Disclaimer: There's an issue with the character tags that places Sasuke's name first, which isn't my intent. While Sasuke is an important character in this story, he isn't the main character.

Issei pulled to a halt in front of a hotel. According to his tracker, this was where his current client was staying. What information he received wasn't much to go on, so he didn't know what to expect. Still, he planned to do his best. The last thing he wanted to do was screw things up.

Nobody wanted to make a contract with him, no matter how hard he worked. What made it harder to stomach was that he was the only one with this problem. Even Asia had formed more pacts than he had. He didn't – and couldn't – resent her luck, but her rapid progress was distressing. What did it say about his ability if someone who had been a devil for less time than he had was able to make more contracts than him?

There were times when he wondered what the point of putting in all this effort was if he got nothing out of it, but he reminded himself of his dream every time he got discouraged. He had lots of time to create his first contract, and he couldn't do that if he beat himself up or moped around and cried about bad luck. No, he was going to start fresh and seize the opportunity by the tits.

With that in mind, he got off his bike, chained it up and entered the hotel. It didn't take that much time for him to reach his client's room and when he did, he pounded on the door. He winced when he realised the slight he made. In his excitement, he didn't even think about holding back, and now he risked making a bad impression before he even opened his mouth. He was already at a disadvantage, since he couldn't teleport inside.

If he heard one more person ask "What kind of devil rings a doorbell?", he was going to be so pissed off.

The door opened, grabbing his attention. Issei couldn't keep a frown from crossing his face. His client was one of those pretty boys, one with shoulder-length black hair, smooth facial features and piercing black eyes. Or eye, since his left eye was covered by a long fringe. Compared to him, he was plain as day, with his ordinary brown hair and normal brown eyes.

"So you're the one they sent me," the pretty boy said, his voice as smooth as silk. It was a good thing he had never met him before now. Kuoh Academy had more than enough pretty boys to go around and steal all the girls, and not only did this guy seemed to be the kind of dude that could make girls wet without even trying, there was always the risk of his secret being revealed.

It was one thing to be known as one of the school's biggest perverts, but it was another thing entirely to be known as a perverted devil. Maybe he'd score some chicks who were into that...

Issei turned his frown into a smile. He couldn't let preconceptions – or his daydreams – ruin his chances of securing that contract. "Yeah, I'm Issei. What's your name?"

The boy smirked. "You're not what I expected a devil to look like."

So that's how he's gonna play it, huh? There were times when a client wouldn't give their name for whatever reason. He rolled with it, but it didn't mean it wasn't irritating. At least he hadn't ribbed him for sucking at magic.

"What were you expecting? Red horns, a trident?"

"Something like that," he said. He put one hand in the pocket of his black trousers. "Close the door when you come in."

"Can't you do it yourself?" Issei asked. He wanted to get an idea of who he was dealing with. Rias had told him that he could get a feel for someone by how they performed simple tasks or how they treated others.

The boy made a noise that sounded almost like a snort before turning around, his beige traveler's cloak whipping behind him. It covered his left shoulder and arm entirely, and looked pretty thick. How someone could wear that in the middle of summer was beyond him.

"It would be less of a hassle if you did it."

Issei smiled. "No problem." He entered the hotel room and closing the door behind him. The pretty boy's room was sparsely decorated: there was a lone table with two cushions placed underneath it, and the kitchen had a fridge, dishwasher and stove, but there was no TV, no electronics.

It was almost like he was stepping to the past, with how similar the layout was to some of the houses he saw in older anime. "So..." Issei said after taking a seat.

"I checked in recently," the boy said, taking the seat on the other side of the table. Issei saw a sword laying next to the boy, sheathed in a dark blue scabbard. "That's why it looks like this."

Issei blinked. Was he a mind-reader, or just perceptive? "I was wondering why the place looks so boring. Still, this might be a hotel, but it's like your own bachelor pad."

"I suppose."

A bachelor pad. If he had a place of its own, with food and rent and other necessities taken care of, it would be amazing. "So no parents or anything like that?"

"No family."

The emptiness in the boy's words made Issei frown. As much as they ragged on him and mocked his life's passion, he couldn't imagine life without his parents. "Sorry."

The boy waved his right hand. "Don't worry about it."

Issei nodded. At least things wouldn't get awkward. "Why don't you tell me about yourself?"

"I like some things and dislike some other things," he said. "I've already accomplished my first goal and I'm busy working on my second one."

Issei's frown returned. Hopefully, it wouldn't go where he thought it was going. "Okay..."

"What about you?"

Time to show him how it was done. "I like women in all forms, shapes and sizes. I don't like two-faced bitches and arrogant bastards who act like they're the best thing on the planet." He grinned. "And my goal is to get my own harem!"

"Interesting."

A self-satisfied smirk crossed the boy's face then, wiping the grin off Issei's. He wouldn't let this guy's attitude get to him. But that was easier said than done, Issei soon realized. His attempt at trying to get the boy to talk failed as he got frustratingly vague answers to his questions. He didn't want to go outside and do something, either. With every passing second, Issei could see that contract slipping further and further away.

Eventually, his patience ran out. "Why are you acting like this?"

"Acting like what?" he asked, staring at him.

The handsome prick's nonchalant tone made Issei scowl. "You're acting all vague and mysterious. This whole angsty, brooding, arrogant loner shtick just pisses me off."

He raised an eyebrow. "Does it now?"

Issei slammed his hand on the table, gritting his teeth and ignoring the lancing pain that seared through his body. His hand was still transformed, but he didn't know how long the magic disguising the Boosted Gear would hold out for. Fortunately, the table hadn't even cracked.

"Bastard," he said, his voice coming out in a seething hiss. This guy wasn't like Kiba, who was a nice guy that just so happened to be a chick magnet; he was a straight-up asshole. "Is this some kind of joke to you?"

"It isn't," he said, making eye contact. He wasn't smirking anymore. "You just remind me of this friend of mine, so I treated you like I would treat him. I never thought you'd take it so badly."

The tension begin to seep from Issei's body. He released his fist. "I just don't like that sort of thing. It wouldn't kill you to be nice, you know? Especially when I'm trying to help you have a good time."

The boy sighed. "You're right. In the process of talking to you, I forgot why I came here in the first place."

"And why are you here?"

"I can't answer that." That would have set Issei off, but he wasn't being an annoying jerk. In fact, he sounded dead serious. He could work with that. "But I can tell you that I want to know more about how this world works. How you got that power sealed onto your hand."

Issei's heart skipped a beat, but he didn't show his surprise. "Sure, but don't be surprised if I don't reveal everything about us. You understand, right?"

The boy nodded, his previous smugness replaced with a stone-cold stare. "Then let's get started."

It took some time, but Issei was able to explain what he knew about devils and how they functioned, along with the basics behind the other factions that opposed them, like the fallen angels or the church and their exorcists. The impromptu course made it clear that he really didn't know a lot about his new life, even though he had been a devil for nearly two months. Maybe he could get someone to help him with that.

"I think that's enough for now," the boy said. "We should do this again sometime."

Issei smiled. "Glad to hear it! We can exchange numbers, and you can call me or text me whenever you want me to visit."

"Call?" he repeated, like he had never heard of the concept before.

"You have one of these, right?" Issei asked, pulling out his cellphone and showing it to the boy.

"Right." He pulled out a pretty basic flip phone. "I'm still getting used to these cell phones."

His smile broadened, mostly because he was actually admitting he wasn't Mr. Perfect and hiding behind an air of aloof smugness. "Don't worry about it. Could you do me a favour, first?"

"Depends on the favour."

"Since you want me to come back, you just have to give me appropriate compensation to make our contract official."

It was a real confidence booster, knowing that he was this close to getting a contract. However, nothing in life was guaranteed and when he didn't respond, Issei feared that he pushed his luck too hard and too fast.

Then the pretty boy shrugged. "No problem."

The response was music to his ears and made him want to do a victory dance. Instead, he smiled. No need to embarrass himself so quickly.

"Thanks, man. You won't regret this."

"Don't mention it," he said. His smirk returned, but Issei let it slide.

Once he received his compensation, the contract was 'signed'. Months of hard work and constant failure had finally paid off. His first ever pact might have been with some guy who played 'brooding bad boy' to the hilt, but he'd take it if it meant being one step closer to accomplishing his dream.

He was going to be the harem king of the goddamn universe.

"If that's all, then let me get your number before I go."

"Just one thing," he said, stopping Issei in his tracks.

"What is it?"

"My name. I never gave it to you." He extended his right hand. "I'm Sasuke. Sasuke Uchiha."

"Nice to meet you," Issei said, giving Sasuke a firm handshake.

In spite of his joy from forming the pact, he was still wary about Sasuke. His attitude from earlier still loomed over every word he said, and he was definitely hiding something. No one normal would know he had the Boosted Gear, especially when it wasn't activated.

Maybe he was being paranoid, but he knew better than to take something at face value, no matter how nice it looked. Still, he got the contract, and Sasuke was willing to work with him. For now, that was good enough.