Strings Of Fate

2 - 3

"Ikki, do you like working here?" Terry decided to start on, not knowing what to say. The air on his arms was standing and the back of his neck was tinkling warningly. Madame was not the only demon in the world. They were one of the more unusual ones that moved however. 

"A job is a job; you can't be too picky, Mr. Business owner," Ikki said with a teasing smile, but it didn't meet his eyes. It was a normal statement. 

How did you ask someone if they'd sold their soul to a demon? It matched up with Ikki being in trouble for being gone overnight. Madame was never happy if someone was out for long, even with permission. The winter quarters had lots of rules. Terry wriggled his fingers and took a deep breath. 

"Are you ok?"

"Working that out," Terry said, eyeing the facade of the building. He didn't remember much, but stationary demons were Hell Houses. The hotel was the demon? Or some estimation of that. More common than what Madame was but rare. How had his friend got caught in one? Was it Terry's fault? Magic liked magic. He avoided places where magic got a hold over reality's rules, like nature reserves and the seashore. 

The facade rippled with cracks most would miss. One of the windows had a large crack. There were broken beer bottles and stumped-out cigarettes in the corner. It didn't gleam sparkling clean but had dirt staining the front where the stonework hadn't been washed properly. 

"How often do you leave?

"I don't need to leave. All my needs are met here." Ikki's eyes remained neutral, but his smile got tighter. Jaz repeated the exact words at the circus. 

"Well, that's a lie based on last night," Terry said, standing. The first rule when dealing with demons was that they got possessive quickly. He grabbed Ikki's wrist and tugged them back a few steps. Ikki didn't fight him, confused. 

"Itsuki," a man greeted, strolling out of the doors to join them with a swift stride in his step. He wore a posh suit with a tie and white gloves. His smile was a little too big. Terry alarmed them. "You brought your friend home? He's pretty."

"Good with a rolling pin, yes, he is," Ikki agreed a little too fast to make the not normal sentence work. 

Terry rechecked Ikki. His shoulders were tense, and his eyes were focused on this man in the same way many of the prey types focused on the predators. Ikki brought him here, but that didn't mean he wanted to. Never interfere with a food source; absolutely never interfere with someone being recruited. Terry tangled their fingers together and stepped in between Ikki and the man. 

"I'm a good baker," Terry said, focusing his voice to be upbeat and cheerful. Ikki grabbed his arm to stop him from moving further forward. Ikki was scared. He jumped from the high rope to the lights to escape Marquez. That didn't mean it was bad. It didn't mean it was good either. "Nice to meet you, Mr?"

"Call me the Manager." If Ikki had the look of prey, the Manager had the look of a Madame or the Heads. Mika might not be a predator technically, but he got the same focus at times. The Manager's eyes glimmered with the sun's reflection on the windows, and he tilted his head at an unusual angle for a normal conversation. "May I have your name?"

Ikki coughed. Terry didn't look back, and the Manager didn't flinch either. The first to look away lost. Terry was a cat; he could hold a gaze. 

"My name is my own as I chose it, as you did yours," Terrence hadn't missed the man's lack of reflection in the glamoured windows. They forgot things like that. Madame often forgot their shadow in the arena. "It is mine."

There was no visible change in the man's demeanour, but the air got colder. "It's a funny way for someone to answer such a question," the Manager said. 

"Mr Manager is hardly a standard way to answer it either. Neither is how you are holding your head. We are who we are," Terrence gambled. Ikki's fingers started to hurt, but Terrence didn't try to push him away. 

The Manager opened his mouth but paused. He tilted his head back up to a normal posture and nodded sharply. "You are correct, of course. Who do you belong to?"

"Madame Xandia of the Hybrid Kingdom Circus of curiosities and fangs," Terrence winced as a shiver of magic slid down his back. They'd know that he'd intoned their name. It had been a long time since he'd spoken the full title. 

"You're not changed?" The Manager knew who they were then. 

"That is between Madame and myself."

"Taz?" Ikki interrupted, "What is happening?"

"Remember how I had a family before Dad? My soul belongs to another entity. As such, I cannot enter the Hotel," Terrence said gently. Calling the Manager a demon to his face would be rude. Madame always hated when people used that word.

"How? You never get out of the house? We had to drag you out every time."

"Since I was eight? I escaped and found Dad, but my soul belongs to Madame regardless."

"You left?" the Manager's expression darkened and split as hints of his demonic nature slipped through. "How dare you! To serve is an honour that most mortals will never conceive of."

"You are young," Terrence observed. No older demon would risk letting a part of themself slip. It was crass to show anger and the weak points of itself. The building's and the demon's ages would not be the same. "You are outside yourself. Pull yourself together before your food notices."

The face reformed into a human one, but the glower remained. "My age does not matter when discussing how you have broken your commitments."

"My commitments and obligations are between myself and my master. I will admit they were not pleased, but they own my soul regardless of whether they are pleased with me or not," Terrence relaxed his stance. He won when the Manager's face showed through his human guise. 

The Manager considered him. "Very true; it is good that you do not deny that. Itsuki, you have a very interesting friend."

"Only the best," Ikki said, voice soft. 

"I'm unsure if a soul under punishment counts as the best. Interesting, yes, but not the best," the Manager snorted. 

"Madame is not pleased with me. They left me to my own devices despite knowing what my nature is. If they wish to find me, they know how to. It is enough while I wait for their forgiveness," Terrence curled an arm around Ikki's waist. 

"I do not think this needs to stop you from entering the Hotel," the Manager said. 

"I cannot and will not be yours."

"I didn't ask for you to be. I would have taken a soul open to capture, but yours is not. As you said, your Master has left you in the wilds. There is no reason you cannot work for the Hotel as a typical day worker would. We don't own every worker's soul," the Manager said. "Of course, there would still be rules. An in-between, I suppose."

"I don't know how wise that would be."

"Then why did you come?" the Manager asked, stepping into Terrence's space. They were close enough that Terry saw that his brown eyes were ringed red. "Itsuki would not have invited you home if there was not something mine could offer  you."

"A change of pace. A fresh start from the drudge I have got myself trapped in."

"His Dad died," Ikki said.

"And your Master abandoned you."

Terrence didn't correct the demon. Madame hadn't abandoned him. They'd exiled him. 

"Come inside. See our kitchen and where you would work. Make a decision," the Manager smiled, a little too wide again. "Maybe your master will come running back if you're in danger of being poached from them." 

And the fly stepped into the parlour.