The moon glowed high above the sky, reflecting the light from the sun millions of light years away. Each and every piece of leaves of the forest jiggled in joy as sprinkles of raindrops glittered onto them. Under the shelter of an ancient cage, Lily puts on her neatly folded skin. She had painted it few years ago, with all the features a woman, or should I say a human woman could want. She hides her tail perfectly under her crouch and zipped it up. Lily is a fox demon.

Demons are animals or things that spend hundred and thousands of years practicing their inner power to get to their human form; as opposed to monster who usually are born to or made and have little to no human-like features.

Lily picked up her head and looks into a pot of water in the muddy ground next to her. The reflection of herself still amazed Lily, she looks exactly like a human. The skin was simply perfect. It had flawless complexion, silk-like hair, perfectly sized and angled nose, defined facial shape, eyes that holds the universe and rosey lips that seduces all living forms.

Demons possess dark magic, they live forever and they get to paint their own skin and look like however they wish to. So then why is Lily so sad? Well, demons can't see colors, they can't smell, they cant feel, they need to devour human hearts to maintain the youthfulness of their skin, and ultimately, they can't love. The second your transition to a demon is complete, your heart disappears, without it, you can't love or to be loved. Animals sacrifices their hearts just so they can look like human, just so they fit into this world’s standard of highness.

The only organism that rises above all other and possesses these senses are human. The only way for a demon to become an actual human is to have a willing heart - someone who is willing to give you their heart, and willing to take your spot as a demon.

Moments later, the rain stopped. Lily stood up and walked towards the city, where the light reflected the compacted and diversed man kind behind the tall buildings. Lily had grass for skirt and flowers for crown. If you don't see her moving, you might think she's a fairy from a poster.

As she approaches a bus stop, a crowd of people gathered around her. Whispers went through the crowd as beweldered citizens were surprised to see this sighting - a beautiful woman dressed in leaves and flower.

Suddenly, she felt it, she felt the heart she's been looking for. It's a strong and warm heart, pumping blood through the body of a twenty some years old woman. Lily can feel her heartbeat under her chest, and she wants it, she want to be an actual human. So she ran to the woman and begged on her knees, “Please help me, please take me home!” When Lily took a close look on her face, she felt disgusted. All the features on her face are too close together.  Nose too big for standard beauty, chin as wide as her jaw, and eyes that are barely open. As if that's not bad enough, she has a burn mark down the right side of her face, stretching all the way into her neck and behind her back. Her hair didn't do the trick of covering it up.

The woman was in shock, but soon said, “Don't you worry, I will protect you from now on.”

As they arrived home, she gave Lily her clothes to change for her leaves and flowers. Surpisingly, it fits perfectly on Lily, more than just perfect, it looked better on Lily than her. She zoned out for a second thinking how could a human be this perfect. Tickling of the clock broke the silence as the woman introduced, “My name is Aurora, and just make yourself comfortable here, there is food in the fridge, restroom is that way, and..."

"Why are you so kind to a stranger?" Lily asked with her puppy eyes.

Aurora smiled but didn't say anything. Her eyes then widens as she jumps up and rushes for the door, “Oh my god, I am so late to my work. I'll be back around 5, make this place your home!" She says as the door slammed behind her.

Lily stood up and started thinking: how could I take her heart when she's so nice to me? She rested on the couch and fell asleep from exhaustion.

Noises of keys mixed with door opening awoke Lily. "Honey, why are you home early today?" The male said as he puts down his grocery bags. He turned to her and jumped in confusion as Lily screams for help.

"Who are you?" Lily asked.

"Who are you?!" He replied with a question,”And what are you doing in my apartment?"

Lily explained the story to him and he sat down next to her. Lily, being less alarmed moved closer to him. He spoked,"my name is Justin and I am Aurora's boyfriend, we've been living here for a few years now. We love each other and though we're not rich, we are trying our best and I believe that if we love each other..."

Lily’s fleeked brows twisted together and met in the middle of her high nose bridge with a knot. She asked, “what's love?”

Justin laughed out loud with tears forming in his eyes. Are you kidding me, he thought to himself, a beautiful girl like her have not ever dated anyone? He thought she was just joking so he continued on,"We started seeing each other since we were freshmen in college, and we have the same major, business, and..."

Lily's sight started fading, she hasn't ate since two days ago, and this meal looks delicious. As soon as Justin turns around to grab his glass, Lily’s face twitched into an impossible position as her nails grew inches longer, and her tail managed to escape from under the skin. When she was ready to go for it, she thought of something else - maybe she can use him to make Aurora give her what she wants.

Justin turned around to face her as the door nod twisted. Before Aurora walked in, Lily wrapped her arms around him. In an effort to get closer to him, she sat on his thighs and kissed him on the lips. Justin thought, maybe just this once, she is just too beautiful to reject, she's just perfect. He had no idea that Aurora was in the room. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Aurora’s keys dropping to the floor and running out the apartment.  Her key landed, making bits of high pitched noises, sounds like glass cracking, sounds like his heart breaking. Lily let go of Justin and cried out," I am so sorry, I will go explain it to her." As she runs out of the room, leaving Justin a taste of her sweet cherry lips on his own.

Lily found Aurora near the cage where she used to live. Aurora buried her head in her knees and cried on the top of her lungs. She looked up to the sound of Aurora approaching," why?!? Why?! I hate you! I hate you!"

Lily was getting annoyed so she roared a squeaky fox noise and showed her a face that only demons can have. Aurora instantly quiet down and ran to the corner of the cage. Lily smiled, evil but beautiful, a smile no man can take their eyes off of. Aurora held herself against the wall,"You're a monster! Why did I save you?! You took away my boyfriend and now you want to kill me, why?!"

Lily's lips curved a smile on her face, "I don't want to kill you, I just want to trade."

"Trade what?"

"My skin for your heart." Lily’s smile faded as the words came out one by one from her baby pink lips. Her glowing complexion under the moon looked better than ever.

Aurora started laughing,"Like if that's possible... I know all men are superficial, all they want is the physical looks..." she considered it for a second and walked closer to Lily, persuaded by the idea that she willl be as beautiful as her. Ashley ran her finger down Aurora's silk smooth hair and perfectly complexed skin as she asked "How will you do it?”

“Simple,” Lily said, “My skin for your heart.”

Aurora asked in a voice that's almost hard to hear, “What will happen to me without a heart?”

Lily went closer to her face and touched her scar. She whispered," Then you'll be a demon. The price for this skins is that demons can't smell, they can't see colors, they can't feel textures, and they can't love. You will also need to devour human hearts everyday to maintain the youthfulness of this skin. And to get away from all that, you'd have to be a human. The only way for demons to be human is to have a willing heart, and…”

"Do it." Aurora said with certainty. She though that if her love for Justin is strong enough, she can surpass all that," I am willing."

Lily smiled, a smile that all organisms will fall for. She led Aurora into the cage and started their transformation.

As if the sky knew what was happening, drops of rain competed to jump out of the dark gray clouds. Thunder screamed as the lightning strikes the sky, wanting to tear it up into pieces. The rain went on for the rest of the night, and finally morning came.

As the storms calms, the first streak of light beamed through the leaves of the trees. The world seems cleaner after the shower of the storm and animals came our to share the freshness of the forest.

After completion of the transfortion, the two were satisfied. Aurora just can't take her eyes off herself in her phone, she just looks too perfect, now Justin will finally lover her. Lily is outside the cage smelling flowers and feeling the rocks on the mud for the first time. Everything looks so new to her, even though she grew up in this forest.

“Justin!” Aurora calls as she runs into the house wearing Lily's skin and finds him worrying sick. She runs into his arms just to find him pushing her away and yelling, “Lily, what are you doing?! Is it not enough that you ruined our relationship? You should be thankful that Aurora even brought you home and gave you all this!”

“Justin, it's me! I'm Aurora!” She cried and tries to crab his hand’ “Am I not beautiful?”

Justin pushes her hand away and left the house. Aurora thought, maybe he did love me for who I am, or who I was.

She grabbed the glass on the table and looked at her beautiful reflection for one last time as she cracks the glass and ran it across her neck… Drips of blood bloomed beautiful and deadly flowers on her white dress, she lays down as the memeory of her and Justin flashed through her mind.

Fifty years later, an ugly old woman with a burn mark on her face all the way down to her neck came to commemorate two people in this forest. On their stones, it reads: “Here lays Aurora and Justin, who will live and love forever in the above.” She lays down quietly next to their stones as death blurs her sight and pulls her lids shut. A drip of crystal clear tear ran across her cheek. She wondered what will happen if she was still a demon, what would she be doing now with her young and beautiful face… Lily thought, human do have one thing that she hates: regression.