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Barbatos did not know what to make of the human exchange student. When the young master had announced the idea of a non magical human participating in his project, he had voiced his concerns. A human would not be able to comprehend a realm beyond their own. A human would not survive an entire year in the Devildom. And a human that had died in the Devildom under the supposed protection of Lord Diavolo would bring about the ire of the Celestial Realm. But alas, the young master would not be himself if he was not ambitious.
And thus, Barbatos has yielded to his young master’s will. Though he had resigned himself to preparing to alter the timelines for when the inevitable would happen. When MC had arrived in the Devildom, thoroughly frazzled and scared, Barbatos had believed himself to be right. The human would drown in fear and terror, unable to comprehend the realm of demons and its much more powerful inhabitants, which would ultimately lead to their demise, as it is no secret demons were drawn to human fear and despair.
What he had not expected was for the human to befriend the most powerful beings in the Devildom. The human had adjusted rather quickly to life in the demon realm, even having acquired pacts with multiple of the seven Avatars of Sin. And what’s more, they seemed to be immune to Asmodeus’ charm and any other demon’s, for that matter. The young master himself was singing their praises. And while this powerless human acted as if these demons who could kill them instantly were their equal, their friends, Barbatos watched. Beneath his carefully crafted mask of cold politeness, he examined every movement, every expression of the human that had the mightiest demons of the Devildom wrapped around their little finger. He itched to look at the future timelines involving the mortal, but his Lord did not grant him permission to do so.
One fateful day, he caught sight of the human perusing the shelves of the RAD library. Alone. Barbatos watched in the shadows as they cursed to themselves while scanning the countless ancient books. He decided this was the perfect opportunity to sate his curiosity and so, he revealed himself behind them.
“Greetings, MC. May I offer my assistance?” His polite smile and rigid posture did not falter as the human yelped and whirled around, eyes wide like that of a doe. A short burst of delicious fear wafts towards Barbatos and he reveled in it.
“Goodness, Barbatos! You scared the hell out of me!”, they exclaimed and laughed, placing a hand to where the demon could hear their heart pound.
Barbatos hummed. Humans and their curious expressions… “Is that so? I apologize. That was not my intention.” He bowed his head stiffly in apology. “Now, I could not help but notice you were searching for a specific book. Perhaps I can be of help?”, he offered. He walked over to them with measured steps.
The human cleared their throat and smiled awkwardly. Their discomfort was to be expected, as Barbatos had not often talked to them and had rarely been alone with them. It was not as much as because of him actively avoiding them, but rather because of his many duties as Lord Diavolo’s butler having kept him occupied. “Um, yes. Satan recommended a book to me for my Seductive Speechcraft class. It’s…” They pursed their lips and unfolded a small piece of paper. “‘The Art of Corruption’ by Crowley?”, they read and looked at him hopefully.
Barbatos chuckled behind his gloved hand. “Ah, a classic.” He moved even closer to the human, keeping eye contact. They seemed to freeze at his approach, clutching the paper harder and their breath hitched as Barbatos came to a stop only a few inches away from them. He kept smiling at them as he reached his arm beside the human’s head and pulled an ancient tome from the shelf behind them. Redness bloomed across their face. By no means was Barbatos unaware his form was perceived as attractive by many humans and he was not above using that fact to his advantage. It seemed as though the exchange student was one of those humans. Barbatos stepped back and swiped the dust off the cover with a graceful movement and held it out towards them. A mumbled thanks reached his ears and he watched intently as they averted their eyes and stowed the book into their bag. Barbatos’ eyes held an amused glint. It never ceased to entertain him to draw such reactions from mortals. “I have heard your professor praise your work in this particular class. It seems to me that you have discovered a new talent. The young master is quite pleased, as am I. Seduction is an art only few master perfectly.”
The human smiled and rubbed their neck. "Ah, it's nice to hear that. But I am only human, I could never be better at seduction than you demons", they said dismissively and chuckled.
Barbatos smiled. “Well, I suppose it is true that we demons are more experienced in such affairs. Regardless, your prowess is undeniable and quite exceptional for, as you put it, only a human." He watched closely as their smile widened a bit and a curious glint flashed in their eyes.
"Say, Barbatos…" They hesitate a bit and he leans in ever so slightly, anticipating their request with sharp eyes and keen ears. "How many humans have you corrupted, approximately? Many, I imagine?"
He let out a small chuckle at the question. How unexpected of the human to have such a morbid curiosity. Were they not scared? Peculiar, indeed. "If I had to guess, over the span of the last millennia I have corrupted upwards of thirty thousand souls", he said. He kept a hint of a smile on his face as he watched their eyes widen. Still, he could sense no fear in them. No, they looked… awed.
"You- wow! That's- that's a crazy amount!", they sputtered and let out an incredulous laugh.
Barbatos hummed and closed his eyes for a moment. “Of course, it’s just an estimate. I have not kept a record. The actual number is likely higher than that.” He kept talking in a matter of fact tone and his smile widened as they raised their eyebrows in disbelief. “Humans are rather easily manipulated once you understand how the mind works. The hardest part is convincing them you’re not manipulating them”, he mused with a sadistic glint in his eyes as the mortal listened attentively and hung onto his every word.
"Just out of curiosity…" They hesitated a bit. The interest they showed was surprising to him, but he did not let it show in his expression. "How do you think my mind works? How would you go about corrupting me?"
Barbatos stilled for a moment. Did this human have no sense of self preservation? But he already knew the answer, didn't he? The thought of corrupting their beautiful, shining soul… Barbatos cleared his throat. "Let us say you were my target. I would begin with something seemingly innocent. Some simple compliments, perhaps a show of kindness to build trust. Then, I would find a desire or feeling of yours that I could use to manipulate you to my whim with some clever words, ensuring that it never occurs to you that you may be being manipulated”, he explained. His smile was still in place, though they might find it to be rather… predatory, rather than polite as usual. He watched with great interest and care as the human's lips stretched into a smirk. They stepped closer.
"So what you're saying is… you're halfway through corrupting me then?", they ask playfully.
"Perhaps."
Their eyes twinkled in spite of the dry answer. Barbatos heard their heart beating faster. "So, what's your next move? How far will you go?"
Barbatos raised a finger to his chin in thought. Should he entertain the thought of actually corrupting their soul? No, he really ought not to. His lord would be beyond furious, as would the Avatars be. The angels and Solomon too, most likely. But then again, he was the master of time… "Your curiosity shows me you are willing to have your boundaries tested, maybe even pushed. This could be exploited to my advantage, especially if I were a malicious and manipulative demon.”
"Oh?", they asked breathily and leant closer. Now, their voice was only a murmur. "Are you such a demon?"
Something ancient and primal pulse within him, his base demonic instincts battling with his crafted constraints of reason. The teal light of his now glowing eyes illuminated their face. “Unfortunately, these traits are present in most, if not all demons.” His voice was strained, fighting to upkeep his polite facade. He ran his tongue over his now forming fangs and flicked his eyes to their neck. It was visibly pulsing with the frantic pumping of blood. What would it taste like? Sweet and innocent, or rather bitter and rich? His breathing grew faster, his chest heaving in a way he is sure the mortal had noticed by now. Could they not see they are playing with fire? How were they not running yet? He looked deeply into their eyes, pushing a small wave of his power in their direction. They shuddered. He had seen them resist the gaze of Asmodeus, but how would they fare against him? The thought of being the one demon who could snare their soul, when many others, powerful ones, had tried and failed… Barbatos struggled to stay in his human form. “I must wonder if you desire for me to test your boundaries?” His voice was almost a growl now, low and barely human. The mortal's breath hitched and he could sense a twinge of desire in their soul.
"Perhaps."
He smirked as they repeated his words, exposing his fangs. They did not recoil. No, they only seemed to be drawn in further. Barbatos experimentally stroked a tendril of his power against their shiny soul, letting out a pleased hum as it pulsed and twitched in his direction. The human gasped, their wide, innocent eyes locked on his. “I won’t lie, trying to corrupt you would be a rather… entertaining feat”, he said, his mouth stretching into a full blown smirk. His facade was cracking and crumbling like eroded stone. He stepped closer to them, so their chests were barely touching. He had to suppress a primal growl as their heart stuttered and quickened.
They raised their chin, exposing more of their delicate neck to him. The mortal pushed their face closer to his, so they could whisper in his ear. "Then let me entertain you."
Something inside Barbatos snapped. He buried his fangs in their neck without hesitation. Sweet, metallic blood filled his mouth, feeding the beast inside him and making him groan. A pained gasp escaped them, but soon enough, he could taste lust blooming in their soul. He slammed their back against a bookcase, making it rattle. The mortal hugged him tight, one arm around his back, the other hand tugging his head further into their neck. Barbatos shuddered as he felt their thumb stroke the base of his horns. When had he changed into his demon form? He neither knew nor cared. His tail was wound tightly around their torso.
When his lord and the avatars would find out, they would be beyond furious. No matter, he could simply jump back in time and choose to not visit the library, or erase this timeline altogether. None would know.
Barbatos bit harder, relishing in the taste. Then, he pulled off with a squelch and ran his tongue across the wound. He was panting, as were they. Barbatos stroked their cheek and grabbed their waist. He leant his forehead against theirs, his glowing eyes looking deep into their half lidded, glazed over ones. “Tell me", he commanded with a voice rumbling with demonic power, engulfing them with his magic. "What are you feeling right now?” His lips brushed against theirs as he spoke. Another tendril of his magic wound around their soul, squeezing it greedily. His. His. All his.
They whined softly, panting against his face. "Desire... so much... desire...", they whispered breathlessly and pushed their body further against his, gasping when they felt his aroused body against theirs.
A pleased hum emits from him. “Yes. Let the feeling flow through you.” He sucked on the bite wounds on their neck, drawing more blood. He closed his eyes in bliss. “Feel that? The rush you’re feeling?", he murmured against their neck. "It is me controlling you. It is my power over you. You might say that I am corrupting you, and you enjoy how that feels." He raised his face to theirs again, licking the stray blood around his lips with his tongue. "I’ve seen that look on humans before. Tell me, am I correct?”
They shuddered in his hold. Their soul was pulsing with lust and desperation. He pressed his hips against theirs and smirked as they moaned wantonly. "Yes!", they gasped. "Ruin me!"
Barbatos chuckled at their begging. A sinister sense of pride filled his chest. He had proven this human to be just as ordinary and weak minded as the rest of their species. They might have somehow ensnared the prince of hell and his seven lords, but the truth was they were not special at all. Like all humans do, they fell right into a demon's trap and fell victim to their magic. He could tell them anything and they would obey without question. If the avatars or even his master had them in their grasp like this, he was sure they would whisper sweet promises of love and protection in their ear. But Barbatos was not like them. His grin grew and he felt lust of his own rush through him at having his magic wound so tightly around them. Claiming them.
“I will ruin you to your core. Then you will be nothing but my creation. My plaything. Would you like that? Would you like to give me your soul?” Barbatos’ eyes were wide and predatory. He had always loved this rush of knowing just one more word would seal the human’s fate forever. Just one word and their soul would eternally be his.
For a long moment, they stare deeply into each other's eyes, aroused bodies pressed tightly together. And then-
The human laughed.
They threw their head back and burst into almost hysterical laughter, tears falling down their cheeks. "You- you really thought you got me, didn't you! Oh my god!", they exclaimed between their laughs and moved a hand up to wipe their tears away. "Oh, Barbatos…"
…
What?
Barbatos was frozen. He stared at the mortal with wide eyes. Then, he let go of them and staggered backwards, as if wounded. His tail twitched in irritation and he narrowed his eyes at them. How? How was this possible?
"Explain", he commanded. His mind was racing, thinking back on their reactions, trying to find out how he had failed in seducing them. Never, in his many thousand years of existence had a human been able to resist him. Had he truly been fooled, bested, by a mere mortal?
Their laughter receded to giggles and they wiped the last tear from their eye. "You see, I was just really curious to see how far you'd go if I let you."
Barbatos' eyebrow twitched. For the first time in several centuries, he was rendered speechless. "Looks like I manipulated you! Oh, isn't that hilarious?" They snorted and broke out into laughter again, though this time not as hard.
Barbatos mulled over their words and reconsiders what had just transpired. They… they were correct. Barbatos had been so sure to have had complete control, when he was the one being played like a fiddle. To his own surprise, he was not angry. No, he was… intrigued.
He shook his head and smiled, placing a hand on his chest. The smile he was wearing was not the distant, polite one he had always shown them. No, this one was genuine and held an air of amusement. “I suppose you have. Well played.”
They giggled and waved their hand dismissively. "Oh, I just took your own advice. Your tactic works quite well!"
Though he found himself amused, he still eyed them sharply. It almost felt like he was looking at them for the first time. Not just skimming over their being and dismissing them as irrelevant, but really seeing them now. MC was everything but ordinary. He could not recall ever having been so interested in a human. So now I have fallen victim to their charm too. He ponders. This must be what the young lord and the avatars saw in MC.
“Well, you’ve certainly managed to teach me a valuable lesson. It seems you’ve gotten the best of me”, he praised them. A mortal that could withstand the temptation of the most powerful demons… MC had to possess at least some amount of magic. Barbatos would have to advise his lord to examine their lineage. If his suspicions were true, they would be an unpredictable-
A gasp interrupts his musings.
“Speaking of lessons, I’m late!”, MC exclaimed with wide eyes and gathered their bag that had fallen to the ground at some point during this ordeal. “See you!”, they shouted as they sprinted to their class.
Barbatos watched them round the corner of a bookshelf and disappear from his sight. For just a moment, he had the strangest urge to reach out and make them stay for just a while longer. “Until we meet again, MC.”