Fine. I was worried. I didn't like having Sammael in my visions, but having him in one of them torturing me was even worse for me. I did not know if it was better not to tell Death about that vision and think that it was only one of those that never comes to happen, or tell him and listen again that the fortress was safe for me as long as I was there.

I stayed on the bed that morning, no mood at all to train as the only thing I could think of was that vision, the pain he inflicted me somehow still there physically. The pain in my chest came back as well, making me think that it had been a long while since I felt that. I just curled myself up, pulling the blanket over me and laying down again, eyes wide open, of course. I didn't want to have another vision with that guy.

A While later, I felt the blanket slowly sliding down a little as Death tried to see if everything was alright. I just pulled the blanket up again, complaining and pouting. "No. Don't do that"

"Are you alright?"

I moaned an answer and turned to the other side and just heard him laughing a bit. "I just want to stay in bed…"

"What about your training?"

"Can we not? Just today?" I turned to try to convince him with my puppy eyes, but he is a cold hearted horseman, I thought it wouldn't work, but it did.

"Fine. Only for today" he covered me again and sat beside me "But something troubles you. What is it?"

I sighed, turning to look him and thinking whether tell him or not. But it wouldn't matter. At least he would be aware of the situation and, if something happened, he would know what to do. "I… Had a vision. Sammael was in it…"

"And what happened?"

I sat, sighing "He had me trapped somehow, torturing me…." I curled up "I don't like that, Death… I'm… I'm afraid… I can have any visions about any one, but he terrifies me and I don't know why"

He gently held my face, I could feel his thumb gently caressing my cheek "He wont get to you, Maya. No one will as long as you stay here. And I am here as well, remember. Don't worry about it."

"But … It will happen, Death… It… frightens me."

I couldn't understand this irrational fear I had from Sammael. I think that even if Lucifer himself showed up in my vision I wouldn't be so frightened, even though I didn't want it to happen anytime soon, thank you very much. But I don't know why. I would ask my brother after, but maybe it was because I've seen him in my visions when I was a kid and it terrified me and traumatized me for the rest of my life?

Seeing the guy in person did not help, as he used his first chance to attack me and would probably have mortally wounded me or killed me right away if not for Lucifer's half in me. Its said that the Prince of Lies is the only one stronger than Sammael, so yeah. I am kinda certain to be afraid of him. Death didn't even kill the guy when we met – he surrendered – so I don't really know the extent of his powers.

And I'd rather not find out.

"It wont happen, little one" he pulled me closer and I just curled myself inside his arms. I hated feeling like that, but at least he was there.

"I probably sound ridiculous to you now…" I sighed.

"Not at all. You've always had him in your visions until you met him once and was attacked. It's reasonable." I held his hand "But you know it already. The protection dome protects a vast part of this place and goes very far from here. Inside it, he cannot find you."

"But why would he want me…? For what purpose?"

"To confront Lucifer. To lure your other side and control it. To steal your powers. It's hard to know."

"Is that possible? Stealing power from another person?"

"It takes another powerful person to do so. It's very demanding, risky and the process takes every bit if energy from you. The one who loses the powers can stay unconscious for days. But depending on how strong your target is, drawing power from him can drive you mad. Few tried and even fewer succeeded"

"Alright. Let's not talk about that…" I sighed and we stayed in silence for a long while. I could feel him lightly rocking me and it made me just close my eyes. That night of dreams and visions tired me, like it already happened once.

I tried to race my thoughts out of that matter and started to think about the two of us. Yeah, I was liking it. It had only been a couple of days, but it was already perfect for me. I wasn't feeling lonely anymore and I knew that if he wasn't there at any moment, he would come back soon enough, and that all of our time together would definitely be worthy.

It was weird to think about it, actually, because, for some days, I had already accepted the fact that nothing would happen between us. I had both visions, once the doubt and the certainty were clashing against each other, and I had a hard time trying to find out which one was an actual vision and which one was only a dream. I know the answer now, but it was driving me crazy.

Even being only two days, I know he probably was realising all the affection I was keeping inside. In those days before he gave me a positive response about what I said and went away, I sat down and thought about whether I really wanted that or if I was only craving so hard for affection that I ended up projecting that on him. After a while of thought, I came to know it was a bit of both.

Without the constant company of my brothers that I was so used to, I know loneliness started to hit me hard, and in those moments people tend to accept or project feelings onto someone that is closest. I was indeed lonely and started to enjoy every bit of time he would spend there, but those feelings were inside me from long before that, so… I made my conclusions.

And I'm sure that if he knew something amidst everything wasn't genuine, as to say, he wouldn't have gone forward with it. Thinking that everything went just fine, in the way I had foreseen, made me smile without noticing, curling myself more inside his arms and happily sigh.

"Well, it seems someone feels better" I felt him looking at me.

"I am" I closed my eyes for as while "You calmed me"

I heard him chuckle "Good to know"

"Well… I still don't want to train today, but what about some reading?" Over the little table beside the bed was one of his books, one that I couldn't understand much of it "I'm cracking my head with this one"

He grabbed the book and quickly thumbed the pages, looking at me and then at the book "Which part?"

I pointed out to him previously marked pages with the fragments I couldn't understand 'I don't actually understand what these parts mean. The other things I was able to read."

He looked at me "This is old tongue. Since when you can read it?" He did seem surprised, but didn't let that apparent.

"Since… always, I think?" I was confused "It really didn't seemed another language to me. I've already read some of your books that had a similar writing."

"Maybe another one of your powers." he chuckled "Well, then, let's see" He quickly read what I pointed out "It is about what I told you a while ago. How to draw one's power, the consequences it has on both sides and what do you need to do in order to do it correctly"

"Have you ever done that to someone?"

"Never needed to" he said.

"But you know how to do it?"

"I have read the book, haven't I?"

"Alright, so I'll read it and you explain me what I cant get" I heard him chuckle again, and I just started to read, leaning my head on his chest. I was never the one to like reading for fun, but he made me read so many books he had that I started to enjoy it.

And the day raced by as we did that, Death telling me, as a good teacher would, to never do magic or fight if I don't feel ready or confident to do so, as it would go the way it should, and, besides the drawing power from someone thing, we trained in the next morning what we read in the book the day before.

Some more days passed with that being our new training routine. About three books finished, and everything properly trained. By the last day of that week, even not having a single day of sword training, I was completely exhausted and Death decided to give me the day to rest – right beside me, of course – and so I picked a random book of his shelf, but made sure to not be one that I would have to train afterwards.

He didn't comment on the book, just stayed there with me inside his arms again, and silently paid attention as I read it. I would learn later that even being one of the books on his shelf, he wasn't that fond of reading something that involved the purging of his own kin, specially not when he was the one to do it.

But either way, he stayed there with me, even when I would quickly fall asleep and wake up in a jump "I'm not sleeping! I'm not sleeping!" and he would chuckle lightly after those.

The hours passed by slowly this time, but I was so immersed on the reading that I wouldn't be able to notice a thing around me. That's why I barely realized that, after a while, his white, bony mask was lying beside us and when he saw that I noticed it, he inhaled deeply.

Well, I knew the reason why he wore that mask, and even if I didn't, the book was right there in my hands, so I was confused to see that happening, because, regardless of the "official" reason why he wore the mask, it was also to hide his past, to hide himself from the painful memories where he betrayed his own, to hide his shame. No one has ever seen his face after that, and having him remove his mask right when I was reading the book, with no apparent reason, just out of the blue, it confused me. I imagined he had still a long way to make amends with that part of his.

I closed the dark blue covered book and put it aside, reaching my hand for his mask and hesitantly touching it with my fingers "Death…?"

"Yes?"

"Why did you…?" I thought I was going to regret having asked, as he could change his mind and put it back on, so I didn't finish the question. But he didn't do it, instead he just sighed, reaching for the mask as well and holding it, gazing at it.

"You know why I wear it"

"Yes…"

"So, removing it this once doesn't mean I'll stop wearing it" he put it back down "I just..." He sighed deeply, as if the words were stuck in his throat.

"You don't have to explain yourself to me." I interrupted him and the silence came between us.

I won't say I wasn't eagerly waiting for the day he would remove his mask, even though I was already past that, as I knew he would do that when he wanted and if he wanted, but having him doing that in that moment and with that reason just made a big smile appear in my face. And when I thought my first action would be to look directly at him, I just kinda froze.

I knew that was a huge thing "That doesn't mean you have to stay like a statue and avoid looking at me" he chuckled and slightly held my chin, slowly making me turn to look at him.

I can't even describe what he is like. His eyes had the same depth as when he was with the mask, as if his glare would look right inside your soul, but without the mask it seemed I was looking at them for the first time. He had an angry facial expression I could notice, as if he had his eyebrows narrowed at all the time, but in that moment he had this tender smile on the corner of his mouth while looking at me. A face sculpted in sharp features that now were barely there. I slowly turned entirely to him, kneeled down in the bed to be the same height as him, without taking my eyes of him. There was a scar coming down diagonally from his forehead, going over the eye and ending on his nose. His black hair was now falling freely and I gently put it aside to reveal his entire angular and sharp face, where I slowly rested my hand, seeing him closing his eyes with the touch, appreciating as I gave him a slight caress.

I would have that moment marked in my memories for the rest of my life. He could be far from perfect for others, but for me he was perfect the way he was. Perhaps love was really blind? I laughed at the thought, but no. It wasn't. I thought about how open he was with me now. That had a huge meaning. I had his trust, in a moment where he seemed so vulnerable and not so Death-like. I felt honored, as to say and would do everything in my power to never break that trust.

As we stared at each other for a while, I rushed to do something I was so eagerly waiting to, and for a long moment I had him holding me in his arms as we passionately kissed each other. Despite him being depicted as cruel, harsh and brute, the kiss was surprisingly calm, slow, tender and sweet. He had me wrapped in one arm as his other hand was placed on my neck, holding me tight and close, but backed out a little when I grasped for air, gently touching his forehead with mine.

I think that it was the moment where it really hit me that it was real. That shit was real and I was loving it just like, clearer than water for me now, I loved him.