for you; to rule

“What do you want to do for your birthday?” The black-haired human quickly turned to look at Beelzebub and Belphegor, her green eyes shining brightly with the cozy, warm lighting of the dining room. Beelzebub paused, the comically large cut of his third steak for tonight halfway to his lips. He placed his fork back onto his plate, his eyebrows furrowing, deep in thought.

Mammon leaned back in his chair, grinning widely. His blue-yellow eyes sparkled as he tapped his index finger against the dining table. “Sen, askin’ that to a demon is dangerous stuff, especially on a birthday. Demons get extra privileges when their birthday rolls around…OUCH!”

Lucifer’s fingers were firmly grasped on Mammon’s ear, tugging his brother towards him with a merciless pull. “Do not mind Mammon. Demons celebrate their birthdays as humans would.”

“It has to be a splash!” Asmodeus chimed in. He held his immaculately manicured hands in front of him, his palms held upwards as he began to describe a scene. “It’s a party! We need amazing decorations, good atmosphere, plenty of demonus–”

“Asmo, it’s the twins’ birthday, not yours,” Satan curtly cut in. He shook his head slightly, a soft smile playing on his lips at Asmodeus’ exuberance for celebration. “They may want something more subdued.”

“Where’s the fun in that?” Asmodeus replied with a huff, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

“Not everybody likes parties, Asmo,” Leviathan mumbled, eyes locked onto his DDD as his fingers furiously tapped the screen.

Sen gently smiled, shifting in her seat again to face Beelzebub and Belphegor. Beelzebub’s gaze turned upwards as he contemplated what he wanted. The gluttonous demon wanted many things, and most of them were food related. Ristorante Six had a new 30 course menu he was dying to try. The local cafe Sen liked just came out with new fruit smoothies and parfaits that promised a tingling experience on the tongue. Barbatos’ desserts were always on his list of things he wanted to eat, even if the demon butler so rarely offered them. The few non-food related things he wanted, they were not exactly the most accessible things, and he couldn’t exactly ask his brothers or Sen for them. Especially not Sen.

“I don’t know,” he finally replied, his broad shoulders slumped in defeat. He leaned back into his chair, the bulk of his frame causing the dark wood to creak. “I’ll have to think about it.”

“That’s okay, take your time.” Sen placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. She shifted to look beyond Beelzebub to his twin, who was poking at his plate absentmindedly. “Belphie, what about you?”

“Dunno,” he replied. “I’ll think about it too.”

Sen nodded. “Let us know, okay?”

“Yeah,” Belphegor responded. He glanced up at Sen, catching her eyes for a fleeting moment, before his gaze darted back to his dinner. When he looked back up, Beelzebub was now glancing at him. He could see a question in his purple eyes, but his twin didn’t ask anything further.

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Belphegor kicked one of his numerous pillows surrounding him, his legs restless. His indigo eyes were glued to his DDD’s illuminated screen. Messages lit up the group chat he and Beelzebub shared with Sen.

Sen: “I know you guys aren’t sure what you wanted to do yet for your birthdays, but how about cake? Do you guys want a specific kind of cake?”

Beel: “I’ll eat anything as long as you’re baking it. What about you, Belphie?”

Belphegor’s fingers hovered over the screen, trembling slightly as he wavered between his decision to reply or ignore the messages. He bit his lip and sighed, putting his phone down and rolling over to put his back to his DDD. He pulled his favorite black-and-white pillow close, breathing deeply as he squeezed his eyes shut and tried to force himself back to sleep.

When sleep came, it came fitfully to Belphegor. He could tell he was reliving that day he was freed from the attic. The all consuming rage burned in his chest, threatening to suffocate him. His hands, circled around Sen’s throat, were heavy against the delicate curve of her mortal neck. Her contorted expression of fear – eyes wide, mouth open as she tried to breath, pitiful fingers clawing at his skin – seared into his memory like a brand. 

He awoke with a startled gasp and trembling hands, slick with sweat. He could smell the pungent iron stench of his fear and anxiety. Belphegor wiped his palms on his pants before covering his face with his hands. He hated not being able to sleep even though he wanted to, but he hated even more the absolute dread pooled deep in the pit of his stomach, coiling around like a viper, seeping poison into his muscles.

While his brothers have ultimately come around to accepting Belphegor’s return in the House of Lamentation, Belphegor was convinced Sen had not. Even if she didn’t say it, Belphegor sensed that she looked at him with caution. He couldn’t blame her. In her eyes, he was a monster that tried to kill her. He couldn’t compete with his twin, a brilliant sun that warmed those around him with his gentle presence. Of course Sen would fondly look to his twin, not him.

He sighed. He felt Beelzebub’s growing attachment to Sen. He noticed how much time they spent together. She appeared in their shared dreams. They were friends. It’s natural for friends to ask each other what they wanted to do for their birthdays. Belphegor believed he had no place to even answer what he wanted for his birthday.

So why did Sen ask him?

Belphegor threw his pillow into the wall of his pillow fort, the strike launching dozens of squishy squares in different directions. He stared at the scattered pillows and let a strangled, frustrated sigh escape his lips. A moment’s silence hovered in the attic room with him.

He crawled over and grabbed his pillow, encircling it with his arms and crushing it against his chest. He fell onto his side and buried his face into the pillow as he felt his eyes sting.

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Beelzebub wiped sweat from his brow as he entered the foyer of the House of Lamentation. Before he saw them, his nose picked up on the heavy rose-laden scent of Asmodeus, and the delicate vanilla scent of Sen. Both were huddled by the staircase, quietly whispering to each other. He heard only bits and pieces - “Mammon”, “honey”, “prince.” A subtle scent of iron wafted from above.

“Hey,” Beelzebub greeted, waving at them.

“Oh!” Sen cried, startled. “Beel, hey. How was your jog?”

Beelzebub noticed Sen had quickly locked her phone, shifting its screen so it faced her chest as she turned to face him.

“Good. I think I worked up a good sweat.” Beelzebub raised his tank top to wipe sweat beading on his collar bone, exposing his abs. Sen diverted her gaze to a spot beyond his shoulder.

Asmodeus chuckled. “You always do, Beel. Every time you’re out running my Devilgram feed is absolutely littered with pics of you from the students at RAD. You really should start up a fitness Devilgram~!”

“I tried Deviltube…” Beelzebub started. Asmodeus silenced him with a wave of his finger.

“And you didn’t do anything on it! Mammon and I had to post for you just to keep you in the algorithm! Maybe dear Sen here could help at least with Devilgram. She knows her way around a camera.”

“Ah, I’m just alright…” Sen protested.

“Nope! Nuh-uh! I don’t want to hear it from those pretty lips of yours!” Asmodeus patted her back, gently nudging her slightly towards Beelzebub. “Your portraits of me were so stunning my followers could not get enough of it. Don’t sell yourself short, Sen!”

“Yeah. Don’t sell yourself short,” Beel agreed, smiling widely.

“Okay,” Sen replied, crossing her arms in front of her. She bounced her left toes gently against the wooden floors of the foyer, a soft tinge of red dusting her cheeks. Just as quickly, she dropped her arms to her side and asked, “Beel, do you and Belphie have a preference on where you’d like to spend your birthday tomorrow?”

Beelzebub brought his hand up to his chin as he thought. “Belphie will probably want to stay at home. I don’t mind where for myself. As long as it’s with everybody.”

The iron scent tickled his nose again, and Beelzebub felt a disconcerting tingle in the pit of his stomach. As if trying to answer, his stomach growled loudly like a deep cavernous beast. He brought his hand to his stomach, clutching it gently. “I’m gonna go grab a snack. Have you guys seen Belphie today, by the way?”

Sen shook her head. “I haven’t seen him at all.”

“Not since this morning when I caught him napping in the planetarium,” Asmodeus added.

Beelzebub felt a sense of unease with his twin, but nodded. “Okay. Got it. Thanks.”

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March 11.

Belphegor cracked open his eyes to Beelzebub hovering over him. His twin blocked the dim light of the lamp in the room with his broad shoulders.

“Happy birthday, Belphie! Do you want me to carry you downstairs?”

“Happy birthday, Beel.” Belphegor’s lips parted into a small smile. “It’s cool. I’ll walk a bit.”

Belphegor stretched his legs and arms, hearing the joints crack slightly. “Getting old, I guess.” He let out a laugh. Beelzebub laughed heartily in return.

“Of course. Stretching helps.”

“No thanks,” Belphegor replied with another chuckle. He sat up on the bed.

“Belphie…” Beel started, watching his twin rise.

“Yeah?”

“...Are you doing okay?”

“...Yeah.”

Beelzebub decided to leave it at that. Whatever was causing his twin distressed, it was clear Belphegor had no intention to speak about it today. He would ask him again tomorrow.

The twins left their room and entered the eerie silent halls of the House of Lamentation. Usually, they would have heard at least some semblance of life after walking down the halls, but it was as if nothing lived there with them. Beelzebub’s eyebrows furrowed as he looked around.

“Where is everybody? We would have heard Lucifer or Satan by now, I think,” Beelzebub muttered.

“It is strangely quiet. Think Levi got his hands on a cursed visual novel again?” Belphegor asked.

Their DDD’s simultaneously chimed, and both demons pulled theirs out to look at it. In the group chat they shared with their brothers, there was a picture of the planetarium’s starry sky relief sent by Mammon. A cryptic message, to be sure.

Beelzebub glanced at Belphegor. “What is this? Why did Mammon send this to us?”

Belphegor rolled his eyes. “Maybe he’s cursed.” After a brief pause, Belphegor added, “We might as well see what happened. I bet he tried to sell some of Satan’s books…I kind of want to see what punishment he’s receiving.”

Beelzebub nodded, and both demons pivoted in the direction of the planetarium. When Beelzebub opened the door, there was a loud POP! that made both of them jump.

“SURPRISE!”

Belphegor and Beelzebub blinked as they took in the sight in the planetarium. All their brothers were there, smiling widely and holding party poppers. Simeon, Luke, and Solomon were standing up from their seats, clapping. Several long decorated tables were set up with seats, and the widest variety of foods imaginable graced the tablecloths. In the middle of the centermost table, 3 large birthday cakes shaped and decorated like Hell’s Kitchen’s hamburgers sat. Next to them sat a more modest, but equally as decadent, white and black cake.

Beelzebub was the first to react, his eyes taking in every single bit of food. He began to drool, but quickly wiped it away with his sleeve. “Wow!”

Sen appeared in front of them. “Happy birthday, you guys!”

“Sen, did you make this all yourself?!” Beelzebub asked excitedly, his eyes locked onto the array of food in front of him, his nose bombarded by the delicious scents.

“No, I had help.” She smiled, and shifted to the side to let the stars of the show enter. “I made the cakes with Luke, and Barbatos helped with the other desserts. In fact, his connections are why we’re able to have so much food…a lot of top demon chefs cooked things for this!”

“Barbatos and Lord Diavolo are busy, and could not come. But, they send their well wishes,” Lucifer added, handing Beelzebub and Belphegor each a glass of demonus. Their eldest brother smiled. “Happy birthday, Beelzebub, Belphegor.”

“Come on! Let’s eat!” Mammon exclaimed, pushing Belphegor to the table. Beelzebub was already there, quickly piling a mountain of food on his plate. Belphegor’s stoic face hid his surprise at the party. He seated himself at the table, shifting to get comfortable.

As the party commenced, and Beelzebub began to vacuum up the food on his plates, Sen placed a piece of the white and black cake in front of Belphegor. “Here, Belphie,” she said, pulling back.

Belphegor picked up a piece of cake with his fork and brought it to his lips. His eyes widened slightly as he chewed, recognizing the flavor. “White chocolate?”

Sen nodded. “White chocolate and a bit of dark chocolate. It took a bit to get used to, but thankfully Luke and Barbatos helped me out with this since I was coming up with this recipe on my own.”

“On your own?” Belphegor asked, his indigo eyes studying Sen’s features for sincerity. She nodded, and Belphegor felt his chest tighten.

Beelzebub leaned over to them, his mouth stuffed with pasta. “Thad looks gud!” he said through large mouthfuls of food.

“Beel, chew your food!” Satan laughed, eyes crinkling as he sipped his demonus.

“Also, I guess I’ll start,” Sen said, bending down to grab something from beneath the tables. In her hands were two gift-wrapped packages. She handed one to each twin.

Beel tore into his immediately. “This is…” The demon rose in his seat, holding several documents in his hand. “Tickets to the Fangol Ultra Bowl! And near the front?!”

He rose and hugged Sen tightly, lifting her from the ground. “Thanks, Sen!”

Belphegor opened his gift, finding it to be a luxurious fleece-lined blanket hoodie. When he unfurled it, it stretched to the ground. The corner of his lips trembled.

“Sen.”

Sen turned to Belphegor, catching her breath after the bone-crushing embrace from Beelzebub. Belphegor reached out and held her hand.

He looked up at her, his anxiety slowly melting away. He smiled broadly. “Thank you.”

“Do you want to watch a movie, Beel?” Sen messaged Beel one night as she made her way to the kitchen for a snack. Almost as soon as she sent the text, her D.D.D. pinged again, and Beel’s reply appeared on the screen.

“Sure. Can I get a snack, though?”

Sen chuckled and wrote back, “Of course! I’m on my way to the kitchen right now.”

“Oh good. I’m already here, actually.” Was that really a surprising answer from the ever hungry sixth-born?

Sen rounded the corner to the kitchen to see Beel’s back as he hungrily rummaged through the cupboards for food. She went over and tapped him on the shoulder, making him jump slightly at her appearance. “You must be pretty hungry,” she said, gently patting his back and tiptoeing up slightly to give him a kiss on the cheek.

He nodded, smiling, before stuffing his mouth with a donut. “Whash aw yew pwannin’ to wasch?” he asked with his mouth full of donut, proceeding to grab some strawberries.

“A drama movie. Weight of the Sea. Have you seen it?” Sen grabbed a box of chocolate chip cookies and milk. Beel shook his head. “I saw it online,” Sen continued, “And it seemed like people liked it, so I thought it’d be good to watch.” She turned towards the exit of the kitchen, her hands already full with what she wanted to eat. Beel took that as the signal to go and, with his own arms full of half of the kitchen’s rations, he followed her into her room. They placed the food on the table near them, and Sen got the movie playing. She plopped down in front of him and leaned backwards into his chest, and Beel wrapped his muscular arms around her and held her close. He buried his face into her hair, smelling the faint hint of honey and strawberries. It was addicting, and he could never get enough.

The movie’s pacing was excellent, neither too fast nor too slow, and Sen and Beel became engrossed in the movie. At one point, as the protagonist stared longingly at her love interest, Sen pouted and crossed her arms in front of her. “She should be forward with what she wants! She should tell him!” Sen really wanted the protagonist and her love interest to get together.

Beel had a chocolate halfway to his mouth when he paused. Sen wanted people to be forward with what they want? Right now, Beel wanted to kiss her and taste how sweet she was, and whether it was from the romance of the movie or from her own scent he wasn’t sure. He ate the chocolate, chewing and swallowing it before leaning down and whispering in her ear. “Then, can I kiss you?”

Sen giggled, and shifted so she was facing him. Beel’s hand went up to cup her face and he leaned in, pressing his lips onto hers. She deepened Beel’s kiss, pushing her body into his. Her mouth parted ever so slightly and Beel’s tongue darted out, running along her lower lip. She understood the signal and raced forward to meet him, and their tongues danced and felt each other.

She was the first one pulling back for air, her eyes half closed from the intensity and heat of their closeness. Beel licked his lips. She had tasted so sweet, and he wanted more and to keep going. “Only one?” he asked, a slight pout on his lips that made him look more like a puppy than a powerful, tall demon.

Sen laughed and leaned in again to kiss him. They were at each others’ lips for several minutes before Sen trailed her hand down his chest and over his abs, placing it gently above his growing bulge. Beel flinched at her touch, and Sen pulled back. She tried to look at him to see if he wanted to stop, but he pulled her back in with his arms as a signal to keep going. When she had successfully managed to pull herself back from his ravenous kisses, she was between his legs.

He was large. Larger than she was expecting, but Beel himself was already tall to begin with. She gulped at the size. Compared to the members of the human men Sen had been with, even Beel’s dick was a demon.

Beel twitched slightly feeling her fingers gently move along him, and he almost let loose a moan when she engulfed him with her mouth. His fingers snaked into her hair as he felt the warmth of her tongue run along the entirety of his length. Eventually he couldn’t take it, and he moved Sen off of him and picked her up. He gently placed her on her bed while raining kisses along her body, and moved to take off her clothing and his with a swiftness that was borne was a deep hunger. He licked all over her, gave careful love to her breasts with his hands and his tongue, and moved down to the warmth between her legs.

Sen could barely speak when he began to lick her, and she gripped his hair as he continue to feast. When he pulled back and looked up at her, he inserted his fingers and thrust into her, and Sen brought a hand up to her mouth to stifle her moan of ecstasy. He licked his lips as he gently pulled her hand away from her face and leaned in.

“Do you…want to keep going? I want to keep going.” He was trying his hardest to not lose control and go at her pace.

Sen nodded. “It’s my first time though…”

Beel nodded. “If it hurts tell me and I’ll stop.” He moved and propped himself with his arms on top of her, looking down at her green eyes.

Beel looked at Sen’s eyes, watching for any sign that she was uncomfortable. Sen looked back at him, eyes heavy with desire. She bit her lip and kept her gaze locked on his. Her hand ran across his chiseled side, feeling the muscles. She’d be lying if she said she wasn’t nervous. Having seen him in his entirety she wasn’t sure what to expect. Had she slept with anybody else maybe she would have known, but this was uncharted territory for her. So why did he look nervous too?

Beel brushed some of her hair out of her eyes. “Are you okay?” he asked, kissing her forehead then her cheek.

“Yes,” she replied softly while nodding. She could feel him at her entrance, poking ever gently with the head of his dick. The rubbing was exciting her further and her legs shook slightly from anticipation.

“Tell me if it hurts,” he murmured, grabbing his cock and aligning it with her. Sen nodded and pulled his face in with her hands, kissing him. Beel began to push with his hips, slowly and gently, listening for Sen’s reaction.

Sen felt him enter and he was massive, as if he was stretching her all the way. Her face pulled away from their kiss and the back of her head pressed into the pillow as she let out a moan. The fingers of her right hand, which had been intertwined with his hair, reflexively gripped his hair and tugged his head backwards slightly. The sharpest of pains occurred as he pushed further, and Sen gritted her teeth and could have sworn she saw white.

“B-Beel, c-can you stop for a bit,” Sen managed to say through labored breathing, feeling the intensity of her first time hit her like a stinging, painful wave.

Beel stopped, halfway inside her. “Are you okay?” he asked concerned. His breathing had picked up, and his voice sounded a bit rougher, as if speaking with restraint. “Do you want to stop?”

Sen shook her head, shakily putting her left hand on his shoulder and cupping his cheek with her right hand. “No, just give me a moment.”

Beel nodded and watched as she recuperated from his initial entry. He leaned forward, trapping her lips again in another kiss, tasting her with his tongue. He pulled back and leaned his face down into the right side of her neck, dragging his tongue along her skin and littering it with kisses. She moaned loudly, her hands moving to his back. “You have a sensitive neck. Do you like it when I do this?” he whispered softly into her ear, moving his kisses along her jawline and then down her neck again.

“Yes,” she headily whispered back into his ear, letting out soft murmurs and moans every time he touched her skin. “Y-You can keep going, Beel.”

“Ok,” he mumbled back, kissing her neck again. He inched his hips forward, and her moans increased in volume as he did so. Soon, he had buried himself all the way in. She was warm and soft and Beelzebub was beginning to lose his senses.

He waited for her to adjust to him, and when she gave the okay to move, Beel pulled out and thrust into her. Sen let loose a loud moan. Both of them were happy Sen’s room was far away from the other brothers’ rooms, or else the demons would have awoken from her cry.

Beel thrust into her at a rhythmic pace, his eyes watching Sen as she squirmed beneath him. Her eyes were closed from the pleasure of his thrusts, but ever so often she gazed up at him with her green eyes. Beel leaned forward and kissed her deeply again, thrusting his tongue into her mouth and tasting her. His right hand moved to grip her breast with gentle firmness, and his large fingers played across her nipple, teasing her. Sen’s hands danced along his back, looking for leverage in the strong muscles of his back.

Beel was nervous because he knew that he would begin to slip in his control, and he was worried of hurting her. But fuck, she felt too good, and the more he slid his cock in and out of her the stronger the desire to have more grew. “S-Sen, I…I’m going to go faster,” he roughly whispered, lowering himself down onto his elbows and pulling her closer to him. “Can I…?”

“Yes…Yes!” Sen cried back as he continued to thrust into her. This snapped something in Beelzebub, and he let out a rumbling growl, and a rough “Fuck,” before burying his face into her neck. His hips pulled back, and then slammed into her, plunging his dick deep inside. Sen responded with a rising moan, her eyes momentarily fluttering open, and she dug her fingers into Beel’s back. “Uh…fuck, Beel!” she said as she writhed under his thrusts.

Beel hungrily kissed her neck, and began to bite her as he quickened his pace and thrust more roughly. His right hand roughly grabbed her breasts and fondled them, and Beel dropped his head down to her other breast and began to suck on it. One of Sen’s hands dropped to clutch the sheets on the bed.

Beel pulled back and out of her and moved to flip Sen over onto her front. Her hair had come undone from its ponytail, messily covering her back and the bed. Beel thrust two fingers into Sen, moving them back and forth as she moaned and leaned into his touch, before he pulled them out and thrust deeply into Sen with his dick. She moved backwards to meet him. Beel was hungry, and with every deep thrust inside of her he wanted only more of her. He leaned forward and kissed her shoulder before biting it, and rained kisses down her back.

“Beel! Beel! I-I…!” Sen tried to say, but couldn’t say the words “I love you” as he fucked her roughly. Sen could barely register what was happening. Beel’s cock buried inside of her felt too good, and she was focused on just the pleasure that was rising within her with each thrust. She could feel herself nearing her limit, and she gripped the sheets beneath her tightly. “I’m going to…I’m going to c-c—” She couldn’t finish her sentence, but Beel understood.

He placed his large hands on her hips and gripped tightly, before quickening his pace. She cried out in pleasure, and soon her whole body convulsed and she trembled. Beel could feel her tighten around him, and it took the rest of his concentration to avoid finishing inside her then and there. He continued to thrust into her as she came, Sen moaning into the sheets and pillows beneath her. As he felt himself near his own climax, he pulled out of her and stroked himself several times, cumming onto her back.

Beel laid himself next to Sen and looked at her, making sure she was okay. Sen was dazed for a moment, her chest rising heavily from her breathing, but then she regained composure and laced her fingers with his. They both were out of breath and sweaty, but neither seemed to mind. Sen moved closer to him and kissed him.

“Sorry about the mess,” he said quietly. She shook her head and sat up, grabbing a nearby towel and wiping herself off. She then flopped back down and moved her arms around his broad shoulders, cuddling him. He moved his arms around her waist and pulled her close. He whispered, “Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“No, you were amazing,” Sen replied, looking up at him. He brushed some of her hair out of her eyes, and she smiled brightly. She then leaned up a bit on her elbow to look over his shoulder. “…We missed the rest of the movie. Do you want to rewatch it?”

Beel nodded, pulling her back down into a hug. “After this though.” He nuzzled his face into her hair. “I think I’ll be hungry again soon.”

“We’ll get more snacks from the kitchen before the movie, then.” Sen leaned forward and kissed him softly. “I love you, Beel.”

When the humans left Beel could feel an emptiness in his heart. He looked to Belphie to see his twin staring off into the air. This empty feeling felt magnified from Belphie too. Beel held a hand in front of his chest and gripped his shirt tightly. He didn’t like this feeling.

“Julia,” Diavolo said with a firm tone. Beel turned around to see the girl. Her hair was out of the buns and she look haggard. She was smiling.

“I’m glad they’re safe.”

“You didn’t have ta do any of that!” Mammon yelled, his eyebrows knitting in anger. “Julia, you idiot! They didn’t have to go home!” He gritted his teeth, thinking about the last hug Reese and him had.

“They were not safe. You are all…monsters,” Julia said.

Lord Diavolo let out a huff and motioned towards her. “Lucifer, Barbatos, apprehend her.”

Both demons moved to capture her, but Julia sent out a massive burst of purple energy, stopped them from moving forward through the barrier she set up.

“I am never letting you hurt anybody else again. Goodbye.” Julia gave a smile of absolute disgust to them before brandishing a knife and stabbing herself in the heart. The magic surged forward and when all the demons could look at Julia again she lay dead in front of them.

Lucifer’s eyes widened. He looked at Diavolo, who had also sensed the change. “Diavolo, I can’t…” There was palpable fear in his face.

Diavolo motioned his arm to the side, bringing forth a magic circle. It was dull, and when Diavolo moved to step forward and touch it, purple magic repelled him back.

“What happened?!” Levi asked, eye widening.

“The way up to the human world…” Diavolo started, clenching his hand into a fist. “Julia sealed it.”

“No…no way. No way no way NO WAY!” Mammon yelled, running to the circle and slamming his fists onto it. It repelled him back, purple sparks stinging his arms and hands. He kept hitting it, bringing his demon form out, hoping it would let him through so he could go up. Beel moved forward and pulled Mammon back, keeping him from continuing to attack the circle.

“…Barbatos. I want you to explore if there’s a way to reverse Julia’s magic. Lucifer, you assist him. When I am done with the paperwork for all of this and for solidifying my position as King of Devildom, I will join you both.” Diavolo turned to the rest of the brothers. “Everybody, rest. I’m sure we can break this magic soon.”

But the time seemed to pass along slowly as all the brothers waited.

Belphie spent a lot of time sleeping in the attic. It was as if he was trying to pass his days waiting by not experiencing them at all. Beel couldn’t fault him for that. There were days where Beel would walk into the kitchen and expect to see Sen standing there, cooking something. He had long eaten the cookies she had made prior to the humans’ departure, but he wished at times that he hadn’t, so he could eat it again when he felt sad.

Years passed, and Beel lost track of time. Some days he ate more than usual, and some days not at all. His hunger was erratic as he waited for an answer, a sign that they could see everybody again. He waited and waited.

On nights when he was feeling particularly lonely and Belphie wasn’t around Beel would walk into Sen’s room and lay on her bed. Her RAD uniform, folded neatly and laid on the chair, had been unmoved in years. Beel would lay there on the sheets and curl up, feeling himself crying. The room was familiar with her scent. As the years passed, though, it began to fade, and this only hurt him more when he realized it one night as he flipped through their shared photos on Devilgram. He laid his arms over his eyes and gritted his teeth to keep from crying.

Beel lost track of time. So did his brothers. Were the humans old now? They would never know.

One day, Beel was rummaging through his desk looking for something to write with them he found the USB Sen had given him. True to this word, he had given it to Lucifer and Lucifer made copies for everybody.

Beel sat down on his bed and put the USB in his laptop. He looked up at Belphie, who was sleeping in his bed for once. When the USB loaded, he looked down at the pictures on the screen. All the humans were happy, and all his brothers were smiling. Even Julia was still happy and smiling in the background of some. Beel smiled lightly as he went through the photos, looking at all the shenanigans they got up to. He stopped on a few pictures of Sen and studied her portrait. Was she older now? How much older? Did she keep her hair the same? Did she still love him? Did she find someone else?

The last thought stung Beel’s heart, and he almost closed the laptop. Before he did he scrolled to the last photo on the album, which was actually a message Sen had typed up.

“Hey guys! I’m sorry if there are any spelling errors. I kind of wrote this without sleep. But thanks for everything, and I hope you guys like these photos I took through the year. They’re not the best, but I like them so I hope you do too. I hope we can see each other soon! Take care!”

She was always so sweet and thinking of others. Beel had worried maybe she was so focused on others she didn’t think of herself. Upon reading her message again, Beel felt tears fall from his eyes and he brought a hand up to stifle the sobs.

Belphie stirred. He felt a stab in his heart as he slept, waking him from his happy dream about Usako. Belphie looked over his shoulder, seeing Beel double over in his tears over the laptop. The sadness in Beel’s heart intensified Belphie’s own. He had thought if Usako was sleeping well with the pillow he gave her. He had waited many times for her to call him through their pact, but he could never feel it. He slept the days away waiting.

“Beel,” Belphie whispered, getting out of the bed and sitting next to Beel. He placed a hand on his brother’s back and gently patted him, feeling his brother’s harsh sobs.

“I miss…I miss them. I miss her,” Beel said between his tears, trying desperately to wipe them away from his eyes.

Belphie nodded and continued to pat Beel, closing his eyes so he wouldn’t start crying too. “I do too.”

Beel moved in and hugged his twin tightly, and Belphie continued to pat his back as his brother cried.

It had been three years since Yen and Sen had moved in together following their return from the Devildom. Yen was in bed for half of that time, blanket flung around her as she recuperated from all she had experienced in the final few days leading up to their departure. Sen tried her best to comfort the girl as she woke up screaming in the night, clinging to Sen and the blankets in a nervous frenzy.

“When?” Yen asked one night as Sen hugged her to calm her down.

“Soon, I hope,” was all Sen could reply with. She brushed the girl’s messy hair, and held it up in the moonlight. “Do you want to get a haircut soon? I think we both could use it.”

Yen hugged Sen more tightly, burying her face into Sen’s shoulder. “Okay.”

Sen tried to smile, but couldn’t, so she just nodded so Yen could understand that the girl heard her.

When the day Jin Le and Elizabeth arrived at Sen’s house, neither she nor the rest of the former human exchange students could predict would happen next. The words that came out of Elizabeth’s mouth had stunned them all into silence.

“…Are you…are you serious?” Reese had asked, dropping onto the couch heavily. He could only stare at Elizabeth crying over the sack of marbles she had pulled from Usako’s bag.

“Y-Yeah…you’re kidding, right?” Horizon said. Her hands had curled up into fists, and her shoulders were shaking.

“You’re lying!” Lia yelled, the tears threatening to spill from her eyes. Her hands went up to her head as she bent forward, shutting her eyes tightly. “This is all a joke…seriously…I hate this joke…”

Usako held the pillow Belphie had given her tightly. She looked at its spotted pattern and ran her fingers over the softness of it. Then this meant…she would never see him again? Her eyes stung. She hated this. She hated all of this. She lifted her head up and tried to smile to hide the tears, but then she let out an exhale and went to flop down next to Reese. She buried her face into the pillow. She wasn’t crying if nobody could see tears coming out.

Bern burst into tears, her hands shaking as she held her phone. Was this why her D.D.D. never rang with Levi’s messages for raids? Was this why she hadn’t heard from him in over three years? She let out loud sobs and fell to her knees.

Sen could only stand in stunned silence, saying nothing. There was a loud shatter, and Sen turned around, seeing Yen in the doorway of the kitchen. Her glass of tea had fallen from her hands. Her eyes were wide in grief and anguish. In the next moment she fell.

The next few days passed in a blur for Sen. They had gotten Yen into her bedroom and laid her down, checking to make sure she was okay. The rest talked in the living room, crying and screaming. Sen tried her hardest to talk it through with everybody, to console them, and to hug it out with them. One by one, everybody left to return home, feeling empty. Sen tried her best to make sure they would be okay.

Several weeks passed. Yen had returned to holing herself in her room and laying on her bed, nearly catatonic with the news. Sen tried to talk to her and get her to eat, but Yen barely got out of bed. She barely responded. Sometimes when she did she snapped at Sen, but quickly apologized. Sen nodded, and stroked her back to calm her down. If the people around Sen looked closely at her, they could see the bags forming under her eyes that she tried to hide with makeup, and the red eyes and drooping shoulders she had as she had sat in her room at nights alone, crying to no one but herself.

One day, Sen’s phone pinged with a message from Yen. It was a long message, but it immediately made Sen’s neck prickle with fear.

“Sen, thank you for everything. I’m sorry for getting mad at you when you tried to help me, but I know you were trying to help. You are a good person, and I hope you’ll be okay. I’m sorry, but I tried. It hurts too much, though. I’m really sorry. Please take care.”

Sen messaged back frantically.

“Yen? Yen?? Where are you? Are you okay? Don’t do anything, Yen, okay? Let’s get bubble tea and talk”

She never got a message back.

The news came that night that Yen had been found at the foot of a building.

Sen buried her at the end of the week, with the rest of the human exchange students in attendance. Yen’s parents weren’t there as Sen knew she wouldn’t have wanted them to be.

One night as Sen sat on her bed, tired eyes staring at the wall, she leaned to the side grabbing the letter Barbatos had given them. She looked everywhere on the letter for a sign that, maybe, they could open it and return to the Devildom. She went through the daylight hours hoping that one of the other students would message their group chat, saying “We can open it!” She hoped, and she hoped every day until the hope became like breathing, and she stopped noticing it.

Sen held up the letter Yen was given. Yen had torn it on the last night, desperation evident in the shredded edges. The letter was damaged beyond repair, and Sen could barely make out Diavolo’s scribbled signature, faded now.

She opened her messages to Beel on her D.D.D. She began to write out a message, the first since everybody had gotten news that Julia had sealed the Devildom off. “Hey, Beel, I…” she started to write, before she stopped. She scrolled up past three years’ worth of messages.

“Hey, Beel! Are you well? I hope this is reaching you. I can’t really tell, to be honest, but I hope so. Did you finish the cookies I made?”

“I had a rough day today. I hope you’re doing better. I really miss you. I wish you were here…”

“Happy birthday, Beel! I hope you and Belphie had a good birthday today!”

Her eyes started to water. Beel would never get these messages. She hoped, she had hoped, she continued to hope, but what can she do now? She could never hear him again or see him again.

The next few years Sen could barely remember. Sometimes, in the kitchen, she’d be cooking and hear Yen’s voice. She’d turn, excited to see Yen’s bright smiling face, but would be greeted by the white walls of her kitchen and silence. Other times she’d read and smell a familiar scent of cinnamon, and would turn expecting to see bright purple eyes watching her, but she’d see nothing.

The other humans were going off and doing their own things, and they all kept in touch. Every year for Yen’s birthday they would hold a toast for her and drink and laugh and catch up. Sen herself finally got her work published to critical acclaim, and she laughed during an interview on how most of it was a culmination of her self-guilt and trauma (because it was most certainly true).

At the hair salon a few weeks after her publication, Sen sat down quietly and allowed the hairdresser to cut her hair. When she looked up at the mirror again, her long hair was gone, now shortened to her neck. She ran her fingers through her hair, having had it this short since she was a child. When she walked out she took a picture and sent it to the group chat, and everybody exploded with praises and comments.

Usako: “I love your new look! (っ˘ω˘ς )”

Reese: “Short hair looks great on you!”

Lia and Hori threw various heart and joy emojis at her.

Bern was busy taking college exams but Sen would get a call from her later that night with Bern and her chatting excitedly on the joys of short hair.

Sen moved to send a picture to Beel, but remembered that he would never get her messages. She put the D.D.D. back in her bag.

On her way back home she bought a cheeseburger and sat in on a bench and ate it silently. The sun was going down, and the sky was lit a fiery red. It reminded her of his hair. She thought about the USB she gave him, and she hoped that he and the brothers would smile at all the pictures she took back then. She had taken a lot. She took better pictures now, but she really liked the ones she had taken of them back then. She had given all the humans copies of the same photos she gave to the brothers on the USB stick years ago, and sometimes Reese would message the group chat with a “Hey guys, you remember this? LOOK AT LUCIFER!”

As she took another bite of her cheeseburger she started to cry a bit. She wiped the tears, and bit down on the cheeseburger again with more determination. When she looked back up at the lake in front of her, she thought she saw the familiar red of his hair. She blinked and it was gone.

She finished the cheeseburger and stood up, tossing the trash and placing her hands in her jacket. It was similar to the one Beel had; she had tried to find one that reminded her of him.

Another few years passed, and one day on the train someone sat next to her. “Hey,” he said, his voice sounding roughly familiar. “Mind if I sit here?” he asked, smiling. Sen looked up quickly, expecting to see Beel.

She saw someone else instead. But he smelled similar. Her heart ached. Nothing would dull the lament. But Sen walked forward. She had to keep going forward and move on.