As I was passing over a city a few hours flight from the city I am stationed in, I noticed a few younger humans acting suspiciously, sneaking through shadows. I decided to pursue them, curious what they were hoping to achieve. I could sense some degree of Greed on them, though I couldn't pinpoint what for, so I felt an investigation was in order. I followed them through dark alleys, intrigued when they came to a dilapidated house, with the windows and door boarded. It reminds me of what images there are of the House of Lamentations prior to it being brought to the Devildom, in fact. 

They went around to one side, and seemed to be prepared to break in. I decided that now was the time to make myself known, before they would leave my sight again. 

Of course, they were immediately defensive, and tried to scatter, however I managed to placate them rather easily. Such trusting creatures, humans are. 

“Wait wait!” I pleased “I’m not going to tattle! I'm just curious what you guys are doing in this area at this hour.” 

Now I was able to get a better gauge of the group. Five humans, two males and three females. They didn't seem particular noteworthy, not an ounce of magic between the lot of them. Not particularly built, but they seemed at least somewhat smart, as they had chosen to wear darker clothing to draw less attention in the night, one of the males even wearing gloves. 

He seemed to be the leader of the group, or at least the most confident, as he spoke first. 

“We wanted to… investigate, inside.” He lied. Or at least, half lied. 

“Oh? Investigate what?” I pressed as I came closer, admittedly enjoying watching them squirm. 

This time, it was one of the girls who spoke. And by her tone, she wasn't happy to be involved. Perhaps the voice of reason? “Apparently, these guys,” she gestured to the boys, “want to try and summon a demon.” 

The idea of these five, puny humans trying to summon a demon, of course piqued my interest, as a demon myself. The irony made it difficult for me not to begin laughing right then and there, and I must admit, the subsequent series of events were perhaps not my most calculated of moves… but it was extremely entertaining. 

“Oh, summoning a demon?” I echoed, offering them a bright and hopefully disarming smile. “What luck, I actually study demonology. I'd be happy to tag along on this little quest, if you'd be willing to have me?”

The group seemed rather skeptical, and thought I couldn't hear their whispered arguments as to whether or not to trust me. Eventually they tentatively agreed, claiming that they could handle it should it try to attack them, as they outnumber me and I didn't seem terribly threatening. Perhaps I should take it as a compliment, that my acting and disguise are truly working. 

“Think you could help us get in?” The other male asked, who has a backpack that was clearly weighed down with books. 

I hummed and took a look at the house, wandering to the window they'd been about to try and enter through. “Well, this would not be the way to do it.” I said, tapping a nail to one of the boards. “This house is unstable, and the force it would take to dislodge these boards with your bare hands would either tear the house up or cause enough of a ruckus to draw attention.” 

I wandered further, hearing the group of likely teenagers following behind me, like lost ducklings. How adorable. I went up to the backdoor and tested the lock, humming thoughtfully. It was locked, not that that was much of a problem for a Greed Demon. I knelt down, reaching into a pocket and using a tiny bit of magic to summon a lock pick, slipping it into the lock. Within moments, the door was opening, and I gestured them inside. 

The girl from before, whom I will refer to going forward as Reason, was the most skeptical of my little display. “What, do you always carry a lockpick with you?” She scoffed. 

I simply flashed her a grin, following the group inside. It was dusty within the house, clearly undisturbed by human touch for quite some time. The perfect ‘haunted house'. I can see why they chose to attempt to summon a demon here. 

“Is there a particular demon you want to summon?” I asked curiously, watching them explore the house and eventually re-gather in the living area, as it had the most space for them to set up. 

“Not really, no…” one of the other girls admitted, who shall be dubbed Braid, for the impressively long braid she wore. I have a feeling Lord Asmodeus would enjoy playing with her locks, but I digress. 

“Ah, so a general summon, then? That might make it more difficult, then…” I admitted, pretending to be genuinely concerned by this discovery. “It makes it more unpredictable, because who knows what will get the summoning, with so little direction.” 

“But that also means it's more likely for something to respond at all.” Retorted Backpack, who had set down said backpack and begun to pull out a few books that seemed to be on Demonology, some candles, chalk, and salt. 

“Fair enough logic.” I conceded, watching as he began to instruct the group, giving each of them a task. One to set out the candles, another to light them, a third to draw a basic pentagram, and the forth to make a circle of salt around the pentagram. 

“Well, I may have a suggestion on how to give a bit more direction to your summoning.” I offered, as my plan began to evolve, and I convinced myself that indulging myself just a little couldn't hurt, so long as I was careful not to directly harm any of the humans. When they looked to me in intrigue, I continued. “Demons have been shown to fall under the jurisdiction of each of the seven deadly sins. Pride, Greed, Envy, Wrath, Lust, Gluttony, and Sloth. To give some more direction, you could try to tempt a demon to show with something pertaining to their sin. Greed and Gluttony tend to be the easiest to summon, as they are frequently tempted with material goods or fine foods, respectively.” 

There were a few delicious beats of silence as they considered, and the Greed in the room was almost palpable. 

“We don't have any food on us…” the last of the three girls, we’ll call her Glasses, admitted quietly. “So we can't do Gluttony…” 

“Greed… so cash, and jewelry and stuff?” Gloves asked, looking to me. I nodded, and as a show of good faith, I removed my earrings and bracelets, setting them inside of the pentagram. This seemed to prompt them to do the same, and I watched as coins and bills were laid into the center of the pentagram, a watch, earrings, and a gorgeous gold pendant with ruby inlays. 

“Think that will help?” Braid asked, to which I nodded. 

“So should we begin?” Backpack addressed the group, earning nods of various degrees of certainty. 

So he began to read from one of the books, and the incantation was quite honestly pathetic and childish, such round about ways of saying nothing. However, that was perfect for my little prank. 

About halfway through, I used some illusion magic to make the room begin to get foggy, a faint gold shimmer to it. The other four began to move closer to each other, realizing the weight of what they were trying to do. Impressively enough, they hadn't run yet. Such brave little fools. 

The fog grew steadily thicker as the chant continued, and I slowly backed away, feigning fear. In truth, I was gaining some distance, hoping to not spoil my little trick. Fortunately they were all too distracted by the pentagram and the seeming results of their actions to pay me any mind. 

When Backpack finished his incantation, a large puff of smoke rose from the center of the pentagram, earning startled yelps from the teenagers. 

I took the chance, using just enough magic to teleport myself into the center of the smoke, slipping into my demon form. I slowly unfurled my wings, spreading them wide as I rose from my knee, staring down at them. 

“Who dares to summon me?” I asked, pitching my voice down slightly to truly sell the act. 

Their terrified screams as they frantically scrambled to run out of the building, back out the way they came, were music to my ears. They even made sure to keep each other close, so none would be left behind. Camaraderie at its finest. 

With a quick flap of my wings, I put out all of the candles to not risk the old house burning down. I picked up the jewelry and money, placing it in my pocket before putting my own back on, barely managing with how my laughter shook my body. Once everything was secure in my pockets, I prepared to leave, noticing that Glasses had dropped her glasses in her panic. I carefully folded them and placed them on the window sill they had initially planned to enter through, so she could find them easily later. With that settled, I took off back into the sky so that I could return home and write this little adventure down before I forgot. 

As I said, this may not have been my wisest decision, and I will be the first to admit as much. However, hopefully tonight will ensure at least those five will not mess with powers beyond their control or comprehension, and to not to trust strangers. It was also a rather entertaining opportunity to stretch my wings again, as I have been avoiding my demon form altogether for the past few weeks, save for when I have had to tend to my horns and wings to ensure they are still cared for. 

I will end my record here for the day, as I have classes tomorrow and want to ensure I am well rested so that I can ensure I give my all. 

Hopefully you can forgive my actions and how they may reflect on demonkind, considering my position as a representative of the Devildom, and hopefully you can find some amusement in my adventures to better understand humans and what drives them. 

Your loyal servant,