"Seriously! I can't believe you managed to make even a demon sick!"

Beelzebub stopped fiddling with her large sets of curls to look up at her sister, Lucifer, who was towering over the stake of glutton. Beelzebub pouted, and then proceeded to point at an irritated red-head who was pouring over medicinal books with Virgilia.

"It's Battler's fault! He's the one who told me to make the food! If he knew how to cook himself, he wouldn't have trusted me to do it for him!" Said red-head heard Beelzebub all the from across the room and angrily yelled back,

"Well it's not my fault for thinking that a fatty like you would be able to cook something yourself!"

Normally upon hearing such an insult, any girl would shed a few tears and run away, but the seven stakes of purgatory were definitely not normal. So instead of doing just that, Beelzebub simply replied with,

"You know all the weight just goes towards my boobs, since all you seem to do lately is stare at them."

Slightly flushed, Battler spouted, "It's not my fault you and your damn sisters wear such revealing clothing! I'm a teenage boy for god's sake!"

Before Battler could start to call the sisters all manners of names, Satan efficiently shut the yelling boy up by smacking him across the back of his head. "Do you guys ever shut up?! We're trying to look for a cure here!" At this, Virgilia only "tsked" and continued her search in her books.

"Owwww! You don't have to be so mean, Mammon!" Hearing Battler call Satan the wrong name certainly enraged her further. She proceeded to pull at his idiotic hairdo.

"What did you just call me?!"

Outside, Beatrice harrumphed as she tend to her butler who was lying on a couch.

"Sounds like they have stopped looking for a cure to my horrid illness and have started to bicker again." Ronove chuckled, trying to keep the mood light, but ruining it again once he started to cough. Beatrice looked down at her butler, noting how horrible he looked. It seemed as if he hadn't slept in ages; bags under his eyes were evident. His usually slightly coiffed and shiny hair was now a mess, thrown in all different directions around his head as he lie down. He had taken his monocle off and had set it aside, but he refused to switch his uniform for something more comfortable, going on about dignity as Milady's furniture.

As Beatrice looked him over, she certainly didn't think he looked dignified. Sighing, she replied with,

"None of them have ever really experienced sickness, so I guess it kind of worries them. It'd be too much to try to explain anything to them. Let's just have you taken care of." The Golden Witch laid a wet rag over Ronove's forehead, much to his relief.

The butler mumbled under the rag. "Milady, you mustn't trouble yourself with a lowly butler like me. Please, continue the game without me. Though I am sorry to say I won't be able to attend to you for a while."

"Whatever you say. Though first I'd like to dish out some punishment to the ones who did this to you.. Think I should boil them in chocolate and serve them to my lovely pet goats?~ Kyahahahahaha!" Beatrice cackled in her seat across from Ronove. The demon butler smiled, thinking it was nice to see Beatrice back to her normal self, and not fussing over him like a worried mother. Maybe Virgilia has rubbed off a bit on her, he thought.

"Please try not to hurt them too much, Milady. I'm sure whoever did it must've meant no real harm. If they had, they would've just poisoned me instead of simply making me fall ill." Ronove tried to reason out with the witch. She, however, wasn't listening.

"I don't care! I just want to try out a couple of new methods I've come up with on how to serve body parts~" The blonde's face distorted to that of a vicious smile, with no pity left in her cold, shockingly blue eyes. She abruptly stood from her chair, walking towards the loud noises coming from a set of twin doors. She opened the door slightly, but stopped. Beatrice turned and gave Ronove another one of her smiles. This time though, it was filled with actual joy.

"Don't worry, I'll get justice for you! So hurry up and get better, because I'm going to miss your tea!" With that, Beatrice stepped through the entrance, closing the door behind her. Ronove could already hear her yelling, and he smiled warmly. He felt a bit bad for the culprit, despite the state he was put in because of said culprit. He knew Beatrice would keep her word, and wouldn't be very forgiving. He decided that he would deal with the blonde witch later, if need be, and promptly fell asleep.

Back in the other room, Battler was getting beaten to a pulp by Satan and Lucifer. Beatrice was content to watch, having just demanding to find out who the culprit of such an atrocious act was. Technically, it was Beelzebub's fault, since she was the one who did the actual cooking, but she liked to see Battler writhe on the ground, so she dubbed him the culprit.

"Beato! Call off your stupid furniture! You can't just sit there and watch! I didn't do anything!" Battler cried out as he was being held down by Asmodeus as Lucifer kicked at his shins.

"Whaaaaaat?!~ You think I was actually gonna support you? No, it might not be entirely your fault, but this is just too much fun~ Gyahahahaahahaha!" Beatrice laughed, pipe in her hand, as she sat on a chair to better enjoy the show. She stopped once she heard a soft cough behind her and swirled around to face Vigilia.

"Beatrice, don't you think you've had enough fun? Just give the boy his punishment and let's get on with the game." Virgilia calmly commanded Beatrice in her soft-spoken voice.

"Muu. You're no fun, teacher." Inside, Beatrice didn't really want to continue the game, so that's why she was just trying to enjoy Battler's pain. She sighed again (She seemed to be doing a lot of that lately), and stood up.

"All right! Battler has had enough! For now, anyways." As the sisters heard this, they all immediately stopped and bowed down in front of the Golden Witch. With a wave of her hand, she dismissed the stakes, and they all disappeared, leaving golden butterflies in their wake. After doing that, Beatrice marched up to Battler and demanded, "I'm feeling nice today, so if you grovel on the ground and kiss the tips of my shoes, I'll let you off easy!"

"You mean me getting beat up by the big-boobed sisters wasn't enough?!" The red-head asked incredulously. With another cough, Virgilia piped up,

"Battler, although they are furniture, please refrain from calling them such degrading names."

Although Battler didn't really feel sorry, Virgilia always managed to make him feel guilty, for reasons Battler couldn't understand. So he cast his eyes down at his feet for a moment, apologizing.

"Sorry Virgilia."

"It's ok, just don't do it again. Now, I think it's best to just do as Beatrice tells you to, since it was partially your fault for what happened to Ronove. He's a complete mess over in that room." Virgilia nodded at the door's general direction.

Damn it! I never meant for any of this to happen! I just wanted to give that stupid butler my thanks! Guess this is what happens when you try do something nice. Tsk. Battler had been getting a lot closer to the demon butler in these past few weeks (Weeks? Who knows how time works in the meta world), and he realized that once you got past the creepy smile and openly flirtatious comments, he wasn't that bad of a guy. Or demon. Whatever the hell he was.

So Battler decided he should give him some food or something, since Ronove was always feeding him. I mean, it's his job as a butler or whatever, but I'm technically not his master, so he doesn't have to serve me. Battler's thoughts are what prompted him to ask Beelzebub to cook for him, so he could give it Ronove. Battler was a horrible cook , and he knew it, so he decided it was better to ask someone else who knew a little bit more about food.

Turns out, the sister might've been a stake of gluttony, but she only ate the food, she didn't cook it. So when Battler asked her, she decided to try and cook for him anyways. I-t's not like she wanted him to like her or anything like that! She just thought that after repeatedly killing him, she should be a little nicer. She would've asked for help if she knew it was going to be consumed by the famous cook that was Ronove, but she didn't know, so she just went along with what she thought felt right. The food she ended up with didn't look half-bad, but she had substituted many ingredients and spices, claiming they would make the dish better.

And the dish had made the demon sick to his stomach. Literally. So now, Battler was feeling really guilty. Extremely guilty. The pained moan that emanated from the room beyond him didn't help at all. So in turn, he decided he deserved whatever punishment Beatrice wanted to bestow on him.

Even Virgilia was surprised when Battler got on his knees and kissed Beatrice's shoes instead of (rudely) pointing and yelling at her like he usually did, going on about nonsense like, "Useless! It's all useless!"

Beatrice had at first, let her mouth gape open in a small "o" of surprise, but she then remembered herself, and started cackling like the witch she was.

"You finally learn your place, Baaaattleeeeerrr?~ Gyahaahahahaaha! Please, by all means, continue!" The blonde smiled cruelly down at the boy, reveling in her victory.

"All right, bitch. What's my punishment?" Battler had gotten up, wiping his mouth with the back of his arm. The "bitch" glared at him, before pointing to the double doors that led to Ronove's moans, and simply declared,

"Go take care of him. Take him to your room, it's much closer. I doubt a scrawny shrimp like you could manage to carry my furniture very far."

Almost not believing Battler wasn't about to get eaten by Beatrice's goats a second time, he scampered off, completely ignoring the insults. As Battler disappeared from view, Virgilia patted Beatrice on the shoulder, smiling.

"That was quite nice of you."

"Yeah well, whatever. It was nice just to see the idiot kiss my feet." Beatrice frowned, cheeks slightly red. Inside, Beatrice didn't actually think it was nice. She just wanted to laugh and threaten Battler, to hide the fact that she didn't really see him as an enemy. Guess it'll take a while before he finally realizes..


"R-Ronove? You ok?" Battler called out in the darkness, barely able to see a thing. He shuffled forwards, not wanting to bump into anything and fall over. Instead, this action caused him to do just that. His leg caught on the edge of a mat, and he collapsed on what he assumed to be the couch. With an "oof!", he managed to sit up, thrusting his hands forward, trying to get a bearing of his surroundings.

Strange. I don't remember this couch being this comfy… Bouncing lightly to test the now soft couch, he heard a groan from below him. Scared, he immediately stopped and reached for whatever had made that noise. His hands instantly found a silky surface, and he raced them up against the material.

Another small moan. His hands continued their journey north, coming across a pair of soft… lips? Accompanied with a mustache, too. Wait…

Battler's eyes had now accommodated the darkness, and he was able to see better. Looking down, he noticed he was sitting on top of a certain demon butler.

"Oh my god! I am soooo sorry! I thought I was sitting on the couch!" Horrified, Battler was silently pleading that the butler was too sick to remember anything afterwards, because he knew Ronove would forever hold it over his head.

A small cough. "Well, it would help if you could get off and refrain from adding to my pain." A pause. "Though this position is quite… interesting. Ku ku ku ku~" The butler was chuckling under Battler, making him feel quite embarrassed; but then he started violently hacking, and Battler's embarrassment was replaced by pure worry. In an instant, he lept from the butler and scooped him up in his arms, bridal-style.

Ronove let out a small gasp, realizing he was now floating up from off the ground, and the only thing tethering him to safety were two strong arms. Instinctively, he clutched at the chest of the red-head, and buried his head in the crook of Battler's neck.

"B-Battler! I'm feeling a bit ill here! Now is not the time for going along with your little "I-wanna-be-a-hero" play!" Ronove tried to stay composed, but a slight waver in his voice betrayed him.

"Shut up! I'm taking you to my room." Battler gruffly replied.

Ronove looked up at Battler, wide-eyed. Battler noticed how that must've sounded to him, and his cheeks immediately flared up. "Ah! Th-that's-! Beatrice said as my punishment, I have to take care of you, a-and to take you to my room, y'know, so you could be more comfy and-"

Ronove let out a small laugh. He was finding this quite amusing, to say the least. "What?! What's so funny?!" The blushing boy demanded.

"Nothing~ You best make haste, for anyone could happen upon us in such an interesting predicament. We are in the hallway, Master~" Ronove replied, a smile plastered on to his face. Angry and flustered, Battler quickly obliged and stomped off towards his room, carrying the chuckling demon. I can't believe I wanted to say thanks to this creep, Battler thought as he gently laid Ronove on to his bed. He turned to close the door behind him, thinking it'd be best for anyone not to see.

With that done, Battler refused to turn around, because he could practically feel the "creep's" eyes boring into his back. Awkward silence filled the room. Finally, Ronove spoke up.

"I heard everyone fighting in the other room. I hope no one is hurt?"

Remembering how he got beat up by a bunch of girls, Battler simply relied with, "Everyone's fine."

"That's a relief. I wouldn't want anyone to be inconvenienced because of me."

Battler finally turned around to face Ronove, but only to glare at him. You mean except for me, right? He thought. The sick butler only smiled, but weakly. Battler now noticed how horrible he looked, now that he was in the light. Ronove seemed to be squinting against the light. His brotherly instincts took over, and he turned the lights out, leaving a small lamp as the only source of light.

"Sorry, is that better?" Battler asked, voice dripping with concern. Ronove simply nodded, then lay back down on his bed.

"I am quite sorry you have to go through this punishment because of me. If you want, I could sleep on the couch." Ronove started to get back up, but Battler was over to his side in three swift steps, pushing him back down.

"No no, it's ok. You're sick, and I'm to blame." Battler shot him a desperate look before sitting down next to Ronove. "I'm the one who told Beezle to cook for you… I just wanted to say thanks, y'know? For all that you've done for me. Despite the fact that you're a total creepy bastard. So… forgive me?" Battler was looking down at his hands, refusing to meet Ronove's gaze. His cheeks were growing redder by the second, and he grabbed fistfuls of the sheets before him. He bit his lip forcefully, somehow not breaking the skin. The demon butler found this to be quite.. endearing.

Ronove slipped a finger under Battler's chin, forcing him to look up and to catch his gaze. Now face-to-face, Ronove lowered his voice to a whisper, and replied,

"It's quite all right, Battler." Battler shuddered at the way Ronove practically purred his name. "I know it wasn't your fault. You taking care of me right now is enough thanks. I should be thanking you, instead. So thank you." The red-head's cheeks flared up, now the same color as his hair. He noticed that the butler had gotten waaaay too close again, just like he always does. Annoyed, he thought, Geez, hasn't he ever heard of personal space? Still, he didn't push him away. Instead, he gulped and nodded. Cursing himself for acting like such a school girl, he managed to choke out,

"N-no, it's all my fault! I-I'm really sorry! Because of me, y-you're all sick now, and I knew I shouldn't have trusted that stupid stake girl, but I-I really wanted to give back what I took, s-so I-" Battler was cut off (thankfully) from his rambling, by a pair of lips gently pressing down on his own.

Wide-eyed, Battler reached out and clutched at the butler's chest. Noticing Ronoves' eyes were closed, Battler shamefully closed his own pair, too. Ignoring the voice in the back of his mind, yelling at him to stop, he instead, melted into the kiss, allowing Ronove's gloved hand to come up and cup his cheek, effectively steadying the slightly trembling boy. Battler collapsed into the brunette's chest, wanting some sturdiness. Ronove kept the kiss chaste, not wanting to scare the boy off. He slowly broke away, leaving the boy speechless. Ronove smiled at the sight of Battler's beet-red face, and his shaky, low breaths, loving his reaction. And with that, Ronove simply collapsed onto Battler's bed and passed out.

Leaving and irritated and confused Battler behind, all Ronove could dream of was their kiss.

Battler, meanwhile, debated on whether or not he should kick the bastard out of his bed, or curl up beside him. After several minutes of silent yelling going on in his head, he decided on the latter. Battler lay next to him, and pulled the covers over. Before he knew what he was doing, Battler snaked his arm around Ronove's waist and closed his eyes, awaiting sleep. The last thing he remembered before falling into the abyss of sleep, was Ronove's smell. He smelled of gingerbread cookies and warm tea.

AN: So I kinda came up with this story late one night, all in one go… so there might be some plot holes and mistakes, but I just really wanted to get chapter on up. I'll definitely write another, and possibly a third. Anyways, I really ship this so much and omg ;n; They need more love! Ah well, criticism is greatly appreciated! Thanks, you guys!