Silence. Zephyr's mansion. Reception day. The time was "9:30" in the morning.
William was nervous.
He was reminiscing about his appointment to the Third Circle, while adjusting his clothes for the third time, double-checking the gifts of his hosts.
He would give Charlie an enchanted notebook with endless pages to help with calculations and scribbling, and it could be enlarged to the size of a school desk in the classroom, which would make it easier for her to do her... Whatever Charlie was doing.
Lilith... It was hard for William to think of a gift for the Queen herself, because it should be at least useful, moreover - worthy, but William... William hoped that a small metal-gold amulet in the style of "coins", with a "knitted" chain, six painted runes of luck, beauty "coins" on the right and left sides of the center where the main "coin" hung, with the symbol of a star and pearls in the center. The amulet brings good memories, allowing the wearer not to be discouraged and... The amulet summoned the fondest memories at the will of the wearer, allowing in detail to relive them again....
William hoped that Lilith or Lucifer wouldn't kill him for such hints. He decided to check again.
"The gift is there, the etiquette... Still not forgotten, though how the most important aristocracy of Hell perceives the Sinner... Humiliate and humiliate some more...", William went over his imaginary list again. For the fifth time in the last hour.
A vest, a shirt, a scarf, a cloak, a cane that now looked more like a diamond than a rough geometric figure, though it retained all its functionality... Shoes, pants, belt....
William checked each item, checked the Weaves on them, the enchantments, updated the protective weaves, double-checked and tested for the umpteenth time the emergency teleportation Weaves on the poor Minion, though William wouldn't be able to get away from an angry King and Queen if he wanted to, but if Charlie stood up for him... he might have time.
"Shirt clean, mask...", William looked at his reflection again, where a black mask with flaming hair looked back at him. His 'battle guise' or simply an Aether-enhanced mask made hastily in his early days. William would need to demonstrate a similar metamorphosis: black becomes white and white becomes black, or the "White" mask looking like some kind of skeleton becomes the black mask of the "Gentleman from Hell".
"Cloak, gifts... Notebook and amulet are working and in place...", William tried to occupy his thoughts, tried to apply the Weaves, but his damned body... He had to rework old Weaves on the fly, designed for angels, not Sinners or humans... which certainly didn't make William any more confident in today's success.
He glanced at his pocket watch.
"9:45"
All of his Replicants were busy working, his police force was highly productive, and business with the other Overlords was proudly postponed until tomorrow.
It was time for William to go to... not an execution, but a meeting!
William swallowed, with a quick stream of Aether checking his clothes, taking in his left hand the basket of gifts and goodies that Charlie had described to him in her letters, and then... With a trembling hand he reached for the letter, written in exquisite, almost unreadable italics that conveyed grandeur and pathos.
"...The important thing is not to joke with Lilith about her preferences in bed, and I can survive, and Charlie can cover for me...", a fraction more of a moment and William touches the letter, which immediately transports him to...
...A strange semblance of Eden.
William looked around, breathing in the surprisingly clean air, feeling the breeze through his mask, his eyes fixed on the morning clouds floating across the blue sky, through which the red pentagram of the Ring could be seen.
All around him was what he had seen in Eden... and yet a strikingly different landscape at the same time. It was as if a painter had taken inspiration from the painting and remade it completely, leaving only the meaning behind.
It was as if he had fallen into some angel's painting, or... Into a strange fairy tale.
The greenery was excessively green, the flowers were of irregular colors, and the trees were of unusual shapes, large in size... Big trees that created a kind of cozy atmosphere, strangely soothing....
William took a deep breath, carrying the basket in his cane-free hand.
"The smell... it's like Eden... Is this really the 'Paradise' that the Sinners deprived themselves of? Is this the 'Paradise' Lucifer wished to build?", William had almost forgotten his excitement, completely engrossed in the scenery that opened up.
He was fairly certain that there was no way around Pentagram City.....
"Space distortions and pocket dimensions...?!", came to such a simple and ingenious thought with shock.
...Of course! Why hadn't he thought of such a thing for his Silence himself!
That's right. Lordship stuff and all that... William shook his head returning to contemplating the scenery and scribbling down notes for future developments. He was like a writer who had been visited by a beautiful naked muse, broadcasting for him the most passionate lines....
William didn't even pay attention to the wonderful sensation of the wind, the calm atmosphere, strikingly different from that of the rest of the Ring...
"If this is where Charlie grew up, I can see why she's so... pampered," William thought for a moment, but then forgot about the calculations, thoughts and concept designs.
The slight chill of the morning that heralded winter, the first snow that had recently melted... There was even a slight vapor, barely visible to the eye, coming from William's mouth, but that... William was not looking at the landscape, but at how it had been created and....
Saw the hand of a master, no... Grandmaster, if not God... William fully realized where Lucifer got his Pride from. He recognized that the Aspect of Wonder could rightfully boast such talent, for some of this... "Second Eden", was even better than what William had seen in the real Eden! A transported copy or a recreated version, but still!
William didn't notice that he had already reached the Mansion, engrossed in contemplating the structure and views of the Garden. He didn't even look at it, he just, purely intuitively, while all his mental streams were busy with calculations and...
The doors opened and William's attention returned.
The double door was opened by two flying goats, red fur, horns... eyes? William recalled that Charlie's family had several such servants, but....
William looked around the reception hall or... A spacious hall in red tones, hard floors of some kind of stone or wood, decorated with soft, almost imperceptible gray carpets with black thin circular patterns, and from the door itself was a red carpet with gold trim on the sides, extending to the very steps in the center of the hall.
The smell of wax, the scent of flowers and fruit, the pleasant slightly dimmed golden light illuminated the room in Victorian or... Renaissance architecture? The green wallpaper with white, almost transparent apple patterns on it, was complemented by various paintings or red canvases.
William was not versed in history, nor was he strong in biology to know all the animals, their official names, so he was not going to comment on the style and tastes of his hosts that...
explicitly did not expect him at the threshold, which gave William a grain of doubt that this welcome would be different from what he was used to.
The goats took his cloak, hanging it on the nearest rack that was to the right of the entrance, in a cozy corner where there were a number of coats, capes, dresses... a pair of white tuxedos with red epaulettes....
"Either Lucifer has special tastes in clothes, or the shenanigans and testing have started now... If not from the beginning...", thought William as he waited politely for the flying goats to finish tidying him up, wiping his clothes, adjusting those, somehow making them hot and warm, somehow adding to his coziness.
Almost as soon as William entered the house, he could feel two... souls? More like two bright colors, in a gray or strangely mixed palette. As if the color was reflecting off the walls and his ears or eyes... William still had a hard time describing such sensations, which was probably natural for Seraphim or similar creatures. Either way, he spotted probably Charlie and Lilith themselves waiting for him two pairs of doors ahead... just to the right.
William didn't know the layout of the building, for that one was... very strange. It was as if it were not a monolithic structure, but a toy house whose parts could be changed in the blink of an eye. William didn't know where he got such associations, writing it off to Lucifer's mischief.
Finally, the goats finished their business, one of them flew up and away, and the other bowed deeply to him, taking the basket and flying toward the stairs, the other... with a foot-stomping hoof, urging him to follow him. William, after a little hesitation, moved after the goat, looking around the rooms.
The corridors of the Morning Dawn Mansion were done in reds, purples, or blues, either mixing or varying in tone or brightness, but the general style of the aristocracy of his time, or of a couple centuries ago, was clearly evident. Everywhere were patterns of apples, vines, or flowers, in one form or another.
Shapely looking furniture, luxurious carpets and chandeliers with candelabras illuminating the rooms, and the smell... Was pleasant. William couldn't tell exactly what it was, but it didn't make him wary, and if his senses and the results of the Weave analysis were to be believed, it was perfectly safe even for him - a Sinful Fallen Angel.
After a couple minutes of walking, or in the case of the goat, flying, William was led to a single door, where a servant of the house held it for a moment, displaying strange poses...
...As William realized, looking into the semblance of the mind and soul of this creature of Lucifer, the latter was politely, strangely sweetly, warning him of the necessary bows, words, and gestures. The sequence and manner of performance.
To greet the Queen first, calling her full title, but briefly and majestically, and then the daughter herself. Each must be indicated by a polite bow of the head at such-and-such an angle... And one must speak politely, without raising or lowering the tone of voice... William had no idea how he could understand such a thing without his powers, but....
The door opened. William took a fleeting glance around the well-lit room.
Excellent and high quality wooden flooring in floor rhombuses. Purple walls of either marble or another wood, at the joints between the dark purple curtains, were gold patterned and angular candelabra with two candle inserts. The room was rectangular, with a purple rug in the center, on which was a small round coffee table, with a tea set already prepared, waiting to be set....
William's eyes immediately darted to the end of the room.
Tables with flowers, a piano by a large window that overlooked a beautiful landscape, next to the table was a purple floor round sofa with a couple of cushions and one chair of the same style to its left, and next to them...
Charlie. William immediately recognized this girl, who had grown up considerably since their last live meeting. A bardic dress, with a dark patterned netting around the shoulders. Her long, hip-length hair was gathered into one large ponytail, styled with an elastic band in the shape of a spiky vine. Makeup emphasized her eyebrows without touching her face.
William tilted his head slightly, to which Charlie smiled broadly.
To her right...
Lilith.
William's breath caught.
Taller than Adam. Long, gorgeous blond hair, loose and somehow increased in volume so that it wasn't blowing in the invisible wind. A black dress in the style of her daughter's clothes, where only her shoulders and the top of her bust were slightly translucent through the transparent garments of the dress. A red snake braided Lilith's figure, not so much as a protection as a strange piece of jewelry. In keeping with her daughter, she had applied no makeup to her face, only eyelash, eye and eyebrow liner.
William hoped the entire processing of the information took a moment, after which he bowed slightly, addressing the main woman of the house.
"Queen Lilith Morningstar-" William removed his cylinder, revealing his mask. - "Princess Charlotte Morningstar." - A shorter bow, more of a mere designation of his head, toward his daughter's broadly smiling that-.
"Hello!" - Char--Charlie immediately waved at him. Her mother immediately yanked her daughter back with a subtle pinch, placing a hand on her waist. - "Khem... I mean..."
"Greetings, honored Lord of Silence, Zephyr." - A soft smile, a voice that seemed even more mesmerizing than the last time they met, a short nod, and eyes filled with an ocean of emotion. Her gaze quickly fell on the basket that had been brought in and placed on the table, a little away from the service.
"Hey, Zeph!" - Charlie, unlike her mother, was in complete violation of etiquette. She raised her voice and used large, sweeping gestures, but waving her hand was not the proper way for a Princess of Hell. - "How nice... Ouch!" - Charlie's smile grew tauter, even a little crooked, and her eyes quickly darted toward her mother.
There was a quick dialog between them, understood only by a mother and daughter who were close, the essence of which, William realized, was a quick reprimanding of the daughter by the mother and...
"Thank you for the honor, Madam Queen and good Princess." - Another bow, and both pairs of eyes settled on him once more. - "In honor of such a grand meeting, I ask that you accept my gifts, which I dare hope will please you." - He gestured with his cane-free hand toward the basket.
Lilith smiled patronizingly, and Charlie clearly wanted to rush towards the gift, but was stopped by her mother. Lilith's smile flickered for a moment, and she kept her gaze on him, but her gestures clearly told Charlie what she wanted, so the Princess of Hell repeated her mother's pose, straightening her back and turning a wide smile into the one Lilith had. Naturally, considerably wider.
Though, as William noticed, even so, Charlie was barely restraining herself from starting another wave of... something, but those subtle bouncing or jiggling movements alarmed William. Lilith had obviously noticed such a mishap as well, and so...
"Thank you, worthy sir." - Lilith replied in a velvety tone, sending a wave of goosebumps through William's body. He wasn't excited... more like wary. It was as if he were looking at a huge lion, tiger, or dragon just poking at him. - "Please," she circled the table and couch with her hand, clearly pointing him to the chair with a slight delay and words. - "Have a seat." - The Queen's tone changed only for a moment, but William caught that instant precisely.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." - Another short bow and they began to be seated. William sat in the chair and the greeters on the couch.
Silence, disturbing only William, judging by the excitement of Charlie, whose gaze fell vigorously, then on him, then on the basket, then on her mother....
A moment of self-service and tea was poured, sweets were displayed from the basket, which found praise from Lilith, even greater joy from Charlie and... William shuddered.
As soon as he, Lilith and Charlie had taken their first sips of the hot liquid, with the sugar well stirred in, Lilith took the floor.
"It is a great joy to see you again, Zephyr." - Lilith's words sounded like they had been plucked from a song, so pleasant they sounded. - "I hope you remember that meeting we had together," the woman chuckled, and Charlie only smiled awkwardly, blushing faintly, "our first meeting?" - Lilith's voice exuded playfulness, interest... a lot more. William nodded.
" An unquestionably pleasant experience, Mistress." - Lilith smiled softly, and Charlie, still holding her mother's hand, nodded broadly. It seemed that if she didn't start talking, she would just explode. Lilith chuckled softly, looking at her daughter's enthusiasm but not giving her the floor.
"The benefit of your memory, master." - Lilith sang, taking another sip. - "But may I ask you a question?" - There was a strange note in her voice that William did not understand.
"Of course, Mistress." - The mask did not convey all of William's facial expressions, for which he was grateful, but it also, like the angelic ones, let in liquids or food.
"Would you quench my curiosity, what made you approach a strange girl and offer to help her?" - William felt not like a guest, but like a miner walking across a field. So many subtexts were being asked at once by the Queen's voice and intonation. William sighed quietly.
"Walking through the empty streets and finding a girl that was clearly not like the rest of the beautiful city's contingent?" - At William's response, Lilith smirked and Charlie raised an eyebrow perplexedly, shifting her gaze between them. - "A desire to help." - Charlie smiled widely, and Lilith's smile faded a little.
"Is it really that simple?" - With the same strange intonation, Lilith asked.
"Strange to admit, but those were my first days in Hell, Mistress Queen." - Charlie took a deep breath, and Lilith barely nodded, telling her to continue. - "I haven't had a chance to get to know my future colleagues well enough to get up to speed on the... peculiarities," William and Lilith grinned faintly, and Charlie frowned. - "Of local statutes, so I haven't yet acquired the wariness familiar to any Sinner, wanting to help a lonely girl that, on Earth, would clearly raise questions by her loneliness at such a strange time when the rest of the neighborhoods were hiding or fleeing." - At William's words, Lilith chuckled slightly, and Charlie put her smile back on.
"But my Charlie decided otherwise." - The designated exhaled sharply, puffing up her cheeks as William nodded.
"It would simply not be polite not to answer the young miss's questions, Mistress." - Queen Ada nodded at William's words.
They each sipped more tea, and Charlie hesitantly picked up an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie, munching two at once before holding out a couple to William with the same embarrassed look. Lilith watched the scene intently.
William nodded gratefully, taking the treats from the Princess's hands and placing them on a small plate by his cup.
Charlie's eyes fell back to the basket, to which Lilith smiled.
"May I?" - Lilith hummed those words again, giving her daughter permission to
Barely burrowing her hands into the basket, immediately pulling out two parchment wrappers tied with ribbons of different colors. A red-and-white one and a navy-and-burgundy one. Charlie looked up at William, but he only twitched his fingers, which sent the bundle with the dark-burgundy ribbon into Lilith's hands, who was looking at it with interest.
"Wow!" - she immediately opened the package, carefully untying the ribbon and unwrapping the parchment. - "This is..." - she twirled the black hardcover with great enthusiasm, with gold patterns, a tree with mug roots marked in almost imperceptible gold, and the rest occupied by small pentagrams, also in gold, and at the bottom of the cover's face was written "A Tale of Dreams".
"The pages are endless, or don't run out for a long time," Charlie realized in her own way Charlie's reaction, to which she looked at William with delight. - "you can sort the entries with little tabs, 'tags'..." - Charlie immediately opened the book itself, immediately beginning to...
The notebook book doubled in size, causing the girl to startle, and Lilith's hand immediately reached for the book, freezing over it.
"...Can be enlarged to the size of a school desk, as well as assisting in some calculations, doing those for the owner." - William finished softly, gesturing to return the notebook to its normal size. - "All instructions and usage guidelines are in the introduction."
" Thank you very much, Zephyr!" - Charlie smiled broadly again, immediately starting to.....
" I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to try it out later, dear." - With a slight pressure in her voice that made her tone sound like the harsh falseness of an instrument, Lilith addressed her daughter, causing her to wince and scratch her cheek awkwardly.
"...I'm sorry." - Charlie's cheeks flushed slightly, but William tactfully paid no attention to the complete breach of etiquette. He simply nodded like a smart and polite guest. Lilith lifted the amulet by its chain.
"Invokes good memories and feelings, Mistress." - Lilith's eyes widened, and Charlie sighed. - "Please forgive me, but learning your tastes and needs was... hard." - William's masked smile barely curved. - "I apologize if the gift didn't suit your..."
" It's all right, Mr. Zephyr." - Lilith's strange tone again. Her eyes lingered on the amulet a little longer than necessary, and then she raised her gaze to William.
"White... like two little stars...", thought William as their eyes met. Lilith had a normal eyeball, distinguished only by white eyes with black pupils that glowed slightly with energy.
"Your gift is nice, my sincere thanks." - Lilith lowered her head slightly, and William's eyes widened slightly.
"Please, Your Majesty..."- William started to say, but was interrupted.
" Can I have a taco too... Ouch!" - Charlie jumped up a little, while Lilith covered her eyes and smiled strainedly.
"If the Princess so desires." - William nodded, at Lilith's approving look.
"Just Charl... Ouch, Mom!" - Lilith's smile twisted and her eyes darted to her daughter, causing her to calm down again.
"Thank you for your signs of attention, would you mind answering..." - further, William and Lilith began their 'nothing' conversation, to Charlie's disgruntled panting.
It really was the usual ordinary conversation at such meetings, except with a little... twist.
William had correctly thought of a minefield, for talking to the Queen of Hell was identical to walking through an entire forest full of traps.
Questions about the weather, implying William's relationship to the structure itself, the order of Hell, talking about each other's preferences, though it was mostly William who answered. He didn't fully understand the gist of all the questions, but Lilith was clearly satisfied with the answers, because otherwise...
William admitted that he could not understand the First Woman's exact emotions and moods, for he was afraid to look into her soul. But Lilith, whose husband was a Second Seraphim and who was a Miracle Aspect herself, had no idea...
William just shrugged again, answering Lilith about his opinion of the Second World War, which had shaken Pentagram City like the Napoleonic Wars, while she was making herself aware of William's affairs.
Which, to his relief, weren't all that detailed or accurate.
William wondered how much the Queen was aware of him, how much the Devil had told his wife and daughter about him, how much....
" And how do you view my daughter?" - William almost missed one of the most important questions, almost answering it on automatic. The attention of the obviously bored Charlie, who was quietly leafing through a gifted notebook, came back to him, looking at him with a questioning, pleading look, while Lilith's gaze was almost caustic, yet still polite.
"...." - William took a brief pause, clearly tormenting Charlie, what with the undercurrent of feelings open to the other two souls awaiting his verdict. Lilith and William grinned at the same time, such similar, almost identical smiles that did not escape the attention of both.
"Your daughter, Charl..." - Under the pressure of Charlie's stare, William was forced to correct himself before a small chuckle disappeared from Lilith's face. - "Charlie is a rather energetic and productive demon." - if Charlie had dog ears, they would have perked up, "Her ideas have inspired me to do new work, opened up new avenues of self-discovery, and allowed me to reevaluate my views on many things." - William broadcast with a huff, under Charlie's mesmerized gaze. Lilith looked at the two of them in silence.
"She's a good pen pal, has a good syllable and... a very expansive imagination and an excellent sense of humor." - William said with a slight smile, remembering that year with "Hele's gift... or whatever that demoness' name is," at which Lilith frowned and Charlie smiled contentedly. - "So, your Majesty." - Lilith's eyes met William's white and blue stars again. - "You have raised a beautiful daughter unlike anyone I would have known on Earth."
William didn't even try to think of another place where he might have met someone similar....
"And why are you wearing a mask?" - Charlie asked, getting a quiet chuckle from her mother, who frowned at her daughter's slumped shoulders and squeezed her head into them. - "...I mean, if you don't want to answer..."
"Nothing, Charlie," William interrupted the girl gently, to which both women did not react in any way. - "It's quite simple - just saving it for a later stage of our friendship, revealing its countenance in private." - William covered his eyes, feeling Charlie's emotions flare as Lilith looked at her daughter and William.
"Do you have any wounds or scars?" - Lilith asked quietly, in a very caring tone.
"You could say that." - William answered briefly, perhaps even too sharply, to which Charlie ....
"There's nothing wrong with a few scars, I'm sure you're handsome and fine..." - Charlie's voice grew quieter with each word as the two pairs of eyes looked at the blushing demoness with amusement. - "...Anyway, I don't see anything wrong with scars, they're cool..." - Charlie muttered, eliciting a quiet laugh from her mother.
"It's okay Charlie." - William leaned back a little on the comfortable and soft back of the chair. - "It's not all that bad, especially since I'm actively rebuilding my ob...my body." - Charlie paid no attention to William's hesitation, but Lilith was clearly interested, nodding something to herself.
"Now that we've started such a frank conversation, would you quench my curiosity again?" - Lilith asked with a different tone than before, to which William only nodded, while Charlie listened attentively to her mother, sipping her tea and eating her cookies. - "Why are you helping my daughter with her... ideas?" - Charlie took a deep breath, chewing intensely on her cookie, catching her breath and slightly choking because of it, Charlie looked at William.
William looked up at the white ceiling, decorated with golden patterns, painted with strange designs that William did not understand.
"...Like I said, Charlie's dreams have helped me understand many things." - William began quietly while both women listened intently, setting their nearly empty cups on cup holders. - "But I, too, would like to believe in their truth. Just to have hope."
"Hope?" - Lilith asked in a strange tone of voice, earning a disapproving look from her daughter, which she ignored completely.
"...Just want to believe that someday I really will be able to go to heaven... Meet my relatives, maybe find some angel... "- William said quietly, letting genuine emotion creep into his voice. It was probably the first time in his time in Hell that he could afford such weakness. - "But that's beside the point." - William straightened up again, looking each woman in the eye.
"The main thing for me in this journey is Redeeming my sins on Earth." - William's voice was quiet, but both women could clearly catch his determination. William tried to imitate Lilith, allowing the women to feel his emotions and thoughts on the matter. - "...I deserve a place in Hell." - the women's eyes widened in amazement, for various reasons.
"...Did a lot of terrible things, stumbled badly at the end, but..." - William averted his gaze to the window, gazing out into the sky. - "...I'd like to think that I've learned a lesson from my mistakes and now I can at least try to change. To try to make up for my sin by helping who was hurt by my deeds." - William finished by closing his eyes.
"...Does this have anything to do with you being able to pass to Earth?" - Lilith asked more gently.
"Mom!" - Charlie's indignation was stronger, causing Lilith to smile apologetically.
"If you don't want to..." - Here William decided to allow himself to break etiquette. He hadn't started it.
"It's all right." - William nodded, and both women fell silent again. - "Yes, it's directly related to that." - Charlie wanted to ask another question, but Lilith held her back.
"...Thank you, but what do you think about..." - they continued the idle conversation again, joined this time by Charlie, which made it a drop more interesting.
Everything was wonderful. Lilith hadn't killed him, hadn't kicked him out, hadn't forbidden him to communicate with her daughter... just acted like a decent hostess. They had long since finished their tea, discussing recent events, sharing some amusing stories, until Lilith suggested changing rooms, for "tea and supper".
William agreed.
...
William deeply regretted agreeing to Lilith's suggestion.
They were in Charlie's bedroom, which was highly embarrassing for such a quick "showing her male friend her room, but she was SO excited..." and William ....
The room was in pink and beige colors. Beige walls, with dark bard colored columns with rounded ends in bard, and the columns themselves in light red. A marble ceiling patterned in leaves, and in the main part of the bedroom, which stood on a small platform, where the bed and the exit to the balcony were, were placed the bulk of Charlie's things, like closets with things, nightstands, a harp, a piano... Toys in the form of goats, angels, aphanimals, plush dinosaurs....
Marble tiles with carpets laid on them, and above the bed platform itself was a recess in the ceiling, with a circle in the middle from which rays radiated in all directions.
William himself, Charlie, and Lilith were now at the table.
A child's table, for William and Lilith were too big for a table, so they were without chairs.
They were drinking tea from pink mugs, eating the food William had prepared in a basket, while Charlie was telling another story from her childhood, and her mother was listening with all the care and attention she could muster, with occasional comments.
"...And that's when I realized that I needed to reorganize things, because Helsa, that bit... Von Eldritch's daughter, wanted to do things her way that didn't suit our team, because for the contest..." - Charlie was actively telling her fifth story while Lilith listened intently to the details of her daughter's life at some aristocratic school.
William, on the other hand...
"How did he end up here?" he asked himself.
Why is he still here? To suffer? William couldn't understand cause and effect.
He's a man turned Archangel who survived his Fall with his halo relatively intact and his wings actively regenerating.
He's a fucking Overlord who keeps a vast territory under his wing, keeping it in relative order, so much so that it's officially "the safest, most stable, and most fucking awesome place in Hell," according to almost every magazine and article in Pentagram City.
He's an excellent mage, having mastered the Aether and invented Weaves, creating many of his own spells, rituals, and servants.
He can defeat almost all of the Overlords single-handedly, can cut through the younger and weaker Goetia, capturing their souls, can defeat the average powerful Goetia demon!
With a number of conditions, for William would need to have the right of first strike, the demon must not know of William's attack, must not know his abilities, must not recognize the Aether or know of its countermeasures, must not be an exceptional "stormtrooper" like Adam, and also...
All in all, William was experiencing a bit of cognitive dissonance, much to the amusement of Lilith, who periodically watched his torment.
Which continued until it was...
"...time to say goodbye, dear." - Lilith gently interrupted her daughter, rising elegantly from the small table. - "I think our guest is tired." - She shot a glance at William, who nodded, looking appreciatively at Lilith. Charlie, on the other hand, was experiencing... conflicting emotions.
"Oh... then maybe..." - Charlie faltered, fiddling with her fingers as her two goats, Razzil and Dazzil cleaned up the used set. -" ...Next time, shall we discuss variations of helping Sinners?" - Her daughter's hopeful and pleading voice made Lilith's face change for a moment. She took a deep breath, looking first at Charlie, then at William, who was waiting....
She looked somewhere outside the room, or at the wall... until, after a few more moments, she gave her parental verdict.
"...Next time, you can." - Lilith said in a tired, almost drawn out, voice. - "On your way out, Zephyr, you can get some coins..." - Lilith was interrupted.
"THANK YOU!" - Charlie immediately jumped up to her, taking her in a tight hug, even by William's standards. That wheeze from the Queen of Hell alerted him, and when Lilith herself looked up at him with a pleading look-"Thank you-thank you-thank you, Mom, I promise that...!"-William sighed, nodding to the Queen.
" I'll try to stop by more often, if you don't mind Charlie, but when..."-a hurricane of golden hair and enthusiasm full of energy switched to him. William felt the full force of the Princess of Hell, if the lack of air in his lungs could be called that.
"I'll write it all down in a letter, thank you so much for the diary notebook, how did you even make it, are you a mage or a demon? By the way, when would it be convenient for you to come here, and don't you have any urgent or important lordly business or something? And can you make cookies like this, plus..." - Charlie didn't need to breathe, and her voice didn't stray off rhythm or lose its tone.
William felt the meaning of the phrase "Pandora's box," even though there was a vase, but...
He looked into the laughing eyes of Lilith, who was watching his torment with a slight smile. More to his daughter's delight, but William reached another thought as he looked at the smirking Lilith.
"And yet she is Adam's equal... They were created with similar personalities... And Lilith doesn't have her Lute to restrain her impulses... Fuck."
William looked into those eyes of the Queen of Hell, she was looking into his.
William realized the trap Lilith had lured him into while he was thinking about something else. Lilith realized that William understood. William realized that Lilith understood that he understood.
William was already wishing he had just made an excuse, for he could feel that even the walls were laughing at him.
Although... William looked at the happily smiling Charlie, pressing her whole body tightly against him. William didn't even need to look into her soul to feel her emotions, her emanations of "purity"....
Such a soothing melody... As if caressing his ear, wanting to embrace and forgive everything in the world.
...Maybe it won't be so bad.
* * *
Pentagram City. The neighborhood of silence. Two weeks before Christmas. 1945.
"...Excuse me, would you like to talk about God?" - asked an innocent girl's voice. - "About your salvation, your possible Redemption?"
Her answer was a grin, revealing the long, crooked teeth of a crocodile that was scarred and missing its left eye. The usual house clothes: a sleeveless tank top, jeans, and a cigarette with something... special in its teeth.
"What the fuck do you want, wench?" - A rough and low voice, with notes of the animal part of Sinner became the answer to the innocent soul.
"Wouldn't you like to go to Paradise? To a place where you can be free and happy and not know grief with anguish?" - The girl tilted her head, looking at the Sinner with sincere bewilderment.
The girl wore a white blouse, a black dress under which were black shoes with stockings, on her breast a long dark blue bow tied with a double bowtie pulled down. Her entire body was covered by a thick gray cloak, slightly larger than her size, and she was carrying a leather bag, apparently with papers in it.
Her long golden tail developed in the morning wind and her hot breath stood out frosty as it snowed lightly.
"Who the fuck is God?" - Sinner Crocodile looked irritably at the girl.
"Biblical!" - exclaimed the girl, taking the Bible out of her bag. - "The one that judges souls and decides whether souls go to Hell or Heaven!" - The girl smiled broadly, which made the Sinner growl naturally. There was no threat, just an expression of emotion.
"I don't know any God." - He chewed those words, taking another puff, exhaling steam into the girl's face, causing her to cough. - "Fuck you before you call the cops." - Sinner slammed the door loudly, forcefully, right in the face of the girl's slumped shoulders.
On the empty street, where other souls were barely observed going about their business, often to work, no one paid any attention to the scene. The girl knocked on more than one door, getting the same results everywhere.
"I know you told me about it, but to see it for myself..." - stretched Charlie, raising her gaze to the Lord of Silence standing beside her, in his favorite "Gentleman" style, as he himself called the set. A white mask expressed calmness, and covering eyes in which a pair of dark blue stars shone.
"The edge of the neighborhood, the Sinners, who lack only a couple of infractions and more scrutiny to be kicked out of here." - Silence replied, no vapor coming out of his mouth. - "Usually, it's these types of Sinners and neighborhoods that get hit by the Slayers." - Zephyr opened his eyes, looking into Charlie's eyes, who crinkled painfully at the mention of "smiling angels".
"Is it really that bad?" - Charlie asked a little more quietly as they walked along the clean and well-maintained sidewalk. There were cars of average shabbiness lining the wide road. They wouldn't fall apart right away, but they clearly needed constant repair and spending.
"As I was saying," Zephyr shrugged, adjusting his cloak and vest, tapping his cane peacefully on the stone of the sidewalk, walking in line with Charlie, listening intently to him. - "The more often the Sinner has died, or suffered torment, or just spent a fair amount of time here, the more such 'minor' details he forgets, like 'some God'."
Charlie moaned, throwing her head up to the sky, and the snowflakes that were falling lazily on her face began to fall, turning into vapor as they touched the Princess of Hell's face.
"And closer to the center?" - Charlie asked reluctantly, turning her head toward her companion. Zephyr grinned.
" As I was going to say another half hour ago..." - At Zephyr's words, Charlie wrinkled her nose painfully, tilting her head guiltily. - "The center is home to the most 'pure', as far as that word even applies to Sinners, the souls who have been noticed to be the least violent and try to behave as they would on Earth." - Zephyr answered peacefully, holding out his palm, looking intently at the falling snowflakes as if seeing each of them separately.
"Can we...?" - Charlie asked ingratiatingly, to which Zephyr only sighed, looking at Charlie's awkward, slightly strained smile.
"Do what I suggested from the beginning?" - Zephyr asked tiredly, causing Charlie to nod vigorously. - "Let's go to the center, Your Majesty." - Zephyr grinned, and Charlie moaned.
" Zephyr!" - Charlie's shoulders slumped as she nearly dropped her bag. - "I told you to..."
"I know, it's just that you're so sweetly embarrassed by those words." - Zephyr nodded, walking measuredly along the sidewalk, leading the Princess along a route he knew only to himself.
They passed the tall mechanical figures of the Leaders, which Zephyr had explained to Charlie were a patrol of some sort, accompanied by one or two iron golems, or Suppressors.
They did not react in any way to the pair of the Princess and the Overlord, going about their business in a measured manner, reacting only when they noticed, or, as if by magic, recognized that a group of Sinners were in that alley, doing something.
Then the long, two-and-a-half-meter tall figure of the Leader would turn sharply in the direction of the "disturbance," along with the Suppressors, and run surprisingly fast for such proportions toward the scene of action.
As it was now, Charlie could see the Chief and the two Suppressors make a sharp turn of one hundred and eighty and dash off two streets away, entering an alley, from which, a moment later, the sounds of fighting began to come, and afterward, from which many more "policemen" came out than came in....
Charlie didn't fully understand how these "Constructs," as Zephyr called them, worked, but she was glad her best friend had managed to create such a wonderful neighborhood where Sinners could not fear the lawlessness that was everywhere outside the Silence.
"We're here, Charlie." - The voice of her friend Zephyr interrupted her thoughts.
She looked back at the private houses, all connected in a single line. The street itself was somehow cleaner and better maintained than the "anthill," as Zephyr had called the houses of the past.
Charlie took in a sharp intake of air that burned her lungs with frosty freshness, nodded to Zephyr, receiving a nod in return, and then walked confidently to the first door of one of the private houses.
It was a red wooden door, either expensive or very well made, and Charlie knocked on it with three quick knocks.
Charlie immediately lowered her hand and picked up her bag, smiling slightly as she waited for the door to open, the sound of pairs of feet behind it.
Zephyr put a reassuring hand on Charlie's shoulder, receiving a grateful nod from the Princess, who continued to stare at the door as the sounds of footsteps approached.
"Yes?" - replied Sinner's soft, almost feminine voice as soon as he opened the door.
A strange mix of crow, human and some other animal. Black feathers, two large wings behind its back, a voluminous mane around its neck, long ears tucked back, and all-white eyes stared at Charlie.
No visible sexual features, and only a small shirt over a strangely muscular torso. The Sinner seemed oblivious to the other guest.
Knowing the reputation of the Lord of Silence, which made the Inhabitants dare not even breathe in his presence, he concealed himself with some kind of magic, without hurting Charlie, which gave him room to act.
"Would you like to talk about God and your Salvation?" - Charlie said, trying to keep the nervousness out of her voice. The raven sinner turned his muzzle, pecking his beak a little.
"Bogue, here?" - Sinner asked in a strange voice, seeing something in Charlie, who nodded happily. This was the first Sinner they hadn't had a verbal altercation with after her greeting.
"That's right, because it's because of God and following his teachings that you can get Redemption and go to Heaven!" - Charlie smiled broadly, pulling a Bible out of her bag. Sinner watched Charlie's actions cautiously, stepping a little out of the door.
"Suppose so." - Sinner nodded, to which Charlie drew in a sharp intake of air. - "But why would I want to go to Heaven?" - ...But why do I have to go to Heaven?" the Sinner said, causing Charlie to stumble a little.
"Aren't you sick here, not being devoured by the horrible atmosphere of Hell, and wouldn't you like to save your soul?" - Charlie asked in an uncertain voice, to which the Sinner shrugged his shoulders.
"I pulled the golden ticket, girl." - The Raven Sinner exhaled, relaxing his shoulders a little. - "This is the most peaceful place in this suck, and the Overlord doesn't even demand tribute or any of that crap. Just don't break the law, follow common sense, don't do drugs, and it's like you're back on Earth." - just said the Crow.
"Isn't your soul tortured here?" - Charlie asked, holding the Bible awkwardly, glancing at it from time to time. Sinner shrugged once more.
" I'm a sucker, dear." - Sinner answered with a strange honesty, to which Charlie choked. - "I did a lot of bad things on Earth, so I deserve whatever happens to me here." - Charlie sighed indignantly as she listened to Sinner's words.
" But wouldn't you like to get rid of your constant fear of Extermination and go to your nearest and dearest in Paradise?" - she held up the Bible as if it answered all the questions she had.
" Nah." - The Raven Sinner shrugged again, to which Charlie immediately put the book down. - "I've got a wife, two mistresses, and a good business here, and I don't have anyone there...I guess." - The Sinner looked up to the sky.
"But you don't know that!" - Charlie exclaimed weakly. - "Suddenly you'll be happier there than you are here!" - At these words the Sinner looked at Charlie as if she were mentally ill, which made Charlie's cheeks redden and her smile fade.
"What do I get there that I don't have here?" - Sinner pressed his voice, letting the irritation sink in. - "What's allowed there that's forbidden here? Why should I even go to this Paradise if I'm satisfied with everything?" - With each question, the Sinner's voice became more and more forceful, causing a drop of sweat to fall from Charlie's forehead as she maintained a semblance of a smile. The Sinner stared intently into Charlie's eyes, waiting for an answer, while the girl herself tried not to let out a shiver of excitement.
"Will you save your soul?" - Charlie clumsily replied, receiving the loud slam of the closing doors in response. She immediately slumped her shoulders and hung her head, nearly dropping her Bible.
Zephyr stroked her head reassuringly, to which the Princess only smiled weakly.
"Next door?" - Zephyr asked quietly, looking at the designated door. Charlie only shook her head.
"Can we go to your place?" - Charlie's weak voice only made Zephyr take a deep breath, move closer to Charlie and....
They disappeared in a white and blue flash, as if they weren't even there.
...
There was a flash of light in the dark room, and two figures appeared.
William dropped his arm from Charlie's shoulder, who immediately collapsed on the couch, face down into the cushion, while his weave removed his cloak, undressed the Princess, and the tea was ready to be served as if it had just boiled and been prepared.
"Three spoonfuls or four?" - William asked as he began to prepare the pancakes, calling for the finished mixture with a couple gestures.
"Four." - came barely audibly from the couch, to which William only added another spoonful of tea.
He left the girl to her thoughts as he prepared a small snack. The first pancake, that immediately got a chocolate layer and then wrapped into a tube. The second pancake, flipping the fried batter with a light hand motion with the skillet, and then adding the chocolate...
William's superfluous clothes had long since dissolved into blue lines, returning to his spatial soul pocket, leaving him in a single shirt, pink slippers, and black pants.
Just like that, with a plate of pancakes in his hands, cups with cup holders hovering nearby, he took a seat next to him on the couch while Charlie tucked her legs under her, making room for him, with another gesture pulling the tea table over to them where the small snack had been placed.
"...Thank you..." - Charlie whispered barely audibly, standing up slightly and fixing her disheveled hair as William only nods, sipping his tea. Charlie follows him, immediately taking her first pancake.
Silence accompanied their snack. William didn't bother Charlie, she was floating in her thoughts, and from the look on her face, she was thinking hard about something. And so it went on, only until Charlie raised a quiet voice.
"Why would the Sinner be better off staying in Hell?" - Charlie asked, looking at William from under her hair. - "Dad said that Sinners are psychopaths, that they see their Paradise here, but... is that really how it is?" - At that question, William only sighed, setting the pancake aside, wiping his palm with a napkin.
"If you're going to have affluence, stability, some form of happiness, and you're offered some 'salvation' that's unclear what it means, what will you choose?" - Seeing Charlie's frowning face, William reformulated his question. - "If I told you that whoring and doing drugs is a good thing, what would you say?" - Charlie raised her voice sharply, frowning.
"Of course I'll say no, who thinks it's right anyway?" - Charlie's face smoothed, and understanding appeared in her eyes. - "But it is, isn't it...?" - William nodded.
"It's exactly what it sounds like to them Charlie." - William sipped from his mug, tapping his fingers on the table, beating out a rhythm he'd just made up. - "They have their own lives, their own knowledge. They don't know what you know. They just can't imagine the goodness that is Paradise, just don't want to think about it." - Charlie lowered her gaze into the cup, trying to find answers in the reflection.
"...But you do want the Atonement, don't you?" - Charlie said quietly, not looking up, but William nodded anyway.
"'Tis I, a man who was familiar with magic and the mystical while he was still alive, even taking a picture of Paradise." - The phrase did the trick, and Charlie looked up at William, showing him two red flames of interest. William grinned, covering his eyes.
"It was a distant one thousand eight hundred and eighty-first year when I..." - William immediately realized that Charlie was coming to his senses, since he was immediately interrupted.
"You're that old? Oh! I mean..." - Embarrassed, Charlie covered her mouth with the palm of her hand, eliciting a short laugh from William.
"It's okay, Charlie." - Charlie laughed too, joining his laughter, but weakly. -" As I was saying..."
William embarked on a tale of his former days as a man that had moved from a strictly scientific endeavor to her father's art, which he clearly picked up on, drawing Charlie into the conversation, distracting her from her thoughts.
They chatted, the pancakes were long since eaten, and the third cup of tea was being filled, when Charlie thanked William, going home.
William helped her get dressed again, giving her a small basket of goodies, which she reluctantly took, nodding in embarrassment at his words and joking toward the figure of her mother, who sometimes asked him to cook.
As Lilith herself had told him, it annoyed her husband to make him cook just to keep his wife from trying another man's dishes. William and Lilith found this peculiarity of Lucifer amusing, and so the Queen of Hell sometimes, at long intervals, asked William for similar things.
"...Would you like to come for Christmas?" - Charlie asked William quietly before she left, using a small gold statuette in the shape of a duck.
"Charlie." - William shook his head. - "You know..."
"I already talked to my mom and she gave her consent!" - Charlie cut in, interrupting. She pulled herself back, smiling wryly. - "...Sorry."
"What about your father?" - William tilted his head, getting a confused look and averted his eyes. - "Charlie, at least let us get to know each other, give us some time and maybe I'll come next Christmas." - William was fixing Charlie's hair, hand tidying those, to which Charlie only smiled. Not as wide a smile as the one from earlier in the day, but that one was filled with a lot more emotion than past ones.
"Promise?" - Charlie asked quietly, receiving William's nod.
"If your father doesn't kill me..." - they both grinned, "I promise."
Charlie hugged him sharply and William dropped his arms after a moment, patting Charlie's back.
They said their goodbyes and Charlie disappeared in a golden glow that seemed to envelope her figure like flames, engulfing it.