Work Text:
Friday night had recently become a pain in the ass for Mammon. Not only does he have to share his human more than usual but for the last three Fridays, every single movie they have watched was seemingly chosen to make Mammon suffer. Being the target of his brothers' taunts was nothing new but having MC be a witness to the others' snarky comments, mixed with his pathetic little jumps and screams when something remotely scary happened in the movie was more humiliating than he had thought possible.
This night isn’t going to be any different. From what he heard from Levi at dinner, tonight’s movie is considered a masterpiece of the horror genre, which means Mammon is most likely going to have his eyes closed the whole time and even then, the sounds will make him have nightmares later. Nightmares have become a recurring event on Fridays, and he hates it. He always wakes up crying and feeling weak, having to spend the hours until morning, checking his D.D.D. to distract his mind, too scared of how real the nightmares are to even try to fall back asleep. Of course, no one knows about this, not even the human. He has enough with his brothers’ constant reminders of what a waste of space and scummy he is, and without any redeeming qualities the last thing he needs is MC knowing he can’t handle a few human movies. Especially not when she likes them so much.
He sits on the floor, his back leaning on the sofa and tries not to look at where MC sits, between Satan and Levi. The three of them are already discussing the movie and it hasn’t even started, they are all waiting for Beel and Belphie to bring a mountain of snacks. He tries not to listen to what they are saying but it’s virtually impossible, MC and Levi are just too excited to talk in a lower volume and so he can hear about the premise, about every single gory detail they expect the movie to have and about a director’s cut that’s supposedly going to come out soon. Goddammit, he feels like throwing up already.
Why am I even here? ‘S not like she’s payin attention to me, too busy talking with Levi about blood. No one is gonna notice if I disappear in the middle of the movie.
But he doesn’t leave, instead he stays, with eyes closed, peeking occasionally, in hopes the movie has somehow stop being scary and regretting it every time. MC said once that getting scared while watching a movie was thrilling and that’s why she likes them, even though she also jumps from time to time. But Mammon doesn’t feel that thrill, only the cold sweat in his back and his clammy hands on his trousers, his nails digging painfully into his thigh.
When the movie ends, Mammon is the first to stand up. Belphie is fast asleep on the sofa and Beel is trying to wake him up. The others are commenting on the ending, and he plans on leaving as he has nothing to apport to the conversation and isn’t really interested in it until he catches the end of what Asmo is saying:
“… so how much would you give it on your Mammon scale?”
The fuck. What is he talkin’ about?
He doesn’t know what this is about, what new form of mocking him is this, but what Mammon does know if MC is in it. He turns around so fast his neck hurts and finds her already looking at him, equally surprised and concerned. Relieves flows through him. No, you wouldn’t be a part of that, of course, you wouldn’t laugh at him in such a cruel way. He makes way to his brothers, a scowl on his face and takes MC’s hand, pulling her to his side, separating her from the others.
“Whatcha talkin’ bout, huh? What’s that Mammon scale?”
Mammon feels MC squeezing his hand, and then the soft touch of her thumb over his knuckles and relaxes just a fraction, still too angry with his brothers to let his anger go.
Asmo rolls his eyes, unimpressed by his brother’s bravado. “We thought it would be a good idea to use you to measure how scary a movie was. You know, since you are always screaming and all that…”
“This movie is a solid B+ in the Mammon scale, lmao. Quite good but not enough to be S-tier.” Mammon wishes he had both of his hands free so he could strangle Levi, who is looking at his phone, too busy scrolling down to look at him. With a laugh, he puts the device right in front of Mammon’s nose, and the white-haired demon must take a step back to be able to see what Levi is showing him, a self-satisfied smile on his face. He wishes he hadn’t.
“We made a tier list. From S-tier “that one time Mammon actually started crying in the middle of the movie” to E-tier “not enough to make Mammon squeal like a Little D.” Says Satan. Each tier has attached a photo of Mammon in varying states of distress that he doesn’t remember being taken.
“Wh- I- Ya should show some respect for yer older brother!” Mammon is positively fuming, a furious blush spreading all the way from his cheeks to his ears, but the words simply don’t come out. He wants to defend himself; he is more than used to this, he should know how to respond, but he is too worried thinking about how MC must regard him now. Sure, she already knows he’s bad with horror movies, but Mammon has been careful not to cry in front of her, controlling as much as he could the noises that tried to leave his throat when he got to a scary scene and the trembling that overcame him in those moments.
“I mean, is not like we’ve been keeping it a secret, you are just too stupid to notice things like this.”
Is then that MC yanks his hand with so much force that Mammon gasps, startled by the sudden movement. The others look at her puzzled, but she is insistently dragging Mammon out of the room.
“H-Hey, whatcha doin’?? I’m not done yet!” He complains, but the amount of effort he puts in stopping her is nonexistent, he prefers revelling in the fact that they are still holding hands, their fingers intertwined.
MC stops in her tracks and turns around to face Asmo, Levi and Satan, who, by now, have already an inkling of what had bothered her and have the decency of at least look ashamed.
“Mammon tries his hardest every Friday just endure the movies you choose just to spend time with you, and instead of appreciating his effort, you decide to make fun of his fears. I can’t- I don’t understand how-”
She is frowning and there is a slight tremor in her voice, but that doesn’t stop her from chastising his brothers and the only thing Mammon can do right now is to look at her in awe. He hasn’t seen her using such a harsh tone before, and with no doubt, she is not used to using it either, as her words get tangled and eventually stop coming out, but it doesn’t matter, because she is defending him, she is trying to be strong in a way she never needs to be for him.
“We are leaving.” Is what she finally says after a few seconds of nothing but silence and her. “We are leaving, and I don’t think I’m ever going to watch another horror movie with all of you. Good night.”
They get inside MC’s room without a word. She collapses on her bed, freeing Mammon’s hand in the process and sighs while Mammon sits at the edge, not sure if she wants him there with her or if it would be better to leave her alone for the night. Eventually, she gets up and lies on her back, craning her neck so she can look at him properly.
“Are you okay?” MC asks in a whisper, and Mammon tenses up and casts his gaze aside like he’s being chastised when he realizes she's watching intently at him, even though he knows by now that’s not what she is trying to do at all. For a brief second, he considers saying that yeah, he’s obviously okay, he’s The Great Mammon after all! Why wouldn’t he? But the words don’t come out, and he drops his shoulders in surrender. He knows she’s waiting for his answer, genuinely worried for his well-being, and silently thanks her infinite patience and kindness. He’s safe with her, isn’t he? He can afford a little bit of honesty, right? One look at her face and he has his answer.
“’m just… tired.”
There’s just a moment of quiet after his confession, and then she talks again, surprising him:
“Would you like to spend the night with me, then?”
He blushes, hard, but before he can think twice or splutter embarrassed that he’s not a small child, his body betrays him, and he nods once. That’s all she needs to sit up and make room for him under the covers of her bed. Mammon takes one second to look at MC and somehow manages to blush a bit more when she smiles at him, waiting patiently, holding the covers with one hand. She truly is perfect, and I don’t deserve her, he thinks as he gets closer and closer.
Their legs are tangled, and MC puts her arm around Mammon’s waist, getting closer to him. He is suddenly overcome by the need to tell her how beautiful she is and how much he loves her, but words have never been his forte and up until now he’s always screwed it up when trying to convey his feelings. So instead, his hand goes to her waist and squeezes before continuing its way to her back.
“Goodnight, Mammon”
MC nuzzles her nose against Mammon’s neck, and he shivers but says nothing. If he opens his mouth, he’s afraid all the emotions are going to rush out and he’s going to start babbling like an idiot. So he stays quiet, doesn’t even bother to try and complain, and holds her a bit tighter.
X
It’s still the middle of the night when MC wakes up, confused and disoriented. She only has two seconds before a sudden move startles her. Mammon is having a nightmare, her sleep-addled brain tells her, and a sad whimper from the demon confirms it. Carefully, she disentangles from Mammon’s hold and puts a gentle hand on his face, caressing the cheek with a thumb and calls him in a low whisper. As she touches him, MC realizes he’s crying and starts calling him a bit more urgently.
“Mammon, wake up, please. It’s a dream, it’s just a dream, Mammonie.”
It takes a few more minutes but eventually, the whimpers stops and Mammon opens his eyes. He’s breathing hard and the first thing he does when his sight adjusts to the darkness and sees where and who’s he is with is to hug MC. She brings her hand to his head and strokes his hair, pushing away a few strands just so she can kiss his forehead. It’s then MC feels Mammon trembling.
“Monnie, my love, are you okay?”
Mammon gasps mid sob. He’s just woke up and is still a bit unsettled by the feeling the dream left behind, so he almost doesn’t notice the hug and kiss that otherwise would make him blush. It’s the term of endearment that shakes him up enough to look at her like he’s just registered her presence. MC doesn’t even look fazed at all, as if she’s been calling him that for ages.
“It was the movie, wasn’t it?” She asks, and he nods, not trusting his words.
But it’s not just the movie. It’s the movie, and his brothers, and MC, and his feelings for her. He’s exhausted. His lower lip trembles and although he tries really hard, another sob breaks free. And another, and another until he’s crying and holding on to MC like she’s a safe life. Mammon positively melts when her fingers run through his hair again and hides his face in her chest until he finally calms down and runs dry of tears.
“I don’t wanna lose ya.” He mumbles after making sure he’s not going to start crying again. He doesn’t remember what the nightmare was about, but somehow he knows he lost MC in his dream, the same feeling of loss he felt when she died in his arms is present once more. Falling from Heaven and losing Lilith had been the most painful days in his life until he lost MC, the thought of it happening again terrifies him. He knows without a doubt he wouldn’t be able to recover, were he to lose MC a second time.
“You will never lose me, Monnie. I promise.”
It’s his name, said with so much love, what brings the tears back. They don’t fall this time, but they are a testament to the power she’s had over him. How weak and vulnerable he becomes in her arms. He should probably push her away, but instead, he pushes her against his body even though it should be impossible because they are already practically glued to each other with how close their bodies are. But he does and feels MC squeezing the life out of him in a much-needed hug.
“I love you so much, Mammon. I have no plans of ever letting go of you.”
He’s not expecting her words nor he’s not completely surprised by them either. Love leaks from every word she says to him, every little touch and smile she directs his way is tender and full of affection. Mammon can be oblivious at times, but even a blind man could see that MC loves him. What surprised him is that she’s able to love him despite all his flaws, and for that, he loves her tenfold.
“For real?” There’s some lingering insecurity in his words, but he wants to believe her and wants to make sure that she knows that, so he puts aside the nervousness that he’s feeling and keeps talking, albeit in a small voice. “’Cause I love you too, y’know.”
She cups his face gently with her hands, nearing it to her face and puts their foreheads together, their noses touching. “Yeah. Yeah, I know, love.” Mammon lets her close the small distance left between their lips, and sighs into to the kiss, making MC smile slightly. The kiss encases everything he feels for his human and is not able to say yet. It’s a languid kiss, tender and delicate, the culmination of countless movie nights in each other’s rooms and the subsequent sleepovers, shared glances after a get-rich-fast scheme that did (or didn’t) go well, feather-like touches at the dining table and every single moment they’ve spent together since MC came to the Devildom.
They fall asleep holding each other, Mammon resting his head in MC’s chest just so he can keep listening to her heartbeat through the night, MC’s hands in his hair and waist, as if to protect him against an invisible foe. And Mammon does feel protected and safe for the first night in a long time, his lips against MC’s skin right over where her heart is.