The Cosmos' Journey (Obey Me! x OC)

Chapter 18: The Voice from the Attic

Ivy put her foot on first of the stairs when she heard an unknown voice. "... Ivy. Finally, no one is going to stop you. Now's your chance to climb the stairs. Come... this way, Ivy."

Ivy began to climb the stairs.

When she reached the top, she saw a door. Her seeing eye then found a uncovered magenta eye staring at her. She blinked as the male smiled at her. "I knew you were the one person who would be able to find me."

Ivy focused her gaze on him. "What are you doing in there?"

"I'm certainly not here of my free will. That much should be obvious."

"Are you human?"

'He's-'
'I don't know if he'd react the wrong way to being called a demon. I have to be cautious.'
'Caution is good. Too much can lead to paranoia though.'
'I know Virgo.'

"That's right, I am. I'm a human, just like you. A demon imprisoned me here long ago, and I've been stuck here ever since."

Ivy only blinked. She could easily tell he wasn't human, but if she wanted answers, she would have to play the part of the foolish human. The demon looked spiteful now. "It was Lucifer. I'm guessing you've met him. Well, that demon is the one who locked me in here. I'm begging you, Ivy."

Ivy listened intently as he continued. "You've got to get me out of here. I'm asking for your help."

Ivy tilted her head. "Help you how?"

"That's what I'm about to tell you. Make sure to listen closely."

Ivy took a couple steps closer to the door. He focused his attention onto her. "Now, you can't open this door. Neither of us are capable of that. Because it's sealed with a very powerful sort of magic. In order to break the seal, you need the consent of Lucifer and his six brothers. But they're not exactly nice folks. It's not like all we have to do is ask politely and they'll lift the seal. You must already know that, right? But you're a special case. You can make them do it."

Ivy stared at him. "Okay, want me to try asking them?"

"Oh no, there's no need to do that! Because you have the power to bend demons to your will. What I'm trying to say is you should make pacts with these demons--all of them. You've already got Mammon and Leviathan under your control, right? Well, doing the same to the rest of them will be just as simple."

"Wait, how do you know about that?"

"That's not important. What matters is that I'm counting on you to come through for me, Ivy. You're the only one who can help me now."

The demon then reached his hand through an opening in the door to caress her right cheek. "You're my sole ray of hope in this bleak, bleak world. You've got to start by gaining their trust. And if you wanna do that, you can't tell them you came here and spoke with me. Whatever you do, don't mention that."

He then withdrew his hand to ponder. "Let's see, you should probably start with... Beelzebub. Yes, he'd be the best choice. You need to get close with him. I have faith in you, Ivy. I know you'll get me out of here. So then, we have a deal. I'm counting on you, Ivy."

Ivy then swiveled around and headed for the stairs. She needed to do something about her wrist.

-Later at Breakfast-

Ivy sat in the dining hall munching on some grapes. Lucifer entered and stalked over to her. "Good morning, Ivy. I have to say, I enjoyed last night immensely. I listened to the record over and over... I can't tell you how many times. And because of that, I'm running on far too little sleep today. But I'm in a good mood. I see you're up late today. I take it you didn't get much sleep either. Did something happen last night to keep you up?"

Ivy gave him a look. "You try living with insomnia and see how well that works out. Other than that, nope, nothing."

"Nothing. Well, if that's really the case, fine. However... Let me give you a piece of advice."

"I'm listening."

"You should focus on surviving this year here, finishing the exchange program and going back to the human world. That's all you need to concern yourself with. Would you like me to make it a bit clearer for you? 'Curiosity killed the cat'. Surely you've heard this expression? Well, curiosity can very literally get you killed here as well. Hmm, I guess that's more of a word of warning than a piece of advice. ... Eh, but why split hairs? Forget all about what happened last night. I allowed you to satisfy your own curiosity as a favor to you since you brought me that record. But rest assured, it won't happen again."

Ivy kept her face neutral even though her mind was shocked. He then left. Ivy felt all her hairs stand on end. How much? How much did he know? She took out her contact and clutched at her head. Her violet eye was now locked on every corner in the room as she felt that familiar emotion take over her soul once again.

Paranoia.