Work Text:
Devildom is a nice place. That sentence might look like it’s contradicting, but that is true, it is one thing MC always said. Devildom has becoming their second home – it is a place full of joy and laughter, with loving friends and family from different species. But no matter how happy MC feels in Devildom, it will continue to be their second home and second only.
“Hm... hm...” MC hums to the music on their headphone while their hand is busy writing on a piece of paper.
If there is anything particular that the Demon Brother realizes from MC lately, it would be their new habit of listening to music for almost the entire day. Unusual, really, because what can be the reason for this behavior? It is not like MC hates the chaos within House of Lamentation – they always enjoyed the chaos before!
“Hey, whad’dya think they listenin’ to right now?” Mammon whispered to Leviathan.
“How am I supposed to know... They’ve been like that for some time now.”
“Could it be that there is a new rising artist we haven’t heard of?” Asmodeus chimed in, “but that’s not possible, is it... If there is anything trendy on the media, I should be the first to know!”
“What are you three whispering about in there?” Satan’s voice startled Mammon, Levi, and Asmo.
“E- Eh... Satan,” Asmo replied to him, “we were just wondering what MC is listening to in their headphone just now.”
Satan tilted his head, raising one eyebrow, “And what for?”
“Don’t you find it weird, Satan? It’s so unusual for them to be so indulged in music...” Mammon answered, followed by Leviathan’s loud gasp. “COULD IT BE THAT... they started to hate us!? That’s it, isn’t it? They got so fed up with us, they don’t want to hear a single sound from us ever again!”
The other three brothers can only sigh hearing Leviathan’s answer.
“Now, now, Levi, you’re overthinking it,” Asmodeus reassures his brother.
“Well, whatever then. You guys can go ahead and try to solve this so-called mystery, but I have to call MC. Today’s our dinner duty.” Satan then approaches MC.
MC were sitting on the floor, with their head rests on the living room table and one hand focus on writing – seems like one of the Devildom History homeworks. It is true what Mammon, Levi, and Asmo said though, MC is really indulged in their music that they didn’t realize Satan is walking towards them.
‘Now that the others mention it, I also wonder what’d they listen to...’ Satan thought to himself. To call for the human might not be possible since there is too little chance for them to hear, so Satan placed his hand on MC’s shoulder as gentle as possible, in order to not startle them.
Realizing the hand on their shoulder, MC turns their head and take off their headphone, “Oh, Satan, did you call me? Sorry, I didn’t hear you. What’s up?”
“Oh, no, I wasn’t... Well, I do need you, though. MC, are you done with your homework? Today’s our dinner duty, and I thought we better get started before Beel went on a hangry rampage.”
MC looks for the time on their D.D.D, “It’s already time for dinner? I didn’t realize... Okay, then, let’s go, Satan.”
000
Satan and MC arrived in the kitchen, preparing some ingredients for today’s dinner. Chromatic yam, hellfire mushroom, devil zebra’s meat... What would be best to make? Belphegor does mention that he requested some Aged Magma Butter Cake for dessert.
Honestly, Satan is not one to fall for Belphie’s youngest-brother-request, unlike his other brothers. He would’ve told Belphie to make it on his own if he wanted it so bad – but then he remembers, Belphie had helped him to get away from Lucifer’s scolding last week. So, for the sake of Anti-Lucifer League’s bond, Satan decided to fulfill his request tonight.
“Satan, do you mind if I play some music as we cook?” MC’s question diverts Satan’s attention from the ingredients he had on his hand.
“Of course, I don’t mind,” This might be the perfect opportunity to ask MC about the highly-asked question in House of Lamentation, “MC, if you don’t mind me asking, what have you been listening to?”
“Hm? Me?”
“Yes, it seems like you’ve been very indulged in your headphone lately, the others are questioning it.” Classic Satan, always passing the blame on the others.
MC answered his question with a chuckle, “Did I, really? I didn’t realize that. It’s just so happened that I miss listening to music lately.”
“You miss listening to music...?” Satan asked, “but weren’t we just had a karaoke night the other day?”
“Yes, exactly,” MC nodded, “that karaoke night made me miss music.”
“How so?”
MC scrolled on their D.D.D, opening a green-colored application and it plays a sound of unfamiliar music to Satan’s ear. It is pretty upbeat and catchy, but Satan is not sure he’s familiar with the kind of instrument it uses – definitely not Devildom style. “The karaoke night the other day is so fun, and I got introduced to many good songs ever since I got here – especially from Levi and Asmo, Lucifer too if it’s classical.”
Andai aku bisa...
Menjadi seperti yang kau minta
Kujadi juwita
Kala cinta menggoda
If there is one thing Satan is sure of when hearing MC’s song, is that it uses human world language. That might be the only thing Satan familiar with. Although he can’t really translate every word, but he’s sure he knows this language – or at least have heard of.
“But I just can’t help it, you know?” MC continued, “I sometimes miss human world’s music.”
Tak peduli jika
Surga dan Neraka tak pernah ada
Yang penting kau ada
Meski tanpa panah asmara
“Is that why you spend the day with Solomon yesterday? Because he might be the only one to understand you,” Satan guessed, a slight jealousy and sadness can be sensed from his tone – well, anger too, but every emotion coming from Satan will always involve anger.
“That was what I thought before, yes, but you have to know Solomon is not a very updated human... He’s a sorcerer after all,” MC said, “so I don’t really get what I originally wanted. But somehow, he managed to tinker my D.D.D, and now it gives me access to human world music.”
Satan is quite surprised. He never thought of Solomon to be someone who’s good with technology.
“By the way, Satan, should we start cooking? I can hear Beel’s stomach growling from here...”
“Ah, you’re right. Let’s cook.”
000
“You’re saying that... they got homesick?”
It is a nice, rare evening in the House of Lamentation with all seven brothers gathering in the living room. MC is said to be in their room, continuing their Devildom History homework which is only half-finished even though they have been doing it for the whole day.
“Homesick is not quite the right word in my opinion,” Satan replied to Belphie, “they just miss some part of the human world.”
“Does that mean MC wants to go home? They don’t want to be in Devildom anymore?” Beel asked.
“But- What have we done wrong?” Levi cries, followed by Mammon, “No, no! I ain’t gon’ let that happen! Not on my watch!”
Satan sighs and closes his book with force, resulting in a very loud sound that echoed through the entire room, “Do any of you even heard what I said!? They miss some part of the human world, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they wanted to leave Devildom.”
Asmodeus chimed in, a smile formed on his lips while his hand is working on coloring Belphie’s nails, “Satan is right. Remember our first year in Devildom? We used to miss the Celestial Realm so bad – or at least I did. But that doesn’t mean we hate to be in Devildom, right?”
“That is true, yes,” Lucifer, surprisingly, responds, “I imagine it would be harder on MC’s part as well, since they were not being casted out of the human world. Their arrival here is pretty much out of their awareness.”
“When I think about it, it’s totally okay to be comfortable in your current place, while still missing your previous place. Just because you miss one thing doesn’t mean you hate the other thing, the two of those can coexist, you know,” Belphie said, provoking a surprise face on his brothers.
“Oi, Belphie, since when are ya bein’ so wise...” Mammon commented.
“But Belphie’s right,” Beel nodded, his mouth chewing on BLT sandwiches, “if anything, we have to do something for MC.”
Levi tilted his head, thinking, “Do what exactly?”
“Ever since MC arrived here, we have been showing them many Devildom cultures or likings, but we rarely ask them about theirs, weren’t we?” Lucifer said, which meaning is immediately picked up by Leviathan.
“Are you suggesting that we learn about their culture or language?”
Lucifer nodded, “Exactly. After all, Satan said that they overcome their homesickness with listening to human world music.”
Satan scoffs, “As much as I hate agreeing with Lucifer, I also think it’d be best for us to understand MC’s culture, remembering that they already learn so much about ours.”
“But, how though? Are we gonna start talkin’ in their language, or what?” Mammon asked.
“Wouldn’t it be hard to master a language though...” Beel said.
“Then, we don’t have to speak it,” Asmo said, “we just have to understand when MC speaks it!”
Suddenly, it’s as if a light bulb appeared on everyone’s head. Satan proposed his idea following Asmo’s word, “Or when MC sings it.”
Looking from his smile, it seems like Levi has the same idea as Satan, “The easiest thing for us to do right now it to understand the language from MC’s songs, isn’t that what you mean, Satan?”
“Man, that’s brilliant idea!” Mammon shouted, “well, what’re we waitin’ for!? Let’s get to work!”
000
MC wakes up in a pretty bad physical condition as they fell asleep on the desk while doing their homework yesterday night. It seems like the teacher whom assigned this homework intentionally tries to paralyze his students’ hand. Really, it should be a crime to make someone hand-write a report that long.
In hope for forgetting the pain on their hand, MC walks to the dining room. Maybe there is a surprise pancake from Simeon, or a funny story from Mammon that could helped heal their hand, or maybe...
A familiar music?
Could it be that MC has been listening to too much music that they now imagining it? No, it can’t be. MC checks their ear – maybe they accidentally put the headphone on this morning – but there is nothing. And so, MC continues walking to the dining room, only to find the sound of music to be much clearer.
(Andai aku bisa menjadi seperti yang kau minta)
If I could, I could be who you asked me to be
(Ku jadi juwita, kala cinta menggoda)
I’d be your girl when love tempts
(Tak peduli jika Surga dan Neraka tak pernah ada)
I don’t care if Heaven and Hell never exist
(Yang penting kau ada, meski tanpa panah asmara)
The important thing is that you’re here, even without Cupid’s arrow
(Mengapa sabda alam belum jua satukan kisah kita bersama?)
Why hasn’t fate brought our stories together yet?
(Cintaku bertepuk, harap yang tak ada)
My love’s unrequited, there is no hope
(Rintihan nada asmara... Ingin ku kembali ke masa remaja)
Sadness in our love... Wish I could go back to the good old times
(Serasa Galih dan Ratna)
Feeling like Galih and Ratna
(Yang kumau kau untukku, meskipun kau tak rindu)
What I want is you to be mine, even though you don’t wanna be
(Engkau aku suka)
You are the one I love
“Good morning, MC,” Lucifer greets them, but MC is being too stunned at the new environment in the dining room. See, there is a song playing from one of the brothers’ D.D.D, but there is also the song’s lyrics along with its translation flying around the room.
“What...” MC is confused whether to ask what is going on or what were they doing, “is this?”
“Oh, we were just listening to music,” Beel answered, “Lucifer says it’s okay to listen to it while having breakfast, it’s a nice change for once.”
MC nodded, still with a confuse face, but with a slight smile as well, “I get that. But this song...”
“Is the song you were listening to yesterday,” Satan finishes MC’s discontinued word, “you don’t have to wear headphones to listen to your songs anymore, MC. You can listen to it with us.”
“Yes, and you can request these songs on our karaoke night! We will learn every lyrics for you, just like how you learn every lyrics of our songs for us,” Asmodeus said, embracing the human with a big hug.
“Guys... Thank you. I appreciate it, really,” MC said before they went speechless, “just, thank you.”
“Now, now, let’s save the gratitude for later,” Lucifer said, “come now, let’s all have breakfast before we get late.”
Levi responded, “Oh! Maybe you can also tell us about other human world singers that you know! Or just any songs that you like, just tell us.”
“Maybe next time we can bring one of those artists to perform here too, in Devildom, for you. How about it?"
“Um... Belphie, I don’t think that’s a good idea...”