Hazbin Hotel: Singed Wings

Underworld. Late 1947. The Day of Extermination, morning, the beginning of the Sweep.

The Chime. The solemn yet ominous chime of the great Clock of Doom marked the beginning of a new massacre in the Cursed City.

Sinners, some habitually, some begging and panicking, and some souls of incomprehension looked around, caught up in a place new to them, opening their eyes for the second time in a place they had been told about in church, a place they might have thought was a fiction or might have been distinctly aware of as the place of their soul's imprisonment.

Pentagram City was filled with an ominous silence, where every soul, as if alone, held its breath, waiting for the new-old opening of the golden portal.

But a minute passed, a day passed and nothing happened.

"...They really didn't come..." Charlie, the Princess of Hell, who wore the same dress she had worn last year, still sitting in William's arms. To the Fallen Archangel's surprise, Charlie herself had insisted on this position.

William thought she didn't want to show anything to those who might be watching from below, but he knew that Lilith still made her wear pantaloons, which made all the eroticism of the last few years disappear.

" As your father said, more than once I've said, Adam and the Valkyries have decided to take a 'vacation' this year." - William grinned in his voice, keeping a dispassionate expression on his mask. Charlie made herself comfortable in his arms, adjusting the folds of her dress.

Charlie looked around, looking down at the equally uncomprehending Sinners, some of whom began to whisper cautiously, ready at any moment to shut up and hide, and then around, searching the empty upper part of the Embassy for any sign of the angels. There were none.

The air around them was also filled with stench, the smoke of burning buildings and the tang of iron, some of them having already solved the "extermination issue," thinking that the angels couldn't get to them if they were dead. What they don't take into account is that "shell rebirth" takes a couple of hours, half a day at most, while the Extermination lasts all of twenty-four hours.

"...I still can't believe that the First Man actually decided not to hold this... event." - Charlie's face twisted in distaste as she gripped William's shoulders tighter. - "The last time I saw him, he didn't strike me as ..."

"Intelligent, thinking, understanding?" - William suggested jokingly, letting a small smirk appear on his mask. She looked down at the gradually exiting Sinners, some of whom looked at them as if they were the only idiots who had taken the worst hiding place.

"More like human." - Charlie smiled tautly, but almost immediately the tips fell away again. - "...And even so, there's no credit to us for that," Charlie said disappointedly, staring at the empty space of the Slayers' portal.

William crumpled, driving his eyes across the purple sky of the Ring of Pride, looking now and then at parts of the great pentagram, then glancing at the "satellite" of Hell, then briefly glancing back at the white disks with wings in the distant sky. The Sinners were already staring openly at the two individuals, one of whom was standing naturally in the air, holding a girl in a beautiful and expensive dress that only "Elder Lords", a new term from Alastor, could afford, denoting "their" with William and Zestial's level.

"Honestly... before I got here I did help Adam and his family a lot..." William said carefully, naturally blurting out such information. Charlie's eyes "flashed" and interest appeared on her face. Her head immediately turned toward William's mask, almost bumping into it.

"...It just so happened that my actions were influential in our first attempt to "go out and talk" to the Slayers." - William said quietly, trying not to look away. Charlie stared at him intently, unblinking, for a few moments, waiting for her friend's words to continue, and only when she realized that William was not going to say anything more, she sighed heavily and slumped her shoulders.

"Is this something from your "secret-private" past that you'll be sure to tell me about later?" - Charlie said a little grudgingly, puffing the air out of her cheeks.

"I'm sorry." - William stretched out guiltily, looking down at the still uncomprehending Sinners, most of whom were still hiding. - "But it's something I just can't take and..."

"I understand, it's no big deal." - Charlie interrupted him with a soft but firm nudge in her voice, looking up at him with a gentle smile. - "You'll tell me whatever you want to tell me when you feel it's necessary. I trust you." - the last words filled William's soul with unsolicited warmth, clouded by a twinge of guilt, looking at such innocent eyes in which sincere faith and trust blazed. - "At least you say you'll tell me everything someday... unlike some..." Charlie muttered the last part under her breath, turning away unhappily, looking toward her house.

"...I'm sure your parents have good reasons not to let you in on the details." - William spoke in defense of the ancient creatures in front of their child, in a careful tone that elicited only a new "snort" from the Princess of Hell.

"Like being thought of as an ignorant child, unwilling to tell me what even you know?" - Charlie said a little resentfully, folding her arms across her chest, looking at William with sadness and resentment.

"Parents just don't want to ruin the relationship with a child that might stop thinking they're perfect, or be disappointed when they learn the stories of their youthful mistakes." - William said gently, bringing Charlie's attention back to them. - "They may just not find the words, putting off the conversation for 'later', which is how it gets stretched out." - William smiled, glad that the Weave of Sound was working and that the mere Sinners and Overlords could not hear them, if they were right below them.

"I'm sure there was nothing there that I couldn't understand." - I'm sure there was nothing there that I couldn't understand.

"Your parents caused "Sin" and Creation as we know it. Most tragedies are connected to them in one way or another." - William whispered, making Charlie's face cringe with each word. - "I'm sure they really want to tell you more, they just don't know how to approach you without losing your trust or respect."

Charlie said nothing, but puffed up her cheeks, looking away a little too much. William understood that, nonverbally, Charlie wanted to ask for a change of subject, still unwilling to acknowledge the truth of her words or to voice her agreement out loud. William only shook his head, looking up and down at Pentagram City with a small smile.

"So... No mashing today?" - One gruff voice of a bone wolf with glowing eyes asked the members of his gang, who were looking at the Junior Lord with the same lost look.

"Damn me to be eaten by wolves, yes this is the best day in this sleigh cloaca!" - exclaimed or exclaimed a bird with two monocles that had only recently incarnated, having previously decided to try his fate with his death.

"Isn't there a local cocksucker over there by the Embassy? Out there in the fucking air!" - asked the small group, one Sinner-God, who wasn't a junior demon, but looked a lot like one.

"Holy fuck, that broad was able to chase the winged faggots away!"

"I'll bet Silence taught the bitch how to deal with it like a boy, I'm telling you..."

"There's also Silence, he was killed, wasn't he?"

"What the fuck makes you think that, asshole? He's got that whore by the thigh, and you and-"

"...And you know, I think those eyes are kind of weird...I don't like the way they look at me..."

Thousands and millions of voices pierced William's mind in a flash that plunged into the 'Net, a multitude of nodes of Crawlers and Queens that, following their images, cordoned off the Cursed City. William had long ago left the analysis and gathering of such data to Elizabeth, but now he was simply curious about the opinions of the majority.

"The sinners are quite pleased that a certain Princess of Hell was able to "fuck off" the Feathered Ones." - William spoke softly, drawing the attention of Charlie, who had fallen silent. Her eyes looked at William questioningly. - "But we're still not sure that there won't be a massacre tonight..." William said with a hitch in his voice, looking at the Web.

Charlie's eyes examined William's mask, they darted between the skies of the Ring, between perfectly visible parts of the Cursed City, until...

"Fuck you, Seviathan, there will be no slaying tonight!" - Charlie shouted loudly, her voice full force, waving her fist somewhere, causing William's ears to ring as he clutched at them. - "And choke on your words, loser!" - Charlie's eyes turned red and horns grew on his forehead.

Only her gaze fell on William as she turned to him, crying out, speaking of her fear and uncertainty. Without words, William understood the plea, and with a weave he dispelled them in blue threads, drowning out the torrents of voices cheering Sinners.

William was even a little disappointed that they had taken Charlie at his word, though their surroundings were breeding distrust and suspicion. Though, knowing the Sinners... Soon new rumors would just spread, and those who were cheering and celebrating Charlie would forget about it in a couple of hours, piously convinced that they had thought so in the first place.

A moment and they find themselves back in his Mansion. Again the vast living room with its many panes of glass, filled with the now turned off cozy yellow light that had graced their recent morning.

They appeared a meter and a half high, William still holding a pensive Charlie, not the least bit affected by what was happening. She didn't react as her body passed through William's arms, her eyes just following his latest progress on Project Phantom while Charlie herself landed, surprisingly deftly, on the couch beneath them.

"Breakfast?" - William suggested, thoughtfully opening the cupboard doors and refrigerator, from which the ingredients for a fresh meal were already flying out.

"Two sugars in the coffee and some milk, please." - Charlie said aloofly as she unashamedly began to remove the bulky dress, immediately accepting the help of the summoned henchman construct. 

"Five minutes and the vegetable stew and mashed potatoes will be ready." - William said softly, his clothes vanishing in blue lines, replaced by a comfortable robe worn over his naked body. William sighed in relief, kneading his stiff arms and shoulders.

"Chicken cutlets?" - Charlie asked with a little hope, changing into a simple purple T-shirt, with short shorts that almost completely exposed her shapely legs. William yawned, nodding.

"With cutlets." - said William, suppressing a yawn. - "You're the only one of us who doesn't get tired from so much exertion." - William couldn't suppress another yawn, drowning out Charlie's nervous laughter to his feather-like ears. - "And yet, it was you who managed to be late." - William said with feigned disapproval as Charlie looked away, her cheeks reddening slightly.

"My father and I like to lie down more..." Charlie giggled weakly, rubbing her forearm in embarrassment, allowing her henchman to braid a new, simpler ponytail for her voluminous golden hair in a few deft movements, so that she could immediately grab the dress.

"Go wash up, sleepyhead." - William grinned, shaking his head and turning his back to Charlie, his back "hearing" her nod and the sound of her shoes not yet on.

"Just don't start without me!" - Charlie shouted, climbing the stairs to the nearest bathroom.

"We'll have to redesign the structure of the Mansion, lowering one of the three baths to the first floor... preferably not ten turns away...", William thought as he allowed himself to relax.

The fallen Archangel had been... peaceful since this morning. The last few months, as he and Charlie had started to get more 'intimate' and work, if trying to 'study' Sinners could be called that, so far William hadn't even tried to distract himself from the rest of Hell, almost forgetting about the rest of the world. No, he still handled the Overlord's tasks, but those tasks had become... More tolerable?

Even now, as he worked peacefully and methodically with the kitchen utensils, chopping vegetables, slicing peeled potatoes, preparing spiced chicken mince at the same time, William felt... Calm. As if he were not in Hell, a place of suffering and punishment, but in Paradise.

William had given himself over to a quiet routine, for the first time slowing down on projects, researching the Distortion, he was just... having a good time with Charlie, who had become even more energetic, emotional, and "open" since their recent revelation. William's soul was unnaturally calm that he had become much less irritated with the Sinners, sometimes, very rarely, agreeing with Charlie that even the same Alastor could be 'fixed'.

Naturally, in a joking way, much to the annoyance of the red-cheeked Princess of Hell, but William was beginning to be intimidated by it.

The Fallen Archangel's shoulders shivered, but his eyes continued to watch the food cooking relentlessly, occasionally turning over the nearly cooked cutlets.

"Something Charlie is taking too long to wash off his makeup... Hell-born problems?", William thought in passing, resting his face in his right palm.

He was getting softer. He was relaxing, he was becoming more and more... open, "kind," damn it. William was already seriously considering telling Charlie about his "divine" nature, without the usual "worm of doubt" even trying to remind him that it could still be one big....

William sighed loudly, Weaving off the cutlets and adding milk, egg, and salt to the mashed potatoes.

"What was it that one cocky archangel said to a naive princess? Evaluate your actions and their consequences, rather than producing unnecessary thoughts...", William grinned languidly, trying to use his own method, which did not match his inner feelings.

I mean, what was it? Charlie, the daughter of the Poisoner of Creation and the First Changer, was indeed a confident, slightly naive, but pure soul, sincerely wanting to help him and others like him. Even though William's inner critic was talking about a catch, saying that "nothing just happens," he just... couldn't quite believe that Charlie wasn't "snitching" to her parents about the details of their conversations, and they weren't doing anything about it, no matter how much he convinced himself and tried to ignore it.

The food was ready, and Charlie was still somewhere in the bathroom; she couldn't get lost, she had memorized the structure of his Mansion long ago, especially since she had his Construct with her. William ignored it, continuing to massage his face and dig into his shower.

He just didn't understand why the hell he wanted to tell Charlie what he didn't want to tell anyone else. Lucifer and Lilith didn't count, because the former had already known everything from the beginning, and Lilith... had been a rehearsal? William growled softly, confused by his own motivation and thoughts.

"...Uh... Sorry I'm late?" - Charlie's embarrassed voice was like a thunderclap in William's mind, and with a sigh, he lifted his head and looked at the slightly "disturbed" Charlie with fake disapproval.

His face was completely clean of the past royal makeup, even if those scuffs told William's scrutinizing eyes something. The same red T-shirt with traces of still-dry water, short shorts, and bare feet.

"Are those... hooves?" - William was momentarily distracted from his thoughts, looking at the new attribute of a long-familiar soul.

A strangely harmonious mixture of a human foot and an animal foot, perhaps a goat's, where the "heel" of the foot had a long toe, on which the main pressure of weight fell, and at the "tip" instead of the usual toes there were two "claws", perhaps a "divided hoof", of red-burgundy color. They acted as fingers, actively bending, at first glance having a monolithic structure, without nail and finger.

"..Aren't people always like this?" - Charlie tilted her head questioningly, looking at William with genuine interest.

"No, we have different feet..." William stretched out, his stare unnerving Charlie, whose cheeks were slightly flushed. He, still sitting on the chair, removed his left slipper, revealing a gray human foot. - Besides, didn't the sight of your parents say otherwise? Lilith certainly had human body parts. - William said perplexed as Charlie scrutinized the runes on the Fallen Archangel's shell.

"My mom and dad can change their appearance..." Charlie said thoughtfully, just as William did, not taking her gaze off the Fallen's body part. - "Almost always they had hooves... Though Mama rarely wore them..." Charlie said thoughtfully, nodding more often with each word as if discovering something. - "Are you sure people don't have hooves?" - Charlie said stubbornly, looking up at William.

"Which of the two of us has lived a life on Earth among the human race, and which of us has lived in the recluse of the Fallen One and the First?" - William said mockingly, receiving a cute puff of Charlie's cheeks, their color matching his mistress's eyes.

Charlie mumbled something unintelligible in response, which William heard perfectly well; it was Charlie who didn't bother to make out the words. Charlie sat down in the chair next to William with a groan, deliberately avoiding William's quietly laughing gaze.

They began to eat in silence, Charlie's questions and chatter subsiding almost immediately, to the Fallen Archangel's surprise. The princess only wished him a pleasant appetite, and after the meal thanked him for breakfast. The unaccustomed silence was rather alarming to William, who would have previously insisted on eating in this way.

Charlie was thoughtful. Not just this morning, but for the last day or two, William remembered. Each time, she was sinking deeper into herself, and the peak was likely to come now.

William only hoped it wouldn't be another ...

" Zephyr...," Charlie stretched out as soon as they crossed into the living room, where they settled on the couch in front of the TV, which was supposed to have some Earth show movie on.

" Hmm...?" - William replied lazily, stretching his bare feet out on a small pouf, relaxing his body with a silent sigh. William once again allowed himself to distract himself and take a break from difficult questions and conversations.

" Who are you?" - Charlie asked an unexpected question, in an unsure tone that felt as if adrenaline had brought William's vigor back.

...

" What do you mean?" - Zephyr's best friend's perplexed voice echoed through the voluminous room of the Mansion of Silence as Charlie tucked her legs against her chest.

Charlie hesitated to answer, searching for the right words, but never finding one that didn't make the situation worse, showing as if Charlie didn't believe Zephyr.

" ...Are you sure you're a Sinner?" - Charlie's cautious voice, her best soft smile that was definitely not overly broad, clearly didn't help the worried Zephyr.

Charlie wasn't sure if this was the way to start an important and personal conversation. She wasn't sure she should have started a conversation like this in the first place.

...But she was so interested!

Instead of answering, Zephyr simply arched an eyebrow questioningly, tilting his head, looking at her puzzled, further dampening any more desire for the topic... but Charlie wanted to try and at least explain herself.

"...Remember when you said you were going to tell me some details about yourself? - Charlie smiled awkwardly, resting her head in her lap.

" Let's say..." Zephyr nodded, still in the same cautious voice, continuing to stare at Charlie.

" I-I-I-I-I-I was just curious, because I remembered something you said the other day," Charlie said, helping himself with his index fingers, twirling them around, "indicating" the timing of Charlie's words.

" I just thought you didn't really stand out too much, plus Mom and Dad..." Charlie continued to pursue her curiosity in a whisper, wanting to say everything at once and end the awkward conversation.

"Charlie." - Zephyr stopped her with a raised palm, running the other over her face. -"Calm down and speak slowly." - Zephyr said softly, apparently doing something with his magic again, since she could breathe and think more easily. Charlie evened out her breathing, then nodded gratefully to Zephyr. - "Now... what do you mean?" - William asked in a more strained voice.

-"Uhm..." Charlie stretched out, her eyes anywhere but on Zephyr. - "You see..." Charlie began her rambling explanation.

She explained to him that she had noticed some details in Zephyr for some time. She remembered her mother's words, that she had a hard time with the details of her friends and relatives, having realized the identity of her correspondent so late in the day, listening to several broadcasts at once, and having her friend's letters in hand, and her mother's words, that she knew who Charlie had been talking to all along, without even bothering to tell her!

She had taken it for granted then, just childish naivety and inattention... but when it happened again and again... Okay, in little things, but...!

"There's nothing wrong with overlooking the non-obvious! Especially... who would have thought that there was more to Zephyr than he was saying?", Charlie thought then, two days ago, when she had first seriously considered details in behavior, knowledge... "actions and their consequences", as Zephyr himself had rightly said then.

That's when Charlie started the thought process.

It was not difficult to remember the details; she had been born with an excellent memory, from which...

She remembered their first meeting, there on the lonely street. Charlie had noticed at once that he had instantly recognized her mother and recognized her as a princess, and then only Charlie herself had thought he didn't know her origins.

"And the way Dad squirmed harder in his snake form... He's definitely realized who Zephyr is, or started figuring it out right away...", came Charlie's first 'reasonable', as Zephyr would call it, thought then.

"That said, Mom also recently had an argument with Dad about her love life... And assuming that at their private meeting a couple of months ago, they could have discussed what I'm trying to find out...", Charlie's new hunch came, almost as she brought up the details of her mother's behavior, as well as the form of her words.

So her parents know of Zephyr's nature. Know who he is and... Charlie took no offense, for it was their job as King and Queen, especially when the soul communicated with her.

...Okay, Charlie was only offended yesterday, somewhat shunning Zephyr for the first couple of hours until she got to the last thought... but the rest of it....

At first, Charlie wanted to be indignant.

"He doesn't trust me?" - was the first, impulsive thought. She wanted to question his honesty, his sincerity again, and Eldritch's asshole words reminded her again of his ugly existence...

But then, Charlie remembered Zephyr's other words, remembered how he'd been... Embarrassed-sick-scareful-unwilling-and something else, to tell even those crumbs about himself.

Charlie was sensitive to such things in souls, from which it was only a couple hours late, at about two in the morning of this day, four hours before the Extermination, that she reached the simple truth about Zephyr.

That one was "afraid." Afraid of his mistakes, afraid of the past, because if that one really wasn't just a Sinner, and "that" incident that was somewhere in the thirties of this century, when her father disappeared for a couple of days "on business", which wasn't so unusual, because the King's affairs were more "subtle" than what her mother was doing, but...

A few days ago, Charlie had asked Asmodeus in a letter to question the rest of the Sins, or to somehow tell them what was going on in the thirties, or rather if they needed her father's help with something important. The negative answer gave a lot to Charlie.

What did she have?

"Something" in the thirties, which her parents flatly refuse to talk about, or call this event something unimportant. This "event" also involved Michael, her father's older brother, her uncle, who "sent" her friend to the "God's judgment"... It is likely that her father was somehow involved... And also Eva....

At the same time, Zephyr said that last year Adam, the Head of the Exorcists, had gotten Zephyr's "help"... So much so that he had canceled the Extermination, and had specifically stated that such a thing was unacceptable during their last face-to-face meeting.

Her father's words about "excessive pedantry, toothacheingly strict rules" and so on... Which surprisingly coincided with many of Zephyr's words about Paradise, which, of course, could have been learned from Adam... Somehow, because any Hell sinner can tell with what love and courtesy he could treat "trash" and "scum", once "his children"...

And so it came out that Zephyr somehow knew a suspiciously large amount about Rai, words that were confirmed by her dad's reluctant and very superficial accounts. So he also had the knowledge, the power to create creations that her father personally praised, as well as...

"You have beautiful eyes." - Charlie whispered under her breath as she looked up into those blue stars, filling or dispersing the darkness of his....

"...Thank you?" - Zephyr nodded at her puzzledly, bringing Charlie out of her thoughts in a flash, feeling the heat in her cheeks clearly. - "But what does that have to do with..."

"I do!" - Charlie exhaled, waving her hands at Zephyr in a sort of defensive gesture. Charlie straightened her legs, rising slightly from the couch. - "Please listen, I just... I just want to ask you something!" - Charlie raised her index finger, trying to give her voice the firmness that her mother had... even though Charlie couldn't bring herself to act that way toward the only one who believed in her.

"Then ask." - Zephyr spoke the words slowly, nodding, watching her every move, making Charlie feel as if she were the one answering the tricky questions.

" Anyway..." and Charlie began to recount to Zephyr all her past thoughts and guesses about this "mystery". She paced back and forth, gesturing vigorously, occasionally turning to the nodding Zephyr with interest and a certain... doom? Looking at her with interest as she shared her thoughts with him.

The thought of his "injuries," his pain, Michael, the words of her father and mother, the mention of Eve, followed by the "canceling" of the Extermination this year, as well as the many details in her and Zephyr's interactions, from the unusual "Replicants," to the simple awareness of details of various spheres that "a simple soul, not that I would call you one!" simply could not know.

"..And also, you have that strange golden guitar with the strings unusually white!" - She pointed to a golden, angelic-looking guitar with suspiciously sharp edges lying in an almost invisible corner of the living room.

"Though maybe it really is angelic, if Zephyr is so into experimentation and being friends with angels...", Charlie thought, until she was interrupted by Zephyr's chuckle.

" Just a little gift from a good friend that I'm also learning to play on in my spare time." - Zephyr shrugged, making himself comfortable on the couch.

"But what the hell am I talking about..." Charlie shook her head, adjusting herself again. - "And you also have unusual eyes that look like my dad's, the former angel!" - Charlie jabbed her finger at Zephyr.

"...You've forgotten the unusual energy of my 'magic'..." Zephyr laughed softly at some joke he'd made that Charlie didn't understand. - "And also that I, a hypothetical 'simple Sinner', was somehow able to 'get the address' and deliver my very first letter to you." - Zephyr smiled at her, causing Charlie to freeze.

"And by the way...really..."

"...How?" asked Charlie with genuine interest, propping her cheek up with the palm of her hand, tilting her head to the side. Zephyr covered his mouth, turning his head away.

"It's... a long story..." Zephyr sighed immediately losing his usual attitude, becoming somehow... tired? His eyes naturally faded, or significantly reduced in "brightness", and in his voice, for the first time in the last years of personal communication, there was this "echo", as if distortions, eating up unnecessary sounds.

"...If I may..." Charlie said, leaning closer to Zephyr, but immediately pulling herself away. - But if you're not comfortable, then...!

"I shouldn't be." - Zephyr sighed, standing up from the couch, legs hanging down, hands resting on his knees, looking somewhere in front of him. Charlie politely took a step to the side, trying to carefully sit down next to Zephyr, though he didn't even notice, Charlie thought. - "...I wanted to tell you this, I just..." - Zephyr sighed again, lowering his head. - "I didn't think it would be so soon, or under circumstances where I couldn't prepare myself." - Zephyr turned his head slightly toward her, giving her a reproachful glance that left Charlie with an embarrassed, apologetic smile, cursing her impulsiveness and impulsiveness.

"Stupid, I knew Zephyr had a hard time with this subject, but no, I should have...," Charlie berated herself, preparing to apologize and hug and hug and hug and hug and....

" But I guess we can't always get everything we want..." - Zephyr sighed, snapping Charlie out of her cycle of self-deprecation, forcing her to stare intently at her best friend's figure. - "...And it'd certainly be better with something like this than something else..." - Zephyr stretched out, clearly speaking not to her, making Charlie wish she could ask a question, but suppressed her impulse in time, moving fully into listening, freezing.

Zephyr remained silent, sighing occasionally, raising his head up and down while occasionally turning his head around the room. Charlie did not interrupt him.

Finally, after a few minutes, Zephyr turned to her, turning his body, which made Charlie jump in her seat, not expecting such a sharp "turn", having managed to get a little bored.

"...Let me start simple." - Zephyr pulled out, his voice strained. Charlie nodded encouragingly. - "You do know that 'Zephyr' isn't my real name, right?"

"Fuck.", Charlie thought, having failed to consider such a factor as well, though her parents had told her about such a detail on more than one occasion, and Charlie, as usual with her loved ones, doesn't notice their 'rough edges'.

"...Yeah?" - Charlie smiled awkwardly, trying to make her voice sound confident and her face believable. Zephyr sighed, but she didn't succeed.

"My name is William Anderson Young, born in the year one thousand eight hundred and fifty to a family of..." - began Zaphy... William, retelling to Charlie, who had momentarily forgotten her problems in speech and facial expressions, the story of his life... and death.

Charlie listened in amazement to William's previously told stories, augmented by those details that made the whole picture.

She listened to the stories of his family, of Martha, his mother, who had worked as a governess, educating the children of wealthy families, of Anderson, a good scholar-teacher from Oxford, who had paved the way for William's current work and his becoming a good scholar, of his sister Olivia, who had gone into writing, who had carved out a good niche for herself, with William's help, especially after his "retirement from academia" in seventy-sixth year of the last century.

Charlie listened with amazement to stories about "Lucifer's gift to people," about "magic," some variation of "God's Miracle," from which all kinds of magic come....

She listened about his first successful experience with runes from Scandinavia in seventy-six, about his practice, about that very portal to Paradise, when William, as he now realized, had corrected the ritual of summoning Cherub, which had come from somewhere in William's book... Charlie would understand later.

" ...And then, in ninety-three, I did one risky experiment, on a sleepy head, with an activity-weary old body, which, as you can guess, isn't much for serious experience..." - sighed... embarrassed by this William, hiding his gaze from Charlie's understanding eyes.

" It's okay, I once tried to do my homework from my mom on a sleepy head too, ended up completely messing up the sequence of words..." - Charlie wrinkled her face, unconsciously rubbing her thighs. - "That's when my mom first whipped me by starting to monitor my sleep cycle." - Charlie smiled weakly, eliciting a quiet chuckle from William.

"Anyway...that's when I died and...to my surprise, went to Heaven." - dumbfounded her with his words William, looking open-eyed at the sourly smiling William, who

He began to tell "hypotheses" about why he could have gotten there at all, though towards the end he still gave out what he believed himself.

"...I suppose I wasn't a conflicted person when I was alive, that even though I could get angry or mentally threaten or imagine reprisals, maybe a petty theft-lie, al just some circumvention of the system, but now, especially after dealing with two remarkably similar individuals..." - William's smile didn't please Charlie, who clearly recognized some kind of joke that only he alone could understand.

-" Anyway, if you consider my... 'good' nature, combined with my deeds and state of mind, I can guess why I ended up in Heaven instead of Hell..."

And then, William told, as Charlie realized, in all the details he was capable of, justifying it... by Charlie's own frankness, because of which her face was covered with a gentle, joyful smile throughout the whole part of the story.

He talked about his first months in Paradise, describing its architecture, describing the souls, annoyed, but very sweetly in Charlie's opinion, noting their excessive joy and "songs from a fucking musical," which made Charlie laugh with William, who had joined them.

William talked about a few souls he'd gotten "close" to, admitting with some regret that he'd forgotten their names, to which Charlie patted him on the shoulder encouragingly, moving closer, almost snuggling, hoping to reassure her best friend.

"It's okay, I called Aunt Bethesda 'Aunt Bethesda' the first time we formally introduced ourselves, and I got a kick out of it from my mom while my dad tried to justify it to me, because he liked that 'prank'." - Charlie smiled, eliciting a small chuckle from William.

They lay down on the couch again, where the TV was playing not the sounds of the movie, but... images of William's memories, colorfully complementing his stories, which made Charlie's attention almost entirely on the "mind-eating box," as her dad described the latest technology.

Charlie gazed at the scenery of the Perfect City, as Charlie herself had dubbed it, or in fact, the Golden City, as William had corrected her, as if she had been in the middle of the night.

William corrected her, as if--

"Have you read my mind?" - Charlie exclaimed indignantly, making William grin.

" Obviously, because I don't know your love of making up substitutes for the obvious." - At William's snide remark, Charlie only puffed up her cheeks indignantly, taking away the heat of her cheeks.

"Nevertheless..." - The image on the screen changed, and Charlie unconsciously pressed herself tighter against William, the gray-black plaid covering them. -" After a month of 'doing nothing', as Adam would later say, I decided to take a job with the Second Circle." - William, as if habitually, began the story, and Charlie felt... light and relaxed in her body.

Later, William would call it a "Rest Weave", though Charlie might have confused the very strange name by inventing her own....

William went on with the story, describing the daily routine of the Sin Department, a title that puzzled and amused Charlie, who thought of how her father would have laughed at such a thing, but when he mentioned the "Supreme Seraphim" and Adam with that Lute....

Something chilled in Charlie's chest, and the mood, along with a small smile, was gone. William had spoken of this "Sera" as... "a very close soul", which was later confirmed by all the detail with which he described their relationship.

She listened about that "Amazing Fair" where she and Sera had bonded, all the part of which, especially about the Tunnel, Charlie had spent with an ever-increasing...ever-increasing sense of doom? William didn't go into detail, but it was definitely clear to Charlie that he and Sera hadn't just talked in that Tunnel of Love, especially given the earlier descriptions about the mechanism of that Miracle...

And so Charlie listened, taking her eyes off those... romanticized images almost every time William was... happier. Charlie even thought the other one was more alive, more joyful, than he was with her...

"But actually, it's okay, I'm who I am to him... just a friend, but a supportive one.", Charlie weakly tried to support herself, pressing her head into the couch cushion, looking at the images of Adam, Sera's office, and this....

" Is she the one I look so much like?" - the thoughtful Charlie asked, to which William... simply "brought the images to life," naturally "turning on" the strange show, letting her look through his memories and....

"Fuck, it's true...", for a moment she even forgot her earlier negative emotions, concentrating fully on comparing herself to... 'The Bringer of Happiness', as William had called this Seraphima, speaking of her with... a very familiar warmth.

"Oh, really...?!" thought Charlie with some shock, probably with her intuition 'sensing' something more than... in this relationship. 

"And with her... What about Sera?!" - Charlie exclaimed then, to which William, with a strangely annoyed look on his face, "turned on" a new memory that had occurred right after... his sex with Emily? Charlie may not have been experienced, but she obviously knew when a woman was 'satisfied', having seen her parents' example, and when it came to 'talking to Sera Emily and Virgil'.....

"...So Sera is okay with the fact that you could possibly have a new relationship?" - With a strange, even to herself, joy, Charlie said slowly, to which William only sighed.

" We're getting ahead of ourselves, but... When I was in Paradise, then... I guess so?" - William said uncertainly, rubbing his face tiredly. - "Mind you, I'm Pal, before that... Anyway, we'll get to that soon enough." - At William's words, Charlie only sighed vigorously, listening with newfound vigor and asking to "rewind" some of the moments with Emily, which made her smile grow wider.

"We're obviously going to be friends...", Charlie thought contentedly, looking at the 'paradise version of herself', as William jokingly called Emily, and Charlie had to agree.

Next came the years of "everyday life." Papers, dates, meetings, holidays and more, until one day William took Emily to Earth, reminding Charlie to make a similar request for William, where he met Eve, the Mother of Mankind....

In a terrible state. It hurt Charlie just to look at her, it hurt to see her behavior and words, especially with the "comparative memories" where Eve was a "Loving Mother".

Charlie was glad when William decided to help her, wiped away tears as she listened to the encouraging speech that rekindled a tiny bit of hope in Eva's soul, and when William showed him....

first meeting with her father, Charlie... had been somewhat disappointed in her daddy. No, she knew he didn't like or believe in people, but to be so... Charlie squeezed the palm that was on William's forearm, grimacing painfully, interrupting his story, which made Charlie give a surprised 'ouch', apologizing immediately, and then...

"The Last Years in Paradise," where William began to prepare for his 'Song,' as he called ... 'that event' involving ... William, Eve, and her father ...

Charlie watched in awe as William began to realize his dream in grandiose fashion, excited to see his vision come to fruition, hoping to pursue her dream with the same confidence, but....

She contemplated with horror the pictures of "Kara," as he immediately called the consequences, immediately explaining the reason for the strange behavior and appearance of some of the Dwellers of his Silence, and then ...

She looked with tears at the joy of Eve, whose eyes were filled with disbelief to the end. Charlie hugged William tightly as she watched him "tear off" a piece of his Holiness, giving it to Eve, allowing her soul to "rekindle" its own, creating Eve's personal halo that looked at the gift with such a touching face.

When Charlie guessed that her father had helped in the same way, "gifting" the knowledge with which William was able to help Eve... Charlie was proud of her father, reassured once again that even her daddy could receive the Atonement.

Charlie watched with bated breath as Sera, whom the Princess of Hell had grown fond of because of her "caring and gentle" side, judged William, or rather passed judgment on him.

The "Court of Council" itself was very blurred, but Sera's cold face was clearly "seen on TV". Charlie realized why William had been so reluctant to answer her earlier question, and she felt a little ashamed of her past enthusiasm, and then....

The horrible pictures of the Fall, the Flames, the name of which, when it came out of William's mouth, gave Charlie goosebumps, thankful that they hadn't watched the process of his "burning".

"...And then you already know..." - William sighed, resting his head back on the pillow, staring up at the ceiling. - "Give or take a couple moments that are supplemented by the earlier one." - William waved his hand languidly while Charlie similarly looked at the last image.

The image of her and William standing on an empty street, where a confused and unsure Charlie was asking one Sinner to help her write an article....

" But why did you go on at such length about Sir and Emily and all that?" - Charlie asked a worried question, coming to her senses, finding such personal revelations a little strange. 

"As I said, Hell... affects the soul, somehow making it forget things... crumbs, little things, but the soul forgets, serving God's punishment..." William said in a tired, almost hollow voice, not looking at her. - "Just wanted someone to remember it, to know the story of one stupid scientist who fell into Pride and lost his happiness, his love... everything, for the sake of an idiotic idea, for the sake of a selfish desire to prove something to someone that didn't need to be proved..." - William covered his eyes with his hand, his voice... for the first time was so vulnerable, so...

Charlie immediately put her arms around William. Tightly, winding herself up to tears, intent on distracting William in their usual way.

"This is just awful!" - Charlie shouted something stupid, getting William's annoyance, displeasure, but most importantly not William's sadness and apathy.

" Charlie..." stretched out William, placing his palm on the top of her head, stroking soothingly.

"What's going on with Sera and Emily now?" - Charlie changed the subject, trying not to change her tone of voice. William only sighed, averting his gaze.

"It's complicated... I don't know their exact feelings, just scraps from the remains of our connection. I'm afraid to talk to them, but with Adam's help, I've made a kind of 'radio' that I can use to 'call' Sera, but that will only be when the portal to the Day of Extermination opens..." - William spoke briefly about 'his situation', shared his worries... reluctant to share his fears and concerns, reluctantly, not under the silent pressure of Charlie's gaze on him....

"..Couldn't you...find out about...whether you could 'have' a relationship in Hell?" - Charlie's cautious words made William choke up, looking at her in bewilderment. - "I mean, if your soul needs peace and comfort to 'stay yourself' for as long as possible, then why not...?" - Charlie smiled languidly, scolding her selfish desire, incomprehensible even to her.

"I just don't want to lose my friend... After all, any pussycat can lure William's poor soul, and he, striving for that 'peace and quiet' of his, will just take it and...", Charlie rationalized to herself, hugging William tighter, who, already resigned, kept stroking the top of her head.

"...If Sera and Emily want to continue our semblance of a relationship at all, then...I'll try." - William nodded tiredly, closing his eyes sleepily. He thought her words were more of a joke to lighten the mood than a serious suggestion. - "But I don't..."

It was as if the sun shone in Charlie's chest, and her body was filled with energy that needed to be released immediately. Charlie pulled away from William abruptly, jumping up on her hooves, dragging William with her.

"You know what would help you get your mind off things and take your mind off things?!" - Charlie said assertively, almost bouncing in place. William groaned painfully.

"Fuck no, Charlie..." - William blurted out the words, glaring at her with irritation.

"Come on, there's nothing wrong with songs!" - Charlie playfully pulled William towards her, laughing softly. - "Momma's been saying since you were a kid that stuff like this helps heal your soul and solve all your problems!" - Charlie tugged at his forearm, already beating out a tune she had thought up with her hoof.

"It doesn't work like that... I can't even sing, Charlie!" - William sighed, covering his face with his palm.

"Nonsense, everyone can sing, much less you! Use your Weaves or... Hee hee..." - Charlie's eyes squinted playfully and his smile grew wider. - "You can 'look' into my soul and copy..." - Charlie didn't finish, and William had already lightly smacked her on the head with a flat palm.

"I will not use such a dangerous and not fully finalized Weave on my dear soul." - William looked at her sternly, while Charlie rejoiced at such an honest confession coming straight from his soul. - "All the more so, even if I could sing... "William added reluctantly, sighing heavily again. - "I don't know how to write lyrics, it would be just awful and ugly..." - William added almost embarrassed as Charlie smiled even more.

"We don't need a masterpiece, just that you can express the feelings and emotions of your soul!" - Charlie was almost dancing, already in tune with her inner motif, when the music began to "appear" around them. William only looked around at the "music" in surprise, clearly seeing more of it that immediately began to resemble the timbre she wanted, and the instruments....

A snap of her fingers and the music fell silent to Charlie's indignant exclamation, looking resentfully at the smirking William.

"If you're going to embarrass yourself, at least do it in your own style...in my opinion." - William shook his head, catching Charlie's wide grin.

"Come on, then! Wo-o-o-o-o-o-o!" - Charlie started, while William's music was still not coming.

"William!" - Charlie "pouted" indignantly, childishly upset at William's petty "prank" of a grinning William.

"Okay, okay..." - The smile came off William's lips and there was a look of... definitely not despair with humility, Charlie is a good judge of souls and music! - "...I can't believe I'm even part of this fucking circus..." - William whispered to himself, which Charlie nobly ignored.

"Come on, I'll start and help you! Just set the tone and rhythm, and then the song will flow from your soul." - Charlie smiled, still waiting for William to grimace in disgust.

Charlie wanted to try and encourage again, but then their surroundings changed. An old church, small by the standards of the last room, with stone walls, tall stained glass windows, a rather cheap carpet on the floor with chairs for the congregation, and Charlie herself changed from her clothes to a nun's cassock. Charlie looked around quickly, suppressing the indignation and warmth in her cheeks.

(Writer's words: So, here's the song.... Wrote it in the comments, I'll write it here. I know, "cringe" and all that, I don't write lyrics, didn't write any myself, just refined what the reader did.

Case in point. Two versions of the song, I advise you to listen to the first one now, separately, so to speak, to understand the idea, the change of voices and so on.

Here it is ( https://suno.com/song/13629d65-d924-4d24-8051-145b611dab33 )

The second one, the one I advise you to listen to while reading, is much more epic and I like it more.

Here it is ( https://suno.com/song/1d884763-e277-4df6-b3d3-aa74b1e6e39e )

It's not finished, that's how the neuron generated it, so the separate "ending" is there ( https://suno.com/song/697f60fa-175c-4952-a1d3-4831cd0b3b2d )

A long nun's cloak that reached just below her hips, but let her braided hair fall down, and a black dress that reached just below her hips... at least the gloves covered her palms completely, and the neck of the dress was white, with a cross on the chest. Her legs were adorned with mesh tights, and on her hooves appeared a strange kind of ballet flats....

Meanwhile, music, a style not known to Charlie, began to play. She could definitely hear guitar, drums and something else... unusual about those guitars and... William's golden guitar, also playing on its own!

Wo-o-o-o-o-o-o!

W-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o!

The music became more intense, Charlie began to hum a tune, and William, whose clothes and appearance had changed to the "mere" human form he had been in the last years of his life, stood against her as if he were going to ask her for absolution.

A monstrous monster, a renegade and a bastard.

He put his pride above his Father's will.

Charlie imagined how a "real" nun would react if she found out what William had done, and since he'd chosen the "theme" of the church....

(Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh)

Like little angels, there were occasional sounds, as if from Heaven itself, worrying about William's hands folded in prayer, kneeling.

He dreamed of the glory of the forerunner of the worthy,

But he only increased the nearness of the end.

William's eye twitched, and Charlie stepped toward him with her palms open, imitating what she had read about church services, as if she wanted to embrace and embrace the sins of a simple man.

(Oh-oh-oh-oh Virgil...).

Sung this time by Charlie herself, whose voice was complemented by a barely audible female echo. William rose from his knees, his movements still tentative, stiff, he looked around the church around them.

How sad and very typical it had all turned out,

Fallen from the pedestal of heaven into the void.

William waved his hand at the stained glass windows that depicted his deeds. The moment of his Ascension, the moment of his Fall..... 

And for this outcome, I have only myself to blame.

The string has broken, the fate is sealed,

William's face creased as Charlie stepped closer, gently wrapping her arms around him as if in a soothing manner. Charlie couldn't tell if he was acting, or if he was actually uncomfortable singing.

And there's no place for me in heaven anymore.

Their surroundings changed to the streets of the Golden City, in a way already familiar to her, they changed their clothes to the everyday attire of the souls who dwell here.

(Oh-oh-oh-oh Virgil...).

Again the female echoes added to her 'poor soul's lament' as Charlie strove to maintain her role as a loving and understanding nun.

Once was happy, but I stumbled again.

I did not appreciate my happiness and love.

The images flashed by quickly. His moments with Emily, with Adam, with Sera and a few other souls.

And waiting for redemption on the threshold of the underworld,

There's no point, for in the back of my mind I know,

There's no forgiveness for me.

William's face creased again, his voice almost slurred, but he still managed to draw out a note without swallowing syllables.

Then, as the images around them changed again, as if in "accelerated time", as if in a flash passing through the years of Paradise, while some keyboards and strange instruments, like an organ, were playing in the "background"....

I was looking for knowledge in the midst of deception,

Of world order and magic.

William was looking through the books floating in the air like an ocean around them, and the scenery looked like very clean and "expensive" libraries.

But I was deceived by my dreams,

My mind was drugged by the spirit of omniscience!

The image of William surrounded by lots of paper with calculations, and on a "blackboard", a very large blackboard on the wall, where there were lots of pictures that guessed the images of the Song.

(Oh-oh-oh-oh Virgil...).

The image around them changed again to beautiful and unusual nature, where every blade of grass and animal held Charlie's interest.

In Eden I saw the goal of all dreams,

And in the souls of men I thought to root out Evil.

The image of William, together with Eve, surrounded by a crowd of people that passed them, as if they were just intangible ghosts, their silhouettes were "blurred", and they themselves looked more like "shadows".

I believed I was capable of fixing them,

The image of a golden ray... A song shot into the sky, and all around them were people watching in horror or awe.

But changed himself by turning from the path.

William clenched his fist bitterly, looking sorrowfully at the people whose behavior had become chaotic and violent in the blink of an eye. She could see the falling bodies, and in the "center" was William himself, whose skin was already "burned", along with drops of blood on his feet.

New guitar playing, new female echoes, Charlie herself was already just silent, and the images were rapidly changing. "Golden Tree," some clearing with a black-haired maiden and a bird on William's shoulder. Some great white hall with William chained in white chains.

Space, where "from above" out of a "red and white haze", a "comet" flew out, leaving a white and blue trail behind it.

"Traitor" - said the 'shadowy' image that reminded the Supreme Seraphim, as if looking at the 'comet' with disgust, appearing 'in the background' of their surroundings, as if being a part of it, a phantom or hallucination.

"Apostate." - said with disgust a large shadow with six wings and many halos superimposed on each other, and it was as if there was a large eye on his chest...

"A mistake." - said the "female shadow" dryly, with long black hair that seemed to float through the air, from which other purple eyes peeked out as it did so.

"Fool." - said cheerfully the shadow of Lucifer, whose figure was hard not to recognize.

And here before you is but a shadow of the past,

William bowed modestly, as if introducing himself, while behind him was a tall stained glass window with his "paradise" appearance. There was a wistfulness in William's eyes that still held a drop of hope, and a small smile on his face.

A naive scientist with the dreams of a creator.

Humiliated, broken,

William straightened up, looking straight into the eyes of Charlie, who had changed into her "everyday" look.

But one doomed,

with you believing in the reversibility of the end.

William took her hand, turned around, and waved toward "their way" where Charlie's familiar church was.

(Oh-oh-oh-oh, Virgil...).

Driven by guilt and a sense of despair,

Dreaming of home, trying to forget,

Touchingly folding her hands together, Charlie herself sang, looking longingly at William.

I've met my light, which has given me strength.

William continued, taking Charlie's hands in his own, giving her a quick spin.

And together we walked the path of redemption.

They sang together, moving away from each other and bowing. Charlie curtsied with the invisible hem of her dress, and William bowed with one hand folded behind his back and the other resting on his chest.

The music was still playing, a strange guitar solo ending with what seemed to be a female angelic chorus as the image around them disintegrated into pieces, leaving them in William's living room.

The Fallen Archangel, as he called himself, sighed heavily, looking more like he was working on some elaborate experiment than simply singing along with a professional of his craft.

William's eyes fell tiredly on a straightened Charlie, folding her arms across her chest.

- "Monster," "renegade," and "bastard," huh? - William asked defiantly, trying to hide his weak smile. Charlie replied in the same way, folding her arms under her chest, putting on her 'trademark' face...

"'There's no point', is there?" - Charlie answered the question with a snide question, squinting her eyes, watching as William rubbed his face painfully. - "No excuse?"

"I told you I can't write songs, much less like to sing them..." - William slowly rubbed the bridge of his nose, kneading his closed eyes and massaging his temples.

"I'm not judging in the slightest." - Charlie shook her head until William shook his hand to call for a kettle and a mug, which was immediately filled with hot liquid and small sugar cubes. - "The important thing is..." - Charlie spoke softly, her smile becoming smaller, more understanding.

"How are you feeling, are you feeling better?" - Charlie asked hopefully, staring intently at William, who was drinking a mug of tea.

" Not really..." - William stretched out thoughtfully, to Charlie's surprised sigh.

"What?! But wait, you're..." - gestured Charlie, immediately running through the lyrics of the song, trying to remember William's invested feelings, which...

"I'm still worried about Sera, worried about my mistakes and the harm done to innocent souls, nothing much has changed." - William shrugged, pouring himself another cup of tea while Charlie looked at him somewhat reproachfully.

"Life isn't a musical Charlie, you can't solve someone's problems just by singing." - William grinned, glancing at Charlie, who gasped indignantly.

(P.S.A: been meaning to put that joke in for a long time, glad it worked. Expect another one just as "old")

Charlie didn't hear, obviously couldn't see or feel, but could definitely feel how her father, how her mother was against the insolent and vulgar words for which he fully deserved his fate!

" How dare you!!!" Charlie drew closer to him, looking up and down at his insolent smile.

"I still have my problems with me." - William shook his head, sipping dashingly from his clear mug under Charlie's gaze. - "So are the Sins, only your throat hurts now." - William continued to smile cheekily, watching as tears of indignation welled up in the corners of Charlie's eyes.

William just patted that one on the head, slowly stroking the top of her head, calming Charlie's breathing, still panting indignantly.

"But I appreciate the attempt at cheering you up and changing the entourage, Charlie." - The smirk became a gentle smile, immediately shooting down the Princess of Hell's indignation, which immediately answered him in the same way.

"Please, William." - Charlie said slowly, as if tasting the name. - "It's definitely your name, isn't it?" - Charlie asked cautiously, slowly returning to her usual 'mode'. William just nodded, walking slowly into the kitchen, taking a pensive Charlie with him as well.

"By the way, since he knew Adam was Sera's assistant, the one who oversees the security of the entire Paradise with souls... Also, those words of William's about the Slayings being clearly approved by the Seraphim...", Charlie recalled some details of their past conversations, combining them with the recent revelation.

"...What about the Slayings, didn't you do them in Paradise?" - At Charlie's words, William only sighed heavily.

"I've already broken almost all of the 'burned' vows by giving you so many details." - William looked at her with a somewhat reproachful look, making her stoic. - "Especially since the Oath with Adam is still in effect, I really can't give you the details of that part of the job." - William spoke irritably, reheating the remains of the recent meal with his 'weave' as he poured himself a new batch of tea.

"...And what about "In Eden I saw the goal of all my dreams"?" - Charlie asked in a weak voice, with a strained smile, looking at William, who looked at her tiredly, sighing.

"In Paradise there is a park called New Eden, built by Adam for his descendants, which is almost a replica of the Primordial..." William stretched the words, almost reluctant to give these details. Charlie guessed that she was not being told the truth, but decided not to press her best friend's natural outpouring. Figuratively this time, but it was almost identical.

"...What does Michael's spear feel like?" - The question came out of Charlie's mouth before she could think about it. Princess Ada covered her mouth with her palms with a muffled "ouch," looking apologetically at William, whose eyes were growing more and more irritated.

Charlie's response was to open William's white and black robe, exposing his back, where a large scar, as if scorched, was clearly visible, in addition to many "pulsing" hands, signs, and something else, with small "cracks" radiating from the center of the circle.

Charlie's response was to undo William's black-and-white lab coat, revealing his back. On his back, in addition to numerous "pulsating" hands and other signs, there was a large scar, as if it had been burned, from the "center of a circle" of which small "cracks" radiated.

"I don't know if I can heal the wounds from Michael's Heavenly Fire on my own, but this scar doesn't bother me at all, except for the cosmetic effect. It doesn't cause any other harm." William grimaced, allowing Charlie a few more moments to stare at his injury. "...can I touch it?" Charlie asked, her eyes wide with wonder as she gazed at the "spot." William sighed deeply, the scar twisting slightly as he nodded.

"The food is getting cold, but if you want to wash your hands first, please do." William waved his hand, making coffee for her with some kind of blue, floating lines.

Charlie slowly brought her hand closer to the surface, surprisingly warm and distinctly different from the rest of William's colder body. She gently traced the tip of her fingers along the seemingly pulsating, healed wound, as if it were the only living part of William's body.

"Are you done?" William asked wearily, glancing at her.

"Did you know your scar pulsates and radiates heat?" Charlie said thoughtfully, ignoring William's raised eyebrows.

"Really? Can you describe it in more detail..." William's voice slowed as well, and a floating journal and pen appeared in the air.

Charlie described it, receiving William's sincere gratitude. He immediately scolded Charlie, who had shrunk her head into her shoulders, forcing her to first wash her hands in the kitchen sink and then eat the cold food. Finally, he warmed up a sweet dessert for the slightly upset Charlie.

That morning, they continued their "research," even if only verbally. Charlie was interested in everything William told her.

What was Heaven like? What was it like to live there? What kind of souls inhabited it? And many, many other questions that William answered, albeit briefly. At Charlie's request, William promised to write down his "behavior and actions" on Earth so that Charlie could use them as a "measure" for Sinners, hoping to get at least some kind of "measure" for their future "research," as Charlie had begun to call their activities.

They sat in William's Mansion until evening, discussing not only the "study of Redemption" but also simpler, everyday things. William's plans, details of his life, such as details about his sister and her family. Details about Adam, to Charlie's surprise, although William called these "moments of antics and jokes of the Main Slacker of Heaven" unimportant, but Charlie was still interested."

Charlie went home in high spirits, greeted by her smiling mother and her father, who had actually come out of his workshop to ask about the "Worst Day of Extermination in History."

She chuckled at his question.Charlie enjoyed hearing her father's stories about some ancient history from the time of Cain, something about his kids and their kids, with her mom adding her own bits here and there.

But...Charlie now felt a sort of "dryness," if not awkwardness, as if her parents always tried to steer the conversation away from "difficult and scary" topics.

Charlie wasn't against it, remembering William's words, but she still felt a little hurt that they weren't telling her everything, like William had, as if they still saw her as a silly kid.