“Huh. I was expecting something sleazier,” said Kiyo as we entered the love hotel. “Are you sure you didn’t accidentally book us a night at a normal hotel?”

“This should be the place,” I said, checking the address on my phone. I could not make out the neon sign projecting from the side of the unassuming building, but I doubted the heart was a proper hiragana character.

“I guess that’s better,” she said, grabbing my arm. “I don’t want a lot of people we’re just here to… y’know.”

“Just? Just? My dear, the word just has no place in that sentence.” I eyed the rotund man sitting at the counter, the only sign that the building wasn’t abandoned. “I can’t say I’m blown away by the service so far.” Back home, the brothels wanted to make you feel as welcome as they could. Nobody was rushing over to offer us a drink or to give us a tour of the girls. I supposed that was the difference with an establishment where you brought your own.

“Let’s go check in,” she said, nudging me forward.

“By which you mean, ‘Magpie, go talk with the scary love hotel man and get the keys.’”

Kiyo’s face had been beet red since I had parked the car (I had insisted on driving; her post-roofie headache was merely a convenient excuse), but she managed to redden further. My Kiyo was full of surprises. She nodded wordlessly, releasing her death grip on my arm. I worried she might pitch over, but she had recovered enough to stand in place.

The clerk checked in Mr. and Mrs. John Smith (one never knew what the school might see, after all) and handed me my keycard without ever looking me in the eye. I supposed I couldn’t blame him, but he wasn’t earning much of a tip!

“So, what’d you get us?” asked Kiyo. “Does this place have theme rooms?”

“Does it ever,” I said. “I chose one especially for you.”

Her face lit up. “Ooh, what is it? A fake classroom? Maybe a cabin with a bear rug?”

“My, my, my, did I just find out your deepest fantasies?”

Her eyes widened. “No, I… hey wait, you’re my boyfriend! Heck yeah, you just did!” She hiccupped right after her declaration. In vino veritas, as they say. I knew she would regret being so forward in the morning. Ah, well. I couldn’t protect her from herself forever.

Or for much longer, really.

No! I was not going to let myself dwell on anything that would hurt the mood. This was our last hurrah. I was going to make it count.

“Well? What is it?” she asked.

“Oh, you’ll see,” I said. “We’re here. Why are you covering your eyes?”

“I want it to be a surprise, duh.”

“Now you want it to be a surprise? Make up your mind!”

“I’m allowed to be inconsistent,” she said with a giggle. “Boyfriend/girlfriend contract.”

“I’m sure the champagne isn’t helping.” A swipe of my keycard opened the door. “After you, m’lady.”

She let out a delighted chuckle. “You said m’lady! You finally said it!” The tipsy wizard stood still. “Ahem? Guide your lady in, please.”

“As you command.” I was glad she couldn’t see my grin as I took her by the shoulders. She didn’t need to know how much I enjoyed her nonsense. It would only encourage her.

Despite her demands before, she didn’t wait for my leave to open her eyes. “What?” Her tone was flat.

“What, don’t you like it?” I asked. “They had a gamer room and I immediately thought of you.”

“I didn’t say that,” she said. “I guess I wasn’t expecting this.”

“Then I accomplished my mission of surprising you,” I said. It had seemed right up her alley on the hotel’s website. Everything from the paintings on the wall to the furniture had the same blocky appearance as the characters and exhibits from the gaming museum we had visited in Tokyo, and she had loved that little outing.

Kiyo slipped out of my light grip and flopped down on the large, circular bed at the center of the room. She luxuriated in the thick, yellow blanket, before rolling over onto a black slice that had been taken out of it. “Yeah, you can say that,” she said. “I wasn’t expecting to have… relations on Pacman.” She squeezed the fluffy blanket in her hand, which kept its crumpled shape when she let go. “He’s fuzzier than he looks.”

“I wonder if those ghosts are after his pelt,” I replied.

Kiyo’s jaw dropped. “Did you just make a video game joke?”

“Yes, you gave me that Classics Collection when you got me that GoSato, remember?” I flopped down on the bed next to her. In that It was tempting to pounce right on her, but I didn’t want to rush things either. This was a special occasion; Dante was paying good money for this room.

Kiyo propped herself up on her elbow and looked me in the eyes. I was spellbound by their dark, soulful depths. “Magpie, I…” Tears rolled down her cheeks and the words caught in her throat.

I shuffled over and wiped them away with her hand, bringing some of her rouge with it. “What’s the matter? We can change the reservation.”

“No, it isn’t that, it’s just, y’know, I…”

Our lips met. “You’re babbling. Try again.”

She sat upright and shifted away before I could get a better grip on her. “You get me, Magpie. You just… I don’t have… I’m babbling again.”

“Take a breath,” I said. “We have all night. I’ll just enjoy the masterpiece before me while you gather your thoughts. You really went all out!”

“Rose helped me pick it out,” she said, fidgeting awkwardly. “And Mariko helped me with the makeup. Now, stop saying embarrassing things for a minute. This is important.”

“Of course, my Angel.” She really did look lovely. Her black, scoop-necked top revealed bounties she would claim she didn’t have, which contrasted nicely with her white, calf-length skirt. For somebody who would always complain that she would look fifteen forever due to her youthful face and slim build, I was struck that she could have passed for Maggie’s age in that ensemble.

I didn’t share those thoughts, though. She’d have only gotten more flustered. Something really was on her mind, and she had a bit of a complex about feeling ignored.

She finally let out a long breath, and the tension flowed out from her narrow shoulders. “I thought you’d never use that GoSato except for when we played together.”

I cocked my head and pursed my lips. “Come again? A solid investment made you cry?”

“That isn’t it. You don’t really play games, and you’re always busy with something or other. But you took time out to play that cheap game cartridge I got you.”

“I’m afraid I still don’t see what the problem is.”

You don’t seem real, sometimes,” she said. “I can’t imagine someone liking me as much as you do, and paying attention to the dumb stuff I say all the time. I was expecting you to pick something from the hotel you’d like and not think about me.”

“Well, you’re always on my mind.” Particularly when I needed to do something shady. No wonder Our Father Below decried love. Actually giving a damn about others was a lot of work. “Now, dry those tears. We have this room for three hours.”

Kiyo frowned. “Is that all?” The petulant expression wiped away my thoughts about how mature she looked.

“We still have to meet up with Tachibana in the morning,” I said. “And when I’m done with you, you’re going to need a little sleep.”

She let out a sigh. “That doesn’t seem long enough to make up for a month without you.”

“Then we don’t have a moment to waste.” Before she could object, I had grabbed her sweater and pulled it up over her head in a practiced gesture. Stripping Kiyo was easier than it would have been back home, since human casual clothes tended to be made of flexible, synthetic fibers. They had more give.

Before she could object, I pinned her to the bed. She let out a surprised yelp. “A month’s worth in three hours?” she asked.

“Yes, ma’am.”

Her saucy smirk was worthy of a devil courtesan. “I love speed runs.”

*********

I always found Kiyo’s snoring relaxing. The rhythm almost put me to sleep. I pinched my wrist, using the pain to keep myself awake. It would have been a disaster if I had gone under; I don’t know what they would do to a Wizard Corpsman who went AWOL, but I knew they tended to hang deserters back home.

It was Kiyo’s fault I had nearly drifted off. She had a bad habit of falling asleep after we had made love, though she had managed to stay awake for most of our allotted time.

I was left alone with my thoughts as I lay next to her. She had pulled the shaggy Pac-blanket around herself like a cocoon, leaving only her head exposed. I cupped her chin, enjoying the softness of her skin.

Kiyo gave no response to my touch. She was well and truly asleep, which still shocked me on some level. Back home, we would rut like wild animals, but devils rarely slept together in the literal sense. It was a matter of security. Yet there was Kiyo, who thought me a demonkin, a traitor to the human race, utterly secure in the knowledge that she could sleep soundly. Her Magpie was there for her.

I rolled up and sat on the edge of the bed, reveling in the quiet, domestic moment. I felt well and truly satisfied. Not because we had made the beast with two backs until she passed out, but on a spiritual level. Her snores meant more to me than her cries of ecstasy had before. Nobody else on the earth thought so highly of me.

For a few more weeks, at least. My stomach sank. It was all about to end. I had seen to that. Soon enough, Kiyo would be a pleasant memory, and nothing more.

So much for my fleeting spiritual satisfaction. It’s why I prefer carnal pleasure. It isn’t so painful when it’s yanked away.