What had started as an introduction to one Unicorn herd and a few Kindred puppies turned into a large scale Kindred reunion including wolves, cats, and horses, and even a dragon or two. Since the angels were able to communicate with the Kindred on their level, both as animals and as intelligent beings, they made fast friends and they eventually didn't even need Jaenelle to make the introductions.
Not that she minded. She was preoccupied, as she had been that morning, with reports coming out of Little Terreille of Queens starting to exhibits signs of cruelty towards the males in their Courts. She'd known that the purge would not be perfect. She'd known that those who might not have been corrupted at the time of the purge would remember the power those women had held and might eventually fall into the same brutality, but she had hoped it would not happen.
She and Daemon were standing a little ways off from everyone else when he coaxed the truth behind her mood out of her. His initial rise to rage did not help her own temper but he leashed it and told her about Azazeal's confrontation with the young Queen at the bar. Jaenelle would normally have flown off the handle at not being told about this kind of occurrence but she was too worn out by her emotions to do more than nod and add it to her consideration over what to do.
Several hours later, when seemingly every Kindred animal in Kaeleer had been introduced to the angels and their Ladies, Beale announced that lunch was being served in the dinning room. The last of the Kindred said their farewells and left the humans to their meal.
"I'm surprised none of the Sceltie puppies claimed any of you," Lucivar commented as they made the walk back to the house.
"Claimed us?" Cassie asked with an arched eyebrow.
"Uh, ya," Lucivar laughed and Marion rolled her eyes, "Among the Kindred, well the wolves and Scelties anyway, it is the animal that claims their friend or Queen. And they are…very insistent about it."
"Well," Azazeal commented casually, "Perhaps they understood that we are taken."
"Perhaps," Lucivar agreed.
Lunch was a strange affair with Jaenelle and Daemon trying to keep their composure, Lucivar angry that they were keeping something from him and Marion worried about what Lucivar would do. Elizabeth had convinced Lucifer to take human form again, but even though she and Jaenelle had made their peace, she was still agitated because she wanted to apologize to Lucifer and he had the unreadable look of an angel waiting for his orders. Cassie and Azazeal looked on all of this with a mix of concern and amusement, waiting for events to play out so that they could take their roles.
After lunch Daemon excused himself and Jaenelle which gave everyone a chance to be on their own for a while, though Lucivar did not take kindly to it.
When Elizabeth and Lucifer were finally alone, everything changed. She tried to apologize to him for taking out her anger on him, but he ignored her, preferring instead to slowly disrobe her. He laughed softly at her when she would try to stop him but then not be able to resist him pulling her hands away. By the time he had started on his own clothes, she had given up, but when he slid next to her, kissed her deeply and murmured Na Adna, Na Hoath, Na De, she started to cry.
He stopped and held her against him, letting her cling to him tightly as she cried. How could he say those things to her after how she had acted today? The simple translation was 'I am obedient, I am your worshiper, I am yours', but the levels of angelic meaning made it more profound than the mortal words could convey. Finally he pushed her back to look at her. When their eyes met, she saw the man he had become, at least in part. Not the outrageously powerful and cocky angel, not the bowing servant, but the man who was capable of comforting her and seeing beyond his own struggling existence. Or maybe it was all of his sides coming together, fitting into place and finding clarity when she needed it.
He smiled gently and knowingly at her. "Na De," he said again but it sounded different this time. Kind but firm and confidant, an inescapable truth that they both were subject to.
"I know it's hard," he said, "but we are what we are together. You are mine and I am yours, only what you are to me and what I am to you are different. This must be, you know that."
She nodded with a brave smile. She knew he didn't blame her for her actions today, she'd already known that, but the human part of her could not help feeling sorry. Just as he would have responded to the anger or joy or unease of heaven without judgment or hesitation, he would respond to her. She had accepted this when she agreed to be what she was and now she needed to accept it again.
He made love to her then slowly, gently as a man still captivated by just feel of his lover, making her body sing with pleasure. Her climax, as it generally did, brought his soon after and even though this time it did not go beyond his human form into angelic ecstasy, his body shook for a long time with the effect of it. Angels did not have those sometimes abrupt climaxes that felt as if the wave had been traveling too fast towards the shore to catch and ride and all one is left with is the memory of the thrill as it passed over you. It was as if they stretched themselves wide and became part of the wave of pleasure, giving themselves over to it out of love and letting themselves be taken wherever it willed until it left them exhausted and empty on the shore, ready to be filled with love again and to give it all again.
They held each other for a long time before putting on their clothes to join the others. And as they dressed, they both knew that later that night, when they came back to this room, there would come a moment when Lucifer would stand before her and then kneel, bringing himself down to her feet where he would pause before deliberately kissing one foot and then the other. And she would accept this, his place at her feet and her place above him, reaffirming their bond and giving him the kind of love that he needed.
When they did join the others, everyone could see the small change in Lucifer, a side of him they hadn't seen before. It would fade, even these new friends knew enough to know that he would constantly change, but right now it was a side of him that Jaenelle needed too.
"I have a favor to ask of you and Azazeal," she started, "I…we have no right, but…the purge was not complete and even if I could do it again, I would only be destroying more people," she paused, nearly in tears, "Cassie has told me of the work the angels do in your world, influencing people to bring about change…could you…would you…"
She stopped and looked from Lucifer to Azazeal and back again hopefully. Lucifer smiled at her like the wise and powerful angel that he was and purposefully looked down at Elizabeth. Jaenelle turned her attention to Azazeal and he did the same thing, smiling kindly but looking to Cassie for her decision.
"Of course, we will," Cassie announced, knowing how disconcerting it could be to see the angels defer to them, "Right, Elizabeth?"
"How could we refuse!" Elizabeth said. "It's what we do! Besides, trouble-maker here needs to expend some energy or who knows what may happen to Mrs. Beale's kitchen," she laughed and Jaenelle brightened at the prospect of this new alliance.
I thought I should note that I'm trying to explore some new sides of Jaenelle. She's far to perfect in the books. Even when she's mad, she's right and that can't always be possible. And just because she might be angry and wrong, doesn't mean she's not still a great Queen and Witch.
Anyway, I also thought I should acknowledge that I know this story has devolved somewhat into the Lucifer and Elizabeth story but I'm fascinated with the idea of him and this is all just what pops out of my imagination (I can't force it), so I hope there are some Lucifer/Elizabeth fans out there too. Thanks for reading! Please comment.