* WARRIOR

Belgirel was glad that Michael took over showing him how to use this thing. Back when he was alive, plugging something didn’t really mean using an outlet like that. He thought they had to plug up the toaster, and he was going to put his dick in it. “Oh.” He watched as Michael adjusted the settings on the toaster. When Michael pressed the lever down this time, it stayed in place. Belgirel looked inside the toaster to see that the metal wiring was turning orange. Cool. “I don’t think I have any bread.” He’d have to go pick some up. Belphegor had a market set up for them to get the foods they needed. It was good encouragement for a lot of them to get out more. “Have you been eating more toast then? Or have you been putting your dick in it too?” he joked. He knew enough about Michael to guess that he probably wasn’t doing the latter. He wasn’t entirely reassured by Michael’s words. He had to see it to believe it. He was more surprised when Michael said he needed his help. “What have you tried so far to get on her good side? You lied to her best friend for centuries and hid what was happening to everyone here. You can’t just buy her with gifts.” It wasn’t how Dagon worked to just accept someone simply because they gave her something. “That being said, as far as gifts go, it’s not a terrible idea. I think she’d like to see them again. Maybe you could just let her in to come see them whenever she wants or just make them capable of surviving.” He couldn’t advise well on that part. It wasn’t his forte, but he was sure Michael or any of the other archangels could figure it out.

“I came prepared,” Michael replied as he manifested a bag of bagels that he purchased at the market in the castle square. He made sure they were ones for the dead. “These are bagels. I prefer them over regular toast, but it works much the same.” He placed one half of the bagel in each of the slats and pushed the lever down so that the toaster would warm them up. As the toaster did it’s job, Michael laid out an array of jams, butters, and cream cheeses. “I wasn’t sure what you’d like so I got a bit of everything,” he explained. He chuckled at his brother’s question. “Despite Asmodeus’s efforts to make toaster fucking more appealing, I haven’t felt the need.” Asmo had given him an early birthday present that was a toaster fleshlight. Michael expected nothing less from his younger brother at this point. He didn’t argue or defend his position when Belgirel marked all the reasons that Dagon had to distrust him. If he were in her position, he wouldn’t trust him either. “I haven’t had much of a chance to try anything. She’s very good at evading people. You can pass on my complements the next time you see her.” He considered for a moment the suggestions that Gears presented. Allowing Dagon into Heaven was not possible at the moment. There were discussions being had about opening Heaven to demons again and vice versa, but agreements hadn’t been reached yet. “I’m sure I could make them survivable,” he agreed. “It’s their disposition that I can’t change. They get very melancholy when they are outside of Eden.” Suicidal even. He didn’t think Dagon would want that. “But I think I can find other creatures in the Garden that wouldn’t mind exploring a new home.”

Belgirel took the box over to his table and started opening it up. After setting the toaster on the table, he realized he didn’t actually know how it worked. There was a little knob on the front. Rotating it didn’t seem to do anything. The other black lever just bounced up and down when he pressed on it. He touched the inside, but it was still cold. The issue of course was that he hadn’t plugged it in, but he thought the plug was just a tail. “I don’t think it works.” That was a little disappointing, but it was okay. He could still use it as a decoration because the whole idea of it was just a joke. “Well, it’s better than it was before, though there is a lot I don’t really understand. I thought I’d get to see Belphegor more too, but it seems like they’re always dealing with something. It’s nice being able to see everyone else though when they come to visit.”

Michael watched Belgirel explore the toaster without interrupting. Some earthly contraptions were intuitive but others weren’t. “You have to plug it in first,” he replied as he picked up the toaster and plugged it into an outlet in the kitchen area. “The rotating panel here determines how crispy you want the toast. I usually keep it in the middle setting.” He adjusted it as so. “And then you put the pieces of toast or a bagel in these slats here and you push the lever down.” He pushed it down to demonstrate. “The slats will pop back up once your bread is toasted to medium crispness. Then you can put jam or butter or other flavorings on it.” He nodded when Gears said that a lot he didn’t understand just yet. “It’ll take some time to catch up, but I think a lot of people are just excited to show you things. It gives them a second appreciation for things they might’ve taken for granted. Like that toaster. I don’t think I’ve thought about its function too much, but I certainly appreciate it more now that I’ve thought about it.” He could see Belgirel’s disappointment at how little time he got to spend with Bells. “They’ll find their footing. We’ll help them get there,” he reassured Gears. He knew Raph was going to talk to them about it and Lucifer had mentioned something too, so it wasn’t going unnoticed. “Speaking of getting there, I could use your help with something. I’ve been trying for the better part of a year to get on your girlfriend’s good side.” The attempts fell flat each time. “Asmo suggested getting her one of those forest spirits from Eden for Christmas, but they can’t survive outside of the Garden. Any thoughts?”

“Hey, big cheese,” she greeted him. it was a mild greeting compared to some of the things she came up with but being home meant carrying at least an air of professionalism. she followed in step as he motioned for her to join him. his people were handing him documents left and right. she forgot how hectic this whole process got and just how many things needed his approval. she made a face when he asked her about clean up. “it’s projected that the northeast got eighteen inches of snow and the rest of the hemisphere went through a short polar freeze.” a lot of countries south of the equator weren’t equip to handle that kind of freeze and for many people north of the equator it was simply too expensive to heat their homes. “gabe’s out there meeting with raphael so they can debrief.” gabe’s unit had already gotten the public heating zones, shelters, and pantries at the ready. meanwhile, raph healers had set up the red cross stations and the guardians were digging stranded people out of their homes and cars. “please tell me this is the last big energy storm you guys plan to create this season. i don’t think the ecosystem can handle another.”

He snorted at the greeting while setting some of the documents that were handed to him onto is desk for review. He could tell that they were gearing up for the holidays just based on the stack of things that needed to be reviewed one final time. “Given the last few centuries, the northeast is at least used to that amount of snowfall.” The rest of the hemisphere though not so much. The infrastructure needed to be overhauled to accommodate for the fact that winter was breaching the south more and more these days. “It’s the last planned one but I can’t account for unplanned things.” There was only a month and a half left in the year and it was a busy month. He doubted anyone would have time to create additional problems that required clean up. “How are the environmental meetings going?” he asked. While creating the proper infrastructure to handle the severe weather was definitely needed, it was a Band-Aid at best. To reverse the effects of climate change, they needed this committee to work.

It was never really a surprise when people visited Belgirel. Belphegor knew that most people here all had their own separate issues, and surprising them with visits could be a triggering thing. All visits as of now went through an approval process. Belphegor asked the person if they were okay being visited by whoever was trying to visit them, and then they set up a place where they could meet without potentially frightening anyone else. It was easier with Belgirel since he lived in the castle, and most of the people who wanted to visit him were family. They were trusted enough to be able to just come visit him at home. After leaving Michael’s side, Belphegor had come to let Belgirel know that Michael was on his way. He tidied himself up a little before answering the door. He grinned when he saw what Michael had for him. “I think you mean dick warming gift,” he corrected him. “Nice!” He took the box from his brother and started walking back into his room, leaving the door open for Michael to come in too. “It can keep me company when Dagon’s gone.” It wouldn’t be able to hug him like she could, but the warmth would probably help.

“That’s one way to look at it,” the Archangel grinned. “I hope it provides you many warm nights and lightly toasted bread.” He was glad Gears seemed to enjoy the gift. Sure, the joke came at Michael’s expense but he didn’t mind it much. It was easier to lean into the joke than to fight it. It also made this less awkward if they had a mutual joke between them. He entered the suite and glanced around for the usual suspects. Mainly Dagon and Aamon. They weren’t his biggest fans and he didn’t want to put anyone on edge. He could see signs of Dagon’s presence and touches of Aamon too, but neither seemed to be here at the moment. “How are you adjusting to the castle?” he asked. He imagined it was strange being inundated with all of these new customs. Belphegor had freed the Empty just in time for holidays the Empty didn’t know much about.

Michael was not comfortable in the Empty. He felt like his presence held the potential to set off any number of individuals. He’d thankfully worked with enough PTSD stricken soldiers in his field to know when someone was triggered by something, but it was a lot harder to talk people down when you happen to be the trigger. So, he stuck to the limits of the castle. He was walking toward the West Wing where Belphegor had indicated that Belgirel was. Apparently, just as Charlie knew where everything and everyone was in the Veil, Belphegor had a similar knowledge about everyone’s presence in the Empty. Michael paused at the door, hesitant for a moment. Would Gears want to see him? Before he even had a moment to ponder that thought, the door opened, and he was face-to-face with his younger brother. “Hey,” he greeted. They were silent for a beat before Michael spoke up again. “I brought you a housewarming gift.” He held up a toaster and grinned. “Belphegor said your room was missing one.”

“Andromeda,” he greeted her with a quick side hug. He was on the move and motioned for her to follow him. As they walked, someone handed him a stack of papers that he’d later need to look over and approve. There was always something or other that needed approval, but right now he had more pressing things to attend to. “How goes the clean up effort? It’s blizzard season in the Northeast, isn’t it?” he asked. Winter had kicked off a bit early this year on account of all the energy that he and his family created during the final trial. Now they were playing catch while trying to clean up after themselves.

“Is that what made him the way he is? losing his shadow?” it wasn’t an excuse for the harm and violence aamon had perpetuated, particularly toward tracy, but zatanna was trying to understand michael’s siblings. it was hard to imagine aamon as anything but a bitter winters night. she could tell that right now michael felt a certain coldness too. she rested her head on his chest as he held her and took ne of his hands in hers. her fingers to absentmindedly traced the lines on his palm. “is this about your actions being enough or you being enough?” she asked. “because if it’s the latter, i can tell you that you are enough. it will take some of them longer than others to accept that, but they can’t deny that you’re trying your best not only to cure their curses but also to fix your relationship with them.” michael wasn’t just trying to absolve a guilty conscience by righting his father’s wrongs. zee knew he didn’t want his familial relations to just end when these curses were gone. “they love you and they will still love you even if you can’t fix all their problems.”

“I think so,” he nodded as he leaned back in his seat and made space for her in his arms. “He was always a bit stiff like me, but cruelty didn’t really set into his bones until after the war.” The person that Aamon was before the war would’ve never harmed an innocent child. He’d taken his job as a teacher and mentor seriously, but something in him broke during the war. Michael took a deep breath and kissed the top of Zatanna’s head. “I hardly take credit for the cures. That honor belongs to you.” He made it easier by extending a wide variety of resources and his own time as well, but she did a great deal of leg work too and he didn’t want her to sell herself short on that. “But it is nice to be working on a common goal with my siblings again. I missed it,” he admitted. He wanted to believe that she was right and that they’d still love him even if he couldn’t fix everything that he and his father broke, but he just needed this win. “I can’t fix all their problems but I need to fix this one.” Not just for the sake of his family, but for the sake of angel kind all around. 

Belgirel was still hesitant despite Michael’s explanation. He didn’t trust that this wasn’t some sort of prank. “Are you sure about that?” He asked. “You know how Beel was about food. It looks like something he’d put his dick in. Did he give it to you?” He held his hand up defensively when Michael tried to hand him the toast. “I think I’ll skip the bread. You didn’t use that thing for anything else, did you?” He picked up a potato that looked like it wouldn’t fit in the toaster and took a bite out of it.

Michael couldn’t help but smile at his younger brother’s insistence that there was something wrong with the toaster. “You know, I wouldn’t put it past him. I think he and Asmo do have a sex toy line in the shape of food and kitchen items.” If he recalled right, they came up with it right around the time the American Pie movies were released. “But, alas, Zatanna actually made the toaster, just like she made everything else here. I watched her do it and I don’t think it’s been tampered with.” Nevertheless, he respected his brother’s choice not to eat the toast. “I did lightly toast the bagels.” He gestured to the round slices of toasted bread. “But everything else should be toaster free. May I ask…why are you wet?” He observed the puddle forming on the flooring under Belgirel. “Do you need a change of clothes?”

“I can see that …” The table filled with food was an obvious giveaway, but it wasn’t exactly what Belgirel meant by his question. He didn’t mind Michael making food. He was still hungry even after everything Beelzebub had given him, but he hadn’t seen Beelzebub cooking like this. He remembered Beelzebub cooking some things in the past but not with stuff like this. He looked on in disgust as Michael actually ate the sliced bread that came out of that machine. “But why are you cooking food in a dick warmer?” It looked like a small sized dick warmer at that.

His brother was cautious which was fair. They had only one brief interaction after Belgirel’s death and it was when Michael intervened to pull Zatanna away from the Void. Frankly, he was surprised Belgirel decided to stop by his dimension. He wouldn’t have blamed him if opted out of this visit. The older Archangel opened a jar of jam and took a seat at the breakfast bar. “Dick warmer?” he raised a confused eyebrow and glanced at the toaster. Gears must’ve visited with Asmo  or Andras before him. “It’s actually a toaster. It’s purpose is to warm up bread,” he finished putting jam on a piece of toast and offered it up to Gears. “I keep the dick warmers in another room,” he joked. 

@ofwarriors​

Belgirel was feeling a little better about himself after getting some truths out with Andras and just being able to have some time for fun with him without the heavy conversations afterwards. They’d ridden a fair share of rides, working their way up to some of the bigger ones once Belgirel thought he could handle it. The wind from the rides made his hair a mess, but he felt good even when he eventually had to leave his best friend, though Raphael had to intervene for that to happen.

Stepping into Michael’s pocket dimension was like the complete opposite of Andras’s, though he wasn’t surprised that Michael’s didn’t seem any fun in comparison. It was just a room of some sort, though most objects in it were foreign to him. He followed a strong smell to some sort of kitchen. It made his stomach rumble in response, and he was pretty sure it announced his presence. He looked suspiciously at some of the equipment being used. “What are you doing?”

Zatanna had only casually mentioned that Belgirel appeared hungry but that was enough to get Michael going in the kitchen. He’d been cooking food and fielding calls from Heaven since he got to his pocket universe. He needed something to keep himself busy while he waited. A part of him wondered if Belgirel would even show up. Michael couldn’t really blame him if he chose not to, but he tried to keep an optomistic air. By the time Blgirel entered his pocket universe, Michael had already made breakfast, lunch, and was working on dinner. A variety of plates with all sorts of food stood between the two of them. “I’m cooking,” he replied, draping the kitchen towel over his shoulder. “Zatanna mentioned that you were hungry and I had some time. I’m sure it’s not as impressive as the stuff Beelzebub makes but I promise it’s good either way. Please,” he gestured to the plates before him as if to say have at it when you’re ready. He grabbed a piece of toast for himself and bit into it just in case Belgirel needed proof that the food wasn’t tampered with.