Devil's Plaything

Like A Soul

Charlie had insisted that they meet at the library instead of the dorms. Mira wasn't sure she wanted to take the same walk there and back, considering how her last walk back from the library ended. However, Sam insisted that he would walk with her and make sure she made it all the way home safely. She didn't have the heart to tell him that his company probably wouldn't deter a demon.

Mira got a very dirty look from the librarian when she walked into the building with Sam. At first, she thought it was because she was walking too loudly, but then after realizing that this explanation made little sense, she remembered that she had interrogated that woman about the Devil during her last visit. She grimaced and waved. The librarian touched the cross necklace she wore and looked away.

"She's friendly," Sam commented dryly.

Mira shrugged, pretending not to take it personally. "I would be grumpy if I worked here too, I guess." They walked briskly past the front desk and found Charlie at one of the study tables, her legs resting on the chair across from hers, reading a book called The Psychology behind Personality Disorders. Mira sat beside her and tapped her shoulder. "This is my friend, Sam."

Charlie glanced over the rim of her book at Sam, who was still standing uncertainly by the table. "You mean the guy who cost you your soul?" Both Mira and Sam blushed with the sudden awkward confrontation. Charlie laughed, but it didn't seem to come from a place of cruelty. "You open every conversation you have with strangers with 'hey, I sold my soul to the Devil', but you're too embarrassed to talk about how it happened?"

"She's a good person," Sam spoke up, much to Mira's surprise. "And she doesn't want me to feel bad."

Charlie set her book down and eyed Sam with great curiosity. "The truth is objective. Whether or not you feel badly about it is up to you. I'm Charlie." She extended a manicured hand out to Sam, who took it hesitantly. "Do sit." She removed her feet from the chair and motioned for him to take a seat, as if she was hosting them. Sam did as she said wordlessly, keeping a distrustful eye on her as he did.

"Why do you like the library so much?" Mira asked, trying to redirect the conversation to something that was easier to talk about.

"There aren't a lot of people here and I don't like people," Charlie responded easily. Sam gave Mira a very impatient look and she raised her hand to calm him. Charlie seemed a lot more difficult to get along with now that Mira had another person with her who was a better judge of character than she was. The interaction was quickly becoming painfully awkward and the easy-going expression on Charlie's face made it clear that she was the only one who didn't mind.

"Let's just jump right in," Mira suggested, laying her hands flat on the table. "Sam brought along the book he used to summon the demon in the first place." On cue, Sam took off the backpack he was still wearing and pulled out a book called Scientology and the Science of Demons.

Charlie raised her eyebrows. "Please don't tell me you're a Scientologist."

Sam shook his head, visibly frustrated. "No, I'm not. I just own the book. You have a book on personality disorders, do you have one of those?"

"Yes."

"Oh." Sam's blush returned. A long moment of silence passed and Charlie, of course, said nothing to alleviate the awkwardness of the situation. "Well, it's not because you're reading the book," Sam added weakly. Charlie just stared at him. "Reading a book about it doesn't, you know..." He drifted off, sensing the pointlessness of explanation.

Mira sighed and cleared her throat. "Guys, can we focus on the demon problem please?" At that very moment, her librarian nemesis walked by the group with a cart loaded with books. The woman stopped in her tracks at the mention of "demon", looked at the group with great distress, and quickly wheeled away. "Damn it," Mira groaned, slumping in her chair. Sam reached his hand towards her in a gesture of comfort, but stopped half-way, resting his hand on the table in a very unnatural way. Sam stared down at his lap and Mira glanced at Charlie, who was looking at his hand with an eyebrow quirked.