A Weapon’s Serenade

Thrasir awoke in her own bed and was immediately besieged by Tiny, who rubbed against the demon’s face.

“Oh Tiny, hello.”

“Ma!” Melody jumped in for the hug.

“Melody. How long was I out?”

“Not sure, two or three hours or so.”

“Not too long then.”

Kuria now stepped up to the bed as well, once Melody let go. “I am so glad you are alright now, Ma.”

Thrasir ran her hand along her left arm, finally free of the bone-y scars. “I am too. Not sure if I will get rid of the glove though, I’ve gotten so used to it.”

“That half veiled look suits you, in a mysterious and sexy way.” Her egg mate, Valefor, put a kiss on the now healed cheek.

“Maybe I will stick with it for a bit then but I am happy to finally have the choice when we go out among the humans.”

“And we can finally try that cute beachwear stuff now.”

“Oh yes, you’re right!”

Melody pulled Kuria aside. “Mums, we better give you two a moment alone.”

The two old demons nodded knowingly.

In the living room of Thrasir’s cottage in the woods, Melody and Kuria had gotten comfortable while their mothers were busy upstairs.

“No judgement or anything but I just want to understand… why didn’t you join us with Baal?”

“It wasn’t my confrontation. I never grew to like Baal as you did and I never hated him as you did. It would have been wrong for me to be there, to interfere with what was between you Ma, Baal and you.”

“Yea, I get that. You should tell Ma that too.”

“I will, once she and mum come down here.”

Melody smiled. “Yea, let’s not interrupt their time together. It’s been a while since they have been able to be intimate without having to worry about the scars.”

“Indeed. They deserve to take their time.”

“As do we. I mean, not in that way, but we should also take some time to rest. It’s early in the new semester and we can take it easy for a bit.”

“I wish I had been there when you were attacked… I am so glad that you all are safe.”

“Not the first time someone pointed a gun at me. It’s okay.”

“But this time I wasn’t there to protect you.”

“But Nemesis was. And Anne even protected Chrissi. I appreciate you wanting to protect us but we can take care of ourselves now.”

Kuria frowned. “But you can’t… you are still mortal.”

Melody made a grumpy noise. “I hate that you are right. I want to forget that on some days…”

“I understand, I really do, but you need to remember that you are fragile. Even if Ara says she won’t let you die, I don’t want to put that to the test.”

“Me neither.”

“I also don’t want to think about that today. So… do you know where Tiny is?”

“When Baal and I departed the chariot, she was playing with the guardian.”

“That is one of the cutest things she does. I still can barely believe that cats are the key to communication with the guardians.”

“Seems like cats can get through to everyone. Or everything for that matter.”

“They are truly magical.”

Baal approached Anne who was doing some homework in the lounge of the Nemesis.

“Anne.”

“Baal, hello. Good to see you alive.”

Baal smiled. “It is a relief but also the reason I need to ask for your help.”

“How could one lowly human help an angel?”

“Please don’t undersell yourself, you are remarkable. While I know what I want to achieve now, I have not considered the steps necessary to get there. I don’t have a workshop, nor do I have tools and I don’t know how to even begin making furniture. I have ideas on how to pursue each point but I keep reasoning myself out of taking action.”

“Okay, step by step, how would one get a workspace in the heavens?”

“I could either seek out an empty space and put in a request for that space or I can put in a request to be assigned a space.”

“You already have a home, right?”

“I do.”

“Can you add a workshop to that?”

Baal pondered. “I could, yes… I would need to inform the planning council and find someone to remodel parts of the basement.”

“Do you know someone who can do that?”

“I do, yes.”

Anne nodded contently. “There you go, steps one and two laid out. Inform the planning council and make an appointment to remodel the basement. Step three is procuring the tools you need. Do you have a toolsmith?”

“It might be best to use second-hand tools first, our smiths are very busy right now.”

“Even better, so step three is making a list of the tools you need and finding someone to get them from. I assume you already know how to use them?”

“I do, I was trained in this after all.”

“Very good, step four is finding a customer. Depending on how long making and stocking your workshop takes, you might have that already cut out for you. Melody and the elder for example. They might not be ready to commission you now, but they will be soon. Even if you have time between finishing your workshop and your first customers being ready, you could hone your craft by creating some pieces for yourself or to show to people and convince them that your work is worth it.”

Baal tilted his head. “That is a good idea. I definitely need something to present others, I can’t just point angels to two homes in Hell to check out my work.”

“And it would allow you to experiment a little. Try out new things, I am sure styles and techniques have advanced since you were taught.”

“Oh absolutely! There is so much I need to catch up on and I intend to learn from the best and not just angels. Your craftsdemons are truly awe inspiring and I want to learn from them.”

“Then we have something in common.”

“Oh?”

Anne smiled. “I get personal tutoring sessions with one of Hell’s foremost architects, Jorogumo. I want to become an interior designer.”

Baal took a moment to ponder if to say what he wanted to put into the world and eventually reached a decision. “Will you be working on Melody’s home?”

“If she wants me to, yes.”

“She asked me to work with her architects when it is time. I would be honoured to work with you on her home.”

Anne looked at Baal for a moment before responding. “Jolene called me the reviled and told me that I would be reviled by a group of people that I wouldn’t mind being reviled by. I have thought about that quite a bit and came to the conclusion that I will become reviled by some group of angels. If, knowing that, you would still work with me, I would happily work with you.”

“To speak openly, I do not give a shit anymore what the other angels think about who I associate with. Even if you were to become a dark angel as you turn demon, I wouldn’t care. Every other angel would hate you deeply but at this point, what you and your friends have nudged into motion here made me reconsider what I think about my fellow angels. I will not let some ancient prejudice keep me from working with the remarkable minds I have met here.”

“I appreciate that but I must ask… what is a dark angel?”

“For all I know, just a myth. It should be theoretically possible for a human to developed angelic magical tendencies while being transformed into a demon. A demonic soul, a full demon, with access to the unique talents of an angel. The same could theoretically be possible the other way too, an angelic with a demonic talent, but at least on our side, that has never happened before. But we also turned very few humans.”

“Embodied proof that demons and angels are connected and not two entirely separate species. I doubt that would go over well with either side.”

“I expect the demons to be open to a dark angel but my kind would… revile you.” Baal let a brief smile flash across his lips. “Wouldn’t that be a funny coincidence. Anne the reviled because the nickname Kuria has for you turned out to be far more literal than anyone could have foreseen.”

Anne looked quite pleased with that prospect. “That would be quite fun, wouldn’t it? I certainly wouldn’t be against that, even though I am actually looking forward to the little horns and hooves.”

“I doubt it would affect your appearance. No matter what you become, I would be proud to remain your associate.”

“And I would be proud to remain yours, Baal. Now, you can actually do something for me.”

“Of course.”

“My studies ask me to provide a design for a chair, just sketches for next week. Maybe you could provide some ideas.”

Baal smiled happily. “I would be eager to help!”