I Don't Really Wanna Do the Work Today

Starter: @ofhellsbells​

Being back in the alternate timeline was strange. she wasn’t making people manic this time at least, but in order to ensure that she had to trade a fairly vital part of herself: her ability to read the entire spectrum of love. that ability was now with chastity while chastity’s powers resided in cupid. the world felt so colorless without her powers. it made it hard to be present sometimes, but she did her best. right now, she and belphegor were having brunch with the other belgirel and his cupid. they hadn’t told the pair about the trials yet. that conversation would happen tonight when the rest of the hell princes joined them. “so, have you stolen any more of mazikeen’s ships since we last saw each other, gears?” she asked as she leaned her head on belphegor’s shoulder.

🐢🐍🦌🦌

Belgirel hadn’t seen the alternate Cupid in quite a long time. She’d told him that they would’ve helped him with his curse once they figured out how to help their universe’s Belphegor, but he hadn’t had the highest hopes of them returning. From what Cupid had told him, they’d spun quite a web of lies for their Belphegor, and as much as he believed that Belphegor would love her no matter what, he didn’t know what kind of damage that would do. Helping them get back home had done damage to him too. He’d had quite the meltdown after returning to his own universe. He’d wanted to see Belphegor so badly, but he couldn’t. He missed them terribly. When Cupid had returned to their universe with her Belphegor, he’d held them and just sobbed for such a long time. They’d only recently gotten to the point where he and the rest of his family could release them from their arms, and now it was just the two Cupids and him and his twin from a different universe. It helped a little that this Cupid had a different form than his Cupid, but it was absolutely bizarre seeing this Belphegor leaning into the relationship, and returning both the affection and the flirting. They’d been kissing her neck and whispering something that he tried not to hear just a few minutes ago. “Huh, I didn’t steal anything. What?” It took him a second to process what she actually said. “Oh, uh, not recently. I’ve been working on making a new hideaway.”

Belphegor smiled, thinking about how Dagon would’ve liked to see her Belgirel doing something like that. “What happened to the old one?”

Belgirel frowned. “It, uh, collapsed.” It apparently couldn’t withstand is meltdown.

“Oh, that goat.” Their unit dealt with that goat nearly every year. They nodded their agreement. Surprise fires weren’t ideal for this place. “Some years, they just steal the goat and move it elsewhere to prove to themselves that they can still get away with it. Like a stealth exercise. They lose if my Guardians or the local police catch them. Perhaps a compromise can be reached that way,” they suggested. They felt the guilt bubbling up inside Belphegor at the mention of Cupid handling the ferry. “She’s capable and it’s only a few people tonight,” Raph assured them. “She’d want you to rest. She’s worried about you.” Quite frankly, everyone was worried. “I get it. After the war, I felt that kind of pressure too. I remember feeling guilty for taking breaks. I still feel like that sometimes.” They managed two divisions which at the start wasn’t too bad because humanity was small and their troubles weren’t very big, but the worse off that Earth became the harder their job became. “Which is where Seraphina usually comes in.” She was their second-in-command. “She makes me delegate tasks to my Generals, or she throws a snickers bar at me if I’m looking exceptionally haggard.” She was the reason Raphael always had snacks on hand these days. “Whatever gets me to just stop for a bit. The desire to keep working until all the fires are put out is tempting but, my darling, there will always be more fires and they will burn you down and out if you don’t let those around you take some of it off your plate.”

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Belphegor didn’t really see the point of doing something like that. It didn’t really seem useful to make something just for it to be stolen. It seemed like a waste of time and resources. They didn’t think their people would care all that much about stealing a goat anyways. “I guess I could let them steal it, but why would anyone try to catch them?” It seemed like it was more for Nadia than it was for anyone else. “It’s not a problem of her capability.” Belphegor shook their head. They never doubted Cupid, but they didn’t want her to bear their labor because they were slacking. They frowned when Raphael said she was worried about them. “She’s always worried about me.” There was admittedly a lot to be worried about. Being a leader of a new realm had a lot of pressure, and on top of that, Belphegor hadn’t really gotten past what happened in their fight against the Void. They woke up screaming more than a few times, and they could tell it worried Cupid too. 

They fidgeted with their hands, their thumb pressing on their palm, while Raphael talked about their own guilt with taking breaks. They didn’t feel like the circumstances were really the same. “Everyone here’s just been through so much. It doesn’t feel right to throw my responsibilities onto them, especially after the things I did, not just in that battle but before then too. You, you’re known to be good at what you do. You’re trustworthy. I have to work four times as hard to make up for the fact I made my right hand do all my work before, and I can’t even interact with half the people I’m supposed to lead because I give off the same energy of the thing that tortured them. If I stop doing things to help them, they’ll start seeing me more like that monster.”

💖 💖 💖

Her cheeks flushed at their kind remarks. was it normal to still feel this flustered by their kindness even though they were married now? she determined it must be. belphegor always saw her with such kind eyes. she wished she could see herself the way they saw her. “the real work of art here is you,” she smiled as they kissed her. her features brightened when they remarked that the trio convinced them to take a break. good. what she hadn’t expected was that they’d be taking the entire day off. that was a very pleasant surprise indeed. information was flying at her so quickly, she didn’t know where to start. “your rib? oh bells…” she cooed. they were absolutely knackered when they gave dagon a rib. to do so again must’ve taken a lot out of them. they looked positively exhausted. the saving grace was that most of the evenings work was done so their break could start now. maybe it would start with a little nurse roleplay. “how’s it healing? let me see…”

she liked everything she was hearing so far about their planned relaxation day. they both desperately needed it. “i look forward to doing absolutely nothing all day as long as i’m with you,” she grinned as she kissed the side of their neck. “a double date and free food? i could never pass that up.” she enjoyed watching belphegor prepare food. there was something very attractive about it. her cheeks flushed an even deeper shade of red when they explained their after dinner plans. their breath felt hot against her neck as their lips brushed her earlobe. she bit her bottom lip, but it did nothing to muffle the moan that escaped from her. “i’d like that very much.” her grin was feral and hungry. “you’ve got a very lovely name, your highness. one i don’t mind saying over and over and over again,” she replied, kissing them with each passing of the word over.

Belphegor wasn’t trying to refute her claim that they were a work of art. They liked receiving compliments from her. It made them feel better about themself, but what they didn’t like was how she denied herself in the same breath. “Maybe you’re right because it feels like a masterpiece the way I fit with you.” They’d always complemented each other, to the point that their names even joined when people talked about them both. It wasn’t just Cupid and Belphegor. It was Cuphegor, because they fit together perfectly. “It’s okay,” they reassured her, not wanting her to worry. It wasn’t the first time they’d done this, so they knew how it worked more now. Regardless, they pulled off their shirt to let her see it. There were three scars there now: one on the left where they’d taken out a rib for Dagon, one on the right where they’d taken out a rib for Raphael, and one in the middle from where they’d stabbed themself as part of the final trial. The latter had never been able to heal, but they allowed the other two to stay of their own will, serving as a reminder to themself that they had people who they could trust to come help them.

They knew Cupid would be fond of the idea, not just because Cupid always was happy to spend time with them regardless of what they were doing but because of what Raphael had told them about how worried she was. “Maybe we can talk about how to make things like that happen more often?” they suggested. They would likely be talking about nothing anyways, and they really did need to figure out how to have more free time for themself and for her. They smiled, appreciating the way her face colored and her body reacted to their proximity. “Well, it’s all yours, my Queen.” As they kissed her, a strong gust of wind blew through the garden, sending out anyone who might’ve been in there and locking the gates behind them. It was just them now to do whatever they wanted without disturbance. “What do you think the best tree is for me to rip off your clothes and throw them onto?” Two of their fingers dipped into the waistband of her shorts, pulling it towards themself as they considered the question themself. “Assuming they even stay intact for that to matter.”

His shoulders sagged with relief but it was only momentary as they corrected themselves to say they’d show the whole family. “rude. she’ll never let me live it down,” he complained. “at least i’m a better screamer than she is,” he commiserated. “and at least i didn’t chuck anything at you. she probably would’ve thrown your entire desk.” lucifer frowned at them when they said they hadn’t really done much. “what do you mean? you’ve built an entire castle and little villages for them all. you’ve figured out which ones are safe to stay awake and which ones need to sleep a little. you’ve started making food and entertainment and third spaces for them. you’ve brought in their friends and family to visit. you’ve done a lot. i know you’re like 4’11″ but don’t sell yourself short. you’ve done a lot and getting them to a sense of stability is progressive and productive.” he shook his head when bells remarked that they’d have to get used the to pressure. it scared him how much belphegor was a mirror of himself after the war. “there are things about leadership that will always be stressful and it’s okay to vent about that. do you ever wonder why we had hell meetings every month even though some months it really could’ve just been an email? or why i veer us off topic so much at meetings? it’s because the only people who really understand the pressure of leading are the seven of us and maybe the four goons in heaven.” he couldn’t speak for the others, but those meetings were like support groups to him. “you’re always welcome back to them, by the way. just because you have your own realm now doesn’t mean you don’t have to come to our leadership support group hell meetings. in fact, we’d probably benefit from a does and don’ts meeting about your realm. oh! and you can bring cupid. she’s technically a monarch too and i know she’s always had fomo about not being able to see hell.”

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“Considering how many times Dagon’s been startled, I think she probably deserves it.” Belphegor chuckled, though it sounded tired and drained. “I don’t think that’s really a good thing. I guess it would suck if she threw my desk though.” They glanced back at it. It was covered in so much paperwork. It was organized currently, and they’d be beside themself if they had to reorganize it. They sighed when he tried to get them not to sell themself short. 

“The castle doesn’t really help my people. It has to feel like a mockery to them that I’d make something so grandiose when there’s so many other things I should’ve focused my time on first.” They could’ve just given themself a hut or an apartment like they had on earth, but they went for something over the top like a castle. “Even then, it’s not that well decorated on the inside. It's a castle, but it’s not like . . . a home.” They had a bed and an office, but it felt more like someone worked there and didn’t live there. In time, they were likely to fill it out with different things, mementos, gifts, art, but right now it still felt bare. They knew that Belgirel had a similar problem considering he literally had no possessions, but for Belphegor, the only thing that actually made it feel like a home was having Cupid there with them. They would never say it, but they missed knowing that Beel or Asmo might come to their kingdom at any time unannounced just to bother them. Now, Belphegor had to be there to even let them in. 

“And the “village” isn’t much of anything.” Their people had a place to sleep and access to food, but it felt more like an in-between place. There was nothing to really feel like they were living yet. “It’s not enough to make up for anything. I don’t know if I even made the right choices in who I put to sleep. Some of them are just- They’re suffering so much, and-” They let out a puff of air as they stopped themself from rambling and ranting anymore. They didn’t want their emotions to get the best of them. “I just need to spend more time on it all. That’s all.”

They weren’t sure if they agreed with Lucifer. It might’ve been okay to vent about leadership eventually, but they’d been such a bad leader before. They’d barely done anything yet. They weren’t sure they could really call themself a leader until their realm was more put together. “I figured it was because you were trying to keep an eye on me and because you have the attention span of a walnut.” They hadn’t really thought of it as any sort of bonding exercise or a way to let them vent. Their family just always got off topic because that’s who they were. The idea of going to those meetings again didn’t sound great to them, but having all the leaders of each kingdom going to it sounded like it would be beneficial to the Empty. “Cupid’s not technically a monarch. She is one,” they corrected, “but I guess I could do that. Could we stage it here? And have Michael come? I’d like heaven to know about those do’s and don’ts too, but I don’t have time to make two presentations.”

Aamon handed Belphegor a handkerchief to wipe their tears. One of his hellhounds came to rest at Belphegor’s side for further comfort. This was always going to be difficult news to take in, particularly because the bond between twins was generally close. “People change. I’d like to think he’d want to live life differently now than he did back then.” Aamon didn’t think that Belgirel would be an open book, but he wanted to believe he’d give a more honest effort to be authentic and vulnerable with his twin. Belphegor was much better than Aamon at fostering that kind of space for people. He nodded when Belphegor remarked that they wanted to go home. More and more discrepancies between the Belgirel that Belphegor remembered and the one Aamon knew were likely to come up in the future, but for now this was enough. “You’re free to go,” he nodded. “We can talk more later. For what it’s worth, he did and still does love you,” Aamon offered. “He just didn’t love himself.” Aamon couldn’t ask for forgiveness on Belgirel’s behalf, but he hoped in time Belphegor would understand and accept the past for what it was.

They took the handkerchief, dabbing at their eyes and then blowing into their nose with it before handing it back to Aamon. They patted the hellhound on the head before pulling it up by its torso and hugging it close as if it were a much smaller dog than it was. “What if he changes for the worst though? He’s been alone for so long now, and he’s gone through so much. I feel like it’d just make him want to hide more.” They didn’t really know everything their twin was going through, but they imagined it would’ve made them want to curl up and never show their face again. “What if he ends up like I did after he died?” There was no way of knowing what he’d be like, but it was hard to imagine things turning out for the better. They sighed and stood up from the chair, setting the hellhound back on the floor. Somehow, they did believe Aamon that Belgirel loved them. It just hurt that he’d never trusted them. “Okay.” They stepped over to their older brother and wrapped him in a hug. They couldn’t hug Belgirel, but at least this could do for now from someone Belgirel actually had trusted.

🧜‍♀️🧜‍♀️🧜‍♀️

She sat up a little straighter, eyes bright and curious. “mobile?” her snakes reflected a glint of hope in their eyes. she wasn’t sure what bells had in mind. maybe mental wardings? she held a few of those in her mind to help keep her empathy from picking up too much unwanted chatter, but as far as she knew there weren’t any such wardings to keep her depression from spreading. no, it wasn’t mental it was—she froze when they unsheathe their blade. 

“bells, what are you…” both she and her snakes gasped as belphegor cut into themself. bile rose in her chest and her head was swimming as she quickly got to her feet. her snakes reached out to grab the blade from belphegor’s hand, but they withdrew immediately when they briefly came into contact with belpegor’s skin. the sensation made dagon dizzy. “cheese and crackers, bells!” she swore when they plunged their hand into their chest. it wasn’t uncommon for bells to be raiding their own chest back when they had a gaping hole in it, but this was a little extreme. she winched when she heard their bones cracking. the only thing she could do was watch with morbid fascination as they pulled out what was clearly a broken piece of themself to the surface. she was relieved when they closed the wound on their chest. it was a difficult reminder of the things she’d seen in the pocket universe before the flames took them.

the spell seemed to take as much out of belphegor as ripping out their own rib had. they looked like they were about to faint when they held out the token to her. her first inclination wasn’t to take it. instead, she gently guided belpegor to a seat, doing her best not to touch bare skin, and called for one of her knights to grab a bottle of liquor from the kitchen and bring it over. once she was sure belphegor was seated and safe, she took the piece of bone in her hands and examined it. she couldn’t say she’d ever seen magic like this. “is it going to give me the ability to touch you so that i can kick your ass and then give you a hug? because…” her voice cracked. “i don’t think a skeleton handshake will be enough.”

🐍🐍🐍

They could see that she was confused about what they were doing. Truth be told, Belphegor wasn’t all too sure about it either. They’d never done something like this before. They didn’t know if it would really work the way they wanted it to, or if it was just wishful thinking on their part. They’d hoped that if they wished hard enough, it would help at least a little. It didn’t feel fair that Dagon couldn’t come visit them or their twin. They didn’t have the free hands to push her away when she rushed at them. The procedure they were doing was very delicate and precise. If they got bumped in the right way, they could’ve killed themself. They were thankful in that moment for their death touch. Even if it drained Dagon’s life a little, it kept her from stopping them or messing them up. They were able to finish without incident.

They were exhausted and drained themself though. They wouldn’t be able to do anything that took much energy for a while. They let Dagon guide them to a seat and collapsed into it, closing their eyes for just a moment. If they let themself, they would’ve fallen asleep right there, but they wanted to keep an eye on Dagon and the rib they’d given her. A part of them had worried that touching the bone might have the same effect as touching them, but she seemed okay, at least physically. Emotionally, she looked like she was going to break down.

One of the knights brought a glass of alcohol to them, and they downed it at once. It didn’t do much for their energy, but it helped a little with the pain. They might’ve healed the wound, but it didn’t change the fact that their rib was trying to regrow. That hurt a lot. “I feel like I already kicked my own ass actually, but uh, I don’t know.” They didn’t want to steer her wrong on this and drain her life again. Just because she was able to touch their bone, would she be able to touch them? Or was it only because of the spell they’d used that she was even able to touch that? “Maybe just a little hug at first, just to be safe, so you can pull away fast if I’m hurting you.”