"Ah, the fairest of all modern-day maidens! Morrow be to you, Queen Beelzebub." Zestial the overlord said in an ominously smoky voice, as he gently took and kissed Bee's palm.

"Greetings to you too, Zestial." chuckled Bee.

"To be honest with thee, thou did save me a most wondrous deal with thy calling." he continued speaking. "For the ring that raised me, a real pain acid rain can be."

"...So I've heard." replied Tex sheepishly.

"I'm sure you two are all mentally acquainted with my associate in business, Carmilla." Zestial moved out of the doorway to allow Carmilla Carmine to enter.

At times, Carmine was a rather complicated woman of an overlord, who despite her judgement and pompous manner was well-known for her weapons dealing not just in the Pride ring, but in all of Hell. At the same time, she juggled a lot of controversies and rumours on her shoulders too, including the one time she killed an Exorcist angel during an extermination.

It was like she was a Latino version of Loona who only hid her shady past in the name of charity and good will.

"OMS, it's so smashing to finally meet you, Ms. Carmine!" Bee held her hand in friendship, while Carmilla just ignored it.

"I do not shake, Beelzebub. That is but a hellhound trick." she retorted flatly. "I don't even shake for business. That's what my daughters are for."

"Right. Shit. Sorry, ma'am." replied Bee sheepishly next.

Ironically, Carmilla's two daughters, who both looked like scientists/doctors, walked into the mansion shaking Bee's hand by their mothers' order. One of them actually shook all four of them in a quick amount of time.

"So, before we move onto official business, as to why you're here..." Tex cleared his throat. "You two dig that the kid we were phoning about is... a little different, from us?"

"Different doth hath its days in the sun." replied Zestial, while Carmilla on the other hand started getting curious. "...How different are we talking?"

"Yeah... I'll show you." Bee slowly walked over to Tex and held her hand out for Balin, as he hid behind the hound's thigh. "Balin? Sweetie? It's okay, you can come out." she softly spoke to him.

The boy was rather reluctant about who he was about to meet.

One thing about Zestial was that on the streets, whenever people pass him by and recognise him, terror follows and ensues. And there was no denying a 7-year-old kid, who was also human, could be shit-scared of such a dark and intense demon overlord such as him.

But then again, he did remember learning a lot about him, his power, and his work in the past from the princess' library book that Moxxie gave to him, like he did with the other overlords and sins.

Hesitantly, he grabbed Bee's hand and held onto her waist as he stepped out into the light.

"H-H-Hi?" he whispered to the two.

Both overlords had widened expressions on their face, especially Carmine, who was most shocked to see a real mortal walking amongst their realm. It was like it didn't matter if he was a child to them.

"O me, the devils." Zestial exclaimed softly in his Shakespearean language.

"Yep. It's that kinda different." Tex rubbed the back of his head nervously.

"That's a... a 'human' kid." Carmilla said in shock.

"Thou art... correct." Zestial replied to her.

"Before you two say anything!" defended Bee. "I just wanna tell y'all, this human's different from the rest. He's just a kid. A really good one."

Tex nodded in agreement.

"Hmm... one that does not seem to behold the potential of a full-grown yet." Zestial studied him with all of his eyes. "But one that already shows the strength and the seeds of one sprouting through his... still-pulsing veins."

"Even if this one's as trustworthy as you defend him to be, what brings him to such a dangerous place as Hell?" Carmilla asked Bee.

"Allow me to question the young flower for myself, Carmilla." Zestial spoke. "With your approval, Your Highness?"

The queen then took one look at her little guest, who as nervous as he was, still nodded willing to talk.

"You shall..." she replied ominously.

With that, Zestial towered over the boy and showed him a smile. Not as creepy as usual, but rather sweet and caring.

"Well good morrow to you, young sir." he greeted the boy, still behind Bee's leg no longer quivering. "'Tis with great delight that I meet with thee."

"It's okay, honey." Bee soothed him and rubbed his hair.

Seeing her smile at him, Balin then let go of her furry thighs with only his hands still shaking as he faced the spider overlord.

"I-I-It's... very nice to meet you, Mr. Sir." stuttered Balin. "Please! Please, don't hurt me."

"Hurt thou? Little one, why in here would I harm you in such a tedious fashion?" the overlord asked.

Just then, another hungover hound woke up and walked past the five yawning. When he saw Zestial, he went:
'HOLY SHIT!'
and doused his eyes with Bee's alcoholic beezlejuice, burning the eyeballs out of his skull as he ran until falling down the stairs.

"Oh. I see." said Zestial. "Well, granted the screams of Hell's spawn are a merry sound to mine ears, up my sleeves, there be far greater tricks."

He poofed a book into his hands, using his magic as an example.

"Here the wend, young apprentice." he bowed down to the human boy as he handed him the book.

Balin looked at it with the tilt of his head. When he opened the page, he was surprised to see it was a textbook on the language of Shakespeare, his drama work.

"Wow... that is so cool." he now showed a smile on his face at the magic. "Are you a magician?"

"I guess you can say that, little man." chuckled Tex. "Can he?"

"Well, 'tis as other gents say; co-equal in Hell, there are miracles worth exploring." replied Zestial. "But further speaking, when one's been dwelling in this realm of begotten souls for as long as I've, there comes certain powers."

"Huh?" Balin tilted his head again.

"He's speaking Shakespearean, baby. The language in this book." explained Bee. "A lot of people back then used to speak of metaphors and similes like that."

"Precisely spoken." continued Zestial. "A strength like all the rest that demons use from their full potential, before using it to their own advantage."

"You'll learn more pretty soon." said Tex quietly.

"In this case, he means he's learnt a lot of magic throughout the centuries." Bee added for the overlord. "He even taught some of it to Belphagor, my sister."

"Who I doth hear is becoming a marvellous teacher." Zestial winked to her with one of his four eyes, causing her to blush.

Balin then walked up to the overlord himself, slowly raising his hand for a shake.

"Well... good morrow to you too, Mr. Zestial." he said. "The delight is all mine."

"Ahh... a festinate young learner AND a polite young boy." Zestial opened his cloak revealing his full spider-like body.

It almost freaked the boy out a little, but he still shook his hand once he got comfortable straight after.

He then walked up to Carmilla in a polite manner as well.

"And it's nice to meet you too... Caramella?"

"Carmilla, little human. Carmilla, Carmine." she said flatly. "And, it's a pleasure with me too, I guess."

Balin then shook her hand slowly. She would've done something about it, but feeling how smooth and slow he went, Carmilla just shook it off and let it happen.

"Now I know how Loona must feel." Bee whispered to Tex, nudging his elbow and making him chuckle.

"See kid? What did we tell ya?" the buff male hellhound then nudged him, making him giggle a little more.

...

A few moments later...

On the stage in Bee's party room, Balin grabbed a seat and sat next to the fox-like sin, while Carmilla sitting in the far back with her daughters observing him as he observed Zestial.

As part of the homework, Tex turned down the house lights and put the spotlight on Zestial, as he began to recite various monologues and poems from the great bard himself, William Shakespeare.

EXAMPLE:

(The opening monologue from... that Scottish play).

If it were done when 'tis done,
Then 'twere well it were done quickly.
If th' assassination could trammel up the consequence
And catch with his surcease success.
That but this blow might be the be-all and the end-all here.
But here, upon this bank and shoal of time!
We'd jump the life to come.
But in these cases, we still have judgment here,
That we but teach bloody instructions,
Which being taught, return to plague th' inventor.
This even-handed justice, commands th' ingredience of our poisoned chalice,
To our own lips.

Bee may have been the party goddess of Gluttony, but still dabbled in a bit of ancient and modern history being a sin. Meaning she understood a little bit of this dialect, making her a greater tutor for the course.

Every time she heard a metaphor, simile, euphemism, or just a hidden meaning in the words, she'd hint Balin on them and write them down in his notebook.

This went for the worksheet as well because it had half of the answers he was looking for.

When the presentation of the monologues were over though, Balin would just clap for Zestial, allowing him to open his cloak again and take a bow.

"Blessings! Blessings!" he thanked him.

"Okay, okay. Time for a quick snack break." Bee said. "Balin, why don't you head to the kitchen to see if the chefs have any goodies?"

As Balin ran out of the party room, Carmilla stood up and slow-clapped for her partner as she walked towards him.

"Stirring speeches, commitment to memory... I never took you for the teaching type, Zestial." she said.

"P'rhaps the most wondrous secrets in life are hidden until somewhere along the line of years later." replied Zestial, with a well-earned cup of tea in his fingertips. "Whether years of a life is spent on Earth, or in Heaven or Hell."

Carmilla then approached Bee and Tex from behind him as the two kissed passionately, making Tex break it up seeing her.

"Oh. H-hey, Ms. Carmine. W'sup?" Bee asked.

"Listen, Beelzebub. I've got to hand it to you, and whoever this... I.M.P or this Loona person is." she began explaining. "While I'm quite surprised and also impressed at how resilient and well-natured this kid is to know he's among us... while we're alone, I now have a matter of business I wish to discuss."

"What are you talking about?" asked Bee. She and Tex both sounded a little confronted.

"I think you both know WHO I'm talking about. Don't you."

...

In the kitchen...

Bee's little servant imps held Balin's hand as they walked him to the fridge and showed him some of their sweet-toothed but culinary delights, including a bunch of different coloured cotton candy that they offered him.

"I don't know..." said Balin. "Loona says eating dessert before dinner isn't a way to boost protein."

"Oh no, honey, this isn't dessert." said one of the servants. "This kind of cotton candy is super healthy. Queen Bee's created a lot of different recipes over the centuries. Ones that make all the foods you hate look and taste like all the foods you love."

One cotton candy they presented to Balin was PB-and-J flavoured. So sniffing it, Balin then took a bite out of the treat and widened his eyes with a couple of chews.

"Wow!" said the boy. "This is the tastiest thing ever!"

"Aww, we're glad you like it, buddy." said one of the imp chefs. "A lot of blood, sweat, and tears come into making this shit."

"...Not literally, of course." added another one, just in case.

As the boy giggled in relief hearing that, he started hearing other noises from nearby.

"I'm only saying this in his best interest." said Carmilla. "We all know what that kid will become sooner or later."

"Just because you killed an angel in some extermination doesn't mean you can quickly assume that about little Balin as well." Bee replied defensively.

Balin then walked back to the stage area to see the two arguing.

CARMILLA: "I'm trying to protect him, as much as you, your other mutt, and that other mutt and her friends are. Don't deny or judge me on that!"

TEX: "By calling him what? The rest of the humans?"

ZESTIAL: "I have to concur with these two, Carmilla." *puts his hand on Carmilla's shoulder* "The kid has more potential. Sure, an angel he'll be when he passes, but haply, not like that. What if thou art false about this one?"

CARMILLA: "Zestial, you've seen how their army is built! The Seraphim may not hire him or he might turn down the role, granted, but we don't know that. We aren't supposed to! And that means you too!"

BEE: "Whether or not we do, he's an angel, to us, Ms. Carmine!"

CARMILLA: "If that's the case... I wouldn't want him to die. But he has to leave us."

BEE: "Leave? What? But he'll die anyway!"

CARMILLA: "Not if he has family back in his old life, right?"

TEX: "Well... he..."

"Yes I do?" Balin quivered seeing and hearing this argument.

This made everyone else in the room shocked.

BEE: "Honey? How much of that did you hear?"

BALIN: "Only a little, Bee."

CARMILLA: "Listen to me well, kid. What we're discussing is for your own best interest."

BEE: "No Carmine! It's only for the good you think Hell will have once he's gone!"

CARMILLA: "Humans like him are all the same! Just as a hellhound is still a dog! Thinking a bone is their version of Satan."

BALIN: "Please, don't talk to my friends that way! That's mean."

CARMILLA: "Stay out of this kid! Mean's how we play the game in this life, and I cannot have your kindness put it in more danger than right now."

BALIN: "More danger?"

BEE: "Are you saying he's dangerous just because he has a heart?"

TEX: "Is that how you think the Exorcists are hired?"

CARMILLA: "Well I don't know for sure, but it might as well be, based off that act of his alone."

"Mom! Please!" begged one of Carmine's daughters. "He really is just a kid."

CARMILLA: "I'm not taking matters into my own hands here, Athena. Neither should you or your sister!"

"Maybe you should!" said Athena.

BALIN: "Caramella..."

CARMILLA: "It's Carmilla, kid."

BALIN: "Oh. I'm sorry. But do you want to know why I'm so kind all the time? Because I've been through so much lately, being taken away from my mommy and daddy, escaping an orphanage, and now meeting these kind demons. I'm not afraid to admit any of this. Because although I'm a human, and I am a kid, I'm a kid who knows a thing or two about feelings. Especially fear! But thanks to these demons helping me and raising me during my time away from them, I won't be afraid to admit I love and thank them! That doesn't mean I'm like whatever other big scary humans are out there, Ms. CARMILLA!"

(Pause)

CARMILLA: *scoffs* "Well it does go to show you're just as insecure and weak as they are."

Everyone in the room gasped hearing that. Even Zestial dropped his tea-cup with a shocked expression.

Balin started quivering again, bit by bit, as Carmilla's daughters then looked down at him with his watery eyes. One of them was about to touch his shoulder in sympathy, but before she could, the boy pushed it away and started running away sobbing.

"WAAAAAAHHHHH!" he cried as he ran out and slammed the doors.

Tex tried to run after him, but Bee stopped him with one of her under arms, before slowly flying away to do it herself. But not after growling at Carmilla like a rabid fox.

Carmine's two daughters started leaving the room as well.

"YOU TWO! Get back here!" she ordered.

"GO BANG ANOTHER SORCERER, MOM!" one of them roared.

"Yeah! Or are YOU the insecure one to even do that?" the second one retorted angrily as they continued walking away.

With Zestial looking at her in shock and slight disappointment, Carmilla exhaled, looking down with her eyes closed. She may have had her worries, but deep down, she knew they were right about this one.

A/N: The I.M.P crew's target mission will be in the next chapter.

Will Carmilla apologise to Balin too?

See y'all in the next chapter.