Team Up

Alice woke up and looked around. Everything was hazy at first, but then the sight slowly came into view. She was lying on a soft bed. Her arms were bound, tied to the posts of the bed frame. A bright white light shone in front of her eyes, causing her to squint as she stared straight ahead. She couldn't move. Something heavy rested over her stomach and legs. She gasped, straining her body, trying desperately to get herself loose. "Wh-what happened to me?!"

She glanced down.

A demon girl was sleeping, leaning on the bottom half of the bed. Her fiery hair pooled at the top as she rested her head on the girl's stomach.

"Hey! Hello!? Can you hear me!?" Alice tried screaming, kicking her legs around. But they were held in place by something tough.

Eris stirred. "Hah, five more minutes."

"Wake up! Where am I?! How dare you capture me in sleep, demon!!"

Jasmine walked in. She had a drink and a book tucked under her arm and wore a relaxed smile. She placed the cup on the table and sat down on the bed. "Good morning. Don't worry. We didn't do anything bad."

The girl grimaced. "Goddamit! Stop talking nonsense, demon!" she grunted, trying even more to escape her bonds. "Let me out, damnit, let me out!!"

She breathed heavily, sweat beading her brow, trying to muster some kind of escape, but nothing came, no strength at all, like every last bit of energy had left her completely. "Argh! Damn you!"

"Calm down!" Jasmine said, placing her hand over the girl's mouth. "And stop struggling. You can't escape, so give it up, will you?" She then removed the hand.

"Who the hell do you think you're kidnapping?! Do you know who I am!? Where's my sword?"

"Jasmine, I'm starting to dislike her. She sounds so annoying," Eris yawned, rubbing her sleepy eyes, leaning up, and letting the girl kick her. "I wanted a nap..."

"Your sword is right there," Jasmine replied, pointing at a corner where a brilliant sword was resting against the wall. "We even cleaned it and stuff."

"It's amazing, honestly," Eris marveled. "Is it actually some kind of magical weapon? It has a faint holy energy to it that isn't part of any demonic presence."

Seeing that they had taken care of her sword and even her body, Alice calmed down. She finally took her eyes off them. Her gaze swept across the room, then landed on the food and drink that lay on the table. "Fine, you're being civil, I guess. What do you want?"

"Nothing much. We wanna let you go, but only if you promise not to destroy our home," Jasmine replied. She uncorked the bottle and poured the liquid into two cups, passing one to Alice. "You thirsty?"

"No thanks," she turned her head away and scowled, ignoring the offering completely.

"Oh, come on. It's a refreshing beverage. You must be tired and in need of water. Be a good girl and take it." Jasmine grinned as she picked it up, pressing it against Alice's closed mouth. She pressed her lips together tightly. "Come on. Open wide. Good girl. And open. You're in need, no? Now, let it flow into your throat."

Eris watched, chuckling. "So, who were you? Alice? Where's your strength from?"

"I'm not very well known yet, but I'm a descendant of the hero. So we're pretty much arch-nemesis," Alice glared. "Release me."

Jasmine's eyes widened. "That's why your energy felt so familiar! Jeez, we really caught a big fish," she looked at Eris. "This is a huge opportunity! If we can get someone like her on our side, then humanity's gotta recognize us as friends, right?"

"Hold it. You aren't seriously thinking about convincing this girl to join our side, right?"

"I'm not siding with a demon," Alice snapped. "Now untie me at once. Please. I promise I'll just go, and we'll forget about this."

"That doesn't sound very convincing," Jasmine sighed. "We wanna earn your trust in some way. I know it's even harder to trust us when you're tied up like this, but maybe you can give us a chance. I can assure you that you can trust us. If we didn't have you, we would've left you as you are. Our goal is to make a world where humans and demons can coexist. We don't want to hold you hostage and use it as leverage."

"Do you really expect me to believe a word of that?" she rolled her eyes. "You are filthy demons, and your race cannot be trusted."

"Say, Alice, it seems like you know a lot of our past, huh?" Jasmine pondered, her eyebrows furrowing. She looked back at Eris. "Fine, just release her."

"Huh? But what if she..."

"Just do it."

"Alright, jeez," Eris grumbled. With a snap of her fingers, the bonds around the woman's body retracted into the bed. She was free. Alice wasted no time rolling away. She got up, staring warily at the duo before looking at her sword. But after a few seconds, she sat down again. "Alright, I'm willing to hear you out. What did you want with me?"

"As I said, we wanted to build a place where demons and humans coexist. Now, you can be the centerpiece. You're the descendant of the hero. You're destined for greatness," Jasmine explained. "If you were to befriend two demons like us, wouldn't that show the entire world that you support our cause? Isn't that important?"

"I still don't trust you two entirely. But fine, I will cooperate to some degree." She grabbed her sword and stood, facing the demons with a firm expression.

"Well then, why don't we go out for some food and a bath? I'll treat you. Food and bath for a princess," she smirked.

"I'm no princess," Alice replied, looking to the window. "But a bath doesn't sound too bad."