The Queen's Demon Pet (A Black Butler Fanfic)

Epilogue

Sebastian and Ciel felt the exact moment Maria's control over them broke. The men jumped to their feet, their minds jumping straight to the worst-case scenario: if Maria wasn't controlling them anymore, then... she might be dead. Without speaking, the two demons - accompanied by Roul in his animal form - sprinted out of the house. They didn't need to know what direction the female demon had gone - it was instinctual. Maria was one of their family, and family protected each other. They just knew where she would be. And so they ran, and hoped it wasn't too late. 

Maria, however, was drifting. Her physical form lay on the ground, motionless. Her inner conscience, on the other hand, was not. In the wake of bringing in her mother's power, the intensity of the absorption had been so strong that it had not her clean from her physical body. In a way - it had killed her. Maria's conscience wavered above her body, and she looked down at it empathetically. When unconscious, the siren-demon seemed... small. The curls of her hair were either limp of crushed, matted with the dirt in the cave. Dirt and blood were smeared across her face, body, and clothes. Blood was gathering where William had kicked her ribs, and Maria vaguely found herself hoping it wasn't internal bleeding leaking through to the outside of her body. Despite this and her other injuries, the hybrid couldn't find herself becoming worried about her condition. In fact, she felt nothing at all. It was just her, and her dying body. But, it wasn't like that for long. Although she wasn't spooked when Lyra suddenly appeared beside her, Maria did find herself mildly surprised to see the woman again. When she tried to speak, she discovered that she could. 

"Lyra." At the younger Elrose's words, her ancestor turned her gaze from Maria's unconscious body to her floating form. Then, she smiled, and spoke. "My, you've certainly gotten yourself into a situation, haven't you?" She looked around the cavern, sighing when she saw the results of William's grisly death. She floated over to him on will, but Maria found herself unable to float away from her body. She watched Lyra as the woman floated closer to William, taking in his condition with saddened eyes. "I'm sorry. I killed him." Maria said, drawing Lyra's gaze back to the demon-hybrid slowly. Then, Lyra shook her head. "No, child, I know what happened here. I have watched over you. What I saw was you trying to save him while you still had the chance. However, he was too far gone to be saved." With one last longing glance, Lyra moved on to examine Lillian's body. She didn't seem as upset about the death of one of her relatives as she was about William. "Good riddance," she scoffed lightly to the dead body, "it's about time you stop harassing Maria. You underestimated your own child, and it ruined you in the end." Maria waited patiently as Lyra floated back over to her. This moment was wholly surreal, and yet all Maria could feel was a complacently calm feeling. "What now?" She asked quietly. Lyra hummed, thinking silently before she provided her answer. "Well, you are in limbo, again. The force of your mother's power knocked your soul straight from your body." 

"I thought I didn't have a soul anymore, now that I'm a demon?" Maria questioned, confused. She knew little about being a siren having just learned of her true self only moments ago. Lyra chuckled, shaking her head slightly. "Yes, but you are also siren, and therefore you still have a soul. While your siren powers make you tempting to others, your soul is weakened by your demon capabilities. No demon will go after your soul. Nevertheless, that is no matter. You have a decision to make: the same one you made back when you last saw me." Maria could remember instantly what that decision had been, and she whispered it aloud. "Death or life." Lyra nodded, and Maria turned back to look at her body once more. Instead of leaning towards life, as she done previously, death never sounded more peaceful. She had done her work and defeated her mother. Sebastian, Ciel, and Roul could live peacefully, without any more interruptions or problems caused by her. She wondered if they'd even care about her passing - once she was truly dead, her siren affect over them would have no more power. They would realize they had felt unnecessary feelings - stronger feelings - for her than from what they truly felt. They wouldn't care. Her life on earth after meeting Sebastian and Ciel had been the best and worst years of her life, but it was time that came to an end. Maria was tired of running, tired of fighting. She was just tired of it all. Just as she was about to tell Lyra her decision, three figures burst into the cave.