My Roommate Is The Devil

Kapitel Zwei

Shiro was experiencing a crisis. A very terrible disaster. His roommate, who he had just recently acquired, was crying before him. Now, he could wing it and try and comfort the guy (when he didn't even understand why he was crying in the first place) or he could back away slowly and pretend that Mephisto wasn't crying and that everything was perfectly okay. Or he could continue to stand here awkwardly, as everyone usually does, and continue thinking about what he should be doing. Yeah, that's the real way to go. 

"I'm sorry you had to see me like this," Mephisto's voice was quiet, like a whisper, but Shiro could still hear his words. "Could you give me some time by myself?" he asked. Shiro nodded and closed the bathroom door on his way out. In his rushed state, he'd forgotten to put away the first-aid kit (but he did remember to take Mephisto's clothes for some reason). The demon stood up and gathered the items to return them to their rightful spot. He stared at himself in the mirror. He was angry with himself. He was frustrated. He hadn't felt anything all this time, so why now? It was the worst of times to cry. Demons shouldn't cry or need to cry. Demons shouldn't feel. 

Mephisto washed his face and blew his nose. He sat on the floor, back leaning against the door, and stared at the ceiling. All of what he had felt left him. He was empty now. There was no emotion left to feel. There were no more tears left to shed. He was a blob of forgotten feelings that weren't so forgotten. 

Shiro paced in the living-room as he waited for Mephisto to come out. He didn't know what to say. Should he apologize? Should he pretend nothing happened? Shiro was just a roommate. He didn't have the right to know anything about Mephisto. He shouldn't demand answers, even though he really wanted them. Did Shiro say something he shouldn't have? Was it actually really insulting to a demon to be called an angel? Shiro felt a wave of guilt wash over him. He didn't mean to offend his roommate. He was just asking questions. Shiro cursed at himself. Why did he even ask those questions?! He'd promised himself he wouldn't ask anything! He thought that Mephisto would eventually bring it up all on his own one day, but curiosity got the better of him since Mephisto came back injured. 

"I know he came home injured but why did I say something like that?" Shiro mumbled. He stopped pacing and felt his cheeks tint red. He had just said 'home'! This wasn't Mephisto's home! This wasn't a home for either of them! This was a living arrangement. Shiro sighed. He was already becoming attached to Mephisto and they hadn't even known each other for long. When did Shiro start thinking of this place as a 'home'? Why did he want that demon to feel so welcome? 

The door to the bathroom opened and Mephisto stepped out. His poker face held no clues that he'd cried. Shiro would've begun to think he'd imagined the whole thing if it wasn't for the redness of Mephisto's eyes. Mephisto placed a hand on the door-frame and gripped it so tightly that his knuckles turned white. Shiro wasn't sure if he was suppressing anger or was just too wobbly to stand. What was going on with his roommate?

"You need to leave," Mephisto said. His voice was devoid of any emotional signs. The guilt Shiro felt only got worse. He had to apologize. He wanted to say something, but the minute his mouth opened Mephisto cut him off, "Don't apologize, just leave." Shiro noticed Mephisto's black nails grow as he continued to grip the door-frame. Something was wrong with him, but what? 

Blue lines, similar to veins, peeked out from underneath the bandage on Mephisto's torso. They spread across his body as Mephisto's eyes, ears, and teeth changed right along with his nails. His teeth grew sharper. His ears grew longer. His eyes were tinted blue and Shiro thought for sure he saw a small blue flame in them. The same flame he'd seen in Mephisto's eyes consumed Mephisto's whole body. Shiro was frozen in place. He was shocked (as well as a bit terrified) and had no ideas of what to do next. Mephisto had called himself a demon and Shiro thought he understood, but now he realized that he didn't understand a single thing. 

Mephisto's aura changed. His poker face became a sadistic grin which revealed his sharper teeth. Whoever it was in that body, Shiro knew for sure it wasn't Mephisto. "I thought they were lying when they told me he had a new pet," Mephisto's voice said. Shiro cringed. It sounded like him, but he knew it wasn't him at all. "Don't look so surprised," the stranger continued, "I'm sure my son told you who he was when you first met, did you think he was joking?" the stranger laughed in such a manner that caused the hair on Shiro's neck to stand up.

"Satan?" Shiro asked.

"The one and only," he bowed. Bloody tears fell down the sides of Mephisto's cheeks but Satan didn't seem too concerned. "We better make this quick or you won't have a roommate any longer," he laughed. 

"How can you be so nonchalant about your own son's body?!" Shiro frowned.

Satan laughed again, "Son? Mephisto may be related to me by blood but he is by no means a son in my eyes. He is a tool, one of the best tools I have, and I won't kill him. I haven't killed him so far and I don't intend to, yet. But enough about him, I'm here about you. I'd like to make a deal with you," Satan pointed one of his long fingernails at Shiro.

"A deal?"

"Yes, a deal. If you promise to become my vessel when I need you, I'll promise to leave Mephisto alone. If you refuse, I'll add more scars to his collection. Something tells me you won't care if I threaten to kill you, but you will care if I threaten to harm him."

"What scars?" Shiro regretted the question moments after he asked it. Satan's grin only got worse. The flames temporarily revealed all the scars that Mephisto would've had, if he hadn't reversed time on his body. Needless to say, Shiro was shocked. Scars overlapped scars until Mephisto's skin was hardly recognizable, his face was no exception.  

"Beautiful, aren't they?" Satan stared at Mephisto's arms and hands. "I've always hated his little time-trick. It only made me want to give him more since he kept erasing them."

Shiro wasn't sure how he felt about demons, but he knew now that he simply hated Satan. "I accept your offer, if you heal Mephisto's wound before you leave his body."

"Fair is fair," Satan smiled. He tore off Mephisto's bandage and flames swarmed around the wound to patch it. It was because of this wound that Satan was able to possess him. Now that he'd gotten what he wished, he didn't need to possess Mephisto anymore. Satan stepped towards Shiro and touched the center of his forehead. With that touch, a small blue flame traveled down his body and to the sole of his foot (because Satan has a sense of humor) where it would leave a mark of possession. As long as Shiro wore socks, Mephisto would never know that he was marked the devil's vessel.  

Mephisto's eyes closed as his body returned to normal. He fell forward (into Shiro) but his roommate caught him and he never touched the ground. Shiro stared at the perfect skin. It was such a contrast to the skin he'd just seen. How many times had he had to endure his father's torture? Shiro shuddered at the thought. The only scars that remained on him now were two marks on-top of his shoulder blades. They appeared to be burn marks, but they were far too symmetrical to be any ordinary burn. Shiro could only make one assumption: Mephisto had been an angel. It wasn't that his words were insulting, Shiro realized, it was that his words had been true.

Shiro held Mephisto's limp body close and sobbed. His roommate wasn't a demon and shouldn't have been made into one. His roommate shouldn't have had to deal with the cruelty of Satan as a father. He hadn't known Mephisto for long, but it was in this moment that he decided: even if the universe hated Mephisto's guts, Shiro would make up for all that hatred with his love.

"Shiro? Why are you crying? Did he hurt you? Are you okay?" Mephisto asked. He began to back away from Shiro's hold but Shiro just held him tighter.

"I'm fine," he said, "I'm perfectly fine," he sobbed. 

The demon wasn't fully convinced but he didn't refute Shiro's statement. Mephisto wrapped his own arms around Shiro to hug him. Mephisto had just been possessed and controlled by Satan, but the first thing he did when he regained consciousness was worry about Shiro, this only made Shiro cry more.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes," Shiro sniffled, "I'm certain."