Of Light And Shadows

“I remember this painting,” Jia said as they passed a large oil portrait of a serious-looking man glaring out at them. He had stark white hair, deathly pale skin and eyes of the deepest red like Lucifer’s. “It used to feel like the eyes watched you as you walked past.”

“It still does,” he answered. “My father is scary even in a picture.”

“I know that feeling,” she answered automatically. His brows pulled together and he stopped to look at her.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Nothing. My dad just has a temper sometimes. You know how I always hated being yelled at.” She shifted her weight nervously.

“You’re a grown woman. Nobody should be yelling at you.”

“I still live under his roof and I’m friends with a human he happens to hate. He has every right to yell at me until I can pay my way towards the bills.” She shrugged. “It’s no big deal, Louie.”

“Louie? I haven’t heard that nickname in a long time.” He cocked his head at her obvious distraction tactic, but let it slide for the time being. “Come on. If we don’t get there soon Beelzebub and his friends will have eaten everything.”

“Beelzebub?”

“One of the Seven Devils.”

“The Seven Devils?”

“You really didn’t learn anything about this realm when you last came here did you? In human scriptures there are the seven sins. Each sin has a corresponding layer of Hell to which the committer of said sin is banished. Each layer has a ruler.

“I represent pride. Mammon represents greed. The third Devil is Asmodeus representing lust, Leviathan represents envy, Beelzebub is gluttony, Satan is wrath and Belphegor is laziness. Your scriptures call it sloth or something along those lines.”

“And is any of that correct?”

“Most of it is wrong. The scriptures correctly identify the seven most powerful figures to be cast from the Angelic realm and the traits they embody, but the order of hierarchy is incorrect.

“Satan is the most powerful. He has three sons; myself, Mammon and Belphegor. Our family is the Ruling Caste. We then have the First Sphere which comprises of the other three Devils identified in your scriptures and religious texts.

“The Second Sphere is made of their subordinates and the rest of the Fallen, and the Third Sphere ranks the pure blood Demons with the most power in this realm.”

“But our scriptures have been around for hundreds, if not thousands of years,” she countered. “You and your brothers are only a year or two older than me.

“That’s true in body but not in mind. We reincarnate.”

“Wait, what? You mean you can’t die?” She blinked at him.

“Our bodies can be destroyed but we can’t be killed.”

“How old are you really?”

“That’s a big question and I don’t actually know the answer. I’ve existed alongside my father for millenia. I’ve forgotten more about my life than I remember.”

“How many times have you died?” She looked at Lucifer with a new appreciation in her eyes, recognising the keen intelligence and his reserved nature for what it was; something carefully cultivated over centuries.

“Less than my idiot brothers,” he shrugged, looking away. “We were killed by Satan as punishment for stepping out of line. Then we were forced to reincarnate and wait for our bodies to reach maturity again. It was all very inconvenient.”

“So were you and your brothers killed at the same time? You all seem about the same age right now.”

“Yes.”

“What did you do?”

“Belphegor fell in love with a human and we hid it from Satan.” Jia’s eyebrows rose abruptly. “The one thing forbidden above all else is to have a relationship with someone from outside our realm. Him falling for the human and us hiding it was enough for all three of us to be killed.”

“Could any of you get in trouble for helping me?” she asked, suddenly worried. Lucifer’s expression softened.

“You don’t need to worry about that, Jia. Mammon’s pact runs the greatest risk but it isn’t the same as a romantic relationship so he’s safe. Bell is still hung up on the human he loved.” He smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes. “And I’m due to be married off as soon as my father sees fit.”

“If you’ve been around for so long why is he only choosing to marry you off now?”

“He isn’t. He’s been trying to make me take a wife for the last two thousand years. His patience is wearing thin enough now that he’s ready to force it.”

“Aren’t you worried about it?”

“I knew it would happen eventually,” he shrugged.

They reached the dining room and the noise and bustle interrupted their conversation. Mammon and a tall man with chin length blonde hair were arguing over who got the last dessert.

Bell was asleep with his head resting beside his plate, snoring gently. There were a dozen others in the room all laughing and chatting with one another as well.

“Wow, it’s like the cafeteria at my old high school,” Jia muttered.

“Must you always make so much noise?” Lucifer asked, raising his voice to be heard over the racket. All eyes turned to him and the din stopped immediately. “That’s better. Mammon, Beelzebub, what are you arguing about now?”

“Bee wants the last chocolate cup but he already ate four.” He jerked his thumb at the blonde man and Jia stared.

Beelzebub was huge. He was almost seven feet tall with broad shoulders and a square jaw. Every inch of him was covered in muscle and his eyes were a piercing blue. He stared back at her evenly.

“Who’s your new friend?” he asked, his voice a rumbling timbre that reminded her of a thunder clap.

“This is Jia, and she’s more of an old friend. My brothers and I met her when she was a child and she stayed here for a while. She’s a Lotura from the human realm.”

“I bet she tastes good.”

“You are not to eat her,” Lucifer warned, shooting him a stony glare as Jia took a step back. “She is a guest here, not food. As you can see she wears my crest. If any of you set one toe out of line I will banish you so fast you forget your own names. Is that understood?”

Several murmurs of acknowledgement fluttered around the room, though all the eyes that stayed on her were still half way between curiosity and hunger.

“Here, Jia. You can have the last chocolate cup since Beelzebub and Mammon won’t shut up fighting,” said an indescribably handsome man with grey hair and blue-grey eyes. He stood and crossed the space to hand it to her.

“My name is Asmodeus. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He took her hand and kissed it gently and suddenly she felt light headed.

“Stop that,” Lucifer warned. “She’s off limits.” The Demon raised an eyebrow but he released her hand and stepped back, inclining his head respectfully in his superior’s direction. Jia almost staggered against the dizziness that followed but Lucifer’s gloved hand was at her back, steadying her discreetly.

“It truly is a pleasure to meet you and my apologies for charming you.” Asmodeus smiled, showing off his elongated incisors. “I do forget the effect I have on people when I first meet them.”

He hooked his arm through hers and tugged her to the long table before she could object, sitting her beside him in the middle of a gaggle of staring Demons. Nerves welled up inside her immediately until Lucifer sat down on her other side. Mammon grinned at her from across the table and she knew she was safe.

“Are you the one that came with the Vampire we have in our Infirmary?” The question came from a girl with hair almost as dark as Lucifer’s and eyes that were all pupil. The fine bones of her face were delicate and perfect. She would have been beautiful if not for those terrifying eyes.

“I am,” she nodded. “I’ve been here once before as a child too.”

“I bet you don’t remember me do you?” Another male voice, this one coming from the most human-looking of the lot.

He had brown hair, deep blue eyes and his skin had a healthy tan. She remembered those eyes vaguely from the time she got lost in the library. Unlike Lucifer and his brothers, this Demon had looked exactly the same then as he did today.

“...Asael?”

“Well what do you know?” he grinned. “It seems you don’t forget a pretty face after all. It’s good to see you all grown up, Jia.”

“You two have met?” Lucifer asked, his eyebrows rising in surprise.

“Yeah, she got stuck in the history section of the library when the shelves moved the last time she was here. I helped her out of there and took her back to her room.” Asael’s smile was friendly, much friendlier than some of the other looks she was getting.

“Have you met anyone else here that you recognise?” Lucifer asked. She frowned and looked around before her eyes fell on a slight figure gazing back at her from the end of the table. This woman had dark skin, pale blue hair and beautiful green eyes.

“I have. I remember Sytri.” The blue-haired girl waved.

“It’s nice to see you, Jia. I wondered what happened to you once you were sent back to the human realm. Welcome back.” Jia was about to reply when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see another man looking down at her with eyes that were vibrant pink.

“You said you were Lotura?” he asked. His voice was soft and pleasant, though his expression was blank. Lucifer didn’t leap up to throw him off of her so she let herself relax a little and she nodded. “Interesting. You don’t feel like one.”

“I don’t?”

“No.” He smiled and when his eyes crinkled at the corners his expression changed into one of warmth. He brushed pastel pink hair out of his face and let go of her shoulder to shake her hand. “I’m Leviathan.”

“You’re one of the seven Devils too?” He nodded, beaming earnestly.

“I am. Asmodeus and Beelzebub are as well as the three you know already. Satan is the last of us but I doubt you’ll meet him any time soon, if at all. He rarely stops by here. This whole place is left to Lucifer to run.” He cocked his head. “Do you by chance have any Angel or Demon blood in your lineage?” She shook her head. “Curious.”

And then he walked away to retake his seat and questions fired at her from all directions. She answered whatever she could, trying her best to avoid Beelzebub’s gaze while she ate.

“The best way to his heart,” Asmodeus said softly into her ear, “is food. Offer Bee your chocolate pudding and you’ll be his best friend, I promise. He’s only looking at you like that because he really wanted it.”

“Are you sure?” she asked. He nodded so she looked to Lucifer. He raised his eyebrows at her, imploring her to try it.

She took a breath and got to her feet. The other Demons ignored her, though Mammon and Lucifer watched intently, as did Beelzebub. She stopped in front of him and forced herself to smile. His head tilted curiously.

“Here, Beelzebub. I’m not hungry enough to eat this. Do you want it?” For a moment she thought he might hit her, and then the widest, most endearing smile broke across his face.

“I love chocolate pudding,” he grinned. The twinkle in his eye was almost enough to make her laugh as he accepted the treat. She squeaked when he stood to hug her and the rest of the table chuckled. He squeezed her almost hard enough to turn her spine into a loose stack of pebbles. “Sorry if I scared you, I get grumpy when I’m hungry.”

“You’re always hungry,” Mammon muttered