My Demon

5. It's just a deal

That day the demon was alone in the artist's house, because the girl had gone to art school and her mother had left to run errands. He had no need to ask her where she was going. Still, to annoy her a little, he asked her. Though he wished the younger girl had spared him that tone and answer to his question:

“You don't care, you perverted demon!”

“Really... Couldn't a gentler and more polite human have summoned me?” He asked at the air, letting a sigh of exasperation escape his lips as he grabbed several of his tresses to tousle them and then rolled his toxic eyes back and snorted. He snapped two of his fingers and instantly heard a thud behind him. “You should know that you it will be thousands of years before you surprise,” he smirked and turned to see a small fox trying to escape from dark vines that were trapping its legs to keep it from running away and its mouth from speaking.

“HMMM?!” The white fox began to move erratically on the ground, trying to free itself from the grip of the dark magic, making the boy laugh in amusement at the animal's vain attempt to escape. And then, without a moment notice, the man turned and grabbed the albina's wrists behind him, causing her to click her tongue angrily. Then, the fox that had been trapped disappeared. “How did you realise that it was just an illusion, kitten?” Asked the female, breaking free of the demon's grip and putting her arms on her hips.

“Because it reeked of lies,” he said, causing her to arch one of her eyebrows while he simply smiled slyly at her frustration, which made her wag her tail and fox ears angrily. “Well, all illusionistic games aside, what the hell are you doing here?” He asked, changing his friendly expression to one of a certain coldness. And when he glared at the albina girl, she smiled at the destruction demon's curiosity.

“He wants to see you,” the boy tilted his head and sighed in exasperation at what the vixen had said, then shook his head as he ruffled his unruly hair even more. “You know he loves your visits,” she said, changing her form to that intelligent, slippery animal as she hovered around the demon. “Maybe he's the only one who enjoys it~.”

The jet-hair man once again denied, and when the fox passed right by him, he grabbed it by the neck and pulled it tightly into his arms. It ducked its ears at the cat's creepy grin because it didn't know what he was planning to do to it. “I know you enjoy my visits just as much, or more so than he does, dear,” he said teasingly, squeezing the animal a little tighter, who, luckily, being as such didn't show the blush that its cheeks would have surely gotten in its human form, though its fur did grow fuzzy giving it away. Why did this man have to be so damned sensual?

“I'll take your silence as a yes,” he said, releasing the little animal with a jerk, causing it to hit the ground with a good thud - because of the distance from the demon's arms to the floor – and also because not being in its full senses due to the boy's performance it hadn't been able to use its powers to stop the collision.

The animal once again changed its form, turning into that sultry amber-eyed albino, to scowl at the taller one, and before she could say anything, he had created a door that was levitating several inches above the ground. She looked at him with an arched eyebrow, not understanding what he was doing.

“Have you lost your mind?”

“Would you rather we go down the hole of lost souls, where any one of them can touch you and even drag you into their misery, or just through a fancy door that stops us in front of the place we need to go?” He asked sarcastically, making the yellow-eyed girl growl at his behaviour, causing him to let out a derisive hiss. “I assumed so” a sly smile formed on his lips at the look the girl was giving him for making her angry, and so, he opened the door showing only a simple emptiness inside. “Come on Zitu, ladies first,” he said with a gentlemanly bow, pointing his hand towards the doorway.

The fox on the other hand was not very convinced, if there was one thing she knew, it was that the cat was much less trustworthy than her, the demon's smile didn't fill her with confidence too much and that look, the one she could never decipher, how could she trust him?

“Of course, go ahead kitty, ladies must go first,” she said wagging her tail and ears at the same time as she motioned for him to enter and so, the boy after sighing at the distrust of the female simply stood in front of the door and making a farewell gesture jumped inside it and she watched as the boy began to walk calmly through the darkness.

She arched a surprised eyebrow and even without much confidence walked towards the door, but as she entered it, her tail and ears instantly pricked up. “I hate you Thomirchotch...”, she snarled, and immediately began to fall helplessly into the void since her powers were useless in that place, as she noticed as soon as she entered, the damn cat had set a trap for her. Another one for the long list.

“See you later foxy, enjoy limbo,” he waved his hand and with a wave of his fingers, he opened a fissure in the darkness and smiled at the girl who flipped him the bird as she fell into the deep abyss. “Oh, how she loves me,” he said putting a hand on his forehead and pulling his body back in a dramatic, but at the same time mocking gesture. So that he entered the fissure and the moment he came out, it closed, leaving the girl with her arms crossed, falling continuously into the void.

“You will pay for this one…” She said with a frown, while she crossed her legs and used her arms and tail as a pillow, at least she would be "comfortable" while she thought about how to get out of that evil place.

º º º º º º

The place was as bleak as I remembered, as dark, as gloomy and as disgustingly repulsive. There was everything that meant loneliness, yes, loneliness and destruction, that was what this kingdom represented. And that was my home.

Right now, though, there was something different, something that made me put all my nerves on edge. My brow was subtly furrowed, my arms took on a black hue as green fire began to cover my fists, and long, sharp claws appeared with it.

«Where is everyone?» I mentally groaned as I saw no one around. My gaze sharpened and I looked in the direction of the oversized castle. “Subtlety has never really been your thing,” I thought to myself, arching an eyebrow at the sight of the huge, majestic and gloomy building I had visited so many times before - and in which I had also lived for many, many years - and so I smiled slyly at the sight.

I had looked at it many times before, and again and again, I had told him that he must redecorate it, from top to bottom, for yes, it could look very powerful and terrifying, and whatever he wished. But it was very old-fashioned, the vampire count style of castle, but he never listened to me. I don't know why I bothered to say anything to him, well... actually I did it because he always resented those comments.

A sigh escaped my lips, even though I was on guard, remembering those moments made me laugh and shake my head. Still, I wasn't here to be distracted, so I shook my head once again and focused my gaze while sharpening my hearing.

After a few moments of silence... I noticed that there was nothing, I could not hear anything, nor could I feel anyone's presence. “How strange...” I whispered to myself, and with that sepulchral silence surrounding me, I headed towards the palace hoping at least to find someone.

[…]

When I found myself in front of the great gate I stood still for a few seconds, I looked at the structure with great scrutiny, it looked much more archaic now than it did the last time I saw it. “Over ten thousand years and this relic is still in one piece,” I thought out loud as I lightly stroked the large gates, and almost instantly they opened.

The fur on my tail and ears bristled instantly, this was not common, not in the least. Normally, when I presented myself in front of the castle, it was a butler who served Tuldirm who usually opened the door for me, and that servant, in particular, was the one who took me to the throne room, but this?

This didn't look good, because the palace was never empty. There were too many treasures to protect, for we knew that if they fell into the wrong hands - though admittedly ours were not the right ones - the harmony and balance between all the worlds would end.

And again would return the years where the blood ran in rivers, and there was only desolation, doom and death. Honestly, now the demonic world was too fun and jovial to f**k it up if they stole some cursed jewel.

At that thought I shook my head and bared my fangs, a snarl escaping my mouth as soon as I took a step into the place. With the vibration of the place -which I felt with every step I took- I knew I wasn't alone, but I couldn't attack at nothing, so I simply waited, calming my nerves and keeping my composure.

Slowly I continued to walk inside. The whole place was painted in those dark shades of purplish, the flames of the torches with an intense green glow. If he wasn't here, they would be extinguished, so the previous idea that had been in my head faded away and I sighed, but... “Where are you hiding little mouse,” I wondered out loud as I continued my walk through the long, extensive and labyrinthine corridors.

After a few minutes walking through the wide corridors, I sighed, there was nothing and no one around the place. The worst of all was not that, but rather I continually felt the presence of someone in the damned castle, but I did not know who it could be, because the cursed energy that all the inhabitants of this world possessed usually served to be found in case of danger unless they had enough magic to hide their essence because they wished not to be seen. And it seemed to be scattered, it didn't seem to be, it really was. “Tch...” I clicked my tongue in frustration, I hated not having everything under control and this was getting on my goddamn nerves.

No matter where I went, there was no sign of any demon or any evil creature for that matter. Not a single soul in pain was roaming the place, punished for its martyrdom, nor were there any battle marks to show that a battle had taken place there or that the castle had been invaded -something that had happened before-.

Even in a b****y abandoned house, there would be more people!

I just kept walking, heading for the main dining room, the throne room, the training room, the dungeons where I could hear the moans and cries of traitors, and also of enemy prisoners, a fact that I could not deny gave me immeasurable pleasure, but even walking through every inch of the damned palace, I had not been able to find anyone. Exasperated, I could only growl, "f**k it, I'm leaving.”

With another grunt, I headed to the throne room one last time to make sure no one was still there. After arriving -and as I imagined- I found no one, I just clicked my tongue and turned in the direction of the exit. But, something stopped my plans.

"This way..."

I heard a whisper so close to my ear that I flinched in surprise and so, I stopped my walk. I sighed and closed my eyes, I knew who that voice belonged to so I simply said: “Guide me.”

There, a kind of firefly appeared in front of me. It circled around me a couple of times, and then it broke off and started to go in a specific direction. I calmly began to follow the little creature as it led me through the silent corridors and between passages that I myself was unaware even existed. At a certain point, I could not deny my surprise as I entered them. After so long having lived there, I realised that I did not know the ancient castle as well as I thought I did.

Though I could care less, for I knew that Tuldirm hid many things throughout his palace to keep them safe, and other things that would make the bravest of men's skin crawl. Yes, even me. So I would just follow the little insect to wherever they wished me to go.

[…]

After long and silent minutes of walking through dark passages, we suddenly stopped in a dark room where nothing could be heard and nothing could be seen, even with my night vision. The firefly disappeared after passing through one of the walls and there I sharpened my gaze. My hands became impregnated with dark energy, I closed my eyes to concentrate more on my other senses, as I could not rely on my eyesight, and I moved into a defensive stance. Usually he didn't prepare a surprise attack against me, but when he did it to test my reflexes... It was really annoying.

There I heard the rustle of something to my right, my eyes widened and my claws prepared to tear apart the throat of whoever tried to attack me. But... surprising me too much, the lights of the torches suddenly flared up, with an intense golden glow that blinded me for a few moments. After those seconds, I began to blink to see what was going on around me, and when I saw it... my surprise was revealed in the expression on my face.

“Surprise!” Shouted a lot of voices around me before my eyes could even get used to the light again.

“What?” I asked, blinking a couple of times to regain my vision. I let the magic in my hands dissolve as I didn't feel any kind of danger. After a few seconds, I looked at all the machiavellian creatures there, recognising most of them as they had fought side by side in countless battles with them. But the ones that stood out the most were the ones that brought a smile to my face, though they also created some doubts. “Ukothri, king of seduction,” I said with a chuckle as I looked at him and the red-haired man rolled his eyes. “Come on, with the control you have over your succubus and incubus entourages with that tool,” I said, pointing in the direction of his crotch. “You have no other name for me.”

“I remind you that I am the king of the incubi and succubi, I control the pleasure of my victims, and I absorb and channel much of my energy, and it is because of such pleasure that many battles have been won in my territory. Although with how libidinous you are... I'm surprised you haven't taken my crown long ago,” said the red-haired man explaining himself, while he fixed his glasses, and when he opened his eyes he grunted, as I was no longer in front of him -many of the things he said bored me and if I left I would get on his nerves, so it was a win-win situation for me-, besides I heard him mutter a: “Damned cat...”

On the other hand, I approached the beautiful orange-haired and amber-eyed girl, who smiled flirtatiously at me as soon as she saw me. “Doknel, the beautiful queen of the territory of the most deceitful and mischievous demons in our whole world... or king?" I said thoughtfully. “Sometimes I don't know how to address you because you've never revealed your gender to us,” I said with a certain mockery, as I laughed softly, being accompanied by her giggling laughter.

“You see, that remains to be seen, but I'm telling you, I'll be whatever I want to be, my dear. Now, you'll have questions, won't you?” She said, and I nodded, folding my arms, and soon the two kings stood in front of me.

“Why are you here?” I asked curiously, and the first to answer was Doknel.

“I had to come because a certain kitten has put my servant in limbo,” said the orange-haired woman with a sly smile, while I scratched the back of my neck in a nervous gesture. “It's all right, she'll be out of there in no time, for now, come here you little rascal,” she said, opening her arms for me to hug her, a gesture that I soon reciprocated.

After a few moments we separated and looked at each other with a smile, and before Ukothri could speak, I interrupted him, knowing that this would annoy him. “By the way, where's that destructive, tiresome god I hate so much?” I asked doubtfully, and soon I felt an arm go around my neck without hurting me, drag me backwards, and then began to ruffle my hair.

“Here he is, the one you were crying for!” His mocking touch -which I had inherited after so many years- never disappeared, and when we began to struggle a great laugh followed the tone that remained in him.

“You i***t, I wouldn't have come here if Zitu hadn't told me you wanted to see me,” I broke free of his grip and then wrapped my arm around his neck to do to him exactly what he had done to me.

“Come on, come on, don't behave like little children,” Doknel said, pulling us apart as she created peace between us, which coming from a goddess who loved to create chaos and deceive people made this situation really ironic.

“All right, all right, but now the million-dollar question is... Why did you set all this up?” I said pointing to all the guests who were there creating too much noise with all the different conversations going on at the same time.

“Don’t you know?” My friend said with an arched eyebrow as if what was happening was the most normal thing in the world, although I was really lost, so I shook my head. I had no idea why all these people were here. “For your one millionth earned soul, you i***t!” he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Then it dawned on me... I looked around, and in particular at the banner where the number that marked my record was written. And I grunted, all the souls I had obtained so far had been fast, it didn't usually take me more than two weeks to get them. It was normal for them to think that I had gotten another one.

But the human I was with didn't even want me around. Not even with all the time and attention I had given her. She was a tough cookie.

Something I couldn't deny, it was... «Charming.»

I thought with a faint smile and then realised that thought to frown and everyone around me looked at me surprised.

“Is there something wrong Mir?” Ukothri asked me, c*****g his head to one side, as I simply let out a dry chuckle.

“No, there's nothing wrong with me, that's why I have this dead dog face,” I said with the purest irony making everyone frown at the tone of voice I had used.

“Hey, what the f**k is wrong with you, grumpy cat?” asked the god of destruction, looking at me with his arms crossed and his lime gaze fixed on my being.

“There's not a millionth soul, I'm still with the same human!” I exclaimed in exasperation at the questions I was being asked. The whole room fell silent and soon everyone was staring at us.

There, the gaze of the king of kings, the god of chaos himself left his gaze fixed on me, but soon, his brow furrowed and his fists clenched.

“Ukothri, Doknel, clear the room,” he said in a serious tone of voice that made all but me, in my foul mood, bristle... For he was not least the king of every living thing in our world. “Now!” He shouted, and soon the other two kings began to empty the place and leave us alone.

The silence was there again, but this time it had become uncomfortable. He was probably going to start scolding me for not getting a stupid soul. At his intense stare, I simply snorted and sat down in one of the armchairs he had made appear with his magic.

As I did, he sat in front of me, crossed his legs calmly, and rested his elbow on the armrest of the seat, just as his head had been placed in his fist. There wasn't a moment that he looked away from me, which was getting on my nerves because he didn't say anything, he just stared at me.

“Are you going to say something or are you just going to stare at my beauty?” I growled, wagging my tail anxiously from side to side. I hated those reproachful looks he gave me, I hated them, with all my heart, if I ever had one.

He sighed, he looked as if he was tired, though I didn't understand why. But I could see a hint of sadness in his eyes, though it only lasted a few moments, for soon that hint of sadness changed to one of seriousness. “Tell me why, Thomirchotch.”

I said nothing at that moment, I simply remained silent for a few seconds, until at last, my voice came out. “She's not sure of her desire yet, that's all.”

“That's all, are you sure?” he said with an arched eyebrow as if he didn't quite believe what I was saying. But to be honest, what else could there be...? Exactly, nothing!

“Of course, I'm sure” I said, leaning against the back of my seat as I let out a grunt of exasperation. “Why else would it be?”

“Because you have become attached to that human,” he said simply, and my whole body tensed at that. “If it is the case, stop this instant, break the pact, and go get another soul. It is not advisable for a human and a demon to be together,” his voice no longer showed that tone of reproach that he had shown me moments before, it was a neutral tone, but between those words, I could feel... Sadness?

«No... it was just my imagination,» I thought and shook my head and then stared at him. “Don't take me for a moron, I would never fall in love, especially not with a human who doesn't know what she wants. What's more, I would never fall in love or feel an apex of affection for any human being, demonic, monstrous or... any other being,” I said with the most contemptuous intonation I had ever used in my long existence.

“Well, if you put it that way, I'll have to believe you, but be careful Mir, love comes in the most unexpected ways,” he said, looking towards one of the candles, or rather, towards one of the flames that seemed to have lost its yellowish hue to a bluish one, watching out of the corner of my eye as the figure of a woman formed. Something that surprised me, even more, was that when I blinked, the flame had returned to its original state as if nothing had happened.

“What I have with this human it’s just a deal, which will benefit me in one way or another,” I said and soon the ring on my finger began to glow brighter, causing a sly smile to crease my lips. “For now I must go, my tough little human is back,” I said getting up from my place to move a few steps away from the blue-haired one to create a door leading to the room of the girl who had summoned me. “But first I have a question, what the hell do you know about love,” I grabbed the doorknob, and at no point did I turn to look at him, I just waited to hear his answer.

“Me? The god of destruction? Know anything about love? Please little kitten, you don't seem to know me at all,” he said with his characteristic mocking tone, which for some reason sounded... different perhaps?

“Heh, you're right,” I whispered with a faint smile and shook my head, “See you Tuldirm, don't drink all the wine in the cellar while I'm gone, will you?”

“I promise you nothing” I made a big laugh at that, and then waved goodbye to him and went into the earthly dimension where a certain blue-eyed human awaited my arrival.

“What could I do today to amuse myself at her expense,” I thought as I passed through the door with various amusing ideas in my mind.

º º º º º º

And with that thought, the demon disappeared from the sight of the god of destruction who, before the jet-haired man left, had a faint smile on his lips, so that, when the cat disappeared, the smile of the blue-haired man did the same.

He shook his head and with a wave of his hand, the candle lights began to dim until they left a faint glow that barely illuminated the whole place.

“Ah... but if you only knew my dear friend, love is a cruel, cruel b***h,” he said with an unfunny laugh, only to sigh again. “It catches up with you at the least expected moment and then leaves you with a great emptiness.” His brow furrowed faintly and he clicked his tongue, “No use crying over spilt milk,” he said, looking at a non-existent spot in the room and then, slowly, the lights went out with a wave of his hand. And so, all was completely silent, just as it had been that long ago, and perhaps would be until the man's mind had had enough of remembering.

[…]

Meanwhile, in the human world, a handsome demon was being ignored by the artist who was simply continuing her work at her desk. The boy grunted at this and just stood silently hovering around the room, for he knew the girl would not pay him the slightest heed. At least she wouldn't until she was done, and he didn't even know if she would want to hear from him afterwards.

But as the minutes passed, and he received no attention whatsoever, his gaze settled on the place where the blue-eyed girl was. Well, rather on her, something which, fortunately, in the face of her total concentration, she did not notice.

And in that instant, he remembered his friend's words: Because you have become attached to that human.

The demon clicked his tongue and frowned at that. This was just a simple deal!

That the human took so long wasn't his damn fault!

At that frustration, the man grinned wickedly and descended to stand behind the brunette girl, he placed his feet on the ground without producing a sound and slowly grabbed the girl's loose hair and pulled it away. Seeing that she didn't react to the gesture because she was so focused, he brought his lips to her neck and mischievously bit her neck with some force, then licked suggestively at the small wound he had created. 

Caeli's whole body stopped instantly, the pencil on the surface of the paper fell to the desk and her whole face turned a deep crimson colour. At this, the boy smiled slyly and hugged her shoulders and then brought his mouth close to her ear to blow his warm breath on her skin, which soon became goose bumps. “Angioletto~... I don't like being abandoned~, please give me some love~.”

She, though slow to react to what the cat had done, broke free of the older man's grip and walked away from him still with her face completely red. Her brow was noticeably furrowed and her arms crossed in a reproachful position. “No! I won't do it p*****t cat! Let me work! I'm busy and I can't concentrate with you doing all that!”

“Oh, come on, my dear Caeli, wouldn't you rather I made you purr?” He asked mockingly and she just grunted at that and gave the middle finger to the man, who smiled slyly at the younger girl's behaviour. “You're going down one day and you know it~,” he winked.

“You wish, stray cat,” she said, sitting back down at her workplace, and putting some earplugs in her ears so she wouldn't hear the demon's voice again.

But the boy took one of the earplugs, and calmly approached her ear and began to whisper to her. “The moment you have made your wish and it has come true...” He began to stroke her skin from her fingertips to her shoulder, slowly and lightly, causing her to bristle at the gesture, and especially at the man's husky voice that echoed loudly through her body. “You will be mine.”

The colour of her cheeks that had returned to normal a while ago was now a faint pink at the voice the demon had used. For his tone had been husky, low, with that mocking edge that he never left, as he had spoken those four words with depth.

But that didn't stop the girl from reacting and elbowing him in the chest to push him away, leaving him breathless from the action.

“Get the hell out of here and let me work!” She said, giving him a sidelong glance. “Or I'll turn you into pure charcoal with the cross,” the instant he heard the last word, the demon pulled away almost like lightning from the girl to start hissing at her, causing her to burst out laughing at the older man's behaviour. «You're a complete idiot», she thought, shaking her head as a faint smile settled on her lips.

The boy upon seeing that gesture smiled slightly as she did, making his friend's voice echo in his head and soon his brow furrowed again and he shook his head. «It's just a deal, nothing more than that... but yes, I'm going to enjoy this deal~». Thought the demon as he turned into that beautiful cat with dark fur to lie down on the girl's bed and close his eyes waiting for the brunette to finish what she was doing so he could bother her again.