for the aforementioned hooves and sulfuric smell.”

Alice shrugged, continuing to admire the parks beauty.

“In a sense,” she replied, “You told me.” He looked at her, his gaze urging her to continue.

“You responded to my first question then went with it. Although, going back to the ‘who you really are’ thing, you could just be some guy trying to woo me by indulging my ‘whims’.”

“I could be, but who’s to say?”

“You are.”

The gentleman glanced down at her, a curious gleam reaching down from them. Alice looked up at him, smiling at his mild confusion, and giggled slightly. He pursed his lips, clearly annoyed at her now, letting his arm drop and stepped in front of her, causing her to stop.

“This constant questioning of my identity is getting annoying, Miss,” he said, his voice strained, “and I see that my company is a bother to you-“

“Oh no, Sir, don’t get me wrong!” Alice interrupted, “it’s just the world has gotten far more dangerous for a young woman, such as myself. My questioning is merely being cautious, but I’ll stop if it’s getting on your nerves.” Alice grabbed hold of the gentleman’s hands, holding them tightly and squeezing them in assurance. He stared at her, down at his hands in hers, then back up. The smile began to come back, his annoyance ebbing away. He pulled his hands away and gave a small bow, then offered his arm again, which Alice took quickly.

Authors Note: Quite short and quick and I’m not sure on whether to end it here or go on. There wasn’t really any other thoughts going on to help in continuation anyways =/ Questions? Comments?