AN: Hey everyone another week another chapter. Thank you everyone for the many comments and again, I'd very happy that you are all enjoying the story.
Really quick, in scripture, Adam and Eve are never given a description of their appearance nor are their kids, so I'm making some stuff up here regarding them. I hope that's okay with everyone.
Regarding Adam knowing that Lucifer and Samael are the same person, he does know. It's just the Winners and other Angels that don't know that he goes by Lucifer after the fall.
I've posted some colored versions of the cleaned up versions of Jophiel, Zadkiel and Ariel on my twitter if anyone is curious. I'm not the best artist and for some reason Ariel turned a lot more green hued than I wanted but I can't seen to fit. But hey, at least it gives everyone an idea of what they sort of look it. /MajaJeppes74202
Quick warning: This chapter does make some references to nudity because they're taking a bath. Nothing sexual happens (again, not that kind of series) but Adam discovers while the newer angels and winners are a bit more reserved about undressing in front of others, the siblings aren't.
Chapter Ten
Down to the Water's Edge
When Adam had first come to Heaven, he was given a room on the upper levels with his own bathing chamber. Back then he had been impressed by its massive size as well as the novelty of having hot water without needing to boil it beforehand. He had loved every minute he spent in that tub, allowing his feathers to lie lazily on the water's surface while the heat seeped deep into his muscles and bones. Humans had no idea down on Earth how freaking awful it was having to chase a brood of unwilling kids down to the stream to wash or out in the snow during the deep of winter. And he had thought that the Archangels had something similar to that as well.
Turned out he was wrong.
The siblings didn't have a private bathroom. Instead, it was an oasis of iridescent pearl rocks and hot springs where they all entered without a care in the world and began to undress. It was strange to see how they each just calmly chatted away as they set about pulling off their different layers of clothing and folding them neatly into baskets to be washed, passing Ava gently between them until she ended up in Adam's arms. Even the women just calmly undressed as if it was the most natural thing in the world to be naked before one another and apparently him.
Adam wasn't exactly sure if he should enjoy the view or whether he should bleach his eyes later.
For a second, Adam was willing to allow Ariel to try washing Ava. After all, it was weird for him to be fully dressed among the naked angels like some leering old man. Who knows whether or not he could survive a beating from Uriel or Michael if he accidentally pitched a tent. However, it barely took two seconds for him to instantly step in when Ariel started to wash Ava.
He had assumed being 'God's Lioness' Ariel would have somewhat of an idea on how to wash a small child. She protected animals after all and on occasion, she was known to help them clean themselves. And some animals had delicate skin, so he was certain that she would be able to handle a tiny tot like Ava with no trouble.
Then he watched her in horror as she dumped a bucket of water over the girl, dousing her completely, before she reached for what Adam had to say was the stiffest bristled brush he had seen in his life.
"Wow, hold up, what are you doing?!" Adam barely managed to pull a coughing Ava away from the angel. No sooner had he picked the little one up, Adam could feel her shivering in his hold, the water dripping off her was freezing. "Did... did you just pour cold water all over her?"
Ariel barely managed to look confused as her siblings started to work on preening her wings, gently picking twigs and burrs out of the curled feathers. Smiling softly at him, the Archangel of Nature and Animals pointed at the tiny cloven feet as if that was all the answer she needed to give. Adam just looked blankly at her as he begrudgingly wrapped Ava into his robe, the baby letting out a very specific 'Brrrrr' sound as her tiny sharp teeth chattered.
"I was washing her," She calmly explained. "You're supposed to rinse them with cold water and use a stiff scrub to ensure you get through the fur to wash a kid properly."
Adam could feel his face twist in confusion. He wasn't sure how he knew it, but he had a nagging feeling that somehow he and Ariel were talking about the same thing and at the same time something completely different. He wouldn't say he hadn't forced his kids to bathe in cold water, they had lived during a time were the idea of indoor plumbing was nothing more than fiction, but the mortal year was eighteen hundred and something. And while indoor plumbing was only for those with the coin to spare for it, the concept of using warm water was at least normal.
So why did the angel think she needed to bathe Ava like an animal?
"Fur?" Adam repeated, looking at Ava who was curling into his side for warmth. "Ariel she's not a fucking dog. You don't wash kids in cold water if you can help it. Look at her, she's freezing."
"I know she's not a puppy, I have eyes," Ariel giggled as if Adam was telling her some sort of joke. "And kids don't mind cold water Adam. You should know that. You helped your sons raise a lot of them along with lambs."
It took a minute before the gears in Adam's mind finally clicked into place. At first, he was wondering what his child had to do with the sheep he and Eve had kept for food and wool. Honestly, they had kept a lot of different animals during their time on Earth, especially after his brats would drag home every weird animal they stumbled on. Though to be fair, some of them were really useful like the donkeys, cows, pigs, chickens, goats-
Adam paused for a second as he looked at the tiny 'toes' peeking out from his robe as Ava did her best to steal as much warmth from him as possible. They were goat-like hooves. And baby goats were called-
"Oh for fucks sake," Adam groaned before growling. "She's not a fucking goat!"
"She's not? But you said she was a kid. What is she then?"
Adam had never wanted to bang his head into a wall more than he did now. Not even when his kids entered the 'why' phase. Growling in frustration, Adam shifted the baby closer to his chest, instinctively rubbing her back firmly to try and warm her up without giving her an Indian burn.
"I'm starting to wonder if Lucifer was right when he said you lot were smarter than him..."
* * * Hazbin Hotel * * *
Despite their protests against it, Adam decided to deny any of the angels from bathing Ava. For all he knew, one of those idiots might wash the poor thing using lye. He managed somehow to scrounge up a small basin to use as a bathtub for Ava, experience having taught him that toddlers were notoriously wiggling when it came to water and they tended to have one of two reactions. Either they loved the water and it was the greatest thing on Earth since the discovery of boobs. Or they were convinced that you were going to try and assassinate them and would scream for help. With his own kids, it had been about half and half, though come winter time they were all pain in the asses come bath time.
"Alright, Puppet," Adam muttered as he calmly as he checked the water. It felt like it was an okay temp, but being she was Hellborn, Adam wasn't sure if she needed it warmer than usual or cooler. He figured body temp should be fine for her and gently urged her to touch the water. "What you think? Good enough?"
Judging by how she was splashing the water three seconds later, Adam was going to take an educated guess and say it was fine.
"Hey! Calm down, water monster," Adam barely had time to cover his eyes as Ava sent massive waves of water about her as she started to kick and splash about giggling. He had only filled the tube to her navel, but if she kept up the splashing, he was gonna have to add more to wash her with. "Easy now. Let me wash you."
The room had a massive supply of different soaps and scrubs to use, many of them scented with all sorts of oils that Adam had no idea what was. From what he could see, the angels seemed to enjoy them, as even Michael started to rub his body down with a rose-scented salt mixture while Zadkiel and Jophiel worked together to scrub down Ariel's back while she worked on her front. It was almost frightening to watch the soap and salt scrub turn a murky brown as snow-white skin started to become.
Adam wasn't a fan of smelling soaps. When he was alive, he and Eve had used coarse plants to scrub their bodies clean with, which now when he thought about it might have been the reason most of his kids had hated bath time. The soap that the Babylonians had created was pretty good, but Adam had to wonder why the fuck they all needed to smell like three bottles of smelling oil were dumped into them. Sniffing a the different ones, Adam found one liquid soap he deemed neutral enough to use on the over-happy little girl and started to gently rub a wash rag over the tiny body, accepting that he should have undressed like the angels had as he was already half soaked.
* * * Hazbin Hotel * * *
Charlie had always loved bath time. Both Mommy and Daddy knew how to make it fun. And it had gotten extra special after Tabby and Doggyman had arrived. Tabby did most of the washing, but every once in a while, Doggyman would get wet when Charlie played with the water and then he would shake it off. He always made a funny face and sound when he did that and if Tabby was next to him, she would make a funny sound too.
She'd also look mad at Doggyman but he would just laugh with Charlie and then everything was okay.
But neither Doggyman nor Tabby were here and the strange man Adam was washing her instead of Daddy, which was strange. Normally Daddy would bathe her if he was there. And there would be duckies too. Lots of them. Looking around, Charlie tried to see if she could see where the duckies had disappeared to. This bathroom wasn't like the one she normally had bath time in after all. It was way bigger and looked more like it was outside than inside.
Well, that was fine too, it was pretty after all. Like Mommy.
Looking around, Charlie tried to see if she could find Mommy Duck and Daddy Duck. She always had them during bath time with Baby Duck, Daddy had made them for her after all. But no matter where she looked, they were nowhere to be seen. Were they gone?
Charlie started to recall a book Tabby had read to her every night after Daddy left. It was a simple book with bright colors about a duckling who was looking for its mommy, asking all sorts of animals along its way from a beenappers, to an almarji, to a nykur which was a type of water horse and finally a Leviathan who would bring the ducking to the place where it's Mommy and Daddy were looking for it.
Maybe that was what had happened to them. But what if they had gotten lost too? She needed to tell Daddy but Daddy was talking to the pretty lady with puffy hair. She needed to get his attention, but how?
* * * Hazbin Hotel * * *
Once Adam was satisfied that Ava was scrubbed off well enough, he started to gently try and pour water over her to rinse the suds off when she started to reach for Michael once more. The angel didn't notice though as he was washing his hair and had dumped a bucket over his head as well.
Looking back at Ava, Adam couldn't help but get this really annoying feeling inside. Why was it that Ava seemed to like Michael the most? Trying to think back to his kids, he had to admit they all kind of looked like a lot of different people too. Like Cain had pale white skin with light camel curls whereas Abel had olive skin and nearly black hair. It wasn't until Adam had died and gone to Heaven that Sera had explained that because they were the first, both Adam and Eve possessed all the genes of the variations of humanity in them, so some of their kids had been born looking completely different from their parents.
'Kind of wish they had told me that to start with.' Adam thought as he recalled the argument he and Eve had when Slumiel, Maza, and Asin came out several shades darker than either of them and with different types of hair.
Not that he hadn't loved every single one of them, taking on his role as a father with every bit of honor the title demanded. He had raised, taught, loved, and protected all of his children like a raging tiger, even if they hadn't always liked it. Especially the girls since it meant he had chased away a fair few suitors as they grew. But to be honest, there was no way he would let his little Iectas become the wife of some slothan fool who thought he could make her do all the work when he lay in the shade growing fat and lethargic. She was too good for him and in the end, she married another who, while still not completely worthy of her, honored their voes and loved her until they too passed.
Thinking about his children reminded Adam as well of how weird they had been at Ava's possible age. They had all had strange obsessions and preferences.
Cain had been obsessed with little lizards which Eve had loathed when he brought them into the house, and Abel had been fixated on playing with Adam's hair. Mind you, it wasn't the hair on his head the boy wanted to play with but on his chest. It had been hell when he was a baby because those little fingers could tangle themselves into those hairs before ripping them out. Until the boy was maybe three years old, Adam felt his chest looked like he had mange.
Seth, Maza, and Sifa had loved doing the same to Eve, though their target had always been the fine hairs at the nape of the neck, and Brabal had liked the sound and feel of crushed eggshells.
And then there was Anath with those fucking rocks up the nose... the number of times either Adam or Eve had to blow that kid in the mouth in order to pop some God damn peddle out of his nose almost bordered on criminal.
Saba, Tetia, and Asin had been weird babies too. They had loved crawling over to the onion basket and crinkling the skins of the onions. They wouldn't eat them unless under threat of 'death' but that crisp crunchy sound of the onion skin?
Apparently, that was baby opium for them. Especially Saba who would sneak them into bed at night like a teddy bear only to have Eve screaming about the smell.
As for preferences for people, Adam was pretty sure that both he and Eve were about fifty-fifty when it came to being the favorite parent with an odd one or two always seeking Seth out.
That and Qelima just loved the meanest chicken they had better than anyone else. Even when the stupid animal would heck at her hard enough to draw blood, she would just wait and capture it later, demanding its attention.
He was sure there was more, but he could remember them all, it was so long ago.
But that was all besides the point. The point was, Adam had this annoying inkling that he was missing something that was glaring him in the face like a holy light and once he knew what it was, he was going to feel like an idiot for not noticing it sooner. The problem was he couldn't put his finger on it, the last piece of some unknown puzzle eluding him the harder he was trying to figure it out. It was starting to irritate the hell out of him. Maybe if he just-
*SPLASH!*
A sudden wave of water was sent right into his face, followed by a series of loud happy giggles. Blinking in surprise, Adam looked down at Ava only to receive a mischievous grin. Without a speck of doubt, Adam was positive that it was no accident that she had splashed him, wanting to play a game she probably played with her parents back in Hell, a harmless one too if he was to guess because she didn't look like she was expecting him to melt or scream. Giving a small playful grow back, Adam cupped his hands in the water and dropped it on Ava's head, getting 'revenge' for her soaking his clothes.
It had Ava sputtering for a moment as she blinked with wide surprised owl-like eyes at him. Adam held his breath as he waited to see if she would start crying, worried that he might have taken his little payback too far for the baby, but a second later Ava started to roar with laughter as she splashed in the water as if nothing had happened. She babbled a little, trying to tell him something that he had no idea was before she smiled at him with a toothy grin.
It reminded him a lot of when he first spoke to Lucifer.
* * * Flashback * * *
The first time Adam had ever seen an angel was shortly after God had given him the task of naming all the animals of Eden and Lilith the plants. It felt like a daunting task because every day God visited them, he brought more and more creatures to be released into the garden with the aid of a silent light behind him. He and Lilith had tried to speak with it a few times, but the Almighty had told them that it was not allowed and that they needed to focus on the tasks that he had given them. Lilith had offered back then to help Adam as thinking up names was difficult for him, but when God discovered that, he told them that they couldn't help one another and to focus on their duties.
Neither had been sure why, but they obeyed nonetheless.
It had been the middle of the night when Adam had gotten up to take a walk. He couldn't sleep because of the heat and he didn't want to wake up Lilith with his tossing and turning. Lilith was a nice enough companion, but she could be awfully temperamental when awoken early and Adam didn't want her to yell at him.
Besides, some animals were only awake at night that he needed to name too.
It was when he reached the pond to check on the little creatures there when he saw it.
At first, Adam thought maybe it was a deer that was coming out for a nightly drink, but then he watched as a small head popped nervously out of the bushes. Staying hidden, Adam watched this strange new being slowly make its way to the pond's edge, calling softly out in the night to urge the little Water Boppers over to it. It was a pale animal, its skin almost white like the daisy flower petals and two bright red circles on its cheeks. This fur was strange, large, and loose like it hadn't grown into it yet as it walked on two legs while it folded its white wings behind it.
But what Adam was most fascinated about was when it suddenly removed its crown and revealed a face almost like his own. Adam had never seen a creature like that in Eden beyond his reflection or Lilith's. Was it even a creature?
As he watched it play happily with the Waterboppers, the sun slowly started to rise and before Adam knew what was happening, he watched the creature say something to the Waterboppers and then disappear in a bright light. It was unlike anything Adam had seen before.
The first thing he did was tell Lilith about the strange creature and the pair spent the next several days trying to find it, to no avail. After a while, even Adam started to question whether or not he had dreamt up the strange animal.
And then it happened again, but this time Lilith had been with him. By then the Waterboppers had grown and lost their yellow downy coats, taking on feathered coats of speckled brown or grays and greens. Their behavior had changed too, with the green one liking to jump on top of the brown one and neither of them knew why. They had asked God, but he had refused to answer them, saying that it wasn't the right time. As if time was important in Eden, very few things with every passing day.
So they watched the Waterboppers and waited... and waited. Until one day, the brown-speckled creature lay some strange greenish balls that it demanded to sit on and after twenty-eight days and nights, the sphere cracked open, and out came a little yellow Waterbopper. They had both been excited to greet the little creatures and Adam had happily declared that the balls were to be called 'eggs' after Lilith's suggested it.
The pair had then made it a habit to visit the animals at night, to see how they would grow and change as time passed. Change was something new and different for the two humans after all, as they never seemed to do it themselves.
And it was during one of those nights that Lilith and Adam saw the return of the strange creature again.
Like before Lilith and Adam watched curiously from their hiding spots at the being ventured towards the pond with ease. They watched the large wings fluttering with excitement as the Waterboppers hurried over to it, making it seem brighter in the dark.
"Hello, little ones. Do you remember me?"
"It can talk?" Lilith whispered to Adam who looked just as surprised. None of the other animals seemed to be able to speak. Mimic sounds, certainly, but speaking... "You didn't tell me that."
"I didn't know," Adam whispered back. "It didn't say anything last time."
They watched again as it landed in the water, beckoning the Waterboppers to it as it once more took off its crown and gathered a few of the baby Waterboppers into it. Was it going to take them? But they belonged to the other Waterboppers, not... whatever this creature was. Adam contemplated what he should do when Lilith suddenly got to her feet and started to walk over to the creature. Adam followed her a little farther behind as they made their towards it. Suddenly, it turned around to face them, a bright smile on its face as it called out.
"Mikey, look! Aren't they-" Adam watched as the being suddenly stared in shock at them both, unsure of how to react.
"Who are you?" Lilith asked, folding her hands calmly behind her back so she wouldn't frighten the new creature. "I'm Lilith. What's your name?"
Adam was about to say that he hadn't given 'it' a name yet, reminding her that he had only seen it once when he paused. He hadn't named God after all, God had named himself because he could speak with them. The reason Adam had named the animals was because they couldn't speak for themselves, but this creature could. Did that mean it could name itself? Or did it already have one? Suddenly Adam wasn't so sure how the rules for naming things were anymore.
"I... I... I..." the animal stuttered as it nearly dropped the Waterboppers in its hold.
"Huh?" Lilith cocked her head to the side curiously before she looked at Adam with a sad look in her eyes. "Adam I don't think he has one."
"Why do you think it's a boy?" Adam asked curiously, looking at the creature before them that seemed almost frozen in time. Looking at it, Adam had to admit it looked a lot like they did, all be it a smaller and thinner version of himself with a lot less hair. "It could be like you, Lilith."
Adam moved to grab a hold of the being and feel whether or not it felt like him or Lilith beneath its fur when the creature nearly dropped the baby Waterboppers and flashed a bright white gold that nearly blinded him.
"Excuse me!" It scolded, its lowest wings folding quickly in front of its groin to shield it. "You can't just... grab at others like that!"
"Hey! Careful" Adam scolded hand, quickly grabbing the strange crown-like thing the being had nearly dropped. "You almost dropped the baby Waterboppers."
"I wasn't going to-what now?" As irritated as it had been, Adam found himself looking into a pair of confused bright blue eyes. "Wha-what did you call them?"
"Waterboppers," Adam answered proudly as Lilith wandered around the creature to look at his wings. "I named that that."
"Because they bop in the water," Lilith explained with a smile and gently touched one of the long white feathers. "Are you a bird?"
"Hey, that tickles," A beautiful sound escaped from the creature's lips as he jerked away from Lilith's touch before gently setting the babies back down once more. "And they aren't called Waterboppers. They're ducks. I should know. I made them."
"You made them?" Adam looked puzzled as Lilith gently helped the little waterboppers... ducks back into the water to swim over to their parents. "I thought God made them. He said I was to name all the animals in Eden."
"Well, I mean... I'm the one that made them look like this and Father put them here in Eden," The little creature answered, rubbing its arm awkwardly as it tried to explain. "My brother is the one who named it."
Adam pouted a little. He hadn't been told that the animals might already have names. And 'duck' was easier to say than 'waterbopper'. Maybe that was a better name for them. He wasn't sure.
"Wait, does that mean other animals have names too?" He suddenly asked, his curiosity now peeked as he started to wonder. What if he had named other creatures with names already too? Were they good names?
"Are you a bird?" Lilith suddenly asked too.
"Can other animals talk too?" Adam asked a second after, giving the poor being almost whiplash from turning its head so fast.
"Why do you have wings?"
"Is 'waterbopper' a bad name? Lilith said it was silly, but if 'duck' is better-"
"Can you fly like a bird?"
"Are they actually fish and not birds cause they swim?"
"How high can you fly?"
"What about names like horse, cow, rabbit, hare? Are they bad names or good names?"
"Are there others like you? How many-"
"HOLD IT!" The poor creature suddenly yelled, a blast of light flashing from him, making them both fall silent. After a moment or two, they sat down before him, like children patiently waiting for a lesson to start. The tiny being panted a bit nervously as it seemed to calm down a little before looking nervously at them. "One question at a time. Please?"
Looking at each other, Adam and Lilith silently decided that Lilith would start.
"Why do you have wings?" She asked.
"I was born with them. Why don't you have wings?" It asked back, looking curiously at their forms as they both laughed.
"We're humans. Not birds," Adam chuckled as he looked at Lilith who smiled back. They liked this strange creature. He was funny. "My turn. Why haven't we ever seen you before?"
"I... um... I'm not really supposed to be here," Sitting down with them, the winged creature blushed prettily as he looked around. "Father kind of... forbid it."
"'For big'?" Lilith looked puzzled at Adam, hoping he knew what it meant. Adam just shrugged his shoulders unsure. "What does... 'for big' mean?"
The creature thought for a moment as he tried to think of the best way to explain it.
"It's 'for bid'. Forbid means... you're not allowed
to do something," He explained, crossing his legs so that the bottom of his feet touched each other. He thought for a second before saying seriously. "It means it's like... a really big no-no."
"Like the tree?" Adam asked before explaining. "God said there's a special tree in Eden we can't eat from or we'll die. So it's a for-bed-den tree?"
"I guess..." It looked confused, unsure of what tree they could be talking about.
"What's your name? Do you not have one?" Lilith asked, ignoring Adam's frown. It had been his turn to ask, not hers, but it was a good question.
"My name?" The being thought for a moment, looking a little nervous again. "Um... well... my name..."
"See, I was right," Lilith stated smugly as she looked excitedly at Adam. "You should give him one!"
"Yeah, we're good at thinking up names," Adam cried out, equally as excited.
"Wait a second, hold on," The tiny being tried to stop them, desperately trying to calm the pair as they started brainstorming ideas. "Hold on a second, both of you. I already have a name!"
"He kind of glows," Lilith muttered to Adam, her eyes fixed on the gleaming white feathers, which Adam nodded in agreement about. "So maybe 'Starshine'?"
"Sounds girly, and you said he's a boy. Like me," Adam shook his head and reasoned which Lilith agreed with. They couldn't give him a silly name. That would make him sad. But 'star' was a good name for him, cause he glowed like one. Like he was carrying the light on his wings. "Hmmm... a word God gave us that means 'light' was 'lūx'..."
"Please listen to me, I have a name already" It continued to plead to deaf ears.
"And it looks like he's carrying it..." Adam scratched his head curiously. "Urgh... what was that word again for carry? Fi...fego? Firo? Targits?"
"Ferō!" Lilith cried out with a smile. "The word you're thinking of is ferō."
"That's it! Thanks, Lilith," Adam gave her a hug which Lilith happily accepted. She liked it when Adam acknowledged that she was smart like him too. "So let's see... luxro? No, that sounds bad-"
"Are you two even listening to me?" The being huffed in exasperated annoyance before resting its cheek on the heel of its hand. "You two aren't listening at all, are you? I'm trying to tell you, my name is-"
"Lucifer!" Adam grinned as he called the name out, pointing firmly at the smaller member of their little trio. "I think it's a great name. It means 'Light-Bringer', cause it looks like you're carrying light on your wings. And I'm gonna call your kind angels. Cause that's what God calls the bright light he always brings with him."
"Lucifer the angel. I like it! It's a good name" Lilith clapped her hands excitedly before looking excitedly at the being. "Don't you think so too?"
"But I..." 'Lucifer' started to protest only to find himself facing two sets of large and hopeful puppy-dog eyes. Sighing in defeat, he gave in to the pair's demand, realizing it was a battle he couldn't win. "Fine. You can call me Lucifer if it makes you-WAH!"
Without any warning, both Adam and Lilith threw themselves excitedly at Lucifer, hugging him tightly so that he couldn't use his wings to stop himself from falling. With a loud squawk of surprise and several angry quacks from the ducks that quickly swam away for cover, he fell backward. The night with filled with the sound of splashing water as the pair of humans quickly got off the poor angel who was now lying beneath the water's surface. They both looked worried at each other when he stayed under the water unmoving.
"Can... can angels breathe underwater?" Adam asked his companion softly, unsure if he should pull Lucifer up again or not.
"I don't know," Lilith answered. "He doesn't look like a fish to meEEEEE!"
Just as Lucifer had been ready for them to knock him down with a hug, neither Adam nor Lilith were ready for the angel to use his majestic wings to fling a wave of water over them. As they both stood shocked and dripping wet, Lucifer finally resurfaced from the water before giving them both a cheeky grin.
That's what you get for pushing me in the water." He laughed and after a moment or two, Adam and Lilith joined him.
* * * Flashback End * * * *
Adam gave a small snort of amusement when he recalled that day so many lifetimes ago. Lucifer had told them years later that his real name was Samael but by then they were both used to calling him Lucifer so the name stuck. Back then they had all been friends, spending the days between their duties playing games and chatting about whatever came to mind. Hell, sometimes they even brainstormed different ideas for animals for Eden which had led to some pretty wild creations, like the lyrebirds that Lilith suggested with their fancy tails and mimicry voices and Adam's sugar gliders. Lucifer had always been excitedly talking with them about what these new animals should be able to do and how they would behave, the trio making it all into some sort of game back then.
Though... to this day Adam still wasn't sure whose idea it had been to make the platypus. None of them were sure where that came from.
'Hard to believe he become such a fucking shithead later,' Adam thought as he allowed Ava to play with his fingers while babbling, making sure she didn't suddenly sneak his fingers into her mouth to chew again. He had already been bitten a few times today when she was scared and angry. He didn't want a repeat of the experience, even if she was eyeing him all sweetly. "Oh no you don't. I ain't yah chew toy."
"Oh man, what a day!" A boisterous voice suddenly cut through the silence, scrambling Adam's brain for a minute as Gabriel waltzed into the wash area, clothes already tossed to the sides in all his naked glory. "Man I can not wait to just rest my wings and soak away the pain," Passing Adam, Gabriel did a small mock solute to the First Man and waved at Ava with a sweet smile as he continued on his way over to the others. "Hey, Adam. Hey, Ava. Are you being a good girl? Of course, you are. Anyways, Jophiel, you have got to tell those idiots in the beautification committee to-!"
Gabriel froze as his brain finally caught up with him and his wings instantly spread wide open, blocking Adam and Ava from view.
"I mean, Adam! What are you doing here? With a... Cherub... that you... stole," Gabriel suddenly started to yell as loudly as he could while a few of his feathers started to drop to the floor. "Oh man, ADAM! Mena's gonna be pretty MAD when she sees you took-"
"Gab, everyone present has already met Ava," Michael sighed as squeezed the water out of his hair and calmly walked over to Adam and the baby, picking the little one up gently. Ava instantly smiled brightly at him as cuddled into him, her thumb slowly sneaking into her mouth as she looked curiously at Gabriel. "I err... fell asleep and the girls found her and took her to Raph."
"And do they...?" Gabriel asked slowly as he tried to gauge how much everyone knew.
"That she's a Hellborn that Adam managed to kidnap? Yes." Michael answered, a slight smile crossing his face as Ava immediately pointed at the First Man when she heard his name, her thumb coming out of her mouth with a small pop. "Well now, look at that. She knows your name Adam."
"Fuck you, I said it was an accident already," Adam growled but still gave the runt a little wave in return that had her grinning. "And I probably would have figured something out if you idiots knew how to take care of a baby and not almost kill her every fifteen minutes."
"Adam, please," Zadkiel lightly scolded from her spot beside Ariel. "She'll end up picking up your swearing.
"Like they don't do that in Hel-" Adam started only to suddenly blush like mad.
Now Adam had always known that older angels weren't as modest as the newer ones. He could still remember how he and Lilith easily encouraged Lucifer to join them for swims in the lakes and rivers, getting the young angel to toss his robes to the side. He could remember how they would play for hours only to nap in the sunlight as they dried. At the time none of them questioned why he wore robes or that the three of them lay sleeping cuddled together in the nude. But then Eve had to wreck everything with the damn forbidden fruit and-
Except, when he thought about it, that wasn't completely right. The change in Eden had started before Eve was even born. It had happened when he and Lilith started fighting and Lucifer had gone away for a long time. He couldn't remember how long as time was a strange concept in the garden, existing and not at the same time. But Adam could remember that there was a time when Lucifer suddenly stopped visiting them and Lilith had gotten angry with him. That was when she started to change, her eyes glaring at him in an almost accusing manner and he was suddenly left alone.
Now when he was thinking about it, Adam wasn't sure why Lucifer had suddenly stopped visiting them and why Lilith had been angry.
"Something wrong, Adam?" He nearly jumped out of his skin when Ariel suddenly appeared crouched right in front of him. He barely managed to keep his eyes on her face too as she delicately pushed her wet hair behind an ear. "You were frowning."
Now that she had gotten cleaned up for the most part, Adam was surprised to notice several small differences between her from her siblings. Her hair was thankfully a natural brown chestnut color, but it had a slight shine to it now that the dirt and dust were out of it. Her doe-like hooves and legs also had a green hue that stretched up to her knees before fading into the alabaster white skin unlike her siblings, though it seemed her hands were permanently dirt-stained from her constant work in the garden. But what Adam found the most surprising was underneath the possibly centuries-old layers of grim, he could see a splash of small greenish speckles dancing across her face, shoulders, and arms and it took him a minute to realize what they were.
Freckles. Ariel, God's Lioness and Archangel of Flora and Fauna had freckles.
As far as he knew, none of the others had that. Not even Lucifer.
Adam was so surprised, that he forgot for a moment what state of undress the angel was in until his eyes drifted down, following the speckled trail, only to freeze when he suddenly remembered how endowed Ariel was.
"Jesus, you guys really don't have issues being naked do you?" He could feel his ears burning with embarrassment. Ariel cocked her head curiously, seeing no problem at all. Groaning, Adam felt the need to flee before he'd end up showing the most powerful angels of all of Heaven how he got the name 'Dickmaster'. And he did NOT want to pitch a tent in front of a stranger's kid! " And thought it was just Lucifer that was exaggerating when he said you guys didn't care either. Look, maybe I should take the kid and take a bath back in my room-"
"You're welcome to join us, Adam," Jophiel called as she finished ringing the water out of her massively thick and curly hair. "The more the merrier."
"Yeah, somehow I don't doubt you on that, but I prefer to bathe solo." Adam answered, quickly averting his eyes as Ariel turned around, looking every bit like an angelic version of the mortal painting 'The Birth of Venus'. He started to reach for Ava again when Michael tightened his hold. "Here, I'll take Ava and-"
"It's fine, I've got her," Michael could barely keep the slight growl out of his tone as he tucked the baby close, silently thankful that his wet feathers couldn't rattle. "We're all going to soak for a bit before drying."
"You sure? Because so far, you guys have lost her twice, almost let her chock if I hadn't stepped in," Adam argued back, still holding his hands out to take Ava with him. He was fairly certain that he could hide the kid in his room for a bit while he took a bath too. "And you can't put a baby into too hot water, Michael. She ain't a lobster."
Michael just glared at him, unwilling to let Ava go and to be honest, she didn't seem like she wanted to either. He couldn't put his finger on why, but it just felt... right for her to be there. Ignoring the curious looks, Michael just rubbed Ava's back as he walked calmly over to the oasis and slowly dipped down into the water, watching Ava's reaction. When she seemed fine with it, Michael settled into the water with a smug look on his face.
That was until Ava started splashing him with water.
"Okay, fine. Be a dick," Adam muttered, though he did grin a little as Michael clearly wasn't ready for Ava to start splashing around. She started babbling loudly, looking around and then expectingly at the Archangel before she would start babbling again. "Just to let you know then. If you want to keep her calm and stuff, yah might want to make something to entertain her. And for fucks sake don't let her head get under the water. We don't know if she can swim."
"Entertain her?" Michael pondered for a moment, muttering more to himself than to Adam who was turning to leave for now. Ava kept hitting the water and looking expectingly at him only to whine when he didn't do what she wanted. Whatever that was, that is? Looking at Adam, the First Man just gave him a 'go on. You've got her' which annoyed him because, well... he was right. He couldn't claim he could handle caring for her only to ask for help three seconds later. "So... what do little ones like you like?"
He tried to recall what he and Sammy would do when they bathed when they were little. It wasn't easy, he had to go digging through the catacombs of his memories, dusting off proverbial pictures of his past that he hadn't thought about in centuries. Not just because they were uncomfortable to think about, but because he had also been so busy since given his current task by Father. Some things were easy enough to recall. Like how Sammy and he would jump into the water only to discover they had jumped into the deep end and either Uriel, Sera, or Gabriel would have to fish them out. Or how they would try and swim with their wings only to look more and more like two half-drowned birds that would turn into puff balls when dry. He was certain though they played in the water, but what he couldn't remember-
"Maybe these will help," Gabriel suddenly said as he used a bit of his magic to create a tiny little bird of light that started to paddle around on the water's surface. "Isn't it pretty?"
Michael watched in slight awe as Ava instantly calmed, her tiny voice cooing curiously as the duckling of light swam leisurely about on the water. Every once in a while it would swim close to her only to quickly flee when she would try and grab it.
"Heh, she'd just like you and Sammy were," Gabriel chuckled a little before noticing that Michael looked confused. "You don't remember? After you and Sammy showed Father those ducks, you and Sammy were always trying to create them in the bath with us. Specially Sammy. He loved how they swam around. Use to whine about how it wasn't fair that he couldn't swim like 'em."
Michael chuckled as he remembered it too. He could still remember how Sammy had convinced him to sneak into Eden together after he had snuck in himself. Michael had never been more frightened in his life than he was back then. After all, it hadn't been that long ago they were all told that unless he asked them to come along, they were all forbidden from entering it. But Samael had been stubborn and curious as to how their ducks were doing in the garden and while no one had noticed it, disobeyed Father's wishes.
How his eyes had shined with excitement when he told Michael about the little yellow creatures swimming about in the lake. How he had rattled on and on about them in Michael's room late at night when they should have been sleeping. Ava's face reminded him a lot of Sammy's back then, bright and smiling, full of hopes and dreams.
* * * * Flashback * * * *
"-but there has to be more than one, Mikey," Samael whispered as they both lay in Michael's bed. "There has to be at least two if not more."
There was a slight sound outside from the hall and the pair quickly pretended to be asleep. Sometimes despite the late hour, Sera would come by and check on them, either to be sure they were in bed or where everyone was sleeping for the night. It wasn't uncommon for her to find either Michael or Samael in the other's room. Despite her best attempts the twins still had a habit of sneaking into each other's beds to sleep even though they were sixteen centuries now.
They waited for a minute, making sure that whoever they had heard had left again.
"You really shouldn't have gone there Sammy," Michael whispered, hugging his little brother close. "Father said we weren't allowed there. If you get caught, he's going to think Sera was right."
"Sera worries too much," Samael huffed, his wings fluffing a little in anger before he tucked himself close into Michael's chest. "Just because I'm 'fun-sized' doesn't change the fact that I'm just as old as you. I wish she'd remember that."
Michael sighed as he kissed his baby brother's head. Despite what Jophiel had promised Samael over the years, it seemed that he was never going to get that mythical growth spurt he had hoped for. There had always been a height difference between them but now Samael just barely reached Michael's chest. It seemed that whatever height genes their father had blessed them with, Michael had somehow gotten most of them.
"Come Sammy. We need to sleep," Michael told him, feeling Sammy yawning against him. "We have stuff we need to do in the morning."
"Okay..."
They lay in silence for a few moments, enjoying the symphony of the nighttime sounds they had all worked on creating after they had finished setting the stars in the sky. Michael could feel Samael gently playing with his flight feathers, and Michael couldn't help but look over at the two doll versions of themselves sitting on the table. Despite how old they were, they always kept them close and when they shared a bed for the night, the two dolls were always placed side by side, mirroring them.
"So... why does there have to be at least two ducks at all times?" Michael finally asked, curiosity getting the better of him. He smiled as he was rewarded with one of Sammy's classic giggles that never failed to make anyone smile.
"That's easy Michael," Sammy answered as he hugged him closer. "It's because-"
* * * * Flashback Ends * * * *
"-They need to be with their family," Michael whispered more to himself than to the others as he too formed two more waterfowls of light into the bath to join the first. For whatever reason it seemed to make Ava happy to see the 'duck' was no longer alone and she relaxed into his arms as her eyes slowly got more and more droopy. "I guess she's getting tired again. We should figure out where she should sleep tonight. There's no way we will get her home today."
Michael wasn't sure why, but he felt strangely happy at the idea of Ava staying a little longer.
"Well, before we do that, maybe we should find her something to wear," Jophiel called to him as she lifted the discarded yellow dress for them all to see. "I think we should get this washed first before she can wear it again. The fabric is all sticky."
"It would be rather asinine if we dressed her in dirty clothing when Adam has just finished washing her," Raphael added as he settled in the oasis too, eyeing the 'ducks' uncomfortably. He wasn't used to them being in the bath with them and wasn't a fan of sudden chances, but he was willing to put up with them since they seemed to make Ava happy. "We could simply retrieve some robes from the flower nurseries. They usually have several outfits from what I've heard."
"No, that won't work," Jophiel sighed as watched Ava snuggle into Michael's chest, her drowsy eyes watching the ducks calmly swim about. "The caretakers will want to know why and we can't risk anyone else finding out."
"Why?" Raphael asked, gently pushing the light ducks away from himself when they swam close. "The clothing in the nursery is supposed to be accessible to anyone who may need them. It-... She needs clothing."
"Truth, but she's also not supposed to be here in Heaven either, Raphael," Zadkiel gently explained as she gently urged the 'ducks' to swim away from him. She figured it was probably their bright glow that was bothering the healer the most. "At best, the Winners may get upset if they were to learn a Hellborn is in Heaven, and at worst-"
"You're afraid someone might hurt her believing she is a threat," Raphael stated flatly, clearly understanding what Zadkiel was telling him but still not why.
Reaching out towards Ava, Rapahael paused for a moment before nervously touching her bare back. Ava's eyes opened a little more before he turned to look curiously at him, wondering what he was doing before she smiled at him with a tiny giggle as he started to inspect her teeth, already returning to his usual inquisitive habit. Ava looked a little surprised as he put his finger into her mouth, feeling her gums and the few teeth she had.
"I don't see why anyone would think something so small is dangerous, I mean look at her, she can't even walk yet," Jophiel chuckled as Raphael moved closer to study the little Hellborn batter. Any close and Michael would find himself sitting with an arm full of baby and healer. Babies are harmless."
Zadkiel nodded her head in agreement when Uriel suddenly noticed Ariel's rather uneasy expression. Because of her duties as the protector of all things related to nature, Ariel knew that while many animals could produce adorable babies, but rarely were they harmless. Nature for all its beauty was just as cruel and cutthroat, with everyone and everything battling each other for survival. Oak trees for example would poison the earth around them to keep other plants from growing near them and steal their nutrients And some animals like sand sharks pups would cannibalize their siblings inside the mother after hatching. Then there were creatures like spiders where the young often ate their mother so they could learn to hunt. And that was not to mention spotted hyena pups who were born with a mouth full of sharp teeth.
"Not all babies are harmless," Ariel told the others just as Raphael stiffened for a second. "Some are born with the ability to defend themselves right away."
"Ariel, don't you think you're overthinking that?" Uriel asked as stretched out his back and wings, a few loud pops echoing in the room as he cracked them. "If Ava wanted to hurt anyone I think she would have done so now."
"Ariel is not completely incorrect," Raphael muttered as he wiggled his hand slightly before slowly pulling his hand hand. "While I believe Uriel is correct that i-she isn't malicious in nature, I hypothesize that Hellborn infants may possess abilities to sustain self-preservation in times of danger."
The siblings looked a little confused at the healer as he calmly held his hand up to stare at his finger for a minute. Before anyone could ask what he was looking at, they watched with surprise as gold ichor started to leak from his index finger, the water from the oasis making the small cut seem like it was bleeding profusely.
"What happened?" Jophiel was the first to rush to his side, looking over the injury when Michael checked Ava. "Raphael your bleeding."
"Yes," Raphael looked confused at his sister, wondering why she was stating something so obvious. "She bit me."
Raphael was surprisingly calm. To anyone who didn't know him as well as his siblings did, they would have assumed he had detached himself for shock, but the truth was he was no longer just Raphael the angel, but Raphael the Divine Physician and Healer. He thrived on learning about the unknown or the unfamiliar and while his main interest was plants because they couldn't talk back or complain, the fact he was getting a chance to study a Hellborn, a child no less, was too unique an opportunity for him to pass on.
After rinsing the blood away in the warm water, Raphael studied the wound with clinical eyes, watching calmly as his blood slowly bubbled from the opening. He would wait to see if there was any reason for the bite. Were Hellborn poisonous? Was their saliva toxic like the Komodo dragons? Did they have the ability to cause corruption in things that were 'holy' like them? Did their ichor affect them? Or were their teeth just that? Small and sharp like little knives when surprised?
"I'm sure she didn't mean to bite you, Raphael," Michael tried to reassure him while he checked on Ava. The little girl made a 'yucky' face as she tried to spit out the little ichor she had gotten in her mouth before babbling at him. "She's only a baby."
Raphael seemed to pause for a moment before he quickly healed himself and looked at Michael, a puzzled expression on his face. Why had he said that? Was he assuming that Raphael was angry? That he blamed Ava, a mere infant for her reaction to him placing his finger in her mouth? Raphael wasn't a fool, he knew the risk had been there just as any physician worth their salt knew the same when it came to matters of the mouth.
Though he would admit, he wasn't sure whether he had been bitten because he had irritated her or had touched something sensitive on her gums.
"She's an infant. I had my finger in her mouth so it was expected," Raphael just stated as a matter of fact. "She most likely reacted out of instinct or reflex. Her natural environment is hostile on average after all, so she probably had some elements that were for defense. Her saliva doesn't seem to hold any toxins or -"
Ava let out a small whine, reaching for Raphael's hand. At any other time, Raphael would have refused the unspoken request, but he was curious as to what she would do. Would she bite him again? He wanted to know. So he slowly reached out to her and and allowed her to take his hand, holding his breath slightly as he waited to see if she sink her teeth into his hand again.
But she didn't bite him again, nor did she try to scratch him or anything.
Instead, she patted his hand 'gently' before letting go of his finger to blow him a loud kiss.
"Fascinating. The subject displays abilities of empathy towards others," Raphael muttered before getting up from the water quickly. "If it's possible to show empathy, it means they have a high intelligence that first believed. I'll need to make a note of this. The hypothesis regarding her teeth was also partially incorrect. They possess sharp teeth, but no venom-"
The siblings watched in silence as Raphael gave his wings two flaps to knock off the excess water on them before walking out of the bathroom, muttering continuously to himself.
"He... does realize he's not only still wet, but he'd naked too, right?" Gabriel chuckled knowing that unless someone would say it to Raphael, the healer would neither notice nor care for his lack of clothing. Looking at his siblings for a moment, they all started to chuckle a little. "Yeah, stupid question, right?"
"This is really nice though," Zadkiel sighed after a moment's silence. "Bathing and relaxing together like this."
"It is really is nice," Uriel agreed as he leaned his head back, enjoying the warmth of the spring seeping into his sore muscles and wings. "It had been a long time since we've done this. Just relax in the bath together."
"It is..." Jophiel added with a sigh as she slowly worked the tangles out of her curly hair. She had forgotten how soft it could be with proper conditioning and wash. It had been a long time since she had last done that, though she wasn't sure when. "I wonder why we don't do this more often."
"That's because..." Zadkiel started to say only to stop herself from continuing. Michael blinked as he looked at his youngest sister as she chewed her lower lip nervously. It was a habit she had had for millennia now, a sort of nervous tick. Sera had always scolded her for it, worried that one day she would wear the skin thin from gnawing at it and giving herself a scar. "... I... you know what. I'm not sure."
Michael wasn't sure that he believed her, but he wasn't going to pause her for an answer. Instead, he turned his attention to Ava who was yawning again and rubbing her eyes groggily. It seemed she was getting tired again, which probably
wasn't too surprising given everything that had happened.
"We should probably get her out of the water now," Uriel suggested, getting out of the hot spring as well and started to dry himself off. Once he was certain his wings weren't going to soak his back again, Uriel snapped his fingers and was dressed in a pair of brown slacks and a clean-pressed shirt once more with a fresh large fluffy towel in his hands. "Here, I can dry off Ava while you get out and dressed."
Michael frowned a little, his wings inching forward to cover Ava when Jophiel suddenly took Ava gently but firmly away from him with a pointed look. It made Michael flush as he was suddenly reminded of how she would give him and Sammy the same look when they wouldn't share something.
"... alright..."
Uriel had to stifle a snort as he watched Michael pout at Jophiel. He hadn't seen that pout on his face in ages and now he was moody over being silently called out for hogging their little guest. Not that Uriel could blame him. There was something about her that just made them all feel complete. Like a piece had been missing and now everything was coming slowly back together again. As he gently packed her into the towel and started to dry her, Uriel couldn't help but look at his brother and sisters as they chatted away, the girls laughing freely away over some sort of gossip that only girls could understand.
It was like going back in time again. Back when it was just them, and their biggest worry was whether or not Sera would come charging by and barking orders.
"We still need to find Ava something to wear and a bed to sleep in tonight," Michael muttered as he dried himself off quickly, shaking his wings quickly and sending a spray of droplets toward the girls who squealed in half-heated protest. "Maybe we can cut some holes in an old pillowcase and use it as a makeshift dress..."
Uriel chuckled a little as Ava's head finally popped out into view with a sleepy giggle, her golden blond hair popping off to all sides. It reminded him a lot of Michael and Samael when they were little. Although he didn't think either twin had ever been this small, he could still remember how sleepy they would both get after a nice warm bath. He could remember how he and the others would help the pair get dressed for bed shortly after and either sing them a lullaby or Azrael would tell them a story via his shadow puppets. Those had been Samael's favorite though he certainly loved hearing them sing him soft lullabyes too.
Now when he thought about it, lullabies had probably been the only thing he had never argued against Sera on until he felt he was too old for them, and even then, when both twins were either sad or upset, they would seek out one of their sisters and have them sing for them.
"Actually..." Uriel had a thought. He had collected a lot of different things over the years, everything from discarded notes to meetings, to approved idea designs, to tiny trinkets that his siblings had discarded over time because they thought them worthless. Random little nik naks like toys, or drawings or even- "I think I might still have some of yours and Samael's old robes in my office."
As the pair got dressed and headed to his office, none of the angels were aware of the chaos that was slowly brewing down deep below.
AN: Oh boy, what a ride so far huh? Bath scenes are always fun with kids if they love water. My daughter is crazy about, always has been. Back when I had to watch her during bath time, I usually had to accept that it wasn't her bath time but ours because she would splash up a storm just having fun in the water. One time she even go so impatient that while my back was turned, getting some stuff ready, she just hopped into the bath, clothes and all. But because she's so happy playing in water, I always have to watch her like a hawk at the pool because she can't swim yet, but we are working on it. Her cousin was completely different from her though when he was a baby. My sister tried to dip him in the pool once and he let out what we called a raptor scream that could convince anyone a mile away that we were trying to kill him.
He loved the water now but we couldn't stop laughing at how different they both were.
Btw, please don't try and wash baby goats the way Ariel almost washed Charlie. From what I could find on the net it's an old belief that you had to be rough in washing animals and we thankfully know better now. That being said, I do not know how to care for goats. I've only had birds as pets because my dad is super allergic to animal fur.
A nykur btw, is a sort of kelpie or waterhorse.
Now with Adam's flashback, oh man was that fun to write. In the old scripture, it was said it was his job to name all the animals but in "The Sweetest Sound" it was Michael that came up with the name duck, so I really liked the idea of this being a bonding moment between the trio. That and I love the idea of ducks being called Waterboppers. It was also because he was suppose to name all the animals in Eden that I felt it was a good idea to have him be the one that came up with the name Lucifer. After all, kids do tend to give each other the funniest names sometimes.
I hope you all enjoyed the chapter for this week and hope you all have a wonderful weekend.