Ralli thinks about Bella...

... Bella is my closest friend among the teaching staff. No... among anyone. I... believe it is wrong to think of her this way. I shall stop dreaming about her...

...

... I am helpless. This is not necessarily because of a sexual desire. She is a Demon Army braineater, and I am a Demon Army deathspeaker. We share a certain bond.

I consider the history. The Demon Lord forged a number of braineaters and deathspeakers to act in combination. Both are designed to appear as women. This was done after testing which determined chivalry could be exploited. Knights fighting the Demon Lord's army refer to this combination as 'Girlfriends' for shorthand. It is... probably an attempt to add levity to the horror of encountering us on the battlefield. As demons, we are designed to cover each other's weaknesses. The braineater is forged to disperse battle formations with madness, to counter magical opponents and weaponry, and to enhance the fighting ability of the deathspeaker. The deathspeaker is designed to kill panicked large formations, to counter physical opponents and weaponry, and to protect the braineater. The braineater eats minds, memories, and souls... The deathspeaker... eats the rest...

I become ill at the thought. I am cursed with a rare deviation. I cannot stand the thought of eating human flesh. It repulses me. It is highly, highly unusual. I am surely the only deathspeaker like this. However, I do not curse this fate. It has brought me to defect. It has brought me to where I am today.

'Girlfriends' are forged in pairs. A braineater and deathspeaker are eternally bound, at least until one or both perishes in combat. My braineater... did not come with me. I no longer remember her. I regret this.

Bella also left her deathspeaker behind when she defected. We arrived at the academy at around the same time. I told Bella one time it seemed fated, but she only laughed. She said she doesn't believe in fate.

Even though the two of us are not bound as 'Girlfriends,' I believe Bella and I share a strong bond.

I can easily imagine the two of us as a pair in the Demon Lord's service. I can picture it... vividly.

Bella drives knight footsoldiers into throes of insanity as I plunge into the crowd. Those who are not cut down by my slab of a sword are slain by my poisonous fog. Now, as a knight, this is a shameful, disturbing thought. Then, it would only have been doing our job.

Even as such horrible soldiers, Bella and I would share our thoughts and feelings, much as we do now. I can picture Bella and I sitting in a castle throne room. Accomplished 'Girlfriends' are gifted their own castles by the Demon King.

Bella's conversation would not be appropriate for decorated soldiers in a castle throne room. She is indiscreet, as always. 'Do you know why deathspeakers have such big asses?' she would tease me. 'You all used to have horse bottom halves, and they simply never bothered to change the mold!'

I would laugh, hardly understanding. I would say "KILL," one of the few words my kind can speak in the Demon Lord's service. We have no need to understand any more than that. A great deal of our mental capacity is unused to make room for our braineaters' directives. The braineaters act as our tactical eyes and brains on the battlefield.

Neither of us would even have names. Those were chosen when we became human. Even so... I would understand her friendship. She would sit beside me and entertain me. This is like Bella is now...

...

No... This is... not like Bella is now.

In this scenario, Bella would not be content to sit at my side. She would sit on my lap. I would retract my armored exoskeleton. She would rub my thighs with her own, shifting out of her multicolored robe. She would suck first at my face... And then, at my small breasts... with those huge, erotic lips... With only primal understanding, I would pleasure her as well. I would use my fingers... I would make her scream. I would savor her inhuman yells.

I feel this vision should bring me sexual pleasure. I... admit to myself I find Bella's cute personality and body as arousing as this unnamed Ralli appears to. And yet... I do not feel pleasure. I do not understand.

I do feel nostalgia. I wonder if I was like this with my braineater. I wonder if we enjoyed each others' company like this. I wonder if... she thought I was sexy. I wonder if she loved me.

I wonder if she is still alive. I try to remember her face. How many eyes did she have? I cannot.

...

Ralli awoke. She frowned at the ceiling, laying still but struggling to find new understanding from her dream. There was nothing... she felt empty. She remembered that deathspeakers could not express certain emotions... Did that mean they couldn't feel them, either? Whatever the case, she was definitely unequipped to interpret them.

"Thinking of Bella in this way was a mistake. I am ashamed. I'll simply go back to sleep. Should I dream again...? I feel I cannot rest."