One of my favorite pass times is to sit around and think of all the memories I've made throughout the years. Why are memories so important to humans? Why must we constantly dwell in the past? Life is so confusing sometimes and that is why I believe remembering all the happy times are important. If there were no happy times, I think we would go mad constantly thinking about all the bad things life has to offer. Memories are important, and I'm not 100% sure why, but maybe one day I'll figure it out.

One particular memory I love to tell and think about is when I met my demon. He was such a stubborn angsty person, but throughout the years he made life a little better with each passing day.

It all started one a particularly cold night. I was giving a speech before a feast to celebrate a full moon. I stood at the head of the table, dressed in fine silken kimono as people all around looked at my face with shining envy and interest.

I was a lord you see. I took over a castle and defeated a man who was only interested in making a demonic army to take over all of Japan. Now, while being king of Japan sounded like a blast, I much rather would've enjoyed being a measly lord and not having that much responsibility.

I killed the previous lord in cold blood without a second thought. The man was an ugly fool who didn't deserve to be the ruler of anything, much less an entire country. I slit his throat with a katana and burned his body at my inaugural ceremony. The people of the surrounding villages were very thankful and follow my every law and order with no question. They were just happy that they weren't getting fed to a demon army anymore.

Anyway, I was giving my speech when I heard a loud blast outside the front doors. My guards rushed to find out what all the commotion was about, but before they could reach the scene, a black shadow jumped through the intense smoke and doors and landed right in front of me. It was a man.

He was simply stunning to say in the least. His skin had no flaws, his eyes were a glowing golden color, his hair reminded me of the sun. It was obvious to me what this man was. He was a demon.

"Hello" I said calmly, looking up at his beautiful face which was glaring down at me. "Can I offer you some food? We are about to feast my good man."

The guy smiled at me, revealing a row of very sharp teeth. He picked my up by the chest piece of my Kimono and drew me to his face.

"You're the lord aren't you? The ruler of this area?" He said in a demonic hissing voice. I remained calm and nodded softly. The demon studied my face for a few moments.

"Give me every expensive item you have. I'm robbing you. Refuse, and you die."

I chuckled slightly and smiled at this beast. "You're robbing me?" I reached into my obi around my waist and pulled out a small dagger. I stabbed the demon so fast he didn't have time to react. He let me go and I landed gracefully on my feet. The dagger was sticking out of the demon's gut and he slowly fell to his knees.

"Listen here, demon. Do you think that I walk around this castle everyday with no way to protect myself? Do you really think I rely on other people to save my life? If I can't protect myself from getting killed then I wouldn't be fit to be ruler now would I?"

The beast stared at me with fear in his eyes. His arms started to shake as he reached for me. I softly brushed one of his hands away and took a step back.

"Now don't worry, you wont die my friend. I was told that demons heal much faster than humans, now is that correct? If it isn't then you probably will bleed to death, but if it is you should be fine." I paused and laughed. "Oh, there's poison on that blade by the way. You're going to sleep for a very long time"

I could tell he was trying to fight through the pain and the poison, but his eyelids were growing heavy. He growled, but quickly went to sleep.

"Guards." I ordered. "Arrest him. Do not kill him. Give him some food for him to eat when he comes to. Let me know when he wakes up."

The guards lifted the demon and carried him away to the underground jail. The castle we lived in had everything. It had giant bathrooms, a jail, two kitchens, and just giant rooms for all sorts of different purposes.

The sliding doors looked like the rest of the wall panels, so you have to be taught where they are. It's for protection reasons. I lot of my guards used to be bandits so they knew how to hide. I replaced every door in the castle soon after I took over and it is really amusing to watch the new maids and such struggle to get out of a room.

The tatami mats were a soft green color. They were very soft and felt good on bare feet. Wealthy Japanese people do not allow sandals in a household. You must be barefooted or put on slippers. Tatami mats were soft and wooden shoes would quickly ruin them.

I left everyone to eat and ventured off on my own. After such an exciting event such as almost getting killed by a demon, a man could use a drink and some solitude. I slid open my door and locked it from the inside. I didn't want anyone walking in on me while I was thinking.

I took some sake and an ochoko, which is a drinking cup, and sat down at the kotatsu in the corner of my room. I poured myself a drink and quickly threw it back.

What was I going to do with that demon? Was I going to let him go so he could rob my other villages? Was I going to kill him and possibly upset other demons? I knew my people were going to expect an answer out of me soon. No one took a demon attack lightly at that time.

I threw another drink and felt my worries slowly starting to drift away. My face was warming up and I felt calmer.

What was there to worry about? I killed an evil overlord and saved the people of this land! They would be happy with any choice I made, right? They owed me such loyalty. There was no way they could betray me, their kind lord.

Taking a third drink, a heard a furious knock on my door. I stood up and went over the door, unlocking it. The head of my guard quickly entered and slid the door closed behind him.

"Lord Izaya, we have received many words from many people that a large group of demons are going to try and kill you tonight. They heard about the captured demon trying to rob you of your possessions and thought it was a good idea. We can barely take on one demon, my Lord, what do you want us to do?"

I was slightly intoxicated, but my brain knew how serious of a situation that was. Panic started to settle in and I ran through my millions of thoughts to try and figure out what to do.

"Send as many guards to all the entrances of the castle as possible. Give me two to escort me down to the jail. Has the demon woken up yet?"

The guard shook his head. "No my lord, He is still unconscious."

"Damn, I'll figure something out." I said In a hurried whisper.

After a few minutes, my two guards appeared and we made our way to the underground jail. One of the guards had a bucket of water with him. I found the beast sleeping so peacefully on the ground behind iron bars. He looked so beautiful and soft at that very moment.

"give me the bucket and unlock the cell." I ordered. One of the guards opened the cell door and I stepped in. I threw the bucket of water on the demon and then stepped back out, locking the door again.

The demon jumped up and yelled, alarmed at being wet. He looked around quickly, but his eyes soon fell on me. He ran over to the door and grabbed the bars in a rage.

"Why did you stab me, you bastard!" He yelled wildly.

"Calm down sir." I barked and put my hands behind my back. "I have a business proposition. We both benefit from it."

"Fuck you!" He hissed, his voice taking on multiple tones at once. Demons were good at doing that.

"Do you want to live in this castle and be pampered for the rest of your life, dear beast?" I asked above his growling.

"What?" He said, someone bewildered.

"I can allow you to stay here. You can get your own maid, your own bathroom, and I'll even give you money."

The demon thought about it for a few moments. "What's in it for you?"

"You're pretty strong, aren't you? The way you blasted through four sets of doors just to get to me. You're one of those special demons. The ones that have thoughts and feelings. You don't rely on just your instincts."

"What about it?!"

"Become my demonic body guard, beast. There's a group of demons coming to kill me and I couldn't possibly handle them." I paused and smiled menacingly. "But you could."

The beast thought about it. Then he glared at me. "Didn't the last lord of this castle die because he was building a demonic army?"

I nodded. "He did."

"What you're planning sounds similar to what he was planning"

I shook my head. "that is not true, dear beast. I am using a demon for protection against demons. I have no desire to take over Japan with you."

A few more intense moments of silence passed. The beast extended his arm. "It's a deal, let's shake on it."

I extended my hand and took his. There was a shock of electricity that ran through my body and I gasped.

"What's wrong with you?" The demon asked.

"Nothing!" I said quickly, trying to ignore my face growing hot for some reason. "My name is Orihara Izaya by the way."

"My name is Heiwajima Shizuo. Pleasure doing business with you."

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how I met my beast.