Hello my lovelies. I'm back trying my hand at writing again. Hopefully the blocks stay minimal and the updates plentiful. But we'll just have to wait and see. I'm trying, I promise.

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. Rhia is of my creation but many aspects of her are not.

Most people would be excited for their 18th birthday, but not Rhiannon Delacroix. In fact, she regarded it with the same amount of dread as a prisoner sentenced to a firing squad. A choice had to be made but that choice would no longer be hers. Her family would make sure of it and the very thought of the punishment they planned made her stomach roil with anxiety. So, of course, desperate times called for desperate measures.

Sneaking out of the house had been almost too easy. None of her family wanted anything to do with her; they could barely stand to even be in the same room as her. So climbing out onto the tree branch that brushed against her bedroom window was a piece of cake. What came next would be a bit more difficult.

On the outskirts of the next town over was a rundown old bar next to a crossroads, the best place to go when you were desperate and had nothing left to lose…except your soul. But Rhia didn't care anymore. She dug a small hole and buried the box containing everything she needed to summon a demon willing to make a deal. Time seemed to creep as she waited anxiously, but no one showed. Just as she was about to give up, her last hope crushed, a voice called out from behind her.

"'Ello, love. Waiting for someone, are we?"

Crowley observed the small slip of a girl who had summoned him. He was rather surprised to see her breathe a sigh of relief rather than jump out of her skin like most grown men would have done had he appeared behind them like that.

"Yeah, you. I want to make a deal."

"A deal, hmm? Sorry, I don't do business with children. Come see me when you're legal, darling."

She huffed impatiently at him, golden eyes narrowed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm afraid I don't have the luxury of waiting until my birthday, which is in three days by the way. Do you want my soul or not? I don't even care about the ten years."

"My, my, someone's been doing their research. But what could be so horrid in your insignificantly short life that you're willing to trade your soul and not even get the insurance of ten years?"

"Because without this deal, I have three days left in my 'insignificantly short life'," she mocked. "Once I turn 18, I have to start looking for a Master; only the choice won't be mine. My family will force me to say yes to someone worse than a demon and then I'll never be able to leave. So yea, a deal with an actual demon sounds a lot more appealing."

"What could a little Familiar like yourself have done to get into so much trouble?" He couldn't help it, he was curious now.

"Made the wrong friends," Rhia snapped. "Look, do you wanna make a deal or not?"

Crowley chuckled, liking her pluck. "Tell me exactly what it is you want, love, then maybe I'll consider your offer."

"I want away from my family and their influence. I want to find a decent Master. He doesn't have to be my friend, just someone who will treat me with the same respect I treat them and will give me at least some freedom. Even if it's only a year of that, it's still better than the life that's waiting for me," she said, her voice quiet and resigned.

He looked her over, trying to see the best way this could work to his advantage. And suddenly, he had it.

"Simple enough, darling. Just say yes to me."

She looked at him as if he had grown a second head. "To you? What would a demon want with a familiar? We're of no use to your kind."

"Not just any demon, love. The name's Crowley, King of Hell. And I just so happen to dabble in witchcraft." She continued to look at him skeptically so he added," I'll even sweeten the deal. No time limit on your contract, I'll just own your pretty little soul as insurance, so to speak. Won't do anything to you that you didn't deserve and you can live a somewhat normal life, well as normal as you can get living with the King of Hell. So, darling, what'll it be?"

"No treating me like a slave, no unreasonable orders, no abuse, no stringing me up on a torture rack unless I did something to deserve it, and I get my own room and privacy. And I get to keep my friends and go out like a normal girl as long as I don't do anything to betray or conspire against you. Deal?"

"You're quite good at avoiding loopholes, love. It's a deal."

She stuck out her hand to shake but he shook his head, chuckling. "That's not how we seal a deal around here, pet. A kiss is much more binding."

"Do I really have to kiss you? Once I say yes, you know I'm stuck with you until one of us dies."

"It's more for your sake than mine, pet. Make sure I hold up my end of the bargain."

For once, her bravery failed her. She hesitantly took a step towards him before standing on tiptoe to place a chaste kiss against his lips. Before she could pull away, he buried his hand in her mane of mahogany hair, holding her to him for a proper kiss. She was beet red when he let her go and he could only smirk.

"There now, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

She only blushed harder, staring at her feet.

"Your turn, pet."

She took a deep breath and began to recite the words that had been ingrained into her memory since birth.

"Hear my words and bear witness my vow. Night gathers and now my duty begins. It shall not end until my death. I shall take no mate, hold no lands, bear no children. I shall wear no crowns and win no glory should it interfere with my duties. I shall live and die by my Master's side. I am the guardian in the shadows. I, Rhiannon Isibéal Delacroix, pledge my life and loyalty to my Master Crowley, for this night and all nights to come."

It felt as though a jolt of electricity went through them both. Rhia stumbled and Crowley reached out to catch her before she was face first in the dirt.

"That was weird," she mumbled.

"Indeed. Well, pet, ready to get your things?"

"My things?" She looked at him in confusion.

"How do you think your dear family will react knowing you just bound yourself to the King of Hell? Can't exactly lose my new investment as soon as I get it, now can I? You'll be staying with me."

She shrugged. "Probably be better than how living with them is now, anyways. Can you do your little demon teleporting thing? I can't exactly stroll in through the front door at 2am with my new Master in tow."

He smirked, yanking her against his chest with an arm around her waist, and popping them over to her room. Then again, the word room would imply actual living space. This was more of a closet. Frowning, he turned to face her, ready to ask but she cut him off.

"New living arrangements," she said with her voice empty of any emotion. All her belongings that truly mattered were already packed into two duffel bags. "It's just a place to sleep."

He scowled, sending her bags to his mansion with a snap of his fingers before gripping her arm tightly and transporting them both to his plush office.

"No need to look so angry, Crowley," she huffed, yanking her arm out of his grip to go sit on the couch. "It was still better than what the Master they had in mind for me would've given me. I'd have probably been sleeping in a kennel."

"A kennel? Are you a bitch, then?" he asked curiously.

"Unlike anything anyone's seen in a long, long time," she said, laughing quietly.

"Show me."

She rolled her eyes at the order, but had no qualms about obeying. In the blink of an eye, a snowy white dire wolf, a species extinct since the last Ice Age, was sitting on the carpet by his feet. She was even bigger than most of his hellhounds, except for Growly though she was close.

A slow, wicked smile spread across his face as he regarded her. "This, love, could be the beginning of a wonderful partnership." Rhia only wagged her tail in response.

A/N: Pretty obvious where her binding vow is from but hey, I'll give you a internet brownie if you review and tell me what it was :) Reviews are always incentive to keep going.

ALSO! I'm looking for a Beta to help me edit and be a soundboard for ideas. I don't want to randomly Pm someone and have them not know much about the Supernatural fandom, so I figured I'd put my plea out here. Just shoot me a message if you're interested :)