The voice of the Head of Demons droned on, echoing through the spacious hall like some painfully depressing lullaby. How long had this meeting lasted again? Probably not as long as Osomatsu thought it had. These meetings, usually just about an hour long, felt like an eternity each time. His feet hurt from standing up for so long, and he longed for the sweet relief that was lounging around at home, or watching the Fields of Punishment to pass time. Man, it was really nothing to do down here, was it? He'd heard from his friend Totoko, a demon of a lower class than himself, that down where she lived, there were more stuff to do. Not as many rules to follow. But then again, Totoko did like to sprout nonsense if it resulted in making her seem better and more accomplished and lucky than everybody else. Not that he minded. She was a delight to be around. Ah, Totoko…
Noticing that his mind had started to wander off again, he tried focusing on the one preaching at the moment. Being the son of a Devil who's famous for his power and leadership in Hell, Osomatsu had certain rules he had to follow, certain responsibilities. Responsibilities he had at all costs tried to avoid, but to no avail. With them followed these boring meetings, led by his father, Tougou, where they talked about his vision of a perfect world: a world where the Surface, where the humans resided, was under the control of the devils, and Heaven was no more. Personally, Osomatsu thought it was bullshit. His family had held on to this belief for many years and generations, and it had gained quite a lot of followers. Way more than there was in this church – The followers were spread all across Hell, either preaching about this belief, or just silently listening to what Tougou had to say through these preachers. Planning to overthrow the current leader was after all illegal. Which was probably worth mentioning: The ultimate goal of his uncle, and this belief of his, was to throw Lucifer off of his throne; whilst regaining the position himself.
Yeah, it was pretty big. And completely unrealistic.
Being illegal and all, they camouflaged themselves as a normal church of possession. That would mean organizations that sent demons and devils out on the Surface to fuck up the lives of humans, consume their souls, and maybe kill a few Holy beings if they got the chance. Killing an angel, per example, would be rewarded with wealth and fame.
Which would seem like something Osomatsu was interested in, but man, it just wasn't worth the exhaustion. It was something people thought of him – Osomatsu, the son of Tougou? Ah, he's a top notch devil. Has all the right traits. He loves going up there, right for the kill! Ah, but … spared his enthusiasm… He's kind of bad at his job, isn't he?
No. Or, well, yes. He was bad at his job because he didn't like to be obliged to do stuff, especially when there wasn't even a specific reason for it. Devils just spread havoc and malice, because that's what they were created to do. Nobody really questioned it. And Osomatsu didn't really question it either, but it was just so very tiresome. So yeah, he was bad at his job. But that didn't mean he was weak. He hoped he could convince people of that, but that would mean he'd have to come up with a new excuse as to why he kept coming back to Hell empty-handed, without a human soul or a lifeless, winged body. He'd rather not, because he liked accepting missions, because he liked the Surface. He liked messing around with humans. Not necessarily in a way that was fun for all parties. But what was important was that he was having fun, right?
"..somatsu? Osomatsu?"
Osomatsu blinked lazily, slowly toning his thoughts out and getting back to the real world. "Huh?"
Tougou was giving him a stare worthy of Lucifer himself, which was probably why these people in this church was following his every word in the first place, and Osomatsu felt a sinking feeling in his gut. His father sighed, and let his eyes scan the crowd that Osomatsu only now realized had started exiting the church. The meeting was over. "Come to my office, if you please." he said, as if it wasn't an order. He turned on his heal and walked over to the rusty door behind the altar.
As he swung the door shut, Osomatsu turned to watch the last people walk out the door. He knew this routine – He'd see that the church was properly emptied, and then he'd go to Tougou and receive a mission. He had to admire his father's dedication of making him a proper devil, even after his countless failed attempts. Maybe he saw the potential Osomatsu had so probably hidden away.
When the big entrance door shut out the last of the crowd, he wobbled over to Tougou's office, hands deep in the pockets of his pants. His tail twitched impatiently behind him, but he let it: his longing for getting this over with might be mistaken as eagerness to try and go to brutally murder some angels or some shit. He opened the door.
"Father?" he said, peeking inside the office.
"Osomatsu." Tougou was standing with his back turned. His hands was clasped behind his back, his eyes looking through the windows into the red haze outside. A scenery Osomatsu was starting to grow awfully tired of. "The big day is close."
Osomatsu raised an eyebrow, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "The big day?" he echoed, as if he was actually interested.
Tougou turned, looking as smug as ever. "The day I'll finally take over the throne."
"Ah." Osomatsu nodded slowly, killing the snort sneaking its way through his nose. "How long are we talking about, exactly?"
Tougou straightened his back, giving a bark that was probably supposed to be laughter. "It has been many years, I know!" he said, which didn't answer Osomatsu's question. "Many years of hard work, sneaking around under His Highness' unknowing nose … It's about time that old geezer retired. But now the time has come. The people have grown restless enough – His Highness' is holding his yearly banquet in the palace today. It's the perfect time for a revolution, don't you think?"
Osomatsu straightened his back as well. Today? He was planning on starting a revolution today? Maybe he had underestimated his old man. His plan laid closer to reality than he'd thought. And just now he'd deemed it unrealistic. Shit. This was never going to work. Tougou would be arrested and probably executed, and Osomatsu, being his son… "U- Uh… Sure." he managed, trying to swallow. "You have the plans all … planned out, no?"
"What do you think of me, boy?" Tougou said, stepping closer to him to put a hand on his shoulder, while still maintaining quite a distance between them. "Of course! Everything will go smoothly. You'll have to get ready."
"Ready for… for like a war?"
"Like none other!"
Osomatsu forced a smile. "Nice." he said hoarsely, before clearing his throat. Sure, old man. You get ready for that war while I'll get the hell away from here. Or, while I get away from Hell, at least.
Tougou would get himself killed. Osomatsu wanted no part of it. He'd come back when all of that was over.
How apathetic, you say, thinking of your father like that? Well. He was a devil, after all. His father and him had never had a loving relationship. He was more like a boss he didn't have the power to escape from. He just had to live with it.
On second thought, maybe this was his way out. He'd be away while chaos ensued, before coming back like "What? My father did what? Oh, the scoundrel! He got what he deserved!" Hah. It was perfect.
"Then I should definitely get a mission to get ready for this war!" he proposed, crossing his arms all confidently. "Do you have anything for me, father?"
Tougou patted his shoulder. "That's my boy." he said, as if Osomatsu was a dog that responded correctly to a command. No, never mind – A dog would probably be treated better than him. Tougou held out a stone – A Teleportation Gem – and he quickly took it from him. It would take him to wherever the mission was if he smashed it on the ground. "There's rumors of a strange aura coming from the forest. I believe it is an angel of some sort, maybe trapped since it hasn't moved in what must be a while, which will make it easier for you. Kill it, and bring its body here."
Osomatsu looked up from the stone at Tougou. "But if you're starting a revolution, will we even get a reward for bringing the body? What's the point of th-" He yelped when his shoulder was painfully squeezed in Tougou's grip.
"Are you questioning me?" he asked, voice as smooth as driving a sword through someone's gut.
Unable to find his voice, Osomatsu shook his head quickly. His grip loosened. "Good." His smile was disgustingly sweet. "Now go."
"Yes, sir." Osomatsu muttered, and turned to leave.
"Osomatsu."
He paused with his hand on the door handle. "Yes, father?"
"Don't disappoint me again."
Osomatsu swallowed heavily, and opened the door. "G- Got it." he managed, before walking out and slamming the door shut.
The Gem was crushed on the ground without waiting a second longer, and he was whisked away to the Surface.
Blowing out the last of the candles, Karamatsu took one last look at the cross on the wall, it being the only source of light in the church right now. He made a cross over his chest, and mumbled a short prayer before turning and walking towards the exit. Or that was at least what he was planning to do, but instead he was met with the eyes of a certain familiar face. He yelped loudly, his heart threatening to leap out through his throat. "Ichimatsu! You scared me." he said, pressing a hand to his chest.
"Ah." the so-called nun answered. He didn't act much like a nun, but Karamatsu wasn't in the position of questioning it. He wasn't even apologizing for sneaking up on him. Ah, but he probably didn't do it on purpose. Karamatsu mentally scolded himself for thinking that Ichimatsu consciously would do such a thing.
"Is there anything you need, brother?" Karamatsu asked.
Ichimatsu gritted his teeth at the nickname, but Karamatsu paid no mind. "I was, uh …" he started, but was obviously at a loss of words. "I was … wondering if…"
"You can sleep in the church again, that's fine." Karamatsu said, patting his shoulder.
Ichimatsu answered him with a slight nod, without thanking him, before walking past him towards the room he'd lived in the past few weeks. The man had showed up for the first time by the gates of the church nearly three months ago now, all dressed up in a black and white habit: the uniform of a nun. Back then he'd only showed up once in a while, mostly just standing outside looking up at the tower with this sort of… wistful look on his face. After a while, Karamatsu had approached him and asked if he wanted to come inside – In which the man had shot him a dirty look before darting off. But he'd kept coming back, and after a few failed attempts, Karamatsu had managed to successfully invite him inside. They'd talked, though Ichimatsu was reluctant about it, and he'd figured out that the man was homeless. Beyond that, Ichimatsu was a mystery. But it didn't matter. He'd told him he was devoted to God, and Karamatsu's arms were always open for someone in need. He'd offered him a bed in the basement of the church – an offer which had brought a rare smile to Ichimatsu's face.
After that he'd started taking care of the church, and Karamatsu would often find him sitting on one of the benches, looking at the bright cross on the wall with a weird look in his eyes. Sometimes it was longing, sometimes it was confused, and sometimes he looked like Jesus had just personally offended him. Karamatsu didn't understand him, but it didn't matter. He was good company, despite being a little … intense, at times.
"I'll be leaving. If you need anything, you know where I live." he called as he opened the doors. He didn't get a reply, but he was well aware that Ichimatsu had heard him. With that, he walked outside, and locked the doors behind him.
The night was cold and slightly windy, but in return, the skies were clear. Near the coast, which was where he lived and worked as a priest, there was very little light pollution, so the stars shone brightly, scattered across the night sky as if watching over them. Karamatsu gave a content sigh, before walking across the yard towards the gates. When he turned to lock them as well, he let his eyes wander over the building that was his beloved church.
His parents had both been preachers – They'd traveled across the country, sharing the glad tidings with anyone who wanted to listen. They'd attended ceremonies, experienced miracles, and brought all kinds of happiness to the people around them. That was what Karamatsu aspired to be – But even more importantly, there was another thing his parents had been before they passed: exorcists.
According to his parents, demons lived amongst humans. Unseen and hidden they caused havoc and pain; and it was their mission to stop them, using the Will of God. Growing up with that had made Karamatsu quite superstitious, but it had inspired him to make his parents' life work live on. Though… He'd recently turned twenty one, and he'd yet to actually experience a possession of a demon. It wasn't like he doubted his belief, but … It made it a little harder for him to take his exorcism studies seriously enough.
Ah, what an unnecessary train of thought. When the demons showed themselves, he, with his magnificent exorcism skills, would be ready. He would use God's Will to drag them back to Hell where they belonged, and it would go smoother than smooth jazz.
With a contempt nod, and a short chuckle, he turned to walk down the sidewalk, towards his home for a good night sleep.
The Gem brought Osomatsu to a small town in the middle of the night. He couldn't remember being here before, but then he did prefer bigger cities, where there were more people to play with. Although this city seemed just about what he needed right now: calm and quiet.
He walked along a narrow road, scanning the houses he passed in a weak attempt at finding whatever creature Tougou had talked about.
Tougou.
He shook his head. His father was a mad man. His shoulder still ached from how he'd gripped him earlier, and he could still hear his ice cold voice in his head.
Don't disappoint me again.
Sure thing, dad.
He grumbled something highly disrespectful about Tougous mother under his breath (not paying any mind that that would also mean his own grandmother, but devils weren't the types to care for members beyond their immediate family anyway), as he exited the street and found himself on a larger road, which he assumed was the main road, in a small town like this.
He'd said the creature held residence in the forest, but … Osomatsu could just excuse himself and say he forgot about that part, or didn't pick up on that part. Either way, it wasn't like he'd have any Tougou to excuse himself to. His stupid revolution would be brought down before it even had the chance to start. It wasn't the first time someone had tried to overthrow Lucifer, but he wasn't the king of Hell for nothing.
However, with nothing else to do, he supposed he could at least try to find the being, but he would do so in his own pace.
It was dark, the stars were bright, but a faint light in the horizon told him the sun was about to rise. People would start waking up soon, making the town a little more cheerful than it was right now, hopefully. He thought it might be wise to not walk among more people than necessary, because in a small town like this, there was a higher chance of coming across someone religious. Religious people were easier to possess, but simultaneously it was easier for them to recognize something evil about demons or devils in disguise. Which was only a problem for him, since he wasn't planning on possessing anyone.
He supposed he could go out and search in the woods when he sighted the earliest risers of the citizens. In the meantime, he could take a stroll around this place, even if he was pretty sure there was nothing particularly exciting to look at here. He walked along the main road, spying through the windows as much as he could. Humans were interesting to him, partly because they were basically mortal versions of demons under the influence of God (although the Heavens might think it was the other way around), but also simply because their society was so different from his own home. They were born without a destiny, without a purpose – How freeing mustn't that be? To be able to do whatever they wanted. It seemed wonderful.
He rounded a corner and found himself in a cozy little town square. He could count a total of five different cafés and coffee shops around the square, a few clothing stores and a grocery store, and an antiques shop. The latter made him smile wryly: Antiques shops were a common way for demons to make their ways into the houses of humans. They'd attach themselves to a nice object, and every time the object made it to a new home, a new owner, they'd play the possession game all over again. Some demons did it to quench their thirst for souls, while others did it for fun. Making people's lives a real life horror movie sure was a nice source of entertainment.
He decided to sit down outside one of the cafés to relax for a bit. After the meeting in which his feet felt like they were dying, he still hadn't gotten a chance to sit down. He propped his legs on a table and leaned as far back in the chair as he possible could, stretching his arms above his head. He grazed the horns on his head, and it wasn't before then that he remember to put on a disguise to hide those and his pointed tail. Man, that was careless of him. He chuckled lightly to himself.
Though this position wasn't the most comfortable, he still felt his eyes sting a little as he stared up on the night sky above him. Devils didn't actually need sleep, but it was nice to take nap once in a while. Before giving it a second thought, he dropped his head backwards, and let sleep take him wherever it wanted him to go.
He woke when he heard approaching footsteps and a raspy voice that called "Hey, you!"
He blinked one eye open, giving the one who disturbed his nap a dirty look. It was a plump man, and he was walking towards him with a scowl on his face.
"What do you think you're doing? Sunbathing? You're a little too early for that, son." he barked. "Either way you're not doing it in my café."
Osomatsu guessed that was his queue to go looking for that angel, but this guy was ticking him off. Sure, maybe taking a nap in a closed café was illegal, but he didn't have to be rude about it.
"Are you deaf, son?" the man demanded.
Osomatsu groaned, stretched, and sat up properly in his seat. His neck was aching. Falling asleep in that position was probably not a good idea. "I'm not." he answered, raising an eyebrow.
The man stopped in front of him, crossing his arms. "Are you drunk?"
"Oh man, I wish."
"Get away from my café then!"
"Are you saying that if I was drunk I could stay?"
"Listen- If you don't go I'll call the police."
"Oh no, the police. Whatever should I do."
The man gritted his teeth, and let his arms fall down to his sides where he clenched his hands into fists. "You damned brat-"
Osomatsu abruptly stood up, and the man faltered. "Hey, I'm damned brat, but you can also call me Os…" He hesitated for a second. Giving up his real name might not be a good idea. "…wald." He held out his hand.
The man gave him a bewildered, irritated look, but the thing with humans is that many of them can't respond do even the slightest courtesy without giving the same amount of it back, no matter the situation. Hesitantly, he held out his hand as well. "I'm-"
Osomatsu took it before he could finish, and the man yelped. "Oh sorry, I couldn't hear you." he grinned, cocking his head to the side. "What's your name?" He squeezed harder. The man wailed and fell to his knees. "Ah. Well it was nice meeting you, Waaaaaah! But I'll be off now. See ya later."
Then he let go and strolled off, whistling a happy tune as he went. That was fun.
There would be consequences, probably.
Oh well.
It was time for business now anyway. The first awake human had been spotted, and now he had to find that damn angel. How long had he slept anyway? The sky had turned a pale blue, and there'd formed clouds, bathing in the light of the morning sun. It was a nice scenery. He supposed he'd dozed off for a couple of hours. Not bad.
He stopped in the middle of the street, and closed his eyes. If he concentrated, he would notice the angelic aura from somewhere. Because that was simply how good he was at this. Shame nobody could know. He had to keep is reputation as a devil bad at his job, to hide his true identity as a lazy ass bastard. Surely enough, he felt the icy feeling of a heavenly being coming from his left. He let that feeling guide him to wherever that forest was.
After about half an hour, he'd reached the forest and was walking among the trees with his eyes partly closed to focus better on the aura coming from the being. He'd paused at the coast, because he thought the ocean was kind of nice to look at, and wrote behind his ear that he would have to go there again before he returned to Hell. It would be a nice reward after he was done with all this rock climbing. He hoped the being was at the top of this mountain, and not on the other side of it, so that he wouldn't have to climb up and down two times.
But of course this just wasn't his lucky day. When he reached the top of the hill, he spotted a lake in the bottom of the valley. There was no doubt that that was where he was going. But how could an angel be trapped in a lake? Groaning loudly, he starting climbing down again, and he'd almost reached the bottom without falling when his balance decided to betray him. He fell on his face, and then he was at the bottom.
"This damn angel better be worth it." he grumbled, and half-heartedly wiped the dirt off his knees. Maybe wearing a suit wasn't the best idea for this trip. He marched over to the lake, looking at it like it had personally offended him. "Ah… Hello? Is there anyone here?" he asked loudly.
No answer.
He gritted his teeth. "Hellooo. Is there an angel in there, or…? Is this like a wish lake or something? Do I have to throw a coin in?" He crossed his arms. "Sorry, I don't have any money. Oh, I know! I wish for money."
Still no answer.
He clicked his tongue. "Okay. Have it your way." He sat down on the damp ground covered in orange leaves. "I have all the time in the world."
And then he began working on the most difficult task he'd ever come across: Having a conversation with a nonresponsive lake. After a few long minutes of him talking about everything and nothing, mostly complaining, he tried singing. He wasn't exactly known for his beautiful singing voice, but he wasn't trying now either. Maybe he could annoy this angel out of the lake.
To no avail.
After a couple of excruciating hours, he progressively starting losing his temper. "Okay, listen here, you dirty ass piece of shit lake-creature, I need you to come out right now or less I promise you I will take a shit in there!" he warned. "And let me tell you, I haven't done that in literal ages, so you can just imagine how that's gonna be! Do you hear me?"
No answer.
Osomatsu gave a loud growl, picking up a stone and throwing it indignantly into the water. It splashed back, and a few drops landed on his hand. He yelped as it etched into his skin. Holy water. Okay, then.
"Are you done?" a voice asked.
His head snapped up. In front of him, hovering above the water, was a man clad in white. On his back he had a pair of pure white feathered wings, and there was a light above his head which Osomatsu guessed was his halo. His hair was dark, and his face was startlingly similar to his own. He quickly hid his wounded hands behind his back.
"Man, I was starting to lose hope." he said, a grin slowly making its way to his face. "I was wondering…" He trailed off, looking for some kind of enchanted shackles or something that would show that this being was trapped here like Tougou had guessed, but he couldn't see anything. It looked like the angel, or whatever this guy was, could very much walk away from this lake whenever he wanted. "Huh. Weird."
"What do you want, demon?" the being demanded.
Demon? How did he know what he was? He'd hid away his horns and tail – Simple angels couldn't see through that disguise. Yet this guy… "What are you talking about?" he asked innocently.
The being scoffed, crossing his arms. "Don't play with me. Your disguise is powerful, but sloppy. I can see your tail and horns." he said, raising an eyebrow as if deciding what rating he would give his magic. Six out of ten, but maybe seven for effort, probably. No, the way the guy was looking at him clearly said a five out of ten, maybe even four. In fact, the longer Osomatsu stayed quiet, the lower the number sank.
"Alright!" he said, crossing his arms and mimicking the being's pose. "You got me. What I'm wondering, though, is why other angels haven't been able to see through the disguise, but you can. Why is that?"
"That's really none of your business, is it?"
"Oh, get down from your high pedestal, would you? It's just a question." Osomatsu snapped back.
"What's your business here, demon?" the being asked, completely ignoring his question. "Have you come to kill me?"
Osomatsu tilted his head to the side. "If you answer my question, I'll answer yours." he offered, giving the man a lopsided smile.
The being hummed thoughtfully, and if Osomatsu wasn't seeing things, he thought a smile was playing in the corners of his lips. A sarcastic one, but a smile nevertheless. "Are you offering me a deal?" he asked, clearly aware that making a deal with a demon was not something that most would recommend.
Osomatsu made a ticking sound, before leaning his head back, giving a hearty laugh. "Maybe I am." he answered. "No catches. This time." He crossed his heart, giving the being a challenging look.
The man narrowed his eyes in a scowl, but then gave a short chuckle. "Fine. This time." he said, echoing Osomatsu's words. "I'm not an angel. I'm a megami."
The words took a couple of seconds to sink in, before Osomatsu's mouth turned into an O and he gave a whistle. "My old man was so wrong." he commented quietly. A goddess. No wonder why he could see through his disguise. This guy was much stronger than he'd anticipated.
"Your turn, demon." the goddess demanded. "Did you come here to kill me?"
"It really depends who you're asking." he replied, sending him a sly grin.
"A proper answer, please. I'm asking you."
"Sorry, only one answer per-"
"Demon!"
"Kidding! Kidding." He gave a cackle. This guy was surprisingly amusing. "Well, uh … I was sent here to kill you."
He didn't even get to finish the sentence before the goddess had backed up and was in the motion of diving back into the lake. He reacted without thinking, and took a step towards him.
"Wait!" he started, but then gave a wounded shout as he stepped right into the water. He quickly scrambled away again, clutching his ankle as he hissed in pain, sputtering out his whole arsenal of swear words.
"Watch your language."
Osomatsu peeked back at the goddess behind furrowed brows while desperately pulling his shoe off. "Go to Hell."
The goddess raised his eyebrows. "Really?" He scoffed. "Well, that's where you were planning on taking me anyway, wasn't it?"
Osomatsu shot him an angry stare. "I said I was sent here to kill you." he said. "Doesn't mean I was actually gonna do it." He examined his foot, and wrinkled his nose. The skin was all messed up, but it had stop etching now at least. He groaned. "Damn holy water, always takes so fucking long to heal…" he grumbled quietly.
When he couldn't hear anything more from the megami, he looked back up at him to see that he had moved slightly closer. However, upon eye contact, he seemed to hesitate. Osomatsu rolled his eyes. "Look, I'm not gonna kill you. I'm not interested in any of that." he said, looking back to his foot.
"Does that hurt?" the goddess asked.
He scoffed. "Feels like a warm summer day." he snarked. "A really, really warm summer day."
A few moments of silence passed.
"I can…" the goddess started. "I can help you with that. If you want."
Osomatsu looked up suspiciously. "What?" He narrowed his eyes. "Are you playing a trick on me?"
"You're the trickster here, not me."
"Heh. Fair enough." Osomatsu studied the other for a few moments. He didn't have any reason to trust the guy, and maybe it was simply because he'd grown naïve after so many years of not killing the angels he'd been sent after, but he found it hard not to. His eyes looked earnest and pure, even when he was scowling slightly. The goddess was trustworthy. But then again, angels and goddesses and all heavenly beings were known for keeping their words. "Alright. I trust you."
The words seemed to catch the goddess a bit off guard, his eyes widening just a fraction, but he quickly collected himself. "Just hover your foot above the water."
"So you can pull me in?" Osomatsu shrieked. "No way!"
"No, stupid!" the goddess sputtered back. "You say you trust me, so just do what I say."
The two stared at each other for several moments, before Osomatsu reluctantly made his way over to the lake. He stretched his foot out, though sitting as far away as possible. The goddess rolled his eyes, but reached out as if to take the foot. Osomatsu jerked it back. "I'm not going to touch it." the goddess assured him, his arms extended as if he wanted to stretch further towards Osomatsu, but simply couldn't. Osomatsu narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, but stretched out his leg again. The goddess put his hands closely around his foot, but never close enough to actually touch him. He watched as a light started to shine from his palms, and he felt a comfortable warmth wherever the light reached. He could see how the wounds started closing, getting smaller and smaller, until the skin was as good as new.
Osomatsu hadn't noticed that his jaw had fallen open, something the goddess apparently found amusing. "It's all good now." he said kindly, and Osomatsu quickly withdrew the leg, eager to examine his foot.
"Woah." he breathed, looking back up at the goddess with wide eyes. Then a grin spread across his face. "You're not bad!" he decided.
The goddess spluttered. "Is that supposed to be a compliment?" he argued, while a stubborn flush spread across his cheeks.
"What's your name?"
He blinked. "My name?" he asked, clearly taken aback. "Names have power, you know."
"I'm Osomatsu!" Osomatsu grinned mischievously, as if he'd just played some genius trick on the goddess. His tail twitched excitedly. "And you are?"
"I – I can't just tell you that."
"Why not?"
"You know why!"
"But, dude, I told you mine, so it's only fair."
"What kind of logic is that?"
Osomatsu groaned. "What's the big deal? It's not like I'm gonna use it against you or anything. Besides, if I used your name against you, then you'd still know my name, so you basically have blackmail on me right now." he argued, crossing his arms.
"How do I know it's your real name?" the goddess challenged.
He pursed his lips. "Good question…"
The other rolled his eyes.
"But my name is Osomatsu. If you don't want to tell me your name yet then that's fine, for now." He gave a lopsided smile, before it faltered slightly. "But uh… I would appreciate it if you didn't use this new knowledge to like… send some angry angels after me or something. I'd like to keep on living, to be honest." He laughed sheepishly and rubbed the underside of his nose.
The goddess looked conflicted. "You're weird." he announced.
"By the way, are you trapped inside that pond or something?" Osomatsu asked. He still hadn't spotted any chains, and the goddess seemed to move freely, but never outside the pond.
The goddess, who had slowly lowered himself to the edge of the lake, finally sat down in the shallow water. He seemed reluctant to answer. "It's… complicated." he mumbled, not meeting his eyes.
Osomatsu tilted his head. "I'm not going anywhere today." he encouraged.
The goddess frowned. "About that," he said. "What are you doing here?"
Osomatsu blinked. Oh, right. "Uh…" He shrugged. "I guess… you're my mission, but on my missions I usually just walk around in the cities I visit without really accomplishing said mission, like ever. But this town is kind of …" He made a dissatisfied noise. "Boring. Usually I don't even bother finding the angel because it's just too much work, but I didn't have anything else to do, so I ended up here anyway."
"In that case, why are you still here?" The goddess didn't seem dismissive anymore, just curious.
He hesitated. His stupid father and his even stupider revolution. Time went slightly faster in Hell, so the banquet and the 'revolution' had probably already started at this point. He wondered if Tougou was dead already, or just taken prisoner. Either way, it wasn't safe for him to go back yet. He had to wait until the drama calmed down, so that he could go back and act innocent. But this wasn't something he should tell the goddess. "It's complicated." he retorted, raising an eyebrow at the other.
The goddess huffed. "Well played, demon."
"I'm not a demon."
He gave him a blank stare, and Osomatsu bit his lip. He probably shouldn't have said that. Oh well. "I'm a devil. They're stronger." He added that last part out of spite. Then at least this goddess would know what he was actually capable of. At least somewhat.
"A devil?" The goddess seemed to draw himself back subconsciously.
"What, you're suddenly scared of me now?" Osomatsu smirked, his tail flicking amusedly.
The goddess scoffed. "Of course not. Either way you can come near me when I'm in this la-" He interrupted himself with a surprised squawk when Osomatsu's tail suddenly wormed itself around his upper arm. For a second, he looked terrified, as if he simply couldn't believe himself for trusting a devil – But then he probably took notice of the way Osomatsu was struggling to hold back his laughter.
"You- You stupid-"
"Woah, careful with the language, goddess."
"Shut up! Get your tail off before I cut it off!"
Osomatsu sucked in air through his teeth, shuddering violently as he retracted his tail. "Oh, don't make me think about that, please." he said. "Wouldn't that be like … getting your wings cut off or something?"
The look he then got from the goddess surprised him, to say the least. A series of emotion flashed across his face, shock, fear, suspicion, disgust, before settling in his signature scowl, which Osomatsu had grown to like at his point. "Don't." he simply said.
"But-"
"No."
Osomatsu raised his eyebrows and looked away. "O-kay." he said, shrugging. "You started it."
"You're such a child."
"Is not."
"Is too."
Then there was silence between them. Of course, Osomatsu was the one to pipe up first.
"Hey. Why can't you tell me why you're in that lake?" he asked.
The goddess gave him a small look, before averting his eyes again. "We shouldn't know each other's weaknesses." he said simply.
Osomatsu tilted his head. "Does that mean you're trapped in there?"
"Not… Not really, no."
Intrigued by the man's mysteriousness, he shuffled just a tiny but closer, cautious of not getting too close to the water.
"Careful, now," the goddess said. "You'll get wet."
"Aw, you do care." he retorted, getting a well-earned scowl from the other. He flashed his teeth in another entertained grin. "Anyways, listen – I'm an okay guy. You can trust me." He altered his grin in a way he hoped was friendly. Judging by the goddess expression, it didn't quite make the cut. He sighed. "But I'm serious. Why are you here? Doesn't it get lonely?"
"I actually haven't spoken to anyone for…" the goddess trailed off, narrowing his eyes as if suddenly hearing a strange noise. "…about seventeen years I think."
Osomatsu whistled. "That's a long time even if you're immortal." he commented.
"It's alright though. I like the quiet. I was taking a great nap when you threw that rock on me."
"Oh, speaking of which, I was also interrupted in the middle of a nap just earlier today, so I-" He stopped himself, remember that he'd broken somebody's hand and that was probably not a part of the Heavenly etiquette. Better not mention it. "Um, it hit you? I'm sorry, I didn't mean that." He snickered.
The goddess hummed in contemplation. "How about you tell me your complicated story, and then I'll tell you mine." he proposed, mimicking Osomatsu's request from earlier.
"Another deal with a devil, goddess?" Osomatsu smiled, and weighed his options. Well, he didn't have to tell him everything. "Fine. You start."
The goddess sat down sideways on his knees, leaning his bodyweight against one arm. "Uh, I sort of was assigned this lake when I was created. It's my home, and my duty to protect it. I'm connected to it, and I could never defy duty. I've never been outside this lake – physically at least. I can project myself to different places, but…" He shrugged. "That's it, really. Your turn."
Osomatsu frowned thoughtfully. "Sounds bo-o-oring to me." he said. "But whatever makes you happy, I guess." Now, to the hard part. "Well… The reason I'm still here is because…" He couldn't tell him the part where his father is trying to overthrow Lucifer, because that would be a fault in the perfect system and defenses of Hell. No, he had to leave that part out. Maybe make it personal – the Heavens did have a strong sense of pity, didn't they? "Um, my father and I, we're… He's kind of, uh … We have some problems, and I'm sort of. Running away." He paused. "For a little while at least." All of that was true. He hadn't lied.
He looked to the goddess, who looked back at him with wide eyes. Even though he'd expected the pity, it still made him go red at the ears, and he looked away. "It's nothing, don't worry about it." he added lamely.
"I didn't know … that it was like that. Down there." the goddess mumbled.
"Yeah, there's a lot of things we don't know about each other." Osomatsu agreed. "Like your name, for instance."
The goddess shot him a glare, before he looked away timidly. "It's… Choromatsu."
Osomatsu perked up. "Choromatsu?" he echoed.
"Yeah."
Suddenly he felt butterflies in his stomach, and a grin spread across his face. Before thinking of the consequences, he'd tried to lean over the water to catch Choromatsu around his shoulders, but quickly realized that the distance was just a little too far for that. With a yell, he thought he was going to fall face first into the water, but Choromatsu reacted fast enough to catch him before disaster ensued. The goddess flung himself forward, catching Osomatsu in some sort of weird hug, before violently pushing him back on dry land.
"Christ, you're way too reckless for your own good." he chided. Osomatsu felt a small sting in his chest when the C-word was mentioned, but since it wasn't used at a weapon against him right now it wasn't so bad. Still made him squirm a little, though he tried to laugh it off.
"I get that a lot." he said, putting a hand where the slight pain had been. "Also, it would be cool if you could, like, not say that name. Your man and I aren't exactly on good terms, so."
Choromatsu blinked at him, before huffing a laugh. "Right. Sorry. I haven't met a lot of demons."
"Devil."
"It's almost the same, isn't it?"
"Yeah, like angel and goddess are the same, right?"
"That's different…"
When Osomatsu finally decided it was time to go back, the sun was setting on the horizon, and he realized the two of them had been talking for many, many hours.
After such a long time on the Surface, time would've passed plenty down in Hell. Knowing from past experiences of people trying to take over the trone, his father would have been taken care of now.
At least that's what he was a hundred percent sure of, until he materialized right outside his father's church, and he was met with absolute havoc. Well, more havoc than it usually was down there.
All around the church there was crowds of demons and devils swirling, while yelling triumphantly and clapping and cheering – He could see several people doing small dances, bringing their fists in the air, screaming about whatever they were so happy about. Osomatsu didn't want to find out what they were so happy about, but he had a bad feeling.
He stumbled away from the crowd and into the church, closing the door behind him with a violent thud. He looked around, but it seemed the hall was mostly empty, except for a few figures sitting here and there, talking quietly among themselves.
He swallowed.
"Excuse me." he called to one of the demons sitting nearby. They looked up at him with a stinky eye, but quickly changed their demeanor when they saw who he was.
"Osoma-"
"What has happened down here?" he asked before the stranger could continue.
The demon blinked, before his black eyes sparkled, as if he was happy that he got to be the lucky one to tell Osomatsu the good news first. "Haven't you been paying attention, sir?" he said, grinning widely.
"I've- I've been away." Osomatsu replied, shoving his hands in his pockets to refrain from fidgeting. It annoyed him that the man didn't just answer his question right away.
The man gave a quiet, but hearty laugh. "Your father's plan was impeccable, of course." he said. "The Royal defense never saw it coming."
Osomatsu gritted his teeth, and in a swift moment he had grabbed the man's collar and sneered right into his face. "Just tell what's going on, you low-life vermin." he spat, his impatience getting the best of him.
The stranger gave a strangled cry and stared back at him with wide eyes, the happiness in them whisked out like a candle light.
"L- Lucifer has been defeated." he whimpered. "Tougou has conquered the throne."