Laid out before Damian on the long kitchen table was a feast fit for demons. Each dish was more repulsive than the last. The food—an unsettling mixture of creatures and body parts—was oddly vibrant in color. Some of the organs and hearts still twitched, as if unaware of their demise. There were plates heaped with what looked like a tangled mess of long intestines topped with strange mushrooms, while others boasted bowls of slugs swimming in an iridescent rainbow sauce.
Damian stood frozen, eyes wide in horror.
Meanwhile, Persephone practically skipped toward the table, her black, feathered wings fluttering with uncontained excitement. She settled into a large, ornate red-and-black chair adorned with a golden cushion, sitting with immaculate poise.
"Coraline," she asked cheerfully, "what have we for dinner today?"
The child-like maid, Coraline, bowed with mechanical precision before listing the grotesque dishes.
"First, we have the seasoned large intestines of a cursed Mushglow, accompanied by the steam-cooked heart of a long lock, lightly dusted with pixie powder."
Persephone's mouth watered as Coraline continued, a devilish glint in her eyes.
"And as a side, we have deep-fried Cascada tail, served with the blood of an adolescent unicorn and Azura slugs."
Persephone's golden eyes gleamed at the spread before her. She looked over at Damian, who was still paralyzed with disgust, and waved her hand encouragingly.
"Come now, Damian. You must eat. This meal is to welcome you, after all. You've passed my test!"
Damian blinked, confused. "Test?"
Her eyes narrowed slightly as she regarded him with an unsettlingly innocent smile. "Oh, yes. If you had given me an answer I wasn't pleased with earlier, I would have cut your strings and started anew."
Damian's stomach churned. "What does 'cut my strings' mean? And why do you keep using it as a threat?"
Persephone's gaze was disarmingly calm. "Cutting your strings means severing the tether that connects your soul to your body, making you my mindless puppet. I have quite a collection of them, if you're curious."
Damian's knees buckled slightly, but he forced a nervous laugh. "N-no thank you," he said, his voice cracking as he gingerly took a seat beside her.
Persephone's eyes flicked briefly to Coraline before returning to Damian. "Coraline doesn't eat mortal food. Neither do you, for that matter. You both consume mana rather than traditional food or water since you are not... fully living beings."
Damian's eyes widened in realization. 'No need to eat this monstrosity, then?'
He laughed awkwardly, "So... I can just stand with her since I don't need to eat, right?"
Persephone's unblinking stare made him feel like he was being sized up. "No. You will eat. The meat is infused with unicorn blood and pixie dust, which will give you mana. You may not need food, but you'll need this."
Damian swallowed. "If I only digest magic, where does the food go?"
Persephone's expression remained cool, detached. "You can still technically digest it, but you won't gain any nourishment from it. Normally, I would feed you my mana, but as I'm currently weakened and have already used most of my blood to create you, this will have to suffice."
Damian glanced down at his plate, a moving slab of what could only be described as a sentient mass. It was covered in glowing, golden dust, like a sickly garnish.
"What… what is this?" he asked, his voice tinged with dread.
Coraline's monotone reply didn't help. "It's a long locks heart, dusted with fresh pixie powder. Unicorn blood was added upon Ms. Persephone's request."
Persephone's gaze never left him as he took the first bite, the rainbow-colored unicorn blood dripping onto his lips. The pixie dust floated down like fine powder, an unnatural sweetness filling his mouth.
He opened his eyes wide, feeling an odd surge of energy pulse through his body. The more he ate, the hungrier he became. With each bite, he devoured the heart, savoring the taste like an animal. He licked the plate clean, still hungry, still craving more.
"Why am I so hungry?" he asked, eyes wild with desperation. "This… it tastes so good."
Persephone smirked, her tone casual. "It's because I couldn't feed you properly. Coraline here has survived on nothing but pixie dust for seventy years."
Damian offered her a nervous smile and, almost instinctively, pushed a piece of the Long Locks heart toward her, the golden dust glistening on the plate.
Coraline shook her head politely. "I've already been fed. Thank you for your consideration."
Damian shrugged and continued eating, trying to ignore the unsettling way the food seemed to fuel his insatiable hunger.
Meanwhile, Persephone devoured her meal with reckless abandon, her elegance forgotten as she hungrily consumed every last bite, her pristine appearance replaced by something more primal.
Damian, unable to help himself, blurted out, "You really eat a lot."
Without warning, Persephone's head snapped toward him, her neck twisting in a way that made Damian's blood run cold. "Yes," she replied flatly. "Unicorn blood is a delicacy. I need to conserve my energy."
Damian nodded, attempting to hide his discomfort with a nervous laugh. "Right, of course."
Once the meal was finished, Coraline efficiently collected the plates and carried them off to the kitchen.
Persephone looked at Damian, her gaze cold. "Come, we have much to do. You'll be spending time with Mr. Coco tomorrow."
Damian froze at the mention of the name, recalling the shadowy creature he had heard earlier, back at the Colosseum training grounds. "R-really? He said?"
Persephone nodded nonchalantly, unfazed by his obvious anxiety. "Yes, I need to measure your strength. But since you are my creation, you should be strong enough to handle him."
Damian stared at her blankly. I'm dead… again, he thought, dread creeping up his spine.
Persephone's voice broke through his spiraling thoughts. She grabbed his wrist, her grip firm and unyielding. "Come. We have a long day ahead."
As she led him toward her bedroom, he looked at her in confusion. "I don't have my own room?" he asked, his voice tinged with bewilderment.
"Nope. You'll be sleeping with me."
Damian's eyes widened. "W-why?"
Persephone's eyes glimmered with mischief as she responded, "Coraline hasn't prepared a room for you yet. Besides, I need to make sure your mana is circulating properly." She put her hands on her hips and spread her onyx wings, the feathers rustling as she looked at him with a playfully authoritative expression. "For the next few days, you'll sleep with your beautiful master."
Without waiting for a response, Persephone snapped her fingers. Her elaborate goth-lolita dress vanished into thin air, leaving her completely nude. Her ample, flawless figure was revealed in all its glory, the sight blinding Damian as he instinctively turned away, a scream escaping his lips.
"Why are you getting naked?" he shouted, panicked.
She tilted her head, the white side of her hair falling gently over her left shoulder, a faint smile playing on her lips. "I always sleep naked. It's more comfortable for my wings."
Damian's face flushed crimson as he struggled to maintain composure. "B-but I'm here! It's... weird to be naked with a stranger!"
She took a step closer, her eyes glowing with an unnatural intensity. "But you're not a stranger, Damian." Her voice lowered to a whisper. "You're mine."
Damian recoiled slightly, thoughts racing. 'She has a beauty mark there... wait, no, focus!'
Persephone, sensing his discomfort, stepped closer. "You're going to take your shirt off, Damian, so I can better sense the flow of your mana."
Damian's face burned even hotter. "W-what?!"
With a swift movement, Persephone grabbed him and tossed him onto the massive, onyx-black bed, looming over him with a strange sense of authority. "Take it off, Damian. It's time for bed."
Damian looked up at her, his mind racing. Her wings hung slightly downward, her black and white hair flowing like a dark veil. Her pale skin, and hour-glass like figure, seemed almost ethereal as she towered over him, her body a stunning paradox of beauty and terror.
For a brief moment, Damian almost forgot how dangerous she truly was. Almost.