(17th June, 09:20, Full Moon)

Beast and the Beast

Chapter Eighteen – Confrontation Avoided

(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 stared into the eyes of Diablo in disbelief, how had she missed the noise he made approaching her? She didn't imagine he was used to being quiet, considering what a bulk of a demon he was – or perhaps that stomping of his was him being quiet in his demonic form.

She looked down towards his hands, which were resting on the boulder and barely managed to hold in her gasp as she saw the boulder heat up and crack under his touch, he was emitting incredible heat through his mere hands!

She removed her gaze from his hands looked up at his face, the piercing redness of his eyes giving her the chills once more; she watched as Diablo's face turned into a smirk that reminded her once more of a normal human, yet he wasn't.

"Nice to finally meet you up close." He said and despite his polite greeting she could see the rage burning in his eyes and the heat being emitted through his hands; he was everything but happy at the moment and she felt like she was going to be the 'chew' toy for this beast.

She took a deep breath, regardless of how much fear she felt at the start when she saw him she couldn't contain her anger now, she felt it boiling over and suddenly glared at Diablo with as much ferocity as he was at her. "Listen, I know you want nothing more than to see me lying on the ground dead, so please, cut the formalities and get on with it." She snarled at him and with the snarl the memory of her companion telling her she sounded like an animal came back to her; so she relaxed her face though her anger continued to surge through her body like a wildfire.

Diablo kept his calm demeanor as he continued to smile at her, though his eyes and hands were burning hotter than Hell as he stared her down. "Of course, now give me your cape." He said with the smile still plastered on his face like he was a mannequin.

Sakai took a step back in surprise at his request. "Excuse me?" She muttered in confusion, her anger vanishing almost immediately because of his command.

Diablo gave a frustrated snort, the smile vanishing from his face. "I realize you're not particularly observant, but I would've thought that it's quite obvious I have a lack of clothing." He said as his face pulled into a scowl and he lifted his heated hand from the boulder and held it out to her. "Cape if you will." He said as all signs of politeness eluded him at the moment.

"I take it that's not really a choice." She muttered as she started to take it off, at least she had clothing underneath, though she was sure her backpack was nowhere to be found anymore as she had left it when she ran from Diablo and now he was stealing her clothes and she was just giving it to him.

When she was done taking it off she looked at Diablo, the cape in her hand, not yet extending it towards him. "If I give this to you you're going to turn hostile on me, aren't you?" She asked and the smile returned to his face, though she was unsure of what it meant.

"Give it to me and find out." He offered as he continued to hold out his hand and she gave a sigh, giving him the cape and taking a step back while looking down as he dressed himself, there were certain things she didn't want to see on a human or demon man.

When she felt he had enough to time to get dressed she looked up at him; and sure enough, he was dressed and staring at her. "Well?" She asked him, despite her calm demeanor she was shaking inside; she had no idea whether he would kill her, harm her or just leave her.

He gave her an irritated look. "What do you want? An apology for taking it and a thank you for receiving it? This is Hell girl, learn the language and manners." He said as he turned around and started to walk away; leaving her completely flabbergasted.

She stared at him as he continued to walk towards the castle, completely oblivious to her and she was wondering whether he was only taunting her; would he suddenly turn around and blast or something? She directed her eyes towards the boulder and saw the blackened area on the boulder in the shape of his hands and once more she shivered; how powerful was he?

More importantly, how powerful was this brother of his, the King of Hell, that he had enough power to shove Diablo, such a colossal beast, through a thick stone wall and actually budge him an inch to start with. She looked around her and saw some of the demons were returning to the castle grounds with hesitation.

Almost all of them looked at her, whether they witnessed what had happened or not, all of them were wondering why she was still alive after she had an encounter with Diablo; someone they obviously feared and for good reason; they didn't even compare to his strength.

She quickly ran away from them and towards the castle, whether she would be safe in there she didn't know, but it was better than being outside and having to stomach her neighbors and survive their looks of suspicion.

Besides, she could just go back to her companion's room since it didn't seem like Diablo would be losing his temper again with Baal around; or she hoped not. At least now she knew how he had gotten up to the third floor; he just turned…human.

The thought was still bizarre to her that he looked so much like a human when he was far from it; she shrugged off the thought as she entered the castle, running towards the stairs.

x.X.x

Baal was waiting patiently for his brother to come back up the stairs when he finally caught sight of him as he entered the room; though the first thing that caught his attention was the cape. "Where did you get the clothing?" he asked immediately.

Diablo glared at his brother, obviously still having a temper tantrum inside. "What? Can't you smell the human on it?" He asked mockingly and immediately Baal's eyes darkened as he stared at his brother, uncrossing his arms.

"Did you harm her?" He asked now, a hint of aggression in his voice as he contemplated whether his brother went against a direct order from him by harming the human girl; regardless of whether she was a demon now he still saw her as a human because of her behavior.

Diablo scoffed angrily. "No." He said irritated; he could've lied, but just like his brother he didn't have a particular liking towards liars. "I only asked her for the cape." He said, as if he was disappointed with himself for not actually harming the human.

"Good." Baal said as his eyes returned to their normal shade. "Have you calmed enough to listen to reason?" He asked and Diablo glared at him as he nodded.

"Yes." He said as he went to sit down. "Please continue." He said as he waved his hand.

x.X.x

Sakai reached her companions room and looked inside, the haze in the room was gone as all the dust went to settle; leaving the room with a grayish atmosphere as there was an inch of dust on everything, layering the place nicely.

"Oh great." She muttered as she walked inside, her feet making footprints in the dust as she walked into the room. She didn't know what her companion's reaction would be once he saw the room; she was expecting he would think it was her and probably evict her on the spot.

She went to the bed and patted the soft surface; immediately her vision was invaded by a haze of dust as all the particles shot into the air again. She coughed a few times and then went to lie down on the bed once the dust was off the sheets.

She barely had any sleep as Diablo and Baal had woken her up with their fight; five hours used to be enough for her, but these days she was so tired from everything, she felt like she could sleep days away without ever waking up.

She wondered whether she would sleep now; her companion hadn't returned, so that meant he didn't want to sleep now and only God knew when she would be able to sleep on a bed again.

"Rest it is then." She said as she closed her eyes and soon she felt the dust settle on her skin and sleep claiming her.