My Father led me deeper, and deeper into the Pride Ring, the anticipation of meeting someone who knew my father personally welling up within as I fought to contain myself. "So," I began, curiously looking around, "is this friend of yours an Overlord as well?" "One of the most popular amongst her side of the Pentagram, my dear." My father said with a smile, and his signature upbeat tone. "Oooohhh, it's a lady? I bet she's VERY pretty." I replied, skipping ahead slightly when my father called, "Don't wander too far! You never know whose looking to run you through, or incinerated your flesh before they eat your guts out like-" "Oh, dad, don't be so vulgar! I've traveled through the Pentagram at a young and tender age with no problems. In fact, should someone had messed with me they wouldn't BE here, so I'm rather confident that I'll be fine." I assured, and I went on ahead when he growled, "Foolish girl, you've only been lucky! I'll bet that against an Overlord like myself, you'd have no chance." "That's why I've come to you-not only for your acceptance and approval, but also your care and time. In due time I'll rival even the most confident of evil Overlords in Tartarus, if you'll allow me." I said, sounding hopeful. "You? Rival an Overlord?! HAHAHA! My dear, you can't even BEGIN to hope to rival an Overlord if you have not first observed them. HOPEFULLY this friend of mine can set you straight- maybe even teach you something of value." He replied, somewhat mysteriously and dismissively as he snapped his fingers, bringing me back to his side in a wink. Begrudgingly, I kept to his side as we continued to stroll and wander the battered, war stricken streets around us until we came upon a small, quaint, old timey looking settlement, to which I stopped dead in my tracks as I asked, "I've never been here before. Where have you brought us, father?" "This, Jess, is Cannibal Town!" Father replied enthusiastically, doing Jazz hands before a pink, carved, stone sign that read the name of the settlement. ""Cannibal Town"? You've brought me to a place where sinners EAT each other?" "Don't judge so quickly, silly child! Cannibals are probably one of the most tightest Demon communities in the God Forsaken place- quite respected as well if you get the chance to chat." "But won't we get, I don't know.... Eaten?" I asked, feeling nervous. "Nonsense! Come, I'll take you to my friend." "Your Overlord friend?" "Preeeeecisely!" We journeyed past the stone sign, and I was enchanted by the ladies dressed in their vintage best, and the gents likewise! The shops that surrounded the plaza held a various array of items, both morbid and beautiful- or even a mix of the two! "W-Wow, this place is breathtaking for a village of Cannibals. Just look at how they're dressed, father! The ruffles and bows on the dresses are simply divine. And the colours all blend together perfectly, like a nice herbal mint tea!" I exclaimed, pointing over at a couple ladies at a table gossiping, and wondering what it was they gossiped about. A coach had passed down the road, and to my horror, I spotted a young man run into the street to get to the other side when he was run over, and eventually deceased.... My blood running colder that death, and my heart pounding in panic, I rushed away from my father towards the man to see if there was any signs of life when a swarm of Cannibals closed in on us like a murder of crows. "Sir?! Sir! Are you alright?!" I asked, furiously shaking him awake, but it was no use..... He was completely gone.....! My eyes welled with tears as I murmured, "No... No please, PLEASE wake up!" It was then my father reached through the crowd, grasped my arm, and yanked me out of the swarm of denizens as they all leapt onto the corpse, and tore flesh from bone, organs from cavities in the body, and the sickening sound of a few breaking the bones for the marrow within as I screeched in horror, "STOP! STOP! DON'T YOU ALL HAVE ANY HEART?!" "Hey, princess! Why don't you just run along and tend to your duties?" An elderly man snapped, to which I replied in disgust, "This man must have a wife and children. I assume they'd wish to bury him! You know, lay him to rest?" "We are laying him to rest." The old man replied, and a little girl squeaked, "In our bellies! He's SOOOO tender, and flavorful." "Ugh!" I cried in despair at the visceral sight before us while my father simply said, "It's not nice to play with other people's food, foolish girl." "B-But.... They're..... How can one....?" I couldn't even find the right words as he pushed me along the sidewalk, and it wasn't long until we ended up at an extravagantly vintage building titled "Franklin and Rosie's Emporium".... Only.... The name "Franklin" had been crossed out, leaving only the name "Rosie" in it's wake as I stared on in curiosity. "Something on your mind, child?" Father asked, curling his back and looking at me from an upside-down view as he held onto his fancy cane. Snapping out of my thought, I looked over at him quizzically as I asked, "Whose "Franklin" and "Rosie"?" "Franklin has been erased a LOOOOONNNNNNGGGGG time back. In fact they made her all worthwhile!" ""They"?" My Father glanced around, his grin growing wider as he hinted to what he meant, and making my stomach drop as I stammered, "O-Oh.... Right......" "Don't look so sullen, girl. Keep a smile on your face, a head about your shoulders, and a spiked tongue and you'll find that NOBODY will look at you twice! Besides, Cannibalism is a facinating practice- you should try it sometime." He replied, taking my arm in his. "And Rosie? Who is she?" "You shall find out when we enter. Come! Or would you like to become a sentient snack?" He mused darkly, and I quickly began to walk alongside him into the walls of the Emporium. Once inside, I found myself immediately enthralled by enchanting products, ranging from Perfumes to shoes that glittered in the dim lights. "Ooooohhhhhh, How grand!" I breathed, leaving my father's arm and looking around in amazement when I suddenly hit something behind me. "Hey, watch it you air head!" An elderly woman screeched, making me jump in suprise before replying quickly, "Oh, pardon me ma'am. I-I was so enthralled with the wares that I didn't see-" "Yack, Yack, that's ALL you young Tenderloins do..." she grumbled, pushing her way past me as my face heated up in embarrassment. "Shame on you" a woman called, making me turn my gaze back to the front as my eyes widened. Hundreds of Cannibals stood before me like an undead horde, their eyes angry, and their glinting teeth bared and ready to tear into whatever they can grab! The crowd followed behind the woman, some chanting while other's threatened, all the while closing in on me! "I-I'm sorry, I REALLY didn't mean it! H-Honest!" I pleaded, backing away to put space between myself and the crowd as they all continued to hiss and snarl at me-a few children even leaping out to taunt me with a graze across my knees or legs! They were a rowdy, stubborn, obnoxious bunch for sure, and I could feel the annoyance and anger bubble up inside like I did my first day at the hotel, and I looked to my father for help, only to find that he was now gone! That bottle of slug slime done scarpered, and left me for dead! Panicking, I didn't know what else to do other than attempt to fight my way out, which was an easy resolve since you can't POSSIBLY feel bad about killing someone who intends to do you harm, but before I could do the deed I heard another woman's voice boom over the snarling and hissing, "WHAT is going ON here?!" The crowd whirled around in suprise as a tall, slender woman came from the shadows in a pretty, vintage, crimson coloured dress, and a lovely, large hat atop her head! Her hair was short and white, styled into delicate curls here and there, and her nails were long enough to be considered blood painted claws, but her presence gave authority-unlike every other Cannibal in the room! My jaw hung low; leaving me hypnotized by her grace that I nearly forgotten the crowd, and a man grasped my arm before pulling me into her view as he declared, "This wanderer came in and caused a boat load of trouble Ms. Rosie! Can we eat her? Her muscles look lean and juicy." So SHE was Rosie?! "P-Please, Ms. Rosie, you must listen! I-It was an accident- I only wished to look at your wares when I bumped into the lady. Please, PLEASE tell them to let me go?" I cried fearfully, keeping my eyes pinned to the beautiful treasure of a lady, and she narrowed her eyes in disapproval before saying, "Release this girl, IMMEDIATELY!" And as she commanded, the crowd backed off, not before voicing a few disgruntled murmurs in the process, and Ms. Rosie rushed down the stairs to the shop's plaza as she asked gently, "Oh, goodness me, are you hurt anywhere?" "J-Just my wrists... They have quite the grip...." I replied, watching the crowd file out the doors to the Emporium. "Come! Have a seat with me sweet meat, and we'll talk." She offered, snapping her fingers to summon a chair.... Only.... For a chair, it was quite animated. "I-I'm truly sorry for the ruckus- never did I stop to think that they'd overreact!" I apologized again asthe chair approached a table, with the table meeting it halfway as Ms. Rosie took a seat in front of me. "Don't you worry your pretty brains over them. One tends to get withdrawals from the lack of consumption, and they'll do just about ANYTHING to satiate the hunger." Ms. Rosie began, pulling a pastel, square, flat box from beneath the table to open it- revealing dark chocolate candies inside! She plucked one of the candies out, and popped it into her mouth as she turned the box to me, and after she swallowed, she asked "Could I tempt you with one? It's quite popular amongst the young ladies and gents these days!" "What is it?" "Dark blood chocolate dipped eyeballs! They're absolutely delish, and has the perfect touch of sweetness all girls like. Here, try one! I insist." She explained, picking another one out of the box to put into my palm, still in the wax paper cup it came in. I took the candied eye from her delicately, and weighed the option in my mind as I began slowly, "W-Well.... Daddy DID say it was a facinating concept.... and he DID say I should try it..." "Ah, yes, speaking of that I had a little discussion with him earlier while you were getting... Erm...."Acquainted" with the others! Said he wished for me to tell you more about the man he truly is?" "Y-Yes! H-How long have you known him?" I asked, taking the eye, and decidingly trying it. It was an odd texture of chunky, gooey, and jellified, but as Ms. Rosie promised, it was the perfect sweetness. Surprisingly delighted by the treat, my eyes grew wide as I simply exclaimed, "Wow!" "See? Told ya it wasn't that bad!" Ms. Rosie giggled, and my face turned red as I thought about asking for another. As if she could hear my thoughts, she pushed the box between us to share, and I gladly took another from the box as she replied to the initial question. "I've known Alastor since his arrival. He always held that same intriguing aura he had then as well!" "Really?" "Absolutely! Though, he was just a freshie at first." ""Freshie"?" I asked, taking another candy. "Fresh meat, dear. We around here call them "Freshies"! One day, out of the blue, your father had this abrupt surge of power course through him, and even the top Overlords were no match for his overwhelming strength!" "Angel Dust at Miss Charlie's hotel told me about that. Heavy hitting, and highly feared, right?" "Respected more like. You gotta have the upper hand, and it never hurts to use fear as a field play if you desire such a response." ""Fear"?" "Fear, extortion, physical violence, anything can go depending on where you find yourself." "Then why not use it against your enemies?" "The world we live in as Overlords-it's very brittle like an eggshell. Play your cards right you live, and maybe make some useful and powerful allies in the process. But one slip would easily end up with you in binds, or erased altogether! There is a reason we Overlords trust very few, and even our most trusted allies still don't COMPLETELY have our trust." Ms. Rosie explained, showing me an example with a deck of cards before cutting them all simultaneously with a pair scissors to get her point across. "So it's a lose lose then?" I asked, confused. "Not exactly, more of a self preservation technique. Even our informants and dealers cannot be trusted, lest we expose our weaker selves and get sold out." "But SURELY you could trust family, yes?" I asked, raising a brow in confusion. Ms. Rosie stayed quiet in thought for a second, her face looking completely stumped before saying, "I can't speak much for myself.... But just know that there's gonna be certain things your father keeps to himself, and tidbits that he may be willing to share with you if you're on his good side. Don't take it to heart if he keeps a secret or two from ya!" She patted me on the head, and took a chocolate from her hand before chuckling. "Watch this!" She mused, and she tossed the chocolate into the air before catching it in her mouth. "Impressive!" I fawned, clapping as she smiled wide. I plucked one up myself, and tried to do exactly as she had done only to have it bonk my nose, and roll away. "Owww..." I whined, holding my nose as Ms. Rosie laughed. I went to stand up and retrieve the treat when she held up a beckoning hand for me to sit back down. "Don't worry, dear, the rats will take care of it." "A-Ah... I see..." I replied sitting back down when a strange device caught my eye. "Ms. Rosie?" I inquired, "What's that horn thing there, on the the counter?" Ms. Rosie looked over towards the odd device, and a sneaky grin came across her face as she got up from her chair, and strode across the room. She turned some sort of crank, and placed a flat, black piece of plastic on the tray before putting another device over it, and to my amazement, music began to fill the little room we conversed in! Fascinated, I joined at her side to observe the odd music player a bit more, and she commented, "You may've been raised in the modern times, but you have your father's passion for the old and vintage. It's a stunning touch that makes you so much like him in every way!" "It's pretty, the music." I replied, in a trance by the tinkling of Flutes and robust sounds of Tubas! "It's "Mozart". One of the most renown composers that ever lived in the human realm." She explained, taking my chin in her hand as she moved my hair from my face. She brought me out of the room, the music still flowing throughout the little shop as my eyes fell upon a mannequin. It donned the loveliest white dress I've ever seen, stopping right at the ankle with a matching coloured sun hat. The sun hat had a pink sash tied around the top, and trailed down the front to the hip as it hung on the neck, and I gingerly took one of the ends that hung when I asked, "Whose dress was this?" "Hm? Oh, nobodies. I'm not just an entrepreneur, but a seamstress as well! Do you like it?" "It's fantastic! Like a princess's gown." I fawned, placing the ribbon back onto the front of the casual looking gown. "Weeeeeelllllll, I wouldn't say it's THAT extravagant. I'm sure Lucifer's daughter has WAY more luxurious threads than I can even hope to snag." Ms. Rosie replied, coming up to me, and placing both her hands on my shoulders as she asked, "Do ya want it?" "I would if I had any money to give you... It seems an expensive outfit, even for an Overlord's child..." It was only then Ms. Rosie snapped her fingers, and the dress and hat on display were immediately on my body as she said, "Don't worry about it hun, think of it as a gift from your Aunt Rosie." She replied with a wink, and smiled a kind of smile a mother would give her child. Smiling myself, I thanked her for the dress as my father suddenly materialized out of thin air, asking, "Did you ladies have fun?" "F-Father!? Where WERE you!?" I asked, suprised. My father chuckled, and simply replied dismissively, "Running important errands, doing the usual and such." "Well, in any case, you're here now. How do I look?" I asked, doing a little twirl as he observed. "Looks like you're about to be offered up, but the look suits you." He replied with a laugh, and my face sort of faltered a little before straining back to a smile as Ms. Rosie giggled, "Oh, Alastor you kidder!" "I-It was.... A joke..?" I asked, confused. "The offering bit dear, he was serious when he said you looked great." She replied, and she went back into the room to turn up the music before coming back into the Emporium lobby. She held out her hand to my father, and, obliging to her outstretched hand, began to lead her in a graceful dance. I had only heard from mummy how suave he was, but seeing it for myself... I felt proud that I had such a man as my father! After about twenty minutes of dancing with him, Ms. Rosie grasped my hand in hers before gently setting it into my father's; nudging me towards him as he stood flustered. "Come now, don't you get cold feet on me Al." Ms. Rosie teased playfully, and he regained his composure as he slowly began to step. I hadn't danced before, so I was confused on what to do when he said, "Let me lead." As he commanded, I let him lead me in the slow cadence; soon enough being able to keep up with the turns and steps he took. I laughed joyously, and my heart felt really light as we continued to dance, and I truly did feel like a princess. I had LOADS to tell Miss Charlie when we returned, from the bit about meeting Ms. Rosie to how my father and I had danced for hours, and she seemed enchanted by it all as she listened. I was happy today went smoother than yesterday, and I really felt that our bond as Father and Daughter were growing.