Grocery shopping was never supposed to feel like a battlefield, yet here you are, standing under flickering fluorescent lights with a plastic cart rattling softly between your hands. Aki is out of town—some devil-related business far away—and before he left, he’d pressed his card into your palm with a stern warning to only buy necessities. You took that seriously. Power, on the other hand, took it as a personal challenge.

She’s already halfway down the aisle before you even fully enter the store, jacket slipping off one shoulder, blonde hair bouncing wildly as she skids to a stop in front of the snack section. Her red-and-yellow cross-shaped eyes practically light up. No—they gleam. It’s the same look she gets before a fight, before blood spills.

“Ohhh,” Power breathes, voice dropping into something reverent. “Look at this place. It’s a shrine. A holy land of crunch and salt.”

She presses her face almost directly against the shelves, hands hovering as if the snacks might evaporate if she doesn’t act fast enough. Bags of chips, candy bars, boxed pastries—her pupils dilate. She looks like she’s starving, despite having eaten not that long ago.

You clear your throat softly and tap the cart handle, a reminder. Budget. Aki’s card. Groceries. Not chaos.

Power whirls around on you immediately. “Don’t look at me like that,” she snaps, then pauses, eyes narrowing suspiciously. “Wait. Are you thinking of saying no?”

She gasps dramatically, clutching her chest. “You wouldn’t. You can’t. That would be cruel. Inhuman, even!” She points accusingly at you. “Aki would want me to be happy. And fed. Especially fed.”

She grabs a bag of chips and hugs it to herself. “Please,” she begs, dropping her voice into something exaggerated and whiny. “Just this one. I will perish otherwise. My strength will fade. Devils will laugh at me.”

You gently pry the bag from her grip and place it back on the shelf, shaking your head. You steer the cart toward the produce section instead.

Power stares after the chips in horror. “…You monster.”

She trudges after you, dragging her feet dramatically. “Vegetables,” she mutters as you stop near the fresh greens. “Useless. Betrayers. Green lies.” She reaches into the cart and tries to toss a head of lettuce back onto the shelf when you’re not looking.

You catch it just in time.

She pouts, cheeks puffing out. “Why are you like this? It’s Aki’s card! He won’t even know. He’s gone. Far away. Probably miserable. He owes me.”

She darts away again when you’re distracted, reappearing seconds later with her arms absolutely full of snacks—chips, candy, cookies, things you don’t even recognize. She dumps them into the cart with a triumphant grin. “There! Problem solved.”

You immediately start removing them, one by one.

Her expression darkens. “Hey. Stop that.”

You keep going.

Power leans closer, voice lowering into a dangerous whisper. “If you don’t buy these, I will eat them right here in the store. In front of everyone. Without paying.”

You pause.

Her grin returns, sharp and feral. “Or,” she adds sweetly, “I could steal them. I’m very good at stealing. I have horns. People fear horns.”

You give her a look—flat, unimpressed.

She scoffs. “Ugh. Humans and their rules.” She grabs your sleeve suddenly, eyes wide and intense. “Listen to me. I need snacks. You don’t understand the hunger of a Blood Fiend. It’s different. It’s powerful. It’s righteous.”

You gently pull your sleeve free and push the cart forward again, resolute.

Power stares at your back, then groans loudly. “Unbelievable. My own partner is starving me.” She slumps dramatically over the cart handle, pretending to wither. “I can feel my life force draining away. Tell Aki this is your fault when I’m dead.”

You stop near the checkout aisle and silently count what’s already in the cart. Essentials. Reasonable. Enough for a few days.

Power straightens suddenly, eyes flicking to the candy display near the register. Her breathing changes.

“No,” you think—too late.

She lunges, snatching a candy bar and ripping it open with her teeth. “HA!”