The child is alone, as they all are when they sign. Long auburn ringlets adorned with a red satin bow drape over a corduroy dress. Her face is hidden behind a puzzle book, her hands still as she reads. Sitting in this garden, it's as if she is the doll being played Tea Party with, not the human host. I make my way to the stool opposite her, thread my fingers together, and wait for her to look up from her game. She speaks, eyes not leaving her paper.
"This is a first, is it not?" I see a smile peak out of the corners of the book, yet she still doesn't move it. Her voice is playful, as a child's should be, yet menacing all the same. She's taunting me. I stay calm, nod once. She laughs. "Well, It isn't every day that a human is summoned by a demon for a contract. And yet I'm still the one waiting for you to show up,tsk tsk."
"I was watching you this whole time, young miss. I'd figure I'd let you finish your puzzle."
The book is finally slapped on the table, and her emerald eyes make contact with mine. She hides the fear ever-so-well in her face, despite her legs trembling. She takes a deep breath through her nose before she speaks again. "It's only a puzzle if it takes time to figure out, is it not?" She flips the book open to show each page and the time it took to complete, mere seconds for each. "The real puzzle is why you called me here, Mr. Demon."
"You may call me Desmond, young miss Ryndall. I'll make this simple for you." I steal her smirk and she's left with pursed lips. "You are not one to seek revenge. You aren't empty in the mind nor the heart, you haven't suffered from any of your losses. This is rare to find in a noblewoman such as yourself, let alone a female child. Quite a delicious feast you'd make.." She tries to hide the redness in her cheeks by cradling her head in her hands, propping both elbows on the table. "Sadly, there is something missing. While your heart has never been broken, your spirit never splintered, nothing needed from a demon, that makes a one-sided contract. I'd get your soul immediately, and that would be all."
"Well that's no fun, is it?" Her eyes twinkle with a false innocence. She crosses her legs, carelessly bumping into the table, and sits up straight. "Well, what could I want from a demon? Death of a rival, torture of another demon? It's all so trivial, Desmond, dear. I can beat rivals on my own, there's nothing in my past I wish to redeem."
"Not even their death?"
She shakes her head, reaches for a hankerchief on the table, and spits in it. My eyes narrow as she reveals the imperfections on her skin, the burn scars running from her forehead to her neck. How could I have forgotten she had almost succumbed as well in that fire? She must've been saved by an angel. Or a demon. Huh..
"They were fated to die in that fire, were they not? Otherwise they would still be here. I am alive, that's all that matters. Now, f I were to sign with you, I wouldn't even have that, would I?" She closes her eyes, and stands up quickly. SNAP! The young miss starts to plummet and I run to her side immediately, catching her centimeters away from the ground. She's screaming, swearing at her foot which had apparently rolled completely underneath her ankle as she stood. Supressing tears, her eyes meet mine and a blush spreads across her cheek. "Don't touch me!" She slaps at me, how unladylike. I can't help but smirk.
"I would obey if we had a contract, young miss." I scrutinize her swollen ankle ,how fragile she is; To think that a girl with such iron emotions could succumb to physical harm so easily.. that's it exactly. "For such a frail, malnourished child, you have the strongest emotional tolerance.. Perhaps it's all a facade?" Her eyes narrow at me, and I elaborate further with a straight face. "Even the most brittle of glass can still be painted the colour of steel." She grips at my arm, but doesn't move. She's suspended in thought, trying to turn it around to favour her own self. Finally she speaks with an arrogant tone.
"Fine then. Show me that I'm truly capable of emotional weakness. Love, Fear, Hatred,Regret, the whole nine yards. If you succeed, my soul is yours to take."
"And if not?"
"We go about our days as if we never met. The contract will nullify after a certain time."
I contemplate her proposal. Such a soul as hers could be tainted if she was vulnerable, couldn't it?
And yet, this is quite an interesting challenge she holds me to.. If I were to start turning her soul bitter from emotions, I could simply stop with only one and wait out the rest of the time, thus our contract would nullify. "Will six months suffice, young miss?"She merely nods, then looks back at her ankle, wincing as she tries to move it. With a grin only suitable for a demon, I reach for it and push the bone back in place, receiving a bittersweet yelp from my new master. In the matter of seconds her ankle is healed and sealed with the mark of a pentacle, as is my right hand. She looks down with amazement, then her eyes meet mine. Again I see no fear, no emotional strain, only physical. Her eyes almost burn through my own crimson, making me, dare I say it, a bit uneasy. Removing my hand and standing up, I bow slightly to my new mistress. "And so it is done, My Young Miss. I will have all preparations seen to, so that we may return home safely. We can work out the kinks as we go along, shall we?"
And then I am Gone.
Author's comments: I've been attached to the show Kuroshitsuji(Black Butler) for quite some time, and just the other day as I was watching the second season, the thought came about- What if, instead of the human calling on the Demon for a contract, instead of calling for revenge, what if a girl with no thirst for vengeance was called upon by a Demon for a contract? Thus this rough little scene which I hope to expand on, or at best try and revise.
