Chapter 10: The Incubus

Anise goes on her first date with the incubus.

I've been settling into a routine within the past few days with the monsters. I would wake up and enjoy a wonderful breakfast that Zam prepares every morning, practice some of my magic (without any mishaps), work on some school work online, and enjoy my free time by casually practicing some light magic while watching documentaries. I would visit Mystis in the gardens, explain my magic to Beo, barely see Endrian, deal with Cassi's flirting, wave at Danton silently, and help Zamuel with some chores around the mansion. Life was simple. And I liked it a lot.

But, I knew that I was to get off my butt and start taking my roommates seriously. The first date I had was with Cassius, something that I had been dreading ever since I read his name on the schedule. I was hoping that the days would move slowly so I had more time to think and prepare myself for it. Unfortunately, there are no spells that halted time and there always will be only twenty-four hours in a day.

Before I knew it, the day had come. Tonight was my date with Cassi. I have noticed that he seemed much more flirtatious in the past couple of days. It was probably out of excitement for our date. I really wished that I could be equally as excited, but it was hard for me to overlook the fact that he was an incubus.

What was an incubus doing in Hazelview? I have no clue. Probably seducing some of the bachelorettes around the area. That seemed like the most likely possibility. Then again, I shouldn't make assumptions about why everyone was in this small town. The only thing I was really looking forward to for the date was to learn about how Cassi got cursed if that conversation topic can be brought up. I was curious on how all the monsters got cursed.

I stood in my room in front of a mirror, holding up two different dresses, looking back and forth between them. While I wasn't necessarily looking forward to the date in its entirety, I at least had to make an effort to look good. I had no idea where Cassius was taking me either, so that didn't help. I looked over at the black dress covered in light pink roses and then back over at the purple dress with sheer black sleeves. Eventually, I settled on the purple dress, pairing it with a simple black choker.

As the time to get going was fast approaching, I couldn't help but feel more and more nervous. I haven't been on a date before, and to know that Cassi was going to be my first date was in a way, disheartening. I thought that my first date would be with someone that I was truly interested in. Someone that I genuinely had a crush on. I never imagined that my first date would be with a seductive demon from Hell. A playboy.

I zipped up the back of the dress and stared at myself in the mirror. My hair was in a messy bun, something I should probably straighten out. As I began to fix my bun, there was a knock on the door. Putting in the last bobby pin in my purple hair, I answered the door to find that it was Zamuel. I sighed in relief, thinking that it would be the demon himself, ready for our date. The zombie butler must've noticed my reaction as he gave a small, reassuring smile.

"Someone seems to be quite nervous." He simply commented. I made some room for him to enter and I shook my head, another sigh escaping my lips.

"You have no idea. I don't even know where we are going. I don't even know how to act around him. All he's done is flirt since we've met. I'm afraid that that's all he's going to do throughout the date. . ." I admitted. Zam's smiled died down as he listened to my miniature rant, his silver eye clearly conveying what I guessed was sympathy.

"Mr. Faren can seem like nothing but a playboy, but there are different sides to him. He helped your grandmother a lot back when she was still alive. Well, perhaps 'help' isn't the right word. He more or less kept her company lending the occasional hand when she asked. He was sweet towards your grandmother, and not in a flirtatious way." Zam revealed.

My grandmother seemed to not only be a grandmother to me, but to everyone in the house. Everyone respected her and missed her as much as I did. It did surprise me to hear that Cassius was of some help though. I expected Zam to tell me that he spent his time chasing girls around town. "Thank you, Zamuel. That piece of information does make me feel a little bit better."

"I'm sure you'll find something in common with him. I don't doubt that his nature won't be toned down, but I'm confident that you'll gain something from the date. Anyways, I came to wish you luck and to help your nerves. I take it that my mission was successful?" Zam inquired.

I gave a soft smile and looked up at him, grateful for his words of comfort. I actually felt my cheeks heat up a little. "It was. Thank you again, Zam."

"No trouble at all, Ms. Devane. I'll leave you to finish getting ready. If you need anything, I'll just be cleaning in the foyer." He bowed and left the room. Zam always seemed to know just what to say to help me. As he left, I took a deep breath and finished getting ready by putting on some light makeup and black kitten heels.

Moments later, there was another knock on my door. The knock was musical in a sense, signaling that it was Cassius this time. When I opened the door, I expected to see the familiar demon in just a blazer and dress pants. He usually walked around shirtless with just a blazer. Instead though, we wore a white button down and black tie along with his midnight blue blazer and pants. In his arms was a bouquet of purple roses.

"Ah, My Angel. You look lovely this evening. Are you ready to go?" He smiled his signature, seductive smile and handed the roses over. I was surprised that he was acting a little gentlemanly now. Being gifted a present at the beginning of the date was really old-school. But, I really appreciated it. I especially appreciated that he was wearing a shirt.

Putting the bouquet of roses in a vase in my bathroom, replacing an older bouquet that I made from the flowers growing in the garden, I answered his question. "Ready as I ever will be. Where are we going?"

Cassi chuckled and put a finger to his lips. "That's still a secret, my dear Ani. Come along now. I don't want everything to end up getting ruined."

I quirked a brow and followed. Besides the nicknames, it was almost refreshing to carry on our conversation without any banter from him. I followed along, my nerves starting to come back as we made our way out of my room and soon enough, out of the mansion. A taxi was waiting for us outside in the driveway, the taxi driver that had dropped me off when I first moved into town. She smiled at me through the window and Cassi opened the door for me to hop in.

I got in the taxi and watched as Cassi gently closed the door behind me. While I waited for him to walk around the other side to get in, the taxi driver spoke to me. "I take it that you settled in nicely considering that you're going on a date with Cassius. But I must warn you, you aren't the first girl he's called a taxi for. He's a bit of a playboy. But who knows? Maybe you can change him."

He finally opened the door and settled into the seat next to me, buckling up and signaling for the driver to start going. I stared out the window and watched all the trees pass us by, more and more leaves falling off the branches as Fall became more prominent. The car ride did feel a bit awkward, at least from my perspective. I didn't know what to say. It took me some time to figure out how to get a conversation going. "Thank you for the flowers, by the way. They were lovely."

"Of course. I want your first date to be the one you would never forget. Speaking of our date, we're here." Cassius casually replied. The car slowed to a stop in front of a nice italian restaurant, a safe and classic choice considering that he didn't know too much about me. You could never go wrong with pasta.

The door was opened for me and I was helped out of the car. After tipping the driver, Cassi looked towards me and smirked. "We won't be dining on the main floor with everyone else. I have a special place set up just for us."

He began walking down a dark alley to which I followed cautiously. A small flight of stairs that led to the roof were located further down the alleyway to which the incubus began to climb up. Once I got to the roof, I saw a little table for two decorated with a white tablecloth, rose petals, and candles. Along the ground were rose petals and candles illuminating the area around us. The view of the town as also something to marvel at.

Seeing Cassius among the flower petals and candles, standing by a chair, pulled out and waiting for me to sit down, it made my cheeks burn up. It looked like he put in a lot of effort into this date. The look in his eyes wasn't the usual look of desire either. It was sincere and inviting. Another incubus trick?

"Won't you sit down and share a meal with me, My Angel?" He called over. My heart skipped a beat as he said this, his tone still flirty but much more welcoming. I hesitantly took a step forward until I ended up near the table. I took the seat and he helped push me closer to the table. He took the empty seat across from me and scooted in. His face seemed much more gentle above all the candles.

A waiter ascended the stairs and met us on the rooftop, filling our glasses with water first before asking about appetizers. I took a quick look at the menu and ordered a Caesar salad to start. Cassi ordered some escargot and the waiter nodded before going back down to the kitchen. There was a moment of silence between us as I looked around, admiring the stars, the town lights from above, and the petals that littered the table and ground.

The incubus smirked and settled his chin in his hand, his elbow propped up on the table. "Like what you see? Although, I would prefer it if you were looking at me."

"Cassius, this whole setup, it's gorgeous. Thank you for the effort. I really do appreciate it." I responded, trying to ignore his last line. I knew that some lines like that were going to slip sooner or later.

He went a little wide-eyed and grinned at my thanks, clearly grateful for it. "It's no big deal. The only trouble I had was making sure that this scene was as perfect as you."

Before I could reply, out appetizers were delivered to the table. My salad looked great on my plate while Cassi's looked equally as appetizing. The waiter asked us about our main courses to which Cassi ordered for the both of us. A chicken alfredo for me and a carbonara for himself. I was shocked that he ordered my favorite pasta dish. I wondered how he knew that it was my favorite. He must've noticed my expression since he smirked at me.

"Your grandmother made a fantastic chicken alfredo. It was her favorite, so I guessed that it was your favorite pasta dish as well." He explained. Once again, I was proven that my grandmother was close with all of the monsters. I relaxed in my seat and felt like I could carry on with the conversation.

"How close were you with my grandmother?" I asked. Cassi's expression only became much more gentle as he reminisces about the times he had with my grandmother.

"Rosemary was a kind and strong lady. I would lend her a hand sometimes while she worked in that magical room. I would clean and organize things for her, fetch her things from the top shelves. In return, she would make me homemade cologne and give me life advice. She was truly a heavenly being. You take after her, you know?" He stared deep into my eyes as he spoke.

I listened carefully as I munched on my salad. Knowing my grandmother, she probably scolded him for being a bit of a playboy too. Her appreciation for his help would've trumped over her disgust though. "I see. Thank you for helping my grandmother when she needed it. Can you tell me more about your relationship with her? She never spoke about any of you guys, so I'm curious to know more."

"Of course, Ani. She really tried her best to get to know us and to help us all escape our curses. Opening up to her wasn't easy for everyone, but since I'm a pretty open man, it was easy for me to explain my situation to her right off the bat. She always seemed to like my honesty at the very least. She was able to give it to me straight too, something I liked about her as well. We both shared that trait, I believe. Honesty." He continued, finishing off the last of his escargot and taking a sip of water.

It was no shocker that he was an open and honest monster. It wasn't a surprise that grandmother liked that about him. "If I may ask, how did you end up getting cursed and confined to this town?"

"That's an easy one. Simply, I broke the wrong heart a long time ago. I was courting what I learned later was a powerful witch from this town and being an incubus, I moved on to another bachelorette. It was part of a job that I was doing. She found out and cursed me to stay within this town forever. I still found it to be an odd curse. She could've cursed me to be ugly or to always stay with her instead."

"Nope. I just simply can't leave Hazelview. It's an inconvenient thing too since as an incubus, I don't age. I come across the same people I use to court sometimes and I have to hide myself to avoid suspicion. I was lucky enough to find the mansion and hide out there. It's been about nine years now since I've been cursed." He carefully described to me.

I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. Whether he deserved the curse or not, no one should be forced to stay in town. Being a witch myself, along with being a woman, I could better explain to him why he may have been forced to stay in town. "Well, I think that the witch you met long ago wanted you to have to face the women you also left heartbroken everyday. To face the people that remember you as the playboy that broke their hearts must be tough. Unless. . . you don't feel remorse?"

At that, Cassi's face fell and he appeared slightly embarrassed. "That does make sense. Rosemary said something similar not too long ago, but I was a little too frustrated with the curse to hear her properly. As for the whole remorse thing, I suppose I do feel sorry. It's part of my nature, it was my job. I. . ."

He trailed off, seeming to now look right past me and out into the scene of the town behind me. I looked behind me to see if he was looking at something important, but I found nothing behind me. "Cassius?"

He snapped out of it, blinking and shaking his head. "Sorry, My Angel. As I was saying, I suppose that I do feel a sense of regret in breaking the hearts of so many women, even the cheaters. Some things you can just never get over."

I was going to ask him what he meant by that, but then our food was delivered to our table and the conversation topic changed. "I know that you are still in college. What does an educated and growing lady like you want to do with her life after graduating?"

Above all else, I wanted to become a witch like my grandmother and mothers, but I knew that that wouldn't help me make too much cash. Not enough to support myself at least. So, I explained that I wanted to go into botany and possibly double major in crystallography, both subjects that I could relate back to my witchy practices. Cassi seemed genuinely interested in my studies and offered his assistance in anything I needed like he did for my grandmother.

After a while, I couldn't help myself but ask about his past relationships. He was still an incubus after all. Even if he seemed very human moments ago, I had to remind myself that he was a demon. "So, how many women have you brought here?"

"I just knew you were going to ask me that question at some point. I'll be honest with you, you're the first person I brought up here. I usually come to this restaurant and dine on the roof when I need some alone time. A nice meal with a great view always cheers me up. I'm just glad that I can share it with you now, Ani." He laughed before he took on a much more sincere tone. My cheeks turned red. I didn't expect to be the first lady he's brought here. Cassi was actually full of surprises.

We finished up our meals and continued to chat. Soon enough, the waiter came by and inquired about dessert. Cassius ordered a chocolate lava cake to split and the conversation continued. I found myself becoming more and more relaxed by the minute. We talked like regular people did, asking about future dreams and hobbies. We were genuinely getting to know each other and I was starting to see Cassi was not just an incubus, but a man with other interests. There was the occasional flirty remarks here and there, but other than that, he was acting like a gentleman.

The chocolate lava cake was split, the outside soft and moist while the inside was hot and rich. It was absolutely delicious. As I swallowed a bit of cake, Cassi cut a small piece with his dessert fork and held it up near my mouth. The look in his eyes were seductive again, though there was a mixture of something else within them. Adoration? Admiration? "Here. Say 'ah'. . ."

A heavy blush swept over my cheeks at the gesture. Normally, I would have refused. This time though, I went along with it. I don't know why or even how I managed to to it, but I did. I opened my mouth and let the incubus feed me some chocolate cake. It reminded me that we were on a date, making my heart skip a beat. The way that he smirked at me made my heart picked up in pace as well. There was a lot more to Cassi than I initially thought.

Dessert was finished and Cassi paid for the bill. I shivered as I stood up, forgetting my jacket back at home. Continuing to impress, my date took off his blazer and draped it over my shoulders. "Here you go, My Angel. Don't want you to catch a cold."

"Th-Thank you. . ." I stuttered, growing that much more conscious of his actions. It no longer seemed that he was being flirty to just seduce like an incubus did. It seemed that his actions were genuine, like he was actually interested in me.

We walked down the stairs and began to walk home, Cassius' hand grazing against mine every once in a while. My blush continued to grace my face as we walked, Cassi stepping closer to my side. "If you had to rate this date on a scale of one to ten, what would you give it?"
'
". . . I would give it a solid eight. I have no frame of reference, but I thought that this was a great date." I gave it some thought before revealing my answer. It really was a nice date. I was uncomfortable and skeptical at first, but I was amazed at all the effort he put into it. He looked at me, pride written all over his face along with an adorable smile. Another aspect about him that startled me, Cassi could also appear to be a little cute along with being handsome.

"I'll take an eight! I would rate this date a solid nine myself. There's only one thing that would make it a ten out of ten. . ." He hinted.

Being a little oblivious, I tilted my head, trying to think of what would make this date better for him. As we approached the house and stood outside the large doors, I suddenly felt my hand being taken up in a gentle grip. It was soft and warm, something that I didn't want to let go of anytime soon.

I couldn't believe what I was thinking. Just as I pushed the thought out of my head, I felt a pair of warm lips meet my freckled cheek, the smell of his cologne just now hitting my senses. It wasn't too strong and it smelled nice. It must have been a cologne my grandmother crafted for him.

My heart skipped a beat as he pulled away, his pink eyes meeting mine. For a second, I could've sworn that his gaze went down to my lips. His face moved an inch closer to mine, causing me to shut my eyes tight. I expected to receive my first kiss, but I only felt a peck on my other cheek instead. I opened my eyes to see Cassi smirking and looking pretty smug. "Anticipating a kiss, Ani?"

My face blushed hard and I began to stammer once again. "I-I. . ."

"It's okay. Perhaps soon. I don't want to steal your first kiss like this. I want you to give it to me instead. When you absolutely fallen head over heels for me that it. I know that that will be soon. For now, why don't you clean up and get some rest, yes?" He teased a little, his lines now affecting me.

He opened the door for me and I headed inside. As I ascended the stairs, I paused and looked back down at Cassi. He was smiling up at me, flipping some of his long, dark purple hair back over his shoulder. "Hm? Miss me already?"

"Th-That's not it. Your jacket. . ." I shrugged off his blazer and handed it over to him before dashing up the stairs. I could hear him chuckle behind me and throw his jacket over his shoulder.

"Good night, My Angel. I'll see you in the morning." He said his final words before heading to his own room for the night.

I closed the door to my room and plopped down onto the bed. My heart was still pounding from earlier and I couldn't help but imagine what it may have been like to actually share a kiss with the incubus. Just thinking about it made my heart pick up in pace. Trying to get it out of my head, I headed into the bathroom to wash up before bed. I started the waters and waited for the tub to fill up. As I waited, I noticed the purple flowers sitting on my white, marble bathroom counter.

And I couldn't help but smile.