Prisoners of Sin: Deadly Feast of Twilight

Sweet sugar

  "Fe-feast?" I ask in a rush. "Wha-what feast?"

  Her face falls. "I guess you'll be sacrificed on my day. Oh, that sucks." But I think she didn't care all that much because she lets out a sweetened giggle. "That's too bad. Well, I'll see what I can do for you."

  I have no time to react since she slams her tiny hands on my shoulders and looks me in the eyes. They go bright, and I can hear her voice inside my mind.

  "Make a contract with me. It's the only way you'll survive what you'll go through to escape."

  There's nothing I can say, nothing I can do. Every part of my is too cold and too hot all at once, my mind a whirl of messy thoughts and emotions that don't fit quite right.

"C'mon, just do it. You'll get some cool abilities. It's totally worth it."

"What do I get from this deal?" I ask, voice shaking. Even though she's a tiny child, I'm still scared of what she can do. "I mean, how much danger will I be in? And why would I be in danger?"

I know it's a stupid question. I just have to ask.

Vi giggles, the sound building until I can't take it. I fall to the ground again, wishing it would stop. Please, someone, make it stop. It's all I can hope for right now.

  "You'd be chased, maybe even caught, and maybe-definitely-even killed and cooked if any other demon sees you," she says, attention flitting away from me and onto the fork she's holding. "But if you made a contract with me, you'd have some protection."

"I'll do it," I tell her, already cursing myself for doing this. "Hey, what are you the demon of?"

She hums again, growing excited. "Gluttony! Now, onto the contract, Iris!"

Once again, her hands go on my shoulders, and they squeeze so tightly. The cherry-red colour of her eyes changes to raspberries. Ribbons of magical energy swirls around us, the same red shade. My body heats up, and I fear that I'm going to melt down into a puddle of Iris-sugar. I can't look anywhere but at her, and that fills me with even more fear.

  Just as suddenly as it begins, the contact ends. Vi releases me and twirls around, a plate appearing in her hand. What might be a chocolate cupcake rests on the porcelain plate, pink frosting piped to resemble flowers on top. It looks like something I'd make on a good day.

  "All you have to do is eat this, and then the binding will be complete!" she sings, hitting a high-note that makes me jealous. "So, eat up!"

  My mind screams at me to not do it, to refuse her treat and run away. But I've never been one to follow my own advice, so I reach out and eat it slowly. Vi watches the whole thing, smiling in an unnerving way. There's no way that this will end well.

  Something happens when I'm done, an odd sensation taking over my mind. Everything becomes sharper, clearer, as if I'm seeing the world in colour for the first time. I blink, blown away by it. I might have just eaten a demonic cupcake, but it might be able to actually help me.

  Vi giggles, clapping her hands, and then her face falls. "Oh," she says uneasily, "that's not right." She glances up and down at me.

White-hot panic flashes through me, and I feel myself freeze in place. "W-what is it?" I ask, trying to not scream. Having a demonic child saying that something wasn't good was more terrifying than one might think.

  "Well," she draws out, puffing her cheeks. "You're not compatible with me." She shrugs, and the ground shimmers underneath her. White circles appear from nothing, and she begins playing hopscotch.