The grass under his skin felt soft, the skies above a baby blue with fluffy white clouds lazily moving across the vast ever growing heavens. The sunshine cast its warm light down onto Abel as he enjoyed the soft call of birds around them, he tilted his head to the side to see Arphaxad lying beside him. The man's arms stretched, his large, red framed glasses pushed all the way onto his face, feeling the slayer's eyes on him as the demon turned to grin at the other.
"How did this place get so beautiful?" Abel asked as they laid in the middle of the forest clearing, the once dark, evil forest had turned light and warm with the sound of life filling it in every direction.
"Well, it's cause you came here,"
Abel scoffed at the others words, "That was cheesy as hell," He laughed, Arphaxad grinned as he rolled to sit up. Leaning over the other lightly, pale blue eyes glowing behind the round glass on his face.
"No no, I mean," Shaking his head, "You're the king of this place, yaknow?"
Abel frowned, "What do you mean?"
"Abel I told you, just think of my little forest as yours. You can come here whenever you want and I'll do my best to make it comfortable for you,"
Abel blinked up at the man, giving him a half smile as he sat up. Arphaxad sat back, giving the other some room.
"Actually, I have a gift for you! Than you gotta tell me about what happened last night,"
"Another gift?" Abel arched an eyebrow, shuddering as he recalled the man's last gift that had left him so exhausted he slept an entire day. In fact, he hardly remembered the night after taking it, he recalled thousands of colors, shapes and voices but it all came in a blur. That is, until Chamuel turned half the crowd into bone.
"This one is just for here," Arphaxad leaned to the side, pulling out a flower crown. The flowers bright red with a yellow center, their shape reminded Abel of those candy lips that he used to get at the fairground near his foster home.
"A flower crown?"
"Yeah, those are hip, right?" Arphaxad laughed, holding it up. "You're the king here, right? I thought it'd make you look pretty handsome, especially as your hair gets longer."
"I usually cut it around this time," Abel admitted, feeling a spark of warmth in his chest at the others words.
"Let it grow, long hair is hot," Arphaxad laughed, "Lean down a bit so I can put this on,"
Abel hesitated, the flowers looked familiar but he couldn't place where he'd seen them before. His mind flashed to the night before, feeling a tinge of pain in his heart he bowed his head. Arphaxad placed the flower crown over the other's skull, pushing it down lightly causing a sharp stab of pain to flash through the hunter.
"Hey, careful man!"
Arphaxad looked shocked as he reached forward and brushed a small big of blood from Abel's forehead,
"Sorry Abe," He laughed, "It must have had a thorn I missed!"
Pulling the crown off the other's head, he snapped the long thorn from the steam of the flowers, "These are called Euphorbia Milii! They're my favorite flower," Arphaxad murmured, his voice was loving and soft that sent a shiver through the slayer's bones.
Abel tilted his head, once again the name was familiar but he couldn't place it. Pushing it to the back of his mind he gave the man a smile,
"No biggie," He took the crown from the blonde, placing it back on his head and laying back down in the grass, taking in the smells from around him. He swore, it smelled exactly like the baseball field he used to play in when he was in high school.
"So what happened last night?" Arphaxad asked, laying back down beside the other. His arms behind his head, grinning at Abel with a glow in his cheeks.
"Oh right, Well, he told me he was gay,"
"Uh huh"
"And I...kind of just decided I would tell him, ya'know?"
"That you like him, right?"
"Yeah," Abel let out a sigh, talking about it now felt a little good. It was nice to have someone he trusted in his dreams, though it was a little odd.
"So I...did my whole romantic gesture thing and I--" He shuffled lightly, Arphaxad moved himself closer to Abel so their arms touched.
"And he...we were about to kiss, I know we were, but something happened? I guess after that I...got a little spooked," He chuckled, "And I don't get spooked often but Cham...man he does something to me,"
"I can't believe that, who would reject you?" Arphaxad sat up now, looking down on Abel with bewilderment flooding his features.
"I mean, he didn't reject me. I don't know what happened, I was going to talk to him about it when I woke up,"
Arphaxad shook his head, sighing, "That...was a rejection,"
"No way, I swear he was going to kiss me, man,"
"I've seen enough people to know that was a rejection," Arphaxad insisted, laying back down. Abel felt as though someone had run a knife through his heart, was it? His mind raced back to the memory. It almost felt hazy now as he attempted to recall exactly what happened, maybe Arphaxad was right? Could it be a rejection? They were about to kiss, right? Or maybe that's what he had wanted to believe.
"I guess," Abel agreed, going to race his fingers through his hair only to be stopped by the flowers. Wincing as he felt another thorn at the top of the crown, looking at the small hole in his hand. It sat directly in the middle of his palm - a tiny drop of blood rolled down his palm, rubbing his hand against the grass below.
"As a great man once said! "You spend so much time up this Creek, I should think by now you'd have brought a paddle""
Abel glanced at the other with surprise on his face, "Did you just quote the Nanny at me?"
Arphaxad sat up with an excited glint in his eye, "Yeah! You're the first soul to get that!"
Abel laughed, shaking his head, "I'm just saying though, you've been rejected enough in your life. Go...find yourself another angel," Arphaxad said, waving a hand in the air as if to dismiss the others' feelings for Chamuel.
"Or...maybe the opposite of an angel?"
Abel looked towards the other with a grin, "Oh, do you mean a demon?"
"Hey, you're the one who said it, not me."
Abel scoffed at the man's comment, "I wouldn't reject you, you know," Arphaxad continued. "That angel of yours...pretty dumb," The man frowned, a sudden look of horror filling Arphaxad's features.
"You don't think….no," the demon whispered in a dramatic tone before laying back down but now this peaked Abel's curiosity, he sat up. Leaning over the blonde who's smile widened upon seeing his face.
"What?"
"It's a conspiracy theory," Arphaxad said with a shrug,
"Lay it on me,"
"It's some real X-Files shit," Arphaxad warned.
"Tell me, Mulder,"
"Alright...Scully," He sat up only inches from the other, brushing grass from his green jacket, "But what if the angels are using you for something? Yaknow? What if, and this is a theory, they're trying to get in good with you to get you to save the world because they don't think you'd risk it all for nothing,"
Abel's heart stopped, it was something he had been thinking about since he found out Chamuel hadn't been completely honest about the Chamulet. Abel got to his feet, brushing dirt from his hand and inspecting the wound on his palm.
"Maybe Chamuel is trying to get you...oh no," Arphaxad covered his mouth, "What if," He leaped up in an animated fashion, holding out a hand for Abel who took it and was hoisted up.
"The angel's told him to play with your heart, he's an angel of love right? Who's to say he isn't giving you those feelings?"
Abel hasn't thought about it, suddenly feeling dizzy from the idea. He glanced around him, Chamuel couldn't be doing that could he?
"Well...I mean," Abel felt a small stab of fear, "I...liked him immediately, like, love at first sight kinda deal,"
"Oh shit, Abel," Arphaxad's eyes grew wide, "Love at first sight? That's a Hollywood thing, that doesn't happen," His voice hardly a whisper. Abel looked at the man with a pained expression
"Chamuel said it happens sometimes,"
"How convenient, it "happens sometimes"?"
Abel shuffled from foot to foot as he thought over the situation, feeling the demon's hand on his shoulder.
"Hey man, you okay?" Arphaxad looked at Abel with worry sparking in his voice. Abel nodded, leaning into the other's touch.
"I got'cha," he whispered to the slayer. Abel breathed in deep in an attempt to process the information that he was just given. He trusted Chamuel with his life, but should he? What the demon said made sense but what would Chamuel or any of the angels have to gain by making him have a crush?
"You gotta wake up," Arphaxad whispered into his ear,
"Man, I don't want too,"
"I'll be around," were the last words Abel heard as his body turned numb.
***
Abel's eyes flickered open, groaning inwardly as he sat up from the motel bed. Sunlight peeked out from behind the blinds, how long had he been asleep? The night before really drained him, he pulled his cell phone out and nearly dropped it.
They'd slept another twenty four hours, it was early morning the day before Thanksgiving and Abel couldn't believe how long it had been. His phone filled with messages from everyone! Mishka, Nathan, Donnie, a few unknown numbers, Baal. He glanced down at Chamuel who slept beside him, a shiver rolled up his spine as he recalled the conversation he had with Arphaxad.
"What if he's making you feel that love?" the other murmured into Abel's ear, the slayer shuttered once more before getting out of the bed slowly.
His heart felt heavy, noticing a few drops of blood on the pillow he made his way to the restroom, glancing in the mirror at his forehead shocked to see the small hole in his skin where the thorn had pricked him, it was still bleeding a little and collecting on his sideburns.
"What the hell," He whispered, he recalled getting the gift from Arphaxad in reality but this? Where was he even going as he slept? Looking down at his hand he noticed the small hole in his skin, it wasn't bleeding but he could see where it had been. The slayer washed his hands quickly before getting into the shower in an attempt to hide the blood. If Cham knew he was seeing a demon he'd flip out, he had to keep a secret yet he felt a stab in his heart once more. He didn't like keeping things from Chamuel, his past therapists had walked him through lying by omission.
"This is different," Arphaxad murmured, causing a shiver to roll down the man's spine, "He's changing your feelings, he's the one lying. You're just protecting your friend,"
Abel looked around him as the hot water raced down his face, leaning against the wall of the small bath he let tears start to run down his cheeks. The rejection was already painful, but now he wrestled with the idea his feelings could be fake, why else would Chamuel pull away so abruptly.
"I really should talk to him," Abel murmured.
"So he can keep lying to your face?" Arphaxad almost sounded angry, as if he were talking to Chamuel himself.
The sound of someone knocking on the bathroom door startled Abel back into reality,
"Hey, you okay?" Chamuel asked, "I saw some blood on the pillow,"
"Just a nosebleed," He lied, "I'll be out in a bit,"
-
Chamuel hesitated at the door, Abel's voice sounded a little off but he couldn't place why. The memories of the night before cause the angel to step away from the door, silently hating himself for pulling away but he knew it was for the best. Making his way back to the bed and sitting down,
"A nosebleed huh?" He whispered as he traced his fingers over the smeared blood on the side of the bed that Abel hadn't seen.
"I should tell him," Chamuel murmured to himself as he started to get changed into clean clothes, "I have to tell him, he'll…" the door clicked, Chamuel glanced up as Abel walked out only a few seconds later. His hair was getting long, it stuck to the side of his face and brushed the tips of his ears.
"Hey Chammy!" He grinned at the man, running his fingers through his locks in an attempt to keep it pushed back and out of his face. The small bit in the front stuck out regardless of his constant teasing.
"What's up? You look like shit," Abel asked, tilting his head at the other.
"Abel about last night, I uh, think we need to talk about some things,"
"What happened last night? Look, I'm just saying, if that guy put Windex on me I'd probably kill him,"
"Windex fixes everything, Abel, we went over this," Chamuel chuckled as he recalled the movie from the night before. Chamuel shuffled from foot to foot, Abel was acting very...Abel which not only comforted the other but also worried him.
"We gotta go see Donnie, he's got some news," Abel said as he scrolled through his phone, going to tug on his boots.
"Abel, we really need to talk,"
"Can it wait?" He asked, there was a hint of anger in the slayer's voice which caught Chamuel off guard. He never heard the others' anger directed at anyone who didn't deserve it, on top of that, Abel was often quick to talk to Chamuel about his feelings. It came off very wrong to the Angel. "We got a ton to do today,"
"Oh...I uh," Chamuel felt his face burn as Abel got to his face, his heart sank when he didn't see the warm spark in the others green gaze. Instead, they felt almost cold.
"Yeah, it can wait," Chamuel finally said, "It's not important, just...they made a second one,"
"Second what?"
"Big fat Greek wedding,"
Abel's smile returned, shaking his keys, "Tell me 'bout it in the car, we'll put it on the list."
***
Abel had been acting off since they woke up, on the drive to Donnie's Abel didn't sing any of the songs he put on which concerned Chamuel. He could see something spinning in the slayer's head, feel the anger and anxiety. What happened? Was this his fault? He needed to talk to Abel, he needed to tell him everything. The thought scared him, if Abel rejected him what would that mean for their friendship? For the world? For war? He hadn't even considered War in the equation, how would War react to a rejection from the soul whose affection it so desperately sought after.
The two had pulled up to Donnie's but Abel left the car without waiting for the other, trotting up towards the front door. Chamuel got out slowly, his heart hurt as he closed and locked the door behind him.
"Wait for me," He called after, having never had to ask that of the slayer until this second, something was very wrong but he wasn't sure if he'd ever known as Donnie threw open the door for the two. Grabbing Abel the slayer hugged him tight, glancing at Cham but not giving him the same reaction which caused his heart to break even more.
His mind went back to the demon he had vaporized, was Donnie thinking about that too? Chamuel followed the two in, Donnie's arm around Abel, talking a mile a minute about some new invention he and his 'assistant' had put together,
"Who is this assistant?" Abel asked with a grin on his lips.
As if to answer his question Israfil pushed out of the kitchen, his cheeks streaked with dark oil, his hair a mess under his snapback, golden eyes bright as the sun. He seemed to be abuzz with excitement at seeing the slayer.
"Israfil!" Chamuel said with a grin, the angel floated towards the other. Slamming into Chamuel at top speed before burying his face into his friend's chest, hugging him tight and lifting him from the ground. Chamuel laughed at the sudden display of affection, Israfil always knew how to make someone happy with his warm smile and voice of pure gold.
"Chamuel, my friend!" He laughed,
"This is your assistant?" Abel asked, looking the angel up and down, the angel placed Chamuel down before turning attention to Abel, grabbing the slayer's hand and shaking it with such energy it caused the slayer to laugh.
"I see you're keeping Faiths' Diadem safe!" He nodded to the necklace around Abel's neck.
"Diadem? I've been calling it a Chamulet," Abel said, glancing down at the amulet.
"Well, I like that better. Rolls off the tongue more,"
"Thanks, man, and you are…?"
"Israfil!"
"Do you always float?"
"Can't ruin the new shoes!" He gestured to the yellow converse on his feet with a joyful touch to his tone.
"So this is...faith's Diadem?" Chamuel asked, pushing into the conversation as he gestured to the necklace.
"You betcha!" Israfil held a laugh to his tone, "You must have been created after the Diadem were retired."
Chamuel opened his jaw to speak but shut it again, it was true. He didn't know much about the Diadems, he hadn't even known what they looked like until right now.
"Come into the garage, I'll explain things more, plus! We made something great,"
Israfil and Donnie gave each other a high five before leading the two past the kitchen towards their work area in the hidden laboratory below, Israfil fell in beside Chamuel and stopped him just outside of the door.
"You two go on, I need to talk to Chamuel!"
Abel shrugged, pushing into the small room with his friend close behind.
"What's up?" Chamuel asked, tilting his head at the other.
"Cham, it's not good, this war is a lot bigger than we anticipated,"
"How big is it?"
"Big Cham,"
There was hesitance in Israfil's voice, Chamuel knew the angel decently well and could see he was holding something back. Something wasn't right and the angel of war could feel it deep in his core like a smoldering fire.
"Israfil, what's going on?" Chamuel finally asked, making sure his voice sounded firm.
"I-I" He whispered, biting his lip and picking at his nails a few times. Was he trying to amp himself up to say something?
"Israfil," Chamuel growled out, getting frustrated now with his friend.
"Do you...like Abel?"
The question caught Chamuel off guard, he looked from the brunette to the opening that led down towards the lab. He grabbed the other and pulled him a bit farther away, panic flooded his body he could feel the anxiety in his fingertips.
"Am I that obvious?" Chamuel whispered through his teeth, glancing nervously back to where they stood. Israfil wasn't exactly one to understand his voice level, oftentimes yelling out secrets that shouldn't be heard by any creature.
"You can't!" Israfil practically blurted this out, Chamuel looked at him in shock.
"W-What?"
Israfil placed both hands over his mouth, he looked as if he were fighting with an internal voice, "Erm, I mean, you can't! It's uh, you can't be in love with him,"
"I-I never said love! I have a crush but--"
"Well I mean, that's good? No, it's not,"
"Israfil, what's happening?"
"Just...d-don't okay? I can't explain it exactly,"
"Yeah, let me just switch it off, hold on a second."
"You can do that?" Israfil's eyes grew wide at the others sarcastic comment making Chamuel roll his eyes.
"Israfil, why can't I have a crush on Abel? Is it going to doom the world? I know Jophiel wasn't happy with it bu-"
"Yes! It will doom the world!"
Chamuel looked at the other as if he'd grown a second head, was Israfil...lying? Regardless, it sent a wave of nausea through the angel. If Israfil wasn't lying could a simple crush really cause that much damage? From what he could tell, War was calmer around Abel. Even stopping his path of destruction upon being asked by the slayer.
"Look Chamuel-" Israfil finally said after a few rapid heartbeats, "- I can't explain too much, just...don't...go after it right now,"
Chamuel hesitated, the angel before him looked desperate as if his entire life depended on Chamuel agreeing not to tell Abel about his feelings which sent rolls of dread into his veins. Something was happening and Chamuel knew it.
"Alright," He whispered, feeling his heart shatter at not talking to Abel about everything. He silently wished he hadn't pulled away now, but at the same time maybe it was a good thing? He needed to understand this more, get more information. For now, he's waiting. It was a crush after all, it could possibly go away. Right?
***
"Faiths' Diadem, or the Chamulet!"
Israfil started, Abel was under Donnie's car with him. Having offered to help fix the car for the man for free,
"I'm not big on cars, I can make a car! But fix one I didn't make? No way!" Donnie had said.
"Well, you did a lot for us, lemme fix it!" Abel laughed.
Now as the two worked together to fix the issues on the old junker Chamuel and Israfil watched from afar, occasionally tossing a tool to one of the two men.
"Archangel Faith was the first and strongest archangel,"
"I thought Michael was?" Abel asked from where he was under the old Toyota, pulling himself out to grab at a wrench not too far from his hand. The oil on his face dripped into his hair and down his neck, pooling at the collar of his white tank top.
"In a sense, see, Faith was the first archangel when Earth was made. She's the one who helped set up human evolution!"
Israfil took a few sips of water, letting out a sigh, "Me and her go way back, I was made as her right hand man!"
Puffing out his chest pridefully, "God made the rest of the archangels when he was happy with Faith's work. But then Michael was born, and Lucifer, and well, you know the story from there. Lucifer was thrown into the underworld and all was peaceful for awhile! Then the apocalypse started up. Faith worked with her King to fight a great evil and in the end, she sacrificed herself to bring her King back."
He pointed to Abel's necklace as the man got out from under the car, attempting to get the sweat off his brow without smudging more oil onto his skin.
"And the Diadem around your neck is what us angel's put all our grace into! Before humans evolved to hold our angelic spirits we had to put all our power into the Diadems to prevent the human body we used from falling apart due to the raw, angelic power."
"Faith's King?" Chamuel murmured, a puzzled expression flooded his features.
"Wait, but the bible doesn't describe that," Abel pointed out,
"The Bible was written by those who didn't have the full story and went off what was said through the grapevine. A lot of the bible is either stuff made up to bring out a lesson or greatly altered due to one big game of phone tag,"
"So her entire grace is in this?" Chamuel murmured, gesturing towards the Chamulet. "How is that even possible?"
Israfil pulled out the necklace from around his neck, the gold shimmered vividly in the false lights of the tiny garage.
"You have one too?" Abel murmured,
"Yes, it was given to me after Faith disappeared." He let his fingers dance over the sharp edges a few times, "All my power is in it. I've been using this body since the dawn of time and though I don't have a human soul inside anymore I still use my Diadem! It makes me more powerful as well. When an angel dies and a Diadem is connected to their soul they have a choice of putting all their power, and part of their soul inside it and giving it to another soul. It's rare, but that's what happened with Faith's Diadem,"
Abel fiddled with the necklace for a few heart beats nervously .
"What's Diadem mean?" he asked
Donnie spoke up this time, sliding out from under the car. His shirtless frame muscular, the anti possession symbol on his chest looked a little raw as if he had been itching it.
"Mean's crown basically, fancy way of saying crown. I'm guessing the angel's feel like they're royalty so all of them having little crowns makes sense!" Donnie chuckled as he pulled himself out from under the car and got to his feet. Grabbing a rag to get the oil off his hands.
"Oh! You! you're so smart!" Israfil laughed, Donnie gave the other finger guns.
"No you!" he chuckled, Israfil placed a hand on his chest in a dramatic fashion.
"I'm swooning' over here!" He laughed,
"I get it, you're gay," Abel teased his friend, "What's all this King talk?" Turning his attention on Israfil.
"Well, I don't know much. When it was all happening I was tasked with protecting the innocent. But there were once seven kings, I...can't recall exactly what their partners were referred to."
"Are...Does me having this Diadem...make me a king?" Abel whispered, feeling overwhelmed with all the sudden information he looked towards Chamuel who met his eye causing the slayer to glance away quickly. The familiar warmth rolled through his chest at the other's vivid blue gaze.
"I'm...not incredibly sure, before Faith vanished she tasked me with giving a specific person her Diadem. When Abel showed up I just...knew,"
"So…" Chamuel started, clearing his throat, "Do we know anything else?"
"Not really," Israfil admitted,
Everyone went silently once again, Israfil seemed to shuffle uncomfortably under the weight of their hushed breathing.
"So it's an angels power?" Abel finally asked, breaking the silence,
"Yes,"
"How does it work?"
"I'm not sure, at least, not for how it works for humans,"
Abel was getting visibly frustrated with the others answers, "Well you gotta know something, am I a king too? What does that even mean? Is...Cham like a knight?"
Israfil drummed his fingers against his leg, "I...know Faith picked you,"
Abel blinked at the other, tilting his head slightly as confusion flooded his features.
"Why me? Why not Nate's son? Why am I so special?" The words came out of the other rapidly, almost angrily. He didn't know the first thing about any of this, why was he picked?
"Because Nathan's wife isn't holy blood, so their isn't either,"
"Holy blood?" Donnie asked, looking between everyone.
"The Lancaster line is directly related to the great kings of the past," He nodded to Abel and let out a sigh, "Some people have holy blood, some don't, some have blood of the damned."
"So I was picked because of who my relatives are, is what you're saying?" A small note of hurt in his tone, no one else seemed this except Chamuel who caught his eye.
"Yes, and no, Faith had to choose someone with holy blood, but thousands of people have holy blood. You were picked out of all of them,"
Abel seemed to relax at this, Chamuel moved a hand towards the other in a form of comfort but Abel ducked away from the touch. Feeling a shot of pain in his chest as Arphaxad's words continued to circle in his mind.
"Let's talk shop," Abel said suddenly, changing the subject, "Donnie what's this thing you wanted to show us?"
***
"How can you be Abel's brother?" Nathan asked, eyeing the man, though his caramel skin wasn't anything like Abel's he could really see it in the man's hair and cheekbones. The Lancaster cowlick caused the front of the man's fancy hair to stick out and a few moles dotted his face. Shaking his head now as he realized why Cain looked so familiar, was he also Gilbert's son?
"And your names...Cain?" Baal asked, looking at the man with a suspicious glance.
"My mom," He chuckled, "Well our mom, me and Abel's, big on the whole bible kind of names," He offered.
"Abel picked his name," Nathan blurted out, causing Baal to look at Nate with a puzzled expression, Cain seemed to panic for a few heartbeats. Nathan felt embarrassment flood over him, recalling his own son snapping at him for outing a transgender friend of his.
"Erm, I mean," Nate tried to find the right words, nervously sipping his beer.
"He's transgender, his name was Alice," Nate whispered the name as if it were a curse.
"Oh, I didn't know," Cain whispered, rubbing the back of his neck as if he were a little embarrassed with himself, "I was wondering what those comments were about,"
"Comments?" Baal asked, Cain shrugged, holding up the phone to Baal who glanced through the messages quickly before taking his own device out and reading them more in depth.
"How can people be like this," Baal snarled, he got up without another word and made for the restroom. Leaving Nate alone with the mysterious doctor.
"Well, anyways," Cain murmured, "I guess the name Cain is a happy coincidence?"
"How do you know you're his brother?" Nathan challenged.
"My mom, she's...got some mental problems," He said, clearing his throat "But she recognized him,"
Nathan eyed the man, he didn't fully believe what Cain said. It didn't make much sense, the pair might share a mother but Nathan had seen pictures of Abel before transition and if he didn't know Abel he'd never guessed he'd once identified as a woman.
"He looks just like his dad,'' she said," Cain blurted out, this sent a rolling pain through the slayer. He did look like Gilbert, at least, with a smaller chin and not as muscular.
"Did you want something?" Nathan asked, he was curious now. The doctor seemed nervous, as if the setting he was in made him uncomfortable.
"To meet my brother?" Cain said finally.
"Yeah, that'd make sense," Nathan chuckled, attempting to brush his hair from his face as the bartender dropped another beer beside him.
"Well he's on his way here," Nathan thought back to Baal, even if Cain was dangerous he had Baal with him. Though he was a demon Nate trusted that Baal would protect them, especially considering his reaction to the negative comments on Abel's twitter. He couldn't understand his intense loyalty he felt towards his new friend, his mind moved to his ex who had been possessed for most of their relationship. Baal was nothing like her though, maybe that's why he trusted him.
"If you give me your number I can text you when he gets here, maybe?" Nate offered, pulling out the new phone he had got just that day. Having made a trip to the store, upgrading to the newest edition with all the bells and whistles. It was confusing a bit for the man, he was feeling his age more now a day both mentally and physically. He had used a flip phone for years and now he held a miniature computer in his palm.
"Yes, perfect," Cain said with a touch of relief in his tone.
-
The two exchanged numbers, Nate giving him Baal's cell as well before the doctor excused himself.
"My mom's calling," He lied, turning and leaving the bar. His smile widened as he looked down at Nathan's phone number, Cherm giggled like a school boy in his ear. Pushing out of the bar and into the sharp, cold air. His breath came out in clouds as he started walking.
"Transgender," Cain scoffed, "Why pick someone who's not even a man?" He whispered to himself.
"The angel's picked the wrong one, my king," Cherm insisted,
"We'll show them who the real king is, don't worry," Cain replied into the cold air. The promise of snow covered the skies above, thanksgiving was coming up quickly, bringing a cold front with it.
-
Baal returned to Nathan a short time later, sitting down beside him, his fingers dancing over the letters on his screen.
"Who are you texting? and where did you go?" Nate asked, attempting to lean over and spy on whatever the man was writing out.
"Abel," He said simply, his voice gruff.
"Abel?"
Nathan read through the texts, "Are you talking about Alien?"
"We were, now I'm talking to him about something else,"
"Why Alien?"
"Good movie, Ripley's hot,"
Nate watched Baal type out a long message, feeling his heart swell at the support the demon was sending to his nephew. Glancing up at the other with a small smile,
"Aww, the demon has a heart of gold,"
"Shut up, Nate,"
"Where are your talking animals?" Nathan continued to tease, causing Baal to shove him lightly.
"I could break you in half if I wanted, ya'know,"
"Don't do that, they might take away your angel's wings,"
Baal snorted, his eyes glittered with humor, "You're cruisin' for a bruisin',"
Nathan laughed, taking another drink of his beer. Silently, he missed hanging out with someone and drinking beers, talking about girls, life.
"So Ellen Ripley, huh?" Nathan asked, grinning,
"Oh I'd let her blow my head off," Baal laughed,
"Into that kind of foreplay, huh?" Nate laughed.
The two continued to chat with one another, leaving Butch in the motel room. His eyes dancing over the pictures on the screen in front of him, the necklace around Abel's neck had nearly caused his heart to stop upon first seeing it. Faith Diadem, or as Abel had been calling it online, the Chamulet. Butch knew the rumors, he read the old text, saw the pictures on the great hidden church walls of the old world. He needed to have it, he'd been following the Church of Faith since he was a child and now it was all coming together. He wasn't fully aware of its power, what happened when someone Faith didn't choose ended up having it, and he knew the Church of Faith saw it as a sign of rejoin! They would protect the Diadem's holders with their lives. Anger rolled into his body, causing the skin to shutter as power pumped into his veins. An inhuman growl ripped through his lips, sharp teeth glittered in the darkness. His ears had started to point upwards which was an issue, the stronger the darkness got the more it would be harder to hide what he really was.
His eyes glanced up to the text message that flashed over his screen,
"Be back in 15! Are you sure you don't want anything to eat?"
He flicked Nathan's message away, when they asked if he wanted to join them Baal seemed more than delighted to take his poor excuse. He needed to come up with a plan to get the necklace from Abel, it wouldn't be hard would it? He knew he'd have to be careful, but he was already in Abel's close circle so how hard could it be? He didn't know if he could access the raw power of the amulet but he had to try. For his son.