Kate teleported to Sariel’s home. She hadn’t seen her house before the renovations, but Sariel told her that it was pretty barren. The fallen angel didn’t put much thought into expressing herself, only fulfilling her self-appointed duties in the belief that she needs to repay the demons for accepting her. It took Kate, Lucifer and Yumi several months to convince her that there was no need to repay anything. If anyone had to repay anything, it would be the demons repaying Sariel for ending the third war by killing her former master, God.

In the aftermath of deep and philosophical discussion, Sariel had decided to re-do nearly everything about her home and find other things in life besides her duties. Kate had come by, as promised, to check out what Sariel had done.

“Kate. I am happy you are here.”

“Wouldn’t want to miss what you were up to.”

“It is deeply encouraging that my friends take interest in me at this level. Shall we head inside?”

“Unless you have done anything out here.”

“Not yet. I am not entirely certain how I wish my garden to be.”

“A garden?”

“Yes. I do not intend to keep it too clean, it is supposed to be a controlled habitat for many kinds of animals. I enjoy watching them be at peace and live happily, so I wish to provide a small place where that can happen. Do you think this is a good idea?”

“It’s an incredibly good idea! I love it! It makes you happy, it makes the animals happy, of course it’s a good idea.”

“I am glad you approve. Now, there is much to see inside.” Sariel opened her front door. “I originally left the walls in the cream colour Jorogumo had suggested, my furniture was simply white at the time. In hindsight, I found the combination to be… clashing.”

Kate followed Sariel inside. “Yea, I can imagine that not looking great.”

“Now, I opted for sand-coloured walls, as they fit the black furniture the best. I also decided to enact a colour palette in my décor that I felt would be too arrogant and egocentric at first. Yumi convinced me otherwise.”

Kate gestured at the orange and amber highlights among the black curtains and couch. “That?”

“Yes. It is supposed to mirror me.”

“It looks fucking amazing. This fits you so well. And no, I don’t think it’s egocentric.”

“Thank you. I also opted to create space for potential future possessions. Books, plushies, decorative objects or other things. Though I find the current lack of ‘stuff’ on my shelves ugly.”

“That will fix itself in time, having that space in the first place is the important bit. You have done really well so far.”

“Your approval means much. Now, I also let Jorogumo install a small kitchen. I am unlikely to pursue cooking to the extent that you and Apollyon do, but I have found myself desiring snacks and a place to make them.” Sariel led Kate to the kitchen, unlike in other demonic homes it was not part of the main living area but in an extra room like in Kate’s apartment. “I opted for gold accents here, they complement the stone surfaces well.”

“They sure do, this is really elegant. I actually am getting something similar, just the stone isn’t as textured.”

“I look forward to seeing it.”

“I do too.”

“I want to offer you snacks, but I wish to conclude the tour of my house first. Let us head upstairs to my bedroom.” Sariel once again led on.

Kate walked around the bedroom, taking in all the small details. This was definitely the most decorated room and Sariel had taken the most care here. A small plush bird sat on small nest made from scarves and tiny pillows overlooking the room. On the other side of the bed were well cared for potted plants and a pile of pillows just the right size for a hellcat to sleep on.

“I thought you already did well downstairs, but this is even better. This is super cozy, I love it.”

Sariel stepped closer to Kate. “Permission to hug.”

“Of course!”

Sariel hugged Kate. “I am grateful that you encouraged me.”

“I hope it helped.”

“It is helping. I feel like more of a demon than ever before.”

“Yea… I still struggle a little, but I am super happy that you are feeling more at home.”

Sariel let go and looked at Kate with worry in her eyes. “Can I help with your struggles?”

Kate shook her head. “I just need to take some time to relax and not worry. I am little overwhelmed, and everyone trying to help me grow as a young demon isn’t… well, helping. I am rushing into things and I need to take my time. Asking Azazel to hand me the responsibility of dealing with the cult problem might have been a mistake… and now I am closer to helping Polly, my house is getting done, things might be resolving more and more, but it feels like there is a bit hump of bothersome stuff before I get to relax.”

“Do not hesitate to ask for my assistance if and when you require it. You are my friend after all.”

“Thank you. There is something I will need some help with soon.”

“I am eager to aid you.”

“It’s nothing too major, just… I need some help moving my stuff to my new home when it’s done.”

“It is an important task. I will help you.”

“You’re amazing, thank you. Will be a while before that happens though.”

“Simply tell me when it is time. I will be there. Now, I want your opinion on my snacks.”

“Sure thing. Snacks sound like a great plan.”

 

Kate bit into a cake pop. Much to her surprise it was filled with a jam of some sort.

“Oh wow.”

“Do you like them? I filled them with wild berry jam.”

“It’s delicious!” She just bit into it again.

“They sure are. On an unrelated topic, you are playing this card game with the other librarians and several humans regularly, correct?”

Kate nodded.

“Could you procure of a set of cards for me to learn it?”

“Absolutely!”

“Adelina spoke of it fondly as well and Yumi has also shown interest in learning how to play. It does sound fun.”

“It is. I’m sure you’ll love it.”

“I am optimistic as well. It will be fun.”

“You are going all out on the having fun and enjoying life a bit more now, aren’t you?”

“Yes. I do enjoy life more now. It is not that I didn’t enjoy existence before, I was content with things, but now I feel eager to do things and enjoy life more. I feel the freedom to explore who I am and what that means. So far, it has led to what you have seen here and a sense that my decision to be the coordinator for the justiciars was correct. It is the position I feel I can be the most me and enrich others the most.”

“You founded the Justiciars, didn’t you?”

“I did. Having faced Hell’s forces during three wars, the disbanding of the armed forces created a… hm. Not a weakness, but a distinct hole in the structures of demonic society. The Inquisitorium has always done an admirable job dealing with any external issue, and of course diplomacy. What they could not do was simply protect and when I saw the reduced number of mediators, the former position of Satan, after I moved here, I asked for permission to fill those positions. It was always my goal to protect and to mediate when necessary. Some humans have called the Justiciars a form of law enforcement, but that is only partially true. There are no laws to enforce, yet we fill many of the same roles an idealized law enforcement group would fill. I wonder, since you grew up in a society that had a form of law enforcement, do you think we are doing well? Are we even needed at all in your eyes?”

“I think you are needed. There always needs to be someone to turn to when you have trouble with someone else. Sometimes you just need someone neutral to unfuck something, be it a wrongly placed fence or accidently breaking a window. And of course, as long as there are groups that disagree with each other, in this case the angels and humans, there needs to be protection for the things we hold dear. And from what I have seen, you have done a good job. I suppose if you didn’t, you wouldn’t have so many members. That said, human law enforcement can be really bad and incredibly abusive. I was never victim of that, but I knew more than enough people who were. It depends on where you are on the border world and what human group you belong to, but law enforcement always attracts a certain type of human, and those are rarely pleasant. On the human side, no matter how much an institution might be necessary or not, humans will find a way to abuse it.”

“That last part saddens me. It should be the job of protectors, the rules, and their arbiters to create a sense of safety and fairness for everyone. It fills me with pride to see the approval of our work, but that does not allow us to become complacent. We must always strive to be better, to protect better, to follow what the demons wish of us better. But that duty shall remain outside of this house. Here, we relax.”

Kate chuckled. “I don’t think I was ever ordered to relax before.”

Sariel couldn’t help but smile in amusement as well and follow the obvious joke. “Will you comply?”

“With cake pops and tea? I don’t think I have choice!”

“Good.”