Escanor the Lion

You coughed up some blood into your hand as Escanor closed the door to the storeroom with Jericho and Elaine hidden inside it. You and Ban were crouched behind the bar, a cup of hot apple cider between your slim hands as you slipped on it slowly, Ban held your hair back away from your face.

"Um, Lady (Y/n)" Escanor peeked down at you from where he was standing at Ban's side, polishing a glass with a rag, "wouldn't you rather hide with the other ladies, since you are quite wounded.

"I need nature light to help me heal faster" You assured him, patting his feeble hand as your other held the keg of hot, soothing liquid. "We'll be ok, with all this alcohol there's no way Galand could get my scent".

Ban noticed you'd begun to twitch a little in the cold, as the sun had set long ago and the bar was in a cave with a large open entrance. He grabbed you by your elbows and slid you towards him so your back pressed against his chest, his knees curled up and his arms wrapped around to envelope you in his embrace.

"AH HAA!" The shrill excited cry of Galand as the Commandment, accompanied by his fellow demon, leapt up to crash through into the bar, scaring the glasses right off Escanor's nose.

"EEEEEP!" Escanor jumped up in fright and a ripple of fear cascaded up the back of his green dress shirt. "Y-Y-Y-Yo You're not human!"

Whoops you thought, sticking your tongue into the warm liquid in your cup, probably should've mentioned who we were running from.

"They're not here?" Galand grumbled, the metal drumming of his fingers grew present as he walked forward and tapped his hands down the cave wall.

"I could've sworn I detected them here" Melascula hummed and you had to stop yourself from gasping as Ban unexpectedly tightened his grip around you. Caging you in like he was afraid the demons would try to take you.

"I smell something..." Galand's maniacal laugh sounded as he suddenly ripped up a huge barrel of ale from behind one of the tables, "EEEK! YUMMY! I never guessed alcohol could advance in 3000 years!"

"Galand" Melascula's sickly sweet voice oozed into your mind and you scowled slightly, "you should probably not drink that".

"OOOH, It's so GOOD! Melascula, won't you have a cup?" You heard the distinct sound of strong ale being poured and you could smell it.

"Its our mission to dominate Britannia remember? If Zeldris saw you like this, drinking instead of searching for (Y/n) and the rest of them, I'm sure he'd give you a piece of his mind".

"Don't use threats against me, just thinking about that guy gives me shudders up my back! Who's the one who said she wanted to let loose in the outside world after so long?" You heard a thump and Ban's hand moved to rest against your exposed stomach. "Don't be such a stick in the mud!"

"They're completely pissed now" Ban murmured into the shell of your ear, his hot breath making you shudder, "surely we can kill them now".

"Not yet" You jabbed his nose as it came into your peripheral vision, "wait til sunrise" you whispered. The cup in your hands, now empty, was placed down ever so softly as you peeked just once over the edge of the bar.

The two Commandments, heavily intoxicated and both red in the face, were stirring the air around them as the smell of brandy and ale hung on their breaths.

"I never would've guessed alcohol could advance in 3000 years!" Melascula curled her toes, erotically tipping her top half over one of the tables giving Galand a fun view. 

"That's what I just said!"

"According to my ranking, humans are the lowest of all the five races but..." The Commandment of Faith twisted her cheek to poke her cup of ale over so it tipped onto the floor, "they sure-ve risen to first place in on shot!"

"I think you mean 47 shots Mela!" The other demon laughed and tossed back his armoured head, smashed down onto one of the tables and shattering it into splinters. "YOU! ALE MAN!" He pointed a long red finger out towards Escanor and you could see the poor man's legs shaking beside you.

"Y-ye-ye-yes?"

"YOU PASS! When we wipe out all the humans! We'll spare you, you and this hell-a good booze!"

"Thankyou very.. huh. WIPE OUT ALL THE HUMANS!?" You withdrew your foot quickly as Escanor took a nervous step backwards, you and Ban listened intently from your hiding place behind the bar.

Your skin was beginning to prickle like it was on fire, your ring twisting uncomfortably on your delicate digit and it sparked and churned in each crystal.

"Britannia's going to be taken over by the Demon race after this! And we're the almighty Demon Lord's cream of the crop!" Galand chortled, drool and beer foam spurting out of his mouth with each assonance, "the Ten Commandments!"

"D-demon race? You mean the one's from legend that were sealed away 3000 years ago? S-so you really do exist..."

"KAH KAH! We're going to kill those impudent brats who crushed our prides! Not to mention snatch back our prized little angel toy!"

"Toy!" You gasped in anger and Ban quickly slammed his muscular hand over your small mouth before you could throw yourself over the bar and give away your location. 

"Woah, easy tiger" The sin hissed, he seemed nervous? Was it nerves, or perhaps he was just itching with bloodlust. Either way, he didn't look like he'd last much longer hiding either.

"We know you've got them in that backroom bartender! But since I'm in such a cracking good mood! I'll give you a better option that unlocking that door and letting us kill them all!" Galand took his lance between his hands and grinned widely. "Galand's Game... you win, and we'll let you and the rest of them go away free, sound good?"

"Oh fu-" You were about to say but Ban's hand just pushed further against your mouth to silence you.

"Well, I'm not that good at fighting, but I'm pretty good at games. I can hold my own at cards and dice".

"The rules are simple" Galand crouched down as Escanor walked around to the other side of the bar to meet the impossibly large challenger, "It'll be a one-on-one fight to the death. Once we've decided who'll go first and who goes second, we both fire an attack and the one who dies first is the loser!"

... "WHAT?!?"

"If you don't accept the rules and play I'll just kill you all instantly and I'll take my sugar-lolly for myself" The metal suit twanged as he rose up to his full, three-man height.

"I-I'll do it"

(10 years ago)

Gowther tapped you on the cheek, nudging your supple skin to roll over into the pool of your drool. You grumbled and lifted your face from whatever you were lying on by your shaking arms. Your huge feathered wings lay mangled at your sides, flapping loosely as you tried to balance yourself to look up.

"Gowther what time is it?"

"Midday" The doll replied, his beautiful but still eyes watched you so closely you could almost imagine his pupils twinkling as he watched your shoulders moved as you breathed.

"I overslept.."

"You all did, is this what knight parties are supposed to be like?" As your vision finally began to clear, you spotted that the soft and warm surface you'd be lying on was actually Meliodas' shirtless form. You'd been drooling right onto his abs like a slob. Silently you cringed and used the torn area of your white shirt to wipe his skin clean of your liquor-filled saliva.

Around you, countless of the knights lay disheveled and passed out drink from what looked to have been the castle party of the century. King was unconscious, suspended from a rope from the ceiling by one of his feet. Merlin and Ban had fallen asleep mid arm wrestle, though it appeared Merlin may have been cheating because Ban's arm was blue.

Diane's large body was drooped along the back wall with several passed out soldiers on her shoulders in their drunken effort to try to climb up her to look at the world from her height. Oddly enough, it seemed that Escanor had also taken the climb, now hanging over one of her limp shoulders with his hands over his full-to bursting, drunken mouth.

"Vanya ale" You grumbled as you took Gowther's outstretched hand and stood, "sure does wonderous things to even the strongest of us".

"Babyy~" Meliodas was groaning in his sleep again, his hand catching your wing as he tried to tug you back in his dream, "you're so pretty angel, come over here.."

"Ew" You giggled as Gowther started to escort you away, "having dirty dreams about me Melio? Down boy" you smirked, his grip finally releasing and you drew your angelic feathered appendages up to your back. 

"Can you wash my hair please" Gowther asked, a sort of red flush on his face as he distracted himself by taking off his glasses to wipe them on his shirt, "I.. I still haven't gotten used to the bath yet".

You pinched his cheek joyfully and smiled so bright it was like his personal summer sky, "of course Gowther! I love messing up your hair when its all soapy!"

"Last time you made a sculpture of a ducky"

"I did, didn't I!" You covered your delight with your hand before grasping your fingers around the sin of lust's forearms as he led you out of the room.

"It was.. fun, you playing with my hair that is".

"Oh I know! I'm gonna try to make a dragon this time!" You poked your bottom lip cutely, "though I might need to get some extra soap off the castle maids".

"I'd like that.."

Ban lay down, even more injured from before as Galand had kicked the bar right over you too as he reached for the large axe mounted on the cave-bar's wall, and Ban had shielded you from the splinters.

"Now that is one gorgeous and riveting battle axe! That's the craftsmanship of a great master for sure!" Galand seemed very excited, you couldn't see much since you were pinned under the hot mass of a heavily-breathing sin of greed.

"Why don't you take it, I don't think bartender here's gonna care"

"Mm, you're right, I just gave him a pat on the back and he already out for the count. Oh JEEZ, its HEAVY!"

There was a massive rush and you were suddenly free of the weight on your back, someone incredibly strong had practically thrown the bar off of you both. The figure was extremely well-built, almost too much muscle on the top half of his body.

Thank goodness, you grinned, the sun's back.

"How foolish and unlucky you demon filth are. Ending up in this remote bar just to die" The figure said as his muscles continued to tear through his shirt. He grasped the golden axe, having snatched it clean out of Galand's hands.

"Are you the bartender? You're so different from how you looked earlier" Galand cocked his head to the side, and as he did, he spotted you and his eyes doubled in size, "HOT STUFF! My luck just turned!!"

"Sugarlolly did you say?" You hissed, standing up even though you were almost naked, your clothes completely ruined from your last battle. But there was a fire in your eyes unlike any angel could carry, an almost infernal fury in those otherwise transfixing orbs, "is that what you called me Galand?"

Now it was Galand's turn to shake a little in fear. Escanor wasted no time however as Galand lifted his halberd defensively. 

"What's with this?" Melascula leaned on her empty ale barrel, "are you even human bartender?"

The moustache of the man curled upwards and the back of his coat finally tore to reveal the huge lion marked in red on his back, a sin mark. 

"I am human" He mounted his axe on his huge shoulder, "However, I also stand at the peak of all the races. I am the Lion Sin of Pride, the Great Escanor of the Seven Deadly Sins!"

Sorry I've been so dead I had a huge exam I needed to study for and I just did it today! xxx