Hunter Academy

Chapter 10: The Branding (CP.3)

I waited on her bed as she instructed. I let my mind try to wrap around everything that just happened, the eye-stabbing...the kissing. I could not get that out of my head, especially when she said she liked it! The worst part was when I said I did too! I covered my face in embarrassment, what had I done? Obviously she didn't mean it like that! She doesn't feel that way. She's a girl!

How was is that I couldn't wrap my head around the immeasurable pleasure I had felt? It seemed dirty, but I also liked it.

I shook away all those weird thoughts and uncovered my face to see Lilith watching me from a distance, don't tell me she saw all that? Good thing I didn't say anything out loud. I sat up straight, I am Celia, the greatest hunter, and I will not act like some lovesick puppy. She came closer and I saw that she was holding some kind of pole with a puck thing at the end. She showed it to me and said "This is the branding part of the contract, at the end of this rod it has a stamp, and on that is the mark of the beast.". I inhaled sharply, this was gonna hurt a lot, but not as much as getting my eye stabbed.

"Would you like a cloth for the pain?"

"No, I think I'll do fine without it. After all, I need to do it with all the pain. This will help us with power Lilith."

"Are you sure? It will hurt quite a bit."

"I'm sure it can't hurt as much as the last ceremony."

At this she smiled sheepishly. The iron wasn't hot yet. She summoned a fire to heat up the iron. I added to her firepower by helping the fire out. I was just trying to be nice but then I remembered that we needed to combine our fires to heat the iron up. It took less than expected when the iron was a bright red. "Lay on your stomach." Lilith instructed. I lay on my stomach and took a deep, shaky breath.

Lilith said "Nervous already? I haven't even done anything."

"Shut up." I said.

I immediately froze when I heard her pick up the branding iron. I braced myself when I felt heat on my skin. Lilith lifted my shirt a little and I gasped as I felt her cold fingers graze my skin. I saw her quickly jerk her hand away.

"Ready Celia?"

"Yes."

"This is going to hurt a lot, so brace yourself."

I braced myself for the inevitable. I felt the iron come closer to right above my waist. I felt her lift my uniform shirt up higher and I shivered. Could she hurry up? I felt the heat from the branding iron and I immediately wished I hadn't said that.

The next thing that I felt was pain. My vision went white. I screamed when she pressed the stamp in even more. I grabbed Lilith's free hand and held it tight. She pulled the iron out and I screamed even more. It was still less painful than getting my eyeball stabbed but it hurt. I was glad to have something to hold on to. I had finally found the strength to say something "Well, that hurt like hell. What kind of branding was that?" .

"It's the fire of hell, that's why it hurt so much."

"Oh. Well that's interesting."

"I'm surprised and impressed your not still screaming or crying. I hope you exceed my expectations of you."

"I'm sure I will. Now, where's my lollipop?"

"You want a reward?"

I rolled my eyes at her playfully "Well I think after going through all this that I should at least get something."

Her eyes shone bashfully "Okay then, if you wish for a reward, that is what you shall get."

She mounted the bed and flipped me over. "What are you do-" I was cut off my her lips meeting mine.

My eyes widened, what was she doing?!? I didn't push her away, I didn't do anything. My body was on fire, her very presence this close to me sent electrical shocks through my nerves. I didn't dare do anything, for all I knew this could be a test or a prank! She pulled back after a couple more seconds.

She smirked and said "How was that as a reward?".

I blushed "I guess i'll take it."

She looked at me with worry and said "how's your side?"

"It's fine, it doesn't really hurt that much anymore."

"We still have about ten hours until sunrise. Do you have the will to mark me?"

"Of course, we have to do it in the same night after all."

She smirked "Are you sure your body can take that much excitement in one night?"

I retorted with "Do you think you can keep your hands off of me and let me breath?"

She replied with "Touché my dear."

Lilith got up and offered me her hand, but I swatted it away with a "I can do it myself Lilith." She smiled and said "As you wish."

Of course I can do it myself, how hard could it be to stand up and get off the bed? I stood up and got to my feet, but to my dismay my feet wavered. Immediately Lilith materialized by my side, holding me up. Unfortunately, she touched my side where I got branded and I flinched from the pain. She realized and immediately moved her hand upward, more towards my stomach. I tried again and this time my feet did not fail me. I walked into the obsidian room (that's what I'm calling it now) and stood in the outside of the pentagram, eager to begin the part of the contract.

I looked around and saw the blood stain that I knew, even after scrubbing and bleaching, would never go away. The obsidian seemed to move because of the gold in it and I wondered, once again, where the hell she got so much obsidian. Not just any obsidian, gold obsidian, the rarest kind to build a whole room out of it. Just who exactly was Lilith Snow? How high ranking was she that her words were as good as gold to many other demons?

I shook those questions away. Surely she'll tell me when we are familiars. I'm going to come clean to her too... eventually.

Word Count: 1086~