D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

Kat was able to open the door with her tail and then make her way to the bedroom they used the other day… only for Kat to realise that Lily is very much not immune to dust in the same way she was. Hmm… it seems I’ve just made more work for myself. Let me just… Kat brushed off Lily’s hair quickly before grabbing one of the pillows and laying her girlfriend down on the floor.

Once there, Kat confirmed Lily’s pulse was stable and then pondered how worthwhile it was to give Lily a quick bath to get all the dust off. In the end, Kat decided it just wasn’t worthwhile. She did go looking for a duster though. A few cupboards later and Kat had returned with a puffy feather duster made of actual feathers and got to work dusting Lily down.

Once Lily was clean, Kat moved her to the bed and checked her over once more. She seemed fine. At least, from what little medicine Kat did know Lily seemed fine and Lily’s end of their mental link, while giving off a feeling of sluggishness, didn’t contain a hint of danger or distress. Kat didn’t know if it actually would contain anything if there was a problem, but it served as another bit of reassurance Kat was happy to take.

Once Lily was tucked in bed, Kat went back through the cupboards she’d just checked for the feather duster to both return said cleaning tool and also pick up some paper she’d noticed. Acquiring a large quill that clearly implied certain things about whoever felt they needed to own it to compensate for something Kat wrote a short note to Lily explaining what had happened.

Now, part of Kat thought it was silly to write Lily a note. They were mentally connected and she was more than capable of using that to simply explain everything to Lily. The much larger part of Kat, the one that was still somewhat concerned for Lily after her earlier breakdown, decided a nice hand written note explaining things was, if not romantic, certainly more intimate.

With that done Kat put away the quill and moved to the foyer… before pausing and realising she didn’t really know what to do. *So, option one, go practice. Not bad per say but considering I destroyed the lock on the door here and Lily is unconscious I don’t know that I’m willing to just leave her here without supervision. Maybe if there was even a hint of servants, I’d feel safer but there’s nobody STILL.*

*The counterpoint to that is that I’ve got nothing else to do. Unless… hmm… maybe I could flex my aura a bit? No that’s stupid. Lily’s unconscious at the moment and I have no idea what could happen to her if I hit her with my aura at full, or even half power now I’m Rank 3. So… clearly non destructive testing needs to be a bit more clearly defined. Hmm…*

*I guess I could just go through some demonic energy control exercises? I mean… I don’t know any proper ones but letting it run around my body should be fine. Though…* Kat summoned up a small ember and ran it around her body. The energy reacted to her thoughts very well, smoothly transitioning between speeds and even when she directed it away from herself the flame remained staunchly under her control.

.....

*It seems that at Rank 3 my ‘control bubble’ is large enough to count the entire room. Once again… it somewhat defeats the point of testing my control. I could go for trying to move multiple little flames at once but I shudder to imagine what would happen if I lost control of a swarm of them. The whole house could be frozen in just a few moments if my concentration lapsed so that’s a no-go.*

Kat started to pace back and forth as she went over all her options but discarded each one in turn. There were varying reasons… but most of them still boiled down to ‘I don’t want to leave Lily alone in this house’ and ‘Now I’m Rank 3 I worry practicing this would effect Lily even on the other side of the house’. Kat was still puzzling over what to do when, to her great shock, a knock sounded from the door. Kat paused mid-step, freezing in an odd pose as her mind tried to work out what was going on.

It took her longer than she was happy with to realise that someone had actually arrived at the door. Quickly shaking off her confusion, Kat walked calmly to the door and opened it to reveal a very tall mountain elf man. He seemed to ooze power just from posture alone and his dress emphasised that. Kat’s own power likely meant she didn’t lose out… but it was just the way he held himself. He wasn’t new to his power like Kat, he was STRONG and he knew it.

The elf in question had long flowing black hair all the way down to his knees, and his face was sharp. Instead of the rough wrinkled skin that most mountain elves had, this man’s face was almost comically sharp, completely flat with a chin so pointed you’d mistake it for a spear. His eyes were white with a pure steel grey iris that complimented his face well. Overall, it he seemed to embody power and grace… so the noticeable cut on his cheek felt somewhat out of place. It wasn’t large, but it was clear a few centimetres of it had been cut off at some point.

The rest of his body was similar. Instead of robes like most martial artists, he wore a tight fitting shirt and pants combo that must have been some kind of fantasy latex. It showed every muscle off without hiding anything. Yes, anything. Kat made the mistake of taking in his entire form and the man wasn’t ashamed of his body at all. The man was built well, a lifetime of training and a bit of martial magic to tune him up a step further then thought possible.

Though he had one more major imperfection. His right hand, between his middle and ring finger was an ugly scar that ran down the back of his hand… and presumably his front to. It was an ugly thing, and made Kat think he’d failed at catching a sword with his hand at some point in his childhood, though that was silly? Right? “Greetings demon, I am the patriarch of this sect, Bodeir and I have come to apologise for my son’s foolishness. I see that you are the Bodyguard, is the Escort available?”

Kat winced at that, a bit of pride welling up at the fact she was instantly recognised as the combatant, “I’m afraid she… sort of went and seduced the guide we had. She has not been back since,”

The man clicked his tongue, “I see. I am not sure if I should be annoyed at how unrestrained she appears to be with my subordinates, or be glad that she appears to know her job. Though, in that case, I have to ask who the other person in this house is?”

Kat swallowed, not entirely sure HOW Bodeir knew that Lily was in the house at all. *Best just to admit to it right…?* “That’s Lily, my girlfriend. She is bound to me magically and can transform into a small cat like creature called a Memphis. She is currently sleeping of some magical exhaustion from some practice earlier. She will be my unseen eyes when it comes to guarding your son,”

Bodeir nodded, “Yes… a good team composition. I can see many uses for that. I suppose the fact that she is bound to you means I did not need to include her in the contract?” Kat nodded. “Understood. In that case, I can only be pleased with getting three individuals for the price of two. Now… if only my son was willing to do his part…”

Well, if that wasn’t a good opening Kat didn’t know when she’d ever get a better one. “Yeah… so… about that… where is everyone? We were expecting to meet your son, especially considering I’m set to guard him. Then there’s the question of servants. While I do not feel the need for them, this house was clearly designed with them in mind so… I was wondering where they are?”

Bodeir let out a long sigh. “Indeed.”