I Command Thee [IC]

[Gladis]

(OOC: I am using Dominic's flashback as an example of how a deal between human and demon can be made. You do absolutely not need to feel the need to match this length of post, nor does it need to be done in this exact way.)
​

"IS IT TRULY thy wish to die, child...?"

Dominic glanced around, his eyes wide as he tried to identify the origin of the mysterious voice. Surrounded by complete darkness, he was unable to see. It was almost as though he was floating in a dimension between existence and nonexistence, as though there world which had materialized around him was there... and yet not there. Strangely enough, it wasn't dark in the sense that he couldn't see himself. No, in fact, as he glanced down at his bloodied hands he could see them very clearly. It was the world around him which was completely obscured, almost as though someone had draped a black veil over it.

"If thine deepest desire could be granted by my power, wouldst thou truly still choose to die...?"

The otherworldly, bodyless voice echoed through the darkness once more, putting the redheaded teenager even more on the edge than he had been before. Fear sized him. Would he ever be able to get out of there? Yet, Dominic being...well...Dominic, refused to show his panicked emotions and simply frowned, narrowing his eyes.

"I don't remember signing up for taking part in some terrible B-movie... I'm on the verge of suicide and you totally ruined the dramatic feeling I so carefully built up. It sort of pisses me off. Besides, I can't even understand half of what you're saying. If you would please be so kind and rephrase your question in actual Japanese, I might listen to whatever crap you wanna say..."

The demon dwelling within the shadows watched the boy's reaction closely, feeling satisfied by the initial apparent wariness and confusion that appeared on his face. That was the normal reaction to being presented with a situation like this, of course. That and intense fear, although it did vary from person to person. His smug smile disappeared quickly once the boy spoke however, his eye twitching slightly in irritation. Who does this damn brat think he's talking to...? Is this supposed to be some kind of bluster? Such a disagreeable child would surely make an awful master... Belial's lip curled as he wondered whether he could back out of this now, leave the brat for some other demon foolish enough to make a contract with him...but he was fairly hungry. And he had dealt with unpleasant personalities before. He couldn't let this brat force him to back off, after all. A mere human, simple prey in the face of a great demon such as himself.

"This sort of experience is arguably more dramatic than breathing your last in an alleyway surrounded by empty bottles and with a stray cat for company, but very well...I am offering you the chance to fulfil your deepest desire, child. The offer I am making you would bind me into your service, to obey you unconditionally until the day your wish has been achieved. After that I will have to take my payment, but...I believe this path would still be preferable to you compared to dying a nameless death as trash once I resume your time. So, what say you? Unless this has once again been too complicated for you to understand...shall we make a contract? As for the price for my loyalty...I suggest you do not worry about it. It cannot be taken until you are dead, after all," Belial finished, chuckling softly.

Their pointless banter went on for quite a while, before Dominic begrudgingly said "If you want me to make a contract with you, show yourself. Trusting a hallucination is just as bad as trusting a wacko stranger... but at least I'll know I haven't snapped yet."

After a short pause -during which Belial was mentally insulting the red-haired boy in as many ways as he could think of for his insolence- Belial stepped out of the shadows in front of the boy; he was dressed in human attire, as he tended to for these encounters, although perhaps the choice of a black suit would only enhance the boy's opinion that he was some kind of con-artist. His long pink hair was half pinned up behind his head to keep it neat, although most of it still fell in loose waves over his shoulders, and his pale gold eyes gazed appraisingly at the boy, watching his reaction carefully. Like most demons Belial had a fairly attractive appearance by normal standards and liked to believe he didn't look particularly menacing although who knew what this unpleasant boy might take as threatening?

While Belial did this, Dominic's mind was racing- trying to figure out what the hell was going on. On several occasions he speculated that he might have been kidnapped by aliens, but soon dismissed the idea... only to pick it up a second later once more. Aliens sounded (in his opinion) more likely than anything else... Dominic's logic had a tendency to be quite flawed.

"You can't expect me to mind my manners when I'm seriously being freaked out by tha-" he fell silent mid sentence as the barer of the voice revealed himself. To Dominic's surprise, he was actually quite good looking. Well, the comment in his head was more like this: Damn it, he's hot! Though it doesn't really make him less annoying... Either way, it felt better speaking directly to the face of the mysterious voice, rather than literally being kept in the dark.

"Satisfied now that you have a face to pair with the voice? Now tell me child, what do you desire? You have merely to speak your wish and I shall be sworn into your service, to stay by your side until your last breath..." Belial murmured as he knelt before Dominic, carefully taking one of the boy's hands in his before gently pressing his lips to it.


"W-what the hell are you doing?!" Dominic snapped out as the handsome man dressed in a black suit stepped closer to him, before kneeling down and taking the redheads hand. The teenager could feel a shiver go down his spine as the demon pressed his lips against Dominic's hand. A bright red blush spread from nose to ear and his breath caught in his throat. Quickly, he pulled away his hand from Belial's grasp.

"I-I..." Dominic tried to pull his hand from the demons grip as he scowled at him, "d-don't you dare do stupid stuff like that!"

He moved away several inches from the slightly creepy but handsome demon, glaring at him silently for a moment. Then his expression softened. "I wish for the chance to experience true love and happiness," he said determinately, mentally kicking himself for how ridicules it actually sounded, "at least once before I die..." he finished, still blushing furiously, though now in embarrassment of his request.

The demon allowed Dominic space as he pulled away from him, waiting silently for him to announce his desire and having the grace not to laugh at him when he did so. It was a perfectly normal request after all, if one considers how sentimental humans are, so Belial simply nodded calmly before bowing low before Dominic.

"I shall consider it my duty to grant your wish with all the power of my being, little master."

Dominic's eyes widened as a sudden pain surged through his body, barely able to keep himself from letting out an agonized scream. It was a terrible, terrible burning pain- worse than anything he had ever experienced before. Quite frankly, it felt like half of his entire being was ripped from him, like his soul was being torn from its body, only to moments later snap back into place again. He had the feeling his entire being was enveloped in burning flames.

​

IT WAS THE memories of this pain that woke Dominic from his restless slumber. His jade green eyes snapped open and he shoot up into a sitting position, his heart pounding heavily in his chest. The teenagers breath was coming out quick and uneven, matching the pace of his fluttering heart. His pajamas was drenched in sweat, clinging to his body uncomfortably.

Was this all just some sort of bad dream? he asked himself mentally, feeling slightly nauseous. Yet even before he unbuttoned his sticky pajamas shirt and looked down, the mark his contractor had branded him with was still there, visible at all. To Dominic it almost felt as though it was leering up at him. It wasn't exactly like Dominic regretted having made a contract with... this stranger, whom he had given the name Akimitsu. The pink haired loon had been rather helpful in a few occasions these last few months, after all... even if Dominic still considered him to be annoying most of the time.

Letting out a soundly sigh, Dominic buttoned his pajamas once more and pushed away the covers, getting up. It was still painfully early in the morning, but Dominic saw no point in staying in bed any longer. He definitely needed a shower, and certainly that was almost the only thing on his mind at the time.

On his way towards the bathroom, he passed the window of his small apartment. Hesitantly, he halted his stride and carefully moved the curtains out of the way, taking in the view of the seemingly never ending city landscape spreading out before him.

Somewhere over in the distance, the sun lazily began to rise over the horizon, casting out all of the looming shadows and bathing the world in a glorious, luminous light. Morning was upon Tokyo.

Little did he realize that he was not the only one who had been given this opportunity... nor would he be the last one. There would always be humans with desires, and demons lurking in the shadows, just waiting to draw their poor victims in.

Who would be the next one to strike a deal with a devil?

 

[Accelerator]

Shiro, silver

​

Despair. A feeling that could drive anyone to the edge of madness. A chilling sensation of extreme sorrow caused by grievous events in one's life. For 19 year old Shiro Akaze, despair struck him the moment he learned that his younger sister, Misaki was diagnosed with lukemia, the cancer of the blood. Insanity had possessed him when Misaki's valliant fight to live another day eneded abruptly when both of them thought that the tempest of tragedy had already passed by. On the day when Misaki was supposed to be discharged out of the Hospital, her condition worsened and after several hours... God took her away from him.

Each passing day without Misaki by his side was nothing but a nightmarish reality he had to face. The sun's light seemed a lot dimmer and the clouds blanketting the blue sky had turned dark in the eyes of Shiro. Oh he tried to hold on to his old self. The one whose naivety prompted him to believe that a blessing was sure to follow every curse. Now his eyes were opened to the harsh reality were those whose wills are weak were fated to return to the dust from whence all came.

The darkness that plagued him ever since Misaki breathed her last haunted him to this day until he decided to end his misery once and for all.

Now alone in the once lively house where a brother and sister shared the burdens of life with smiles on their faces, two items were held by the man shrouded in despair. The picture of his dear little sister and a weapon designed to take away a life. As he stared at his sister's photo, tears started streaming down his cheeks. However, these weren't tears of sorrow but that of joy. For if there really is an afterlife, he will be reunited with his sister once more.

"I know I promised you that I would keep on facing life no matter what happens... That my conviction to move on must not be shaken by anything... That I must keep on living without you... But a life without you is not a life worth living." Shiro told the non-sentient photograph of Misaki before he aimed his gun to the side of his head and bid farewell to this cruel world.

 

[MrBriWolf]

It was dark- dark as ever, really. Just what I need... A young Hungarian sighed, looking at a near-empty wall of computers and in the monitor closest to his desk was an email.

--------------------------------
From: Habichi Kokoza
To: Janos Karoly
--
Our boss has decided that you are no longer needed in the Ikebukero Branch- he'll be delivering your letter of resignation soon. It would be wise for you to understand that this means the end of your tenure with The Company. There will be no further communications between us and you, Janos, but you will no longer be getting a sustained income from your work. The program you have designed for us works marvelously, and there have been no incidents of break-ins thus far. You may be called on to repair this program, however- there will be no compensation. You have four weeks.

Habichi
-------------------------------

Sitting back in his chair, Janos scanned the short email over and over, re-reading and making sure the information sank in. Shit... I'm dead.. T-They're gonna kill me- like they did all the other programmers... The final text of the last programmer the Ikebukero Branch contacted sent him flashed in his mind: "Every day, one of us has to go." Janos had no reason to not live- yet at the same time he was scared. Rumors had it the Ikebukero Branch did... Unspeakable things. With the final line of code written and sent in the Yakuza system, he gave himself a back door that would travel through several proxy servers- giving him complete anonymity within the next few weeks time before the local Boss decided it was Janos' time to leave this world. Stretching his arms our, Janos scanned the room around him- a bunk bed- the top half left unused and unoccupied... How he longed for a roommate...

Standing up after a moment to rub his eyes and drink some ice water, he noticed incense sticks and a red- almost crimson, piece of chalk with a matching candle. "Ah... Now I remember- my demon summoning supplies... Oh how this shit might actually be able to save me!" Janos chuckled in his native Hungarian. First walking over to his desk and taking a pipe he blew smoke out into the foggy air. "This night... Won't be getting better... In fact.." He inhaled, thinking for a moment. "Today might be the worst day of my life..." Exhaling as he said this, he took the candle and set it down on a coffee table opposite the kitchen, in a small living room that held a couch and flat screen TV. Dimming the lights he lit the candle and drew a summoning symbol around it. Shutting his eyes for a moment as he recited an ancient Hungarian chant, the young man slipped into a darkness no one could normally escape- nightmares, for the most part. Yet these things would be felt on the human body, no physical markings would be left. He had, by total mistake, killed himself. There was no turning back- whatever he faced when he opened his eyes, would be such...

Yet he never expected to wake up to a white-haired demoness...

 

[Strawberry275]

Akimitsu rested his head in one hand lazily as he lay on his master's sofa, flicking slowly through the pages of an old manga he'd found lying around in Dominic's apartment. A slight frown crossed the demon's features as he attempted to make sense of it. So...humans actually have stories about demons like this? He thought to himself, slightly irritated by how slow his master was to pick up on it when he was faced with a situation similar to the one in the manga even though he read things like this. As Akimitsu progressed through the story he thought he perhaps began to understand the reason for Dominic's confusion. After all, he didn't treat the boy much like this...and he certainly didn't have the habit of wearing gloves and then pulling them off with his mouth for little to no reason. He also hadn't once forced his master to cross-dress. Clearly these were things that would have to be remedied in order to provide Dominic with the experience humans seemed to be expecting...

The demon paused in his reading as he heard stirring from the next room, sighing heavily letting the manga flop shut as he stood. It wasn't the first time Akimitsu had heard Dominic wake from a nightmare, if that was truly what was happening, and whilst he doubted the youth would appreciate his presence it was his duty to check on him at least once per episode. He quietly pushed open the door to Dominic's bedroom, not too surprised to see him simply gazing out over the city from his window. "What sort of dream was it this time?" The demon asked as he walked over to stand next to him -perhaps slightly closer than was necessary- and sounding slightly amused. "If you're scared do I need to do something to comfort you? Bocchan..." The nickname was just a test to see if the manga Akimitsu had found really was an indicator of the behaviour Dominic desired from the demon, although he supposed since the title 'little master' had done nothing to please the teenager this too would simply anger him as so much else did.

 

[Esmeray]

Aika
Sasaski Estate, Aika's Room, 8:36am

It was quiet. Quiet and dark in this bedroom lavished with the most expensive of furniture and decor. Centered against the far right wall was a large double bed fitted with the finest of sheets. Silk, Satin, Egyptian Cotton, it was unclear as to which sort of fabric they were made of, but it was certain that they were indeed expensive. The bed's head board was lined with an equal number of frilly, decorative pillows and stuffed animals. A large canopy hung from the ceiling, and its drapes cascaded down unto and around the bed, only splitting in the middle to see the large amount of stuffed animals and pillows that piled against the dash board, and curving only slightly as if enclosing on something. One could describe the shape this piled made as a simply crescent, and it cradled something even more precious than the lavish knick-knacks and decor. Amongst the chaos of pillow and stuffed animals, there was a small lump in the center of the bed. Something was hidden away, or tucked in, under the sheets. Lying there was none other than the owner of all there is in this lavished room, a young girl. Nothing could be heard nor felt to this girl, as she slumbered peacefully among her pillows, blankets, and stuffed animals. She was cut off from her surroundings as she slept, cuddling close to her favorite stuffed animal of all. A patch work lion. Her small heart shaped head rested comfortably unto her temperapedic foam pillow. A light sigh escapes the girls lips and she turns over onto her right side, curling up into an even tighter ball. She was starting to wake, become conscious of her surroundings. She could feel the cool sheets against her sun kissed flesh, the brush of her hair as she moved, the stuffed lion in her arms. Her senses began to awaken one by one, and eventually she could even hear the morning birds' sweet melodies from outside her balcony window. She let out a small groan as she rolled over unto her back, then stretched out her legs and arms with a yawn. The girl pushed back her covers and slowly sat up, her back propped against her pillows and stuffed animals. She raised her arms high above her head, keeping her eyes shut, and let out another groan as she stretched once again. When her arms fell back quietly to her side she raised her arms and rubbed her eyes softly with her small hands Her petite digits gliding back and forth against her eye lids before finally fluttering open to reveal dark blue irises that looked like the deep sea in the shadows. The girl slowly leaned forward before crawling out from underneath her sheets, her lion in her left hand as she moved towards the edge of the bed. She turned her body so her legs were facing in front of her, and slide off the edge of the bed. Her size five bare feet hit the cold hard wood floors, and there was a soft pitter-patter that echoed in the room as she moved over to the balcony. The girls attire, a plain white frilled and ruffled night gown, swished about her ankles as she approached the double doors. Her thin fingers gripped the curtains that hung in front of the balcony windows, and she threw them back. Immediately her room was illuminated with light, and the darkness curled away back into their proper shadows as the light filled her room.

"Time to start the day." The young girl muses, as she looks out her window. The light fully revealing the true color of her eyes, a beautiful sky blue. Spinning on her heals the little girl makes a bee line to her vanity. Now that the room was no longer shrouded in darkness, it was plain to see that her room was decorated in the color scheme of soft hues of brown, pinks, and cream. It was almost similar to that of a child's room, yet the girl was actually fifteen years of age. As she sits upon her vanity's seat, which is directly across from her bed on the left wall, she glances to her right and up. There was a rustic bird cage there, with a drape over it. Leaning a bit closer to it the cage she whispers up at it. "Kasumiii, are you awake?" The young girl asks in a hushed, soft tone. She picked up her brush, made of brass and soft thistles, and ran it through her mahogany brown locks as she waited for an answer from her friend.

 

[RaccoonKing]

Kasumi

She was in a bird cage.

Red orbs, tinged with pink twitched slightly as they stared over at the shadowed bars with their intricate designs. If her little "home" was not so impressive by its appearance she would have surely destroyed the metal contraption for assaulting her and her beautiful feathers. Kasumi often was left to her own musings about the fact she was caged just to avoid her human's parents discovering their daughter made a contract with the devil. 'That is wrong, I am nothing like that! Its more like a deal with...well...' She stopped herself there, unable to call herself something as despicable as a vulgar demon but she was no longer holy...

Shades of blue began to slowly ruffling, spreading till her decreased size seemed to expand slightly to give her a much more regal appearance. Actually, she was just yawning. There was no need to sleep so the 'demon' remained awake to wait for the sunrise where rays would trickle through to the room and occasionally through this damned sheet! 'I despise this useless material...stopping me from watching the moon...' The small head and eyes turned to settle on the opposite direction, wishing that in this form she had hands to move the blasted thing! 'I will destroy it when Aika wakes up.'

Kasumi twitched, causing her wings to raise slightly from their settled position against her sides as she took note that Aika was slowly awaking. Drifting from her sleep and to a state of conscious. The breathing that once kept some sound other than the night outside had been released from its steady state as the rustling of sheets was the evidence to her masters awakening. The girl must have sat at her vanity for even then her hearing caught the small sounds from her actions, leading her to believe that she was either taking her time to release her from this prison or she was simply over reacting.

Nope, she was going to blame Aika.

Eventually her human spoke, causing her to almost snort but it came out as a soft tweet from her beak as she replied although her beak did not move, remaining still. "Kasumiii, are you awake?" She rolled her eyes, although it didn't appear so. "Of course I am" She replied, her tone was its usual prideful self as she leaned forwards, head nudging towards the sheet she held so much hatred for. "So remove this sheet! I wish to utterly destroy its being." Was the hiss that escaped her form. "It has become irritating, why must I have such a thing obscure my sight Aika?"

Eventually, the bird paused for a moment as she pulled her wings closer, ignoring the very impulse that wracked her being with a lack of comfort. The desire, no need to be released from this prison increased as she found even this form became cramped after hours and humans slept for so painfully long! What was the need? Even before she was condemned to a hellish life she was one who found little interest in sleep. Merely lying within pure waters was her comfort, draining away exhaustion in the rare moments occurred. "I honestly fail to understand why humans cage birds Aika." She muttered, her voice quieter compared to before as red eyes closed for a moment. "Or any animals for that matter, is it something to do with mortals wanting to feel superior? Top of the food chain?" Questioning this she eventually paused before groaning. "Just open this cage so I can change, this form has become increasingly stressful."


​

 

[Esmeray]

Aika
Sasaski Estate, Aika's Room, 8:47

"R-right away Kasumi." Aika quickly placed her brush back upon its spot on her vanity and she pushed back her stool. The sound of the stools legs dragged out and filled the room, before ceasing as she stood. Stepping to the side Aika reaches up and grips the cloth covering her cage. As she pulled it down she responds to Kasumi's previous statements. "Well, I don't do it due to a mere superiority complex, and I don't entirely believe that is the case. Sometimes birds will fly off if not caged, and might hurt themselves, so we keep them locked up." Aika explains. As her digits tinkered with the cage's lock, she continues speaking softly to her demon.
"I didn't realize you didn't like the cloth Kasumi....I only put it on there so the sunlight wouldn't wake you up when I pulled back the curtains. If you wish though I can keep it off." Aika suggests giving Kasumi a small smile as she pulls open the door to the bird's cage. Stepping aside she allows Kasumi to flee the cage and take a different form. While Kasumi did that, Aika spun on her heels and headed to her large brown oak dresser. It was to the right of her walk in closet. She pulled open the top drawer and began rummaging through it looking for a pair of thigh eyes to wear today.

 

[RaccoonKing]

Kasumi

That sheet was gone! Joy almost flooded into cold eyes but was killed by the dark glee at its riddance. Achievement washed over her as she watched the humans fingers stumble slightly with the lock that her small form made her unable to pick, leaving her trapped until mornings. Not that she entirely minded because her thoughts were quite time consuming but restraint was never a birds friend. It swung open, a soft creak assaulting her senses as she picked herself up from the swing that she once perched softly upon as wings spread to reveal the shades of blue that blended with one another to create a range of the beautiful colours.

It was seconds but she escaped that confined space, wings flapping and beating against the air as she soared from the metals bars and into the room where she spent a few moments in air to spread her wings and feel the tension vanish in a flurry of almost brief happiness. Her wings settled, slowly lowering the small form onto the girls bed, claws were careful upon curling into the fabrics because even she appreciated such quality material and would loose her mind at damage upon such a good quality item.

Raising her wings for a moment as she parted her beak to nip at the lower feathers which were out of place, her wings spread for a moment as she dealt with the messy looking ones so her appearance was perfect. She refused to look like a normal pet bird after all. Once the wing was settled back down her side she gave a quick hum before she consciously willed the process of her change to occur. It was a brief thing, limbs extending and structure changing as more human features became evident upon the shifting form. Wings became delicately nimble fingers and long arms covered with blue silk while talons and claws became pale feet, bare but well manicured as one leg ended up resting on the other. No longer were feathers present other than the long tail feathers that had became a part of her over all appearance, along with those threaded in with light blue almost white hair.

In her 'mortal' form Kasumi was quite the delicate looking girl, clad in a dress of blue and red, feathers here and there with piercing red eyes that were normally in their lax state, barely open as she stared over at the one who she was bonded with. Her fingers plucked themselves from her side as she sat upon the edge of the girls bed, her head lulling to one side so the red beads in her hair shifted, ponytails following as she watched her own fingers release a crack defiantly as her bones had changed and moved. "Well...I guess most of those common birds are not intelligent enough to understand..." She mumbled, her voice seeming calmer as it had lost the occasional 'tweet' from when she was a bird.

Kasumi stood as she fumbled with the layers of her clothes, settling the soft material against her skin properly as she headed over towards her master, taking a seat near where the girl was as she held a plush between her fingers which eventually was sat upon her lap. "You mortals...are odd." The demon pointed out, brushing the bangs from her face as she look up to study the girls movements. "Its this predictable nature you have that makes me dislike your kind. In fact, I loathe the mortal kind." Thinking quickly the demon shook her head softly, murmuring and apology. "I take that back, I am fond of you Aika, if not I would never have came out to help you."

She fiddled with the bunny's ears, feeling the soft material run between the pads of her fingers as she placed it over the button like eyes before back behinds its head, the action repeating itself continuously as she smiled softly. Some part of her missed the moments she spent aligned to her goddess but it was crushed by the part of her that longed for her love. "So, Master, what do you intend to do today?" She asked, propping her elbow upon the arm of the chair as she settled her cheek upon her hand to turn to her. "Or are we remaining within this estate all day?"​

 

[Lisianthus]

The Day of Contract

[dash=red]

As always, Jenn woke up from her nightmare with beads of perspiration forming on her forehead, her mouth was shaped into an "0", her scream silent and and unheard. Her eyes were glazed as she stared at the ceiling, her face blank and void of any emotions. It had always been like this, the nightmares and the constant flashback to past, and she had accepted it. She turned her head to her right and looked at the time. '4:30 A.M.' Sighing, she sat up as she raised her hand and used her fingers to comb her hair back. She was up half an hour early, as usual. Getting out of bed, she tied her hair up in a bun as she walked towards the bathroom. Under the hot shower, she closed her eyes as memories started coming back to her.

||flashback||

It was the same as ever, the night was eerily quiet except for the occasional thunder. She hid in her closet, her breathing shallow so as to not give away her position. Her hands were curled into fists as she shoved them in her mouth, to muffle her cries as tears running down her cheek.

"oh my child, come out come out wherever you are"

Her father's voice boomed, reaching her ears. She curled up more and shuffled deeper into the closet, as though trying to make herself smaller.

That was one of those days when she she did not care if he was drunk. She had ran to him, too scared of the thunder. She had clung to him even when he had backhanded her, wanting to feel the warmth of the one she called father.

However, as things were, he had started to get really violent and almost smashed her head with a vase. Realising that it was of no use, she had managed to scamper off and quickly ran to hide in her closet.

The sound of footsteps started to get closer, stopping in front of the closet and opening the doors. She stiffened in fear, her heart pounding loud, her eyes shut as she hoped for him to move away and to not see her.

He closed the closet after a few minutes as she sighed in relief, thanking whoever have heard her plea for her hiding was quite obvious. There was nothing much to hide her except for the darkness that had engulfed her senses. She had always believed that she had a guardian, just like in the that stories she had read.

||end of flashback||

She had not known for how long she had been standing there but the banging of doors and string of curses that was flying jolted her from her memory. She turned off the shower and wrapped her body in a towel before stepping out and went to stand in front of the mirror, examining her face. She sighed as she stared at herself, always hoping that her 'guardian' will appear, the one who shielded her despite everything.She had kept to that believe even now. She may not have believed in God, but she believed in the supernatural, the Other World. She had been brought up to believe in fairy tales, in happy endings, and those are the things that kept her going despite the ongoing tortures she had been going through.

"Open the door you dumbfuck. Unlike you we do not have time to dilly-dally. What the fuck are you doing in there for so long!"

As her foster brother's voice, Aaron, reached her ears, she sighed once again. She had been sighing a lot today. She shuffled towards the door and her hands snaked out to grip the knob before turning it and opening the door, with him standing in front of her. She gripped her towel with her free hand as she faced Aaron before stepping aside and scampered towards her room, closing the door behind her. She quickly donned herself in an oversized black shirt{her favourite clothing} and leggings. Barefooted, she walked out and headed towards the kitchen, having to prepare breakfast for the family.

Quickly, she took out some eggs and bacons, putting the bacons in the airfryer and boiling water in the kettle before beating the eggs then frying it. She took out the plates and set them on the table once finished prior to placing the food on them. She then swiftly the drinks; coffee for the father, tea for the mother and hot chocolate for the son, placing them at the respective seats. Once completed, she called them down before proceeding towards the backyard to do the laundry.

With her hands holding the basket of wet laundry close to her, she stepped onto the backyard and looked up at the sky. It was a surprisingly sunny day today, the sun was shining very brightly and the sky blue, no clouds to be seen. She smiled slightly before making her way towards the laundry line and started to peg the clothes on them.

Once done, she went in to start washing the dishes that they had left on the table then headed towards the living room. She looked around and sighed. The family she's living with, might be rich but they were stingy and cheap. She was treated like a maid in the house, having to answer to every of their whimsical commands. There was nothing she could do, they were the ones that took her in when no one wanted to after all. This was at least better than staying in the streets. Even though they called her names, bullied her and forced her to do stuff, dry out her energy, she at least had a roof to live under. Just one more year, she thought. One more year. With that in mind, she went to the storeroom to take the equipments needed to clean the house.​

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[Lady B]

LADY FREDERICA BERNKASTEL

Shiro's world turned black. Nothing but darkness and silence surrounded him. Was this what death felt like? As he was about to come to terms with his new existance, the sound of a bell rang through the dark space. Two violet orbs appeared before him, and as the darkness began to scatter around them they were revealed to be a pair of eyes belonging to a young girl. She appeared to be floating, keeping herself leveled with Shiro despite being much shorter than him.

"Life leads to happiness which leads to death which leads to grief and despair..."

She spoke in a monotonous voice that was much deeper, more mature than what was expected of someone who would normally appear her age.

"That is the inevitable circle of life, a law to which every human being abides."

The gun was gone from Shiro's hand, but he was still holding the picture of his sister.

"But I have transcended this law, meaning I have transcended humanity in its entirety."

Suddenly, the world was lit up by countless glimmering stars, forming galaxies and nebulas, resembling a scene from outer space. Upon closer inspection, the source of the light wasn't stars, but rather large, blue crystals floating all around them. The girl pulled the one nearest them in, holding it between her hands.

"You, who have suffered through the final stage of life, wish to end it for yourself... But that is not truly what you want, now, is it?"

She held the crystal out in front of Shiro's face. As he stared into it, a scene from his own life played out inside it, as if he was watching a television show. It was a memory of him and his sister when he had been as happy as he could ever be.

"Now this, this is what you want. You want to go back to the second stage, the stage of happiness and euphoria, yet sadly the shortest stage of a person's life."

The crystal shattered, scattering its remains far away from the two people standing alone in this world without boundaries.

"These are all the endless possibilities of any possible outcome."

She pointed her arms at the crystals surrounding them.

"They are what make up the past, present and future of every world in existance. And I have been granted access to this, their sanctuary. If you would allow me to search for that which would grant you ultimate happiness, then I could find that fragment of reality and make it true in your world. Of course, I cannot do this without some sort of payment. If you agree to this, then you also agree to giving your soul up to me, in essence making you my personal belonging. But would that not be a small price to pay for eternal joy?" The sound of Shiro and Misaki laughing could be heard echoing throughout the space.

"Can you hear that? It's out there, just waiting to be found. All you have to do is let me go look for it."

 

[Accelerator]

Shiro, silver

Shock. A feeling experienced when one is subjected into a surprising circumstance. It was what Shiro felt when the girl offered him a second chance at redemption. Is she reality, or one of the figments of his hallucination? As far as he could remember, he already pulled the trigger but now, there were no signs tnat his gun existed at all. However, what shocked him the most was b0 hearing Misaki's voice one more time... Something that should have been impossible.

"Before I choose to accept or refuse your offer, tell me something. Are you God. Did God pity me so much that he or she... personally came down to mock me face to face?" He told her skeptically.

 

[Haneul]

It had been a pretty boring time for Iris, she had wanted another soul to feed upon yet none of the humans lately were interesting until she noticed a human about to lose his life because of a mistake. Laughing to herself, she couldn't help thinking that this human wasn't very aware of black magick or curses such as the one he had just used upon himself. Curious as to what this human was like, she made her way into his home as a sphere of darkness surrounded them and the human began to open his eyes. Shifting into her child form, she crouched down to look the young male in his eyes with an innocent smile on her lips.

With a child like voice unlike her normal one, she then began to speak to him. "Don't you think it's too early to give up your life, nii-san?" With Usagi in her arms, she took a seat on the floor in front of him, tapping him with her gloved fingers to get up. "Nii-san, if you'd like I could grant you any wish you'd like in exchange for your soul.." Iris was the type to get straight to the point without beating around the bush.​

 

[Ali]

Lilly was at a loss for her day to day routine activities. Lately, it had been sitting on a couch, in front of her family's flat screen, flipping channels endlessly until another night reared upon the young woman and sent her to her slumber. She scowled, pissed off at the endless trivialities of her day to day life. She wanted more; no, she deserved more. She was a child of the Lockwood name, the heir to her families' fortune. She deserved every last coin, every last bill and every last penny to her parent's name. She shifted her body to lay flat on her right side, dipping into the dense ugly red couch. It was itchy and irritating. Lilly had once attempted to burn the stupid thing in her childhood, but alas was deterred from the ultimate goal by a maid with a fire extinguisher. She had later taken that maid aside and sliced 3 of her left hands fingers off; instructing her to blame it on a terrible kitchen accident, unless she wanted to lose something much more vital. Lilly had always been the sadistic kind of child, killing birds from her window, pushing kids down at the parks; she thought herself higher then everyone in life, accustomed to getting what she wanted, when she wanted, and how she wanted. Now that she was 19, her parents had decided it was time for her to leave, live a life of her own and try the world out for herself. Internally, Lilly was outraged. How dare those coddy bastards force me out of my own home?! Do they understand how much public appeal I've brought them? Being the eldest and most responsible younger women of the household, not a whore like her darling mother.
Recently, Lilly had been flipping various channels on the television, only to come across a rather odd documentary. One regarding the obscure and odd natured things of the spiritual world. It was on demons. An old documentary telling tale of how some believed that summoning a demonic entity could be summoned to do your bidding for life; however, the price in the end was your very soul. Lilly was astounded that people believed in this utter rubbish, she wasn't half as dimwitted as the majority of Tokyo's society. She had flipped the channel, and kept going until she was utterly sick of television and had decided to find her way up to her bedroom. Much like the families main entertainment room, Lilly's bedroom was stocked to the nine's with everything a young woman would need and more. She ran full speed at her humongous king sized bed, hoisting her petite frame high in the air and landing down with a big "plop" into her comforting downy and silk sheets and tempur pillows. She didn't want to leave this place, her bastard father, and whore of a mother had always hated her for wanting more. Her little sister Trinity was always the 'blessed' one in their mothers eyes, the one who was always kind and who never got into an argument with anyone or begged for more than she was given. Just because Lilly expected more in life, she was scorned?! Utter bullshit.
She rolled herself off the side of her bed, landing softly on her petite feet as she strode over to her computer set up. She took a seat in the large comfy custom designed leather chair, and clicked the mouse a few times to awaken the computer screen.
"I'm not leaving...not anytime soon you obtuse bastards."
Lilly shifted around on her computer screen, clicking on the internet tab, opening up her frequently visited websites and clicking on one of the smaller more discreet tabs.
She had found a site recently that catered in the art of assassination, or more for tell; hit man. She intended to purchase one right now, to out her family and finally claim the fortune that was rightfully hers and that she would put to good use. She was at the third word of her email when an Ad on the side of the screen caught her attention: "The Ancient and Bizarre History of the Demonic - A documentary". Hilarious, it had been an ad for the same documentary she had skipped across on the TV earlier. This was for sure though, Lilly was always intrigued when things popped up in her life more than once; this being one of those moments. Forgetting her email, she clicked the link and was redirected to a discovery site. Ads ads and more ads. She scrolled the page aimlessly, looking for things of interest. About ready to click back to her email, a small link caught her eye. It was at the bottom of the page, tossed into the "contact information" links and all other useless links: "to summon a demon." It said. Curiosity did fuel this young woman more often than it should have, so without hesitation, she clicked the link, being brought to a page with a plain black background and white cursive writing.
"To summon a demon was once believed to be the way kings and queens found power. Their lives were contracted with demons through what is believed to be called Faustian contracts. Once contracted, the owner of the contract would make an ultimate deal with the demon, offering up their soul as payment for the completion of their mission in life. However, according to lore, demons can reject the soul of the summoner if they see nothing bellow it, no motivation, or any goals. Below is a believed incantation to summon a demon. 'Obtenebratus est animal noctis,
Tribulatio et angustia in anima invenire,
Ligare corpore mens
tolle animam meam: sicut solutio,
reversus est mihi factum est mors in ut solvere velit.'
Latin...hmmm...
Lilly pondered to herself, laughing at the fact that she had half a mind to try this. Sighing to herself, the slender woman stood. Pushing her leather chair back under the desk and skipping over to the light switch to dim the room into utter darkness. Standing in front of the LCD screen, she pinned her eyes to the incantation and recited word for word.
Nothing.
She knew it, demons weren't real,
and that's when everything went dark.....
• • •
The laugh of a maniac rang through the girl's mind. There was no escaping it now. Everywhere that she turned to was darkness, except for the being in front of her. The arm of a mannequin with its index finger was pointed upward and pressed to his lips, a symbol of silence. The male's other hand was holding something as well. It was a half opened suitcase, and its contents littered the floor in front of the woman. A light giggle came from the demon as he looked at the pieces, making them rise and dance around his form. After a few seconds the pieces came together one by one in perfect assembly. The man standing to the side of the mannequin clapped his hands together, and a wave of dark green energy surged through the border-less domain. The head of the mannequin clicked to the side, duplicating the face of the red headed girl. A dark grin was upon the doppelgangers face. The rest of the mannequin parts did the same, giving nasty sounds of bones cracking as they replicated the form of the young girl in front of it. The masterpiece was finally finished. A smirk came upon the demon's face as he disappeared from sight, appearing behind the real girl before covering her eyes.
"Five...
four...
three...
two...
one...
look..."
His hands left her eyes, revealing the doppelganger once more. It was in a different position this time. The duplicate was no sitting in front of a computer in the void, clicking away at advertisements before coming upon the demon ritual she had read previously. The replica began to recite the words that she had before, its voice becoming less feminine the more it went on. After the incantation was finished the head of the replica did a full 360 degree motion before facing back to Lilly. Its voice was now more menacing as it began to speak.
"You have a pretty good life... why call upon him... is it because you're nothing but a snobby little girl..."
The finger of the duplicate pointed at Kai who was at the girl's ear before disappearing. A few moments passed before the sound of a suitcase locking up was made. A snap of the mans finger was behind her ear before he appeared in front of her. His green hued eyes scanned her body up a down. He enjoyed what he was looking at. Kai made a kissing face before fading into darkness. A green energy flowed through the area once more before a desk materialized with Kai sitting on top of the front.
"Come..."
He beckoned with his finger, and her body moved on its own. By the time she was in front of him his right hand was on her face, stroking the side of her cheek. A smile came upon his face as he stared deep into her eyes...
"You called upon a bringer of death my girl... now tell me why I have been summoned. Is it because of what you were thinking? Oh, my name is Lilly and I HATE my family... I wish they would all DIE!"
Another menacing laugh from the mannequin.
"I know how you are... I know your type. Of course I hope you know what the price is for what you want..."
His left hand moved to her left breast, pressing against the area of her heart. He retracted his hand back, giving her the sense that her spirit was being pulled out of her body. He put his hand back to her breast before grinning madly.
"The feeling that you just experienced... is what I will be taking away at your death. Do you accept?"
Lilly looked straight into the man's eyes before her, careful to tread too far into the gaze. She watched the newly formed mannequin of herself, do odd dances and cackle like a man woman with a dark harsh tone; behind the desk.
Lilly was stunned...but not scared. She feared nothing in this world aside from not getting what she wanted. And it seemed, the being before her, was offering what she needed.
"I had called upon a demon, not knowing what would occur...not knowing I would summon someone of your likeness to my bedroom. Also. I love my family. But they stand in the way of what I want in life. What I need in life...and what I deserve in life. I don't fear the death that will come from this decision, but I do want what I want, and lucky for you...I'll go through hell and back to get it."
Lilly stood strong in front of the desk, watching the man before her with onerous eyes. She looked him up and down, noticing the sleek dark hair, full black outfit and shoes. He almost looked like a past boyfriend she had in grade school, however; he stood out from torso up with a red kimono. It seemed to move on its own in a wind acceptance pattern, regardless of no wind in the room. She felt the course hand over her left breast, eyeing him with a regal gaze.
"All right....I accept."
Another smile came upon his lips as he nodded to the girl. He was surprised by the fact that she did not budge about giving her soul away to him. Did this girl even have a soul in the first place, or was she just not shaken up by things? He made a "Hmph" sound before grabbing her waist with his right and left hands, his left taking a rather ancient knife to her skin. He pressed down lightly at her flesh, making back and forth movements to let blood gush from the cut now on her lower left back. Instantly he took the blood upon his index finger, placing it to his mouth before licking it up. He moved his mouth to her cut before licking up the rest that erupted from it. His eyes went back to hers before rendering one simple word.
"Poof."
The dark shroud around her would vanish as she reopened her eyes and upon her bed next to her was the man in the red kimono. He gave a slight chuckle to himself before whispering in her ear.
"Wakey wakey princess.... we got work to do...."

Lilly opened her eyes with a headache that she hadn't felt in years. It was almost worse then the time when she had fallen from monkey bars as a child and slammed her head on the steel pole supporting the dam aparatis. She squinted her eyes together, the luminescent light in her room pissing her off. "Weird effing' blackout.." Lilly's hand came up to her face to rub her eyes, only before finding a harsh burning sensation penetrating her senses, emanating from her lower left back. Annoyed beyond belief the girl rose from her bed, walking over to the mirror on the other side of her room. She stood in front of the crystal rimmed glass, turning her body around and lifting the bottom of her dress, exposing her panties underneath as well as the new odd mark...burned into her skin. "Fuck...it wasn't a blackout..."
Lilly turned around to meet her eyes with the man sitting on her bed. Now less shocked and not as 'in the moment' as before, she eyed him up and down thoroughly. She noticed his black hair first. It framed his face with had a nice bone structure. She noticed his skin was vaguely pale but had no blemishes, at least for what she was looking at. His body was slender, but she could tell underneath the clothing, there were muscles residing somewhere. She bit her lip as her eyes trailed further down, shaking her head before getting to far in her examination.
She started slowly walking over to the bed, the motion causing her black dress to fall back down to her thighs.
She took a seat on her bed, a decent distance from the man and his red kimono; something which she felt she would never understand.
"So...correct me if I'm wrong, but I've just made a deal with a demon?" Lilly brought her petite hand to her back, massaging the still irritating burn mark.
"Clearly...I've never even believed in the idea of the supernatural. So..explain to me some things. For one...what is your name? What are you going to do for me, and how is this going to work? A Lockwood doesn't give up their life for useless deals, so you better prove your worth nameless demon."
Lilly bit her lip again, more out of confusion then anything. She eyed him, hard, expecting a detailed answer. She was ready to do what needed to be done, but she had to be sure she hadn't made a deal with the devil; literally speaking in a sense, for nothing.
​

 

[kyuryu-kun]

Ryuuji

Dear loved ones,

...

"No that's not right." Ryuuji muttered to himself. He furiously scrubbed his eraser across his now blank page. 'This... This is harder than I thought,' he laughed nervously. His eyes wandered to the gun on the table across from him.

'Maybe I shouldn't leave a note. Who would read it anyway.' Another chuckle left his lips. Sweat collected on his brow and slowly traveled down his face. He picked up the gun and slowly raised it to his temple. He breathes deeply.

The trigger clicks.

The gun drops onto the table loudly and echos in the near empty house. Ryuuji crossed his arms and lays his head on the table.

"If only I could afford one more bullet..." He sighed.

 

[UltimaCircuit]

A soft sigh left the lips of the contractor. How did the girl not know that she had made a contract with him? He thought that the extravagant show he put on for her would be enough to rattle her into believing those of the supernatural. After she asked her flurry of questions his eyes looked over to her, his fingers tapping on the outside of his suitcase as if it were a piano. Kai hummed a tune for a moment, completely ignoring his human before slamming his hands on the suitcase.

"Alright, well an introduction is in order it seems... I am Kai Montél. And I will do anything you wish, from fixing up the bed to slicing some heads."

A slight laugh came from the young demon, but he saw that she took no liking to the joke. He put a fist to his mouth before coughing, continuing on with the introduction.
"And how it works is like this - I shall do anything you want in exchange for your soul at death. I couldn't care less what you would want me to do, as long as it isn't boring. Now are we going to go about what you said before. Wasn't it KILLING YOUR PARENTS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT!"

The mischievous demon intentionally rose his voice so that it could be heard by those down the hall.

 

[Ali]

Lilly watched the demon with interest. Strangely enough. He seemed to intrigue the usually careless woman. She could see the disappointment behind his emerald green optics, and could tell he though the girl was utterly oblivious and un-knowing of everything around her aside for her own goals. There was truth in part of that, however Lilly was a lot more environmentally cautious and aware then she let on. In all honesty, she had expected to get a reaction such as the demons to her dabbling in question, she did love her games.
"My walls are soundproof genius..." Lilly eyed the demon, her own greyish-blue optics boring into his.
"Regardless. You have already figured out part of what I want. My family needs to disappear, forever. Mother, Father, and Sister. I want it done fast, and covered up. Right now, the three are on a trip to some sort of relaxation resort. It's a 3 day drive; because those idiots clearly don't understand the term "private jet".
Lilly scoffed at the idea of her parents and sister and a relaxation retreat. No doubt, they were relaxing from her.
"I was aware I had made a contract with a demon...things you're going to have to get used to around me Kai; I have a morbid and utterly sarcastic sense of humor, fair warning."
The young woman; now more relaxed then before, brought both her feet up onto the bed, crossing them with each other. She pushed her body back, leaning her weight onto her hands, still viciously eyeing the demon. Who was she to know anything about the supernatural? Of course she had hoped what she was reading online would work, and now it had. Her soul on a contract, her skin marked for life, and a servant before her, willing to do whatever she desired "so long as it be interested"; she quoted his exact words in her head.
Lilly laughed to herself, assured that almost everything she'd order of the man would be interesting.
"Last thing Kai...call me Mistress."
She smirked his way, a knowing glance that said "I clearly think myself above everyone."​

 

[UltimaCircuit]

Kai quirked his eyebrow at the last statement of her words. In truth the girl before him was the first human he had made a contract with, and he was already enjoying the experience. The green eyed demon slipped silently off the bed, landing on his feet before pulling the suitcase off the mattress as well. It now rested by his side with his mannequin and painting of the ancient tiger. He tiptoed to the other side of the bed as if he were on a tightrope before facing Lilly. His free hand lightly gripped the base of her jaw. His index finger traced along her jawline before retreating back to his side. Kai bowed before his human before giving her a grin.

"Alright my mistress... how shall we go about making those of your family depart... shall I find a way onto this plane and take care of them on it. Or we can wait until they come back and I can tear them apart in their sleep... either way however you want me to get rid of them will do just fine for me."

 

[Gladis]

​

"What sort of dream was it this time? If you're scared do I need to do something to comfort you? Bocchan..."

Dominic paused as he suddenly heard a familiar voice coming from someone standing beside him, slightly taken aback as he hadn't noticed Belial enter. His eyes narrowed and he turned his attention to the pink haired demon, folding his arms over his chest. "Nothing you need worry about," he scowled, looking even more annoyed at Belial's last word, "WHAT THE-" suddenly he paused, his eyes widening as realization hit him. Tilting his head to the side, he suddenly calmed down again, watching Belial silently for a brief moment. "... have you been reading that manga I left laying around yesterday?" he asked slowly, his eyes narrowing. Now on second thought, perhaps leaving black butler somewhere where Belial could find it had probably been a bad idea.

Actually, the more he thought about it, more and more similarities between the manga and Dominic's situation occurred to him. Although Belial wasn't at like Sebastian (far more annoying, in his opinion), and Dominic definitely wasn't some creepy kid with naught but revenge on his mind, the way their 'contract' had been made was actually quite similiar.

I suggest you do not worry about it. It cannot be taken until you are dead, after all.

Belial's words from that fateful dawn echoed through Dominic's mind, causing his whole body to freeze for a second. What if...? No, but that's impossible. He couldn't be a demon. Demons don't exist. Besides, it would be too close that fictional story, it would be too much alike to be a coincidence... it's impossible. Despite what he was trying to tell himself, Dominic couldn't help the somewhat nauseous feeling washing over him. He looked arguably paler than he had done moments before, and the way he was gazing at Belial was somewhat troubled.

Shaking his head, he pulled himself together. "Go make breakfast, I'll be taking a shower," the redheaded teenager sniffed before striding past Belial and heading towards the bathroom. Before he opened the door and disappeared inside, he turned his head slightly to glance at Belial. "AND DON'T YOU DARE CALL ME STUFF LIKE THAT IN PUBLIC!" he added, slamming the door shut behind him. He needed a little time to think...

 

[Strawberry275]

Akimitsu waited patiently as Dominic went through his usual routine of irritation as soon as he saw him. It was nothing new and not something that particularly frustrated him so long as it was kept in moderation, and a lot of the time he enraged the fiery-haired boy on purpose so on some occasions he deserved this coldness. "I disagree. As it is my duty to look after you I must surely also be required to provide a sympathetic ear for your troubles. A lot of people feel better after talking about such things so it is highly likely that you may be one of them."

As Dominic mentioned the manga, however, Akimitsu looked down almost guiltily. "I...yes. Was I not supposed to? I was attempting to clean up all the junk you leave all over the place and...it looked interesting. I didn't think it would do any harm to read a little..." He paused, noticing how pale the younger boy had suddenly gotten. "What's wrong? Are you sick?" He asked in concern, lifting a hand and gently brushing Dominic's hair out of the way to rest it on his forehead. "Perhaps you should take today off work..."

He drew back as Dominic seemed to recover -at least, his usual bratty attitude returned- and folded his arms. "Very well...am I supposed to telepathically find out what you want for breakfast? Or are you going to tell me?" He paused, smirking ever so slightly as Dominic slammed the door before innocently calling after him, "Does that mean you want me to call you that when we're alone?"

 

[Lady B]

Frederica Bernkastel

The girl whinced slightly at Shiro's mentioning of God, as it brought up ancient memories within herself, but then she grinned.
"I am not God. Like you, I am someone who has been by God forsaken, abandoned, left to rot without salvation. God does not take pity in the misfortunate, it is up to ourselves to do so."