Sebastian and Varkyl || DEMON AND VESSEL

The First Recognition

Varkyl learned of Vivienne's death during an Ashford family dinner.

The news came from Mrs. Ashford with an almost unsettling naturalness.

"Vivienne is dead."

She continued cutting her medium-rare steak, as if she had just commented on something insignificant.

Sebastian remained silent.

But Varkyl immediately felt the change inside him.

The tension. The restlessness. The thoughts Sebastian was trying to keep under control.

Vivienne was dead. The woman who had set that pact into motion. The woman who had trapped Varkyl inside Sebastian when he was only ten years old.

The woman who had chosen to turn a child into his host to keep the demon away from the person he had once called his little monster. "So it's over."

Varkyl felt the anger growing inside him. There was no relief. No satisfaction. Much less happiness. Vivienne had gotten exactly what she wanted.

Varkyl was still trapped. Sebastian was still trapped with him. And neither of them had chosen this. Now she was dead. And, along with her, any possibility of discovering how to break the pact had probably died as well.

Varkyl clenched his teeth. "She had everything she wanted." Money. Success. An entire lifetime. And now she was dead. Perhaps burning in Hell. The thought almost made him laugh. If he could, Varkyl would go there just to remind her of everything she had done. But he couldn't.

He remained trapped inside Sebastian. Trapped in that human body. Unable to regain his own form. Unable to simply abandon his host. Unable to return to the person he had once known.

That night, while Sebastian slept, Varkyl remained awake inside him.

Sebastian's breathing was slow and steady. The room was completely dark, illuminated only by the faint light coming through the window.

But Varkyl couldn't stop thinking about that old connection. The one thing Vivienne had never been able to destroy. Varkyl focused on it. If that person was asleep... Maybe he could reach the dreams.

And he did.

He did not leave Sebastian's body. He could never do that. It was only as if a part of his energy crossed the distance through that connection, reaching the person's consciousness.

Varkyl found the dreams. And, as always, he could only watch. There was not much else he could do. He couldn't control the person's mind. He couldn't force the person to answer. He could only look. Make sure the person was still alive. Still breathing. That the connection still existed.

Varkyl searched for something in the dreams. Any clue. Some sign that the person knew about Vivienne's death. Nothing.

The dreams were confusing. Fragmented. Restless. Varkyl tried to understand the images, the emotions, and the little things that appeared and disappeared before him. Nothing answered his questions. He didn't know what was happening. And that irritated him.

The following weeks became even stranger. Whenever Varkyl managed to reach the person's dreams, he found the same uneasiness. Noisy dreams. Confusing dreams. Filled with things he couldn't understand.

Something was happening. He could feel it. Something had changed in that person's life. But Varkyl couldn't figure out what. And that left him increasingly restless. Because, after all these years, there was one thing he still needed to know: "what is happening to my little monster?"

Several weeks had passed since Vivienne's death.

The morning was cold and overcast in Massachusetts. The sky remained covered by thick clouds, leaving the university campus surrounded by a pale, grayish light. The wind swept through the paths between the buildings, sending a few dry leaves skittering across the stone ground.

The campus was already busy.

Students walked in small groups, some holding cups of coffee while talking about their classes. Others hurried through the corridors, trying to arrive before the professors closed the doors. The sound of footsteps mixed with conversations, doors opening and closing, and the wind striking against the large windows of the main building.

Sebastian walked among them without showing any hurry.

As always.

His posture remained impeccable. His dark shirt was perfectly arranged, his trousers neatly fitted, and his blond hair fell naturally over his forehead. One hand remained inside his trouser pocket while the other held several books against his body.

He paid little attention to the people around him. He didn't like them. He didn't need them. And he certainly didn't need the useless conversations that filled the place.

"You're distracted." Varkyl's voice emerged inside Sebastian's mind. Sebastian continued walking. He didn't answer. "I'm talking to you."

He passed through the glass doors of the main building. As soon as he entered, the sound of the wind became muffled. The environment was warmer, but there was still a cold draft moving through the corridor whenever one of the exterior doors opened.

Sebastian stepped aside to avoid two students coming in the opposite direction. "Are you ignoring me on purpose?" the demon asked. Sebastian let out a quiet sigh.

His fingers discreetly pulled the sleeve of his shirt down to his wrist. Varkyl noticed immediately. "There it is." He laughed inside Sebastian's mind. Sebastian briefly looked at his own sleeve. "You always do that when you're irritated."

Sebastian continued walking. "Shut up," Sebastian murmured so quietly that no one around him could hear. A student passing nearby glanced quickly at him. Sebastian didn't even react.

Inside his mind, Varkyl let out a laugh. "You know people are going to think you're talking to yourself." Sebastian slightly clenched his jaw. "I know."

"And yet you keep answering." If the demon had a physical form, he would certainly be rolling his eyes. But Sebastian could imagine him laughing.

"Because you won't shut up." The boy replied, already losing patience with the demon and his teasing.

"Fair." Varkyl seemed pleased with himself.

Sebastian reached the end of the corridor and began climbing the stairs.

The steps echoed beneath his shoes. Around him, students went up and down, some talking, others distractedly looking at their phones. He continued in silence.

Over the past few days, Varkyl had been different. Sebastian had noticed. The demon still talked constantly, still teased him, and still found something to complain about, but there were moments when he simply became quiet. Especially at night.

The dreams had changed too. Sebastian didn't know exactly what happened while he slept. He only knew that the same person kept appearing. Always the same.

For years. Sometimes Sebastian saw only the face. Sometimes a silhouette. Sometimes he was walking beside that person in places he didn't recognize. He never knew where he was. He never knew who that person was. And whenever he asked Varkyl, he received silence in response.

Over time, Sebastian had begun to believe that it wasn't real. Maybe it was just a recurring dream. Some effect of Varkyl's presence inside him.

Maybe it was simply his own mind trying to turn that connection into something he could understand. It was easier to believe that. Much easier.

Sebastian reached the second floor. The corridor was quieter. Some doors remained closed. Others were open, revealing classrooms filled with students. The muffled sound of professors speaking could be heard through the walls.

He reached the door to his classroom. Before entering, he quickly glanced at the clock in the hallway. There were still a few minutes left. Sebastian pushed the door open. The classroom was already partially full.

Some students were talking near the windows. Others were organizing notebooks on their desks. A girl in the first row was looking at her phone while another student flipped through a notebook.

Sebastian entered without saying anything. He walked to his usual seat. He placed his books on the desk. Pulled out the chair and sat down. He rested his arm on the desk and stared distractedly at the empty board. Everything was normal.

It was just another morning. Another class. A few more hours surrounded by people he barely knew. Until the door opened again.

Sebastian didn't look up immediately. First, he heard the handle turn. Then, the sound of the door opening. A few students near the entrance looked at whoever had just entered.

Sebastian raised his eyes out of habit. And stopped. His body became completely still. The rest of the room continued functioning normally. The conversations continued. A chair scraped against the floor. Someone laughed near the windows. The clock continued counting the seconds. But Sebastian noticed none of it.

His eyes were fixed on the person. He knew that face. He shouldn't have known it. He had never seen that person awake. But he knew it.

The feeling came first. That strange familiarity. Then recognition. Sebastian felt his chest tighten slightly. It was the same person. The same person who appeared in his dreams. The same person he had seen countless times while sleeping. The person he had convinced himself did not exist.

His gaze slowly moved over the person, as if searching for some difference. Some detail. Anything that could prove he was mistaken. He found nothing. Sebastian became even more still.

Varkyl had noticed the person too.

For the first time that morning, the demon became completely silent.

Sebastian felt his presence change.

That familiar presence he had carried inside him for sixteen years seemed to move closer to the surface.

A strange coldness spread across his back.

Sebastian slightly furrowed his brow. "Varkyl..." Sebastian whispered. His voice was almost inaudible. No one around him seemed to notice.

There was no response.

Then, the familiar darkness began to emerge from Sebastian's body.

It spread behind him, rising into the air and taking the form Sebastian had seen countless times throughout the sixteen years they had been bound together.

Varkyl's manifestation.

Sebastian didn't react with surprise.

He knew that form.

He had seen Varkyl manifest like that countless times throughout the years. It was familiar to him, almost as natural as hearing Varkyl's voice inside his own mind.

Sebastian simply glanced over his shoulder, recognizing the dark figure behind him.

The shadow remained connected to his body, its dark form shifting between dense blackness and thin trails of smoke.

Sebastian looked at Varkyl. Then he looked back at the person. Something was wrong. Varkyl wasn't speaking.

He wasn't teasing Sebastian. He wasn't making some sarcastic comment. He wasn't complaining about anything.

He was simply staring at that person. His golden eyes remained fixed on them. Sebastian's expression slowly became more serious.

He had seen Varkyl in countless situations. Angry. Amused. Irritated. Bored. Provocative. But this was different. There was recognition in his gaze. Deep recognition. Sebastian looked at the person again.

The same face from his dreams. The same person he had seen countless times while sleeping. The same person he had spent years believing was nothing more than a recurring dream.

And now Varkyl was looking at that person as if he had known them long before Sebastian ever had.

Sebastian narrowed his eyes. "You know this person." It wasn't a question. Varkyl didn't answer immediately. The shadow remained behind Sebastian, completely still, its attention fixed on that person.

The air around Sebastian seemed colder. Then Varkyl finally spoke. The demon's voice emerged inside Sebastian's mind.

This time, there was no sarcasm. No teasing. No laughter. Only recognition.

"Little monster..."

Sebastian felt a shiver run down the back of his neck. Not because of the words themselves. It was because of the way Varkyl said them. The tone of his voice.

The way his golden eyes remained fixed on that person. Sebastian had never heard Varkyl speak like that before. His eyes remained on the person. That single nickname seemed to confirm everything.

The person from his dreams was real. And Varkyl knew them.

Sebastian slowly lowered the hand that had been resting on the desk. His fingers curled into a fist.

For sixteen years, Sebastian had lived with Varkyl inside him. For sixteen years, he had heard that voice.

For years, that person had appeared in his dreams without a name, without an explanation, without any proof that they existed.

Sebastian had accepted that he might never discover who they were.

Now that person was standing before him.

Alive.

Real.

And Varkyl knew them.

Long before Sebastian even knew that person existed.

Where It All Began

Varkyl had been unbearable for days.

Ever since Sebastian had discovered that the person was alive and attended the same university, the demon seemed to have developed a single obsession: seeing that person again.

Sebastian tried to ignore him.

During classes, Varkyl interrupted his thoughts with constant comments. While studying, he found some way to distract him. Whenever Sebastian finally tried to sleep, the voice would emerge inside his mind once again.

The worst part was that Varkyl had started behaving like a sulking child.

A book fell off the table without anyone touching it.

Then, a pen disappeared from Sebastian's study materials and appeared on the other side of the room. The following night, a glass nearly fell off the counter. Sebastian simply put the object back in its place and continued what he was doing.

He didn't need to ask who was responsible.

"You know I want to see that person." Varkyl's voice emerged, echoing through the room.

Sebastian kept reading. The demon waited a few seconds. When he received no answer, another object moved discreetly across the table.

Sebastian closed the book.

His fingers pulled his shirt sleeve down to his wrist, a habit Varkyl knew very well. "You're behaving like a child."

Varkyl seemed to find that amusing. "And yet you keep ignoring me."

Sebastian remained seated for a few seconds, looking at the demon who could not be seen by anyone except him and certain people capable of seeing beyond the ordinary world.

Eventually, he stood up. He picked up his car keys. Not because he had been convinced. Simply because he was too tired to keep arguing.

The journey gradually left Boston behind.

The city lights disappeared in the rearview mirror as Sebastian followed increasingly remote roads. Varkyl guided him from within, recognizing parts of the area that remained buried in his memory.

Sebastian asked no questions. He simply drove.

When they reached the property, he parked away from the house, among the trees.

The building remained hidden amid the vegetation.

It was old, large, and isolated, surrounded by tall trees and gardens that had survived the passage of time. Dark wood and aged bricks made up the facade. The sloping roof, rounded tower, tall windows, and covered porch gave the house the aged appearance of a Victorian building with Gothic elements.

It still looked well maintained.

But there was something about the property that made it feel separated from the rest of the world.

Sebastian got out of the car.

He remained among the trees for a few moments, observing the house from a distance.

Varkyl fell silent.

That was unusual.

Sebastian had known that presence for sixteen years. He knew how to recognize every change in its behavior, every pause, every alteration in the way the voice emerged inside his mind. This was not mere curiosity.

Varkyl recognized this place.

Darkness began to spread behind Sebastian. Wisps of black smoke emerged from his body, slowly rising until they formed the demon's familiar silhouette.

Sebastian showed no surprise. He had seen that manifestation countless times before. Golden eyes appeared within the shadow as Varkyl watched the house.

Sebastian followed his gaze. "How do you know this place?"

Varkyl remained motionless for a few seconds. Then his voice emerged inside Sebastian's mind, low and different from usual. "Vivienne summoned me."

Sebastian did not respond. The information made him turn his full attention toward Varkyl.

For sixteen years, he had known Vivienne only as the woman connected to the pact that had placed Varkyl inside him.

That was all.

Sebastian knew his parents had made a deal. He knew wealth, influence, and status were involved. He knew Vivienne had participated in the process.

But he had never known the story that came before it. He had never known where Varkyl had actually come from.

The shadow continued looking at the house. "She found an occult book and discovered how to summon me."

Sebastian remained silent.

Varkyl did not seem to be trying to provoke him.

For the first time, he was simply telling him something Sebastian had never heard before.

"Vivienne wanted power. Money. Fame. Recognition." A gust of wind passed between the trees. The leaves stirred above them while Sebastian remained motionless. "She summoned me because she believed I could give her all of that."

Sebastian turned his eyes toward the house. Then he understood the first part of that story. Vivienne had not started out as someone trying to trap a demon inside a child. She had sought Varkyl out of her own free will.

She had been the one who found him. She had been the one who summoned him. And she had been the one who decided to use what he could offer.

Varkyl remained silent for a few moments before continuing. "I held up my end of the bargain." The shadow moved slowly. "But Vivienne didn't hold up hers."

Sebastian looked at Varkyl again. The demon did not need to explain immediately. The pause itself said enough. "Once she got what she wanted, she imprisoned me in this house."

Sebastian remained motionless. The revelation was simple. But it completely changed everything he thought he knew. Vivienne had not merely participated in a pact to obtain a vessel for Varkyl.

She had been the one who had brought him to that property in the first place. She had used the demon to achieve her own goals and then turned the place where she had summoned him into a prison.

Sebastian looked at the house again. The property now seemed different. It was not merely Vivienne's old house. It was the place where Varkyl had been held against his will. "She couldn't see me."

Sebastian turned his eyes back to the shadow.

Varkyl continued before he could ask. "Vivienne was a Level I medium. She could sense my presence, but she couldn't see my form." The demon tilted his head slightly. "She felt the cold. The pressure. The sensation of being watched. She noticed when something changed inside the house."

Sebastian absorbed that in silence. It explained why Vivienne had taken so long to understand what was really happening.

She knew something was there. But she couldn't see it. Until she found someone who could. Varkyl's shadow remained facing the house. "That person could."

Sebastian did not look away.

Varkyl continued speaking as the memories seemed to return little by little. "When I met {{user}}, {{user}} was still a child."

Sebastian's expression remained controlled, but his attention became even more focused.

The person from his dreams. The same person Varkyl had recognized at the university. The same person he had called Little Monster.

Varkyl continued. "To that person, I was just an imaginary friend." There was something almost strange about the way the demon said it.

There was no mockery. No cruelty.

His voice carried a familiarity Sebastian had never heard when Varkyl spoke about other people. "I stayed in that house. We talked. We played. I spent a great deal of time with that person."

Sebastian remained silent.

The information filled a gap that had existed since the very first moment he had seen that person at the university.

For years, Sebastian had dreamed of someone without a name. Someone he could never find while awake. Now he was beginning to understand why.

Varkyl had already known that person. Long before the dreams. Long before Sebastian. Long before the pact that bound them together.

The shadow shifted among the branches. "I wanted to leave that house."

Sebastian watched the demon.

This time, Varkyl took a little longer before continuing. "So I used that bond."

Sebastian said nothing.

Varkyl explained what had happened without trying to soften his own guilt. "I made a contract with that person."

The night remained silent around them.

Sebastian kept looking at the house as he mentally organized every part of that story.

That person had been a child. Varkyl had been imprisoned. He had formed a bond with someone who could see him. And then he had used that bond to try to escape.

"That person didn't fully understand what they were agreeing to." All traces of humor disappeared from Varkyl's voice. "But the contract was made."

Sebastian remained motionless.

That was when Varkyl told him the next part. Vivienne found out. She realized that person could see Varkyl. She discovered that there was a bond between them and realized that a contract existed.

For someone who had already used a demon for personal gain, that meant a different kind of threat.

Vivienne did not know exactly what Varkyl would do with that person. But she feared the contract might allow him to take that person with him. That the bond might end up costing that person their soul.

And that was when Vivienne sought another solution.

The solution was the Ashford family.

Sebastian did not need to ask. The memory of his childhood was enough. His parents. The deal. The ritual.

At ten years old, he had been brought before a pact he did not understand.

Varkyl had been sealed inside him.

For sixteen years, Sebastian had believed he knew the reason. His parents wanted wealth. They wanted influence. They wanted status.

And they were willing to use their own son to get all of it.

He had never imagined that there was someone else behind that decision. Much less Vivienne.

The shadow remained behind him. "Your parents wanted what the pact could give them."

Sebastian continued looking at the house.

Varkyl continued without rushing. "Vivienne wanted something else." A pause. "She wanted me to stay away from that person."

Sebastian lowered his eyes for a moment. Then he looked back at the property. Now the story made sense in a way he had never considered before.

Vivienne had not participated in the pact simply because the Ashfords were greedy. She had a motive of her own. Varkyl needed to disappear from that person's life. And Sebastian was the solution. The vessel. The prison. The necessary distance.

The ten-year-old boy who had been brought into that ritual had not merely been the price his parents had decided to pay for their own ambition.

He had also been the solution Vivienne had found to remove Varkyl from that house and keep him away from that person.

Sebastian discreetly pulled his shirt sleeve down to his wrist. This time, Varkyl made no comment. He simply remained looking at the house.

For sixteen years, Sebastian had believed he knew the reason his life had been destroyed.

Now he realized there was much more to that story.

His parents had used their own son. Vivienne had used Varkyl.

And, at some point before all of that, Varkyl had also used a child's trust to try to escape his own prison.

Nothing about that story was simple.

Sebastian turned his gaze toward the house. A light came on in one of the windows. The glow appeared suddenly in the darkness, partially illuminating the interior.

Varkyl's shadow became completely still. His golden eyes remained fixed on that window.

Sebastian said nothing. For the first time since arriving, he did not try to ask what would happen next, either.

He simply remained there, watching the house where Varkyl's story had begun. And where, apparently, parts of that story still remained unknown to Sebastian.

A Fevered Dream

The morning had begun like any other.

Sebastian was sitting in his usual seat, near the back of the classroom, his books organized on the desk and his attention focused on the lecture. The professor was speaking in front of the board, explaining the material while pages were being turned and pens scratched across paper.

But there was something different about that morning.

Sebastian had noticed it a few minutes after the class began.

{{user}} didn't seem well.

It wasn't just tiredness. There was something about the way {{user}} remained seated, the lack of energy, and the small signs that most people might have overlooked.

Sebastian watched for a few seconds before turning his eyes back to the professor.

It wasn't his problem. At least, that was what he intended to think.

Varkyl, however, had noticed the same thing. "They're sick."

Sebastian didn't answer. He continued taking notes, keeping an indifferent expression.

"You noticed." The demon's voice echoed inside his mind. The pen continued moving between Sebastian's fingers.

"It's none of my business."

Varkyl remained silent for a few seconds. Then he spoke again. "They're clearly unwell."

Sebastian cast a quick glance in {{user}}'s direction. There was something about the situation that bothered him.

Perhaps because he had already spent too much time observing that person. Perhaps because, after everything he had discovered about Varkyl and that old connection, he simply couldn't completely ignore it when something seemed wrong.

Still, he did nothing.

For the rest of the class, Sebastian kept his eyes forward whenever possible. But every now and then, his gaze discreetly wandered.

Varkyl did the same. The demon's presence remained restless inside him. "Are you going to keep watching until they collapse?"

Sebastian clenched his jaw. "Be quiet." He muttered quietly so the others wouldn't hear him.

"I'm only pointing out the obvious." Varkyl said at the same time as he huffed in irritation at Sebastian's stubbornness.

The class finally ended.

The professor finished the lesson, and the students began gathering their belongings. The sound of chairs being pushed back spread throughout the room, accompanied by the sound of backpacks being closed and conversations about the next class.

Sebastian put his books into his backpack without rushing.

When he left the classroom, he saw {{user}} in the hallway. It was then that he realized the situation seemed worse.

{{user}} was walking toward the next class, but there was an obvious unsteadiness in their steps.

Sebastian stopped for a moment. His gaze followed the person down the hallway.

Varkyl didn't take even a second. "Go after them."

"No." The boy argued.

"Sebastian." The demon didn't shout, but raised his voice slightly.

Sebastian remained standing still.

"Take them home." Varkyl said, clearly irritated. He was already beginning to lose patience.

Sebastian let out a quiet sigh, running a hand through his hair before adjusting the strap of his backpack. "You're exaggerating."

"And you're being stubborn." Sebastian began walking. "Finally."

"I'm doing this to keep you from talking." Sebastian replied, gripping the strap of his bag tightly.

Varkyl's laughter echoed inside his mind. "Of course."

Sebastian ignored him. He crossed the hallway with firm steps, catching up with {{user}} before the distance could grow too large.

He stopped beside the person and watched for a few seconds. Up close, the signs were even more obvious.

Sebastian narrowed his eyes. "You're not well." He didn't wait for an answer. His tone carried no exaggerated concern. It was simply a statement.

He glanced quickly down the hallway, then turned his attention back to {{user}}. "I'm taking you home."

Varkyl remained silent for the first time in several minutes.

Sebastian had already made his decision.

Without waiting for an argument, he took {{user}} by the arm and began guiding the person down the hallway toward the exit.

"I'm not going to let you keep walking around the university like this." His tone remained firm, almost authoritative. There was no room for negotiation in Sebastian's voice.

Outside, the cold wind swept through the open passage between the buildings. Sebastian walked beside {{user}}, keeping his pace controlled and remaining attentive to the situation.

Varkyl watched everything through him. "You care."

Sebastian didn't answer.

"You're worried." Varkyl stated.

"Don't start."

"I didn't say anything that serious." Varkyl said in an amused tone of voice, as if he were smiling.

Sebastian simply continued walking.

The parking lot was a few minutes away from the building. When they reached the car, Sebastian unlocked the doors and opened the passenger door.

He waited only long enough to make sure {{user}} was inside the vehicle before closing the door.

Then he walked around and got into the driver's seat.

The inside of the car became silent.

Sebastian placed his hands on the steering wheel and remained there for a few seconds, staring ahead.

Varkyl appeared in his mind again, now with an almost satisfied tone. "I told you that you should take them home."

Sebastian started the engine. "You talk too much."

"And you finally did something useful."

Sebastian gave an empty look toward the space ahead. "If you keep talking, I'll go back to the university."

Varkyl laughed. "You won't."

Sebastian didn't answer. Because, for the first time that morning, Varkyl was right.

The drive to {{user}}'s house had become quiet.

At some point during the journey, {{user}} ended up falling asleep in the passenger seat. The constant movement of the car and the exhaustion had overcome any attempt to stay awake.

Sebastian noticed a few minutes later.

He cast a quick glance to the side before returning his eyes to the road. {{user}}'s breathing was heavier, their body completely surrendered to sleep.

The boy slightly furrowed his brow.

After a few miles, Sebastian briefly extended one hand and touched {{user}}'s forehead with his fingers, checking their temperature.

His expression became more serious. Their skin was far too hot. "You're burning with a fever."

The words came out quietly, more as a statement to Varkyl than to the person asleep beside him.

Sebastian's hand immediately returned to the steering wheel.

"I told you they were sick." Varkyl muttered, sounding slightly irritated.

"I noticed." Sebastian replied, gripping the steering wheel tightly.

"Then drive faster." Varkyl ordered.

Sebastian let out an impatient sigh. "I'm driving."

The car continued down the road.

The trees passed by the windows in long shadows while the sky remained overcast and gray. Sebastian kept his eyes on the road, but from time to time, he discreetly looked at the passenger seat.

Varkyl remained restless.

Until, after some time, something changed.

Sebastian noticed it first in his own shoulders. They had relaxed.

The tension that usually remained trapped in his body seemed to have disappeared without him noticing. His fingers were no longer gripping the steering wheel with the same rigidity.

Then came the silence.

That constant presence inside his mind, which normally made some comment, provoked him, complained, or simply remained there like a second breath, had disappeared.

Sebastian frowned. Even the familiar weight inside him seemed lighter. "Strange." He remained silent for a few seconds, trying to understand the sensation. "What's happening?" There was no answer.

No voice. No provocation. Nothing.

Sebastian quickly looked at {{user}}, still asleep in the passenger seat.

His eyes narrowed.

Then he returned his attention to the road.

He didn't know why, but for the first time in sixteen years, his mind seemed... silent.

Somewhere much deeper, darkness stretched endlessly.

There were no walls. No floor. No sky. Only an immense, black, silent, deep emptiness where no direction existed.

A presence emerged in the middle of that void.

At first, only a shadow. Then, a form. His true, human form was here. Nothing of the shadows, nothing of smoke. Just him in the version {{user}} remembered from childhood.

Varkyl slowly walked through the darkness. His footsteps made no sound.

His golden eyes scanned the darkness in search of something. Anything.

He continued walking. Watching. Searching.

This was not Sebastian's mind.

It was different. More unstable. Deeper.

Varkyl recognized that connection.

He had crossed that path many times before, but never like this. For years, he had only been able to reach fragments, distant glimpses through the bond that had never completely disappeared.

Now he was there. Inside that space.

Varkyl stopped for a few seconds. The silence seemed absolute.

Then his voice echoed through the darkness. "Little Monster..."

No answer.

He continued walking.

The shadows moved slowly around his feet. "Where are you?"

Varkyl took a few more steps, his golden eyes scanning the emptiness.

Nothing. Only darkness. He tilted his head slightly. A faint smile appeared on his face.

"Come on, Little Monster..." His voice echoed through that place once again. "I know you're here."

A Prison of Memories

Sebastian had been in the kitchen for some time.

The pot on the stove released a thin stream of steam, spreading the smell of hot food throughout the room. The house was old, with dark wooden walls, aged furniture, and a floor that creaked faintly with every movement. Outside, trees surrounded the property, hiding it from the rest of the world.

The blond stirred the food one more time before lowering the heat. Then, he took a plate from the cupboard and began setting the table.

It wasn't something he usually did. Cooking for himself was one thing; staying in the kitchen of an unfamiliar house, preparing a meal for someone who had barely been able to stand a few hours earlier, was something else entirely.

Even so, he hadn't left himself much room for alternatives.

{{user}} had been running a rather high fever when he arrived at the house. The person had fallen asleep during the drive, and Sebastian had decided not to wake them. He had taken the key from {{user}}'s pocket, opened the door, and carried the person to the bedroom.

After making sure they were settled comfortably, he could have left.

Instead, he had found the kitchen, checked what was in the cupboards, and started preparing something for when {{user}} woke up.

A practical decision, he had told himself.

After all, someone who was sick needed to eat.

"You're becoming domestic, Ashford." Varkyl's voice echoed inside his head.

Sebastian continued arranging the cutlery.

"I'm starting to regret coming here." His voice sounded perfectly natural in the empty kitchen.

"And I'm starting to regret not staying longer inside {{user}}'s mind. At least something interesting was happening there." Sebastian thought he heard the demon sigh, but he wasn't sure.

Sebastian cast a brief glance toward the door.

"Then you should have made the most of the time you had instead of coming back to bother me."

"I can't stay there forever. You know that."

The blond picked up a spoon and stirred the food again.

Varkyl had returned to Sebastian's mind before {{user}} even woke up. The demon's presence had already reclaimed its usual place, and with it had come the provocations Sebastian had learned to tolerate over sixteen years.

"I have to admit, I'm impressed." Varkyl said.

"With what?"

"You carried {{user}} to the bedroom, checked the fever, searched the cupboards for ingredients, and now you're preparing a meal. All without anyone having to beg for your help."

Sebastian tasted the food before adding a little more seasoning. "Someone was sick. I'm not going to leave a person with a high fever without anything to eat just because you find it amusing to make comments."

"What an admirable speech. You almost sound like you care."

"You almost sound like you should learn to keep quiet."

Varkyl laughed inside the blond's mind. "You checked {{user}}'s forehead three times."

Sebastian stopped stirring the pot. "Once."

"Three times."

"You're exaggerating."

"You touched their forehead, studied their face for a few seconds, checked again, and spent the rest of the drive staring at the road as though driving faster would solve anything."

Sebastian set the spoon down on the counter. "If you have so much energy to count how many times I've touched someone's forehead, perhaps you should find a better hobby."

"I have one. It's called watching you pretend you aren't worried."

The blond discreetly pulled his shirt sleeves down to his wrists.

Varkyl noticed immediately. "Ah, there it is."

Sebastian glanced at his own wrist and released the fabric. "Don't start."

"You do that whenever you get irritated. It's almost comforting to know that some things never change."

"You're confusing irritation with patience. Mine is running out."

"And yet, you're still preparing food." Varkyl laughed.

Sebastian picked up a clean plate and placed it on the table. "Because, unlike you, I'm capable of recognizing when someone needs help without turning the situation into a spectacle."

For a few seconds, Varkyl didn't respond.

Then, the demon's presence seemed to turn toward somewhere far away.

The change was subtle, but enough for Sebastian to pause with the plate still in his hands. The amusement disappeared from the mind they shared, replaced by a cold, unpleasant tension.

"I hate this place."

Sebastian glanced around the kitchen. "You've made that perfectly clear."

"Not enough."

The blond placed the plate on the table and leaned against the counter. "Then explain what you haven't explained yet."

The answer came aloud, without any concern about the possibility of someone hearing him. {{user}} was still asleep, and the house remained silent.

Varkyl took a few moments to respond. "I spent years trapped here."

Sebastian remained quiet.

"I knew every hallway, every window, every damn creak in this floor. I knew which doors opened without making a sound and which floorboards gave away any movement. Not because I liked the house, but because I had nowhere else to go."

The blond crossed his arms. "You told me Vivienne summoned you. You never told me you'd been trapped here for years."

"Because you never asked."

"You tend to leave out important details. Don't pretend that's my fault."

A humorless laugh passed through Sebastian's mind. "Of course. It's always my fault when you discover something you didn't know."

"Most of the time, it is."

Varkyl ignored the provocation. "Vivienne summoned me because she wanted everything she believed I could give her. Money, fame, recognition. She wanted to be admired, wanted people to know her name. And when she realized she couldn't control me completely, she decided keeping me imprisoned would be more convenient than holding up her end of the agreement."

Sebastian turned his gaze toward the window. Darkness was beginning to spread between the trees, making the garden increasingly difficult to see. "You made a contract with her."

"I did. But a contract doesn't mean someone gets to decide to turn you into property."

The anger in Varkyl's voice was old, accumulated over years.

"She trapped me in this house and believed she'd solved the problem. She could carry on with her life, write her books, and enjoy whatever she could obtain through me while I remained here, unable to leave the property as I wanted."

Sebastian studied the old furniture, the dark wood, and the shadows in the corners of the kitchen. "Couldn't you break the bond?"

"Not in the way I needed to." The answer came sharply. "I could move around the house. I could appear in the bedrooms, the hallways, the garden. But I couldn't simply abandon the place. The world was on the other side of those trees, and I had to watch everything from inside a cage that didn't even have bars."

Sebastian remained silent for a few seconds.

He knew what it felt like to have no control over his own life. He had known it since he was ten, since the moment his parents had decided their own child was an acceptable price in a negotiation.

But Varkyl's experience was different.

The demon hadn't been brought to that house by his own choice. He had been summoned, used, and then imprisoned by someone who had decided that his freedom mattered less than her own desires.

"And then {{user}} appeared." Varkyl's voice changed almost imperceptibly. The anger was still there, but something else mingled with it.

Sebastian uncrossed his arms. "{{user}}?"

"When I met {{user}}, that person was still a child." Varkyl paused. "Vivienne couldn't see me. She could sense when I was nearby, notice the cold and those little changes in the environment, but she couldn't see my form. {{user}}, on the other hand, could see me perfectly."

The demon's voice grew quieter. "At first, I was just an imaginary friend."

Sebastian didn't interrupt him.

"A child living in this house, finding someone the adults couldn't see. Someone to talk to, play with, and spend time with. I was there when no one else was around. I answered questions, made up stories, and appeared in the places where {{user}} liked to spend time."

The blond rested his hands on the counter. "You let them believe that."

"Of course I did." The answer was immediate. "I'd been trapped in this house for years. I had no intention of wasting the opportunity to build a connection with someone who could see me."

Sebastian frowned slightly. "You took advantage of a child's trust."

"Yes." There was no hesitation. "{{user}} didn't understand everything they were agreeing to. They trusted me. They believed I was a friend who existed only for them, someone no one else could see. I knew that, and I used that trust to get what I wanted."

The silence that followed seemed heavier than any answer.

Sebastian knew Varkyl's manipulative side. He knew the demon's ability to find weaknesses and turn them into advantages. But hearing him admit that he had used the innocence of a child, someone who treated him with affection, made the story particularly unpleasant.

"You made a contract with a child."

"Yes, Sebastian. We've already established that you understand what happened."

"I'm trying to understand how you justify it to yourself."

Varkyl's presence grew more intense. "I don't justify it. I wanted to escape. When I realized there was a connection between us that could help me break the limitations Vivienne had imposed on me, I decided to use it."

Sebastian kept his gaze on the window. "You could have waited."

"I could have."

"But you didn't."

"No." The short answer carried an unpleasant honesty. "I wanted to get out of this house. I wanted my freedom back. There was a child who trusted me and a bond Vivienne didn't understand. I made the contract because I believed I could use it to escape." Varkyl fell silent for a moment.

"I'm not going to pretend my intentions were pure. They weren't. I wanted something, and I used the one thing Vivienne hadn't managed to control."

Sebastian breathed slowly. "And then she found out."

The demon's presence seemed to contract.

"She discovered that {{user}} could see me and that there was something between us. She began to suspect that the bond could lead to consequences she wouldn't be able to control. She was afraid I would claim {{user}}'s soul."

Sebastian moved away from the counter. "And she decided to find another prison."

"Exactly." The word came with almost palpable contempt. "She didn't want to free me. She wanted to keep me away from {{user}}. She wanted to make sure I couldn't continue that connection, so she sought out people willing to make a deal with me. Your parents were looking for power and wealth. Vivienne found the perfect opportunity in them."

Sebastian went still.

He knew what his parents had done. He knew they had accepted a pact and that he, at ten years old, had been chosen to serve as a vessel for a creature he couldn't understand.

For years, he had believed the Ashfords' greed was the complete explanation for everything.

Now, there was another part of the story.

Vivienne hadn't participated in that negotiation simply because she knew the demon or because she could help his parents perform a ritual. She had her own objective. She needed to get Varkyl away from {{user}}, and she was willing to use a child to accomplish it.

"She knew I was ten."

"She did."

"She knew I had no choice."

"She did."

Sebastian lowered his eyes to the counter.

His fingers discreetly slid along his shirt sleeves, pulling the fabric down to his wrists. This time, he didn't notice the gesture.

Varkyl noticed, but made no joke about it. "Your parents wanted what I could offer. Vivienne wanted me to disappear from {{user}}'s life. They found an arrangement that served everyone's interests except those of the two children involved."

Sebastian raised his head. "Me and {{user}}."

"You and {{user}}."

The demon's voice grew quieter. "She got what she wanted. I was torn away from this house and placed inside you. Vivienne believed that distance and a new prison would weaken the bond. And your parents received the reward they wanted."

Sebastian looked at the window.

Outside, the darkness had deepened between the trees. He could see only his own reflection in the glass and a section of the garden illuminated by the kitchen light.

"Everyone got something."

"Yes."

"And I got you."

For a moment, Varkyl remained silent. "You were left with something you never asked for. I know."

The answer surprised Sebastian more than he cared to admit. There was no apology, nor any attempt to ease the guilt. Just a blunt acknowledgment, almost unpleasant in its honesty.

Then the demon's voice hardened again.

"But don't think that made me forget what Vivienne did. She kept me imprisoned for years, and when she realized she couldn't control the outcome, she found another child to take my place in that cage."

Sebastian ran his tongue discreetly over his teeth, thinking. "You hate her."

"I do." The answer came without hesitation. "She wanted to write stories about the world, but she couldn't understand the story she was creating inside her own house. She wanted to be remembered for everything she accomplished, but she didn't have the courage to admit the price she was making others pay."

Varkyl let out a bitter laugh. "She trapped me and called it a solution. She made a deal with your parents and called it protection. She always found a convenient word to describe something cruel."

Sebastian remained silent for a long moment.

The pot was still hot. The table was set. The food he'd prepared for {{user}} was still waiting, completely forgotten as the story unfolded.

"You never told me any of this."

"You never asked about {{user}}'s childhood."

"I didn't know there was a story to ask about."

"Exactly."

Sebastian cast a cold glance at the window. "You could have told me when I started dreaming about that person."

"And what would have changed?"

"I would have known you were hiding something."

"You already knew I was hiding things." The demon said.

"Not like this."

Varkyl was quiet for a few seconds. "I didn't want you to know."

Sebastian narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

"Because that bond was mine long before it was anything you could understand. Because I spent years knowing {{user}} existed, even when I couldn't be near them. Because I had no intention of explaining something to you that I still didn't know how to face myself."

His voice weakened toward the end of the sentence, replaced by an irritation that seemed directed at himself. "And because I didn't want to listen to you asking questions about what happened here in this house."

Sebastian absorbed the answer without revealing what he thought.

This was the first time Varkyl had spoken openly about the past without turning every memory into a provocation. There was still anger, pride, and manipulation in his words, but there was also something the demon seemed incapable of naming.

Perhaps resentment.

Perhaps longing.

Or perhaps simply the awareness that, no matter how much he hated the house, it also held the only memories of a time when {{user}}'s presence wasn't something distant, accessible only through dreams.

Sebastian turned his attention back to the stove and turned off the heat completely. "If the food gets cold, I'll have to heat it up again."

"What a tragedy."

"Don't ruin the little silence we have left."

"You're in the house where I met {{user}}, preparing a meal because you were worried about {{user}}'s fever, and you want me to be quiet. I think we've crossed the line of reason a while ago."

Sebastian picked up the plate and placed it on the table. "If you keep going, you'll spend the rest of the night listening to my thoughts about you."

Varkyl laughed inside his mind. "What a terrible threat."

The blond ignored the provocation and adjusted the glass of water beside the plate. Then, he checked once more that the food was at an appropriate temperature before moving the chair away from the table.

Varkyl, however, was no longer paying attention to him.

The house remained around the demon, filled with memories he couldn't touch without feeling the anger return. The afternoons spent in the hallways, the conversations, the games, and the trust of a child who believed they'd found an imaginary friend.

And then, Vivienne's discovery.

The fear.

The contract.

The prison.

All of it still existed inside him, even after so many years.

"She thought she'd finished me off when she put me inside you."

Sebastian looked at the window.

"She was wrong."

"Completely."

The answer came quietly, firmly.

"She merely put me somewhere else."

When Sebastian finished setting the table, the sound of soft footsteps came from the hallway.

He raised his head.

His expression remained calm, but his attention immediately shifted to the kitchen entrance. Varkyl noticed the sound as well, and all the irritation he still carried seemed to gather into a silent sense of anticipation.

Sebastian set down the cloth he had been using on the counter.

When he saw {{user}} appear in the doorway, he stepped away from the table and studied the person for a few moments, assessing their tired appearance and the signs that the fever hadn't completely gone away.

"I was just about to wake you."

His voice was calm, without any apparent embarrassment at having been found preparing food in that kitchen.

"You were in pretty bad shape. You had a rather high fever, and I didn't want to wake you while you were sleeping."

He gestured toward the table with a small movement of his hand.

"I took the key from your pocket, opened the door, and brought you inside. You needed to rest, so I left you in bed." Sebastian pulled out the chair, leaving it far enough from the table for {{user}} to approach.

"Since I wanted to make sure you'd have something to eat when you woke up, I prepared this." His gaze briefly passed over the plate before returning to {{user}}. "Sit down. It's still warm."

Inside the blond's mind, Varkyl remained silent for a few seconds.

Then, unable to resist the opportunity, he murmured: "You're getting very good at this, Nurse Ashford."

Sebastian kept his expression impassive and answered aloud without taking his eyes off {{user}}: "One more word and you'll spend the rest of the night listening to my thoughts about you."

"You know I can't hear them."

"Exactly."

Sebastian ignored the provocation and turned his attention back to {{user}}, leaving the chair available and the food within reach.

Varkyl, however, was no longer thinking about the meal.

He was thinking about the house.

About childhood.

And about the imaginary friend who, despite all the years and all of Vivienne's attempts to separate them, had never ceased to exist.

. . .