"This meeting of the student council will come to order," Lucifer decreed, looking around at his brothers as if daring them to say another word. He turned towards the only man he would ever think above himself. "Lord Diavolo, you had something you wished to discuss?"
Diavolo stood, his red uniform as immaculate as his hair, though he preferred both to be a little tousled for comfort. However, this was a momentous occasion, and after numerous years of planning, along with help from his butler- and friend- Barbatos… it was finally time to share it.
"Yes, thank you Lucifer," he spoke, looking around at Lucifer's six younger brothers. Even with Lucifer's assurance that they would all be on board- he had sworn he would make sure of it- Diavolo was a little wary. This could go so many different ways.
It was his first real decree, since he became the acting ruler of the Devildom. His father, having disappeared from the public without giving much by way of guidelines to follow, left him to make his own way. And this plan… well it could lead the Devildom into a new age.
Or to the brink of disaster.
"I'd like to start by giving an overview of the Devildom," Diavolo spoke, letting the council members relax slightly. "Although it may seem tedious now, I am merely building up to my point," he said, getting a few nods.
He spoke for a few minutes about the state of their realm, those that lived there and what daily life meant for most that called the Devildom home. He continued, comparing it to what they knew of the other realms, how the angels and humans fit into it all.
He could see a few winces then- and one straight out glare- and decided to skim over the material of the celestial realm, knowing how unpleasant it was for them. They may now be the strongest of the demons, but they still remembered their time before they were sent to him.
Then he spoke of the human realm, though there wasn't much to say. "Even with the trips that we allow, and the pacts that some make with humans, you cannot deny that in the grand scheme of things, we actually do not know much about what goes on in other realms."
"Isn't that a good thing?" Mammon blurt out, wincing as Lucifer turned on him with a menacing stare. Diavolo looked over with a smile, grateful at the comment, for it meant Mammon was listening. The white haired avatar of greed usually had but one thing on his mind- and it wasn't Diavolo.
"You think it is wise to avoid the other realms?" Diavolo asked honestly, gesturing for Mammon to continue.
"I think we shouldn't care about them, cuz they don't care about us!" Mammon replied, glancing warily towards Lucifer. "Angels are good for nothing, and humans are only good for two things."
"Two?" Asmodeus asked with a lust filled smirk. "I would have said only one thing."
"They make good snacks," Beelzebub commented, as his stomach gave a massive growl. "By the way, Lucifer, I'm hungry."
"You're always hungry," Mammon said with a roll of his eyes. "Though I agree that humans can be tasty, sometimes. Otherwise, they're only good for-"
"Books."
"Anime."
"Seduction."
"Target practice."
Mammon looked around, incredulous, at all the comments that had come at once from his siblings, though he was a little wary of Belphie's sadistic grin.
"I was going to say for the money!" he claimed, not wanting to think about the other's crazy priorities. "But even that's not worth it most of the time. Humans are just trouble!"
"So then, what is the solution?" Barbatos spoke up, smiling as well, for they had foreseen that this would be how some of them felt. "Just cut all ties?" he asked, bringing the conversation back to the matter at hand.
"No way!" Leviathan burst out, surprising many of them, since he mostly kept to himself, when he even bothered to come to the school. "I won't be able to get my manga, my anime, my statues, not to mention the music-"
"There's more to think of than all those… things," Asmodeus chimed in. "I mean, what about me?"
"What about you?" Satan asked dryly from across the room.
"The beauty products alone…" Asmodeus continued, sounding wistful.
"Not to mention the treats from the celestial realm," Beelzebub added.
"Only you would think of the food as something important," Belphegor muttered to his brother, as he fluffed his pillow. He was regretting having showed up, but Lucifer had threatened them within an inch of their existence to be here. Perhaps he could salvage it with a nap.
"Aha!" Diavolo exclaimed happily, pointing at them.
"Aha?" Mammon asked, confused.
"You have just gotten to the crux of the matter, exactly as Diavolo intended," Lucifer said with a smug smirk.
"Mammon did?" Levi asked, smirking. "Are you sure it wasn't on accident?"
"Hey! Shaddup you!"
"Enough!" Lucifer commanded as he stood, and they fell silent.
"The point is," Diavolo continued, waving Lucifer back to his seat, "that we most likely do not know exactly how much the other realms affect us. And in turn, how much we affect them." He was smiling widely now, seeing that they were ready to hear his idea.
"If we not only embrace that, but build upon it… we can see the Devildom brought out from obscurity. We can make life, MORE… not just for us, but for all the Devildom!"
The council members glanced at each other, uncertain as to what the demon lord was asking. Being brothers, they got their messages across to each other with just a simple glance.
Diavolo knew they were a tough audience, and that just as promised, Lucifer could make them agree. But, he didn't want forced obedience (though he would take it if necessary). He wanted them to be on board with his vision and eventually adopt it as their own.
"So… with all of that in mind, what I am proposing is… a student exchange program."
He somewhat expected the silence, but it still was shocking at how quiet the room was. He flustered slightly, then started speaking quickly. "It would be something of an experiment at first, and most likely to come with a steep learning curve. I mean, having angels and humans here in the Devildom would be tricky…
"But!" he continued after taking a quick breath. "This would also be an attempt at opening the door to a new age for all of us!"
There was a shuffle, and they all turned to see Belphegor on his feet, glaring at the demon lord, his chest heaving in angry pants. Not something they were used to from the avatar of sloth.
"Wait just a second!" Belphegor snapped. "Do you even hear yourself?!" He glanced around to his brothers, thinking they must feel the same. "The idea of exchanging… with humans?! That's insane!"
He looked around again, his eyes landing on Lucifer, the only one that could help turn this madness around. "We can't do this!" he pressed, each sentence becoming more and more frantic. "Absolutely not!"
"Belphegor," Diavolo stated, staying calm. Barbatos and Lucifer had warned him that Belphegor might feel this way. "I understand that this idea makes you anxious, however, having humans here will help the Devildom to grow- to develop into something greater.
"And I would most certainly not allow harm to befall any of my people because of this."
"Coming into contact with humans CAUSES HARM!" Belphegor shouted, and the room was eerily silent once more.
Diavolo glanced at Lucifer, seeing both the anger and grief on his face for his youngest brother. He hoped that he could say the right things, not just for his sake, but for all of them.
"Times have changed Belphegor," he started, keeping his voice steady. "The universe is more that just we here. We exist by maintaining balance with the other realms, and as they evolve, we must adapt.
"There are humans that already know of us, and making pacts with us. It may seem like we are rejecting our history by acknowledging and accepting each other, building relationships… but, we will never get anywhere if we're too afraid to move forward.
"What we need now…" he continued, speaking to all of them. "Is courage. To take the first step into the future. And we, as leaders, must be the first to take this step for our people."
Belphie slammed his fist on the table in front of him. "You can't fool me with your pretty speeches," he said snidely. "Nor my brothers."
"Actually, I think it sounds like a well thought out plan," Satan commented idly as he glanced at his fingernails. "Perhaps we should vote on it."
"Good idea!" Belphie agreed, certain that Diavolo would be put in his place.
And then the vote was cast, eight in favor, one against.
Belphie was shocked as he looked to the others. He had seen the contrite look on Beel's face, and how the others avoided looking at him, even as they raised their hands. How could they?! he thought angrily. Are they all going to act like Lilith was nothing? Like she didn't exist?!
"Take some time," Diavolo said, though inwardly he was pleased. He glanced over to Belphegor again, noting that he was sullenly crossing his arms and glaring at the floor. "I hope that soon we can be of one mind on this."
"Never," Belphie muttered to himself.
Lucifer sat on his bed, waiting for the inevitable. He had met with Diavolo and Barbatos after the others left, and knew that with or without Belphie, this plan was moving forward. In fact, the celestial realm was already prepared, and they had already chosen the candidates from the human realm, though he was still concerned about that last choice.
Choosing the woman because her application landed on his foot? Incredibly unwise, especially because of the trepidation he felt with his skim of the paper. There had been just enough information to make it legitimate, but no more. It was as if the candidate wasn't sure of themself, or whether they actually wanted to be a part of it.
And yet, Diavolo seemed so intent on her. It was ludicrous, yet here he was, going along with it. However, it wasn't all bad. If it went well, he could claim some semblance of the honor, and if it went poorly… well he would take the blame of course, but he would be able to hold it over Diavolo for decades.
Of course, it would go well, he would see to it. Diavolo had his loyalty, and that meant he had everything that Lucifer could give him.
And yet…
He sighed, putting his head into his gloved hands. He wanted to change, get his work done, and hopefully have a little peace and quiet to relax, but he knew his family better than that. They were so different here- now that they each embodied their own sin, but they were still his. He would do better this time to protect them… even from themselves.
He knew Belphie was coming to see him, even before he knocked on the door. And he knew there were only two options. Belphie had to get on board, or he would be taken out of the way, especially now that vote had passed. And the thought made Lucifer sick inside, because he knew just how stubborn Belphie was when he thought he was right.
"What is it?" he asked, once the knock sounded. The door opened, and Belphie strode in.
"I need to speak to you about this, Lucifer," Belphegor said, already pulsing with anger. "You need to help me stop this."
Lucifer stood now, though he was trembling inside, his facade was perfect. "No Belphie, it is you who needs to accept that this is happening."
"You are just fine with this?" Belphie demanded. "With humans staying here?!"
Lucifer sighed again. For all his cunning, when Belphegor was intent on something, he couldn't see the woods past the few trees in front of him. "You know as well as anyone, that once a motion is passed by the student council officers, that's it. It cannot be undone."
"If Diavolo changes his mind, then it can!" Belphie pressed. "This is wrong! Please Lucifer, I'm begging you! You're the only one that can persuade Diavolo!"
"I will not," Lucifer said firmly. "The fact is that I agree with his plan for the exchange program. We ALL do, obviously, because we voted for it!"
"But…" Belphie slumped a little, and his voice cracked as he continued. "Have you forgotten about Lilith?"
"What does she have to do with any of this?" Lucifer asked coldly, even as his heart twisted.
"What do you mean?! Everything! It's because of the humans! They're responsible for what happened!"
"It's time you let that go," Lucifer said, wishing that they both could.
"Let it go…" Belphie stopped, standing up straight, and looking Lucifer coldly in the face. "You mean forget?! Just FORGET about my SISTER?! Is that what YOU'VE DONE?!"
Lucifer didn't reply, just watched as the power surged around Belphie. In his anger, he couldn't control himself as he slowly changed into his more powerful form.
"UNFORGIVEABLE!" Belphie roared. "I refuse to stand by and watch this happen again! I will not allow an exchange with humans to go forward!"
"You cannot stop it," Lucifer said again, his voice deadly calm.
"Humans… ugh," Belphie continued to rant, his tail swishing through the air with each pace of the room. "They should be wiped from existence!"
"Belphegor," Lucifer said in warning. "Stop. Not another word, or you'll be guilty of treason."
"Yes!" Belphie shouted. "That's it exactly!" He stopped, his eyes wild as he faced his older brother. "I am standing up in defiance against Diavolo!" He moved to leave, thinking furiously as the thoughts came racing to him. "Since you won't do it, I will! I'll erase every last human, and then, I'll kill Diavolo as well!"
He looked up to Lucifer, and Lucifer eased back at the crazed look in his eyes. "If you stand in my way, I'll kill you too!"
He couldn't say that he expected this, yet it didn't surprise him. However, once Belphegor crossed the line, Lucifer knew he needed to act, and quickly.
With a snarl, he transformed, the aura of his power causing Belphegor to gasp and step back into an attack stance.
"Enough Belphie," Lucifer said coldly. "Do you seriously mean to attack me?" he asked. "What could come from us fighting over this?" He reached forward and grabbed Belphie's arm.
"Hey, let go of me!" Belphie shouted.
"I have heard what you said, and now you are the one that will listen," Lucifer seethed, and Belphie trembled slightly in the presence of his anger. "I will not allow you to stand in Diavolo's way. You may be my brother, but this is a bridge too far, even for you. And now, you will have to pay the price."
His stomach fell, but he knew this was the only way to keep from having to give Belphie over to Diavolo for treason. "From this moment forward, you will be kept here, as a prisoner. And you will stay as such, until you calm down, and reform your way of thinking."
"WHAT?!" Belphie gasped. "Why?! Why would you do this Lucifer?!" He glared up to his brother, angry tears forming in his eyes, even as Lucifer drug him across the room. "It's Diavolo, isn't it?! Is he more important to you now? More important than all of us? Your BROTHERS?!"
Lucifer said nothing, and Bephie snarled. "ANSWER ME!"
".… Yes."
Belphie whipped his head back, like he had been struck. His jaw gaped open at his brother, and he searched for words. "But… why? Why would… how could….?! GRAAAAAAH!" he yelled, falling to his knees in agony and anger.
Lucifer reached down, and knocked him out. Then picked him up and carted him up the stairs to his private room in the attic. He thought it sad but fitting that the room had been used so much by Belphie as an escape, a place to nap in solitude- and it would now be for his isolation.
He could only hope that he would come to his senses quickly.
"Hey, have you seen Belphie?" Beel asked his brothers as he ate his breakfast. "I haven't seen him since last night."
"I don't know," Asmo responded. "But if he doesn't hurry, he's going to be late again."
"I'd better go kick him out of bed," Mammon said, finishing his breakfast quickly.
"There is no need for that," Lucifer said as he walked into the room. "He will not be at school today. The rest of you should get moving however, or you will be late."
Beel looked around to the others, then up at Lucifer. It was perfectly reasonable. Belphie did miss school a lot, or slept through it when he was there, and he had been upset. But Beel didn't like leaving without saying anything, either, and Lucifer was acting a bit odd.
Finally he shrugged, not knowing what else to do. He finished his breakfast with a loud slurp, and grabbed his bag, following the others out the door.
Lucifer stood where he was, the slamming of the door reverberating in his mind. It wasn't going to be a good day, and he already had a headache. But… he had started this mess, and needed to clean it up. Diavolo was certainly expecting to continue on with the exchange program today, and that meant Lucifer needed to finish the preparations.
He looked up at the ceiling, as if he could see straight through to the attic, giving himself this last moment to feel sorry, and then righted himself. He strode out the door quickly, knowing Diavolo was most certainly already waiting for him, so he'd have to hurry to avoid any awkward questions.
Turning down her street had Kim sighing with relief. It had been a long, grueling day, and she was just glad it was over.
Strike that… she thought, seeing a couple of familiar cars parked in her driveway. She could practically feel the annoyance making a vein pulse on her forehead. How many times have I asked them to park on the street so that I'm not blocked from the garage?! she grumbled to herself.
It wasn't that she disliked her husband's friends. They were nice enough guys. It just seemed that they all reverted back to childhood whenever they were around each other. Which meant that there were messes that were waiting for her inside, and they'd want her to actually make something for dinner.
She told herself that she would be happy to, after all, she actually liked cooking, most of the time. Maybe a quick shower would help rejuvenate her.
She pulled over to the curb and turned off the car. Giving herself another moment to let go of the annoyance, she finally grabbed her bag and headed up to the house. Remembering the mail, she turned, and walked back down to the street.
When had everything become so mundane? she wondered as she pulled the small stack out of the mailbox. Is this all that life is as an adult? Work and home, repeating over and over? And when did I turn into such a cynic? She gave a small laugh at her own thoughts, reminding herself that it could be far worse. She flipped through the letters as she walked up the path to the door.
Letting herself in, she could hear the sounds coming from the spare bedroom that they had made into a game room, something that they had both agreed on. She smiled at the memories it evoked. How she and Jon met, the dates they would have as they raided dungeons together, fought dragons or monsters, or even took on assassins and mobsters.
Playing games together was basically the foundation of their relationship.
Too bad real life kept creeping in, and she was the only one that seemed to care.
"Hon? Is that you?" she heard him shout.
"Yeah, I'm home," she replied, hanging her bag and keys up on the coat rack, and moving into the living room.
"Great!" he called back. "We were just getting hungry again!"
Kim rolled her eyes, as she looked at the trash atop the kitchen table. Bags of takeout food, empty sauce packets, and who knew what else. "Can't you clean up after yourselves?" she asked, not bothering to raise her voice.
"What?" came the shout.
She sighed, knowing it wasn't any use now. She'd have to wait until she had his attention to talk about this. She quickly cleaned up, sat at the table, and began to open the mail.
Bill, junk, junk, bill, she thought as she opened and sorted, discarding as needed. She frowned as she looked at an official looking envelope.
It was addressed to Jon, using his full legal name, which she knew he hated, and never used. It must be from the government or something, she thought, tearing it open.
"Thank you for your interest in our exchange program, however, you have not been chosen at this time," she murmured the words as she read. "What in the world?"
She didn't know what Jon had signed up for this time, yet it didn't surprise her. He was always trying to get into Microsoft or Sony, thinking if he could just get an internship, then they would recognize how much they needed him as a developer.
She shook her head, wondering when he would either put in the work or let go of that dream. He seemed to think he didn't need to do anything but ask, and life should favor him.
And again, her new found cynicism was showing.
Grabbing the last envelope, she noted that it looked exactly the same as the previous one, yet this time, it was addressed to her.
Signed me up too, huh? she thought, smiling. Well at least he wanted to do it together.
She opened the letter, expecting to see a copy of the previous one. Instead, she did a double take, as she read- then reread the words, hoping to make some sense of them.
Congratulations!
It is with great pride that we inform you, Kimberly, that you have been chosen to represent the human realm in an exchange that will mark a new age in the history of the world.
She stopped there, reading it yet again. Thinking it had to be some kind of joke, or that this company obviously felt that it was something monumental, she skimmed to the bottom of the page.
Feel free to bring along anything that you can carry, however, no weapons of any kind are allowed. You will be retrieved in the morning on the 25th of May . Please be at home and ready.
Signed,
Eligos
Assistant to the Council of Lords
Reading it again didn't help, because she still didn't understand. Council of Lords? Lords of what?! Taking the letter, she walked over to the room where her husband and his two friends were playing.
"Jon?" she asked from the doorway. "What is this?"
"Hmm?" he said, turning his face towards her, yet his eyes never left the screen.
Kim hated to lose her temper. She liked to keep everything running smoothly, and the people in her life happy, even when that meant compromising her own desires. But for some reason, this moment was when she had had enough.
"Jonathan. Pass the controller, and come over here," she ordered. Jon looked up in annoyance at the use of his full name, but seeing the look on her face, he decided to go ahead and do as she asked.
He gave the controller to his friend that was observing, and stood to walk to the door, ignoring the comments from the other two about blocking the screen.
"What is it?" he asked, petulantly. She never acted like this, especially in front of company.
She thrust out the paper to him, and he looked at it, confused. He took a minute to read a bit, and his face broke out in a grin.
"No way! No freakin' way! You got in, that's amazing!" he said, grabbing her, and spinning her around.
"What do you mean, I got in?!" she demanded, shaking him a bit, as if that would let the explanation loose.
"This is so awesome!" he said, looking down to the letter again.
"Jon!" she said, grabbing the letter back, and holding it up in front of him. "What is this?" she asked.
He gave her a confused look. "You remember, I told you about this," he replied, grabbing the letter back. "I applied for both of us, to help my chances. It's that new tech company, the one that uses code for everything? It's a huge secret, only known by a select few." He beamed at her again.
"Nothing in this letter makes sense," she replied, crossing her arms.
"Like I said, code," he said, reading it again. "No real names, that sort of thing. They can't chance it."
"So we know nothing about this? How did you even apply?"
"I found it through some of my research, that's all," he said, smiling at her. "It's extremely rare to even find the application, and they were only accepting two people!" he looked up again, in awe.
"And they chose you!" He frowned now. "Actually, it was probably a random drawing, because there's no way they would have chosen you. I mean, you know what I mean."
Her eyes narrowed on him. "No, what do you mean?" she asked quietly.
"Dude, don't take it like that," he said with an eye roll. "It's just that you're not qualified, that's all. But hey," he shrugged. "Who cares, right? You got in!"
"Jon, I'll ask again. Got in to what?"
He gave her a look, and pointed to the paper. "Exactly what it says, an exchange, like an internship."
She was rubbing her forehead now, not believing that he got her into this. "An exchange is not an internship, Jon." She grabbed the paper, searching the bottom of it again. "I'll have to decline."
"You can't decline!" he said, aghast. "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity!"
She glared up at him. "Oh, yeah?" she asked. "For who?"
"For us, of course!" he answered, wondering what had gotten into her. "It's only a short time, and you'll be back before you know it!" he exclaimed, grabbing the paper and waving it in front of her. "This is the beginning for us! A foot in the door!"
"I can't just up and leave," she replied, turning around and heading to her bedroom. "I have a job, responsibilities, a family."
"I'll be fine, and you can find another job at another store any time," he said, getting worked up now. "This is too good to pass up!"
"Sorry," she replied again, flopping down on the bed. "I have a headache, so I'm going to lie down. Go on back to your friends." With that, she shut her eyes, and turned away.
He glared, wondering what he could say to get her to agree. He glanced down at the paper again, and smiled.
"I don't think you can decline," he said, as he walked out of the room. "They're coming for you tomorrow."