Chapter 1
The corpse precariously hung from her embrace as she drained the last bits of life from his pathetic existence.
"Feeding is so much work," she murmured. "I don't know how Beelzebub does it."
Seir stretched her arms in contentment, dropping her victim in the process, the full meal making her drowsy despite her complaint. Her prey's lifeless body lay in a disorganized heap at the base of the bridge. Passersby were unlikely to roam this early in the morning - hell, she wouldn't have either if she hadn't pushed back this meal so much. She just couldn't muster the energy to get out of her couch though until she had another power nap.
A swift kick sent the corpse rolling under the railing and into the river with ease. A smile graced her features as she watched it get smaller until it disappeared until the gentle waters with a graceless splash. The morning breeze picked up, carrying the cold winds from the water and causing her to scrunch her nose in discomfort.
Time to head back.
Shoving her hands in her pocket, the demon hummed as she walked the length of the bridge. Staring out to the river as the sun peeked over the horizon, she found herself mesmerized by its beauty. She doesn't go out much, but when she does she's usually pleasantly surprised. It's almost enticing enough to get her to walk to the bridge every morning.
Almost.
Soon, she crossed the bridge and veered off the path into the forest. It only took her a minute to reach her modest cabin, cloaked under an assortment of invisibility and dimensional spells.
Can never be too safe, she mused.
As she entered the runic field she stopped to check for any disturbances. Finding none, as she well should, she stepped through the door, greeted by her eternal fireplace and Persian rug waiting patiently for her return. She yelped in a rare burst of outward excitement as she dove into her extravagant bed, grabbing her unfinished book that she had lovingly left and continued where she had left off.
She didn't remember when she had dozed off, but she definitely remembered waking to the frantic slamming at her door.
Involuntarily jumping out of her skin, she checked the surrounding area. She didn't sense anything malevolent on the other side when she reached out, and only two people had knowledge of her abode. Either way, knowing that she wasn't going to die today, she didn't particularly care which it was.
Rolling over (and realizing she drooled on the cover of her book), Seir wrapped herself in her comforter, hoping that whoever it was would disappear.
A moment of silence - then, accompanied with more fervent knocking, "Come on, Seir! I know you're in there!"
So, it's him. "It's open," she murmured underneath her cocoon.
The door swiftly opened and shut, revealing a bloodied man heaving desperately as he pressed his back against it in relief.
"So now you decide to visit?"
"Please, honey," he grinned, adjusting his glasses with a smirk. "You hate visitors."
"I'm just making conversation," she pouted.
"Yeah, yeah. So guess what happened?!"
Seir was unmoving in the embrace of her blankets. "I'm sure you're going to tell me…"
A wide, toothy smile blossomed under his bloody features as the man closed the distance and hugged her, much to her despair for her sheets.
"I just met the most handsome creature ever~ He was sexy, and amazing, and sexy… I want him so bad…"
"Let me go."
Her visitor obeyed, less out of fear and more out of excitement as he proceeded to jump around. She grimaced as her comforter piled at her feet, blood seeping through the material. She could probably save it if she cleaned it now…
"Oh Seir, I want his babies!"
Collecting the sheets in her arms, she started filling the tub with a rune she installed that pulled water from the reservoir underneath her home. Her book was heartbreakingly abandoned at her feet as she struggled to keep the blanket in her embrace. "That's nice…"
The man scoffed at her indifference. "You wouldn't know hot if you fell into the sun, dear."
"Sounds like a lot of work to get up there anyway." Finally dumping her soiled sheets into the tub, she sighed in exasperation. "Why are you even here Grell, besides to gush over your new toy?"
Grell Sutcliff, member of the Grim Reaper Society and one of her only friends, gave her another toothy smirk. "What's wrong with visiting my favorite person ever?"
"Sounds like I'm not your favorite anymore..."
He danced over to her with as much grace as he possessed, which was frankly unimpressive. "You will always be my favorite, Seir bear~"
She couldn't help but chuckle at his antics. He could always get her to laugh with his theatrics, which was why she bothered to keep him around at all.
Seir had chanced upon the feisty redhead about a century ago in Paris. Attracted by the scent of a recent death, she was looking to get a quick meal out of her find. Unfortunately, she had instead been greeted by the reaper that had gotten there the same time she did. Her meeting with a reaper was going to be inevitable anyway, so her surprise wasn't too great.
As a newer guy on the job, though, he was no trouble for her most basic spells.
"Please," he had begged. She was expecting him to beg for his life, and she moved to consume the soul before other reapers should appear.
"Don't..." he murmured, voice dying to a whisper. "...Let me die a virgin."
She hadn't expected to laugh as hard as she did, and she even elicited a chuckle from the wounded death god. To the bewilderment of the redhead, Seir not only helped him up, but healed him with her magic as well. His company promised many laughs in the future, and she decided she needed someone like that in her life.
So, he stuck around.
And here he was now, seated at her kitchen table as she placed store-bought cookies before him (she wasn't going to make her own) as he elaborated on this new knight in shining armor to her.
"So get this," he said, grabbing a cookie as she seated herself in front of him. "He's a demon."
She blinked; that was the last thing she expected to hear. "What's with you and befriending your enemies?"
He sputtered, affronted. "You befriended me! Don't you dare use that excuse!"
The demon waved him off. "Semantics. What else about him is so amazing?"
"Well," Grell shoved the confectionery into his mouth. "He's a butler, so he's always in this hot suit that really shows off his abs. Oh, and his voice…"
"If you need a moment with your hand, I can leave..."
He chuckled. "No need for that, I have all the time in the world later."
They shared a laugh.
"What's his name?" she inquired, grabbing one for herself.
"Oh, that's the best part, honey… it's Sebastian."
"That's probably not his real name if I don't recognize it, and I'm sure a weakling wouldn't capture your attention so much." Seir popped the pastry into her mouth. "Is all of this your blood?"
"Not at all; I can handle myself, thank you very much."
"Mhm…"
"Ugh! You're no fun." Grabbing all of the cookies in his hands, Grell made a mad dash for the door.
"Hey!"
"I gotta run," he winked. "See you soon babe!"
The door slammed, and the demon was greeted with silence. She eyed the blood staining her door and carpet with disdain.
"What a mess…"
"Why the fuck are you covered in blood again?"
"I'm on a job!" he growled as he barged in.
Not even a week later, Grell Sutcliff enters her life again. She can start to feel her energy drain with this much socializing in such a short span of time.
"What kind of job? You're dealing with dead people, not fucking murder sprees."
"Well, maybe I am!"
Seir blinked. "...Really?"
"Yeah. I know you won't tell anyone, so you can know." He made towards the kitchen, tracking bloody footprints on her Persian rug. Again. She could cry in frustration right about now.
"Not like I have anyone to tell." She swallowed her grievances as she followed him in. My carpet...
Seating himself, he crossed his arms like a petulant child. With a suffering sigh, she reached into her pantry and pulled out the box of cookies she painstakingly went through to buy yet again, just a few days prior. He angrily grabbed two cookies this time and shoveled them into his mouth, when not a moment later he burst into tears.
With the confectioneries sticking out of his face, he looked absolutely pathetic. She couldn't help the chuckle that escaped her - his suffering made her feel better as she sat herself in front of him. If she's suffering because of him, then at least she can relish in his despair as well.
Bless this Sebastian character.
Choking up in his wallowing, he pulled the cookies out of his mouth and slammed them back into the box. Seir's subtle 'ew' went unnoticed as the reaper put his face in his hands in defeat.
"Oh, honey, he won't notice me at all! No matter what I do, he just pushes me away! Our story is such a tragedy... the maiden rejected by her prince!"
"Tragic indeed…" she murmured, staring at the box of wasted efforts on her table.
"Wait… Seir."
Questioningly, she gazed at the contemplating look on Grell's bloodstained face with trepidation. She didn't like it when Grell thought. His brain should not be used for thinking.
"You can talk to him for me!"
A pause. Her bark of laughter immediately after caused him to wince, but he remained steadfast. "Come on, please!"
"I've known you for a century, Grell. Surely you know me better than that!" The demon's short lived amusement gave way to an incredulous look on her face. "You're not serious."
"Fine," he acquiesced. "You don't have to talk to him - just watch! I don't know what I'm doing wrong! I need your point of view!" In his desperation he grabbed her shoulders from across the table and started shaking her, and she was starting to get annoyed.
"You're so pathetic..."
"Yes, yes! Thank you bear, you're amazing!"
"I didn't agree to anything." Shrugging him off, she stood, pointedly ignoring the stains on her sweater. It was her favorite too… damn. "Get out."
With a mock salute, he pranced around the table and to the door. "I'll fetch you before my next job dearie~ Dress well!"
"Not fucking likely. And Grell?"
She shoved the box of cookies under his nose.
"Take them."
His teary, thankful eyes were answered with a slamming door in the face.
Author's Notes:
These notes are for clarification. Some aspects may be clear as the story progresses, but others may not (particularly the classification of demons).
-This story will (probably) be more theologically involved and less focused on the canonical story of Ciel.
-Some sources state that Lucifer and Satan are two separate beings while others claim that they are the same. For the purposes of this story they will be different entities.
-Seir is also a demon with a good nature, indifferent to evil, according to his information in the Ars Goetia.
-I've chosen to make some angels and demons female.
-All demons possess the seven deadly sins, but are created with an affinity to the sin they represent. Demons of sloth will always be lazy and demons of gluttony will be voracious eaters, though they can vary by degree.
- I am also using the ranking system of demons taken from the Ars Goetia, but not the exact demons. Also, Lucifer ultimately is obeyed as the emperor of Hell. The system is as follows:
+Kings
+Dukes
+Princes
+Marquises
+Counts
+Knights
+Presidents
Etc. Notes:
-I haven't planned out this story just yet. I've only done some research so far and wrote down the prologue and first chapter. I hope to make a solid plan while I have inspiration, and the rating/genres/characters will reflect that.