CHAPTER 2
A/N – Hello everyone! I know this second chap took longer than expected – I had hoped to go through this crazy-cracky tale a bit quicker – but here I am at last with some more of that crack (crap, because 'just be honest with yourself!' :)))). Also, pay attention to the 'soundtrack', it speaks volumes and makes a lot of sense… yeah. Enjoy!
Soundtrack: Kehlani – Gangsta; (the lyrics belong to the artist!)
"I don't want, what I can get
I want someone, with secrets
That nobody, nobody, nobody knows"
The movement behind the curtain ceased momentarily and Sebastian wondered what it was exactly that the gargoyle had so proudly planned to present him with: probably the beat-up, depraved soul of some random dancer the creature had found particularly entertaining or something, and when confronted about the poor quality of the offering it would say that the pizza hadn't been much either and there wasn't even as much as a stale beer on the side.
"Speaking of this dinner," the demon said, "Aren't you, as a… hmpfffft deity, supposed to have some sort of work ethics?"
"You mean do I have any qualms about ripping a meal off a silly demon like you?" the stone lump asked, wolfing down a big, heavily-ketchuped slice of pizza with impressive efficiency.
Sebastian sighed. "No, that much is evident. But have you no qualms about delivering a helpless human into my claws?"
"That's your simplistic way of looking at it now," said the gargoyle with its mouth full. "But how do you know I'm not actually delivering you to a happier fate? For I have glanced into your black little heart and found it gripped by the merciless claws of love!"
Love. Now this was so supremely absurd that the Crow demon found himself unable to find a proper comeback as the lights were dimming.
A vague, intriguing tune began seeping from the sound system and Sebastian saw a couple of wide, dirty-white ribbons which looked awfully like bandages being lowered in front of the cheap red plush of the still pulled curtains, gradually entering the sole, small spot of remaining light in the room.
And then, just before he laid eyes on the boy, that pervasive but undeclared feeling of unease which had pestered him from the very moment he and his unfortunate companion had set foot in this blasted place morphed brusquely into something else, as if that certain memory which had before barely lingered on the edge of oblivion had been brought back, violently alive all the sudden.
My young master… is here.
Crimson eyes widened in almost painful awe took in the lithe shape of the boy who might have been two-three years older now than the demon remembered him, yet none of his innocently twisted charm lost in this little change. He was still… perfect.
"Before you get your panties in a twist over this, let me remind you that this time you no longer have a contract," the ornament observed, promptly and bluntly breaking the spell (and ruining the mood).
"How-… is this possible?" Sebastian asked, gaze still trained on the slender limbs grudgingly decorated with more 'bandages' around the fragile wrists and ankles as the boy was suspended above the stage literally in a knot of those unsafe, disturbing rags but looking confident as he swung momentarily upside down, lip syncing on the song with poisonous lyrics.
I need a gangster
To love me better
Than all the others do
To always forgive me
Ride or die with me
That's just what gangsters do
"Well, all thanks to your messy table manners, I must say," the stone lump replied, invisible claws drumming purposefully onto the edge of the already empty plate. "A fragment of his soul escaped your sharp beak and took flight, grew again into a sphere and upon the right moment, embodied itself again… or however the hell this stuff works, anyway."
The boy was wearing only black breeches just reaching below the knee and a white shirt with sleeves rolled up the skinny arms, an eye-patch which this time really hid a missing eye, while heavy shadows which were more of natural purple than black kohl surrounded the dark blue profusion of the remaining orb. His lips were white and there was no color to his cheeks, that bony white looking oddly hollow framed by the shiny black bangs.
I'm fucked up, I'm black and blue
I'm built for all the abuse
I got secrets, that nobody, nobody knows
There was something changed, different about his young master in this new form, born in another era, in another country, in completely different circumstances, even if his soul essence kept the same irresistible, undeniable, mouthwatering flavor, it was as if he'd gone down some slope of sorts, he'd become not less but a further subtone of suffering and sin had been added to his aroma, in a way which was almost… painful.
And Sebastian did not understand this new, unfamiliar sensation of tightness in his chest, it was something alien, out of place, but surely it couldn't have been…
"What happened to him?" the Crow demon asked absently, grimly intuiting that the blasted ornament was enjoying this newly acquired discomfort he couldn't even name.
Another snort came from the gargoyle and the creature jumped back onto Sebastian's shoulder. "What happened to him? You mean aside from you?" it chuckled. "I don't know, some shitload, but as you can imagine, any association with your sort can only result in bad karma, or whatever the hell that's called."
The boy's gaze swept over the small crowd in an alluring fashion as he twisted graciously within his rope contraption, but his one good eye obviously empty to the keen observer. He was both mesmerizing and hurtful to behold, each movement giving new, unexpected glimpses into the fading bruises and scrapes marring the milky beauty of his youthful skin.
My freakness is on the loose
And running, all over you
Please take me to places, that nobody, nobody knows
Was there still, somewhere on a patch on that soul's essential fabric, a mark left by his claws or beak, some indefinite memory of their bond which had been so strong yet so easily snap-able, just like the thin thread of the little earl's life, cut short with one final sip, so irreparably gone? In those final moments, Sebastian had entertained, aside from the raw pleasure and satisfaction of it all, one absolutely mad thought which was bound to linger afterwards to no end – the thought that his young master had wanted, upon asking to have pain etched into him so profusely, had desired to have the memory of him, of his despicable, vile demon butler etched into him for eternity, that even in death he would still-….
Yes, this was the horrid truth, brought now in plain sight: Sebastian had devoured his contractor, as per the immovable law of his very nature, but still clung to the little earl and to the absurd idea that even in non-existence the little earl would cling to him as well. That they were…
No.
You got me hooked up on the feeling
You got me hanging from the ceiling
The boy's eye closed in mimed bliss and his pale lips parted enticingly as he dropped backwards with a dramatic air, barely hooked on his dainty fingers, scraped knuckles now white with the pressure.
Got me up so high I'm barely breathing
So don't let me, don't let me, don't let me, don't let me go
A bitter smile curled the Crow demon's perfect lips, as fake and illusory as they were. 'Indeed, my young lord, I will not let you go' he mused. 'I can't let you go.'
"And so now, on top of all the other misfortunes which have befallen this poor little soul, you deliver him into my grip anew," Sebastian concluded neutrally, but nevertheless still entertaining, now more than ever, the futile hope of making the stone lump feel bad.
"You silly demon, I have only delivered a feast for your eyes," the insufferable creature replied, bouncing a bit to emphasize its point by means of its considerable stony weight."Did you not hear what I said earlier? You don't have a contract! Pheh, speaking of work ethics you are unfortunately bound to…"
"You are enjoying yourself, aren't you?"
The gargoyle fussed and snorted again, fluttering its miniscule wings and digging its claws deeper into the demon's shoulder.
"I am curious, rather," it stated. "What will you choose this time? See how the ethical issues drop entirely on your head?"
"Indeed. Because you're dropping them."
To be continued
A/N – Yes, I am fully aware that this sucks even harder than the first chap, but if I haven't specified before, this was a private request and hell forbid that I disappoint people's expectations :)))))