♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱The ball had begun and as host, I had been the first among those with a great title - to enter."The duchess first duchess of the first territory, Asra Rubet Ignis, the first of her name, lady of the flames, the phoenix of Bernieri’s empire" announced to me and when I entered, those sharp eyes behind all the masks fixed on me.I raised my head - just as Asra would and brought the fan she held close to her chest. That was supposed to be Elaine’s ball - it was supposed to be the perfect time for her to shine and I wouldn’t allow anything to go wrong."Lady..." a mere countess addressed me, her sharp eyes were fixed in the place more to the corner of the hall, the one with couches and armchairs near the throne "I know I may be being rude as soon as I greet your grace, but... the duchess doesn’t think about leaving all the princes together, does she?"My lips arched into a half-moon as I waited. I waited to see how far that creature’s boldness would go."I believe your
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Elaine ⋅• ♱My hands were freezing.Cold as they’ve never been before, not even in my first life."Are you ready, miss?" one of Asra’s maids asked me and I trembled. Was I?Cali had asked me to take time off that day and as much as her presence made me feel a thousand times calmer, I found it selfish of me to just stop her from having her time alone to help me get ready for a dance.Cali also deserved his personal time.Grunhi."I don’t know..." I muttered adjusting the skirt of my dress again and again. There was nothing to be tidied up and yet I insisted on passing my gloved hands - it was almost a way to calm down.One that wasn’t working.What if Calisto and Asra were already together? What if she left me there alone?What if Asra simply preferred not to take me to the ball anymore or if the nobles made her give up? What if... what if... what if Calisto looked at me like he did in other lives?That particular idea disgusted me as much as the idea that he cou
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Calisto ⋅• ♱My eyes were fixed on Loren."What did you think, Dad?" he asked me as he spun on his heels. A complete and perfect spin.He was so excited about that fantasy that I didn’t even have the courage to say what I thought: it’s identical to the degenerate Asmodeus.In the end, maybe Loren didn’t mind my comparison - after all he liked the one he gently called uncle, even though I liked to make it clear that Asmodeus was NOT TO BE TRUSTED."It’s... beautiful..." I said trying to be sincere, but in a way - failing.Abbadon, who was standing next to him, held his laughter while certainly thinking the same as I did: that was divine punishment, plus one for the bill."What’s your fantasy, Dad?" Loren questioned me as she held a daffodil between her fingers.It was a shiny, golden daffodil, so beautiful I wondered if it was real."Hummm... don’t you know?" I asked, trying to provoke him.He bit his own mouth and mumbled softly."Hummmm... Hummm, uh... Humm..."
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Samael ⋅• ♱I observed, just watched as each one entered, first Asra, then each of the 9 princes and finally..., Callisto, Callisto accompanied by Kezabel and a child, a beautiful blonde child who smiles so openly and genuinely that I couldn’t help but feel my heart skip a beat."Something interesting?" Anneliese asked me ironically and I turned to face her."The child" I said without looking at them again, I did not know if I could without wanting to approach him, without wanting to go to him and talk about how in the end he was so like her."Which one?""The blonde child.""Oh, what have you got? You want to take her as an experiment, sir?" There was sarcasm and disgust in her voice, but I snorted."No. He is the prince, Anneliese" those words left with bitterness for my mouth and the fall faced the little one who ran up to the phoenix and threw himself in it with joy."The son of...""Yes" I said as I analyzed him from afar, trying not to focus on his face, h
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Loren ⋅• ♱I delivered a daffodil to Asra and also handed one to Uncle Asmodeus; Asra’s eyes shone brightly as she hugged and kissed me - saying that it was impossible to have a prince cuter and lovelier than me.A part of me agreed with this, but it was to see the smile of Uncle Asmodeus that made me feel a little warm in the heart."You really made them bloom... made all these bloom" he said in a mixture of surprise and pride "how did it feel when he saw them so beautiful?""Happy" I said sitting next to him as Asra went out to fetch someone "they are the symbols of my egoism."Uncle Asmodeus' fingers messed up my hair which was blonde, as blond as his at that time."Who let you be so cute, am? Am? I should squeeze you until you scream for help! 'He said with his teeth clenched and I laughed, laughed because I knew he wouldn’t do it - but that he was really in the mood."I know it’s your way of saying you love me, but be kinder, uncle..." I said leaning my hea
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Asmodeus ⋅• ♱The child of Callisto seemed determined to torture me, since after the first dance was over he told me to dance with Lucifer again and again and again and again!Whenever the music closed and we both went back to our places, he repeated with a huge smile."AGAIN! AGAIN!" And when at last that was the 7th time, I dropped Lucifer in the middle of the hall and sneaked away from there.I couldn’t say no to that cute little face who was dressed as Narcissus, but I certainly wouldn’t dance with the princess of the third territory again either.When I was at last out of that hall, I sighed with relief. I could wait another hour or two - that should be enough for him to be tired and go back to his room, or at least forget this crazy idea of becoming Lucifer’s friend or forcing me to dance."Running away? Really? And even more of a child and a woman?" Belial teased me and I slid my hands through my hair, fixing them behind the rabbit mask I still wore."Why
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱Asmodeus danced so many times with Lucifer that for a moment I wondered if he had begun to take an interest in the inexpressive-faced, cold-voiced princess, but as soon as he fled the corners, I realized the truth: Loren was a little manipulator who was certainly involved in that situation.Smiles with Elaine hugging my arm.Thanks to my presence, none of the unpleasant nobles had dared to approach the "saint" and Elaine had danced, tasted the sweets she wanted and even talked to some nobles who seemed genuinely kind.She laid her head on my shoulder when I called her to rest beside the princes."Are you sure? What if they hate me?"I slipped my hand over yours."They are not going."'They’re just needy children' I wanted to add, but I couldn’t while she seemed so sweet and determined. I didn’t want him to feel that his efforts weren’t so great because they were easy to keep around."If you say..." she smiled at me and that smile shown beneath the star mask made my
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Loren ⋅• ♱Uncle Asmodeus had disappeared among all those people with colorful clothes and masks. I wanted to look for him, but when I tried, Abbadon held my hand and said it wasn’t safe. I wanted to be selfish and tell her that I would go anyway, but... I had been selfish many times in those last few days and was afraid that something bad would happen, if that were the case, Dad would be sad... and I didn’t want him sad.I sighed and while Asra still danced with the girl who looked like a star, I moved further to the corner, in a quieter and darker place where my eyes could close briefly."Do you feel lonely?" A gentle voice asked me and when I lifted my face to see who it was, I came across the blond man who had stood next to Uncle Asmodeus all night."Hummm... I don’t know" I said laying my head to the side while listening to the music from the hall "I wouldn’t say I’m lonely, would you? Uncle’s gone and left you behind..."The blond man smiled."Let’s just s
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Azrael ⋅• ♱I watched her without realizing it, watched until the sun was setting and the barrier surrounding Samael’s plan was thinner, until the rune fragment she sent me was strong enough to enter."Don’t be an idiot," I remembered as my wings throbbed, "there’s no room for kindness, not after all you’ve done, don’t be such a hypocrite".I swallowed hard and a smile easily appeared on my lips when I crossed. It was like a fog touching my skin, a comfortable cold, a feeling I had missed even without realizing it.What the hell was I thinking? What was going on with me?I closed my eyes tightly, but my wings just beat, just took me there, to that breathless breath and that smile that could be felt in her voice when she called me."Azrael!" His arms wrapped around my neck and... had they always been so warm?"I thought you couldn’t come..." whispered her face down to my neck, I could feel her lips arched into a smile "okay? Did you get hurt getting past the barri
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Azrael ⋅• ♱The child began to be able to move gradually, in a way that was still a little time consuming and different from his usual, from the child who ran around and insisted so much to have his little body in that garden.His speech had returned too, his voice was less guttural, more understandable and a smile that was not painful could be seen, one that was not put on that face just because of the melancholy of Callisto."Look! You can move your arms better now" the quartz eyes were flickering as you said that as something equivalent to Loren’s first steps, as if that was some kind of novelty that should be celebrated with various gifts and a party "how is your breathing? Something still burns?" tried to caress that small face as if it was something that would break by any slip on his part.Loren was now like a valuable piece of porcelain, one that could not risk being damaged after being restored."I’m fine, Dad..." the child’s voice was still low when to
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Elaine ⋅• ♱"I like stars," he said while playing with a pearl between my fingers "I like how they look, how they’re bright and beautiful. I like purple, I like how the sun in this world is red, even though here where Samael lives he looks different."Keir smiled, his hands still playing by my hair."What else?" asked me with her face resting on my thighs."I like salty foods, slightly spicy, bittersweet and especially the dessert that the boss of the mansion always makes." The one that looks like jelly with syrup."Pudding? ' She asked me smiling from the corner and I nodded."That’s right, pudding.""Um, um, uh...""I also like pretty dresses, braided hair, flat shoes, delicate swords..." I continued to list "I like hardcover books and slow songs.""And old scrolls? You live surrounded by them" Keir joked, his lips arched in a mischievous smile that made my heart beat."Silly" I hit with my fingertips on his nose."I know, I know" gave up "continue... what els
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Quinn ⋅• ♱His arms wrapped around my body and then everything seemed to be fine.I no longer felt the blood, nor the weight of the souls that I plucked, that I hurt."Everything will be fine" he repeated as a melodic song and if it was Calisto who told me those things... I naturally believed."How can you not like it here?" I asked as I stared at that landscape, the sky, the grass that resembled a red foliage. The stars that always shone in the sky almost always cloudy.Calisto snorted."I don’t know..." he said sincerely "maybe... I just can’t see the beauty of hell when I didn’t have you by my side."A twinge struck my chest, a twinge of happiness and hope."Fool" I mocked wrapping my arms around his neck.I loved that being.He loved his color-changing eyes, loved his foolish way of thinking that the world was more beautiful outside of hell. He loved the way the rebellious waves of black hair he had struggled to unravel around his delicate face.I loved the
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Calisto ⋅• ♱I could not sleep.My eyes weighed and weighed, but I could not sleep - because there, in my arms -, there was a fragile being who did not seem able to open his eyes again.Whenever everything was cloudy and sleep pulled me down, I saw myself awakening in fright and looking at him.Checking.Checking to see if he was still alive, if he was still breathing.It was every day, every second - more complicated to watch, to watch."You should rest," Azrael told me one night, his eyes sharply in pain as he stared at the child, my child."How?" I heard myself ask, Loren’s sleeping face was so pale I had to put my fingers close to her nostrils to make sure he was still alive."Samael is good" he said hoping to console me, but it didn’t work.How would it work?"Then why haven’t we heard from you?" I practically growled, my hands closed in fists, tears burning in my eyes "I sent letters and more letters... I... I did everything I could... I DEMANDED answers a
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Asmodeus ⋅• ♱"Asmodeus is a great...""This time it’s going to work," I said ignoring the voice of that damn demon in my earring as I focused on that crystal, that crystal I was able to form from Quinn’s blood."You’ve been repeating this since...""Shut up" growled tearing the earring from my ear and throwing it at the wall.I wasn’t in the mood to be careful about whether or not I could hurt him or even break his prison.I was just tired.I wanted to see her."It needs to work" I muttered as I imbued more and more magic in that little crystal "work, work..." I kept repeating, as if somehow that was a stupid mantra - strong enough to make everything work; but nothing could be easy when it was for me, right?Nothing worked as it should.I bit my mouth hard, the fangs thrust into my lip until a sliver of blood came down my chin.I couldn’t see her, I couldn’t be with her or protect her. I couldn’t go to her even though time was passing and yet, the least I was a
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Loren ⋅• ♱My eyes weighed, my belly looked strange and at times it was like floating in my own body.I could feel my father’s affection as he tried to talk and distract me, but now even opening his mouth was a complicated task."It’s going to be okay" he repeated and at that point I already knew he was saying it more to himself than to me."I know" I wanted to answer while smiling, but my mouth did not move, in fact, opening my eyes was already a gigantic effort, so I was content to grunt and hold her hand.It wasn’t a squeeze, I couldn’t even call it anything but touch. A soft, almost nonexistent touch that my father should be questioning if it was real.He was sad, wasn’t he? Abbadon should also be, but after I started sleeping more than 17 hours a day, she was no longer there, just Dad.A version of Dad who stared at me with a red face from crying."Do you want to hear a story?" He asked me with a broken voice and I forced myself to smile, forced my face to
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Samael ⋅• ♱I blinked."What was it?" she asked me as she sat in the armchair and the red-eyed duchess stared at me with an raised eyebrow."I did not expect... the two" I spoke sincerely, after all the agreement I had made with Elaine was already a clear way to make the duchess calmer with all that; even so, the sharp gaze of Asra shot me as if my mere mention of her being there was an offense. Maybe it was the result of years on the battlefield, but I knew when I wasn’t able to win a war, so I sighed winning "but since you’re here..." I muttered indicating with one hand to the armchairs - sit down."Where will you start?" Asra questioned, the red hair falling with perfectly braided waves on her back, the sharp eyes staring at me and looking for any sign of flickering in my attitudes or decisions."I’ve been thinking about tears..." I said remembering Quinn, the way he had acted.Since that day, the bastard did not even give me a mere sign of life and Callisto’
♱ •⋅ 1750 B.C. ⋅• ♱ •⋅ Elaine ⋅• ♱Samael did as he said he would, but from the day we arrived at the camellia mansion - a name given by Keir, since the garden was full of camellias -, I did not even see the slightest sign of the priest’s existence, but now, when morning came by the door of our house.The huge smile on his face made me question my own sanity as he said - what was sweet? If you keep looking at me like that, I’m gonna think you don’t like my presence.I opened my mouth to confirm that assumption, but I chose not to."Just... I thought it was too early for you to be here," I lied and apparently that wasn’t one of my best lies, as he just smiled as he drank his tea."Early? We have a lot to study, especially if we want the child to experience one of my theses before dying."I swallowed it hard."Is he... very ill?"Samael laughed quietly."Does it really matter to you?"'No' I realized as I pressed the skirt of my dress between my fingers.My concern for Loren... was mini