.

"Stand up."

Despite the sultry voice, the way the words were spoken hinted at them being a direct order. The hand moved from Belle's shoulder, just as red and burnt as she'd seen in her vision, and it was outstretched for her to grasp to help her regain her balance. For a moment, she hesitated, but eventually she took the offered hand and got onto her still shaky legs.

She wasn't afraid – not really, or at least that was what was expected of her. If she was merely one percent less of a sylph than she was succubus, she wouldn't have been able to even look at the man, let alone keep eye-contact for that long.

How was it even possible for someone to have all the fires of Hell behind their irises?

There was no denying that the Devil himself was standing in front of her in all his glory, missing the horns and tail that he was usually presented with in books and folklore. He was scary, yes – but she wasn't even flinching.

"So it is true – Sylphs aren't afraid of anyone." He revealed sharp teeth as he spoke, enunciating every single word. "That is good. I don't need a demon for the task that I have for you."

Belle opened her mouth to ask the question that came to her mind, but, remembering the state of her vocal chords, she swallowed the breath she took. Maybe it was from breathing in so much ash particles that she'd forgotten that it had been over sixty years since she'd last been able to verbally communicate.

The Devil frowned. Why wasn't she protesting, or speaking? His eyes scanned her, body first. Tall, with long limbs and a very un-sylph-like feminine figure that his hands itched to explore. 'Patience,' he told himself, urging himself to look up at her face. With inhumanly colored eyes, porcelain skin taut over the finely structured bones of her face, complete with golden brown hair making the messy bun on the top of her head, she a treat to look at. He was sure that even Maze would agree.

Taking a step back, he began circling around her, taking in the unusual curve of her wings. The only similarity that the wings had with an Angel's was that they were feathered. They sat slightly lower at her back and seemed to be missing one of the wingbones, and, as such, they were able to furl tightly on her back, forming a heart-like shape.

He hmm-d thoughtfully, eyeing once more the midnight blue primaries she sported, before he went to stand in front of her once more. As he passed, he noticed a pale scar on the left side of her neck and going across her throat as if she'd been injured. He frowned again, reaching out to touch it, which caused the halfling to hiss.

"Relax," he purred and, not touching the scar, tipped her head slightly to the side. "Oh, my… what do we have here?"

Belle closed her eyes in shame. He was probably going to mock her. Her species was notorious for their singing abilities and beautiful, silvery voices, but only a single accidental slash across her neck left her with ripped vocal chords that never healed properly. Ever since that day, her brother had told anyone who asked that she was born mute, because that was somehow less shameful than the truth that she'd lost her voice because she wasn't careful enough.

"Tell me, love: was the weapon that caused this of this world?"

Belle opened her eyes and looked at him, her eyes widening slightly when she saw that he'd changed his appearance. In front of her stood a tall, slender man, incredibly human-like and undoubtedly very attractive. His voice matched this face a lot better. In her modest opinion, she was quite impressed, which didn't happen often when it regarded male physical appearance.

She assumed that by 'this world', he meant this world, so, looking down, she slowly nodded. The celestial bow and arrows had been given to her as a gift for her eleventh birthday, but… how would he know?

"I thought so. Few things can hurt you cambions."

She shook her head furiously at the word. She'd tolerated being called many names, but she wasn't… that.

"Have I offended you? Sorry," the Devil said, leaning in to inspect her neck again. "It is what you are, though." He smiled at her pout, pretending that he ignored it. "Okay, uh… Close your eyes."

Belle only raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well, I can't kill you if you're already dead, now can I?"

'He has a point,' her conscious mind told her, but the other, logical side of her brain told her that she was still in Hell and that, technically, anything could happen to her. Not to mention that her body was still very vulnerable, so, if she were to lose a limb, that limb would never grow back. Ever. She wasn't an Angel with incredible regenerative capabilities – her wings wouldn't grow back if they were cut off.

Whoa. Where did that thought come from? Who in their right mind would-

"Maze!"

.

"Who?" Amenadiel asked, wondering if he'd heard the word correctly. He seemed totally relaxed at that point, completely engrossed in the story, as he cradled a cup of earl grey tea.

"Oh, Maze, yes. High-ranking demoness, Hell's most brutal torturer – that sort of thing," I said, taking a sip of my own tea.

"Wonderful," the Angel said dryly. From the look on his face, he didn't seem particularly keen on meeting the so-called 'Maze'.

"She's quite lovely, actually. A little stabby, but that's fine." I paused, letting my fingers dance across the spot on my neck where the scar used to be. "Amazing in bed, though."

The Angel almost choked on his tea.

.

"They're so soft."

Belle only hummed, focusing on the way the demoness's fingers combed through her feathers. The three of them were tangled together in bed, after a wild night of passion-

.

"Okay, okay, I got it!" Amenadiel said, practically shivering in disgust. I couldn't help but laugh. "You used to be such a sweet kid!"

"Yeah, in front of you," I said with mock innocence, getting up to take the empty cups over to the bar. "Don't you think that our Uncle told my brother and me that our guardian Angel and godfather would visit every time you did? Of course, when we got older, we could predict it for ourselves, so we'd mop up the floor and put the kettle on."

The Angel looked so appalled that I felt a little sorry for teasing him.

"Did you really think that I'd do that?" I asked him, growing serious. His face went from shock to confusion in the matter of seconds. "I mean, sleeping with your brother? He is easily the most repulsive person that I'd met in my entire existence!"

He looked instantly relieved. "Oh, thank Father. You've walked the path of righteousness and resisted the temptation."

"Uh, no, the part about Maze is true." I said honestly, watching the expression on his face shift again. "And she really is an excellent groomer."

"Wait, so… you're telling me that Lucifer, my brother, didn't drag you, an astoundingly beautiful woman-"

"Thank you very much."

"-to bed the first chance he got?"

"Well, he certainly did try, but I turned him down cold all the fifty-seven times," I said, after doing a brief calculation. Yep, sounds about right. "Sadly, it takes more than charm, humor, gifts and a pretty face to seduce me."

The Angel paused for a moment. "What else is there?"

I shrugged. "I don't know yet. A desirable quality is not trapping me that far away from my element and family so that I don't actually have to live out the movie Beauty and the Beast."

The reference went over his head, but Amenadiel still hummed thoughtfully, his dark eyes staring at nothing particular for a few seconds as he contemplated what he'd just heard. For a moment, it seemed that he remembered the thing he came for in the first place, but it quickly evaporated from his mind.

Of course, every comfortable silence must be broken at some point.

"Brother, what exactly are you doing?"

Damn it.

Wrong choice of words. Again.

Shit, then.

.