by L. M. Brown
Michael checked with Lucifer, who nodded imperceptibly.
“There are many demons recruiting these days,” Lucifer told him. “I’m not one of them. The only one I wish to bring into the Underworld is you, and for that to happen, you must fall of your own volition. No power of mine can bring it about.”
“He agrees,” Michael said.
Gabriel stood and walked toward them. Lightning flashed through the room as the bargain was sealed. “Then it’s done.”
“And Lucifer is allowed to be on Earth now?” Michael clarified.
“Yes, but only when an archangel is with him, and he is not to set foot in the realm of angels,” Gabriel replied.
“Thank you,” Michael whispered. He couldn’t wait to see the changing world with Lucifer at his side.
“Don’t thank me yet,” Gabriel warned. “We haven’t talked about your own actions.”
Michael cringed.
Gabriel nodded. “You have deceived your fellow archangels on more than one occasion. This latest deception cannot go unpunished.”
“I know.”
“I’m sorry, Michael, but we have no choice except to strip you of your wings.”
Michael thought he might be sick.
“No!” Lucifer shouted. “You can’t do this to him. He’s an archangel and that’s all he’s ever known. Out of all of you, he is the only one with the capacity to love unconditionally. If you take away his wings it’ll destroy him.”
If Lucifer hadn’t been holding him so closely, Michael felt sure he would have tumbled to the floor. A few moments ago he had relished the thought of spending time on Earth with Lucifer. Now his dream had shattered. The archangel escorting him on Earth would be someone else.
“You have no say in this matter,” Gabriel said.
“You can’t punish Michael for my actions,” Lucifer said.
“We aren’t. We’re punishing him for his own lies and omissions.”
Michael slowly eased his way out of Lucifer’s embrace. “I’m sorry, Lucifer, but Gabriel is right. We both know I had no intention of turning you in this morning. I must face the consequences of my actions.”
Lucifer tried to pull him back into his arms, but Michael stepped out of his reach. He faced Gabriel, then knelt on the floor, his head bowed.
“No!” Lucifer screamed again, throwing himself from his chair and gathering Michael into his arms. “Take all my powers, confine me to the deepest pit in the Underworld, anything you want, but don’t do this to him.”
“It’s all right,” Michael said. “This is justice.”
“No, it’s not,” Lucifer argued. “Gabriel, please. Whatever you want from me, it’s yours.”
Gabriel smiled. “It’s clear Lucifer cares for you a great deal, Michael. He might try to pass his feelings off as merely sexual, but I think maybe you were right after all. He does care for you.”
“Of course I do,” Lucifer yelled. “Do you think I’d be here in this realm if I didn’t?”
Gabriel took Michael’s hand and pulled him to his feet. “Go take Lucifer back to the Underworld.”
“I don’t understand,” Michael said. “What about my wings?”
Gabriel chuckled. “Your wings are right where they should be. Did you really believe we’d strip them from you?”
“Yes,” Michael whispered.
“Then perhaps you don’t know us as well as you think you do,” Gabriel replied.
“I don’t understand.”
“They were testing me,” Lucifer explained.
“Correct,” said Gabriel. “I needed to know whether Michael’s faith in you is justified. Your defense of him tells me it is. For as long as you have the capacity to love, there’s hope you can be saved.”
“Then you had no intention of taking my wings?” Michael asked.
“No, of course not.”
“Then what is my punishment?”
Gabriel smiled. “I’m thinking of getting a gardener, on a short-term contract for, say, a hundred years.”
“You’re going to make me weed your garden?” Michael had never enjoyed gardening and Gabriel knew it.
“And prune my roses, clean my pond, and everything else my little corner of paradise needs.” Gabriel nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll be overseeing your work personally. You can use your time working in my garden to update me with full reports regarding your mission.”
Michael smiled and nodded. “I can live with that.”
“Goodbye, Lucifer,” Gabriel said. “I hope to see you back amongst us soon.”
Michael wanted the same, but he didn’t share Gabriel’s optimism. Lucifer’s journey back to the light would be a long one, for no other angel had fallen quite so far as he had. Michael vowed he would be with him every step of the way.
Chapter Eight
While Michael didn’t exactly enjoy gardening, he did find it pleasant to spend more time with Gabriel and he was truly sorry he had been neglecting his oldest friend so much. Raphael sometimes joined the two of them as well, and Michael felt they might be making some progress in restoring their friendship to what it had once been.
He just wished he was making progress with his mission to save Lucifer.
Now Lucifer was free to visit Earth with him, their relationship wasn’t as tense as it had been, but they had fallen into an easy routine and had reached something of an impasse.
“I don’t seem to be getting anywhere with him,” Michael admitted as he continued his task of weeding the flowerbed under Gabriel’s kitchen window. “I don’t think he wants to come back to us.”
“Of course he doesn’t,” Raphael said. “I still say we should have taken him up on his offer of anything to save your wings and told him to give up all his demonic powers and return here.”
“No one can be forced into the light,” Gabriel said. “He has to come here of his own free will, without coercion, bribery, or trickery.”
Raphael snorted. “All the things he is so familiar with.”
“He’s not that bad,” Michael said.
“He’s a master manipulator,” Raphael replied. “He has you wrapped around his little finger.”
“We’re equals in our relationship.”
“Do you honestly believe that?” Gabriel asked.
“Don’t you?” Michael countered.
Raphael answered the question instead. “Lucifer is pulling all your strings and you don’t even know it. He has all the power between the two of you, and I’m not talking about angel or demon powers, I mean the other kind. He’s the one in charge and, as long as that remains the case, you’ll never save him.”
“You think he manipulates me?”
“When he snaps his fingers, you go running to his side. You’ve lied for him over and over again. We’re worried about you.”
“I’ve not kept anything from you since Lucifer was last here,” Michael insisted as he tried to keep hold of his temper.
“We’re just worried about you,” Gabriel assured him. “We see signs in you that were, in hindsight at least, seen in Lucifer before he fell.”
Michael shivered. “You do?”
“The isolation from the rest of us, as well as the lying.”
“That’s why you wanted me to do your gardening, isn’t it? To keep me from distancing myself.”
“Yes. We don’t want you to fall, and we’re worried Lucifer’s influence over you is too great.”
“I’ve never been the most sociable of angels,” Michael reminded them. “Socially inept, I believe you called me once.”
“Making light of serious concerns is another trait Lucifer has,” Raphael commented.
Gabriel nodded his agreement. “You say you and Lucifer are equals in your relationship, but I disagree. He’s in charge of you, and, as long as it remains that way, you’re in danger of falling. You need to stand up to him and stop being manipulated, or Raphael’s correct, and you’ll never be able to bring him back to the light.”
Michael didn
’t think he was being manipulated by Lucifer, so he asked his friends to tell him when they thought he was being, so he could see for himself.
* * * *
A few days later, Raphael raised the subject again. “Michael, where are you going?”
“The Underworld,” Michael replied.
“I thought you were going to go there after your shift on the new souls’ gate?”
“I was, but I was late visiting Lucifer yesterday. I’m going to have lunch with him, come here for my shift, before heading back down for dinner.”
“Was that your suggestion or Lucifer’s?” Raphael asked.
“I don’t remember.”
“Honesty,” Raphael reminded him.
Michael frowned and closed his eyes, running through the conversation with Lucifer in his mind. “Lucifer raised the idea of lunch first,” he admitted. “But I agreed to it.”
“And if you hadn’t agreed?”
Michael considered the question carefully before accepting the truth. Lucifer would have pouted and nagged him until he had changed his mind. It was easier to go along with his plan right from the start.
“This is an example of Lucifer manipulating you,” Raphael said, “just in case you haven’t figured it out.”
Michael sat on a nearby bench. “If I don’t meet him for lunch he may come searching for me.”
“He’s not allowed in this realm.”
“He’ll be worried.”
Raphael waved his hand in the direction of Michael’s beach. “Go to lunch, but next time something like this arises, you need to stand up to him. You can’t always be at his beck and call.”
* * * *
It didn’t take long for Michael to learn to recognize when Lucifer was cajoling him into doing what he wanted. If he hadn’t been so besotted with him he would probably have noticed long before Raphael had pointed it out to him.
“You don’t have to go back yet,” Lucifer whispered into Michael’s ear.
“Gabriel’s expecting me to help watch over his new recruits while they’re on Earth for the first time.”
“Isn’t that his job?”
“Yes, but he can only be in one place at a time and with so many new angels under his tutelage he’s struggling a little.”
“You have your own duties to attend to,” Lucifer pointed out. “You shouldn’t have to make up for his deficiencies too.”
Michael ignored the dig at Gabriel and grabbed his discarded robes from the foot of the bed. “I’ll see you this evening.”
He could feel the heat of Lucifer’s body against his back and he steeled himself for what he knew would be coming next.
“Come back to bed,” Lucifer purred. “You’ve been working too hard recently. You need to relax, and I know exactly how to help with that.”
Michael eased himself out of Lucifer’s arms and made to leave. He donned his robes and tied them securely. He hoped the expression on his face made it clear to Lucifer that he wasn’t going to talk him around this time.
When he met Lucifer’s gaze he saw his lover scowling, his lower lip sticking out in a familiar pout.
“You’re actually going to leave me?” Lucifer asked.
“I told you, I’ll see you for dinner later this evening.”
Lucifer turned his back on him. “If you’re sure you can spare the time,” he muttered.
Michael rolled his eyes, leaned over, and kissed the crown of Lucifer’s head. “Stop sulking. I’ll see you later.”
Lucifer ignored him, but Michael felt far better about himself as he left the Underworld. He would take back control of his life, whether Lucifer wanted him to or not.
* * * *
Michael arrived in the Underworld hungry and tired. Helping Gabriel had been an interesting experience—their methods of training recruits differed greatly—but combined with his own duties, it made for a long day. He hoped Lucifer had stopped sulking and was in a better frame of mind than when Michael had left him this morning.
It came as something of a surprise to find Lucifer’s chambers empty and no sign of dinner on the table. He wondered if Lucifer planned to take him out somewhere on Earth, but if that was the case, where had he disappeared to?
“Lucifer?” he called.
He was met with silence.
Michael wandered through Lucifer’s chambers, wondering how long he should wait for him. His stomach growled, but he resisted the temptation to leave immediately. Lucifer had his own duties to attend to—perhaps he had been held up with the demon king.
He hoped Lucifer hadn’t gone to Earth without him. He had no doubt none of the other archangels had taken him there. Besides Michael, only Gabriel had escorted Lucifer on Earth, and he had done so just once. Gabriel had told Michael he wanted to speak to Lucifer privately, so Michael had brought Lucifer from the Underworld and left him in Gabriel’s charge for a couple of hours. Neither his best friend nor his lover had told him what they had discussed.
Since Gabriel, nor any of the other archangels, had asked Michael to bring Lucifer to Earth, if he had gone there, he had done so without permission and in contravention of the agreement. Michael hoped he was simply somewhere else in his own realm of caverns.
In all the times Michael had been to the Underworld he had never ventured anywhere besides Lucifer’s chambers. Now, with nothing to do other than pace, he found himself curious as to what lay beyond the walls. After an hour the temptation became too much and he opened the doorway into the main part of the Underworld. With Lucifer’s help, he had long since mastered the art of invisibility, so, after making sure he could not be seen by any wandering demons, Michael went in search of his lover.
The rest of the Underworld was dark, dreary, and far too crowded. If the archangels had been on a recruiting drive, the demons had been doing likewise, and they appeared far more successful in their efforts. Michael had thought the angels had a fair idea of the current number of demons, but he had been wandering the Underworld just a few minutes before he realized how wrong they were. They should have been keeping a closer eye on the Underworld, and he would see this rectified when he returned to the realm of angels.
Dozens of winding tunnels branched off the main route, but Michael didn’t venture down any of them. Many of the demons seemed to be heading in the same direction, and Michael followed them. He soon found himself in a large cavern he recognized from the pool of visions as the throne room.
The demon king, a scaled creature with two heads, roared with laughter as four lesser demons fought in the center of the room. The fighters had drawn quite a crowd, including his absent lover.
Lucifer sat on the steps to the side of the throne, equally enthralled with the entertainment, and oblivious to Michael’s presence.
Michael watched him for a moment or two before walking over to the steps leading to the throne. He knew Lucifer would be able to see him when he drew close enough. No matter how hard he tried, Michael had never been able to hide himself from his lover for more than a few moments.
“Lost track of time?” he asked, keeping his voice low, so none except Lucifer could hear him.
Lucifer glared at him with such animosity Michael stepped back in surprise. “I thought we had an agreement about angels wandering around the Underworld?”
“Angels?” the demon king asked. “What angels?”
Lucifer smiled at the king. “Nothing for you to concern yourself with. Just an intruder.”
The demon king took him at his word and carried on watching the fight.
“Is that what I am now?” Michael asked. “An intruder?”
“You have no business being in this part of the Underworld. Perhaps you should go have dinner with Gabriel?”
Michael sat on the step beside Lucifer and made himself comfortable. Two could play at this game. “So, who is your money on to win this fight?”
“What?” Lucifer blinked at him with an adorably confused expression. Michael considered this a vast improvement on his earlier
display of temper.
Michael gestured to the fight. “I think the black-horned demon will win this one. He seems to have some rather sneaky moves.”
“They’re demons. They all have sneaky moves,” Lucifer replied. “You need to go back to my chambers. If the horde down there should discover your presence here, I might not be able to protect you.”
Michael glanced at the demon king. Even though Michael remained invisible, and he was pretty sure no one except Lucifer could see and hear him, the demon king was aware of his lover’s presence and could no doubt hear Lucifer’s half of the conversation. His lover made no effort to lower his voice at all.
“Your demon king is listening to your words most intently. Perhaps you should send your thoughts to me instead of speaking.”
“Let him listen,” Lucifer muttered. “He might learn a few things. Why are you here, Michael?”
“We had dinner plans, remember?”
Lucifer snorted. “I had plans for you this morning, but you weren’t so anxious to spend time with me then.”
The demon king squinted in Michael’s direction and he could tell he was trying desperately to see who Lucifer spoke with.
“I had duties,” Michael said. “Now, are you going to come to dinner, or do we need another separation?”
Lucifer laughed. “You’ll be back in my bed before the end of the week.”
“I’m not the one who sneaked into the realm of angels, and my bed, not so long ago.”
Lucifer grumbled under his breath and, although Michael didn’t catch what he said, it appeared from his chuckle the demon king did.
“Perhaps we could take this discussion somewhere a little more private,” Michael suggested.
Lucifer ignored him and nudged the demon king. “Would you care to wager on the outcome of the fight?” he asked.
“Which fight?” the demon king whispered, presumably so he didn’t appear to be talking to himself. “The one on the floor or the one between you and—what was his name?—Michael?”
Lucifer glared at the demon king, who cringed and backed up as far in his throne as he could. “You forget your place.”
