Archive of Our Own ^beta

    “Just finish the circle, we can do this!” Miranda exclaimed.

    They were in the basement of their new home, a large unfinished space with a plain cement floor. Justin Wright, Miranda’s husband, had used a thick piece of white chalk to draw two circles, one inside the other on the ground and they had placed four large, black candles around the outside of these circles. A book loaned by some friends laid open on the floor to a very specific page.

    Justin drew the runes to open the veil between worlds in the space between the two circles and lit the candles. “We call to you in the depths of Hell, we call to you to deliver us a servant!”

    Miranda grabbed the book to read the next line, “We bind to you, demon. We bind to you to do our bidding.”

    The floor shook slightly as a thin mist started to develop in the center of the circle. Miranda’s heart was pounding and she felt the baby in her stomach begin to kick, which almost felt like a warning. The mist thickened and a noxious scent like rotten eggs filled the room. “Justin, finish it!”

`     “Demon, you are ours to command. We bid thee to come to us now!”

    A figure began to take shape out of the mist, large wings folded back and disappeared, horns melted away. When the mist cleared a young man stood in its place. He looked to be in his mid-twenties with white blond hair and deep blue eyes set in an almost angelic looking face. “Do you understand what you’ve done?” he asked in a gentle, soothing voice.

    For a moment, Miranda and Justin couldn’t speak. Neither was sure of what to expect, but it was probably something more monstrous than this. “We have summoned you from the depths of Hell to serve us. Do you have a name?”

    “You may call me Azrael, the fourth of the line of Lucifer,” he said, then looked down at Miranda’s pregnant belly. “She’s going to be so beautiful, my angel.’

    The words sent a chill down Justin’s spine. “You are ours to command, demon, and you will leave our child alone,” he said.

    “So you say,” Azrael said with a shrug. “Now, where am I to sleep?”

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3 Months Later

    Justin pulled into the driveway of their home in their brand-new Mercedes SUV, excited to finally bring home their new baby girl, Alyssa. Miranda was in the backseat, one hand on protectively resting on the baby’s car seat.

    The last three months with Azrael in their lives had been more successful than they’d ever dreamed of. He had made their stock portfolios see amazing profits, helped both he and his wife gain dream positions in their respective fields (interior design for her, and a successful construction business for him), get a dream home in a dream neighborhood on the east end of Long Island, and just overall good luck. The one thing that hung in the backs of their minds was his comment about their child. They told themselves that it didn’t matter, he couldn’t do anything to her as he had to follow their orders. But still, they worried just a little.

    Justin got out of the vehicle and went to the trunk to get their new baby bag and other gifts they had received while they were in the hospital. Miranda took Alyssa out of the car in her purple paisley carrier, eager to get her settled in the nursery. Normally Azrael tended to stay in the basement as they had created a suite for him down there. Decorated in black and gray with splashes of red, it was minimalistic and vaguely Hellish looking.  He had his own entertainment system, computer, and library, as well as a full bathroom and kitchen and seemed to prefer to stay to himself. He didn’t communicate much with them unless he was answering their requests. Honestly, neither of them were sure what he did and were glad for it. But today he was sitting on one of their leather recliners. When they walked through the door he stood up and smiled, showing just a hint of his fangs. “Where’s the little darling?” he asked. “What did you name her?”

    Miranda placed the carrier on the couch and gently lifted Alyssa out of it. Azrael leaned over to look at her more closely. “Her name is Alyssa,” she said.

    “Beautiful. May I hold her?” he asked.

    Miranda and Justin exchanged glances. Miranda didn’t see the harm. After all, he was physically blocked from hurting them. “Do you know how to hold a baby?” Justin asked.

    “I am over one thousand years old. I have eaten many babies and had to hold them beforehand,” he said, and held out his hands for her.

    Justin shuddered but told himself that they had called him to them and if the price was that he was allowed to hold their child, then so be it. “Miranda?” he said and nudged her.

    She reluctantly handed Alyssa over and he cradled the baby carefully and thoughtfully, an unreadable look in his dark blue eyes. “Alyssa, you are so special,” he whispered in Enochian, low enough that Justin and Miranda couldn’t hear him but some part of Alyssa could. “I can only offer you this one sign of affection, but know that your parents have created something so special in you and nothing will ever hurt you.”

    He kissed her forehead and handed her back to her horrified mother. “I thought you couldn’t do that,” Miranda said.

    “There’s loopholes for everything, my dear,” he said with a small smile.

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5 Years Later

    “But why can’t I see Az?” Alyssa asked, her light brown eyes twinkling with mischief.

    Justin had just dropped her off at home after preschool and jetted back to a new construction site he was personally overseeing. As of late, she’d been sneaking downstairs to see Azrael, the man who lived in their basement. He was teaching her his funny language and about someplace called Heck.

    “Because, Alyssa, I don’t like what he tells you,” said Miranda as she looked up from a swatch book for her latest project.

    “But it’s okay, he’s nice and gives me cookies.” she said, twirling around the immaculately decorated dining room, her dark, almost black hair flying free.

    “I’m telling you no, Alyssa, now go to your playroom. Mommy has to start this vision board.”

    “Okay, mommy,” Alyssa said and rounded the corner to go upstairs. Of course, instead of going left she went right and headed down the stairs.

    She found Azrael lounging on his black leather sectional watching TV. “I thought you weren’t allowed down here,” he said without turning around.

    “Mommy’s working on a vision,” she said and plopped down beside him. “Whatcha watchin’?”

    “Alyssa, down here we speak Enochian, remember?” he said and turned off the TV. “Something you shouldn’t see.”

    “Naked ladies again?” she asked, this time in Enochian.

    He laughed and shook his head. “Perhaps we should continue our lessons.”

    “Why do I have to learn Heck?”

    “Because, my darling, someday you’re going to visit there.”

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10 Years Later

    “But where the fuck is mom?” Alyssa asked.

    It was the night of the county wide chorus recital, and Alyssa had the last solo of the show. Of course her mother wasn’t there. But even more egregious was that Azrael wasn’t allowed to come, not even his shadow self. As if her parents were even aware of his shadow self. There was a lot they didn’t know about the demon they raised.

    “Watch your language, young lady,” Justin said. He had met her in the lobby of the high school with flowers but it all felt hollow. “Will you be going out with your friends?”

    She pulled the bobby pins out of her long, brown-black hair and let it fall to nearly her waist. “Nah, I just wanna go home.”

    “You know Azrael is not your friend. He is our servant and you need to remember that.”

    “You fucking idiot,” she said in Enochian.

    “Don’t use his language, either.” he said as they got in the car.

    “Sure dad.”

    Once they were at home, Alyssa headed straight to the basement without another word.

    “How was the recital?”  Azrael asked, closing the book he was reading and setting it aside. He was dressed in his usual black linen button-up shirt and lounge pants, his white-blond hair in a loose ponytail.

    “Good. You should’ve been there though. That was unfair.”

    “I don’t need your parents to know my true power. I’m hamstrung by them, trapped. I need to keep some things for myself.”

    She sat next to him on his couch and folded her legs Indian style. “I hate that, they’re so selfish.”

    He smiled slightly and nodded. “That they are, my pet. Humans have always tried to harness power they do not understand. It bites them in the ass eventually.”

    “What do you mean?” she asked, and reached over him to take the book he had been reading.

    “They never calculate for every eventuality,” he said simply.

    “Oh,” she said, and leafed through the book. “The Malleus Maleficarum? Really?”

    “I needed some light reading.”

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5 Years Later

    Alyssa pulled up to her parents’ giant McMansion and absolutely itched to get inside. Not to see them, of course. The demon in the basement was the one she had missed more than anything while away at school.  She had no doubt that her parents were thrilled every time she went back to NYU and cringed when she came home. Maybe, she thought, they shouldn’t have raised a demon three months before she was born. She didn’t expect them to understand, she wouldn’t have understood if Azrael hadn’t explained it to her. Since her mother had been pregnant when she performed the ritual and she had breathed in the mists of Hell, they had been absorbed into her amniotic fluid and, ultimately, into her unborn baby. This gave Alyssa a special attachment to the Hell dimension, especially Azrael. She could feel his presence in the house and even his moods if she concentrated on him. He, in turn, could sense her presence and moods. “I’m home!” she announced.

    The house was quiet. Even now, she knew her mom was probably at her office and her dad at his. She couldn’t believe that with all the money they were making neither considered an early retirement.

Azrael wouldn’t be in on the first floor. He used to sometimes come up but more and more just didn’t bother. She knew that was mostly her parents’ doing. They treated him worse than an unwanted animal when he was the reason they had everything they did. They had won the jackpot with him, he was Hell royalty and they didn’t seem to care. He was literally just a demon to them. She wished they wanted to understand. The other people in their society, others who had enslaved demons didn’t seem to respect the power, either. She sighed. Some things would never change.

She finished unloading her car, leaving the boxes in her room to be sorted through later. Before heading downstairs she took a quick peak in the mirror and decided to freshen up. After a quick shower, she dried her long dark hair and used a straightener to smooth out any flyaways. She didn’t bother reapplying her makeup besides some BB cream and mascara, and put on her favorite cut-off shorts and and soft, purple v-neck t-shirt.

She wasn’t sure when, but somewhere along the way she had fallen totally and completely in love with the demon in her basement. It probably wasn’t so surprising. He was supportive, kind, funny, and gentle, at least with her. He never treated her as less than, didn’t question her intelligence. Also, she had recently realized just how attractive he is. His perfect angelic face, no doubt inherited from his great-great-grandfather. The lean, toned body that he kept clothed in simple but expertly tailored clothes. It was the whole package and left her feeling very confused. Like, this was the same Azrael that had given her cookies and a picture book to teach her about the hierarchy of Hell. The same Azrael that had written out the Enochian alphabet in giant, animal shaped letters. Who had let her cry over some stupid boy and taught her simple hexes to get back at the bitches in high school. She wondered if there was any way he could feel anything romantic for her.

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    Azrael could hear Alyssa walking around upstairs and could sense her deep confusion. He wished she would just come downstairs and talk to him. He couldn’t tell her how he felt, the rules didn’t work that way. Humans had to be afforded complete free will when deciding to join with a demon. It didn’t matter that Alyssa was different and knew the ways of Hell. If he was to gain his freedom and her love, he had to let her make the first move. He just hoped she would do it.

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    Alyssa finally decided to woman-up and visit Azrael. She cautiously walked down the stairs and noted how cold the room felt. “Az? Are you down here?”

    “Where else would I be?” he asked, materializing next to a column and leaning against it.

    She jumped slightly and laughed. “Every damn time.”

    “And how are you, my darling?” he asked with a smile.

    “Better now that I’m home. How are you?” she asked, concern in her voice.

    “Are you worried about me?” he asked and went to his refrigerator for a bottle of water.

    “Do you have to ask? Of course I am. Azrael, you are a shut-in.” she said and sat on one of the four bar stools that lined his kitchen’s island.

    “And for good reason, Alyssa. Your parents do not allow me to leave. I have not been off this property in 20 years.”

    She flinched and Azrael instantly regretted his words. Why did he have to be so harsh, he loved this girl and needed her to love him back. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

    “Don’t be sorry, Alyssa, it is not your fault,” he said. Just one display of affection. One small, romantic kiss from her was all he needed to be able to take their relationship to the next level.

    “I know, that doesn’t mean I can’t feel some level of responsibility. I mean, they are my parents.”

    “Your parents are not you,” he said gently. “When you were born, I told you that you were so special and nothing would ever hurt you, and I meant it.”

    “Did you really?” she asked and leaned on the counter.

    “Yes, I did.” he said.

    A heavy silence filled the room, and Alyssa knew what she wanted but wasn’t sure if she could do it. Azrael could feel her desire and was stunned by the power of it. Every part of him was screaming to touch her, and it killed him to know that he couldn’t. “Azrael?” she said.

    “Hm?”

    “Don’t hate me,” she said quietly.

    “Why would I ever hate you?” he asked.

    “Because of this,” she said, and kissed him quickly on the lips.

    Azrael’s heart suddenly felt freer than it had in twenty years. That was a love kiss, and he knew that in the very depths of his being. Alyssa, meanwhile, had slipped off the stool she was sitting on and was hurrying past him towards the stairs. “Alyssa, wait,” he said.

    “Why?” she asked, stopping and turning to look at him.

    He stepped close to her and cupped her face with his hands, drawing her into a gentle kiss. This was the kiss she had been waiting for, his lips warm and soft against hers, not demanding or harsh, just patient. She felt him open his mouth slightly and she did the same and their tongues touched, tentatively at first then with more passion.

    “Alyssa? Alyssa are you downstairs?” came Miranda’s voice from upstairs.

    Alyssa broke the kiss. “I’m sorry, Az, I have to go.”

    “I understand, it’s okay,” he said and smiled, giving her another kiss. But he needed one more thing from her, one declaration. He could feel his wings fighting to rematerialize, the itch in his back was incredible. But they would not come back until he was truly free, and he could not be free if she didn’t love him.

    She began to head up the stairs but stopped before she got to the top. He watched her curiously as she seemed to hesitate at the door, her hand on the knob.

    Alyssa didn’t know what to do. This was half-finished, and she hated leaving Azrael this way. She didn’t completely understand it, but some kind of spell seemed to have been broken when she kissed him. Before then, he had never showed her any kind of physical affection and knew that that was part of the binding spell her parents had done when they’d called him up from Hell. But just now he was able to initiate a kiss, so she knew something had changed. She hoped he would be able to tell her soon. ‘Well,’ she thought, ‘my parents can wait just a minute more.’

    She ran back down the stairs and into the arms of a very surprised Azrael and kissed him breathlessly. “I forgot to tell you something! I am totally and completely in love with you. I love you, Azrael.”

    In his thousands of years in Hell, Azrael never knew any words could sound that sweet. He was finally free, the loyalty forcibly given to the Wrights twenty years ago was now transferred to Alyssa because of her love for him and his love for her. If there was one thing Hell took seriously, it was contracts. However, you could not have two loyalties and long ago it was decided that real love overrode any magical bindings. Personally, Azrael thought that this was only to give a chance to demons that had been enslaved by humans. Although Azrael didn’t have any intimate knowledge of Lucifer’s thoughts, he believed that on some level the King of Hell was embarrassed by the fact that demons could be trapped so easily by humans who had no idea what they were doing.

    He wrapped his arms tightly around her and kissed her hard. “I love you too, Alyssa, more than anything on Earth or in Hell.”

    Alyssa pulled back and watched in amazement as two giant, leathery black wings unfolded from Azrael’s back. They were bat-like and tipped with what looked like silver at the points. Shiny black horns appeared to grow from his forehead, and curved towards the ceiling. “Have you always had those?” she said with a laugh.

    “They’re taken away when we’re bound. Maybe they’re too intimidating?”

    She reached up a hand to gently traced the line of one of the horns. “I think they’re perfect,” she said.

    “Alyssa, please come upstairs!” her father yelled.

    Alyssa sighed. “I guess I’d better see what they want.”

    “My love, if you wanted me to I could eviscerate them for you. I should eviscerate them as a matter of fact.”

    “Please don’t, Az. Not yet, anyway,” she amended.

    “A grand reveal, perhaps,” he said.

    “I want them to know what they’ve done. But then, if they hadn’t messed with forces they didn’t understand, we would never have met.”

    He lightly kissed her and ghosted a thumb across her lower lip. “My angel, always seeing the bright side of things. While I do think that one day I would have come to you, I am also glad that you were able to grow up with my culture and my language.”

    “I’m glad for that as well,” she said and after one more kiss she finally went to see what her parents wanted.

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    “Sweetheart, when did you get home?” Miranda asked after hugging her daughter.

    “A few hours ago,” Alyssa said as the two sat on the cream-colored couch in the family room. “Since you guys weren’t home I thought I’d visit with Az for awhile.”

    Her mom sighed and took the glass of red wine that Justin had brought her from the dining room bar. He sat down next to her and put an arm around his wife supportively. “Aly, you know how uncomfortable that makes us. Azrael is a creature from Hell and is not to be trusted.”

    “And yet the two of you brought him up and bound him in magical shackles and that’s completely okay,” she said and leaned away from her parents. A hundred Enochian curses ran through her head and she wanted to hurl all of them at their concerned faces.

    “Demons are animals. There is nothing wrong with what we’ve done,” Justin said in a tone that left no room for argument. “Now, the real reason we wanted to talk to you was to let you know that we’re having a Society party here tomorrow evening and want you to make an appearance.”

    “Society? How many of them will be here?” Alyssa asked. The Society was the social group that her parents belonged to that started them down their dark path. Each person or couple in the group had a demon in their service or would be calling one up soon.

    “It’s going to be interesting. All eleven of them, plus two initiates. We’re getting the affair catered of course and you’ll need to wear something dressy.”

    “Is Azrael invited?” she asked.

    Her parents exchanged glances. In fact, they did want Azrael there. He was incredibly handsome and could be extremely personable. It would be a nice way to show the initiates that not all demons were drooling, disgusting creatures. “He may attend if he wants, but he must be on his best behavior.”

    “You know he can’t do anything else,” she said shortly.

    “Well, why don’t you go get ready because we’re going out for dinner tonight. I’d like to try that new hibachi grill that just opened,” Miranda said.

    “Sure, mom,” Alyssa said and rolled her eyes.

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    After dinner, her parents went to their bedroom and closed the door and Alyssa decided to go back to the basement to see Azrael. She found him in his usual spot on his couch, watching a trashy reality show on his big screen TV. “That stuff’ll rot your brain, you know,” she said as she leaned over the back of the couch and put her arms around him. She noticed that his horns and wings were gone.

    “If it’s rotting my brain it is doing so at an extremely slow pace,” he said and watched as she walked around the couch and sat next to him. “Are you aware of how beautiful you are?”

    They kissed and she smiled at him. “Well, I suppose I’ve always been aware that I’m not a complete monster.”

    “So humble.”

    She shrugged. “I’ve got some interesting news, anyway. Tomorrow night the entire Society will be here, plus two initiates. They want to show you off.”

    “Those arrogant fucks,” he snarled quietly.

    “Babe, look at it this way. It could be their most epic fail and the most epic ‘fuck you’ the world has ever seen.”

    “You called me ‘babe’,” he said, amused.

    She blushed. “Is that bad?”

    “No,” he said. “I’m happy, so happy. We are right where we’re supposed to be.”

    He leaned in to kiss her, knowing that her want and need for him matched his feelings for her. Trailing kisses down her neck, he reached over her to the remote and turned the TV off.

    “So romantic,” she said with a giggle.

    He looked up at her from his spot near her collarbone. “Oh, is the princess looking for romance?”

    All at once the lights were dimmed and dozens of candles appeared, some sitting on the tables and some suspended in mid-air. The air smelled like lavender. “Show off,” she murmured.

    “Just giving the lady what she wants,” he replied, and slid his hands up her t-shirt, lightly skimming her skin. He tentatively cupped one breast and she sighed at the touch.

    “More please,” she said.

    He smiled against her lips and moved to pull her shirt up over her head. She moved forward slightly to allow him to do so, and he threw the garment unceremoniously behind the couch. Reaching towards her back, his hands found the clasp of her bra and opened it, and she shrugged it off and it, too, went behind the couch. His kisses moved lower, down her throat and past her collarbone, then trailed his tongue lightly down her chest and to her right breast. He swirled his tongue around her nipple, and a soft moan escaped her lips. “Sensitive?” he whispered.

“Mmmhmm,” was all she could answer.

Then she felt a slight pinch, and looked down to see that Azrael had lightly bitten her and was licking a thin trickle of blood. “What are you doing?”

“I needed to taste you,” he said.

“Then it’s only right that I get to taste you,” she said, determined to prove herself to him.

Azrael quickly removed his shirt, and Alyssa admired his well-muscled but lean torso. He drew a suddenly sharp fingernail across his chest to create a small cut, and blood started to bubble up out of the wound. With some trepidation, Alyssa lowered her head to the cut and followed the line of blood with her tongue. His blood tasted similar to human blood but somehow different. Familiar like iron, but stronger and with a hint of what could only be described as nutmeg and cinnamon. Azrael lifted her face to his and kissed her deeply, enjoying the taste of their blood mingling together on their tongues. “I think perhaps I should show you my bedroom,” he said huskily.

“I agree,” said Alyssa, her words feeling heavy in her mouth. She watched in a slight daze as Azrael rose from the couch and lifted her into his arms, but enjoyed the feeling of his strong arms around her. As they made their way to his room, she realized that she’d never been allowed to see this inside of it before.

When they got into the room, Azrael laid her on the bed and she took in her surroundings. Like the rest of the basement, the bedroom was decorated in black, grey, and red. The walls were painted grey, except for the wall opposite the bed, which was painted a dark red. The bedding and accent rug were black, as was all of the furniture. Over the bed hung a giant painting of what looked like a violent orgy of angels. It seemed like this was the only room that Azrael allowed his true tastes to show. There wasn’t much time to truly appreciate the room, however, as Azrael unbuttoned his pants and removed them, revealing that he wore no underwear. Alyssa moved to kneel at the edge of the bed and began to gently stroke his cock, getting familiar with his length and thickness. She bent her head and ran her tongue from the base to the tip, smiling when she heard his measured reaction. “Always in control, aren’t you?” she asked with a little laugh.

“I’m not sure how long that will last,” he said, and moaned a little louder when she took  him into her mouth.

After a few moments he took her by the shoulders and drew her up into a kiss. “I need to be inside of you, Alyssa.”

Alyssa was shocked momentarily by his bluntness, but remembering that he was a demon, she reminded herself that they are known for their lack of tact. “I need you too, Azrael.”

Again, he laid her down on the bed, lengthwise this time, and slid her shorts and underwear off. He stood up and looked at her for a long moment, and Alyssa put her hands over her breasts and vagina. “Don’t do that, my princess,” he said, and took her hands in his. “Your body is beautiful and I intend to memorize every inch of it.”

He stretched her arms above her head as he climbed between her legs and positioned himself at her entrance. He took it slow, knowing she wasn’t as experienced as he was, and entered her as gently as he could.

Her breath hitched in her throat, he was bigger than either of the boys she’d been with before. He didn’t move, letting her get used to his size, until she squeezed his hands. “Azrael, I’m okay,” she whispered.

He began to move again, picking up the pace in time with her heavy breathing. His hands had left hers and now circled her wrists, holding her firmly to the bed with considerable strength. His wings unfolded to their full span, looming over them in the darkness, and his horns had reappeared on his head, an indication that he was losing his tight control. She squirmed under his tight hold, lifted her body to meet his, desperate for release. He moved faster, harder, knowing she was so close to the edge and wanting to get her there. “Come for me, baby, come for me,” he whispered in her ear.

“I am, oh Azrael, I’m going to come, I’m going to come,” she repeated over and over again.

He kissed her all over her face and could feel his own orgasm begin to build. His thrusts became relentless as he felt her walls tighten around him and she came with a violent shudder. She felt his release inside her, felt the ripple of his cock as his seed went deep inside. They were real now, they were together and it was forever. She kissed him hard one more time as he slid out of her and settled by her side.

“You’re mine, Alyssa, always,” he said, and kissed her temple.

“Only if you’re mine, Azrael. I’m going to need you forever.”

He smiled, and kissed her again. “Once we share blood, our bond will be complete.”

Alyssa ran a finger along one of his horns thoughtfully. “Tell me what that means.”

“Well,” he said, ghosting his fingers across her stomach. “You know that when your mother was pregnant with you, she breathed in the mists of Hell. Most of the time, no harm done. Really, not even this time. Anyway, the mist entered into her uterus, into the placenta, and ultimately, into you. The essence of Hell became part of you, buried deep within your DNA. If I drink some of your blood and replace it with my own, the power locked inside you will be released.”

“Will I get some of these?” she asked, resting a fingertip on the sharp point of a horn.

“No, I don’t believe so. You will become even more radiant, if that is even possible. Eternally youthful, eternally powerful. My princess.”

She gave him a dazzling smile and straddled him. “Well, this princess wants to play.”

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    Alyssa woke up the next morning groggy and, for a moment, unsure of where she was. ‘Ohhhh, that’s right,” she thought, and glanced over to Azrael sleeping next to her. She still couldn’t believe that the events of yesterday had transpired. That he had kissed her, that they’d had sex, that he loved her. She wondered what would happen at the party that night. Azrael was free, but they had to pretend for awhile that everything was the same. She knew he wanted to kill her parents brutally, and she didn’t disagree with that sentiment, but at the same time they were her parents, and she didn’t really want them to die if they didn’t have to. But, to Azrael, they might have to. She sighed.

    “Are you alright?” asked Azrael quietly.

    “I am. I’m just nervous about the party. The whole Society will be here.”

    “Yes, and so will I. My love, this is a most extraordinary opportunity we have here. We can show them what real power is.”

    She flipped over on her stomach to look at him. “And how will we do that?”

    “With this,” he said, and reached behind him to pull out a small, black box. He got on his knees on the bed and pulled her up with him. “Love of my life, angel of my coal black heart. Alyssa, join with me?”

    He opened the box, and inside was an ornate ring made of black gold. A large, black princess cut diamond was fixed high in the center, and smaller, black diamonds lined the band and surrounded the large stone. She held out her hand and he slid it on her left ring finger. “Yes, Azrael, I will join with you,” she said and kissed him passionately. He trailed the kisses down her throat, and stopped at her pulse point, licking at her salty skin. She realized all at once what he was about to do and pulled away. “Now, Azrael?”

    He traced her brow bone tenderly. “I need you tonight, Aly. We need to be a united front.”

    “Will I...how will I feel?”

    “Truthfully, I’m not sure. The power will be immense. But trust me, I will not let anything happen to you.”

    “Won’t my parents know what’s happening?”

    “No. Now that I have my full powers I have made it seem unappealing for them to come to the basement. They believe that you have gone shopping and have already explained what is expected of me.”

“Diabolical,” she said with a smile.

“You have no idea,” he said softly and bent again to her neck.

This time his fangs sank into her flesh. He tenderly sucked the blood out of the four

small holes. When he felt her starting to grow limp he licked the wounds closed, then lowered her carefully onto the bed. He bit into his own wrist and lifted her head, encouraging her to open her mouth and drink from him. She began to drink, slowly at first but then more quickly as more blood worked its way into her system. He knew she’d had enough when he felt her grip tighten on him with more strength than he knew she’d had before. “Alyssa, time to let go now.”

    Reluctantly she let go of his arm and collapsed back onto the blankets. He stroked her hair as her breathing became fast and irregular, holding her tightly as she thrashed with the pain of something fundamental inside her changing. Azrael knew that the change was coming to an end when he felt their bond become brighter.  Brighter? But, why? He left her side and looked at her and saw, to his horror, that her aura had changed to bright white. Quickly, he dressed them both with a growing feeling of trepidation. The aura of a demon comes in various shades of red, and there is only one thing that has an aura of pure white. “No,” he whispered, and in that instance a blinding light filled the room. When the light faded, two figures were standing on the other side of this bed by the far wall. Both were dressed in form-fitting grey uniforms with high necks and silver piping, and their white, feathery wings were folded behind them.

“Back, you filthy creature,” the man said and held out his hand, creating a wide force field around the bed.

Azrael’s wings and horns appeared and he let out a feral snarl. “THAT’S. MY. WIFE,” he thundered.

“So sorry, creature, but she is one of us now,” said the woman.

Azrael watched as Alyssa’s eyes opened, and they were no longer light brown, they were silver. The air felt like it had been sucked out of his chest. He didn’t want to believe it, but the eyes left no doubt in his mind. Somehow, his beloved had been turned not into a demon, but an angel. What had he done?

“What’s...what’s going on?” Alyssa asked timidly.

The male angel crouched down beside her bed, intent on appearing unthreatening. “My name is Owen, and that is Esther. We have come to take you home.”

“But I am home. Azrael, what is this?” she asked and tried to sit up, but found she was still too weak.

“The demon will not be coming near you any time soon. Your pure soul turned the demon’s blood from darkness to light,” said Esther, a proud smile on her face.

Alyssa began to cry, it felt like grief was tearing her heart in two. “Please, Alyssa, please don’t cry,” said Owen, and he put his hand over hers. “You are so special. We have not had a Seraph born this way in over five hundred years. Heaven is beyond excited to embrace you.”

Seeing the angel touch his mate sent Azrael into a rage. He pushed hard against the barrier. “You touch my mate one more time, angel, and I will tear your simpering heart out.”

“One of the crown princes of Hell, is that right? Tell me, Your Highness, how do you plan to do that?” Esther asked, a mocking tone in her voice.

“Esther,” Owen said in warning, and stood up. “Azrael, what do you plan to do? Would you take a being of pure light to Hell? How would she survive there? What would her life be like? I know what you intended, but that is not what happened. We need to take her. She needs to be with her own kind.”

“She needs to stay with me. We have a bond. We have been JOINED,” he shouted, and again pushed against the barrier. This time it shuddered.

“We will break that bond, demon. No Seraph, quite possibly a most powerful Seraph like Alyssa, is staying joined to a demon. Even if that demon is royalty.”

Finally Alyssa could sit up and was growing tired of these angels and her demon talking about her like she wasn’t there. “Stop talking about me like I’m not here. This happened to me . Don’t pretend like I don’t speak the language.”

“I’m sorry princess,” Azrael said, wishing that he could touch her. He watched her twist her ring around and around on her finger and knew she was nervous and scared.

“You speak Enochian?” asked Esther.

“Azrael has been teaching me since I was small,” Alyssa said. She looked up at the two angels. “Would someone like to tell me what’s going on?”

Owen wanted to push the issue of Azrael teaching a toddler human their language, but decided that would have to wait for another time. “It was incorrectly thought that the Hell mist in your DNA would activate and transform you into a demon when you imbibed the demon’s blood. However, there are some rare instances when the host soul is too pure to accept the demon corruption. In these cases, the human is not transformed into a demon, but instead becomes an angel. That, Alyssa, is what happened to you.”

“I can’t stay, can I?” she asked in a small voice.

“Don’t listen to them, princess. Stay with me, we can figure this out,” Azrael said softly.

Owen shook his head. “There is nothing to figure out. She is an angel now. You are a free demon that yearns to return home. Go home, Azrael. Let us help her.”

“What about my parents?” Alyssa asked.

Owen and Esther exchanged glances. “Their entire branch of the Society will have to be extinguished. Playing with the dark arts and enslaving free creatures is something we actively fight against, especially something as well-known as the Society.”

“Please,” she said, and the angels thought she would ask for her parents’ lives. “If they must die, let Azrael do it. He was their prisoner for twenty years, he’s owed this.”

“Will you come with us?” Owen asked.

“Can I say goodbye?” Alyssa asked tearfully.

Esther glowered but knew it would be the easiest way for this to happen. “You may.”

“If you rush us, demon, we will take her and you will never see her again,” Owen said. “Your bond will be broken the moment we enter Heaven and she will forget all about you.”

“I understand,” Azrael said. “But know that as soon as you depart, I will be looking for a way to get her back.”

“Understood,” Owen replied, and looked down at Alyssa. Superficially, he also understood why the demon fought so hard for this woman. If she had been beautiful before, she was transcendent now. The Light shone from her brightly, she would be an asset to their kind. If, of course, they could get her on their side. That was a rather large if .

The force field was lowered and Alyssa swung her legs over the side of the bed, then lowered her feet to the floor. Cautiously she stood, and found that she was a lot stronger than she thought. She felt an itching at her back, knew instinctively that it was her wings, and fought hard against them. “Azrael,” she said softly.

He put his hands on her waist and pulled her flush against him. Esther made a move towards them but Owen put a hand on her arm and shook his head at her. Azrael kissed Alyssa gently, moving his hands up to cup her face. She put her hands over his, willing herself to remember his warmth and the feel of his hands. He broke the kiss and looked into her eyes, seemed to be searching for something there.

Her eyes were silver, it was true. But she was still Alyssa, his Alyssa. He could see that in her eyes. “When you were born I told you that you were an angel, but I didn’t think that was literal,” he said with a laugh.

“I’m so sorry,” she said, and wound her arms around his neck.

“Remember when you were a kid, and I told you that your parents didn’t calculate for every eventuality? Turns out that neither did I. I am over one thousand years old, my love. I should have known. This is not your fault.”

“I don’t want to go,” she whispered.

“I know, baby, I know,” he said, and licked at the tear tracks on her cheeks. “I gave you that ring because I knew we would be together forever, and I still believe that. We are royalty of Hell, and you will be by my side. We will create chaos and terror together. But I know they can teach you things that I can’t, and we need to figure this out from both sides.”

“Will I hate you?”

He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her tightly. “I will never hate you and you will never hate me. We will be together again, this I vow to you.”

“I love you, Azrael,” she said, and the two angels winced.

He kissed her deeply, fearing that it may be their last time together for a long time. “I love you too, Alyssa.”

They kissed for one last time and she stepped away from him, although she was having a hard time letting go of his hand. Finally she let her fingers unwind of his, and went to the two angels. Now that she was getting a good look at them, she was surprised. Both Owen and Esther were dark haired with silver eyes. Owen had an almost wolfish look to him, with wide eyes and a longish nose. Esther had her dark hair cut in a short, pixie cut that highlighted elven features. Both were tall and well-built. “You’ll be able to travel like us in no time.” said Owen.

“I won’t be like you,” Alyssa said shortly.

“So you say,” Esther said with a shrug.

Then there was a flash of white light, and they were gone.

-------------------------------------------------

Both Heaven and Hell functioned as waystations for human souls before they were recycled into new bodies and sent back to Earth. Only occasionally was a soul retired. Big names like Hitler, Einstein, Elvis. The souls that had occupied these bodies had ultimately become too infected by their time as that person and they were no longer viable. Consequently, most of Heaven and Hell was taken up by the civilizations of the angels and the demons.

The White City of Heaven and the Black City of Hell were almost comical in their perfect parallels. Where the White City shone with pearl white buildings and high, medieval towers, the Black City looked dark and forbidding, like Mordor turned up to eleven. Each city was set up in a hierarchical fashion, with the lower tiers of angels or demons located in the outskirts and the highest tiers in the center of the city. The Seraphs occupied the highest tower, called Ahura Mazda. In Hell, the Royals occupied the highest tower, called Legion.  

Alyssa was in a well-appointed bedroom somewhere in Ahura Mazda that was decorated in white and her favorite color, purple. The walls were white with purple trim, the carpet dark purple, and the bedding lavender with embroidered swirls of dark purple, black, and white. All of the furniture was made from a rich mahogany wood with pewter fixtures. Although it was a beautiful room that was exactly to her liking, she had an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. Her wings fluttered gracefully behind her, having had appeared as soon as they arrived in Heaven. They were, of course, not the black, leathery wings she had expected but the white, feathery wings of angels. An angel. She sighed. Owen said she was a Seraph, which she understood to mean in the upper echelon of the angel hierarchy. All she’d ever wanted was to be with Azrael in Hell, and now she was trapped in Heaven, most likely forever. She sank to the floor, drawing her knees up to her chest, and began to sob. Everything was ruined, everything. She tore the ring off her finger and threw it across the room.

-------------------------------------------------------

    Lukas sat back in his high-backed leather chair and squeezed the bridge of his nose. They had done so well. For 500 years, an angel had not been born of demon blood. They controlled the Society, made sure it was eradicated as efficiently as possible. Yet, here they were. An innocent had ended up betrothed to a prince of Hell. He couldn’t even begin to imagine how the girl was feeling right now. She loved the creature, no doubt, and had imagined becoming a Royal herself and now, to her, it was all ruined. To the angels, however, this had been the best possible outcome. She was now a beautiful, powerful angel, someone who would no doubt become great. The light on his intercom lit up and he waved his hand over it.
“Owen and Esther to see you, sir,” said Joanna, his assistant.

    “Thank you, Joanna, send them in.”

    He stood behind his ornately carved mahogany desk to greet his most trusted operatives.

    They bowed their greetings and he invited them to sit.

    “You are certain she is a Seraph?” he asked Owen.

This was a very curious turn of events, one that had the whole tower talking. Every angel, no matter the rank, wanted to see the Seraph who had expected to become a Royal. They had all quickly heard of the radiant new angel that was joined to a crown prince of Hell. Honestly, Lukas was surprised that Michael himself wasn’t here to see what the commotion was about. “Yes, sir, we are certain. You need only to see her aura and her eyes. Pure white and bright silver,” Owen said.

    “I agree, sir, there is no doubt,” said Esther.

    “And what is this about a Royal being involved?”

    “The girl is joined to him, sir. He has apparently been grooming her to be his mate since she was a child,” said Owen, distaste obvious on his face.

    “Am I to assume she is hostile?” Lukas asked.

    “Curiously, she is not. I think she is in shock. Everything she knew is gone. She believes that her demon will rescue her,” said Esther.

    “If she so desperately wants to be with him, explain to me why I should not have Raphael corrupt her soul and send her to the Black City as a Royal?” Lukas asked, leaning forward in his chair.

    Owen and Esther exchanged glances, having not expected this question. In truth, they didn’t consider that as an option. “Honestly, sir, the thought did not occur to us. The demon’s blood has made her more powerful than most of the Seraph. He is only four generations removed from the Morning Star himself. That’s almost limitless power running now through angel veins.”

    “But does any of that matter if she has been indoctrinated into Hell culture? How can we get through to her?”

“Her mind may have been, but her heart is not, that much is apparent. If she is a good soul I believe that ultimately she will choose what’s right,” said Esther carefully.

“I think that perhaps I should speak to our guest,” Lukas said and dismissed Owen and Esther.

Although he had serious doubts about the viability of their new angel, he knew they had to try to get to get through to her.

----------------------------------------

    Azrael surveyed the carnage before him and managed a small smile. He still held Justin’s heart in his hand. It had felt so good to destroy the people who had held him as a slave for so long, but it felt hollow without his Alyssa. The look on her parents’ faces when she took part in their slaughter would have been the most wonderful culmination of a twenty year plan. Oh, it wasn’t all a lie. He cared for Alyssa, loved her very deeply in fact. But he would be lying if he said that this wasn’t also his way of ultimately destroying the Wrights. He wondered where she was now. Presumably they had had her locked away in Ahura Mazda. Literally, she was being held in the Wise God. What a crock. Michael ran the show in Heaven, just like his brother Lucifer did in Hell. The idea of God was something humans had invented to make themselves feel better.

    Did Alyssa miss him? Did she hope that he would rescue her? He laughed a little to himself. There was no way he was storming into Heaven, especially not Ahura Mazda. He was powerful, very powerful, but even he doubted he could take on twelve or so Seraphs by himself. Would it be better to leave her there?

    “She has our blood, son,” Mephistopheles said, appearing beside Azrael.

    Azrael’s father was as handsome as his son, but had made himself look like he was in his early 40s. His short platinum hair was streaked with black and his eyes were the color of rubies. He was wearing a well-tailored black suit with a black dress shirt and a red tie. “I know, father.”

    Mephistopheles glanced sidelong as his son. “You are aware, then, that she is your mate, yes? Your loyalty is hers. You owe her your freedom, and your love.”

    “I love her father, of course I do. But what is there to be done? She is an angel, a Seraph in fact. Am I to break into Ahura Mazda?”

    Mephistopheles rolled his eyes. “The young, always so dramatic. Perhaps we talk to your grandfather. He can speak with Lukas. Together they can come to an agreement.”

    “The head of the Seraph must have designs on my Alyssa. They will break my bond with her against her will.”

    “They will not. As with us, they will not do anything to Alyssa that is against her will. Oh, they may manipulate the situation, but it will ultimately be her choice.”

    Azrael crushed the heart he still had in his hand and dropped it on the floor. “I should have known better. I should have known.”

    His father laid a hand on his shoulder. “No, Azrael, there was no way to know. Even Lucifer himself could not. There are not too many humans with the soul pure enough to pull that off.”

    “My princess was always a special one,” Azrael said with fondness in his voice. He toed the head of one of his victims. “Shall we go home?”

    “Yes, my son. We have work to do.”

    Father and son disappeared in a haze of black smoke.

-------------------------------------------------

There was a knock at Alyssa’s door and then a tall, imposing man entered. He went to the corner of her room and picked up her ring and looked at it thoughtfully, then put it in his pocket. “That’s my ring,” Alyssa said and stood up.

“I am sorry. You are right,” he said, and took the ring out of his pocket and handed it back to her. “Forgive me, I have not introduced myself. My name is Lukas and I am head of the Seraph. You may call me Luke.”

Alyssa looked Lukas up and down. He was wearing the same gray jumpsuit that the other two were wearing, but his had more intricate patterns woven into the front panels and wondered if that indicated rank. There were also several pins on the collar. His expansive wings were trimmed in silver. She couldn’t deny that he was extremely good looking. He had short black hair and the most intense silver eyes she had ever seen. His nose was straight and not overly large, perfectly balanced by his strong jawline. But still, he was an angel, which could only mean bad news.

“Why am I trapped here, Lukas?” she asked, and crossed her arms over her breasts. Her ring once again glinted on her finger.

“I would not use the word ‘trapped,’ per se. We unfortunately cannot let you leave, but it is not malicious by any means. You are an interesting case, Alyssa. We have not had someone of your kind for over 500 years. You have almost limitless potential and we wish to nurture that.”

Inside, Alyssa was screaming in frustration, but she decided that staying calm would be the best way to perhaps return home sooner than later. “I want help, I do. But surely you can understand how I feel. How hard this is for me.”

“I am certainly trying. There is something I can do to truly understand, if you would let me,” Lukas said cautiously, and stepped closer to her.

Alyssa stepped back defensively. ‘What do you want to do?”

“Information transfer via lip to lip contact.” he said.

She raised her eyebrows. “So you want to kiss me? Are you serious?”

“It is a kiss,” he agreed. “But an angel kiss can have power if the angel wants. I can use the kiss to see what you’ve seen. To feel what you’ve felt.”

This power sounded amazing, and it would probably help the angels understand her side if they could just know how she felt. She didn’t want to kiss Lukas, but it wouldn’t mean anything, it was only a means to an end. “Okay, but don’t get handsy on me.”

Lukas smiled softly, and again stepped closer to her. “I will keep my hands on your shoulders,” he said.

As promised, he put his hands on her shoulders and pressed his lips to hers. The kiss, as Alyssa experienced it, was nothing like she had ever felt before. His lips on her were firm but gentle, and she detected not even a hint of romantic design. It truly felt professional, if such a thing was possible. Lukas, meanwhile, was having an interesting experience. He was seeing Alyssa’s life in fast-forward, even things that she didn’t remember. The main point was the demon, Azrael. He was in her memories from birth. His was one of the first faces she ever saw. He had kept her company when she felt abandoned by her parents, and he had used his time with her to mold her into the perfect bride. Personally, Lukas felt repulsed, but could feel what Alyssa felt and knew how much she cared about Azrael, how much she depended on him. And guilt, massive guilt. Incredibly, she felt that all of this was her fault.

“You know that none of this was your fault, don’t you?” Lukas asked as he broke the kiss.

Alyssa went to sit down on the bed and covered her face with her hands. Lukas sat next to her and took her hands in his own. “I cannot help you if you will not talk to me.”

“But it is all my fault. It was my soul that corrupted his blood,” she said, her voice shaking slightly.

“You purified his blood,” he said gently, stroking the top of her hand with his thumb. “I do not see how you could have known, Alyssa. There is no way to know your soul until it is released.”

She sighed. “It’s just...it’s not fair.”

He smiled slightly. “No, I suppose it is not very fair. But Azrael was right, you are so special. Even though this is not how you expected things to happen, you must now decide if you will make the best of it.”

------------------------------

Three Months Later in Hell:

    “Father, I have reached the end of my rope,” Azrael snarled.

    “I know son, but I believe that my father is the one who can help you. We have exhausted all other options. There may be a price for his assistance, but if it’s what you want…”

    “It’s what I want,” he replied shortly.

    In the past few months he had been rebuffed many times by Heaven, each time denying him an audience with Lukas or Michael. He felt his bond with Alyssa slowly fading, although it was still there. He could not feel her emotions, as she was too far away, but he still felt her. For now, that was enough.

Mephistopheles rapped softly on the door of his father, Beelzebub’s, office. “Enter,” said a deep, flat voice.

Azrael had rarely spoken to his grandfather and the voice made him just slightly nervous. Beelzebub sounded less human than his father or himself, and although he had not spoken to Lucifer since he had turned 1,000, he remembered his voice sounded like a monster truck rolling over gravel.

Mephistopheles and Azrael entered the office, which was pitch black except for the dull red light of a dying fire and what little light came in through the grated windows. “Make light, boys, for I am tired,” Beelzebub said, although they had yet to see his face. Mephistopheles materialized a wrought iron chandelier, making sure it hung in the very center of the room. Modern light bulbs illuminated the dark room, and finally they could see him. Seated on an intricately carved stone chair, he looked as regal as his status would dictate, this despite his lack of elaborate adornment. He was dressed in a simple black on black suit, and his hair was bright white and styled into a neat pompadour. He looked no older than Mephistopheles, but something about the way he carried himself indicated his very old age. “Mephisto, Azrael, sit,” he said, gesturing to the two velvet covered chairs that were arranged in front of his obscenely decorated marble desk. “Something troubles you, I can tell.”

“Grandfather, I discovered my mate in a human woman. I saw her grow from a child, taught her our ways, planned to bring her home. I did what I believed was right, and fed her my blood. She is now an angel,” Azrael spat.

“This is a very rare, and most unfortunate situation. Are you joined?” Beelzebub asked, and leaned forward with interest.

“Yes, we are. I gave her the ring of my mother and we shared blood and fucked. They took her to Ahura Mazda, they think she will be their greatest champion. Is there anything to be done?”

“I would not have suggested we seek your advice, Father,” said Mephistopheles, his voice low and serious. “But I believe this requires some...delicate diplomacy.”

    “You have always been so calm, my son. Why should I not march into Ahura Mazda and take Lukas by the neck? There would be little to no resistance. They know they are not as strong as my father or myself. I would only need to take your mate’s hand and she would be one of us,” Beelzebub said, a self-satisfied smile on his face.

    “Is this true? Could it be done so easily?” Azrael asked, rising slightly out his chair.

    “What is the price?” Mephistopheles asked.

    Beelzebub chuckled. “My son, I am deeply hurt. Why would there be a price? It would be a genuine pleasure to serve a slice humble pie to those smug assholes. They tend to forget who holds the cards in this relationship. They exist only because we allow it. They have taken something dear to my kin and I seek to rectify that through violence against mine enemy. You are giving me a lovely gift.”

    He stood up then, letting his wings unfurl to their six foot wingspan. He made his way around the desk slowly and both Azrael and Mephistopheles rose to greet him. He put his arms around Azrael in a stiff hug, then hugged his son as well. “Do not worry, my boys. I will set this right.”

------------------------------------------

    Nine Months Later in Heaven:

    “You’re stance is just a little off,” said Esther, moving Alyssa’s right leg a little further back to give her more balance. “You see, if you stand that way, your opponent will be less likely to knock you off your feet.”

    They were standing outside in the training valley, surrounded by demonic holograms that disappeared after a swift shot. The valley itself was beautiful, lush and green with small white flowers everywhere. Just beyond it was a lagoon and a waterfall that bubbled with lightly perfumed water. It felt amazing to soak in the lagoon after a hard day of training.

    “But if I can do this,” Alyssa said, and created a ball of pure energy in each hand, “why do I need to learn hand-to-hand combat?”

    Esther sighed and ran a hand through her short, dark hair. “Because, dear sister mine, fighting teaches us discipline and gives us more strength. Although the Holy Energy is as important to us as breath itself, sometimes all you want to do is knock a demon’s teeth in.”

    Alyssa laughed and launched a high kick at a demon’s chin. The hologram shimmered and disappeared. “Not bad, not bad,” said a deep, male voice behind her.

    She turned and smiled softly as Luke made his way towards the two women. “Making progress?” he asked.

    “Yes, sir, she’s doing very well,” said Esther.

    “Thank you, Lieutenant, you may take your leave. I’d like to converse with Alyssa in private.”

    Esther raised her eyebrow just slightly but left without another word. Everyone knew that Lukas and the new Seraph had become close in the last few months. She had seemed to accept that her demon prince would not be coming to get her, although Owen himself had told her that time moves differently in Hell, that time moved faster in Heaven, and that she could give Azrael time if she wanted. That had been after a week in Hell had passed and he had not made an attempt at communication. Now it was very many months later. All in all, Esther felt Alyssa’s anger and disappointment were justified. Maybe he was working on a plan, but he was taking his Hellish time doing it.

    “So, tell me Alyssa, how are you doing?” asked Lukas, gesturing for her to walk beside him to the lagoon.

    “Better,” she said. “I still feel sad every so often, but it’s less and less as time goes on.”

    She looked down at her hands, unadorned as they had been for many months. She kept the ring in a drawer in her bedroom and only looked at it every so often. It was a terrible pain at first, not hearing from Azrael. She’d cried, broken-hearted and alone, for the first two months in Ahura Mazda. Her tears didn’t dry immediately, but little by little they began to lessen. She knew her bond with Azrael was lessening and she mourned him greatly. Owen had said time moved differently in Hell than in Heaven. Maybe that meant he had only seen her yesterday, or a week ago. She still had her doubts about the angels sometimes, that maybe they were keeping Azrael from her. Still, why would they let Az see her? He needed to find a way to get to her, if it was what he truly wanted.

    “I’m glad,” Lukas said and smiled slightly. “I only want to see you happy, Alyssa. You began as a sort of project, I suppose, as you are such a rare creature. But, over these many months, you have become much more.”

    They had come to the lagoon and sat on the banks, watching the light pink water ripple in the sunlight. “What do you mean by that, Luke?” Alyssa asked, looking at him with curiosity in her bright, silver eyes.

    He moved closer to her and put his hand over hers. “I will understand if you turn me away, but you must know how I feel.  I have grown very fond of you, Alyssa, so very fond.”

    She looked at his hand on hers and her mind swirled. Luke loved her. That was really what he meant. This beautiful, kind, majestic angel loved her. It frightened her, because she knew she felt something for him too. If Azrael where to show up one day, who would she choose? She admitted to herself she didn’t know. She never thought she would embrace being an angel, but here they were. If someone happened to come upon them, they would see two powerful Seraph lounging on the banks of their lagoon, not one Seraph and one confused human. Taking a deep breath, she stood up, sliding her hand out from underneath his. Standing in front of him, she slowly undid the buttons on the front of her uniform, her eyes never leaving his. She pulled her uniform down over her body and kicked it away, leaving it in a puddle in the grass. Then she turned her back to him and gingerly waded into the water. It was warm and relaxing, and she turned to him with a smile. “Are you going to join me?” she asked.

His jaw tightened as he, too, stood and removed his uniform in just a few graceful motions. Most Seraph wore no undergarments, as their uniforms were lined. He slid into the water and made his way towards her, stopping when they were nearly nose to nose. “Are you sure, Alyssa? Are you sure you want me?” he asked, lightly tracing her jaw with his fingers.

She responded by gently kissing his lips, her hands tentatively stroking the nape of his neck. When she pulled away, the warmth that had filled his intense silver eyes was nearly enough to make her cry. Although she knew Azrael loved her, he had never looked at her with such gentleness. “Please, Alyssa, tell me why you hurt,” he said, and kissed her again.

“Oh Luke, I don’t hurt,” she sighed. “It’s just...your love is so very different from what I've experienced in the past. Your warmth and kindness, your strength in the face of everything, of what I’ve put you through. I don’t understand how or why I’m worthy. I’m a demon’s bride.”

He responded by pulling her close and holding her tightly, rubbing small circles on her back. “I love you because of all that you are. You came to this place entirely by accident, but I have to believe that it was actually fate or the will of the universe. You are so strong, filled with pure, white light, no different from anyone in the order. When you accepted the Seraph as your family, you ceased to be a demon bride. You are simply Alyssa. My Alyssa,” he said with a gentle firmness.

This time it was Alyssa’s turn to kiss him, and she did so with her whole heart. “I am yours, Luke. Every part of me,” she said softly.

They kissed passionately, neither wanting to let go. Their angelic nature meant they didn’t need to breathe for very long periods of time, so the kiss seemed to last forever. Finally he left her lips and trailed kisses slowly across her jawline and down her neck, further down her chest and to her left breast. He teased her nipple with his tongue and relished the soft moan that escaped her lips, then moved to the other nipple and did the same.

She wrapped a leg around his hip and rubbed her body against his, desperate for the contact. His hardness pressed against her folds, making the heat between them even stronger. His hands moved down under the water, passed her hips, cupping her ass. He lifted her up slightly, then lowered her slowly onto his shaft, knowing without a doubt that she was ready for him.

They moved together as one, the water sliding in between their bodies. Alyssa had never experienced any sensation quite like this, the depth of feeling when making love to another angel. They were hard but soft, and the Holy Energy encased them like a forcefield of white light.

-------------------------------------------

    Alyssa awoke to a loud banging on the door. There was no clock in the bedroom, but her body told her it was around 2 AM, human time. “Who could that be at this hour?” she murmured.

    “Don’t worry, I’ll see what they want,” Luke said, kissing her temple before sliding out of bed.

    She watched his nude form in appreciation as he threw on a gray silk robe and headed out of the bedroom.    

    “They’re here, Captain. The demons have arrived,” she heard an angel say.

    Her heart was suddenly in her throat. The demons? Was Azrael finally making his grand gesture? Her mind swirled. Was it too late for them? No, it was never too late. She loved Lukas, but Azrael was her husband and her whole heart. She owed it to him to see if they could be together again. She got out of bed and threw on her casual uniform, a pair of soft gray pants and matching tunic, then made her way into the sitting room, where Lukas was pacing back and forth.

    “What’s going on?” she asked.

    “The Royals have arrived,” he said, and his face was even paler than usual.

    “Who?”

    Lukas sighed softly, “Beelzebub, Mephistopheles...Azrael,” he said.

    Alyssa made a soft choking noise, then rushed passed him to the door. “No, Alyssa, you cannot leave this room.”

    “Lukas, I must. I won’t have others killed when all they want is me.” she said.

    “I won’t have you taken away against your will,” he responded.

    “They won’t. I’m not weak anymore,” she said, kissing him gently. “I need to go.”

    He cupped her face with his hands, searching her eyes. Finally he relented. “Just be careful, do not trust them for one moment.”

    “I will,” she said, and they kissed one more time.

    The hallway was oddly quiet, as if everyone were staying in their rooms. Was there a battle someplace else, or were they just too scared? Then she saw Esther coming towards her. “Esther?”

    “Alyssa, you should have stayed out of the way,” Esther said. “They’ll be coming for you.”

    She felt a burst of anger through the mate-bond she didn’t even know could still be that strong. “He’s angry. I don’t want them to hurt anyone unnecessarily.”

    “You still feel him, don’t you? After all this time?”

    Alyssa looked down quickly. “I do. We’re blood bonded. It’s not something that’s easy to give away.”

    “I won’t pretend to understand it, but you know what you have to do. I know where they are, let me take you there,” she said.

    They walked down the hallway in silence until they got to Alyssa’s room. “I need to go get something,” she said and slipped inside.

    She went into her bedroom and dug through the things in a drawer until she found her ring. She couldn’t imagine seeing Azrael again without wearing it. She sent a wave of calm energy through their bond, hoping it would help him understand that she was all right. She stole a glance at herself in the mirror, wondered what he would think of her when he saw her. She was a little nervous, but not afraid. She had to believe that Azrael still loved her, that he only wanted her back. But the others, his father and grandfather. What would they do?

    She heard shouting coming from the hallway outside her bedroom and rushed to see what was happening. Before she could get to the door, it opened and there he stood. “Azrael,” she said softly. His wings were open to their enormous span, and his horns glittered in the lamp light. He was wearing black slacks and a black dress shirt and looked completely unruffled.

    “My princess,” he said and made a move towards her, but he looked slightly unsure.  

    Unbidden she ran into his arms, tears threatening to spill over. As they embraced she felt all the tension leave his body, as if he were steeling himself for her rejection. She looked into his eyes, those beautiful gold-rimmed blue eyes, and was relieved to still find love there. “You still love me?” she asked.

    “Alyssa, I would never stop. We are joined. You are in my heart forever.” he said, and lightly kissed her lips.

    “Where were you? I waited so long,” she said, and pulled away.

    “I tried in any way I knew how. For three long months I ran up against a brick wall no matter what I did,” he said, anger blazing in his eyes.

    She began to pace in front of him, her hands slightly shaking. “Three months? Az, it’s been nine months.”

    He sat heavily on a dark purple armchair, his head in his hands. How could he have forgotten about the time difference? “Time...time moves differently in our worlds. I asked and begged for an audience with Michael, with Lukas, but they refused me every time. I tried to be polite, because I knew that was what you would have wanted. I tried to argue for what was right, but they didn’t care. They wanted you and they have you,” he said, defeat in his voice.

    Alyssa was at once both stunned and angry. How could they hide her from him? It was his blood that made her what she was, and he was her mate. They owed it to him to allow him to see her. She knew why they didn’t, but if they were the source of Light that they claimed to be, they should have taken the higher moral ground. She sat on an arm of the chair and put a hand on his shoulder. “They don’t have me,” she said gently.

    “They don’t?” he asked, looking up.

    “They tried, and they were getting there. But by not letting you have words they broke my trust. They’re supposed to be the source of Light,” she said angrily.

    He stood up, and pulled her up with him. His arms went around her waist and he kissed her, passion overwhelming them both. His lips left hers and trailed down her neck, and his hands began to inch their way up her tunic. Abruptly, she pushed him back.

    “But I’m an angel, we can never be together,” she said, turning away.

    “Do you think I would have come here if I couldn’t fix that?” he asked.

    She turned around, her brow furrowed in confusion. “How? I am what I am,” she said, tears coursing down her cheeks.

    “My grandfather has the power of corruption. If you desire it, he can change you from angel to demon and vice versa, just as Raphael can,” Azrael said, and gently wiped the tears from her face.

    He jumped back in shock as a white light enveloped her. Her eyes had turned from silver to white and her mouth was open in a silent scream. When he went tried to touch her he was met with a wall of electricity and heat. “Son, is everything settled in here?” Mephistopheles asked, entering the room.

    “I don’t know what to do, Father. I can’t reach her,” Azrael said. “Alyssa, princess, come back!”

    Mephistopheles stepped close to the forcefield to examine it. “Well, son, your wife is quite the strong one. She is lost in her anger and grief. Only one stronger than her emotions can break it, and right now I am unable to.”

    Azrael once again got close to the light and put his hand to it. This time he ignored the pain and heat and pushed through until he could touch her skin. He lightly stroked her face, every move becoming more and more painful. “Please, Alyssa, please come back to me. Do not let them win this. Focus on us, that we can be together. Focus on your lovely black wings, and the dark power that will course through your veins. We have eternity, don’t spend it locked in the dark in this putrid place.”

    Her eyes blinked and began to turn silver. “Azrael? What’s happening to me?”

    “Fight, baby, fight through it!”

    “Get hold of your emotions, daughter. Reign yourself in so that you can breathe again,” Mephistopheles said.

    She closed her eyes and began to breathe deeply. Slowly the light began to dissipate until she could finally move again. Almost immediately she collapsed onto the floor. Azrael lifted her off the ground and moved her onto a chaise lounge. “What happened?” she asked softly.

    “My love, you were very angry. Your emotions overwhelmed you and took control, freezing you in place.”

    “Gave your husband quite a fright,” said Mephistopheles with a chuckle.

    “Who…?” she asked and trailed off.

    “This is my father, Mephistopheles. My grandfather is speaking with Lukas, I believe,” Azrael said with a dark smile.

    “He won’t kill him will he? He’s not...he’s not a bad person,” she said.

    “No, I don’t think he will,” said Mephistopheles. “It would upset the balance too much. Although Beelzebub is a man of vengeance, he is also a man of practicality.”

    “Do you care for Lukas?” Azrael asked suddenly.

    Alyssa closed her eyes briefly. “I began to believe you weren’t coming for me. They said you had never even tried. So, yes, I ended up sleeping with him. I had given up all hope until tonight.”

    “I’ll kill him myself,” Azrael said simply.

    Alyssa sat up, hearing the frightening calmness of his voice. “Az..Az, you can’t. He’s the head of the Order. They need him.”

    “He manipulated you into caring for him. He lied to you, Aly,” he said and crouched down to meet her eyes.

    “Yes, he did. But I believe his feelings to be genuine. Wouldn’t it be crueler to leave him alive?” she asked, her hand on his knee. There was no way she would be able to live with herself if Azrael killed Lukas. Although she was angry with him, she still cared about him and would hate to see him destroyed. If Azrael thought about the situation this way, perhaps they could just leave without further incident.

“My dear, if you didn’t have the silver eyes of a Seraph, I would say that you are without question a most conniving little demon,” Mephistopheles said with a laugh.

Azrael smiled slightly as well. “I know you are just protecting him, my angel, but I do agree with your assessment. If he truly does love you, his pain will be absolutely delicious and so ironic, given the circumstances.”

Finally she stood up, leaning on her dresser for support. “What happens now?”

“We go find grandpa,” Azrael said.

--------------------------------------------

“To what do I owe this honor, Beelzebub?” Lukas asked.

After Alyssa left, he had gotten dressed and went straight to his office, knowing that the Royals would eventually show up. He had told his Seraphs not to confront them, knowing they were only here for Alyssa and that it was a personal matter more than anything else. He didn’t know how this was all going to end. He loved Alyssa, but he loved his Angels more. He hoped she would stay, she was beautiful and good and could help many people if she fully embraced being a Seraph. But the moment she heard Azrael’s name she’d been halfway out the door, so he had his doubts. They had shared a wonderful time together, though, one that he wouldn’t change for anything.

“You have someone that belongs to us, my good man,” Beelzebub said. “Have you remodeled recently? The navy walls look lovely with the mahogany furniture.”

“No one belongs to anyone, old friend,” Lukas said mildly, leaning back in his chair.

“Perhaps not. Let me rephrase then: you have kidnapped my grandson’s wife. We would simply like to have her back.”

“What if she prefers to stay?”

Beelzebub’s good humor vanished and his red eyes narrowed. “I don’t believe she will. She was ours the moment she was born. Besides, it’s two kids in love. How could you deny that?”

“I will not deny her anything, but she must make that decision for herself.”

Then there was a knock on the door. “May we enter?” said a voice.

“Yes, Mephisto, please come in. I trust you have the lovely couple with you?” Beelzebub said.

“I do,” he replied and the three of them entered the room.

It broke Lukas’ heart to see Alyssa with them, the pain and anger in her eyes evident. “Well, this is awkward,” said Beelzebub.

“If none of you have anything to say, I guess I’ll be the one to start,” said Alyssa. “So, Luke, what was the long term plan here? You wanted me to trust you, to embrace being a Seraph, but you hid things from me.”

“I was only trying to protect you, Alyssa. I was misguided, I will admit that, but my intentions were pure,” he said, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Alyssa smiled a little. He was so handsome and put together, even in the face of three powerful Royals. And the bridge pinch always did something to her.  “I know they were, Luke,” she said gently. “I may have exploded a little when I first discovered the truth, but I’ve calmed down I think.”

“A little?” Azrael asked incredulously, and his father snorted.

“Anyway,” Alyssa said and rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I understand why you did it. I’m not an idiot. I just...I just wish you had thought I could handle it. Maybe I would have surprised you.”

“Maybe you still could,” Lukas said softly.

“Maybe I still could,” she agreed.

Azrael watched this exchange with rising horror. Would Alyssa, his Alyssa, choose the Seraph over him? It was unthinkable, yet here they were. He had apparently been delusional when he thought he could just waltz right in and she would be ready to leave. For a moment, he thought that would be the case. But it seemed as if her feelings for Lukas were stronger than she let on, or maybe even realized herself. “Let’s get right to the point,” he said quickly, before they started fucking on the desk.

“Yes, let’s,” said Beelzebub with a sinister smile on his face.

“We’ve come to give you a choice, Alyssa,” said Mephistopheles.

“Picked a really great time to do it,” Lukas mumbled.

“We’ve done it without violence...mostly, and with respect to your free will. But you must choose, and it must be tonight.”

Alyssa sat in one of Lukas’ comfortable armchairs and crossed her legs. “Just shake me out of a nice, comfortable sleep, dump a whole bunch of information in my lap, and expect me to be okay with all of this?”

The men in the room were silent.

“That’s what I thought,” Alyssa said. “So, here is what I think. Nine months can't compare to a lifetime.”

Azrael smiled at that.

“But,” she continued. “I'm hoping you can tell me what will happen if I choose to corrupt my soul. Az, will you still love me?”

“What do you mean?” Azrael asked.

Lukas, for his part, knew exactly what she meant, but waited for her to explain it.

Alyssa got up and began to pace the floor. “What I mean is, if I'm right in my thinking, I will no longer be myself. That is, I will lose my core values. I will no longer be your princess, your angel. I will be something else. Dark, harsh, without morals, empathy. Will you love me without those things?”

Azrael didn't know what to say. He knew he would love her no matter what, but he would be lying if he said he wouldn't miss the good in her. “Is what she's saying true, Grandfather?”

“Honestly, boy, it's a crapshoot. We have not had many who have chosen to be corrupted. Many of our corrupted were done so as punishment, and they were evil angels. Their hearts were never pure. So I can not say for certain what your Alyssa will be like after.”

“So I may be making the ultimate sacrifice for a man that will come to resent me for an eternity, while at the same time leaving a man that could love me as I am for eternity? None of you are being helpful.”

    “I’m sorry princess, if I could tell you what to do I would. But that’s not part of the deal.”

She sighed. “Could the three of you step outside? I need to speak to Lukas alone for a moment.”

“Just for a moment, dear, we don’t have...well, never mind, we do have all day. But we certainly don’t want to stay here all day,” said Beelzebub.

Azrael wondered if their kiss in her bedroom had ultimately been their last.

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    After the door had closed, she turned to Lukas, the pain she was feeling evident. “I don’t know what to say, Luke.”

    “Then kiss me, Aly. I want to see what you see and feel what you feel,” he said softly.

    When they had a transferral kiss those long nine months ago, it had felt cold and professional. As he put his lips to hers, this transferral kiss felt anything but. It was deep and emotional, full of the words they couldn’t say. She sighed softly, leaning into his firm, muscular chest. He saw and felt everything as she had seen it. The parts he had seen before, her life before the Seraph. But also new memories and feelings. The happiness as it replaced the pain. The strength that replaced the weakness. However, beneath it all there was always a slowly flowing love for Azrael. Every beat of her heart had him somewhere in it. It was undeniable, and he knew then that she would never be truly happy without him. They finally broke the kiss, and Alyssa looked up at him with trepidation. “What did you see?”

    He smiled down at her, knowing in his heart that he was doing the right thing. They were not soulmates, although they had beautiful love between them. “You are his, Alyssa. No matter what you do, you are his mate, and he is yours.”

    “I know,” she whispered. “I’ve been hoping it wasn’t true, and that I could, with time, forget. But now I know I can’t. I don’t know if it’s the mists of Hell that have tied his heart to mine, or if it’s we’re truly soulmates. All I know is how I feel.”

    “Truthfully, I am certain you are soulmates. Which is why I wish for you not to worry about your heart. Beelzebub cannot corrupt that very core of you. Your soul is already entwined with his and could not be changed.”

    She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. “I’m so sorry to leave this place, and you,” she said.

    “I will miss you, Alyssa, but I believe, if it’s possible, that you will make Hell a kinder and gentler place,” he responded and kissed her forehead.

    “Will I ever see you again?” she asked, tears pricking her eyes.

    He pressed a final kiss to her lips. “When next we meet, we will be on opposite sides of the wall, and you will be the Emissary. But I will never stop loving you, and I hope I will be in your heart forever as well. That you will treat me with kindness, and that we might share a kiss again.”

    “I will love you forever, Lukas,” she said, and left the room for a final time.

-------------------------------------------------------

    The waiting room was empty, and she wondered where the Royals had gone. Did they leave without her? Lukas had been right, of course. Azrael was still her heart. There was space for her Seraph, there always would be, but her place was beside her Royal. Joanna was sitting behind her desk. “Did you see the demons?” she asked.

    “They said they would be waiting in your chamber, ma’am,” Joanna said. “We’re going to miss you.”

    “Thanks, Joanna, I’ll miss you too,” she said with a sad smile.

    She ran into Owen and Esther on the way to her room. Probably not by accident, she reflected. “So, you’ve made your choice,” Owen said with disappointment.

    “If it’s any consolation, Owen, Lukas thinks I’ll make Hell a kinder and gentler place. My heart won’t be corrupted,” Alyssa said and he gave her a tight hug.

    “I’m glad to hear that, dear sister,” said Esther. “You will be my sister no matter your place. I trust you to make good and fair decisions.”

    “Thank you Esther,” she said, and they shared a hug and kiss.

    Alyssa stopped just before she got to her room, her heart in her throat. She knew she was making the right decision but so many questions still lingered in her mind. Lukas had been able to put some of those to rest but one day she would need to explore her childhood and upbringing more thoroughly. It might bring to light some ugly truths, things she had always pushed away.

    Her hand hovered on the doorknob but the door opened before she could touch it. Azrael was standing there, his face etched with a pain she never imagined could exist. “I felt it, through the bond. You love him,” he said flatly.

    “You’re right, I do. But I love you more,” she stated simply.

    “Is that supposed to be enough?” he asked, reaching out to lightly touch her face.

    “Do you want to know how much I love you? All I can offer you is my life,” she said, her eyes filling with tears once again.

    Beelzebub and Mephisto were sitting on her couch, watching the scene with vague disinterest. “She wants to kill herself, how nice. What a waste of time,” said Beelzebub.

    “What do you mean?” Azrael asked.

    “A transferral kiss. You’ll see my entire life, feel my emotions through my eyes. It’s a power Seraph have.”

    “That’s fucking creepy,” Mephisto said. “But what have you got to lose?”

    “My father is right. A transferral kiss, then.”

    She stepped close to him and rested her hands on his shoulders. Transferral kisses could go either way, either giving or receiving. The Seraph only had to direct the flow of information. She pressed her lips to his in the cold, business-like manner that Lukas had used the first time they met. Closing her eyes, she focused on her memories and emotions and allowed them to flow into Azrael.

    Azrael couldn’t breathe as the information washed over him like a wave. The one constant in her life was him. He saw himself as she saw him. Protector and teacher, then friend, and ultimately lover. Adoration turned to warm affection then true love. The awful morning their whole world was turned upside down. Her transformation into a Seraph. She was so strong, so powerful. Her relationship with Lukas. Owen and Esther. But through it all she never forgot about him. He saw her slipping on her ring, crying silently in her room not even one month ago.  Of course, he saw what happened yesterday, and their conversation only moments ago. But suddenly none of that mattered anymore. He cut the transfer abruptly, kissing her deeply, his arms wrapping around her waist. Neither needing to breathe all that urgently, the kiss seemed to go on forever, until finally Mephisto interrupted them.

    “So, you’re coming with us?” he asked Alyssa.

    “I’ve made my choice,” she said, and Azrael kissed her temple. “What happens now?”

    Beelzebub stepped forward and held out his hand. “Take my hand, child, and all will be made right,” he said.

    Alyssa knew there was no turning back, no point to any questions. She slid her hand into his and felt a rush of energy through her veins. Almost immediately she collapsed onto the floor.

    “Does she do that a lot?” asked Mephisto.

    Azrael gathered her up and laid her on the bed. Her breath was coming quick and even and she didn’t seem to be in any pain. “When will she awaken, grandfather?”

    “In a few moments. It usually doesn’t take very long.”

    Suddenly she took a deep, sharp breath and her arms stiffened at her sides. Her entire body seemed to tense. “There’s a war going on in there,” Beelzebub said mildly.

    She relaxed again but her eyes remained closed. Azrael sat on the edge of the bed and took her hand, stroking it with his thumb. “Come back to me, Alyssa, my princess.”

    “Is this girl really worth all this?” Beelzebub asked.

    “She’s everything,” Azrael said fiercely. “You didn’t see what I saw, grandfather. The culmination of thousands of years of power reside in that gorgeous body. She’s our Emissary.”

    “Then let us hope she wakes,” said Beelzebub.

    Half an hour passed. Azrael was stretched out next to Alyssa, waiting. “Az,” Alyssa whispered.

    He turned and looked into her gold-rimmed, light brown eyes. Her aura was a brilliant shade of red. “How do you feel, princess?” he asked.

    “The same? No, not quite the same. This power feels more...electric than Seraph power. I feel lighter? Freer? But I’m still me, if that makes sense.”

    She sat up and looked at her hands, moving her fingers in a gentle wave and turning them over and back again. “No Holy Energy,” she said softly, a tear slipping down her cheek.

    “Do you regret what you’ve done?” Azrael asked.

    She quickly wiped her eyes and sat up straight. “No, I did what I knew in my heart was right. I just need to get used to a new existence all over again.”

    “Shall we do that at home?” Mephisto asked.

    Alyssa smiled slightly. “We shall.”

    Azrael helped her off the bed, and she looked around her perfectly decorated room. “I hope you’re prepared for purple accents in our home, babe,” she said. She stretched her own black wings to their full width.

    Az smiled at her, his first real smile in months. “You already have some of those, love,” he said, resting a finger on the purple tip of one wing.

    “Well, that’s not so bad,” she said, and kissed him.

    “There will be a proper Royal wedding in a few weeks,” said Beelzebub. “We will need to declare our new daughter.”

    Azrael took his bride’s hand, and they disappeared in a cloud of black smoke.