X X X I I I - [ C H R I S T I A N A ]

Daemon's eyes land on mine, I see him visibly gulping and hide his lower half behind the table, making me smirk at the power I actually seem to have over him.

.

"Hello, ." I say sweetly, and take a seat on one end of the table so that I am technically sitting directly across of him.

A bit dumbfoundedly, Daemon takes a seat himself, eyes still glued on me. He seems to be at lost for words, as he forgot to even welcome me or greet me back.

Between us on the table lies a bowl of fruits and eating utensils. To be honest, I don't actually know whether a full demon actually eats real food. I've got a feeling that we'd usually feed on souls and such, though, but I suppose it'd be rather difficult to make them look presentable and appetizing.

"So Daemon, what are we having this evening?" I ask him, acting like I don't know shit; after all, isn't that what demons love? One's innocence?

Daemon shakes his head, snapping out of whatever trance he was in. He then clears his throat and adjusts the collar of his shirt. "Oh, well..." He start, eyes never leaving mine. "Here, My Dear, we have all kinds of food - and only the finest, too. Go on, tell me what you'd like and you will have it."

"Oh, I don't want to be bothersome. I'll have whatever you have in mind."

"Are you sure? We can make you—"

"I'm sure." I cut him off, giving him a tight-lipped smile that somehow manages to convince him.

"Very well, then." He snaps his fingers and Mara, who was standing by the door behind him, opens it to reveal a line of (demon) butlers and maids with silver plates in hand.

One makes her way towards me, and serves me something in a bowl that looks a lot like mushroom soup. It still honestly baffles me, to be honest, the way demons can act so humanely.

"Mushroom soup for appetizer, huh?"

Daemon frowns. "Why, you don't like it? We can get you—"

"It's , Daemon. Stop taking everything so seriously, will you?" I chuckle, trying my best not to go too far otherwise he'll know exactly what I'm doing. He's not that dumb—both unfortunately and not.

Daemon instantly looks relief at my response. "I don't. Now eat up."

"Why the rush?" I ask, a little smirk on my face. "Do you have something in mind?"

"As a matter of fact, My Sweet, I do." A smirk that matches mine appears on his own face.

"Oh, I'm looking forward to it, Hot Stuff."

I swivel my head at the door behind me, resisting the urge to roll my eyes all the way to the back of my head. I'd recognize that voice anywhere; is not that I want to remember how she sounds like, it's just so that I know when to avoid things because once I hear her voice, I will not hesitate to walk the other way immediately.

"What are you doing, Lilith?" Daemon asks bluntly, obviously not pleased about her being here.

Lilith starts walking towards Daemon, but slows done when she reaches me. "Oh, I just decided to drop by. A little birdie told me that... back." She tosses her hair back, her sharp green eyes scanning me up and down. "I've got to hand it to you, human. You actually made it through the Inner Circle."

"Get—" Daemon starts, but I cut him off.

"Well, Lilith," I stand up myself and look her dead in the eyes. "Did your also tell you that I am no longer human?"

Lilith laughs aloud. "So what are you now? A little piece of sniveling shit?"

I smile sweetly at her before flicking her wrist and making an unbeknownst force tug roughly at her hair. Lilith is surprised, to say the least, and a gasp escapes her lips as I catch her offguard.

"No, you stupid slut." I sneer, moving my face closer to hers. "I'm a , and Satan's right hand, nonetheless."

Lilith's jaws drop open, most probably not believing what I just said. Slowly, with a lock of her hair still pulled back, she turns to Daemon. "She can't be serious, Hot Stuff."

"Oh, but she is, Lilith." Daemon answers, picking up a glass of God-knows-what. Correction: -knows-what.

"Lies!" Lilith spits, attempting to free her hair from the force. "She is a ! She deserves no title!"

"Oh don't be so jealous." I say, rolling my eyes. "You're lucky you even scored some with him."

From the corner of my eyes, Daemon looks down slight in embarrassment, probably not expecting himself to be dragged into the argument.

"So, , the fact is this: I was human, but now I am none other than Satan's right hand so you might as well suck it up and deal with it because I won't be going anywhere anytime soon. Got it?"

I snap my fingers, and Lilith's hair is let go by the force. She stands up straighter and excessively fixes her hair before she glares at me with her evil little eyes.

"Just you wait, human." She hisses, and turns to sashay out the door as if nothing even happened.

The moment she leaves the room, Daemon rests his one arm on the table and pinches the bridge of his nose like he usually does when he has a headache. I feel a heavy silence surround us and for a good minute or so, neither of us bothers to say a single word to each other. But like I've learnt about myself, I'm not exactly too fond of the quiet so I decide to break it.

"Daemon," I say, and he slowly looks up at me.

"Yes, My Dear?" He asks, seeming a bit more tired than he was before.

"Let's not let all this food go to waste and continue our dinner, yes? We shouldn't let... ruin a good evening." I smile, though stopped for a second to spit out her name.

Daemon sighs and sits up straighter in his seat. "You're right. It your celebratory dinner, anyway." He gives me a small smile in return, and as much as I want to supress it, I feel butterflies fluttering in my stomach.

.

"Alright, then. Let's quickly eat up."

"Eager to finish, are you?" He asks, his sincere smile turning to yet another smirk. "Do you even know what's in store for after dinner?"

"I might," I shrug a shoulder, acting plain enough to keep him guessing. Truth is, he'd probably come onto me and I would tease him as always—until we'd inevitably be interrupted by none other than Bub himself for the umpteenth time.

Oh. Speaking of Bub.

"Hey, where's Bub, anyway? I thought I heard him earlier when I came in." I ask, taking the soup spoon on the table.

"Oh, he's... Around." Daemon replies, looking from left to right anxiously. I try reading his mind, but it seems like he's found a way to block me from inside his head. So much for trying to know what's in his mind.

"He's not going to join us?"

"Well..." He starts, shifting awkwardly in his seat. "We could call for him. It your day after all."

?

"It's fine, I was just asking." I scoop a spoonful of soup and ate it. It tastes warm in my throat and is rather delicious, but there's a hunger in my stomach that can't seem to be satisfied by human food, not really. "Besides, you only want to spend time with me, don't you, ?"

Daemon visibly gulps, knowing that he's been caught red-handed. I'd honestly never expect Satan himself to learn to have feelings for someone, and even though I would've been giddy about this, I can't help but feel nothing but satisfaction due to the fact that I now have the upper hand—if he really has feelings for me like I think he has, then maybe somehow, I can manipulate him.

See, having found out the truth about myself in the Inner Circle has changed me; I hadn't previously known that my first deadly sin is Greed, but now that I'm aware of it, I might just embrace it. I know I was supposed to let go of it, but I guess that it's on top of the list for a reason.

Daemon, who's been quiet this whole time, clears his throat and regains his composure. "There isn't anything wrong with getting to know my right hand better, now is there?"

I grin at the bowl before me, knowing that Daemon has his eyes on me. "Oh, not at all, My Lord. Not at all."