Author's note:

I'll try my best to churn out more chapters, have been very lazy in the past week, not going to lie.

(10k milestone)

Chapter 19: Zdrada, the Damaged Demon

The Bitch Demon took a long slurp of her milkshake, the glass now empty. She slided it across the table to join the two other empty glasses, this was the third one she had drank in a row. This time she had asked for her fourth one to have whipped cream on top, she was going to savour this one, these thick milkshakes being one of her favourite things. She was sat opposite the man eating the cherry off of the whipped cream. The Helltaker also had a salted caramel milkshake. He was holding a glass full of ice to the back of his head, it was still throbbing since his collision with the gravel, and Zdrada's fist.

He was surprised that Zdrada practically jumped into his arms, profusely apologising when he had arrived. "Shhhh, it's alright. I would have done the same" he had said, holding her. "I didn't mean to hurt you" she sobbed, her face was buried deep in his chest. Her makeup had long disappeared from her face, she looked more innocent without it. "Sit down and I'll get us some shakes, then we can talk" he smiled at her. Zdrada sniffed, wiping her left eye with her wrist, the black gauntlets still attached. "Okay", she slowly sat down.

Ever since he had arrived, they had pretended like nothing had happened. Not touching upon their earlier fight. He talked about his upcoming date with Judgement tonight, brought up her encounter with the pervert at the store earlier today and told the sister how he got to the diner so fast. He didn't want her to panic again, brushing it off as a normal reaction, overwhelmed by emotions. She was silent, nodding everytime he looked over at her. His sunglasses looking back at him. After he was finished talking and went silent for a while, Zdrada brought her milkshake over to his side of the table and sat next to him. She shuffled a little closer to him after sitting down.

"Tell me what's going on in that smoke and milkshake filled brain" he smiled at her, she sighed preparing herself for the upcoming heart to heart. "You already know me and Malina weren't supposed to be demons, never were..." she began, "I don't remember much about my parents, you could tell we were very young when we got separated" she was referring to the first voice message. This was true, to the Helltaker it had sounded like Zdrada and Malina were only children, six or seven at the oldest.

"But on the day you came to get us, somehow, I knew it was my Dad. Even if every aspect of him had been twisted and changed from the father I forgot I knew. Blurred memories and snapshots are all I have left of him... the real him". She took another slurp of the milkshake, the plastic straw making a loud noise. "He actually recognized us in Hell...after all this time...That was hard" she paused briefly, swallowing. "So much time wasted...he was fine with harming everyone else but he wouldn't lift a finger against us" she smiled a weak smile

"Hearing those voice messages, it just confirmed what I was afraid of, I always knew we weren't devils, not from birth anyway. The memories of our past, they were taken from us a long time ago, the process of making you a demon was..." she sobbed, trying her best to fight back against her emotions. "It's alright, come here" he said, allowing Zdrada to cry into his embrace again. "Me and Malina no longer remember. We can't remember our own fucking parents..." her voice was cracking. He let her get it all out, she needed to vent, a lifetime of sadness and abuse flowing out of her, the dam that was holding back this river of emotions finally burst.

They just sat there, he held her, no words being spoken. He knew there was more to the sisters than meets the eye, but he never knew it would be this sad, this tragic...Zdrada was crying in short sobs, taking in air in small gasps, she gripped his shoulder, not wanting to let go. Eventually she calmed down, crying silently until she drew herself away.

"But, hearing that last message, his last moments. Hearing him..." she fought down a sob, "Hearing him say he cared, it reminded me of someone" she parted from the embrace, looking at the Helltaker in the eye. He remained silent, his gaze supportive and not too intense. "Me and M have known abuse all our life in Hell, it was...well...Hell" she said looking at her interlocked hands. "Lucifer, she looked after us, almost treating us as her own. Emphasis on almost", a depressing chuckle escaping her. "She was harsh, but I like to think she cared".

"I'm sorry, I never knew" the Helltaker confessed, he was shocked at the truth. He didn't ever think to ask, or he didn't think it was ever appropriate to ask. "I didn't expect you to know, how could you" she said, she placed her left hand on his right, he interlocked it with hers. "You talk to me, no matter what the problem is" the Helltaker said, looking at his demon, then briefly looking out to sea. "I'll try, but I'm not good with emotions...you know this" she said, looking to see where he was staring.

"I have the bruises and scars to show for that" he smiled, her hand retracted from his. She turned away, not wanting to look at him. "I'm sorry...I don't want to hurt you. It's my natural instinct...Me and Malina had to fight to survive, you don't know the amount of times I saw that fucking arena" she visibly shook. "Arena?" he asked, feeling overwhelming sadness for her. "Oh, another fun memory. Ask Malina about the amount of times I beat her" she smiled sadistically. A wave of sadness coming over her.

"All demons had to compete against one another, this was before Hell became a suit wearing rat-race, Lucifer decided one day that she would stop babysitting us, saying that we would have to prove ourselves. Guess who she made train us" Zdrada asked smiling at him. "Lady Justice, before she went blind" he smiled back, happy that his past knowledge about Justice's battle with Beelzebub was coming in to good use. "Well, someone certainly has done their homework" Zdrada's smile faded.

"In Hell we had to be tough or-" "Or you would die" he finished her sentence. He turned again to look out at the sea, "You've been through alot, you don't need to prove anything to me". He paused, constructing the next sentence in his head. "I don't expect you to change who you are Zdrada, whatever you do, whatever you think, I will still love you" he spoke truthfully. A long uncomfortable silence followed.

He felt her hand interlocking with his again, "Don't make me cringe dude". He laughed. "Whatever you say...you told me your story, now it's time I told you mine. The truth" he said preparing for the waves of trauma he was about to revisit.

He told her everything, starting with a brief story of his early childhood, the death of his parents, his time in the forces, his time in the private army, his torture...how he survived..."Those were some dark days after I came home, not trusting anyone, flinching whenever someone touched me, I was quite feral...it took a lot of therapy" he smiled depressingly.

"How did you do it? How did you keep going?" she whispered, she was overwhelmed at his story. "Many days...I didn't care if I lived or died. Drink was my only friend, it truly was a downward spiral. But I had the support of my friends and the rest of my family. Slowly, but surely I got a routine going, exercising regularly, eating properly" he paused. "No matter what...you keep finding something to fight for" he paused again, looking at her. "One day I woke up from a deep sleep sweating, knowing now what I was fighting for" he smiled. "The famous demon harem dream" Zdrada realised.

He smiled, he looked out to sea again, he felt her lean into him, resting her head on his collar. Her white hair brushing against his neck, he thought her horns would be stabbing into him. "You remembered to be human" he said, both of them looking at the sea. She didn't reply to that remark. "It's weird to think that me and Malina have lost him all over again, we had already lost him but hearing those messages, there was a part of him still there after all..."

"It's hard being a big sister. Telling her lies throughout our childhood, telling her we would see Mom and Dad again, but after all this time it was a lie", she moved her head to get more comfortable. "When me and Malina 'connected' back in Hell, I felt my mother's presence, as if she had a hand on my shoulder. She was speaking through us, but she was there...I could feel it". Zdrada nuzzled his collar gently, "How could he have become so far gone.." she fought back another sob, "Shhhh" the Helltaker said calmly, giving her hand a tight squeeze.

"Fuck the abyss" she said, "Fuck the abyss" he repeated. She brought the milkshake up to her lips, she sucked the last of the foam out of the glass, a satisfied gasp following. She nuzzled into him a little further, closing her eyes and basking in the sunshine warming their faces. "You ever wanna just get out of here, drive for miles and start a new life, leave your old one behind...a fresh start" she whispered.

He had thought the exact same when he returned from overseas, drive to a town where nobody knew his name, settle down, forget the past. "I learned a long time ago, eventually you gotta stop running from the past. Besides, my past helped lead me to Hell, lead me to my family, lead me to you" he smiled, closing his eyes briefly. She smelt of cigarette smoke constantly, the tobacco pungent when close to her like this. "I've never heard someone say that word to me before" she smiled, her eyes still closed. "Which word?" he asked, "Doesn't matter dumbass", she opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him, being quite close to his face.

An unsuspecting Helltaker receiving a quick but deep kiss from Zdrada, she grabbed his head violently and forced his lips against hers. The taste of an eternity of smoking cigarettes making him almost gag, she also had her tongue rammed in his mouth. It was a very wet and sloppy kiss, she eventually pulled away for air, a sadistic smile on her face. He looked away from the demon, very embarrassed at her sudden outburst of affection. "Lucifer was right, you are a good kisser" she smiled upon seeing him squirm. "Get in line Zdrada" he smirked, trying to deflect the awkwardness.

"I'm going to put these back, wait for me in the car" he said, grabbing all five glasses and the smaller sixth full of ice, walking inside the diner. "Sure thing big guy" she obeyed, standing up and heading to the parking lot. He went up to the counter, placing the glasses on one side, the diner being surprisingly empty inside.

"Thank you" the Helltaker said to the waitress behind the counter, he moved to the tip jar and deposited a twenty dollar bill into the glass Jam jar. "Thank YOU!" the enthusiastic women said, "Say, how did you get here? I was cleaning some glasses and I saw a flash of orange outside, I thought it was just the sun being reflected, but there you were. Your daughter arrived a few minutes before you did, in your car? " she said very quickly, he was unsure what her accent was. He decided for once it was best not to answer truthfully. "Even I don't know" he smiled, leaving the waitress even more confused.

"There you two are!" a happy Lucifer clapped, she ran over and gave Zdrada a hug first, much to the disappointment of the Helltaker, Zdrada stuck out her tongue at him over Lucifer's shoulder. It had been a relatively uneventful drive home, the hour journey was filled with them learning the words to some of his long forgotten classic rock CDs. Zdrada not touching a cigarette since the diner. When they had arrived home she had handed his sunglasses back to him, "Keep them" he had said, "They're yours now".

He had given Malina something of his, which he knew had a positive impact on her mood everyday. So, giving Zdrada something of his own would also have the same effect. She had smiled, a warm, wholesome smile, she clutched the case to her chest. He knew she had secretly loved them, besides they would only rot in his car. They were a very old pair of Ray-Bans very similar to Justice's various types, they were one of his first pairs, liking them for their fighter pilot style, Top Gun really helped boost Ray-Ban sales.

"I remember masochist, rule breaker, punish me please Zdrada when she first arrived here. I think she would be disgusted at that display of affection" he joked to the demon, they were covering the car with the grey tarpaulin together. He watched her tail move very slowly from side to side, not sure what emotion she was displaying. "Oh yes, she would hate this. Guess something made her have a change of heart" she leant up and placed a more gentle kiss on his lips, walking towards the front door after. He sighed a happy sigh, patting the body of the car goodnight and going to close the garage door.

"I was worried sick about you" Lucifer leading Zdrada into the lounge, leaving the Helltaker stood there. He heard a cascade of greetings to Zdrada as he hid the Mustang's keys under a flower pot. Should definitely hide these better. He turned to see all three Cerberus running up to him, all expressing affection, all wanting attention, their black tails going ballistic. "Well, at least someone missed me" he smiled at the three girls, petting each one of them. He looked at the clock on the wall as he did so. Oh shit, he better go get ready if he was still going out with Judgement tonight. "Sorry girls, gotta go change" he said, heading for the stairs, he left the disappointed trio with their black tails flaccid.

"J just pick one! We have narrowed it down to these two outfits and now you want to go through the entire wardrobe again?!" a frustrated Justice lay on her bed, her right and left hands covering the respective eyes. She had lost the suit jacket and was now wearing just her red shirt, she had also chosen not to wear any glasses for the past few hours.

"I just don't know which one to pick" a equally frustrated Judgement whined. Judgement was currently stood with a large black towel wrapped around her, a smaller towel was also around her head. In the prosecutor's shared bedroom, the two demons had been trying their best to pick a suitable outfit for this evening. They had narrowed it down to two outfits: a short black flowery dress with matching black jewellery and a pair of Lucifer's high heels, or a short white dress with silver lining, white sneakers and a cream necklace of various sized circles, the last two items owned by Azazel.

Lucifer had abandoned them when Zdrada had returned home, now it was just the two of them left. "I just can't decide" she repeated her point, the former high prosecutor now fed up. She stood up from her bed and went to the other demon's selecting the white dress. "This is what you are wearing, you are not going to a funeral plus the sneakers make it seem more casual, it's not a ballroom dinner but you'll still look smart". Justice shoved the dress into Judgement's chest.

"But i-i" Judgement began her protest, "Come on, get changed or else you'll be late!", Justice said loudly going back to lay on her bed. "Chop Chop!" she clapped her hands together, a smile on her face.

"Hey" Beelzebub said sheepishly, walking into her room, she had just seen him finishing his outfit. He had decided to go with a black shirt and white suit jacket, white suit pants combo this time, a folded black handkerchief was present on his lapel. He was now retrieving a watch from his small collection. "They treat you alright today?" he asked not looking up from the drawer. "Yes, they didn't lift a finger" she said, again the nervousness was obvious on her voice.

Beelzebub knew that he had forgiven her, but it would take a while before he would trust her again. She was nervous when speaking to him now, she was afraid of loosing him altogether. She was going to say something, taking a breath of air in, but she didn't say anything. "Cat got your tongue?" he smirked, his back was turned but he had heard her intake of air. Cat got your weirdly magenta tongue.

He had selected a silver and black watch, now going to spray some aftershave on his neck, "B speak your mind, I'm going in a minute" he said, spraying a single puff on each wrist. She hesitated, nervous of the answer. "We never went on a date" she muttered, she started dabbing her forehead with her white handkerchief, she was very sweaty. He laughed a warm laugh, "That's what you came to ask about?" he smiled, "Oh you demons" he came over to her and patted her on the head.

"Sorry B, you are at the back of the line" he said simply, walking past her and out the room. "Does that mean yes?!" a needy Beelzebub called after him, you have no pride Beel she thought to herself as soon as she spoke. He didn't reply, silently chuckling. He headed down the stairs and went into the kitchen, the smell of cooking making him hungry. He walked in to see Lucifer cooking, Modeus was at her side trying her best to help. Pandemonica was reading a book on the table, coffee in hand.

"What's cooking good looking?" he joked, not expecting both demons cooking to turn around. Modeus blushed profusely but Lucifer just scowled at him, she was wearing her black Satan apron. "Meatloaf" Lucifer said, turning back round to look at the saucepan on the hob. "Making some mash potato as well I see", he looked inbetween the CEO's legs at the oven, the Meatloaf already being baked. "If there is any left save me some please, it smells amazing" he was almost salivating at the smell alone. "Mmhhmm" is all he got from Lucifer.

He walked back into the lounge and watched Malina play for a few minutes, he came over and leant on her chair. "You're blocking my light dude" she spat, wanting any excuse to insult him. "Hey, how about for our date I take you to get milkshakes, there is also an arcade in the nearby town" he said smiling. "Uhhh, what's an arcade?" the demon asked not looking away from the TV screen. "Oh we are going to have so much fun" he smiled, patting her on the head, receiving a hiss in return.

He walked over to the coat rack, grabbing his house keys from his jacket pocket, he also went to grab his wallet from the hallway's table. His proper phone, a smart phone had one new text message on it. He looked at the lock screen and read the message; "Hiya gentle giant, I need a favour. Message me back when you can"- Amy. A favour? That didn't sound good. He went to type a reply, "I'll meet you for a coffee tomorrow, same place as usual" he texted. He almost instantly received a reply, "Sounds good".

Footsteps were now coming down the stairs and he turned to witness a beautiful moment. Judgement had gone all out for this date, ditching her usual black colour scheme and wearing a white dress he had never seen before, she had a cream necklace with different sized circles resting on her grey skin. The white and grey colours complementing each other amazingly, she looked stunning. He had stood for a few seconds with his mouth open, marvelling at her appearance.

The High Prosecutor was extremely embarrassed, "Pick your jaw up off the floor" she demanded, he instantly obeyed. "You look amazing" he said, some of the other demons now coming to look at Judgement's transformation. All of them also amazed, Modeus was exploding with jealousy, Lucifer was smirking at seeing her high prosecutor like this and Pandemonica was smiling tiredly, the rest of the harem not bothering to come see. Justice was stood, arms crossed, next to Judgement, She was smiling, she knew she had made the right call. "Hey Judge J, picture time" Zdrada said suddenly taking a photo of the high prosecutor, she had somehow found a polaroid camera, the flash startling her. Oh boy...

"Great start to the evening" he smiled at his date, they were walking the long pathway which lead over the cliffs. "Fucking Zdrada, can't believe she had that camera" Judgement grumbled, her arm interlocked with his. Zdrada had taken the photo in her hand and demanifested it, apparently it went to whatever pocket dimension she had access to. The Helltaker had to grab Judgement by her waist and carry her outside, "We will see you in the morning gang" he shouted over Judgement's obscenities.

"Don't worry about it, they have plenty of embarrassing photos of me stashed somewhere" he said, they were walking at her pace. "You do look amazing, so it's nothing to be embarrassed about" he said reassuringly, "You've said that three times now!" Judgement complained, her face flushed red. "Where are we going, I know it's a restaurant" she said trying to change the subject, looking over the railings at the sea. "That's all you'll know" he smiled, enjoying the last of the evening sun on his face.

"I've never been to a restaurant before, I've never eaten fancy food, I've never-" she was beginning to panic, "Hey J" he stopped and looked at her, "Relax, just imagine I've cooked us dinner, just me and you" he paused, her white eyes looking at the floor. "Can you do that? For me?" he smiled. "Oo-okay" she said, trying to smile while looking at him, it was more like a cry for help.

"Hey table for two please" the Helltaker said, deciding not to book this time, hoping it wouldn't be a problem. "Ah hello again" the waitress looking at the grey demon at his side, she looked very nervous, holding onto his hand tightly. Jeez, this guy is a ladykiller the waitress thought. "Have you booked a table?" she asked, quickly snapping from her thoughts. "No, do you have any available?" he asked. "I think we do, one moment" she walked off into the surprisingly busy restaurant.

"Huh, funny, its a week day, not usually this busy" he said to his partner, "I told you this was a bad idea" she muttered at him. "Oh hush you" he said, giving her hand a comforting squeeze.

"Would the lovely couple like any desserts?" the waiter came to their table, he held two menus and handed them to the two customers. "None for me thank you, can I get some bourbon with ice please?" the Helltaker asked, refusing the menu. "I'll leave the lady to decide while I get that for you sir" the waiter said walking to the bar.

It had been a pleasant evening, Judgement had finally relaxed once she had some alcohol in her. "I love this place" Judgement said, looking at the waiters walking around."It's like owning slaves" she smiled sadistically. "I love this, how do you say it" she held up the bottle to his face. "Budweiser" he chuckled, "It's a nice beer isn't it" he said. "It's fucking fantastic" she smiled, she had taken after him when nervous; Dutch courage.

The two had talked about a variety of subjects, she asked about his war stories, he would tell her a few less gruesome adventures. He would then ask her about dishing out the worst sentences, that conversation could have gone on for hours. "We had to wrap these giant chains around his legs and arms, me and some of the other prosecutors really struggled with that one. He is now rotting in a special corner of Hell" she had rambled on enthusiastically. "There are other prosecutors?" he asked, taking a bite of T bone steak. "Were" she had said, a chill going down his spine. They had also talked about Zdrada for a while, the Helltaker expressing deep sympathy for the poor demon, Judgement silently nodding, not really knowing what to say.

"Here is your bourbon sir, it is a personal favourite of mine" the waiter smiled, "Thank you" he took the glass in his hand and drank, "Mmmm, I can see why" he laughed. "What would the lady like for dessert?" the waiter asked taking out his notepad, "Can I have the...Baked Alaska?" she said unsure. "Excellent choice" the man quickly scarpered off to the kitchen. "Do you know what Baked Alaska is?" he smiled at her, "Noo" she said slugging the beer until it was empty. "Hey you, smartly dressed man, get me another" she said, raising the bottle. She looked at a concerned Helltaker, his face was like a disapproving parent's. "Please!" she called after the poor waiter.

"Thank you for everything" the Helltaker said, leading Judgement by the hand from their table, just like Lucifer, Judgement was very drunk. The end of the date was upon them faster than he had expected, time had flown past while they had chatted, Judgement doing most of the talking. "Thank you mortals" she slurred, giggling when he pulled her away faster. "Thank you?" the waiter said, looking at the couple then at his puzzled co-worker cleaning the nearby tables. "Come on you!" he muttered to Judgement as they went through the glass double doors, she giggled more almost stumbling down the stairs. He had never heard the high prosecutor giggle before.

It wasn't long before the two had rushed down to the beach, Judgement now leading him by the hand to the white sand. The sea was lapping at their feet, Judgement not caring that her shoes, Azazel's shoes were getting soaked, running onto the beach. "Hey J, you're getting your feet wet" he called to her, she had run ahead. He was struggling to take off his black shoes, he finally pried them off his feet, he held the pair in his right hand and looked ahead of him into the darkness. He had lost sight of her, slight panic now setting in. He began jogging, unable to sprint due to his slightly drunken state. "Judgement?" he called into the darkness.

He began jogging down the beach, fast approaching the headland, "J?!" he shouted again. He turned around the corner of the rock to see a confusing sight; placed on a rock just slightly above the sand were all of Justice's clothes. Her white dress, the white sneakers, the jewellery, some thin black panties and a black bra... "What are you waiting for, the water's sooo nicee" he heard Judgement's voice call to him from the sea. Gulp. "You can swim?!" he shouted above the sound of the waves, "It's not that deep, get in here now!" she shouted back. GULP.

He reluctantly obeyed, undressing himself and placing his clothes next to hers. He slowly waded into the surf, hoping that no one was watching them. The water was pleasantly cooling, this had been an especially warm evening. Where Judgement was the water was very calm, the occasionally wave breaking over her shoulders, being the giant man that he was, the water barely reached his shoulders. "There you are!" the naked demon smirked, coming close to him. He could feel her kicking sand towards him, the water and sediment swirling beneath their feet. "Since when could you swim?" he smiled as she approached, "They do have water in Hell ya know" she was now pressing herself against him, her sharp teeth on display as she smirked.

Her body was being concealed by the dark water, his was more on display due to his height and being much paler in the darkness. "I really enjoyed tonight" she said, she now had both her arms wrapped around his neck, holding on to him."So did I" he smiled back, her white eyes staring into his, staring into his soul. She leant in for a kiss, he also leant forward, their lips colliding, the taste of saltwater on both of them. Her body attaching itself to his, her large breasts pushing against his torso.

It was a long passionate kiss, his arms around her muscular back. They parted from the kiss, holding on to each other. They were content where they were, both enjoying the moment. "You know, Lucifer has given me her room for the night" she said, she was very close to his face, looking down at his lips. He knew what she was implying, but she was drunk and he wasn't, well he was, but he wasn't as much of a lightweight as his demons. It didn't exactly feel right. "Are you sure that's what you want?" he asked, holding her to him. She smirked at him, a very sadistic, hungry smirk. She had been waiting for this ever since they went back to Hell.

"More than anything"...

Saucy moment for all you Judgement fans, up next an encounter with the Law- Author