He was just the kind of guy that you just can't help noticing the first time you see him, but then you forget about him later on. You could probably see him a dozen times, and just keep thinking it was the first time, every time.

He had no real name, at least not one that anyone could remember, least of all himself, but most people called him Skittery. For the way he skittered from place to place, looking for something and not knowing what he was looking for or even that he was looking.

He wore black mostly, occasionally pink, but mostly black. A hat on his head, and a jacket were the only two parts of his ensemble that ever remained the same. No one quite knew why.

He would stand on the street corner, his back against the street sign or some other post, and a cigarette in his mouth. Older people said he was just looking for someone to drag down into Hell with him, but Skittery would smile when they said that, because that's just what he was doing.

He remembered nothing about himself, about how he had died, about his life before, but that didn't matter. He was a demon from the dark pits of Hell, and his only job now was to find more people to damn, to join the ranks down below. That was what demons did, after all. No one quite knew why, since Satan had long ago stopped caring about his rivalry with The Big Guy, but the demons simply did their job, and they had a fine time doing it too, thank you very much.

He stood on the corner now, as he always did. It was September 27th, year 2005, and he was currently in the city of Manhattan, New York. He'd always wanted to go there, for some reason, but had never quite known why. Just that he wanted to go there.

Skittery raised his sunglasses and scanned the busy streets. It was sure different from that desert town he'd been in two weeks ago; that place had only had about half as many people as New York. And half of the New York people were more than likely other demons trying to do their job. Skittery sighed, and threw his cigarette to the ground in frustration. At this rate, he'd never find anyone.

Of course, the world moves in mysterious ways.

Since Skittery had died at age 17, he took the constant appearance of a 17 year-old, which was good. Now, another boy that looked about 17, with light brown hair and pretty hazel eyes was walking towards him. Skittery smiled. His naïve face and innocent eyes meant that he hadn't be done yet, and he would be an easy job.

"Heya, pal." Skittery called to the boy, reaching out and grabbing his white jacket. "I was wondrin'…"

He stopped.

"I can't believe youse would do dis ta me!"

"If youse would just shaddup and listen you'd un'nahstand!"

"No! No! I ain't list'nin ta youse no moah!

The hazel-eyed boy looked up at him. "Yeah?"

"Um…" Skittery was thrown by the way touching this boy had induced the Voices, the ones he heard when he slept, the screaming and the fighting, and he didn't know why he heard those voices. "I was wondrin' if youse could help me."

The other boy nodded. "I'll do what I's can. Whattaya need?"

Skittery stared. That was one of the voices. The other he had never recognized, but this boy had the voice that always begged for mercy, pleaded to be heard.

But he had to remain in control. Freaky or not, this was the best prospect he'd had since he'd arrived in Manhattan a week ago. "I was wondrin' if youse could show me to dese apahtment buildin's?" He showed the young man a sheet of paper with an address on it. "I's new heah, and got lost."

The young man studied the address. "Sho I's can show ya. What's yer name?"

"Dey call me Skittery."

The boy smiled. His teeth were pearl-white, and a little on the large side, but it was endearing. "Well, Skittery, dey call me Dan. Pleasure ta meetcha." Dan held out his hand, and Skittery shook it.

"Because I's in love witcha."

"Really?"

"Yeah…'course. I doan lie 'less I's sellin', and I ain't sellin' now."

Laughter. "No one's evah loved me befoh."

"Dat's because you wouldn' let 'em love ya. But doan worry. I'll always love ya. Even when we's dead and gone, I'll love ya. Dat's a promise."

Dan knew his way around Manhattan, apparently, and Skittery learned that he'd been living there for years. Dan was able to take Skittery straight to the apartment building he was staying at, and Skittery, using an old ploy, invited Dan to stay for lunch. Dan accepted.

"Sorry 'bout da mess, but, y'know, I jus' moved heah, so I's still unpackin'." Skittery said apologetically. Dan nodded in response.

"I un'nahstand. Took me t'ree weeks ta unpack when I foist moved heah."

Skittery paused. That had such a strangely familiar ring to it. Three weeks to unpack…but it wasn't to unpack, was it? It was to move in…

Skittery shook his head. Random thoughts. They could drive you mad. "Have yerself a seat. How does cannt soup soun' fer lunch?"

Dan laughed. "Soun's foine." He answered, sitting on a pile of boxes.

The laugh made Skittery pause as well.

"Youse really doan remembah, do ya?"

Skittery turned. "Sorry?"

Dan cocked his head and looked at Skittery sadly. "Youse doan remembah da Newsies. Youse doan remembah da strike. Doan remembah Brooklyn, Jack, da Delanceys, up at da crack a dawn ta sell yer papes, spendin' da day doin' whatevah ya wanted ta do? Hell… youse doan even remembah me."

Skittery frowned. "Should I remembah ya?"

Dan hopped off the boxes and walked over to Skittery. Before he could be stopped, Dan took Skittery's jacket and hat. The dark-haired demon stood before Dan with his black, horned wings revealed, as well as the short horns on his head. Skittery blinked.

"But…but…how…?"

Dan smiled. "Youse stupid, Skitts, ya know dat?" He tossed the jacket and hat aside. "Youse jus' too stupid ta un'nahstand."

Skittery shook his head, more because he didn't comprehend than because he was disagreeing with Dan. "Whattaya tryin' ta say, Dan?"

"Dan's me name, but dat ain't whatcha used ta call me, eh Skitts? Whaddid ya used ta call me?"

Skittery was confused. He had forgotten everything while musing among the fires of hell, and while he felt somewhere, deep inside, that he had known Dan before, he didn't quite know where from.

Dan smiled. "Da quick way I snitched yer jacket and yer hat. Wasn't da foist time I'd done dat, was it? Was it, Skitts?"

Skittery's eyes widened in shock, as Dan embraced and kissed him, and all memories of life before came flooding back…

"But I wants ta know why."

"Dere doan hafta be a reason why."

"But why?"

"Shh. Because I loves ya. now shut yer mout' and deal wit' it, because I ain't gonna stop lovin' ya."

"No! You bastard, you lied ta me!"

"Dis ain't what it looks like, Skitts!"

"Doan you call me dat! You liar! You lied ta me!"

"No, if you would shaddup and listen!"

"I can't believe youse would do dis ta me!"

"If youse would just shaddup and listen you'd un'nahstand!"

"No! No! I ain't list'nin ta youse no moah! I ain't list'nin! I ain't!"

Skittery pushed Dan away. "I remembah now."

Dan continued to smile with those pearl white teeth. "Does ya?"

"Yes." Skittery wet his lips. "Youse cheated on me. Wit' Blink."

Dan shook his head. "No. Youse nevah listened ta me. Youse nevah gots ta heah what really happened."

"What really happened den?"

"Blink came on ta me. I pushed 'im off, 'e didn' know I was witcha. I tole him dat I loved ya Skitts, and he was ready ta go, when ya came in. Ya jus' wouldn't listen, Skitts."

Skittery turned away. "But…but I…"

"Youse was angry Skitts, and I forgave ya. Dats why I's heah." He removed his jacket and Skittery was surprised when he found he wasn't surprised to see white wings on Dan's back. "So's dat youse can forgive yerself."

"But I killed ya! I killed ya in dat blind rage, den I killed meself, while Blink was screamin' and screamin', and da last t'ing I hoid was Jack tellin' ev'ryone ta keep Boots 'n' Les 'n' Snipes outta da room so's dat dey wouldn' hafta see nuttin'! I killed ya!"

Dan put a finger on Skittery's lips. "Hush. I doan care. It let me know ya really loved me, 'cause ya hurt jus' dat much."

Skittery was silent.

"Do ya remembah me name?"

"Daniel Riccio."

"Da name ya used ta call me by."

Skittery's throat was dry. He swallowed, and nodded. "Snitch. We all used ta call ya Snitch because you'd snitch our stuff when we wasn't lookin'."

Dan…Snitch…nodded. "Exactly." He smiled, and his hazel eyes were wet with tears. "I loves ya Skitts. I nevah stopped. I forgave ya, so's I was able ta be an angel, now will youse forgive yerself so's we c'n be togedda again?"

Skittery stared at Snitch. "I…I doan know if I can."

Snitch embraced him. "Of course ya can, Skitts. If I can, den you can, so let's see ya do it."

Skittery paused, then kissed Snitch lightly. "I can forgive meself."

Snitch's smile widened. "If youse can, den kiss me again, and we'll see what happens."

Skittery cocked his head to the side, then smiled. "Anyt'ing fer a kiss from youse, Snitch," he said, leaning down to kiss the other boy again.

And suddenly he was whole again. He'd never even realized he'd been missing something until just that moment, when his mouth locked with the hazel-eyed boy that had stolen his heart away over a hundred years ago.

They released each other, although reluctantly, and Skittery knew without looking that his wings were white now, like Snitch's, and the horns were gone.

Snitch took his hand, and Skittery felt it's warmth with a blissful ecstasy that he had not felt in what seemed like forever.

"Let's go, Skitts." Snitch said softly. "Let's go ta where we's c'n be happy. Da oddas is all dere."

Skittery smiled, his first real smile in eternity. "Dat's all well 'n good, Snitch, but…but I's happy jus' wit' youse."

Snitch's smile widened again, and he took Skittery's other hand. The boys vanished from Earth and reappeared in a place of such beauty that it cannot be described by human tongue, and the same could be said of the love that passes between the Newsboys.

***AUTHOR'S NOTE***

I'm so happy with how this turned out. ^^ Really, I am. I wanted to make it longer, but I'm already working on too many chapter stories, so I didn't need another one. I will write more Snitch/Skittery though, if you liked that. ^^ So please, review! WOO