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It’s been 2 months since Paper School reopened. Previously, before Miss Grace bought the property, the school was shut down because of missing peoples reports and paranormal activity. Grace, however, had a hard time believing the rumours, and since it was being sold for a cheap price, she saw it as a steal.
Things were going great. She hired a lovely set of teachers, Miss Sasha, Emily, and Mister Demi. She had full faith in them and their ability to educate students.
When Miss Grace was patrolling the halls one day, she couldn’t help but overhear the conversation between a pair of students.
“This place is haunted, I swear.”
“I stayed after school once, and the whole time I felt like 3 sets of eyes were watching me!”
It would’ve been reasonable to assume that it was all bluff. But curiosity is deadly.
So, after school that day, Miss Grace waited until the clock hit 5. She walked down the halls, the click of her heels echoing through the corridor. With a flashlight in hand, she reached the storage closet. Slowly opening the door and stepping inside. When she did, the door was immediately slammed shut, causing her to gasp.
A low chuckle could be heard from the shadows, the already dim room seemed to be getting even darker. Grace’s eyes darted across the room, trying to find the source of the noise. That’s when she remembered that she had a flashlight, so she clicked it on.
When the space was illuminated, a demon like figure could be seen. It stood at a staggering 9 feet tall and had long, sharp horns, it’s tail laid along the floor and it’s face wore a sinister grin.
“Now, what do we have here?..”
Miss Graces jaw dropped open, her eyebrows furrowing. Her heart was practically beating out of her chest and the blood rushing into her head was all she could hear. Once she could process what she was seeing, she let out a shaky breath, trying to steady herself. She couldn’t tell if what she was seeing was real or if it was all a dream. With a wavering voice, she replied. “Who.. are you?”
“The names CIRCL€.” The creature said. The mere mention of the demons name made Miss Grace shiver.“I’m sure you’ve heard a story or two about this school being haunted, yes?”
Grace stood in place, not daring to move a muscle as the supposed demon circled her. There was an air of confidence about CIRCL€, and the way they spoke, like they had been around awhile. But, she kept her composure, nodding. “Y-Yes. I’ve heard.”
“Perceptive, aren’t you~?” The being purred, suddenly disappearing into thin air and then spawning right in front of the other woman. “You’re lucky you summoned me instead of any of the other two, I fear they wouldn’t have taken you too kindly.
The way CIRCL€ acted made Miss Grace dizzy. They treated her as if she was prey. Which, she probably was.
It took a moment for her to process. Two?implying that there was more than one demon? Grace found herself swallowing the lump in her throat. What had she gotten herself into?
“The other two—?“ She managed to say, though the nervous crack in her voice was undeniable.
“My friends. BLØØMIE and THÆVL. We share a body, and we take turns fronting.” The demon said, its tone starting to shift. “We don’t like you, you know?” It said, stepping closer, pinning the woman against the wall, her sharp nails running across the wooden door behind them. Grace gulped.
“We we’re here first. This place has been ours for more than 200 years.” The demon growled, bearing its teeth. “What makes YOU think you can just take it away from us?”
“And we’re hungry. We have been for a while.” CIRCL€ said, their long tounge slowly curling out of its mouth. “We all feed off different things.”
“Fear.”
”Stress.”
“But me?”
The demon chuckled, getting all in Graces face. She tried to lean away, but the door behind her made it impossible.
“As of late, I’ve taken a liking to human flesh..”
Miss Grace stood frozen. The mention of human flesh made her visibly paler. With her back pressed against the door, her mind began racing, frantically trying to think of a way to escape, until she remembered—
The cross that hung safely around her neck.
The demon didn’t even seem to notice, slowly cracking open its jaw, ready to swallow the principal whole.
Without wasting another second, Grace quickly reached up, pulling the cross out from under her suit. She composed herself, knowing that she couldn’t show even the slightest hint of fear, or she’d be indirectly feeding the other demons that resided inside CIRCL€. She frantically held it out towards CIRCL€, A stern look in her eyes, but her arm was trembling.
“Stay back.” She said, her voice a mixture of uncertainty and determination.
The demon instantly recoiled, letting out a sharp hiss and teleporting into the darkest corner of the room. It stared at Grace, it’s glowing eyes narrowing. “The nerve of you humans.. It’s aggravating.”
The way CIRCL€ reacted to the cross instantly let Grace know it was working, and her knees went weak with relief. Though she was trembling, she slowly relaxed her stance, the cross still held out in front of her. Graces heart was pounding in her ears, but she managed to hold a stoic expression.
“You… feed off flesh, yes?” Grace asked, the demon slowly nodding in response.
“Are you stuck here?”
”Why do you care?”
Grace found the demons change in attitude slightly amusing. “Answer the question.”
It grunted. “Yes. It’s been so long that I hardly even remember how I ended up here.” The demon said, keeping it’s gaze on the principal.
“There’s nothing I want more than a human being to feast on.”
“And you.. look.. so..…appetizing.” The demon snarled, rapidly growing in size, it’s horns practically pressing against the ceiling. It crawled towards Grace once again. “Are you humans always so greedy?”
“Just, let me have one.. singular.. bite..”
As CIRCL€ loomed closer, the adrenaline coursing through Grace’s body kicked into overdrive. Panic was quickly setting in at the thought of being consumed, and she found herself trying to press herself further back against the door, which she did to no avail.
But then, an idea came to her—though the mere thought of it sent dread through her. Her voice shook, but she managed to reply.
“..How about..a deal.”
The demon paused, tilting it’s head with curiosity. “..Go on.”’ A wide grin crawled onto its face.
It’s common knowledge that making a deal with a demon is nothing but pure stupidity. As the demon slowly halted its approach, Grace’s mind was racing, but she kept her hand held firmly out with the cross.There was a flicker of security as she prepared to present the demon with her offer.
“Two conditions.” She asserted, her voice firm. “One… You do NOT touch me, my staff, or the students…”
“Hm..” CIRCL€ stared, their long tail swishing back and fourth. “And the second?”
Grace took a deep breath to steady herself, gathering her thoughts. The next part of the negotiation was crucial. Making a deal with a demon would always have a heavy price.
“As long as the first condition is upheld, I’ll give you… flesh. Of. My. Own.”
There was some hesitation in her voice, but she knew there was no going back. The tip of CIRCL€S sharp tail began making it’s way to up Grace’s chin, tilting it up slightly, A small shiver ran down her spine as it did so.
“Would you mind if I made a slight addition to your offer?” They said with a grin.
She could only imagine what the demon was going to say.
Miss Grace swallowed the lump in her throat before slowly nodding.
“I get one bite of your flesh, every month, whenever I want..~” The demon giggled, seeming a lot more giddy now that they would possibly get to eat. “You’re a fool if you think one bite alone would satisfy me.”
To think that just a while ago, this demon thing was the one calling HER greedy.
The thought of enduring the pain of letting a demon feast on her flesh terrified her to her core.
There was a moment of hesitation, but she had to accept the deal, for the sake of her staff and her students.
“I… accept. But the terms are not to be broken. Understood?”
“Hehe. Yeah.” The demon smirked, reaching out its large, sharp claw. “We’ll shake on it if you don’t trust me.”
The way the demon smirked made Grace nervous, but she managed to stand her ground. She couldn’t show weakness here, not now. So, though a wave of dread washed over her, she slowly nodded and reached forward, taking the demon’s claw and shaking it.
Smoke filled the area, and when it cleared, the demons taloned hands grasped her shoulders, digging into the clothes of the principal. “Lets start now, shall we?”.
“R-Right now?” Miss Grace managed to croak out.
“I did say whenever I want, didn’t I?” CIRCL€ said, letting her long tounge wrap around the womans neck like a serpent. Grace whimpered, taking in a deep breath of air.
The demon’s words rang in her ears, a cruel reminder of the terms she agreed upon. She desperately wanted to pull away, but she knew resisting would only make things worse.
“Just… Get it over with…” She managed to say through shaky breaths. The demon let out a sound that resembled a low hum, it quietly searched Graces body for a spot to feast on, deciding to go for the neck. CIRCL€ lightly bit down on the soft skin, making an indent.
Grace closed her eyes, bracing for the pain.
Not a moment later, the sharp teeth of the demon pierced through Graces flesh. CIRCL€s long tongue making sure that not a drop of blood was spilled.
A wave of immense pain shot through Grace's body, making her wince. Each second seemed to stretch out into eternity. Despite the agony, she tried to remain still, her hands clenching.
The moment wasnt quite over, however. The demon began to tear the flesh away from the neck, leaving an open wound. The demon swallowed it whole, licking its lips in satisfaction.
By time CIRCL€ finished feasting on the flesh of her neck, the whole ordeal took less than a minute. But to Grace, it felt like forever.
She stood there, wide-eyed and in shock over the pain she endured. The adrenaline beginning to subside, she instinctively brought up a hand to touch her now bleeding neck, catching her breath.
"Good... Good.." The demon said. "You did good, for a mere human... Was that so bad?" It chuckled.
The demon’s taunting laugh made a shiver go through her spine, She looked at the demon, her hand still lingering on her wound, wincing slightly.
"Your kidding. That was... the most excruciating pain I’d ever experienced in my entire life." She said, her voice wavering ever so slightly.
"Well, you're going to have to get used to it, arentcha?" The demon snickered, giving the principal a lick on the cheek with the slightest hint of affection.
Grace blinked.
”Why did you lick me?”
”Take that as a thank you for helping me out.”
Looking at the demon, she let out a small sigh, her shoulders slumped.The demon quickly shrank in size now, a sign of contentment. It nestled next to the principal like some kind of weird, spikey cat.
"Oh! I almost forgot about your neck." CIRCL€ slowly placed their palm on top of the wound, pressing on it. Grace instinctively tensed up, bracing for more pain. But to her surprise,When the demon lifted up its hand, her neck was healed.
Miss Grace gently brought her hand up to touch the now healed skin, a flicker of relief crossing her features.
"You can... heal?" She managed to say, looking at the demon with curiosity and wariness.
”All demons can. You didn’t know?”
”How was I supposed to know that? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Dunno, But it added to the thrill, did it not?” CIRCL€ said smugly.
A small huff left Grace as she processed the demon's response. She couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle. "You're quite sadistic, aren't you?"
"Oh, for hells sake. Im a demon." CIRCL€ giggled.
Grace rolled her eyes. What a reminder that she was indeed dealing with a creature that reveled in causing pain and suffering.
"Right, because being a demon automatically comes with a side of sadistic tendencies?" She replied, a hint of sarcasm in her voice.
"Correct!" CIRCL€ said. "Oh, pardon me. I haven’t quite gotten your name yet. Tell me, what would that be?”
Grace paused for a moment, taken slightly aback by the demon’s request for her name. It was an unexpectedly civil thing to ask, considering the circumstances.
"My name is... Grace." She responded, her voice still a little wary. "Grace... Okay, Gracey. We’re going to have a lot of fun together!"
“Yeah, looking forward to it.” Grace said satirically. It was clear her life had drastically changed from this point on.
"Anyways." The creature rose up. "My time is up, the others are getting cranky. I’m sure they’ll be overjoyed when they take notice of how full they feel.”
The demon slowly began disappearing into the darkness, waving a claw. “Until next time!
“Yeah..” She replied, managing to crack something of a smile, her hand still lingering on her now-healed neck. “Until next time.”