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[666writingcafe]

Some Time Later

Lucifer (The Angel)

I've been assigned to patrol the woods alone this afternoon, and I have to say, I'm grateful. I don't get to be by myself very often. Some of that is due to choices I've made; after all, I've taken six angels under my wing, pun half-intended.

But there's something on my mind that none of them would be able to understand. Or rather, a person.

The Demon Prince is trying to fix the relationship between our realm and his. Originally, Michael was going to be the representative that went down there, but it got assigned last minute to me. After spending time with the prince, it makes me wonder if Michael would feel the same about him as I do if he were in my place.

The prince is kinder than some of the angels. I originally dismissed it as him simply practicing diplomacy, but he seems genuine in his efforts to get to know me as a person. He doesn't care about titles, instead focusing on character. Despite my less than stellar behavior when we first met, he still insists on becoming an ally.

Not just the Celestial Realm's, but my ally.

"I don't know what happened back there. I haven't felt that way about him in a really long time."

Great. Someone else is in the woods. I hold back a groan, knowing that I'll have to confront them. So much for my alone time.

"I think this place is doing weird things to all of us." Another voice.

"Did something happen to you, too?" The first voice...it sounds familiar.

"I feel like I'm behaving more like a demon than a human. First, there was the cover story for our appearance that I pulled out of my ass, and then I very nearly went all Asmo on Simeon when we were looking for Belphie earlier."

"Like, are we talking sexually? Magically?" The second voice sighs.

"Magically, Satan. I'm pretty sure having sex in the Celestial Realm is akin to heresy." I mean, they're not entirely wrong. But that's not important right now.

Satan...that's the name I've given to the anger that's become a permanent fixture inside my head. At first, it was just an emotion, but then it started talking. Or rather, screaming. At first, its noises were incoherent, but then I started hearing words in a voice that was not my own.

A voice that sounds eerily similar to the first trespasser.

"We have to get out of here," he tells his companion. "There's no telling what will happen if we..." He trails off as his eyes meet mine. Immediately, he tenses up, appearing to freeze in place.

"What's wrong?" Satan maintains eye contact, and the human follows his gaze. "Oh. This is bad. Really bad."

I step out of my makeshift hiding spot, making myself fully visible to them.

"Well, this is rather interesting," I remark, putting on an air of authority. "I should capture the two of you and not release you for a good long while."

"Please don't," the human quickly replies. "We don't mean any harm. If you can just help us find Simeon, I'll promise we'll be out of your hair." They seem terrified, but at least they're moving. Satan, on the other hand, hasn't budged an inch.

"If I was Michael or Raphael, your pleas would mean nothing. Thankfully, I'm only interested in talking." I focus my attention on Satan. "After all, it's not every day one sees the physical manifestation of their wrath."

"I was there even back then?" Satan whispers, confirming my earlier suspicions.

"You've been around from the moment I took Mammon in." My statement shocks Satan. "Your presence implies our separation at some point in the future. Assuming that you're a demon, that means that I must have fallen all the way down to the Devildom, correct?"

After a moment's hesitation, he nods his head.

"Along with the five angels you consider part of your family."

"Six," I correct.

"One doesn't survive the journey. Not entirely."

"What do you mean, not entirely?"

"If you knew who it was, then you'd end up altering the timeline," the human interrupts. "As it is, you know way more than you should."

"That's one way of looking at it, I suppose," I tell them. "I see it as preparing for the inevitable." They groan at my response.

"Barbatos is going to kill me," they mutter. Before I can question how they know the prince's butler, they take a deep breath and look straight at me.

"We can answer any questions you have, but you need to help us find Simeon. Not your Simeon, but ours. He and Satan got in a heated argument, and he went off in the opposite direction to hopefully try to calm down. Is there a spot here that he feels comfortable hiding in? One where he feels he won't be found easily?"

"There is a place, but it's a bit of a hike from here."

"Good enough. Let's go."

[666writingcafe]

The Truth Will Set You Free

Simeon

If this version of Belphegor as an angel is anything like the one I had to deal with, then he should be up in one of the trees, asleep. There's a few that he deemed appropriate for his naps. The actual search shouldn't take too long.

However, I need MC to answer some questions for me first.

"May I ask what you meant earlier when you said 'not this again'?" MC sighs.

"This is the second time that I've been sent to the brothers' past in the Celestial Realm," they wearily answer.

"When was the first?"

"Shortly after they arrived in the human world. Someone pretending to be Solomon told me that I needed to learn from their past." That's interesting. Not many entities have the ability to send people through time. This particular one appears to be a shapeshifter, but of what species, I don't know.

"Did this individual tell you why?" MC hesitates, which concerns me. They're normally not the type to hold information back. Did the shapeshifter instruct them to keep it a secret? I can understand if they sent MC to the future, but the past? Normally, the point of learning from the past is to use that knowledge to inform future decisions, thus altering the timeline.

"He said that someone close to me was at a crossroads. They could choose to remain as they were or change into something different."

Well, shit.

"Did he say who it was?" My heart races as I await their answer.

"No, but I figured it out." They stop walking, turning around to look me dead on. "I have to help you decide whether you should stay in the Celestial Realm or not. Trouble is, I don't know how. If the decision is difficult from where I'm standing, then I can't even imagine how much you're struggling right now."

It's my turn to sigh, but not because of anything MC did. I was hoping I could postpone having this discussion for as long as possible, but it seems as though my time has run out. If they know this much, they might as well know the rest.

"I've been writing about you. A lot."

"In what way? Like, am I serving as inspiration for one of your characters, or are you keeping some sort of journal about me?" Their question makes sense. They know about my connection to TSL, after all.

"Journals." My reply amuses them.

"Oh, so there are multiple," they tease.

"It started innocently enough. I was merely documenting my experience as an exchange student. I didn't know you very well back then, but the little bit I did hear about you intrigued me. I mean, there hasn't been a single human that has successfully made pacts with all seven Avatars and lived."

"I'm well aware. I've done my research." I'm sure they have. Otherwise, they wouldn't have reached out for help in the first place.

"The only other person I could even remotely compare you to was Solomon with his seventy-two demons, and even that's stretching it. While the power from the pacts is pretty much equal, yours is more concentrated."

"And hence more dangerous."

"Exactly. When you didn't spontaneously combust, I started paying more attention to you. I wanted to see how your pacts with the brothers would affect you."

"You mean my soul."

"If you want to get technical with it, yes. Would you still maintain a bright soul, or would it darken under the brothers' influence?"

"And?"

"Your soul's grown brighter, MC."

"That's not supposed to happen."

"No, it's not, especially since you're constantly exposed to the Avatars of Sin. You should have been reduced to a mere toy for them to play with, but instead you're influencing them to become better people." MC leans against one of the trees, crossing their arms as they look at me critically.

"And the fact that I've defied your expectations simultaneously fascinates you and pisses you off, doesn't it?" I can only nod my head. They have me backed into a corner, and I don't know what I can say that's not going to have them hate my guts.

After several tense moments, MC smiles mischievously.

Not the reaction I was expecting.

"I wonder..." They quickly begin walking towards me. I find myself quickly backing away from them. I don't know what would happen if they touched me again, and I'm scared to find out.

My back hits one of the trees. MC stops right in front of me, tilting their head with that same mischievous smile.

"What's wrong, Simeon? Afraid you'll show me something embarrassing?"

In that moment, they don't look like themselves. Not entirely.

I once had a dream that nearly played out this exact same way. In it, MC ended up shifting into Asmo, who then forced me to show him my deepest desires. Some dreams are open to interpretation, but not this one. Even my subconscious is tired of me hiding my true emotions.

I should let MC see exactly what I want to do to them.

But not here. Not when the angel Belphegor is literally napping in the branches of this very tree.

[666writingcafe]

An Unexpected Trip to the Past

Satan

I have no idea what's going on. One second, we were inside the House of Lamentation, and the next we're in some brightly lit forest. It's possible that the door I opened led us outside, but something about this forest seems too...bright. Like, brighter than anything in the human world.

I almost dismiss the idea as me simply overthinking everything when Simeon frowns and remarks that he recognizes where we are.

And then Beel starts walking towards us.

Only, it's not the Beel I know. For starters, this version of him has a goddamn halo circling the top of his head.

"Oh, not this again," MC groans, which raises even more questions. What do they mean by again? I mean, there's no possible way they've been here before, right? They weren't even alive when Beel and the others were angels.

"What are you doing here?" Beel the angel asks, looking rather stern. I suppose his reaction makes sense. We are intruders, after all.

"It's okay, Beelzebub," Simeon replies softly with a smile. "Don't worry. It's me." That seems to relieve Beel a little.

"Simeon, who are these two? Are they with you?" Simeon nods his head.

"They're acquaintances of mine, you see. They're angels, actually. Both of them." What in the world is he thinking?! MC might be able to get away with it, but there is no way in hell I'd make a convincing angel. I open my mouth to protest, but MC squeezes my hand and quietly instructs me to play along.

"We're talking about this later," I whisper. Simeon introduces us to angel Beel, and I thank my lucky stars that he remembered my human world name. I don't even want to imagine the alias he would have come up with if he didn't. It'd probably be something stupid, like Sully.

"So, Beelzebub, what's Lucifer up to?" Simeon asks.

"He's at the Celestial Palace in a meeting with Michael and all the other higher-ups." Beel pauses, narrowing his eyes at Simeon. "Shouldn't you be there, too? I thought all of the seraphim had to attend."

Simeon struggles to come up with a good answer to that question, making me anxious. He's never done well under pressure.

"He was busy rescuing us," MC pipes up.

"Rescuing you?" Beel repeats.

"Daniel and I fell into a pit someone dug as a trap, and we needed someone to help us get out. We sent out a message, and Simeon was the first to respond." Apparently, MC's story is plausible enough, for Beel simply nods his head and tells them that he's glad that we got out safely.

It intrigues me how they're able to come up with lies on the spot like that. Even Diavolo admitted that if he didn't have the ability to tell when people were lying to him, he would have totally believed MC's story of Lucifer trying to recreate Irish coffee with Devildom ingredients back when the two of us swapped bodies and I was saying a bunch of stupid shit in an attempt to embarrass my brother.

I've wondered from time to time what MC would be like as a demon. Not because I want them to lose their humanity or anything; I'm merely intrigued by the possibility. I feel like one of their powers would lie in speechcraft, specifically the ability to make someone believe whatever it was they're saying, even if it had no basis in any reality whatsoever. Perhaps their tongue would literally turn silver as they spoke. How many people would fall victim to it? I imagine quite a few, since MC appears trustworthy. Unlike, say, Mammon or Asmo, who people can tell are trying to sell them something from a mile away.

We're incredibly lucky that we have MC on our side, because if we had to fight them...

"Yo, Beel!" Great. Mammon's joined us. "What're you doing hangin' out here? And who are they?"

"Looks like two real cuties!" And Asmo, too. "So, tell me: what are your names, hm?" His nearly baby-like voice is making my skin crawl. It always does. I may not get along with him sometimes, but at least the Asmo that I know can modulate his voice to sound like a reasonable adult. This version of him, on the other hand, appears to only have one setting.

"Are you friends of Simeon's?" Man, where is everyone coming from? I feel like Levi literally popped out of thin air.

Simeon introduces us to the other angel brothers, and Asmo takes the opportunity to try to flirt with me. In that godawful baby voice. I feel like my glare towards him is justified.

"Beelzebub, you mentioned you were looking for Belphegor, right?" Simeon asks. I must have missed that part of the conversation. "I have an idea where he might be. MC and I will go find him for you. In the meantime, look after Daniel for me, would you?"

That sneaky little angel. Using the opportunity to be alone with MC is one thing, and for the most part I let that sort of thing slide. But Simeon has always lamented the fact that I never got to experience life in the Celestial realm as my own individual, since I was stuck in Lucifer's head until the fall. I keep telling him that I don't really have a desire to know that kind of information, but he doesn't listen. Or care, it seems.

I will get him back for this.

[666writingcafe]

Change of Plans

Author's Note: So, for those who don't know what's going on, I've "created" a character simply called the Fairy of the Wood. Towards the end of Lesson 52 in the original Obey Me game, Simeon comments that everything the group has encountered during Lessons 51 and 52 was the result of fairy interference. I am merely putting a face to that fairy interference.

As for the Fairy of the Wood calling MC the Lightbringer, I'm referencing what the devs put in Nightbringer during one of their events. I figured it would help me in my quest to better tie the two games together to create one cohesive narrative.

All of this was a change from my original plan for this part of my rewrite because I was daydreaming while bored at work, and the Fairy of the Wood kept popping in my head.

So, hopefully this explanation makes sense, and you're able to follow along a bit better.

Dammit. The Lightbringer is too good.

Everything was originally going to plan as they, along with the former seraph, were forced to look for their companions. When they reached the library, I'd assume that they'd take a break. You know, sit down and chat for a bit.

I want the Lightbringer to help the former seraph. An angel's aura is never supposed to be dull like his. It implies a detachment that's unacceptable in the Celestial Realm. I'd be surprised if his superiors weren't already thinking about exiling him, because they expect total allegiance and obedience from all residents.

The thing is, I'm not sure if the Lightbringer is supposed to help him stay in the Celestial Realm or escape from it. It's hard to determine which decision would benefit the greater good.

Anyway, instead of doing any of that, the Lightbringer pulls a book off one of the shelves and uses it to summon the Avatar of Wrath. So now I have to figure out how to separate yet another person from them. I can't use the haunted house to scare him off, because he knows too much about it to be afraid of anything that might pop up.

As the three of them resume their search for the Avatar of Greed and the child, I begin thinking of another plan. What knowledge can I use to my advantage?

After a few minutes, it hits me.

The Avatars of Sin were once angels. All except one: the Avatar of Wrath, who was born out of the Morning Star.

I pull up the portal database. There isn't a whole lot that connect to the Celestial Realm of the past, but for my purposes there doesn't need to be. Selecting the one I want, I put it on the other side of the door that the Avatar of Wrath is approaching.

The screen momentarily goes black. When the picture returns, I'm relieved to see that the portal worked exactly as intended.

From this point, I can only watch and hope that things play out the way I want them to. Interfering too much with the portal will change it into something completely unrecognizable.

[666writingcafe]

A Strange Sight

Author's Note: Bear with me. I originally had this part going in a different direction, but then as I was bored at work, this kept popping in my head, so I decided to go with that and see what happens.

The Fairy of The Wood

"My Lord, we currently have four intruders." I sigh at the news.

"Is it just a group of humans deciding to take a hike?" I ask. "If so, you know the protocol. You hardly need my approval for that."

"Only one."

"Only one what?"

"Human, my Lord." I have the servant hand me their tablet. Sure enough, the readings show one human, two angels, and a demon.

"Let's take a look." After some fiddling around, the servant has the four individuals on the giant screen on the other side of the room.

"Doesn't this place seem awfully eerie to anyone else, or just me?" the demon asks the group. I groan, recognizing his voice. The Avatar of Greed has caused me many headaches over the years, constantly messing with my servants and associates in order to make a quick buck.

I understand how the human might have been dragged into his latest scheme, but the angels?

"Well, according to the pamphlet, these woods are home to a vampire, a witch that kidnaps children and eats them, and a goblin that abducts travelers," the human reads out loud.

"Those all sound terrifying," the smaller of the two angels replies. From the size of him, he can't be older than five hundred years. Angels grow up incredibly slow.

"I'm sure they're just stories, Luke," the older angel comforts.

"That almost looks like the seraph that got demoted after the war," I remark.

"That's because it is, my Lord." Well, I'll be damned. Never thought I'd see the day when he would join forces with the Avatar of Greed. Although, judging from his behavior, he seems to have taken on an supervisory role.

Oddly enough, so has the human. I'd assume they'd be foaming at the mouth with greed, but they appear cool as a cucumber.

I wonder...

"Soul visualization." A few taps on his screen, and the servant fulfills my request. Yellow for the Avatar, bright blue for the child, light gray for the former seraph...

And a nearly blinding white for the human.

"Is everything alright, my Lord?"

"That human..." I trail off, trying to contain my excitement. "They're the Lightbringer, heir to the Morning Star."

The Lightbringer has become something of a legend in these parts. The descendant of an angel who has brought all seven Avatars to their knees, using their powers for the ultimate good.

Having the servant switch back to normal view, I observe the Lightbringer's interactions with the other three. Nothing unusual with the child or Avatar of Greed. The former seraph, on the other hand...

I begin laughing. He may think that he's hiding it well from the others, but it's painfully obvious how madly in love he is with the Lightbringer. Rather ironic, given which side he ended up fighting for during the Great War.

"We need to separate them," I tell the servant. "The Lightbringer and the former seraph from the Avatar and child."

"How, my Lord?"

"The Avatars live in the House of Lamentation. The perfect setting, if you ask me. Ramp up the haunted aspect of it and lure the four of them inside."

"And then what?" I smile.

"Leave the rest up to me."

[666writingcafe]

A Truce

The pamphlet said that the train would be traveling at a slower speed through the section we're currently on, which meant it'd be a good chance to really take in the view at night. Still, I didn't expect Luke to be sitting on the literal roof of the car, looking up at the stars. I thought he'd be scared of heights or something.

It works out to my advantage, though.

"Hey," I call out to him.

"Go away." Fair response, considering how I treated him in the dining car. Hopefully my gift helps make up for it.

"I'm sorry about earlier. I shouldn't have scammed you out of your dessert." I pause long enough to bring my hands out from behind my back, revealing my present. "I talked to one of the attendants and managed to snag a spare serving for ya."

Luke turns around to look at me and the to-go container that his dessert is in.

"You didn't do anything to it, did you?" he asks.

"If I did, I wouldn't be alive to tell the tale." Between Simeon and MC, they'd probably killed me if I did something like that to Luke.

"Fair enough." I walk over and sit beside Luke, handing him the to-go container. As he begins eating, I glance up at the night sky. It's been a while since I've taken in the night sky in the human world. Usually I'm running a bunch of errands for the witches when I'm up here, and they hate whenever I dilly-dally.

"You see those stars over there? The ones that form a triangle?" I point towards it, Luke following along with his eyes. "Those are Betelgeuse, Sirius, and Procyon. Betelgeuse is part of Orion, Sirius of Canis Major, and Procyon of Canis Minor." Luke swallows his bite.

"You know constellations?" I nod.

"Michael taught me everything I know about them. Obviously, it was a real long time ago, but we spent a lot of nights together in the observatory." I chuckle slightly as I recall the memory. "For him, it was part of his job. I just liked following him around."

"So you haven't forgotten about Michael, then?"

"I can't. It's impossible. He's the type of person that sticks in your memory, for better or for worse." I sigh. I probably shouldn't reveal this to Luke, but at the same time I want to prepare him.

"What do you mean by 'or for worse'?" Luke looks up at me, and I see myself reflected in his eyes. In that moment, I make my decision. I can't have him go through the same thing I did.

"Michael used to be my mentor. As I said, I followed him around pretty much everywhere he went. I wanted his approval more than anything in the world. Unfortunately, that's kinda hard to do when you're born defective."

"But you look fine." I shake my head.

"The problem was in my personality, not my physical appearance. I was incredibly hyper for an angel, and I found it hard to focus on anything for more than a few moments. It made it difficult for them to assign me to a specific area of expertise, as I'd fall behind my classmates each and every time. Eventually, they thought I'd do better shadowing someone, and so they assigned me to Michael.

"Things were fine for a while, but then one day we walked into a room with a bunch of other high-ranking angels. One of them saw me and started poking fun at me, calling me Michael's little puppy."

"So that's where that came from," Luke interrupts. "You weren't really present in the dining car, were you?" I shake my head.

"For whatever reason, hearing you mentioning Michael triggered the emotions and memories from back then. It's a bit of a sore spot for me, to be honest." I pause. "In addition to that lovely little insult, the angel started barking at me, causing a couple of his buddies to join in. I looked up at Michael, hoping he'd tell them to knock it off, but instead he saw the tears forming in my eyes and scoffed, rolling his eyes as he turned his back to me. In that moment, I knew he wanted nothing to do with me, and it hurt.

"And so I ran. I don't know for how long, but eventually I wound up deep in the woods, my lungs about to burst. I nearly collapsed against one of the trees as I began sobbing. I didn't know what else to do. I wasn't trying to annoy him, but he was clearly disgusted with me." Luke has tears forming in his eyes.

"Who found you?" he whispers.

"Lucifer did. I didn't even realize he was there until he softly called my name and asked me what was wrong. When I told him, he held me in his arms for several moments before telling me that he'd take over as my mentor."

That memory affects my behavior to this very day. That's why I often push away the people I love the most by acting out; the further away they are, the less likely they are to hurt me. I know it's an unhealthy coping mechanism, but I don't really know how to stop. I was slightly younger than Luke when it happened.

"Are you worried that's going to happen to me, Mammon?" I sigh.

"For your sake, I hope it doesn't. I just want you to be careful, that's all. Being rejected sucks, especially if it's coming from someone you look up to and admire." I pause again. "I also don't want you to be crushed when you discover cracks in his armor. Everyone has flaws, even the most kind and generous people."

We sit in silence for a while. At some point, Luke scoots closer to my side, and I wrap an arm around him. He really is a sweet kid. I just wish he wasn't so fragile.

[666writingcafe]

Meanwhile...

Mammon

I know I'm being stupid. I shouldn't be following Simeon to his room after he blew up at us in the dining car. If he's anything like Satan, I might as well start digging my grave.

But I can't leave him alone. I don't know why; it's just a gut feeling that I have. Still, my gut has never led me astray. And I'm not talking about when its judgment is clouded by greed, but during situations like this one. You know, life and death sorta things.

I take a deep breath before opening the sliding door. Simeon's back is turned to me, appearing to look out the train window.

"Hello, Mammon." His voice sounds eerily calm, like how Lucifer gets sometimes right before he begins torturing people.

I can't flee. I have to see this through.

"Dude, what happened back there? I've never seen you react like that, not even during the war."

"That is none of your concern." Simeon slightly turns his head to the right. "Tell me, why did you feel the need to bully Luke?"

"That wasn't my original intention--"

"Answer the question."

"I will, if you'll let me finish!" Silence. "Look, I believe he needs to be taught how to relax. He's way too uptight. I mean, he can't even take a little joke! The kid's a real piece of work."

"It's only a joke when everyone involved finds it amusing."

"Well, I can't help wantin' to tease him sometimes! In some ways, he kinda reminds me of myself when I was that age."

"Oh, really?" Simeon doesn't believe me.

"Seriously?! Don't you remember what I was like once upon a time?"

"A nuisance?"

"Naive, Simeon. I was that lost puppy. Cute, friendly, energetic, but incredibly oblivious to what the real world was like. I mean, isn't that why you guys are sendin' him to the Devildom and human world in the first place?" He sighs.

"Yes."

"It's almost been three years, and yet from this side of things he hasn't learned jackshit. He's still convinced that the way angels do things is the right way. He doesn't wanna even consider that he could be wrong."

"Oh, like you're doing much better," Simeon snaps.

"At least I'm doing something! You're just standing around and waiting for Luke to discover the world on his own. He needs guidance! And sometimes that means forcing him to experience new things whether he likes it or not!"

"And who are they going to blame when shit hits the fan, Mammon?" Simeon's facing me now, staring daggers into my face. "You were in charge of MC during the exchange program; what would have happened if a demon decided to have them for lunch during their first ever week in the Devildom?"

"The demon would get in trouble, obviously. But I'm not sure what this has to do with Luke--"

"Do you wanna know what else would have happened?" I'm not going to get another word in until he's done ranting, am I?

"People would have begun asking questions," Simeon quickly continues. "'Where was Mammon at the time?' 'Why didn't he stop the demon from eating MC?' And if you weren't able to come up with acceptable answers to those questions, your ass would have been on the line, because you failed to do your job.

"Oh, maybe you'd escape with a light punishment. After all, you have friends in high places that can bail you out of trouble. But what if you used up all your chances? What if protecting MC and ensuring they survived the exchange program was the one thing that would save you from a fate worse than death? What would you do then, Mammon?"

Oh my God...I knew he'd gotten demoted due to his lack of cooperation during the early stages of the war, but I didn't realize he was that close to being sent there. It's the one place in the Devildom that the Celestial Realm has control over, and it's usually reserved for the worst of the worst. The truly irredeemable.

And he's right. Being sentenced there is a fate worse than death.

"Simeon, I'm sorry. I...I didn't know." I walk over to him and tentatively hover my hand over his shoulder. He remains still, allowing me to rest my hand on there.

"Only Michael and Raphael do," he whispers. "They were the ones that offered me the guardianship over Luke. If anything happens to him, they won't show me mercy again, especially in light of them discovering that fucking notebook."

"You know Lord Diavolo would take you in." Simeon shakes his head.

"I don't want to spend the rest of my existence serving him." He pauses. "I'm sure he's a kind master, but he still rules over you guys. I want to be under my own power."

"What about MC?" The question slips out of my mouth, causing a corner of Simeon's to curve up slightly.

"That is an arrangement I'd prefer to keep between me and them."

[666writingcafe]

Sibling Bonding

Luke

I'm scared.

The look on Simeon's face...that's going to be in my nightmares, no doubt about it.

This room is only a temporary sanctuary--and not a very good one at that--but it's the best I have at the moment.

Someone knocks on the door.

"Go away!" I yell. I don't want to see Simeon right now.

"Luke, it's okay. It's just me." Oh. It's MC. The one person that can comfort me right now.

I get off the bed and sheepishly open the door, allowing them to enter. They sit down at the desk, leaving me to return to my position on the bed.

"Are you okay?" Three simple words, and yet they're enough to make me tear up. I was trying to keep my composure in the dining car, since I knew Mammon would tease me for crying.

Speaking of which, why was he picking on me? I mean, we're far from being best friends, but as we were preparing for the trip, we both were really excited about it. He even helped me pack some of my things. So, I don't understand the sudden switch.

Unless somehow merely mentioning Michael triggered something in him, and I just happened to be the closest thing he could lash out against. But that wouldn't make much sense, either; Michael's not a bad person.

"I-I'm sorry for behaving like that in the dining car." I choke up as the tears begin rolling down my face. "I k-know I embarrassed you b-back there." MC leans forward and grabs both of my hands.

"You were reacting to someone bullying you. Perhaps you could have handled that better than you did, but you're still growing. I don't expect you to have the emotional maturity of an adult, angel or otherwise." It's strange, hearing those words. Everyone else expects me to act older and tease me if I don't, and yet they talk to me like I'm a little kid.

Not MC. Not even once.

"If anything, I ought to be apologizing to you." Huh?

"Why? You didn't do anything wrong." MC smiles slightly, gently squeezing my hands.

"Not intentionally, but nevertheless I am partially to blame for Simeon's outburst." They clearly see the confused look on my face, for they add,

"When I saw Simeon start to become irritated, I grabbed his hand to try to soothe him."

"Like you are right now with me?" They nod.

"Part of my power comes from the pacts I have with the seven Avatars of Sin. The physical connection of our hands caused that power to meet up with Simeon's frustration and give it more energy. By the time we realized what was happening, the connection became too strong for us to break it ourselves. The energy had to release itself on its own."

"Kinda like a circuit."

"Exactly."

"I didn't know you could even do that!"

"Neither did I." I don't like seeing MC sad. I know that they can't be happy all the time, but I want them to experience more good than bad. They deserve it.

Besides, how can they know something they weren't taught?

MC lets go of my hands, gets up, and starts walking towards the door.

"Wait!" They stop and turn towards me.

"Yes, Luke?" I'm not even sure if I should bring this up. It's the type of thing most people would tell me I'm too young to understand before changing the subject to something more "appropriate". It's rather annoying, actually. I hate being underestimated simply because of my age. Just because I'm young doesn't mean I'm stupid.

"There's something I've been wondering for a while now.

"Which is?" Well, here goes nothing.

"Why does Michael still care about Mammon and his brothers? I mean, they may have been angels once upon a time, but not anymore. They're demons now. They did something awful enough to warrant being cast out of the Celestial Realm."

MC's initial hesitation worries me. Are they finally going to dismiss me the way everyone else has?

"Relax, Luke. I'm not ignoring you. I'm just trying to figure out the best way to answer your question."

"Really?" MC nods.

"I may not be able to tell you everything, but that doesn't mean I can't give you some information. I mean, you're not a little kid anymore; you're old enough to know about certain things." An idea must have come to MC in that moment, for they walk back over to the desk and start rummaging through its drawers until they find a piece of paper and a pencil.

"Come on over, Luke," they instruct, sitting down. Once I'm standing next to them, they turn the paper horizontally and draw two dots on either side of it.

"Let's say that these dots represent the pinnacle of good and evil." MC writes the two words down underneath the dots. "Do you see all this empty space?"

"Yes."

"That represents all the different combinations of good and evil. Some things are easier to contribute to one or the other." MC draws some smaller dots around the two original dots. "But most things in life exist in this space in between. Am I making sense so far?" I nod my head, allowing them to continue.

"Now, there are many factors that make deciding if something is good or bad rather complicated. I think the one that's pertinent to your question is this one." MC writes down the word "love" on the paper. "As you've stated, the brothers were once angels. Would you say that the residents of the Celestial Realm act like one big family?"

"Yeah."

"Then it would make sense for Michael to feel that way about the brothers. It's hard to cut ties with people you hold near and dear to your heart, even if they've hurt you in some way."

"Then why cast them out of the Celestial Realm to begin with?" The question slips out of my mouth before I can stop myself. "I mean, if Michael loved them so much, then he should've just forgiven them." That prompts MC to write down the word "politics".

"Michael's kind of like the Vice President of the Celestial Realm, right?"

"I mean, I suppose so. I hadn't thought about it like that before."

"But you understand why I made that comparison, right?" MC looks at me expectantly, and I realize that they want me to actually explain why. They're quizzing me, in a way.

"Well, a Vice President has a lot of power, but they still have to answer to the President. The Vice President can't just do whatever they want." They smile at me.

"Very good. Now, obviously I wasn't there at the time, but I can guess that God issued the order to Michael to cast the brothers out to the Celestial Realm. If he failed to do so, then he would face punishment of some kind. Perhaps he'd be kicked out as well, or worse. Whatever it was, it was severe enough for him to decide it was better to follow orders than it was to push back against them."

"Even if he didn't want to see the brothers leave?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Love sometimes has to bow down to politics. It sucks, but life isn't always fair. It can be awfully cruel at times."

"Do you think the brothers hate angels? If so, then all of Michael's love is in vain. They'll never love him back." MC grabs my hands again.

"I think that deep down, they miss the Celestial Realm and the people in it. It's just that the love they may still have towards that place often gets clouded by other emotions."

Oh no. I'm going to be in so much trouble. I can't start second-guessing Michael's judgement. That's totally not okay.

"Luke, look at me." MC can sense that I'm freaking out. "Despite of what people tell you, you are allowed to question why things are the way they are. It's part of learning. Don't ever let anyone take your curiosity away from you."

"O-okay."

"If they have a problem with it, they'll have to go through me." They pause. "I will do everything in my power to protect you, Luke."

"Why?"

"Because you're part of my family." I let go of MC's hands, only to hug them seconds later.

"Thank you," I whisper.

"You're welcome." When we separate, I notice something on their hand that wasn't there before.

The Star of Generosity.

It suits them.

[666writingcafe]

The Dining Car

"So, according to the pamphlet, we'll be on the train all night before arriving at the station closest to Lake Io Lanthe in the morning. Once we get off the train, we'll be walking the rest of the way."

Once I'm done talking, Mammon rolls his eyes at me. I understand not wanting to share a room with Luke, but that doesn't completely explain the bad attitude he's had all day, nor does it excuse it.

"You need to take this seriously," Luke chides Mammon. "What if we get lost?" Another eye roll.

"At least I'm not bouncin' up and down like a kid in a candy store."

"That's not how you behaved in the kitchen," MC retorts, glancing up from their copy from the pamphlet to glare at him. Mammon merely returns to picking at his food, which suggests to me that he's too scared to talk back to them. It's interesting, the idea of him fearing them. I don't think he feels that way about anyone else, not even Lucifer--and I've heard some rather loud yelps from him when he's caught red-handed by his brother.

But he has been known to argue with Lucifer, and he's not even attempting to do anything like that with MC.

"Apparently, each of the cars on this train is named after an angel," MC reads out loud.

"Lemme see!" Luke exclaims. Once MC hands him the pamphlet and points to where the information is located, his face lights up.

"That's so cool! It shows just how much they love angels here in the human world." A brief pause, followed by a gasp. "And the first car is named after Michael himself!"

I take a sip from my beverage in order to stop myself from sighing. I really wish Luke didn't hold Michael on this high pedestal. It's only going to hurt him in the long run when he discovers that the seraph is far from perfect.

Don't get me wrong; Michael is ultimately a good person. He just has a lot of issues, his obsession with Lucifer being one of them. I'm honestly surprised he hasn't gotten in trouble for his shrine. The mere possibility of the de-facto man in charge worshiping the Avatar of Pride rather than devoting himself to God--I mean, Father--would bring about an amount of chaos that hasn't been seen since the Great War.

It would certainly make my situation seem far tamer in comparison.

"I mean, when it comes down to it, are angels really that great? I don't see what's so special about 'em."

"How dare you!" Great. Luke and Mammon are arguing.

"Take a deep breath, Luke," MC instructs.

"You're right," he replies once he's calmed down. "I can't let Mammon's stupid attempts at provoking me succeed."

"You know I'm sitting right here, don't ya?"

"Oh, look; dessert's here." The words sound incredibly hollow coming out of my mouth. I just want to eat in peace. The food's not great enough to warrant enjoying it per say, but it's at least edible.

Luke immediately digs into his dessert, offering some to MC in the process.

"Yo, Luke, gimme a bite of that dessert of yours!"

"Eww, no! Why should I give you any of my dessert?!"

"There ya go, actin' like a brat again. Like, take it easy. It's just dessert."

"Look who's talking! You're the one who's insisting on having part of someone else's dessert. That's way more childish!"

I'm getting a headache. This isn't good. It always starts with a headache. Maybe if I can sneak away and decompress--

I feel something grab my hand and squeeze it. Glancing underneath the table reveals it to be MC's hand, although you'd never tell by the look on their face that that's what they did.

I appreciate them trying to comfort me. I really do. This isn't the sort of thing I want them brought into, though. As it is, I've already revealed too much to them about it.

"We'll flip a coin. If I win, I get your dessert."

"No thanks. I don't even want your dessert."

"What, afraid you're gonna lose, are ya? Luke the loser is scared, is that it?"

Tight muscles. That's phase two. Phase three is the internal screaming.

Except everything feels more intense this time. Yes, I'm upset at Mammon for bullying Luke for no apparent reason, but it shouldn't be enough for me to feel like chewing his head off. Besides, I'm usually able to calm down before it gets this far, and yet none of my techniques are working.

"That's impossible! You cheated, didn't you?!"

Another squeeze.

The hand.

"MC, let go," I hiss.

"I can't." I try to myself, but I fail as well. "I'm sorry, Simeon."

I feel bad. I really do. Everyone in this dining car is about to see a nasty side to me. The only thing I can do is hope that no one gets hurt.

"You're Michael's little puppy. You sit in his lap and sniff him and snuggle up against him all day long, doncha?"

There it is. The final straw that broke the camel's back.

"That's enough!" I snarl. Instantly, all eyes are on our table. I'm sure a few other cars heard me as well. I can get rather loud when I'm in this state.

Dinner's officially over.

[666writingcafe]

Virtue and Sin

Simeon

"What happened earlier?"

Given the situation that happened in the kitchen earlier, I thought it best for MC and me to share a room in the sleeping car so that I could have a proper conversation with them about it. I know that means having Luke continue to be exposed to Mammon and risk having another episode, but I don't know if I'll have another opportunity to be alone with MC, and there are some things they need to know.

"What you witnessed was greed's energy bouncing off Mammon and Luke," I answer. "The more they wanted to go on that trip, the stronger that energy became."

"And the more dangerous."

"Exactly."

"But why would Luke experience greed?" There's the million dollar question. Thankfully, MC seems smart enough to understand the answer.

"An angel's power is connected to one of the seven virtues. Obviously, we're supposed to practice all of them, but the strength of the individual connections differs from person to person. Less experienced angels tend to think that virtue and sin are complete opposites, but in reality they're merely two sides of the same coin."

"Kind of like yin and yang. Good and bad are intertwined; you can't have one without the other. And since Luke's very charitable and kind, he's more likely to experience greed and envy than some of the other angels."

"Correct." MC's following along quite nicely.

"Does the electricity happen to everyone that experiences a sin around a demon?" I shake my head.

"It's a phenomenon that only occurs between angels and demons. The effects are more internal for humans. Any signs of that electricity will be in the eyes, and even then it's so subtle that those that don't know what to look for will dismiss it as a mere trick of the light."

"I see." MC pauses to stretch their arms. "What would have happened to Luke if you didn't step in?" I sigh.

"An angel's tolerance for sin is like a rubber band; it can stretch pretty far, but eventually it will snap. Luke was moments away from throwing a temper tantrum, and those tend to be more violent than a human's."

"That makes sense. I mean, you might say that the flood that Noah experienced was the result of God throwing a hissy fit."

"How so?" I'm genuinely interested in MC's response, but I'm also testing them a bit with my question.

"Well, if something I poured my heart into creating didn't work the way I intended it to, I'd be pretty upset. Not just at the creation, but at myself. The possibility that I wasn't as good as I thought I was would hurt my pride, and I'd end up lashing out at my creation, potentially destroying it in the process."

Bingo.

"That certainly is an interesting take, MC." As much as I'd like to tell them that their reasoning is sound and that it partially explains how Lucifer turned out the way he did, I have a feeling that I'd get my ass chewed out for agreeing with the idea that God is capable of sinning. That kinda defeats the whole "He's perfect" thing.

"Do you think Luke's going to be okay bunking with Mammon?" I shrug.

"He has to learn how to control his greed and envy, and he can't do that if he doesn't know what he's up against. 'Know thy enemy', as they say." I sigh. "I hate to think of the brothers that way, especially since we were once family, but they are the Avatars of Sin for a reason. It'd be foolish of me to not take that into account."

MC appears deep in thought. I can tell that they have more to say, but for some reason they're hesitating. Are they afraid that I'll end our conversation if they keep talking?

Michael and the other seraphim would tell me that I should. A human has no business knowing this much. I know a few angels that still hold humanity in contempt for what Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden, and that's ancient history at this point.

However, I want to know exactly what MC's thinking. I find their intellect to be one of the most attractive things about them. Not that they're bad to look at--because they're not--but there are plenty of pretty people that don't have any complex thoughts in their head. It makes for rather boring conversations. At least I don't have to worry about that with MC.

"Hey, Simeon?" I hum in acknowledgement. "You don't have to answer this if you don't want to, but I was wondering what sin you're most susceptible to experiencing."

Oh. We're going there.

If it were anyone else, I would change the subject. Knowing an angel's weaknesses is powerful, and people have used that against us too many times for me to count.

But I don't think MC would do that. They've behaved too honorably.

I take a deep breath to ease my nerves.

"Wrath."

[666writingcafe]

Game Plan

Act I: Group Chat Between MC, Solomon, and Simeon

MC: Simeon and I are supervising a trip to find fairy rings. Have any advice?

Solomon: *confused demon sticker*

Simeon: Blame Barbatos. He got Mammon and Luke hooked on the idea of finding one.

Solomon: Mammon makes sense, but Luke?

Simeon: Apparently there's a type of fairy ring that's produced with flowers, which can be used as an ingredient to make a "special rare type" of dessert.

Simeon: Barbatos' words, not mine.

Solomon: Well, fairies is a subject I know little about. Most literature about them has been lost to time, and what remains are either wildly exaggerated or fictional altogether.

Solomon: Your best bet is to simply go out and look for them yourselves.

MC: Real helpful, Solomon. *eye roll emoji*

Solomon: *glaring crow sticker*

Solomon: You might have a chance of finding some if you look in places that are free of human influence, like deep within forests or lakes.

MC: Makes sense. I can't imagine fairies liking people very much.

Simeon: Based on what I've seen, there isn't anything like that around here. Not in this part of the human world, anyway.

MC: Let me talk to Levi.

~~~

Act II: Text Chat Between MC and Levi

MC: Have you heard about the hunt for fairy rings?

Levi: *nodding crow sticker*

MC: I asked Solomon for advise, and he said that they might be in areas that are free of human influence.

Levi: Already ahead of you.

Levi: The closest location that would fit that criterion is Lake Io Lanthe.

MC: How far is it from here?

Levi: Several hours. If this is supposed to be a mere day trip, the quickest method of travel would be by private jet.

MC: That's out of the question.

MC: The ONLY reason Lucifer is even allowing this to happen in the first place is because of Simeon. I don't want to push my luck any more than I already have.

Levi: Makes sense.

Levi: The next quickest way would be to travel by overnight train. I can have Crowe buy you a tour package with reservations in a sleeper car.

MC: That wouldn't be too bad.

MC: Is there anything you'd like me to get while we're gone?

Levi: You don't need to repay me, if that's what you're asking.

Levi: Belphie says to be careful of banshees.

MC: Didn't realize he was with you.

Levi: He just came in. He's in a weird drawing mood and wants to sketch some of the creatures in my fish tank.

MC: Ask him if he wants anything.

Levi: He merely shook his head before focusing back on his sketchpad.

[666writingcafe]

Rumors About Fairy Rings

Simeon

Upon hearing that Barbatos was currently staying at Serenity Manor, Luke practically begged for us to go see him. Of course, he'll deny it if anyone asks him, but that doesn't change the fact that he wanted to spend some time with the demon butler.

He was less keen when he heard why Barbatos was visiting, however.

"I don't like seeing a Devildom corporation making inroads into the human world like this," he told me as we were heading over to the Manor. "I'm afraid I'll wake up one day to find that the Devildom has taken over."

It's difficult to explain things to Luke sometimes. I can't get him to understand that both the Celestial Realm and the Devildom are seeking an amicable relationship with the human world. After all this time, he still thinks that demons are evil and only wish to tarnish souls. I was hoping that maybe by accompanying me, his opinion would have softened a bit.

Perhaps that was all in vain.

"I took the liberty of brewing some fairy ring tea," Barbatos explains as he pours the drink into small cups. Luke's eyes widen, as do Mammon's. I'm not sure why he's here, to be honest. I mean, I know he lives here, but surely he'd rather be doing something else instead of having tea with us.

"What's so special about a fairy ring?" MC asks, nonchalantly grabbing a cup and sitting down next to me. "It's just a bunch of mushrooms that grow in a circle." Barbatos smiles fondly at MC.

"I can understand your lack of enthusiasm," he tells them. "Mushroom rings can be explained away scientifically. However, there's a second type of fairy ring that's composed of small, sparkling, golden-hued flowers. The tea is meant to be reminiscent of those flowers." I take the opportunity to take a sip. It tastes pleasant enough. Smells nice, too.

"Legend has it that the rings are formed when fairies dance together in a circle," Barbatos adds.

"I'd like to meet a fairy!" Luke exclaims.

"I'm afraid the likelihood of that happening is quite slim. It's said that they've gone extinct in the human world."

"Seriously?!" Mammon shouts. "They're extinct? That's ridiculous! You used to be able to find 'em everywhere!"

"And that was how many centuries ago?" MC retorts, making me stifle a laugh. I'm glad I wasn't drinking my tea in that moment, or I would have choked.

When Mammon speaks again, he's a lot more nervous. I've noticed MC has that effect on him.

"Well, wherever there's fairies, there's treasure! They go hand in hand! And all of it is stuff that goes for a lotta money in the Devildom!"

"You certainly are a fountain of knowledge when it comes to anything related to money." I certainly did not expect that level of sarcasm from Luke. Apparently, neither did MC, who looks at me in surprise. The best I can do is shrug. It's not like I know exactly what triggered that side of Luke.

"Of course, their extinction is merely a rumor," Barbatos continues. "There may very well be fairies that are living in secret here in the human world, and they may still be producing those rings." He pauses. "I've heard that the flowers can be used to create a special rare type of sweet treat."

Now he's gotten both Mammon and Luke hooked on the idea of finding a fairy ring. I can see it in their eyes. They're about ready to bounce off the walls with excitement.

Lucifer chooses that moment to walk over to us and grab a cup of tea. He goes to take a sip, but then stops when he notices the look on his brother's face.

"No," he simply states before bringing the cup to his lips.

"I haven't even asked you anything!" Mammon protests.

"You don't need to. I can tell you're up to no good."

"But I wanna try the magical treats!" Luke whines.

"Magical treats?" Lucifer repeats.

"And I want some sweet, sweet money!" Mammon yells.

I feel myself beginning to zone out. I just want to enjoy my tea in peace. Perhaps I'll take it outside on the patio. It'd be quieter there than in here.

"Simeon." MC's hushed voice brings me back to reality. "Is it just me, or is there electricity bouncing between the two of them?"

It takes me a moment to see what MC's talking about, but when I do, my stomach sinks. Yellow sparks are flying off Luke and Mammon as they argue with Lucifer about going out and searching for fairy rings.

I knew this was bound to happen eventually, but I wish it held off for a few more years. Luke's too young to understand what he's currently experiencing; plus, he'd freak out on me if I told him.

And he's already on the edge.

I stand up from my seat and whistle loudly, making everyone quiet down and focus on me. Looking directly at Lucifer, I ask him,

"Would you allow them to hunt for fairy rings if MC and I accompanied them?"

Can you hear me?

Once upon a time, the two of us could communicate telepathically. All seraphim have this ability. Hopefully, the connection is still there, because I don't want anyone overhearing our conversation.

Lucifer subtly nods his head, allowing me to continue.

Luke's feeding off Mammon's greed. If you keep pushing the issue, he will become destructive, and I'm in enough trouble as it is.

His face softens. Our friendship may be a distant memory at this point, but it's comforting to know that he still cares about me.

"As long as you can keep them reigned in, then I don't see the harm."

Mammon and Luke cheer and give each other a high-five as Barbatos tells them to bring him back a few flowers so that he can brew them a pot of real fairy ring tea. MC, on the other hand, is looking rather confused as they keep glancing between Lucifer and me. I'm sure they'll be asking me questions later, and I'd be happy to answer any of them.

But we need to be alone first.

[666writingcafe]

Lesson 48: Confrontation

Cursed Karaoke

An Outdoor Argument

[666writingcafe]

Lesson 47: Reckless

Diavolo Has Disappeared

Preparation

[666writingcafe]

Lesson 46: Battle

Vanquishing a True Monster

The Final Boss

[666writingcafe]

Lesson 45: License

The Road to Becoming a Sorcerer

The Adventure Begins

[666writingcafe]

So, I may have gone a bit overboard with my outline for the next four lessons (49-52)...

You could say that the fairy ring arc inspired me...although if I start writing tonight, I'm not going to get much sleep and I have to work a morning shift tomorrow.

I'll leave you with this: Simeon is along for the trip from the start, and he goes through some serious character development.