Disclaimer: I do not own Owari no Seraph (Seraph of the End). I write this for your enjoyment only. This story is an alternate version of the Nagoya arc with differences from the original; please refer to the footnotes at the end. The songs "Think of Me," "Angel of Music," and "Music of the Night" are written and own by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Once again, I would like to thank my beta reader, ResidentialPsycho, for her help in making this fic possible. I would also like to thank fellow FF. Net member, VampireSiren for her suggestions as well.

Chapter 6: Of Demons and Kinky Dreams

Yuichiro hummed a soft tune under her breath as she sat at her make-up table brushing her long black hair that was in the style of glossy ringlets while gazing at her reflection in the mirror. Not long ago, the young ravenette woke up from the strangest dream she ever had.

In it, she was living in a cold, ravaged world where most of humanity has perished and the minority that survived struggled to survive while fighting a war against vampires and other mythical monsters.

And instead of the aspiring young starlet and singing sensation she was, Yuichiro was a soldier in that dream, a swordmaiden of an army of humans skilled in the use of sorcery and controlling demons to do their bidding.

Strange, why would I dream such a thing? Yuichiro thought as she finished brushing her hair and started to put on some make-up. After a week of intense musical performances at the opera house where she lived as a choir girl and soprano solo performer, tonight was going to be her first night off and the girl planned to enjoy every bit of it.

As Yuichiro mulled over what she wanted to do, she suddenly remembered that she was going to meet with her friend, Mikaela, whom she had not seen since she was a child. By sheer luck, the blond youth happened to be in the audience and caught her solo performance of "Think of Me" just the night before.

One could only imagine the young soprano's surprise when Mika sent her a secret letter asking to meet him tonight since the opera house was closed for the weekend and there would be no more performances until Monday.

Excited to see her childhood friend again after so long, Yuichiro changed out of her sleeping gown into a light blue Victorian-style dress made of French silk with long sleeves flared at the elbows, a low neckline that exposed her generous bosom, and white ruffles at the hem. *1*

After slipping on a pair of blue heeled slippers, Yuichiro was about to leave her room when she suddenly felt a gust of wind sweep her surroundings, blowing out most of the candles and shrouding her in almost complete darkness.

Uneasy at what she felt was an ominous presence in her room, Yuichiro was about to make her way for the door when she suddenly heard a loud, booming male voice, calling, singing to her from seemingly out of nowhere.

"Insolent boy, this slave of fashion,
Basking in your glory!

Ignorant fool, this brave young suitor,
Sharing in my triumph!"

Yuichiro gasped and nearly jumped out of her skin. Could it be who she thought it was? Needing to find out, the girl decided to answer in her own mellifluous voice.

"Angel, I hear you.
Speak, I listen.

Stay by my side,
Guide me.

Angel, my soul was weak,
Forgive me.

Enter at last, Master…"

Yuichiro could almost hear the smugness in the mysterious man's rich baritone voice when he finally responded.

"Flattering child, you shall know me.
See why in shadow I hide.

Look at your face in the mirror.
I am there, inside!"

Feeling a rush of excitement, even with a little fear in her chest, Yuichiro slowly turned around and looked into the mirror on the other side of her room to see a tall and handsome raven-haired man with violet eyes dressed in a high-collared shirt topped with a dark ascot, a burgundy vest, and dark pants. To complete his elegant ensemble, he also wore leather gloves and dress shoes of the same color. Adding to his mystique was a white mask that concealed the upper-right part of his face.

Enchanted by his angelic voice and breath-taking handsomeness, Yuichiro forgot all about Mikaela and found herself walking towards her mysterious visitor while feeling the irresistible urge to answer his call.

"Angel of Music!
Guide and guardian!

Grant to me your
glory!

Angel of Music!
Hide no longer!

Come to me, strange
angel..."

The handsome stranger in the mirror smiled and offered his hand to her, his beautiful violet eyes beckoned to Yuichiro as much as his voice.

"I am your Angel of Music…

Come to the Angel of Music…"

So taken was she by the man who called himself the "Angel of Music" that Yuichiro barely noticed a knock on her door followed by an attempt to open it from the person on the other side. Because it was locked, the other visitor could not get it open, at least not right away.

"Whose is that voice? Who is that in there? Yuu-chan! Yuu-chan! Open the door!"

Hearing Mikaela's voice calling out to her, Yuichiro was almost snapped out of her trance, but the raven-haired man quickly reached forward and took her firmly by the wrist before pulling her into the mirror, his intense eyes never leaving hers.

"I am your Angel of Music…

Come to the Angel of Music…"

Unable to focus on anything but her angel's voice, Yuichiro no longer paid any heed to Mikaela and allowed her mysterious visitor to take her away…

SSSSSS

"Angel, do you have a name?" Yuichiro asked curiously as she found herself strolling along a beautiful flower garden with her arm looped around her companion's.

The older man smiled as he placed a hand on her arm.

"Yes... it's Guren."

Yuichiro blushed. "I love your voice, Guren… it's so heavenly, my own pales in comparison."

"Now, now, don't say that. Your singing is absolutely lovely; I know because the crowds adore you."

Yuichiro giggled. "Thank you, that means a lot to me…" she said shyly before taking a moment to look at her vintage-style surroundings that were reminiscent of 19th century Europe.

Now that she thought of it, the ravenette had no idea how she got here. One moment, she was in her dressing room at the opera house and the next, she found herself in what appeared to be an elegant flower garden of a western-style mansion.

Curious, Yuichiro asked: "Guren, where are we? How did we get here?"

"Hush, don't worry about that now…" the older man answered gently before changing the subject. "By the way, that dress suits you very well…"

Looking down, Yuichiro was surprised to find that in addition to her different surroundings, the dress she now wore was not the sky blue one she donned while waiting for Mikaela to come see her, but a ruffled ivory-colored robe worn over a matching corset dress accented with a long slit. She was also wearing thigh-high stockings of the same color held up by garters and her dainty feet were clad in white heeled slippers. *2*

Before Yuichiro could ask how her clothes had suddenly changed, she suddenly found herself in a different scenery again. This time, it was in a large elegant chamber lit with red and white candles. Out of the corner of her eyes, she noticed a bed at the back, but didn't have time to think on it before Guren gently took her into a slow waltz as he began to sing again in his heavenly voice, accompanied by music that seem to come out of nowhere.

"Night time sharpens
Heightens each sensation

Darkness stirs and wakes
Imagination

Silently the senses
Abandon their defenses"

Yuichiro found herself spellbound by her companion; his voice seemed to wrap itself around the words of his song like silk and her cheeks became flushed as Guren continued.

"Slowly, gently
Night unfurls its splendor

Grasp it, sense it
Tremulous and tender…"

As his singing became a little more suggestive, Yuichiro found herself shyly looking away from Guren who was not to be deterred easily. Gently taking her face in his gloved hand, the older man made her look into his piercing violet eyes once more as he sang the next verse.

"Turn your face away from the garish light of day,
Turn your face away from cold, unfeeling light -
and listen to the music of the night..."

Yuichiro found herself smiling as she looked at Guren in adoration while wondering what he was trying to tell her. As enchanting as his song was, it was also a riddle that was difficult for her to grasp.

Taking her hand and raising it to his lips, Guren placed a chaste kiss upon her soft skin before releasing Yuichiro and stepped away slightly, turning his back to her for a moment before facing her again, his arms open and outstretched.

"Close your eyes and surrender to your darkest dreams!
Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before!

Close your eyes, let your spirit start to soar!
And you'll live as you've never lived before…"

Obeying his subtle command, Yuichiro closed her eyes and shut out everything around her except for her angel and his voice as she allowed him to take her hand again and listened for him to continue.

"Softly, deftly, music shall caress you.
Hear it, feel it, secretly possess you.

Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind,
in this darkness which you know you cannot fight
the darkness of the music of the night."

Opening her eyes again, Yuichiro felt Guren release her once more and stepped behind a set of tall candelabrum, gazing at her seductively as he continue to sing to her from behind the candle flames.

"Let your mind start a journey through a strange, new world!
Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before!
Let your soul take you where you long to be!"

Yuichiro held her breath, unable to turn her gaze away from the older man, and did not move when he approached her again and gently took her face in both his gloved hands.

"Only then can you belong to me…"

Yuichiro gasped softly and tilted her head back when Guren stepped behind her and slowly ran a hand down the front of her corset while taking her own hand with his other and placed it on the exposed side of his face as he continued.

"Floating, falling, sweet intoxication!
Touch me, trust me, savor each sensation!

Let the dream begin, let your darker side give in,
To the harmony which dreams alone can write,
The power of the music of the night!"

Yuichiro felt goosebumps rising on her skin at the older man's touch, which was incredibly gentle, even if a little cold, and did not resist when he tugged on hand and led her to the large bed at the back of the room surrounded by candles. The sheets were white satin and covered with pink and red rose petals.

Without warning, Guren suddenly hoisted Yuichiro in his arms and gave a seductive smile as he laid her on the bed, his voice becoming as soft as the sheets around her.

"You alone can make my song take flight,
Help me make the music of the night…"

Shocked by his audacious move, Yuichiro yelped in embarrassment but before she could protest, she suddenly felt Guren's lips on hers as he joined her on the bed, his body hovering above her own. While she wasn't looking, his mask had mysteriously disappeared, exposing the side of his face that had been concealed previously.

To Yuichiro's surprise, there was nothing wrong with it. However, that part of Guren's face appeared slightly darker, as if shrouded in shadow, and it made her a bit uneasy as she pondered what it could mean. *3*

"Why so nervous, Yuu? Isn't this what you've always wanted from me?" the older man teased as he gently caressed her cheek with a finger. It was then that Yuichiro also noticed that Guren's hand was bare with no trace of the black leather glove he was wearing only moments before.

Yuichiro blushed furiously. "I…" What was she supposed to say? If she said "no" she'd certainly be lying.

Something obviously wasn't right but the sheer pleasure of having her angel dot hot open-mouth kisses down her throat while undoing the clasps of her corset until it was almost completely open, exposing the valley between her breasts, made it impossible for Yuichiro to even think straight.

That was, until she felt a pair of sharp fangs pierce her skin and the owner began to drink her blood hungrily.

The sudden pain quickly snapped Yuichiro out of her pleasure-filled haze and she gasped, her eyes flying open as realization finally sunk in (pun intended) that her demon contractor was just messing with her.

And in the most shameless way possible.

Furious and humiliated, the ravenette shot up, placed her hands on "Guren's" chest, and used all of her strength to push him away before quickly closing her corset to keep her breasts from being exposed to him.

"Aww… I almost had you!" Asuramaru pouted as he reverted to his true form.

Yuichiro glared at him. "Dammit, Asuramaru! Don't you have anything BETTER to do with your time?!" she shrieked before picking up a satin pillow from the bed and throwing it at him.

The demon boy easily swatted the poofy projectile away and gave her a cheeky grin.

"Nope!" he answered mischievously in a sing-song tone.

If she didn't already know it would be futile, Yuichiro would have thrown the rest of the pillows at her demon contractor for his audacious prank with the illusion of her guardian and mentor.

Especially since she had already ordered him not to after he had teased her about seeing Guren shirtless and liking it while taking on the older man's form during her demon aptitude test.

Yuichiro also knew, without a doubt, that Asuramaru decided to use Guren's form because he realized he could no longer guilt-trip her with Mikaela's now that she knew her orphanage brother was alive and well. Even if he was living as a vampire now. Having a demon contractor as powerful as Asuramaru might give Yuu a fighting chance against the vampires, but it also came at the expense of her personal privacy considering that the demon living inside her mind could see everything she's ever dreamed and fantasized about as if it were a movie playing on a big screen TV.

"Don't you ever do that again, you bastard!" Yuichiro shouted. "I'm sure it's still not too late for me to form a contract with another demon if I wanted!" the ravenette threatened as she pointed a shaking finger at Asuramaru.

"And how would you know if having another demon will be any different?" Asuramaru challenged. "Have you forgotten that we too, have wishes and desires of our own and need a body to fulfill them? That's the only reason we agree to obey and be bound to you in the first place!"

Knowing that the purple-haired demon was right, Yuichiro sighed and ran a hand through her unbound hair. Which was straight again instead of the European-style ringlets Asuramaru gave her in the illusion.

"And what exactly are your wishes and desires, Asuramaru? Whatever they are, I sympathize with you, but I'm not going to just hand you my body to use as you see fit."

The demon boy found himself blinking at Yuu's question. In all the centuries that had had been bound to Yuichiro's katana and passed from one owner to the next, not one of them had ever bothered to ask him what he wanted from their contract, only told him what they wanted.

Upon noticing her demon hesitate, Yuichiro persisted.

"Well, Asuramaru? What are you hoping to achieve by making a contract with me? Even if you manage to take over my body, what will you do? Where will you go? What are you looking for?"

Asuramaru was startled by his mistress's barrage of questions. Which he was totally unprepared to answer.

"I…" he began before closing his mouth again. As a demon, Asuramaru knew he had been a vampire in his previous life as well as a human before that, but could not really remember too much detail before he was bound to the sword Yuichiro wore around her belt. *4*

It didn't take Yuu long to realize the truth when her demon did not, or more accurately, could not answer her questions.

"You don't really know what you want, do you?" she asked incredulously.

Now it was Asuramaru's turn to be embarrassed that a girl centuries younger than himself had figured out the truth so easily. But that didn't stop him from attempting to give a convincing answer.

"No, I do. I'm actually looking for someone… a family member…"

"Oh really? Who?" Yuichiro asked curiously.

Astonished that his mistress actually showed a genuine interest in knowing what he wanted, the purple-haired demon tried his best to give as much of an accurate answer as he could.

"A sister… my only sister… I cannot really recall her name or even her face very well, but the one thing I am certain of is that she's my twin, almost like you and Mikaela."

"Wow, really? I guess that means we have a common goal of sorts. If that's the case, I believe it would be much easier for us to find the family we're looking for if we work together rather than against each other, don't you agree, Asuramaru?"

"You mean, like comrades? I'm not like your squad members; you know that, Miss Hyakuya."

"Yes, I do but I still think we can work together as allies towards a common goal so we can both get what we want. Think about it, what have you got to lose, Asuramaru? Taking over my body will be useless if you don't even know where to start looking for your twin sister. Shinoa mentioned that vampires and demons are connected so if she's one or the other, I'm sure I can help you figure out who your sister is and find her while I'm searching for Mika as well."

Asuramaru rested his chin in his hand as if considering Yuichiro's offer.

"Hmm…you do have a point. Since I can't really remember too many details of my sister, I will probably need your help after all."

Yuichiro's eyes brightened. "So you agree?" she asked as she offered him her hand.

Asuramaru hesitated for a moment before he finally relented and took it.

"Yes…" he said.

"Great!" Yuichiro said excitedly as she took her demon in a fierce hug before either of them even realized what she was doing.

For the first time since Yuu had subconsciously praised the attractiveness of his feminine legs, Asuramaru blushed and when she realized what she was doing, his human contractor finally released him before becoming serious again.

"I'm really glad we came to an agreement, Asuramaru," she said. "I promise to do my best to help you if you do me a favor and promise me something in return."

"And that is?"

"Don't ever give me dreams of Guren again. You know he and I aren't like that."

"Yes, I do. But you should also know that I wouldn't be able to give you such dreams if you didn't already have subconscious feelings for your mentor in the first place. I know you love his voice and singing as well as his protectiveness of you, even if he is a little possessive."

"Guren only sees me as a tool to achieve his ends; he himself admitted it."

"No, you are wrong. He admitted that he saved you because he had need of your abilities, not that he had absolutely no care or concern for your well-being."

"Caring about my 'well-being' is kind of necessary for me to be of use to him, Asuramaru," Yuichiro replied bitterly.

The demon boy rolled his eyes. "I won't deny that, Yuu. But consider this: you've lived under your guardian's protection for almost five years. If you were really nothing but a tool to him, he would have treated you like those vampires imprisoned in the labs beneath Shibuya and Shinjuku instead of raising you in his own home. I'm also sure it would have been much easier to keep you a secret from the Hiragis that way too."

Yuichiro was silent for a moment as she considered Asuramaru's words.

"Perhaps you're right. Even so, I will never be anything but a child to Guren."

Asuramaru grinned. "One normally doesn't sing so sensually to someone they see as a child, Yuu. I wouldn't be able to imitate his voice so well if not for your memories of him singing to you while tucking you into bed for the night. You know Guren Ichinose is a very private man and does not show that side of himself to many people."

"Maybe…" Yuichiro replied after a moment's hesitation. "But I can't worry about that now; my top priority is to find Mika and now your twin sister. It doesn't matter how I might feel about my guardian, I must keep my promise to Mika first because he needs me far more than Guren does."

Asuramaru frowned. Though she would never admit it, he knew Yuichiro's affection for Guren had not disappeared, even after finding out that he had saved her for his own purposes as well as the fact that Mikaela still lived.

And he had no doubt this will cause the girl problems in the future.

However, he didn't want to waste time and energy arguing with Yuichiro about something that really wasn't his business so he did not pursue the subject of her guardian further.

"I understand, Yuu. It's not my place to tell you who to pledge your loyalty and your heart to. I just hope that whoever you choose, he will be the right one. Very well, then, we have a deal. We'll work together and I'll lend you my power whenever you need it so long as you remember your promise."

Relieved that her demon was finally willing to drop the uncomfortable subject of her relationship with Guren, Yuichiro sighed.

"Thank you, Asuramaru. You have no idea how much that means to me."

"Well, I'm sure I'll find out in time," he replied humorously. "Right now, I think it's about time for you to wake up; your friends are waiting for you."

With a wave of his hand, Asuramaru materialized the sword that also carried his name before Yuichiro.

"Take your sword, the tie that binds us, and let its power flow through you," he ordered.

Without hesitating, Yuichiro obeyed and as her demon promised, she could feel a surge of energy flow through her sword arm and into her body.

I did it! Thank you, Asuramaru! Yuu thought excitedly before taking one last look at her demon contractor, her bright green eyes showing their gratitude.

As she expected, Asuramaru read her mind and gave her a genuine smile, the first she had ever seen since they had met.

"You're welcome, Yuu. Good luck and remember your promise…"

I will… Yuichiro answered silently before she closed her eyes and focused on returning to the human world.

Footnotes:

1. The first dress fem!Yuu wears in her dream is based on the blue one worn by actress Sierra Boggess who plays Christine in the stage version of the "Phantom of the Opera".

2. The second dress fem!Yuu wears is based on the white one worn by actress Emmy Rossum in the movie version of "The Phantom of the Opera".

3. In Asuramaru's illusion, Guren wears a mask even though there is nothing physically wrong with his face. The shadowy side revealed when the mask vanishes symbolizes the dark secrets and past of the real Guren Ichinose in the human world. Since Asuramaru was Mahiru's demon weapon before he was Yuichiro's, I assume he would know at least a few things about Guren's past.

4. In the manga, Raimeiki mentions to Kureto that demons do not really remember their lives before they are bound to the weapons of their human contractors. Asuramaru also mentions to male!Yuu that he could not really remember too many details of his sister, just that he has one.