Well the gift is for you, after all

Biting your lip in excitement you give a tug on the cord, causing the knot to unravel and the heavy fabric cover to fall away. The mirror is beautiful, an almost perfect reflection of you in smooth silver and near flawless glass.

Yet for all the beauty of the mirror's huge glass panel, for all the intricate carving of the heavy black wooden frame, that is not what you notice. Perched lazily on your right shoulder is a strange little creature. It doesn't seem to be paying attention to you right now, but the more you look the more you worry. It has white horns, shaped a little like those of a ram poking through its mane of black hair, tanned skin tinged here and there with red accents, a neatly trimmed goatee, tiny black wings, black hooves at the end of it's furry legs and a long, thin tail that ends in a sharp looking triangular point.

The tail traces against your exposed neck and the little creature mumbles "Yes, yes. bask in your beauty, revel in that pretty body of yours. Think about how men's heads turn when you pass them by."

Your breath catches in your throat as you feel a few thoughts like that flow through your mind. By reflex you resist the little imp's words and you feel the tail skid to a stop upon your skin. The demon props its head up, looking at the mirror. You look away quickly, your eyes tracing up and down your five foot ten frame, taking in your slender body, your delicate skin, your small but firm bosom, your ice blue eyes and your golden blonde hair.

The tail flicks again. "That's better. What woman wouldn't wish for such a body? Every suitor in the land will want you not just for the crown but for your... jewels as well." A few more strokes and the imp whispers "You'll need to find out which one of your suitors is best in the sack!"

You make the mistake of glancing at the little beast in the mirror. It's looking straight back at you. You let out an "Eeep!" and start swatting at it. Your hands pass right through the monster, who looks amused.

"Are you done yet?" he asks.

You stop after a few more futile swats demonstrate that your hands pass right through him.

He gets to his feet, puts his hands on his hips and looks back at the mirror. "Well that's annoying. An actual silver mirror rather than any of the perfectly good alloys we spread the recipes for. Heh, cat's out of the bag now." He spins toward you and when you look over you realize that you can see him with your own eyes now, not just in the mirror's reflection. "Hello there Karina, my longtime travelling companion. My name - or as much as you're getting - is Vysan ter Vissias, but please, call me Vys."

"Who, what? How?"

"Ah, must be that solid tutored education of yours at work."

You stare at him furiously and ask "If you're the little devil on my shoulder then where's my angel?"

"Ah the little angel - why she's missing it seems. All I can say for you is that maybe the Gods didn't like you - or maybe they thought little princess perfect wouldn't need an angel. But then again, maybe you already know about the kind of thing that makes for a baby without an angel."

"I don't!" you say, holding back tears, already suspecting what he means.

"Come on now, how would you feel about carrying a babe when husband dearest is busy fucking the pretty innkeeper's daughter?"

Damn him - that was something you were never supposed to learn. The truth about Sir Arrick Stone, your father's other child.

"It's not all bad. So maybe mommy didn't love you so much when you were growing inside her. Maybe she let the maids and nurses take care of you. Maybe daddy wished he could have pumped a girl into the innkeeper's daughter and a handsome boy into the Queen. You're still the one inheriting a kingdom, so it ain't all bad."

You wipe away your tears and try to think about how to rid yourself of this demonic pest.

"Now you are a smart girl. So listen up - you need keep quiet about me."

"What?"

"Hey, you want to be known as the princess with a devil on her shoulder? You know your uncle will just have to whisper about me and poof! There goes your throne - even if they got rid of me who'd put a demon princess on the throne?"

"They wouldn't call me that!"

"You're right - not all of them. I bet everyone would come up with some new explanation of why you ended up with your own personal devil. Perhaps 'The imp's whore' or 'The sovereign succubus' or 'The bed maiden of Belial'."