Kind of slumped into a once a week update cycle, haven't I? Sorry about that guys. Since this isn't arc material I'm not super hyped to get it out. No rush, no rush. Enjoy!
Damien yawned.
"Are you listening, Onii-chan?" Damien made a face and turned to his sister, who was walking next to him.
"What?" He asked. "Were you talking?" This caused her to pout, and he laughed awkwardly. "Sorry. I zoned out. That job made me exhausted."
"Was it that hard for you?" Damien knew it hadn't been. They were on their way home from a job Damien had taken, because it asked for him. Steph had decided to tag along for one reason or another, which at first Damien figured the client would be against until he was told they were siblings, which made him happy. Two overpowered workers instead of one, right? And didn't need to pay one, according to Steph.
"Why did you come anyway?" He asked. "You could have stayed home." Steph smiled up at him.
"I just wanted to spend time with my brother. Is that so bad?" Damien smirked.
"Oh, is that so?" He wrapped Steph into a headlock and gave her a wicked noogie, which caused her to squirm in his grasp. "You'd better tell me the real reason!"
"Let...Let go, damn it!" Steph managed to free herself from his grasp, and cast him a glare. "Maybe it was a mistake going with you."
"Oh stop." He said. "I just doubted you because you didn't want to get payed."
"Yeah yeah, whatever." She said. "Is it really that hard to believe?"
"Last week you called me boring." Steph rolled her eyes at this.
"No, I said we were at a water park and you were sitting around on your ass doing nothing."
"Because Sabertooth was occupied."
"You still just sat there and talked to yourself." Damien made a face at this. He hadn't been talking to himself, it was his scumbag Demon Lord who had decided remaining unseen would be best. How many times now was that Xisplate had made it seem Damien was talking to himself? Far too many no matter what.
"I was relaxing."
"Hm. And then you decided to go on that ride with your girlfriend..."
"My what?"Damien demanded, cutting his sister off with a glare. Steph smirked.
"You heard me, Onii-chan. I'm not dumb, you know. I see the sparks flying."
"You must be blind." Damien replied. "Because there is no spark. At all. Bella's irritating as hell."
"Hm. I bet she was, cuddled up in your embrace like it would protect her from the harsh reality of..."
"Have you been reading romance novels or something?" Damien asked, confused as hell at his sisters ramblings. "Because you're making less sense the more you talk." Steph smirked.
"No, I'm just making an observation on what happened on that couples slide." Damien growled at this. Last week during their trip to Ryuzetsu Land, Bella had seduced him with her magic and had him ride the Love Love Slider with her. She also used him to throw some of the others on the ride as well, which didn't help matters. Now Steph had more than enough ammo to tease him and everyone else subjected to it. Save Drake and Michael, those two found it hilarious.
"I've told you a million times Steph, she used her magic on me." He told her. "I didn't do that on purpose."
"Oh I'm sure. I'm sure. You kissed her yet or what?"
"Come here you little..." Steph dodged Damien's hands and he chased her through town towards the guild hall, Steph laughing her ass off the entire way. Damien had to dodge more than a few confused onlookers, but kept on her tail pretty much the entire way to the guild. She kicked open the front door and ran in, arms flailing behind her.
"Help me! She shouted. "Damien's gone insane!"
"Come here!" Damien shouted, tackling her to the ground. Sitting on top of her, Damien reached forward and started to pull at his sisters cheeks, causing her to flail around. "Apologize." He said it a low tone.
"I'm sawy!"
"What was that?"
"I'm sawy!"
"Sorry, a little louder, okay?" Steph looked incredibly unimpressed with him, and soon Damien smelled ozone. He rolled of his sister just in time to avoid getting electrocuted, and when she sat up she glared at him as she rubbed her face.
"That hurt." She said, pouting. Damien glared right back, not giving any ground.
"How is it it's been eleven years since we spent any length of time together yet you can still push my buttons?"
"It's a skill." Both of them got up off of the floor and, giving each other another look. Once they both made sure neither was going to start something else, they made their way towards the table where their friends were seated, which gave them a front eat to the ordeal.
"Are you guys done?" Drake asked, a smirk on his face. Damien shrugged.
"Depends on if she's gonna push more of my buttons." He replied, sitting down. Steph laughed.
"He's just mad I caught him having a girlfriend."
"Do I need to come over there?" Damien asked, glaring at her from across the table. She simply stuck her tongue out.
"Ignoring what we just witnessed, how did the job go?" Ultear asked. "Was it hard?"
"Nah." Damien replied. "Especially for the both of us. Few monsters. That was all. Anything interesting happen over here?"
"None of us are in the middle of a situation, so no." Simon replied. "Been pretty mundane." Damien found it odd that spending their days working or together was considered mundane. Were they attacked that much to the point that normality seemed odd? Probably, given their track record.
"Whatever. I just want to get a drink and..." Damien made a face. "Hey, where's Nashi? She on a job too?"
"That's what we thought." Simon agreed.
"She isn't." It was Elise who spoke up this time. It was good she got out of her room more since Keita had helped. That and Ryuzetsu Land helped her a lot from what Damien could see. "I saw her leaving the dorms this morning, but Mira said she never showed here. Plus she was dressed weirdly."
"Weirdly?" Damien asked. Elise shrugged.
"Not like she usually is, I guess." She clarified. "I dunno. But she's fine. I think we can all agree on that." Damien knew that much. Nashi could handle herself. At this, though, Drake made a face.
"What's up, Drake?" Damien asked. Drake looked up at this.
"Oh, uh, nothing." He replied. Ultear smirked.
"You worried about Nashi? You sweetheart." Drake rolled his eyes.
"Get real." He snarled. "I was just thinking about how every time we leave Nashi to herself she ends up, you know, nearly getting herself killed." Now that Damien thought about it, Nashi had a knack for finding the most trouble on her own. Fighting her father during the S-Class trials, fighting Apocalypse and blowing up Silverridge, fighting Blake and blowing up several city blocks...She really had a habit of it.
"He has a point." Elise spoke up. "Trouble follows that girl like a moth to her flame."
"Almost like Drake and his fan club." Steph said with a smirk, which caused Drake to drop his head down onto the table loudly.
"I'm never gonna live it down..." He hissed.
"Nope." Ultear agreed. As his friends continued their conversation, Damien got a shiver down his spine. At first he ignored it, but after a second he felt the hair on his arm starting to stand up.
And that only meant one thing.
Damien braced himself and, soon enough, there was a collision with his back and arms and legs wrapped around him. A head now rested on his shoulder next to his head, and he sighed.
"You again?" He asked, his friends now silent. Bella laughed in his ear.
"Guilty as charged." She said. "You braced pretty hard for that one, Damien."
"Saw it coming, that's why." He replied. After she clearly got her fill of fucking with him, Bella got back on her feet.
"Nice to see you too." She said, smacking him on the back of the head. He turned and glared at her, but she only turned and ignored him to look at the others.
"What're you doing here, Bella?" Drake asked. Drake was really the only one who wasn't giving Bella a slightly pissed look, which was understandable. It had only been a week and Bella managed to escape before anyone got a hold of her for what she did to them on the couples slide.
"Well, besides for making little Damien angry, I actually came to talk to Simon." Simon made a confused face at this.
"Me?" He asked. 'What do you want with me?" Bella crossed her arms.
"So you guys remember my mom has a fashion line, right?" How the hell could Damien forget? He and Simon had walked into one of the stores itself not to long ago. Looking back on it now, Damien recalled his mind becoming muddled around Bella. It made a lot more sense to him now.
"Yeah, I remember." Simon replied. "What about it?"
"Well lately my mom's been making some deals with investors around Fiore, and a few days from today she's having a party to formalize the deal. She told me that if I could get a hold of every team leader from the Games so they could go and wear some of her best formal wear, she might even get a better deal out of it."
"So you want me to be your mothers showpiece?" Simon asked for clarification. Bella nodded.
"All you'd have to do is wear a suit and look handsome, which is pretty easy all things considered." Simon looked down at the table at this.
"All the leaders? Has everyone else agreed?"
"Well yeah, but you're the most important. You're the only male leader from the GMG teams. Reyna or Terra could flake on me but I'd need your help the most." Simon seemed to consider this deeply, before he shrugged.
"Not sure I should be doing you any favors after the Ryuzetsu Land incident." This made Bella pout and Ultear to blush.
"Are you really that mad about it? I was just having fun."
"That's not really an acceptable excuse." Simon sighed and looked down again. "Can I think about it?" Bella frowned.
"I suppose. But a yes would be appreciated greatly."
"Alright, when's the party?"
"Three days from now, it starts around nine."
"Alright. I'll see what I can do, but I won't make promises. I'm pretty busy." Bella sighed.
"I suppose that's all I'm getting." She said. "If you decide you'll come, just come by the guild hall. They'll direct you to the party. I guess I'll see you guys later." Bella turned to leave, and Steph gave Damien a look.
"What?" He asked. Steph smirked.
"Aren't you going to see your girlfriend off?" Damien growled at this.
"How many times do I have to tell you, Steph?" He demanded. "We aren't..."
"Aw that's just mean, honey." Damien froze as Bella clung to him from behind. "I thought you loved me."
"Get. The. Fuck. Off. Me." Damien hissed, body starting to glow black. Bella took that as her cue and scampered off, leaving them be. The group was silent at this, and Damien fumed quietly.
"So," Drake started. "You guys an item, or...?"
"Fuck off, poster boy."
Damien walked through the streets of Magnolia, not really with any specific destination in mind. He'd just eaten a three course meal at the guild hall, and decided he needed some air before he imploded.
"Ugh, I ate way to much."
"Watch your weight, Damien." Damien turned to his side to find Xisplate standing there. "You'll get fat."
"Oh yeah?" Damien asked. "I'd love to use your takeover when I'm bloated and disgusting."
"Don't you dare tarnish my form like that." Damien smirked at the demon at this. It was odd, having casual banter with a being Damien had hated longer than he hadn't. "What's the plan for tonight?"
"Nothing really." He answered, walking side by side with the demon down the empty streets. "Probably just sitting around. I'm not taking any immediate jobs, so..."
"Your friend Bella's party is tonight, right?" Damien paused at this. Come to think of it, Xisplate had a point. It had been three days since Bella had asked Simon for help at her mothers party. Damien hadn't seem him all day, so maybe he really had gone.
"So what?" Damien asked. "She didn't want my help."
"I guess you're right." Xisplate paused, and then smirked. "You're not mad Simon was asked on a date with your girl?"
"Oh for f...You too?" This caused the demon to laugh. "Fucking Bella..."
"I'm sure you'd like to be, yes."
"Wha..." Damien felt heat rising to his face at this. "Too far, man."
"Why're you blushing, then?"
"..." Damien did his best to come up with some sort of witty retort, but his tongue failed him. He growled and crossed his arms, grumbling angrily about her.
"Don't be so embarrassed, it's in her very nature." Damien made a face and looked over at Xisplate to find him looking up at the sky. "Meridia's powers allow Bella to get any man she wants with the snap of her fingers. She's, for the most part anyway, actively choosing to go after you without them. Probably just for fun."
"That makes way to much sense..." Damien grumbled.
"Damien?" Damien paused and turned to find Simon and Ultear walking towards him, Xisplate now falling silent as well.
"Oh, hey guys." He said. He was about to continue, but he noted the travelling look the pair had. "What's up? Yo guys headed somewhere?"
"Yeah." Simon said, scratching his head. "Urgent job request, asked for the both of us. Had to head out immediately."
"Oh, well have fun." As the two walked past him, Damien had a thought. "Hey, Simon!" Simon turned and looked at Damien. "Bella wanted your help tonight, remember? Shouldn't you be doing that?"
"This is urgent, man." Simon replied. "I'd help, but..." Damien made a face. "Tell her I'm sorry, could you? I feel kind of bad."
"...Alright"
"Thanks." With this, the pair continued on their merry way, leaving Damien and Xisplate alone again. After a second or two, Xisplate coughed. Damien looked over to find the demon wearing an expectant look. After a moment of contemplation, Damien's eyes widened.
"No." He said. "Not a fucking chance."
"What ever do you mean?"
"I am not going in Simon's place. No way in hell."
"I didn't suggest that."
"You were implying it."
"How exactly?"
"Because you gave me that look that said, 'she's your friend and she needs help and Simon bailed so who else could help?'"
"I did no such thing. I merely looked at you." Damien frowned and gave the situation some thought. Bella, and her mother Jenny, needed Simon because he was the only male leader from the Games. Now that he couldn't go, they'd arguably lost their most important factor for the night. Not to mention Bella would not let him here the end of it...
"...You're going aren't you?" Xisplate asked.
"...Shut up. We've got places to be."
Bella ran around in a whirlwind, making sure everything was set up for the party. Because she was clearly the most trustworthy person her dear mother could find, she'd been placed in charge of getting the other team leaders and other important parts of the party ready.
"This is way to much stress..." She hissed. "A whole fucking team of people would've been better."
"Oh calm yourself Bella, it'll be fine." Bella cast an angry glare at Meridia, who had her feet up in the corner of the room.
"You're no help." She seethed. "Sitting around."
"Nobody else even knows I'm here." Meridia replied innocently. "What could I possibly due to assist you?"
"Shut up and let me work. And ugh, Simon hasn't shown up yet! This is backfiring on me so badly right now!" Just as Bella began to panic, the lacrima phone in her pocket rang. Pulling it out, she saw it was her mother calling. Clearing her throat, Bella answered.
"Yes mommy dearest?" She asked in a innocent tone laced with venom.
"How's everything going back there?"
"...Flawless." She lied. Her mother laughed.
"Right, which is why I can hear you cursing. Just make sure the girls are ready, okay?"
"...Okay." With this, Bella's mother hung up. Tossing the device aside, Bella took a few deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself. "It's fine, it's fine, it's fine..."
Knock knock.
Bella turned as the door to the room received a few hard pounds. Bella breathed a sigh of relief.
"Finally, it looks like Simon is finally here!" She ran towards the door and smiled happily as she flung it open and jumped forward to hug him out of appreciation.
"Not unexpected, honestly." Bella froze. Slowly, she looked up to find quite an unexpected face.
"Damien?!"
"Seriously?! Of all nights?!" Damien nodded.
"Yeah. He said he was sorry."
"Ugh! We needed him the most! This whole thing is gonna fall apart!"
"Wasn't your mom just finalizing the deal?" Damien demanded. "Whether or not Simon shows isn't that important, right?"
"Didn't I tell you?" Bella asked. "Simon was the only male leader, meaning my mom wanted him most of all for her suits. And now he's not here."
"Well that sucks." Damien agreed. After a few seconds of silence, Meridia, who'd been quiet for the most part, laughed.
"Don't worry Bella dearest. We have a backup plan."
"Do we?" Bella asked, looking at her. "What's that?" Meridia smirked over at Damien, and a second later Damien felt a hand connect with his back and send him flying forward. He turned to find Xisplate smirking at him.
"Damien can do it, he's a guy!" Meridia shouted as if she'd found the fountain of youth. Damien growled.
"I didn't say I'd..." He turned back to Bella, and froze.
She was giving him quite honestly the most adorable, hopeful look he'd ever seen.
"Could you?" She asked. It'd mean a lot to me, and my mom." Damien growled.
"What would I be doing?"
"Same thing as Simon, standing around and maybe talking occasionally." Damien took a moment to consider it, before he growled.
"Get me a suit, damn it. I'll do it."
This filler seems oddly ship orientated...Huh. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed, leave a review! Let's try and get five!