(15th June, 13:30, First Quarter Half Moon)

Beast and the Beast

Chapter Six – A Companion without a Heart

(Please note this story has vast similarities to Beauty and the Beast, yet I claim no ownership over Beauty and the Beast, only my inspiration is stolen from the movie/book.)

x.X.x

Sakai was sagging again, she had barely slept enough and they had been travelling for ten and a half hours, she needed to rest but her companion seemed to be moving without fatigue, as if exhaustion eluded him and his own growing anger was his energy.

She did not have the energy to convert anger into energy or to pretend she was still up to scratch, if she could she would've fallen to the ground long ago; but she knew her only chance to become human again remained with this monster before her.

She had never before cared for company and it was obvious he did neither because he hadn't spoken so much as a word to her since they started walking and she was starting to wonder why, her reason was that humans were boring and she couldn't handle an idiot. His reason was probably the same, except that humans were also considered an occasional snack.

She sighed and immediately her companion stopped dead, making her almost walk into him; luckily she stopped herself in time. He turned to her and examined her again; immediately she wondered what she had done, was it because she sighed? Could it be something as simple as that?

Did demons sigh? Was that why he stopped, did he find it peculiar that she was so human. She realized she hadn't heard him make a single human sound since they started, except speech of course. Her blood ran cold as she considered the possibility of him contemplating this.

"Where are you from?" He asked her and she found the question out of the place and quite unnecessary, but unlike a normal human, she couldn't tell him that. Telling him that would result in her own death and she hated feeling like she was a puppet that had to obey.

"A few miles from Lut Gholeim." She answered him and the expression on his face was unchanging and she only now realized that he couldn't change his expression, his face was nothing but bone with a thin layer of skin over it. She felt bile rise in her throat at the thought of something so disgusting existing, but kept it in place.

"We're going to be passing the Citadel of Kurast soon." He said and she felt herself get angry again, more travelling? Couldn't they just rest for an hour or two! Was he going to drive her to death? She decided she would speak now or never.

"Can't we rest for a short while?" She asked in hope, but the look in his eyes gave her a positive no.

"Why?" He asked.

"I'm not as…versatile… as you are at travelling or staying awake for long periods at a time; I need to recuperate." She said as she examined his hideous features that weren't fully illuminated in the night and her skin crawled with the realization of what lay ahead for her.

She could see the bulge better on his back and from the edge of his cape she could see vine like tentacles moving around, it was the same milky color as his skin and it looked like it was covered in slime. She couldn't hold it in anymore. She turned away from him and vomited, but nothing came out but a bit of liquid; she ended up gagging most of the time and once she was done she wiped her mouth on her sleeve and looked at Baal, afraid of the look she would receive and afraid she would get another fit of nausea at his appearance.

She looked Baal in his eyes and saw confusion. "I-I'm not feeling well." She countered, hoping he would believe her elaborate lie and she saw he did because his eyes went from confusion to looking annoyed.

"You are by far the worst demon I've ever encountered." He said and then turned away from her, starting to walk again and she felt her spirits evaporate with every step he took; no rest. She straightened herself out and started to aimlessly follow him. Spitting every now and again to try and get the horrible acidic taste of her vomit out of her mouth.

x.X.x

It was close to sundown and Sakai was walking on no energy, her entire body was sagging and she needed water, she needed to rest, she wanted to wash herself and she wanted to eat most of all, she was starved, dirty and tired.

They had passed the town of Kurast a few hours prior and she had badly wanted to run away from him and try to book herself into a inn, even if she knew it was impossible to get in with her appearance the thought was still alluring.

Once more Baal stopped dead before her and this time she did walk into him. She felt the vines on his back part as she sank into them like a cushion and immediately she had to turn away to stop herself from vomiting again as she pulled away.

He turned to her, obviously annoyed that she had walked into him. "We will rest here." He said and her nausea and disgust vanished the instant he said that and she plopped down on the ground with a huge sigh of relief. "Oh Thank God." She muttered and Baal delivered no comment.

She felt like she could pass out on that second but she needed to find water to clean herself and attempt to eat at least to regain her strength and will to actually pull through with this. "Is there a pool close to here?" She asked and he looked at her for a few seconds before answering.

"Yes, just passed the trees to the left." He said pointing to some thick foliage surrounded by trees and she was up within a second, taking her backpack and walking in the direction. "Are you seriously going to bathe?" He asked and she gave a solemn nod, he shook his head in some form of disappointment and she decided she would ignore it as she continued to walk in that direction.

x.X.x

Sakai reached the pool and took off her clothes, setting them down by the edge of the pool as she climbed in, the water was freezing but welcoming as it gave her new energy to actually cook her food and survive another day.

She washed the grime off herself but soon she felt disappointed, she didn't feel cleaner than she did previously, actually, she couldn't remember feeling dirty in the first place or even sweating. With a disappointed growl she got out of the water and dried herself off with her old clothes. Getting dressed in her new clothes and putting a new cloak around herself. She bent down and took a sip of water and once more she felt disappointed, it didn't quench her thirst at all! What was wrong with her!

She shoved the thought aside and quickly rinsed the dirty clothes in the water and hung it on a tree close to the water so that she could retrieve it when she woke up. Once she was done with that she walked back to the camp, backpack flung over her shoulder as usual.

x.X.x

Sakai was pleased to see her companion had taken it upon himself to start a campfire and she watched as he idly watched the flames trickle upwards, he seemed to have an odd fascination with it. She ignored it and went to sit next to the fire, opening her backpack and taking out a piece of meat she had cut from her cow.

This caught Baal's attention as he watched her take a rock from her side and put it in the middle of the fire, placing the slab of beef on top of it. He suddenly gave a dry laugh and she looked towards him in surprise. "What?" She asked and he shook his head a way times before responding.

"That is never to going to work." He said and she growled at his insult.

"Listen, I've done this a million times, it's going to work." She said and he kept quiet, she saw a smile play on his face and felt nausea beset her again, she had to get used to the way he looked sometime, she couldn't want to throw up every time she looked at him!

x.X.x

About half an hour later she had managed to cook the meat and scoffed in victory. "Told you it would work." She said smugly and Baal gave a snort she didn't quite know how to place.

"That's not what I meant." He said and she was confused, but shrugged it off as she took a bite of the meat and immediately gagged as the ash taste took over her mouth again, she spit out the meat and stared at the meat in her hand in surprise, as if she expected maggots to crawl from it.

"I told you it wouldn't work." He said smugly now and she looked at him stunned, how did he know it would taste this way? Why did it taste this way to her? Questions swam in her head and she had to release them before she popped.

"Why can't I eat anything?" She asked him in anger that wasn't directed towards him but towards the hag who did this to her, why did the woman do this to her? It was unfair!

"God, you must've missed the 'Being a Demon 101' meeting." He said amused and she felt completely bemused, actually, she felt like crying, all of this was unfair! She was stuck with the most hideous creature she has ever seen and she was the same as him!

"Tell me why I can't consume anything!" She yelled and he laughed at her, she felt like she could throttle him on the spot but she remained rooted next to the fire, taking deep breathes to calm herself.

"Or perhaps 'Demons for Dummies' would suit your particular brand of idiocy better." He insulted, but then cleared his throat and spoke. "I'm guessing your bath felt… unsatisfactory?" He enquired and she only gave a nod.

"Demons do not sweat; the only dirt we accumulate is that from our travels, which we tend to ignore for weeks at end, there is no pleasure from a bath except looking cleaner, which usually don't last long for our kind." He clarified and she took that as the truth. "We cannot eat cooked meat, fruit or any other product of nature except raw meat with blood in." He said and she pulled such a disgusted face that he let out a snicker.

"Raw meat? Blood? Do I look like a bloody cannibal or carnivore to you?" She asked in shock and he waved for her to shut up.

"Your teeth could've fooled me, but either way Sakai, the only drink you can consume is blood and the only food you can eat is raw meat, there is no way around it. Everything turns to ash in your mouth otherwise. The best meat and blood obviously comes from humans, remember that." He said and she felt her world collapse.

Raw meat? Blood? Because she looked like a monster she had to act like one as well? What was this madness the witch wanted her to descent into? How could she grow to care for people if she had to consume them? She felt tears brim her eyes but soon realized her body had no more water content to dispose of since her last 'sob session', instead she just shook with invisible tears that made Baal confused.

"What are you doing?" He asked her as he cocked his head to the side, trying to examine her reaction to his words.

"Arguing with myself." She lied as she looked up at him, her body still shaking lightly, but no tears escaping; her eyes just stung like smoke had been blown into them.

"Interesting…" Baal said and she growled suddenly.

"What the HELL is interesting about living like this? Eating humans and so forth? What is so great about it?" She asked in a flurry of anger, hopelessness and hatred.

"Nothing you're willing to understand." He stated and then his eyes turned intensive as he looked at her. "That's what I want to know, why you don't understand." He said as his eyes turned a darker gold color that made her shiver.

"What are you Sakai, because you're not a demon by birth, that much I can tell. What are you and choose your worlds carefully." He threatened and she glared at him with such force that his eyes held the smallest bit of surprise but it was soon replaced with more anger and curiosity.

"I was turned into a demon." She confided and Baal looked shocked at her answer because he sat up straight and stared at her intently.

"Why?" He asked and she shook her head, she had to lie.

"I don't know, I don't remember anything, I just know the morals of human life. I'm a demon and I can't change that." She said and Baal examined her once more.

"That's why you smelled like a human, you have lingering traits of them." He said and she could do nothing but nod, would he kill her now that he knew she was actually a human?

"Does this bother you?" She asked bluntly, she didn't like being in the dark and if she didn't ask he wouldn't answer her until he was about to kill her and then it would be too late to run.

"Yes, it does bother me. I don't have a lot of compassion for your kind." He hissed out and she felt everything in her freeze over, she could almost taste her death on her tongue, which was strangely still human and not pronged like that of a lizard.

She took a deep breath and spoke. "What are you doing to do about that then?" She asked and he looked at her, she saw malice in his eyes as he stood up.