Worship

"I feel bad for him though, I-- don't get me wrong, I hate what he's doing, but... he doesn't really have anyone and I-- I don't know. Maybe you're right. It's best to cut ties. He was happy to have you and Agnes killed, so... so yeah, of course you're right," he nodded as he cautiously watched the demon glance about for a car of his suiting, eventually (and reluctantly) settling on some old Range Rover. It was far from the fast sports car he had been keen on, but time was of the essence; the sooner he got them home, the sooner he realised he could start on his charm offensive to win them over.

He hadn't planned on sticking around for more than a month, having plans to return to his life back home to support his mother, even if they hardly had the best relationship. The woman couldn't care less about him but Darius had always felt obligated to loo out for her nonetheless, being the only family member he was happy to be around. However, a year soon passed by in the blink of an eye and he hadn't returned to Hell, not even for a day to collect the belongings he had down there.

Similarly, Elijah never did return to London to collect his things, nor did he return to even see his sister - though he did call and text her at least once a day, and often met up with her halfway between their different locations so he could see her in person. He had settled in Brighton, splurging most of the remaining finances in his bank account on an apartment beside the sea. It wasn't fancy, nor was it particularly large, but its location rocketed the value and he was happy to treat himself because of it. Without the luxury of a boyfriend who was happy to buy him things, Elijah had to find a job; a prospect that became overwhelmingly difficult given his lack of qualifications.

The first few months of the new life hadn't gone particularly well, but everything seemed to fall into place halfway through the year: he found himself a job working at a bowling alley and arcade; he quit smoking and drinking alcohol; he entered anger management and took medication to control his rages, and, perhaps most surprisingly, he joined the local church after rediscovering his religion. He had absolute proof that Heaven existed -if Hell did, then so did its counterpart- and, even after his horrendous childhood, he somehow fell back into his religion, finding that it gave him something to be passionate about. The church he joined was far more forgiving than the religious principles his parents had held, and it was the first place he really found himself making friends, no longer holding that bitterness that he used to display to anyone and everyone. It was a complete 180 from his old life, but the changes were exactly what he needed. He felt happy and, even if he wasn't the same person he was a year ago, he thought he'd changed for the better. The Elijah of the past would never have had the temperament to invite guests into his home and throw a dinner party; the new Elijah not only did that, but excelled in the social situation, often inviting over friends from the church to enjoy an evening together. Given the drastic change, it was inevitable that he'd find himself someone who supported that; who didn't encourage the raw, wild tendencies like Apollo had. He found himself a boyfriend from work who was sweet and who wouldn't hurt a fly, being just the sort of supportive figure Elijah decided he needed in his life. The less his boyfriend reminded him of Apollo, the better.

It was only after this year that he was finally comfortable enough to have his sister visit him. He hadn't wanted her to arrive when his life was a complete mess, knowing she would only worry and concern herself with it. Only after the last six months when everything was on the up did he finally extend the invite to her and Cameron, being confident enough with his decorated apartment and his comfortable life to finally have her around. He had spent most of the early morning making sure everything was perfect, and it was, but he was still anxious that his sister would find fault somewhere. It had been a year since the incident that he felt had made her hate him, and while they had gotten over it, he still held guilt, which was why he was so desperate for everything to just be perfect, if only for her.

He was so frantic, in fact, that it as left to his boyfriend, Benji, to answer the door for them, opening with a wide smile at finally being able to meet the couple he had talked to frequently over video call in person.

"Your brother's busy, trying to multitask in the kitchen or something. I don't ask when he's this frantic, he makes no sense," the freckled boy snorted, his cheery persona being a constant for him - it was one of the reasons Elijah fell for him in the first place. "God, are you both tired? It's not that far but the roads are crazy on a weekend, huh?"
 
Of course, Mary and Agnes continued to live in their shared apartment... just with the new addition of Cameron and Darius. It took quite a while to really get accustomed to the demon in their midst but Agnes did, at the very least, find Darius' companionship pleasant not to mention in helped wit bills, which meant neither she nor Mary had to take on the grueling hours they asked for and thus meant both she and her friend were able to do things they enjoyed. Despite her goth aesthetic, Agnes wasn't one to stray from the beach or head out on trips and it was nice to be able to do those sort of things with Darius, even if he was an incredibly powerful demon.

Mary wasn't Agnes whatsoever. The whole scenario was far more traumatizing for her than the other so it was nice to have Cameron around. Not seeing her brother for at least a month after with no real knowledge of where he was, was just another layer of stress which wasn't pleasant but it was nice to at least have Cameron and the others. She went slow with their relationship, mostly because she had never been in one and her sheltered life left her pretty oblivious to what she was supposed to do. It also was a bit strange for her friends, who were all unashamedly in the punk and goth scene, bring her sort of bland and nerdy boyfriend to her shows. She didn't mind, of course, as long as Cameron didn't mind her shaving a side of her head once or the fact that she cried after getting her ears pierced yet made not a single move when getting a tattoo on her arm.

Mary had become a bit of a local rockstar - well, her band did. She was able to leave the country (if only through the UK) for some concert while touring as the opening band for another well known electro-goth band which gained them some recognition. She and her band didn't hit overnight but they were at least popular enough to have local clubs sold out when they played and that was enough for her. She was thankful for not having to deal with any more demon shit outside of Darius who at least didn't seem to want to kill anyone any time soon. She didn't forget what happened with Apollo but she tried not to think about it too much. The only thing she would change would be the fact that she lived a bit too far from her brother than she would like. Nonetheless, it was nice to see her brother not to mention his boyfriend for the first time face to face.

She wasn't afraid of her alternative attire but she played it down just a tad for Benji, knowing that she could come off as a bit intimidating at first glance even though she was known to cry over not having food for a pigeon when it approached her on the street. Cameron wasn't someone who necessarily stood out through appearances so he could always cling to that fact if Benji was too uncomfortable.

"Hey, yeah. Traffic was pretty horrible and I had to work a late shift," Mary admitted with a smile, peering into the apartment curiously. "He really didn't need to do this, it's just his apartment. Ours is horribly messy but hey, the pizza boxes give our cats something to do," she teased in an attempt to start of their introduction positively. She had worked on her social skills to the best of her ability instead of awkward.
 
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"I told him not to bother cooking; I told him we could all go out or just order something in, but he told me he wanted to make the effort. I think he got the recipe from Betty at the church; she often gives him little recipes here and there. I think he just wants to show off a little for you," replied Benji as he shut the door, taking in the couple happily. The first time he saw pictures of them from Elijah, he hadn't really expected them to be together, being as different as they were aesthetically and, apparently, in personality. That didn't mean he judged them for it. If they loved one another, that was really all that mattered - and besides, Mary's appearance hardly bothered him that much. Was it different to what most of his friends dressed like? Sure, but Elijah was hardly plain-looking. The man was covered in tattoos from his younger days so if that barely bothered Benji, Mary really wasn't going to either. He found it intriguing, if nothing else.

"It smells lovely, at least," nodded Cameron as he -in typical fashion- awkwardly hesitated until being beckoned into the cute living room. The drastic change in Elijah never failed to shock him, and he still found it difficult to fully accept that the man had changed. He was used to him threatening him, promising to tear him apart if he even went near his sister. For the last year, all Elijah really did was tell them how cute a couple they made and how he was looking forward to spending time with them; how he was happy his sister had found Cameron who was "reliable" and "smart". It was lovely to have his approval, and making friends with him was a huge step, but he still exercised caution - however normal and stable everything he was seeing seemed to be.

Elijah himself made an appearance once hearing the buzz of voices, setting a bottle of wine and some glasses down on the coffee table before pulling his sister into a well-needed hug, leaning back to take her in properly. "You toned it down-- Benji wouldn't have cared if you turned up looking like you normally do, you know? It doesn't matter, just have some wine and we can catch up properly, hm? I have steaks to cook up but that can wait, I haven't seen you in forever," he grinned, absently playing with the cross around his neck which he often did to keep himself in check. Being around alcohol wasn't easy, but he wasn't going to deprive the others of a drink just because he was abstaining from it.

"How's Agnes? I'd have invited her but... Darius would have come too and... I don't know, he and I don't get on that well," he shrugged as he sunk into the armchair opposite them, watching Benji pout the wine out with a nod when his boyfriend seemed hesitant to do so. "Just drink, I'm fucking fine, Benji-- honestly, drink as much as you want. I'm not gonna fall off the wagon over wine; I don't even like the stuff that much."
 
"Well, I know you're quite into the whole... church thing again, I didn't want to somehow offend your boyfriend if he didn't approve of that sort of thing," she whispered to her brother, taking a glance at Benji quickly. Sure, technically there was a Heaven if Hell existed but she had given enough of her life towards religion that she didn't really care anymore. She was living with a demona nd if that meant she was going to Hell, then fine. She was done and tired with it all so to see her brother so determined to rejoin that whole lifestyle was a little daunting.

"I'm starving, haven't had steak in forever! We've been trying to save on our expenses to get out of our current apartment to something a little nicer, yeah? Not to mention it's far too close to the college. I'd prefer to move to the music district, naturally, and where we are is far too... far," she explained with a smile once exiting the hug to take a seat. "Trust me, I contemplated some strange outfits but I decided to go with something more casual. Wouldn't want to give Benji a heart attack."
 
He didn't expect his sister to understand why he had fallen back into religion, especially when he couldn't explain it himself. It had just sort of... happened. He found himself wandering into church, angry and brooding, only to be talked out of it by a kindly woman, which led to him making frequent visits and eventually rediscovering his faith. It helped him and it was the one big passion he had left in his life, so while he knew it might make her uncomfortable, he wasn't prepared to hide it or talk it down at all.

"...Yeah, well, it's not... suffocating anymore, Mary. It's not like when we were younger, I promise. It's... nice, normal really. I don't expect you to come with me or anything; not when you have a literal demon living with you. Speaking of, why doesn't he pay for a new apartment for you all? He has enough money, doesn't he?"

"He's offered but it's... we don't want him paying for everything, it isn't right. We all want to pitch in," smiled Cameron as he took a glass to sip at. He would be the first to admit that Darius was -ironically- a god-send. If it wasn't for him, Cameron knew he wouldn't have the books he needed for his journalism course; Darius had, without hesitation, helped the moment it was brought to his attention by Mary. Darius helped far more than he needed to, but it didn't feel right asking him to buy everything. "...I think you'd like him if you spent time with him. He wanted to come, actually, to see how you were."

"Did he? That's... nice?" He shrugged in reply, despite the very faint pang of guilt he felt. "Maybe next time, yeah? He and Agnes can come down, that'd be cool, I guess. I... suppose I didn't realise you guys were that close to him now."
 
"He helped a lot after... that night," Mary explained. deciding to keep the details of their night as subtle and vague as possible for Benji's sake. She didn't want to say anything that would make Elijah's boyfriend get confused or uncomfortable, not when it was their first time meeting face - to - face. "Emotionally and physically, yeah. He must have felt bad and decided to stick around for a bit and it just... happened that he enjoyed staying with us for a year. It isn't bad. At the very least, it means someone will be at the apartment to watch our cats. You know, I would love for you to stop by every now and then... "

"Anyway, I'm super hungry so lets get started on this!" She urged, getting up to her feet again to head to the kitchen curiously. "I'm so jealous that you can see the ocean from here, it's... beautiful. Better than just seeing skeevy men drunkenly stumbling down the street every night," she noted as she stared out the window. "You're lucky, seriously."
 
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"Right, yeah. Lucky. I wasted all of my goddamn money on this place, Mary. I could have bought somewhere cheaper and used the money to get myself settled properly. I spent six months with nothing, it was a dumb decision to buy this place, really-- I mean, I'm glad I did. It's beautiful, especially when the sun sets over the ocean. It's romantic," he grinned as he happily dropped the prior conversation, trailing into the kitchen with the others, especially when he had the rest of the meal to finish cooking. He wasn't too stressed that he wanted to cook in peace, happily letting them sit at the table while he returned to the stove.

"I'll, uh... come and visit you soon, promise. I have to see you play live now you're all famous, yeah? Which I always said would happen, so I'm not that surprised; it's about time you got some attention, I always did say you guys were great."
 
“I’m not famous, don’t be ridiculous. We’ve got some fans but that isn’t game,” Mary countered bashfully as she took in the interior. Perhaps it was because the only interior she associated her brother with prior was Apollo’s dorm, he was surprised to see how homey it all was. She was expecting something more minimalistic, not the warm lighting and cute pictures on the wall. It wasn’t a bad thing and it was clear to her that Benji was good influence.

“Either way, I miss you,” she admitted quietly. “I thought that I’d be seeing you a lot but I’m just a bit sour that you live so far. I know we meet half way and text but I went half a decade without seeing you, Eli.”
 
"Oh, we'll visit plenty now Eli and I are all set up here. We'll visit you for sure. I haven't been to London before, it'd be neat to see all the tourist stuff and make a day of it when we do go," smiled Benji as he quietly watched his boyfriend at the oven, his cheeks reddening at how cute he found the sight of Eli in an apron. He had no idea that Elijah was a changed person, remaining oblivious to the past life he had lived involving ritualistic sacrifices with a demon - he probably wouldn't believe him if he did hear about it. Hell, he didn't even now Elijah had had a boyfriend, the man not having the inner strength to reference anything that directly reminded him of Apollo.

"...I know it's a long way but we'll make it work, yeah? I love it here; you like London. Neither of us are going to move any closer, Mary. Besides, you can come and visit here and see the beach; can't do that in London. It's like a mini break out of the city, right? It'll get easier when we're more used to it, I'm guessing."
 
"I suppose," she replied warily, though mostly because she didn't want to have a fight. She loved the beach, sure, but she wasn't confident enough with her body to wear anything too exposing. It was hard enough for her to convince herself to wear shorts but she had pushed through that. She also wasn't like Agnes and from Spanish descent so she only really burned. It was beautiful, yeah, but it just... wasn't her scene, like her brother said.

"I know there are some precautions you'd have to take but London is a big city and we're moving soon, hopefully, you know?" She urged before taking a seat at the dinner table, her stomach growling. "I would love to show Benji around, introduce him to Agnes and Dari properly. I mean, they're both a part of my family now, yeah? Just like how I'd love to meet some more of your friends, Eli. I don't want to be forgotten now that we're so far away."
 
"I doubt you'd want to meet my friends. They're all from the church, Mary. I know how you feel about that, so... it's fine, really. The option is there if you really want to but... don't feel obligated," he murmured as he finally plated up the meal he had slaved over all day, taking a seat once he felt he had done everything - and once Benji firmly told him to stop fussing and to sit down with the rest of him. This was the happiest he had been in months, having his sister in his apartment and doing something perfectly normal for once - even if the affectionate name for Darius didn't slip his mind, grimacing to himself the more he thought about his sister fraternising with a demon. It was bad enough them being acquaintances, but friends who lived together? It did make his skin scrawl now he was back involved in religion - and especially because he didn't trust Darius as far as he could throw him. Sure, he might have changed (like Eli had over the months) but without seeing him in person, which he didn't plan on doing anytime soon, he wouldn't know.

Despite not exactly ready to go out of his way to see the demon, Darius took it upon himself to visit nonetheless. He had genuinely been looking forward to having Mary and Cameron out of the flat, just to spend time with Agnes and do something fun. After a mere hour, he grew annoyed that he had been left out of plans and decided he wanted to involve himself. He liked the beach too and he wanted to soak up the sun, so why couldn't he pop along? It didn't take long to arrive at the apartment -much sooner than he himself thought it'd take- and he didn't hesitate to casually stroll up to the apartment door with both his and Agnes' bags in either hand.

Elijah might have been wary, but Darius had changed - or at least simply softened up to the idea that he could have human friends without it being 'weak' of him. He had made more friends on Earth than he ever had in Hell, easily mixing in well with the scene Mary and Agnes belonged to. He mixed in so well, in fact, that he had adopted the aesthetic himself, albeit not as full on as the others were with it all. He'd gone as far as to allow Agnes to pierce his lip for him -despite wailing like a baby about it for days afterwards- and had recently encouraged Mary to shave his hair, determined to experiment with a mohawk. He chickened out after only one side of his head had been shaved, but if anything, he liked the look more than he would have done had the hairstyle been completed. As cautious as Elijah might have been, he had no real reason to worry. Darius didn't have any devious intentions to harm the people he saw as firm friends and him being a demon was irrelevant at this point - he never physically showed that side of him anymore, unless he was in private or around Agnes, who he was (unsurprisingly) the closest to.

"...If he gonna be pissed off, do you think? He is, right? Turning up like this isn't polite, I guess-- but him leaving us out wasn't nice either. We're not in the wrong here, 'kay? And if he gets pissed, blame it on me. I'll take the blame as per usual," he smirked as he set the bags down, tapping his knuckles against the door loudly. "This'll be fun. We can sunbathe, stroll on the beach, go swimming-- couldn't do that in London. This'll be cute."
 
“If they don’t like us being here than tough shit,” Agnes replied crudely, albeit in hushed tones. She never really forgave Elijah for essentially abandoning them in the store parking lot, nor did she really forgive him for roping them into danger when they hadn’t done anything wrong. She had softened up a bit over the months but that didn’t mean she didn’t feel he was obligated to at least let them stay, if only for a night. Adjusting her leather coat and sunglasses, wearing them mostly for the aesthetic much like how Darius often did, and texted Mary while impatiently waiting by the door.

Mary’s smile sank at the text, not expecting any of this. Sure, she enjoyed the company of their friends but she had been hoping to just catch up properly with his brother. Shifting eyes towards Benji, she offered a smile to hopefully ease the tension that was to come.

“Perhaps you should answer it?” She suggested quietly, her lips pursed. “It might be someone important...? Aha... I mean, maybe not but it might be rude to leave them hanging, they might get mad...?”
 
From Mary glancing at her phone and the frown that followed, Elijah could make an educated guess who would be on the other side of the door. He could easily grow uncomfortable by it and refuse to let them in, not being too fond of either of them, but he was also trying to change himself and how he treated people. He wanted a second chance from his sister, which he eventually received, so giving Darius a second chance, given how much he preached about how important it was, was the only course of action he could follow without seeming hypocritical.

Bracing himself, he encouraged Benji to sit while he answered the door, staring at the two calmly until they noticed him. Darius was too busy for those few seconds, bickering about how unfair it was for Agnes to wear his leather jacket if she wasn't going to allow him to borrow her sunglasses. The bickering (which was more playful than anything else) died down when he saw Elijah, grimacing instantly at the cross around his neck.

"You really are back into this shit then? That's fun for me. I bet you had a hunch I'd turn up and hid Bibles everywhere, right?-- I'm kidding, Eli. Chill out, pal," the demon snorted, reaching to pick the bags up with a smile. "So, uh-- we skipped dinner to come here so we're sort of hoping you have leftovers?"

"...I suppose," the other replied cautiously, his annoyance evident as he held the door open wider. "Come in, just-- no demon stuff."
 
“ ‘No demon stuff’? What exactly is considered ‘demon stuff’?” Agnes questioned curiously as she stepped in, neatly hanging up the leather jacket up and setting her purse to the side. Much like Mary, she had decided to wear more of a ‘classy’ and toned down outfit for Benji’s sake. She had heard about him and how innocent he seemed to be so naturally she wanted to keep him from completely freaking out. Taking a seat on the couch in the living room , she nodded in approval.

“It’s very cozy here, yeah,” Agnes confirmed with a smile. “It’s been a long time, Elijah. I wish we had met up sooner, not wait a year. We can talk about that later, though, yeah? In fact, there’s a lot of i things I want to talk to you about,”

“Let’s talk after dessert,” Mary quickly demanded with a strained smile of her own. “... please.”
 
"Hey, I have no intention of starting trouble, you know I wouldn't do that to 'ya. We just-- we got bored, Mary. Do you know how much it sucks feeling like we were left out of this? I want to see the beach too and do cool shit. London's boring sometimes, it's nice to get out and see more of the world. I'm not gonna start anything, promise. Just give me a bowl of ice cream and some of those funny clip shows, and you'll hardly even notice me," the demon replied, ignoring Elijah's threat not to do anything 'demon-like'. He understood why he had to outline that. He had a cosy new life that was a far cry away from how he used to behave. Any reminder of that past life, including anything demonic, would be a detriment to him and, surprisingly, Darius understood that. He never hated Elijah, contrary to what the human thought. He was Mary's brother too, and, given how much Darius now liked and cared for her, he would never do anything to upset Elijah. Not if it ruined the close friendship he had built up with her.

"So this is neat, dude. Really. This is a cute place. You've really gotten yourself together, it's... really nice," he praised as he perused the items on display, forcing back the urge to scowl at the various religious items. Instead, he forced a smile and glanced over at Benji. "You must be Benji; I've heard about you. You guys are cute together."

"Elijah never said anything about either of you that I remember-- which is rude, because you both seem very nice," the human commented as he took in the others, his smile only widening when their introductions only emphasised how different Cameron was aesthetically. He clearly wasn't bothered by it, so Benji didn't hesitate to show his amusement. "Oh, we have ice cream, definitely. Elijah insists on it. We have some wine too-- or beer if you'd prefer. Eli said to get beer too, in case the wine didn't taste too good."
 
"I'm not surprised. If he's willing to do what he did then why wouldn't he not mention us? I'm surprised he even decided to talk to Mary again," Agnes drawled in response before deciding to head to the large window by the kitchen to take in the ocean. Her love for the ocean was deep-rooted, the memories of her going to Spain to enjoy the beaches being the one thing she really missed about her family. She was chubby but that never stopped her from flaunting herself, especially in her bikini. She was occasionally able to tan out on their apartment's terrace but there hadn't really been a proper day to tan. The idea of laying on the beach on her coffin shaped beach towel, soaking up the sun was a dream come true.

"This place truly is amazing, I'm jealous," she added with a sigh. "I'm disappointed Elijah didn't mention us properly, I want to get to know you more, Benji. You're a sweet boy, I would love to go to the beach with 'ya. Darius and I both have been super eager for this. We'll sleep on the couch if you want, I don't imagine you have a three bedroom apartment; not in this economy.
 
"I'd rather you not slept on the couch together, actually. That makes me uncomfortable. Benji and I are dating, as are my sister and Cameron. I don't think I'm very comfortable with you two sleeping in such close proximity to one another if you aren't romantically involved, that's weird to me. I can pay for a hotel if you'd prefer to do that," murmured Elijah, choosing to be deliberately awkward and unaccommodating the instant Agnes chose to reference what he had done. He didn't remotely care if the two crashed on the couch together -it was stupid to truly believe it was a problem- but he was happy to fake discomfort if it meant them leaving his home.

"That's rude, don't be silly. The couch isn't all that comfy but it'll suit you more than the floor will. I'll fetch you some duvets and whatnot, make sure you're all cosy," continued Benji, ignoring his boyfriend's words completely because of how daft they sounded. "I'm sure you won't mind getting all snug together, if you're such good friends? It's not the longest couch in the world, you might need to get up close, but-- it's better than having you wander out in the dark finding a hotel, I won't allow that."

"Huh? Oh, hey, we'll be fine. Really, you don't need to go outta your way; we'll be alright. We've slept beside one another in worse places than this," the demon responded, having trailed after Agnes to take in the sight of the sea, his smile widening at how beautiful it was. "This is a really neat place, I mean that. I've always wanted to sunbathe on a beach, spend a few hours bronzing myself up-- you'll hardly notice I'm here, you won't see me at all tomorrow, promise,"
 
“Worst comes to worst, I’ll make Darius sleep on the floor,” reassured Agnes with a snort and laugh. Despite Darius being not only a demon but the son of Satan himself, Agnes had no problem asserting herself. It was just her personality, after all, and some paranormal demon wasn’t going to deter her from her more confident personality. In return, she happily treated Darius like a human and just how she would treat any other of her friends.

“We should go into town tomorrow,” suggested Mary towards her brother, biting her lip with a smile. “It’s so cute and cozy, I love the cobblestone and everything! I’m sure there are a lot of local stores and everything, right?0
 
"I didn't even really know that was your thing, Mary. Cute little stores on cobblestone streets and all of that. I'm up for it, though. It'll be nice. There's plenty of little shops full of weird handmade stuff, I'm sure you could find something you liked to take home with you," smiled the brother, though his attention was constantly drifting across to the demon who he realised was acting far odder than usual. For a start, he seemed to be murmuring to himself under his breath, and when he was silent, it was obvious he was debating something in his head that caused him to clench his fists and jaw tightly.

He wasn't wrong in spotting that conflict in Darius, who had spent the best part of a week debating the invitations he had been sent from Hell to attend his brother's official coronation. No demon was expected to miss out or be dragged back and punished for it - a punishment that usually ended in their deaths. He wanted to avoid going, but he also didn't want to die, not now he was finally getting a life together for himself. He had only confided in Agnes, not wanting to pile anymore demonic stuff onto the more sensitive Mary and Cameron. He knew he would have to go, eventually, but he had failed to respond to any of the formal invitations, which he knew would only cause panic down in Hell. Regardless of his outsider status, he was still identified as one of Satan's children - it would be all anyone talked about if he failed to show up, and on a day when Apollo ought to be the centre of attention, having everyone talk about Darius wasn't going to go down well.

As he rightly predicted, those at the top of the hierarchy were trying to compose letters that sounded threatening enough to get Darius down in Hell, without being rude and disrespectful to Satan's firstborn son. Nothing would work, of course - Darius wouldn't be persuaded by letters. It was a fact that Kayla knew all too well, Mai's only child having known Darius since she was born and, thus, knew that he'd just ignore letters with little regard to the consequences of doing so.

"I could go up there and talk to him, face to face. Get him to stop being an idiot? I don't want him to get hanged for this, Apollyn. Or whatever the punishment is for missing the coronation; I don't want him to get killed, however annoying and disrespectful he is," she murmured as she absently plucked at the guitar in her arms, having decided that her job at the ceremony would be to join in with the musicians. As Mai's daughter, she had no need to do anything other than turn up looking regal and be sat close to Apollo as a supportive figure. In reality, she didn't really want to do that, wanting to be actively involved in her friend's coronation by doing something he wouldn't forget in a hurry, like penning him some instrumental song. It was much better than sitting all day, doing nothing but looking pretty. Admittedly, she liked attention and loved people to gush over how beautiful she was, but she wanted to do something special for someone she saw as a good friend, given how close their parents were.

"...It's better than having them waste time sending him letters, Apollyn. I'll force him to listen to me; I'm rather assertive. I'm not just a pretty face."
 
“Do what you want. If he wants to get his head chopped off because he’s petty, why should I care?” Apollo replied dismissively as he flipped the page of his book, his legs folded. He hated his true form now, having become used to the lack of horns and hooves. He wanted to be able to relax and pretend to act like a human, enforced by them diploma that hung on the wall of his large bedroom.

To say he had been sad since losing Elijah was an understatement. His dorm became lonely, eerily quiet. Not only did he lose his boyfriend but to have Cameron gone as well only made him feel worse. He still had his cult, which had easily doubled, and he had tried to have sex with the members but it just didn’t feel the same, there was no love. He couldn’t stop thinking about and even once returning to Hell, no demon could satisfy his feelings either. He had become quiet, unable to stop thinking of the human as he stood up at graduation, accepting the diploma. The fact that it was his coronation and his plan to have Elijah by his side hurt and only reminded him of the cruel words from Darius. It only made his eyes brim with tears as he set the book on the side of his bed, grimacing as he looked at himself once the mirror.

“You can go get him, I don’t want to see Darius any longer than I have to. I don’t want him to die, I’m sure he’s having a grand ol’ time on Earth and gosh forbid I ruin that, huh?” He bitterly declares, his eyes drifting to the outfit neatly hung up for the big day. “Drag him down here if you have to.”