by T L Stokes
He heard the clock in the dining room strike midnight.
“Four more days, Mephistell. Don’t cut it too close,” Lucifer vanished with a puff of smoke. Mephistell rolled his eyes.
“I was kidding, asshole,” Stell began walking upstairs.
‘I heard that,’ he heard in his mind. He paused and frowned at Lucifer’s arrogance before walking up to his room to do his math homework.
Friday ~ 3 days until The Deal expires…
Stephan and Stell hadn’t seen much of each other Thursday. Stephan went to his church to help with the soup kitchen and Stell sat home alone and read. And thought. There was always lots of thinking since The Deal had been made.
He hadn’t seen or heard from Lucifer all of Thursday and was hoping for a repeat today. No such luck.
“Mephistell. Where’s your lover boy. I thought you two would be fucking like bunnies right about now,” Lucifer said sitting on the couch across from the recliner Stell was reading in. Without raising his eyes from his book Stell answered.
“He’s at school. I decided to play hooky and catch up on my reading,” Stell only said the first part of what he was thinking.
“And think about The Deal,” it was a statement, not a question. Stell glanced up at Lucifer. He was startlingly handsome with black hair slicked back and in a nice expensive looking suit. He had beautiful olive skin. He wasn’t overly muscular but wasn’t as small as Mephistell either. He would have been very attractive if not for the soulless, unblinking, black eyes.
“When are you going to tell him?” the Devil asked.
“I thought you were known for being patient and sly. Not nosy and obnoxious,” Stell smirked. Lucifer frowned and disappeared. Mephistell smiled at his small victory against Satan.
‘Won the battle, but you haven’t won the war yet Mephistell,’ he heard in his voice. His brow furrowed and he set down his book. He would never be able to focus now that The Deal was nagging at his mind.
Mephistell stood up from the chair and stepped outside. He figured he would go for a walk to clear his head. If it was at all possible. He walked towards a park he had passed several times to get to school. Even as a Demon he still appreciated the small things.
He sat on a bench in the middle of the park and gazed at a bunch of small children playing with a ball in a field.
“Come here to pray on the innocent?” a voice interrupted his thoughts. He looked up to see a boy about Stephan’s age with light blonde hair and dark brown eyes. They reminded Mephistell of melted chocolate.
He recognized Michael immediately. He felt a twisting knot in his stomach.
“Michael,” he spit the name.
“Mephistell,” Michael Sighed the name with as much contempt as an Archangel could have.
“I... I request your help,” Mephistell sighed waiting for laughter or disbelief. Neither happened and it was he was shocked when Michael sat down next to him on the bench.
“No Demon has ever asked for an Angel’s help,” Michael stated.
“Yes, well, there’s a first time for everything no?” Mephistell sighed.
“What kind of help do you request?” Michael asked.
“I have gotten into a bit of a mess,” Mephistell admitted.
“Go on,” Michael nodded.
“I... I have fallen in love. With a human. A human man.” Mephistell almost whispered
“I see...” Michael seemed thoughtful.
“Does He know this?” Mephistell knew the ‘He’ Michael was referring too. Angels refuse to speak his name.
“Yes, and he made a deal with me. If I told Stephan who and what I was, and what my job is... and he still says he loves me, then we can be together. But if he rejects me. Lucifer gets to do what he wants to both of us,” Mephistell sighed.
“You accepted this deal?” Michael said with surprise.
“Yes,” Mephistell whispered.
“You of all people should know better to make a deal with Him,” Michael said.
“I know. But... I love him. More than anything, I do. At least this way we have a chance,” Mephistell put his head in his hands. He fought back the tears that threatened to flow. He felt a gentle hand on his back and realized Michael was comforting him.
“When... when I... fell,” Mephistell started, using the term used by angels and demons alike to refer to a fallen angel who then serves Lucifer. “I told myself it was for the better. Here I would have power, free rule of my own personal army. Be able to do whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. But now I realize, I can’t have what I want most,” Mephistell admitted to the angel before him.
“I’m afraid I don’t understand Mephistell. What do you want my advice on?” Michael asked gently.
“What do I do? I’m sure if I admitted to Lucifer that I was wrong, then he will revoke our Deal and things will go on as they should. But I couldn’t have Stephan. He would be safe, though. But would the pain I caused him be any better than what Lucifer had planned? Or should I have faith in him that he will love me for who and what I am? Is his soul mine to bet?” Mephistell let out a large sigh.
Michael paused for a moment.
“I have not the slightest clue about how He would react to you admitting defeat. He would most likely revoke The Deal since he had won anyways. But you would no doubt lose all respect he has for you. As much respect as someone like Him can have anyways. You need to think of how this will affect your human lover. If you leave, yes it will cause him great pain. But, is that pain better than the worst thing Lucifer can do to him?” Michael asked.
“Ugh. I don’t know. I have until 12am Monday morning to decide what to do,” Mephistell told the Archangel sitting beside him.
“I have a question of my own Mephistell,” Michael said calmly.
“Yes?”
“Will He not be mad at you for speaking with me?” Michael asked.
“...I’m not sure. Seems I’m not sure of anything these days. Hell, I’m talking to one of my greatest enemies about my love life. Things used to be so....’hit bad thing with big rock make go boom.’ When did they get so complicated?” Mephistell asked with a shake of his head.
“I have no clue. But I wish you luck on your problem, Mephistell,” Michael said before rising and walking down the same path he came. Mephistell followed him with his eyes until he was gone from sight.
Talking to the Angel had not helped his problem at all. Though it did make him feel better. He looked at his watch and saw school was about to get out. He stood and walked towards the campus hoping to catch Stephan before he headed home.
Chapter Six
Stell saw Stephan a few streets down from the school heading towards home.
“Stephan!” he called out before jogging across the street to meet him.
“Hey, where were you today, Mr. Townsend said you were sick?” Stephan asked, worried, putting his arm around Stell’s waist and kissing his temple.
“Yes, I was, but I had a talk with a friend and I feel better now,” Stell said to Stephan. Then, he took a deep breath.
“We need to talk. Will you come over to my house as soon as you can tomorrow morning?”
“Uh... sure. What time?” Stephan asked, worry creasing his brow.
“It doesn’t matter, the sooner the better. I’ll be awake so don’t worry about it,” Stell said.
“Two things. One, if you’re breaking up with... me just say so. And two, if it’s so urgent... why not talk now?” Stephan asked.
“What?! No, I’m not breaking up with you. And because I fear we’re going to need the whole day to talk,” Stell said
“OK... well I’ll see you tomorrow morning OK?” Stephan said as he reached his front porch.
“Yes, OK, good. Bye,” Stell said and the two boys kissed.
“I love you, okay?” Stephan hugged him wanting to relieve him of the worried look on his face.
Stell knew it would take more than a hug and a kiss to solve his problems. He waited until Stephan was ins
ide and then turned and headed home.
Saturday~ 9:00 am…
Stell sat on the couch, staring blankly at a wall. Stephan could be over at any time. He made sure to not set a specific time worried that if he knew when it was going to happen he would talk himself out of it. He took a deep breath and nearly jumped out of his skin when there was a knock at the door. Stell got off the couch and went to answer it. Stephan looked like he had just gotten out of the shower. His hair was still damp and his clothes looked like they had been put on in a hurry. He had got here as soon as he could.
“Hey,” Stell said shortly.
“Hey, yourself,” Stephan replied and stepped inside, giving the smaller boy a firm kiss on the lips.
Stell sighed at the contact and closed the door behind Stephan. He walked into the living room where Stephan was already sitting on the couch. He smiled up at Stell, and after thinking a moment, Stell sat on the recliner facing Stephan.
“You missed this new kid in school. His name’s Michael. Dude’s hot. Not compared to you of course but if I wasn’t already taken I would do him,” Stephan smiled at Stell. Stell didn’t return the smile.
“OK, Come on. Spill, what’s wrong?” Stephan asked.
“Stephan, do you remember that first night together... I told you I had secrets I couldn’t ever tell you?” Stell started slowly preparing himself for the coming drama.
“Yeah,” Stephan anwered, wondering where Stell was going with this.
“Well, it’s time to tell you the truth. About everything,” Stell looked into Stephan’s eyes and saw he was a little nervous.
“OK... well come here first I want to hold you,” Stephan lay back on the couch and opened his arms. Stell thought for a second. This could be the last time Stephan held him so he crawled into the bigger man’s arms. He snuggled in close. He had no doubt Lucifer was watching them right now.
“Before you start, just know that no matter what, I love you and that’s never going to change,” Stephan said and pushed a kiss onto the top of Stell’s head.
“I love you too, Stephan,” Stell whispered into his neck. He felt Stephan’s heart beat faster and a smile form on his lips. It made him happy that those four little words could make his man so happy.
“Then that’s all that matters. Nothing can change that,” Stephan said, again squeezing Stell into a hug.
“Just you and me, Stell,” Stephan sighed.
“My name isn’t Stell,” Mephistell decided to start with something easy.
“What? Really? Uh.. OK that’s weird... but completely OK. I still love you.” Stephan gave him another kiss.
“My name is...” Mephistell swallowed hard and took a breath. ‘Here we go,’ he thought to himself. “My name is... Mephistell,” he said quickly. He heard Stephan take a breath to say something and interrupted.
“Please just let me say this and get it all done before you say anything,” he almost begged. He felt Stephan’s mouth shut and he squeezed him tight before nodding.
“My name is Mephistell. I’m older than you can possibly imagine. I work for the Devil. I know a lot of people think I am the Devil, but I’m not. It was all this big misunderstanding. I’m just an employee. I’m one of the Seven Demon Lords of Hell. I was sent here at random to collect weak souls and in general just fuck some shit up. You know, Demon rampaging and shit. But there was a slight roadblock. You. I fell in love. I had to tell Lucifer, you met him... he’s my ‘dad’... because it’s better to just tell him shit. You shouldn’t lie to the Devil, that’s never good.
Long story short, I was stupid and accepted a deal with him,” Mephistell explained quickly. Stephan had not moved or made a sound since he had started talking.
“Some things I left out. My ex, Faust. He was THE Faust. There’s an old story about him and me. He was an amazing scholar. But he was greedy and he wanted more power and wisdom. He was willing to sell his soul for it. Lucifer sent me to make the deal with him. We agreed on 20 years of power and genius and then Faust goes back to hell with me. Well, when the 20 years was up, I made Faust another deal. He could go to hell with me, forever, or I could delete all of his works and no one would remember them. He wouldn’t be able to recreate them and that was that. Well, he choose to go to hell instead. He’s still there now.
“I stuck as close to the truth as I could whenever I told you a lie. I’m from Hell, Michigan... when it’s actually just plain Hell. My dad Lucien is Lucifer. My name. Stell. Mephistell. Really difficult to come up with a nickname from Mephistell just to let you know...” Mephistell chuckled awkwardly hoping to break the tension. He took a deep breath after his long rant.
He still couldn’t see Stephan since he was lying on his chest. But he felt him shaking. From fear? Anger? But then he heard him trying to inhale but it being cut off by his laughter.
“What?” Mephistell asked.
“The song you were listening to the first night I came here,” Stephan began before being cut off by laughter. Mephistell thought for a moment but couldn’t remember what it was.
He shrugged and Stephan inhaled.
“It was Mephistell, by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra,” he giggled again.
“Oh, yeah, I forgot about that,” Mephistell chuckled.
“So... so are you like... you know... OK with this?” he asked hesitantly.
“Wait you’re serious?” Stephan asked his laughter stopping suddenly.
“You don’t believe me,” Mephistell nodded slightly. He should have expected that.
“Well, I believe you believe it. Maybe it’s dad issues or something, I don’t care. I still love you. We can get you help. You can talk to someone,” Stephan said rubbing his shoulders. Mephistell jumped up from the couch in anger.
“ I’m not crazy! Fine, you want proof?” He concentrated on his anger and let it build. He felt his lips dissolving until it was only his inch and a half long black fangs closing his mouth off from the world. His eyes turned black with bright red glowing pupils. His skin turned to that sickly gray color. He grew a long tail that would touch the floor if he didn’t hold it up. Large leathery wings sprouted from his shoulder blades. The tattoos on his arms and back glowed a bright orange-red. Horns sprouted from his head and curved backwards. Claws sprouted where fingernails had been and he let out a fierce roar when his transformation was complete.
Stephan sat rooted to the spot staring blankly at the real Mephistell. His anger now gone, Mephistell realized what a bad move this had been. He could have started out with wimpy magic tricks and worked his way up to this. He had probably just scared the crap out of his love. With sadness overcoming him, he quickly changed back into his human form. Stephan sat on the couch pale and shaking. He looked like he was about to piss his pants.
“Oh, love. I’m so sorry. Lie down, let me get you some water before you pass out,” Mephistell ran into the kitchen and filled a glass with water. He walked back into the living room to see Stephan lying on the couch where he had pushed him down onto his back.
He held the water while Stephan took small sips.
“I didn’t mean to do that. I’m sorry. I just got angry,” Mephistell apologized.
“I-it’s OK, babe. Just... wow,” Stephan’s voice cracked on the last word. “I feel dizzy,” Stephan confessed, swaying a little bit. Mephistell lifted his feet onto the couch as well so he was lying across it. He set the water down and stroked his hair.
“I don’t mean to rush you into this... but, how do you... you know, feel about me? D-do you still love me?” Mephistell held back the tears as best he could.
“Yes, please we’re all dying to know,” said a voice in the room with them.
“Ugh. Now? Can’t your interruptions wait until later?” Mephistell scowled.
“No,” Lucifer smiled. Mephistell rolled his eyes and turned back to Stephan who was staring at Lucifer getting paler by the second.
“Ignore him. I need your answer, love.” Mephistell put his hand on Stephan’s shoulder.
“Do you still love me?” Mephistell repeated. Stephan thought for a moment.
“Well... I... I don’t know. I mean it’s a lot to take in, that I’m dating a Demon from hell,” Stephan said his brow scrunching at the thought.
“Well. We have our answer,” Lucifer stood from the chair he was sitting on.
“No! Please, that was just a maybe... not a no,” Mephistell begged.
“I said ‘ In any way shape or form, Mephistell. You lose.” Lucifer became serious.
“What are you two talking about?” Stephan asked. The shock beginning to wear off.
“Shut up,” Mephistell growled at him. Stephan was taken aback by the sudden change in mood.
“You know our deal, Mephistell,” Lucifer said.
“Please. Anything... I’ll do anything.” Mephistell got down on his knees. “Please...” Tears began to fall.
“Anything?” Lucifer asked.
“Anything,” Mephistell confirmed.
“Alright, your boy can keep his soul.” Mephistell’ heart soared. “If you give me yours.” Mephistell was taken aback.
“You already own my soul,” Mephistell pointed out.
“Yes. But now I won’t let you run around doing what you want. You will take your human’s place,” Lucifer explained. Mephistell swallowed. He thought for a moment.
“Alright...” his heart sank at the word.
“Wow, I’ll admit I didn’t expect that,” Lucifer grinned. Mephistell’ tears fell silently to the floor. Still on his knees, hands resting on his thighs, he felt the devil place a hand on his shoulder. And then, nothing.
Chapter Seven
‘What the hell just happened?’ Stephan thought to himself. A minute ago his boyfriend had turned into a demon and now he was alone. He looked around but nothing indicated either of the two men had been in the room. The smell of sulphur filled his nostrils, and Stephan scrunched his nose at it. He stood from the couch and moved to the front door. He stepped out and looked up and down the street. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for. He began walking and before he realized it, he was at the park a couple of blocks away from his school.