I was a warlock, and I had formed a pact with a powerful demon. The times that I summoned them were the only solace they received from the long and brutal war that raged within their home dimension. At least, that's what I told myself as I stood in the grocery store, trying to summon the demon to help me carry my groceries home.

"Come on, demon," I muttered under my breath as I tried to focus my energy. "I know you're tired of being stuck in that dimension, so come on out and give me a hand."

But as I stood there, surrounded by confused shoppers, the demon failed to appear. I sighed, hefting my heavy bags of groceries and trudging out of the store.

As I made my way home, I couldn't help but feel a little ridiculous. Here I was, a powerful warlock, and I couldn't even summon a demon to carry my groceries.

But as I stumbled up the steps to my apartment, my door suddenly burst open.

"What took you so long?" the demon demanded, standing in my doorway with a grocery bag in each hand. "I've been waiting for you for hours."

I stared at the demon in disbelief. "You were supposed to help me carry my groceries!" I exclaimed.

The demon shrugged. "I figured you were just summoning me for fun. You know, to give me a break from the war and all."

I couldn't help but laugh as I followed the demon inside. Maybe summoning them for mundane tasks wasn't exactly what I had signed up for when I made the pact, but it was nice to have a little help every now and then. And who knows, maybe the demon was enjoying the break from the war a little more than they let on.