Mikau: Hello everyone! It's late, I'm tired, but I wanted to get this update in. I also wanted to tell everyone that I got the role of Helene, the maid, in "A Doll's House"! Okay, I'm going to bed. Enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own Shaman King.

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Sibling Rivalry

It was only six o'clock in the morning, and yet, I was up. I had had trouble sleeping the previous few nights, and had developed a bad case of insomnia. None of my companions seemed to satisfy me anymore. I found myself bitter and short tempered. Of course I had always had a bad disposition, but it had gotten worse.

It was only six o'clock in the morning, and yet I had already gone through several decanters of wine, then moving on to gin, followed by vodka, and straight into vermouth. No matter how I drank, I never got drunk. I was quite fed up with it all.

It was only six o'clock in the morning, and yet I had gone through a pack of cigarettes. I lit one after another at first using my lighter (the one Adella got me for my birthday; the one with flames on it.), but soon my thumb got tired and I resorted to using the burnt out end of one to light the next. One of my many servants made a crack about me becoming a chain smoker, and I promptly sent them off to be tortured. Normally I would have had a better sense of humor about the whole thing, but today I was not in the mood.

"What's the matter?" An angel-sweet voice interrupted me from my rant.

A rare smile lit my face. There before me stood my only source of joy in life. "Hey Adella. What makes you so sure something's wrong?"

At six o'clock in the morning, somehow she knew I was up. She had come in to keep me company while she did the books. Adella sat down on the love seat, setting her books on the coffee table, as I sat across from her on my throne.

"Damien, I can tell when something is wrong with you. Don't you think I know you well enough?" She opened her book, turned on her calculator, and set off to work. She was the only person who could get away with calling me by my given name. Well, except for maybe my brother. Maybe.

"You're overacting. I'm fine. Hey have you seen Lucifer today?" I tried to act indifferently to my little brother's location.

"Nope." Not the answer I wanted to hear. "No one's seen him for—Oh, I don't know—a few weeks now? Don't worry, he'll be back."

I picked up on the comforting tone in her voice. I was quick to eradicate her suspicions of me caring about my brother. "I'm not worried. I was just wondering where on earth angel-boy was. I was going to boss him around or something."

She smiled, on to my little secret. "You don't have to act like that. You never smoked before Lucifer disappeared, and two days after he went missing you started smoking. Plus your drinking has gotten a lot worse lately. It's okay to be worried about your little brother." I may not have liked Lucifer, but he was missed if he was gone for a long period of time.

"Don't be ridiculous Adella, I'm not worried about him. I'm just slightly concerned." He had probably gotten himself killed or something…

It was silent for a little while. We sat there just enjoying each other's company, she working on balancing the books, and I drinking like it was going out of style. We both jumped when this comfortable silence was disrupted by the phone ringing. Adella got up and turned the abominable contraption on speakerphone.

"Hello, Adella speaking. Who is this?"

"It's Botan from the docks; hello Adella!"

"Hey Botan! What's up?" They immediately started chatting in schoolgirl rigmarole of 'he said she said'. At least that's what it sounded like to me. They talked so fast and it was like birds chirping back and forth. Adella had the cutest look on her face as she chatted away with Botan.

What was really said was somewhat along the lines of Botan saying that she had just let Lucifer off at the docks outside my palace, but he had looked different. The blue-haired ferrywoman also said something about something in his eyes.

Adella thanked Botan, said her goodbyes, and hung up, but as soon as she did, there was another call coming in, this time from downstairs. A girl was calling to inform us that Lucifer was on his way up. This woman too said that there was something odd about my younger sibling.

"Where do you suppose he's been?" Adella looked quizzically at me.

"Probably on earth. He seems to like it there." I shrugged a shoulder. Now that I knew my stupid kid brother was safe, I could go back to pretending to have nothing but utter disdain for him.

"Hmm…. Yes. I suppose so. Do you think he's having a fling with some girl? Last time he visited I vaguely remember his saying something about a girl."

I couldn't help but openly laugh. "My brother and a girl! HA! He may be in love with one, but I seriously doubt that he's actually with anyone. He wouldn't know which end went where."

"Oh be nice to your little brother. Ahh!" She jumped when someone knocked rather loudly for six o'clock in the morning on the door.

"Come in." I beckoned in a bored tone.

The door opened and in stepped my brother. He did look different, not at all like the meek, little thing that I had framed and got tossed out of Heaven. There was a certain look in his eyes, one that was not unfamiliar to me. It was a look of total control of the situation. Even the way he carried himself was different. Normally he would try to stay compact and…well, little, taking up the least possible space. It was like he was trying to disappear. Now he walked with an air of confidence. I wasn't fooled though. I could see that something huge was weighing over his head, and it was troubling him greatly.

"Oh. It's you. What do you want?" I feinted disinterest as he approached.

"I need to talk to you." He turned and spared one of his old smiles for Adella. "Alone."

She smiled back and nodded, picking up her books and heading for the door.

I held up my hand and Adella stopped. "She'll stay." I wanted to test this new brother of mine. What would he do if I challenged his authority and acted as his superior?

"I'd rather that she not hear what I have to say." Two cold, black pools of hate glared at me. Murder's eyes.

Something was up, but I didn't show the tiniest bit of recognition on my face. "All right then. Adella if you'd leave us." She took her cue and left with a slight nod to me and a smile for Lucifer.

The door closed behind my angel, and we continued our talk. "So where have you been these past weeks?"

"Nowhere of significance." He shrugged me off like a rebellious teenager and took a seat across from me on the loveseat.

"And what where you up to while you were at nowhere of significance?" I smirked mildly down at him, swinging my legs over the arm of my throne.

"Nothing." His answers were brief and nondescript. He was up to something.

Just for my own amusement I threw in, "And did you get any?" He only gave me a death glare as a response. My smirked to a disapproving stare. "Well I am your brother after all. If I'm not allowed to ask those kinds of questions, then who is?" I smirked yet again for emphasis, but still got no response from him.

"And why the hell did you come back? If you were happy on earth with that human girl, then why didn't you stay there and marry her? It's not like anyone down here would miss you. Well, there are some girls that would a little, but after a while they'd eventually forget." I shrugged.

"Look Damien, I need your help." This was not like my brother at all.

"Who is this girl anyway?" I dropped my stuck up façade for a minute to satisfy my curiosity. Who was this woman who changed my brother so?

"I'd rather not say—"

I couldn't help but interrupt to tease. A small part of my old, shy little brother had come out, and I had to seize the opportunity. "Oh come now Lucy, I—"

"Look Damien, are you going to listen to what I have to say or not?"

He had interrupted me. I sat there with my mouth hanging open. It wasn't exactly that he had interrupted me, but more of the way he said it. He had been openly rude to me. Normally he wouldn't dare, and normally I would smite him for showing such disrespect. But I just sat there staring with my mouth open.

I regained my composure and swung my legs off of the arm of the chair. My smile returned. "Seriously, I want to know who this girl is. What has she done to give you such self-confidence? Normally you would never be able to act toward me like that, but now…."

"Her name is Hoshi." He was back to his short answers.

"Oh, that's right! The prostitute that we were talking about last time. I see you really hit it off with her. And you're deeply in love with her." I smiled somewhat kindly at him.

"I need your help." He repeated.

"Start talking before I get bored of your presence and stop listening." I smiled and he began to speak.

By the end of his speech my mouth was hovering slightly above the floor tiles again, and a grave look was deeply etched into my face. "Are you sure you want to do this? There's no turning back once you begin."

"It's already begun. Like you said, I can't turn back now that we're so near the end. As you can see, I need your assistance brother. Will you help me?"

How could I turn him down? He was yet again my scared little brother begging for my help. He wasn't the least self-sufficient, and he still acknowledged my superior powers over his, and he knew his place. The Lucifer I saw walk in wasn't the real Lucifer, but a fake front. True that being with Hoshi had given him a major confidence boost, but he did not yet think himself higher in status than I was. He knew my place above him, but he now realized that his place was not down on his hands and knees at my feet, but more like standing next to me a few steps behind.

"Sure, I'll help you this time for free, but next time you owe me." With a wink from me and a nod from him he left, a smile upon his face.

I could see beneath it though. He was scared out of his wits. I found myself thinking that I too would be at least a little frightened if I had to take a course of action that would endanger my relationship with Adella.

Sure I didn't like my little brother, but of course I didn't hate him like I pretended. I saw him as my reflection in a mirror that was a window to another, parallel world. He was a constant reminder of what I could have been if I would have kept on the straight and narrow.

But of course if I had kept walking straight I never would have met Adella. No, I didn't like or hate my brother. I hoped he could be what I had chosen not to. I could not marry Adella because of what we both were; I didn't want the same thing to happen to Lucifer and Hoshi. I wished him the best of luck.

It was only six o'clock in the morning, and yet was it too early to confess my love to her? I might not have been able to marry her, but I could always tell her how I really felt. I silently wished my brother good luck, and went to go find Adella.

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