Kai closed his eyes in frustration, but soon noticed the way she started to tremble in his grasp - there was no way out of this. What she felt at this moment was nothing more than an appetiser for what was to come.

“No, I do know,” she argued and lifted her head again.

“Your desire builds up over time, I felt it once before we left my hometown,”

“What are you-”

“It was the same this time! The alluring pressure of your desire eased up the moment you embraced me!”

He couldn’t wrap his head around what she was saying and just stared at her utterly confused. However, judging from her expression it was pretty clear that she wasn't under his influence. “What are you saying?” he asked again.

“I’m saying that whatever it is that you are doing, it gets worse the longer you keep a distance,” she explained.

This was all news to him. He knew that the closer he got to his victims the more potent his influence would become. He had always kept his distance from women, thanks to the guilt that gnawed at him.

With nothing left to say he let go of her wrists and turned away with rapid steps back towards the living room. “Wait!” She ran after him, trembling without his support.

“Just let me be for a second” He got cut off by her arms wrapped around his waist. “Hey what’s- !?”

“Don’t say anything! Just let me stay like this,” she begged with a heavy breath. “... my head gets all messed up when you leave,”

He clenched his jaw and remained firm in place.

The silence grew between them and although he did his best to remain calm, the reality of his desire was trying to make him submit by force.

The tension only worked against them as his rejection seemed to elevate the potency of his powers. Eyre did her best to endure it all and wait for him to calm down, but the alluring sensation didn't seem to change at all. 

Kai remained silent, not sure what to make of this situation. Could she be telling the truth? Wouldn't that go against the whole purpose of possession? 

No matter what he couldn't let her stay like this, being this close to him while subjected to his power would only do more harm.

"You need to let me go," he pleaded and reached for her hands locked around his waist.

Eyre looked up at him with a desperate expression. "No, please… don't-"

"-Don't worry, I'm not leaving," he said as he turned around to face her. 

Seeing her like this tugged at his heartstrings and sense of responsibility. What would happen if she was wrong in her assumption? He might be the cause, but he was far from educated on his kind. 

Most of the knowledge was part raw life experience and part knowledge from texts and gossip he had come across. No one had ever mentioned anything about the repercussions around possession, aside from the fact that it would eventually lead to a broken soul. 

He sighed once more out of sheer frustration as he pulled her back up and into his arms. "I hope you know what you are doing," he scowled and buried his face in the crevice of her neck.

His embrace was harsh and incredibly tense. If not for the immense support he offered her she wouldn’t have been able to remain standing.

With a gentle hand, she stroked his back. "Thank you," was all she managed to say.

She was deeply moved by his will to cooperate despite how hard he fought to keep her at a distance. In her eyes he was special, but in truth, it went far deeper than that. 

***

Nighttime settled and the moon beamed like a bright ball in the sky. Eyre was lost in a daze, watching from her bedroom window and Kai was still downstairs and seemingly stunned after the whole ordeal.

Could it be true? 

Could there be a loophole in the possession stage?

She had never personally encountered a demon until now, but her uncle's close connection to the hunter's association had given her a chance to look through past research materials.

A few notable articles touched on a hypothesis about neutralising the effects and damage to the soul. Yet, because the clerics had the power to force the possession into a neutral stage, no one seemed to care about it.

Another strange thing was how Kai had dared to approach her, when in fact most demons were scared off by the ‘dogs’ tailing her.

Yes - Her uncle used the hunter's association to keep control of the port town, even if it meant using demons to do their dirty work, but what she didn't understand was how Kai had been able to roam free. 

He knew of the hunter's association but had no ties with them at all. There's no way her uncle would have been unaware of his existence.

"Still awake?" she jumped at the sound of Kai's voice. 

He stood in the doorway, hands buried in his pockets.

"Not yet, too many thoughts," she forced a smile and tried to brush it off as nothing special. 

He simply nodded as if he understood the deeper meaning behind her words. “How are you feeling?”

“Better? I guess,”

He sat down next to her and placed a hand on her forehead.

“What are you-”

“I don’t get it,”

“...”

“No fever…”

She swallowed as she felt the heat rush to her cheeks.

“Where did you learn how to deal with demonic possession?”

She flinched at his question and carefully pushed his hand away.

“As I said, the effect gets stronger the more you try to hold back,”

“No, withholding my powers could never amplify the afflicted ‘sin’. On the contrary, it leaves the victim unaffected… and slows down the process,”

“The process?”

“You don’t know? That’s unexpected,”

“Are you referring to the effects on the soul?”

He grinned and turned his gaze to the floor.

“So, a reverse side effect?” she asked.

“I doubt it,”

It was moments like this that had him confused the most. On one side she was still oblivious to her childhood, and on the other, she came on strong with knowledge about demons. It left him with an odd sense of being exposed and hidden at the same time.

“Listen, I have nothing against demons, and although I seem to know a lot of things, I have never actually met one in person,”

Lies; he thought. “I believe you. You wouldn’t have ‘embraced’ my presence like this, had you been used to dealing with my kind,” he said.

“I don’t know if I should be offended or happy about such a statement,”

His expression softened. “I only have a bunch of theories, but I can already tell that none of them comes close to what you have shown me,” 

Silence fell between them after her last statement.

He got up from his seat and headed for the door with sombre strides. “Get some rest. We can talk more tomorrow,”

He didn’t even look back before he was gone and closed the door behind him.