Turned out the names I picked for the OCs are the same as actual people, so let me just say that that was not intended, that's just the result of trying to come up with the most generic white American names.
The year is 1932. A time of great economic depression, prohibition and organized crime. A time when everybody had a weight on their shoulder. Some had it lighter than others. In a small plain office in downtown Chicago, sat Nancy Crawford, Nancy Crawford Private Eye. A title she inherited from her late husband Drew Crawford, who met an untimely death not long ago. Now Nancy wasn't a stranger to horrible happenings, that's why when the stock market crashed she wasn't as upset as others, but her dear husband's death was something she couldn't brush off like everything else. She felt that her husband's death with far more than an accident. Her husband had a lot of enemies, too much for one woman to deal with. That's why she got help.
There was a knock on her door. "Madam? May I come in?"
"You may,"
What walked in was her ace in the hole, her trick up her sleeve, her demon. Yes, in her efforts to solve her husband's murder, Nancy had turn her back on God and went down a darker route. She had made a contract with a demon. In exchange for helping her, the demon gets her soul. Simple contract really, she didn't have much to live for after Drew's death anyways. The demon portrays itself as a young man named Conner O'Donnell. Conner, as she calls him, was a handsome young man with his wheat blond hair slick to the side, chisel face and suave demeanor. He had all the young ladies falling for him, much to Nancy's dismay. Their story was that Conner was a recent high school graduate, interning for her as her personal assistant.
"What is it, Conner?"
"We got a new case, Madam. Missing children."
He handed her a manila folder, full of the information they have so far. There had been a string of children going missing from a nearby Christian private school. The parents of said children believe that the local police might be in on it because they have been contacted but are not doing anything about it. All the parents unanimously agreed to pay any expense, in order to get their children back.
"What do you think, Conner? Interviews, stakeouts?"
"I believe that an undercover investigation might be best, Madam."
"Undercover, huh? How to you think we should go about that?"
"I believe that it will be best if we split it. One of us will play the part of a teacher and the other a student."
"Student? This school only goes up to 8th grade, Conner."
The demon chuckled. Nancy scooted her chair back a bit. "If you don't mind Madam, can I show you something?"
Nancy slowly nodded. She watched as her demon walked to the window and went behind the curtains. When he came out again, he was no longer a handsome young man but a cute little boy. A boy with pale skin, big blue eyes and short silky hair.
"How did you do that?" She asked surprised.
Without skipping a beat, he answered. It was part of their contract, for every question she asks him, he would answer truthfully. "In addition to gaining a contractor's soul, we demons gain their entire being. What that means is that we gain the ability to take the form of our past contractors. Thanks to a cause in the treaty of the soul wars."
"Soul wars?"
"During the black plague, Demons and Reapers-"
"That was just me thinking out loud. I don't really care." She cut him off. "But I'm now curious. Did you choose me because you wanted my "form"?"
"Actually no, I personally do not care for my contractor's appearance. I am only interested in their favor. For example, I chose you because I found you...spicy." He smirked.
Automatically, she slapped him across the face. "Let's go, Conner"
The demon just chuckled. "Yes, Madam."
After school, Nancy waited outside the pick-up area for Conner. She hoped that no one she knew saw her or else they are going to have a lot of questions.
"Nancy?"
Nancy slowly turned to see her neighbor, Pastor McGrovney, standing behind her. Pastor McGrovney, or Finnian as he likes to be call, is an interesting fellow. He is originally from England, where he was the gardener under an orphaned noble boy, and that's all she knows about his early life. She guessed that he, luckily, was treated well there because he still had the straw hat his master gave him. He wore that every day along with the cross that hangs around his neck. He is an extremely friendly and kind man, always looking out for others. He would frequently check up on her, giving her gifts, prayers, scolds for not going to church, and trying to get her to participate in church activities to become more sociable. He was like the father she never had.
"Finnian, Hello! How are you today?"
"I'm doing very well. How about you?"
"Great, Great, so what are you doing here?" That was a stupid question, he was a pastor! Of course, he would visit a Christian school.
"I'm here to pick up my grandson. What about you?"
Oh, they didn't decide on their story. She can't say she is here to pick up her son, because she and Drew never had children. "I'm here to pick up my nephew." Good. "My sister's son." Better, Finnian knew that Drew was an only child, but he knew almost nothing about Nancy's family.
"Oh, you have a sister?"
"Yeah, She and her husband are going on their second honeymoon and I'm going to watch their son for a while."
"He goes here?"
"Yeah,"
"If your sister lives in the same city as you, how come nobody from your side of the family came to Drew's funeral?"
Oof, she forgot about that. She just lied herself into a corner now. Thankfully, she was saved in the nick of time.
"Grandpa!" Finnian's grandson, David, she thinks it was, came running toward them, with another boy. "Grandpa, look this is my new friend, Conner. I invited him over for dinner, is that alright?"
Nancy watched as the normally calm man, looked down at the other boy in shock. His eyes widen and watered. He grabbed his cross like it was his lifeline. His body trembled badly. His mouth opened but no words came out.
"G-Grandpa?"
"Finnian! Are you alright?!"
The demon looks up at the old man in sick humor. He knew that he sensed something familiar. He looked up at the old man, he still had that old straw hat the young lord gave him, talk about devoted. He is also a man of God now, so he's guessing that he already knew. That the boy standing in front of him was not his beloved young master, but the demon that was once a respected butler. "Are you alright, sir?" He asked innocently. "You look like you saw a ghost."
I'm sorry all Finny fans. I wanted to write my boy in somehow.
Also, for those who're wondering, the soul wars is a crack headcannon I have that demons don't actually need contracts to eat souls, it just a formality created to prevent demons and reapers from fighting over souls. The soul wars were the result of demons and reapers fighting over the souls of the dead during the black plague.
Anyways, what did you think? Feel free to share your thoughts.