D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

*So what DO we get for Sylvie?*

[What is this ‘we’ you’re talking about here?]

*Oh don’t even try that. Now that WE are together, it’s OUR responsibility to get something nice for Sylvie. So what are WE getting.*

Lily huffed a bit mentally but didn’t do anything to hide the fact she was pleased about Kat’s suggestions. Sure she didn’t really know what to get Sylvie either, but at the very least she knew they could work it out. [Well you know her better then I do. What sort of thing do you think she’d like?]

*Hmm… I suppose I could get her a book on higher order mathematics or something… but I don’t know anything about maths myself so I don’t know what about it she finds interesting. Maybe psychology books? Same problem really.*

[I didn’t realise Sylvie was actually that high level…]

*Eh… she’s bordering on it. That’s sort of why it would be a gift. Sure Sylvie speaks like she ate an encyclopedia but she’s still a primary school student. A gifted one well above the rest sure, but still a primary school student. She used to steal, well I say steal, borrow really, my textbooks and try to keep up with me. That was rather hard for her, not because she didn’t always GET it but because she was missing some of the earlier content to build on it. Intelligent Sylvie may be but she’s not as knowledgeable as you.*

[But more knowledgeable then you?]

.....

*Probably? I mean… it’s hard to say. Sylvie really likes to hit the books and doesn’t have all that many friends… as she mentioned earlier… so she just… sort of reads all the time or hangs out with me? Board games are really the only social activity she participates in.*

At some point Sylvie had handed over a comb to Kat, who was now running it through the smaller girl’s hair. Sylvie had a smaller, finer comb and was running it through Lily’s. Callisto took a seat and smiled at the scene. She noticed the changing expressions on Kat’s face and assumed that some discussion was taking place, but she was fine to sit and sip tea for a bit to pass the time. If everyone decided to speak with her, good, if not… it was an adorable sight to behold.

[Could we find a… well I don’t know if she’d prefer simple or not… maybe just go for popular? Can we find some popular board game in the demon Hub? Actually we’ll need to go their for a check-up soon anyway… so if Sue or Kamiko could show us the equivalent of a shopping mall…?]

*Well Kamiko is probably still on her mission but I think Sue is free? We can ask them certainly. I think it’s also our best bet. I don’t know what sort of games Sylvie likes to play other than chess, but if we get something popular from the Hub it’ll be cool for novelty reasons if nothing else. Though… maybe look into a fancy chess set as well?*

[Perhaps but we shouldn’t look for anything TOO fancy. Remember, we, or at least Callisto and Vivian, want Sylvie to have friends. Obviously magical board games and chess sets wouldn’t be usable with anyone not in the know. Though… maybe also get one that is? Perhaps that can wait till later? I’m not sure. I mean… how long do you expect to be able to avoid people noticing you’re a demon?]

*That’s a good question… um… I have no idea? I mean… I’m hoping that at some point I get the ability to hide my demonic features before it really becomes an issue. I visited Gramps in the morning, I can shop over in the Hub. Heck, the only people who might have found out where your parents but they know now and you’re a catgirl so…*

[I don’t feel like that’s the healthiest mindset to have about it.]

*Maybe not but I don’t really know what else I can do about it. It would cause all sorts of issues if it became a big deal. I might be fine but nobody else would be. Even if in the strange even the government decided to leave us alone, at least ONE person would have to be an idiot about it all.*

[Fine. I agree with you.]

Lily’s continued thoughts, if she had any, were broken by a quiet but powerful sneeze, jolting her in Sylvie’s hands. Sylvie broke out into giggles, placed the comb down and began to scratch Lily before she could recover properly from the embarrassment. “Naw… that was adorable Lily,” said Kat out loud.

Lily cracked open an eye to try and glare at Kat for saying that out loud but Sylvie’s face was in the way and the purring was really undermining whatever malice Lily might have been able to imbue into the glare. Lily continued to purr for a while before Sylvie’s fingers got tired and she returned to combing. Lily appreciated the break.

[Ok… um… err… did you want to try out whatever new skill you have?]

*Lily the scratches are clearly still muddling your mind. I am NOT testing completely unknown powers inside and I’m certainly not doing it anywhere near Sylvie. Plus, with the fact that I’m Rank 3 now I’m not entirely sure I should even be testing things out in the backyard. My muscle control is shot.*

[Yeah I noticed that… do you think that’s normal?]

*I don’t really have any way to know Lily. Well, other than D.E.M.O.N.S but I’ve noticed it’s a bit of a blunt tool. Good for general information, but more like advanced Google then a person when it comes to answering questions. I think I’ll talk to Nira about it when you go for your check-up.*

[What were you planning to do before I brought that up?]

*Honestly? I just wasn’t going to worry about it until my next mission. I’ve got time off, I think at least, so I was just going to let whatever happened happen until next mission then find some time to test things. Maybe if Kamiko knew a place that was good for testing that sort of thing I’d ask but… eh? I don’t consider it overly important.*

[Right…]

Deciding to avoid that, Kat spoke aloud, “What are the current plans for Sylvie’s party?”

“Currently there are no proper plans. I am attempting to convince her to invite at least one person her own age, but she has staunchly refused my subtle suggestions. Yes Sylvie, this is doubling as my way to direct tell you I believe you should have friends your own age,” said Callisto evenly.

“I’ve already said that I’m happy as things are. If Kat’s going to be here then it’s fiiinee,” pouted Sylvie.

“Fine it may be, but you can’t have Kat as your only friend,” said Callisto.

“Of course not, Kat is my sister and Lily is my friend slash sister-in-law” said Sylvie easily.

Callisto managed to convey ‘see what I have to deal with’ to Kat just with her eyes. *Um… do we want to get involved in this?*

[I don’t know… Callisto is correct that Sylvie needs friends… but the way she’s going about it is never going to work. I mean… I don’t think Callisto is under the impression that she’ll actually manage to convince Sylvie of anything this way. I’m pretty sure she just doesn’t know how else to go about it.]

*I’d have thought Vivian would be able to help…*

[Vivian can walk into a room and leave it with three additional friends all without having said a word. She might be even worse then Callisto at explaining how to make friends. At least Callisto would’ve needed to actually TRY.]

*Perhaps, but we know from Callisto’s story that it took years for her to get one friend… and that ONE friend is Vivian.*

[We’re all really bad at the whole friend thing aren’t we. Actually… aren’t you the one that has the most friends now?]

Kat flinched slightly and hoped Sylvie didn’t notice. *Um… maybe? They’re you’re friends as well though…*

[Yeah but while Kamiko and Sue might be fond of me they only know me as your girlfriend that was stuck as a cat. They barely know who I am as a person.]

*They’re still your friends though…*

[Nope. They’re YOUR friends that I happen to think fondly of and who like me. We’ll probably be able to fix that quickly but it doesn’t change the fact that currently, in this room, you have the most friends.]

*There is something fundamentally wrong with this state of affairs. I feel like some cosmic force has shifted out of balance.*

[Deal with it.]