Soulless (EUSTASS KID X READER)

Seven

Eustass didn't know how you, of all mortals, could deserve suffering.

Be he also wasn't about to ask. The disc in his chest sputtered in an uncomfortable way, as if it were trying to escape his body. It was writhing around like a beast half dead, and it irritated Eustass in a way he'd never experienced.

You were ignorant to his internal plight, and after a moment of silence, let yourself fall back into his plush mattress. The ship rocked as though it rode on waves, and you questioned what exactly was causing it. But that thought floated from your mind easily, rolling away like water off feathers. The subtle lifts of the ship were comforting in a hypnotizing way, as if it were your own makeshift cradle. Up and down, you found yourself matching your breathing with its rhythm.

"You look peaceful." Eustass commented after a while of watching you. He saw as your shoulders released their tense posture and your breaths evened out, chest rising and falling to a soft beat. "For a human in hell, anyway."

"I thought it'd be hotter."

"Yeah?" He laughed, another dry remark made with sarcastic coyness. They seemed to be a thing for you, and he wouldn't deny he liked it. It was different, not the stock responses. Your odd way of wording things brought some good, he supposed. "Are you going back to sleep?"

"I'd like to."

"Don't you wanna see what else is on the ship?"

"I'd like that, too."

"Well, pick one."

You huffed as you sat forward, once again upright. Your elbows rested on your knees and for a moment, you let the strange feeling of comfort wash over you. This place, wherever it actually was, felt like a home. You couldn't explain why, but the gap in your chest felt soothed. Just a little, like the edges had been filed down from their previous sharpness. Maybe it was the place, or maybe it was Eustass' energy still meddling with your own.

You couldn't tell.

"You said you were a soul-manufacturer?" You turned your gaze to him, a gentle pull between your brows.

"Beast manufacturer." The demon corrected with a lift of his pointer, as if to physically make his point. "I make beasts from souls."

"Right," You nodded along, committing it memory this time. "Can you show me some of that?"

Eustass stopped to think. Could he? Why should he bother? You were a human mortal and would be gone soon enough, he really didn't need to indulge you as much as he already was. Yet, there, in the corner of your iris', a sparkle caught his eye. A glimmer of something alive, something living among the barren wasteland of your head.

Eustass leaned forward, once again invading your space for what was seeming to be a routine intimidation technique.

It had yet to work.

"On one condition." He rumbled, voice set low and serious. His painted lips were pulled into a slight frown, brow set and eyes narrowed. You nodded to prompt his conditions, curious what he thought was worth being so stern about. "You have to eat something."

"Eustass," you sighed out, shoulders drooping and eyes falling closed in a tired expression. "Please, I'm not hungry."

"Something small." The counter had your eyes opening, looking up to him with a minuscule pout. "A snack."

Red hair and vermillion eyes, he was a true sight to behold. So massive, so inhuman. Horns and scales, slitted eyes and that strong brow line. Even with the makeup he seemed oppressively masculine, and yet here he was. Bargaining with you in order to protect your health. Alas, all to benefit himself, of course.