Book 1: The Wrong Girl in the Devildom

We Live to Serve

Mammon ran down the streets of the Devildom, cursing as he did so. It was already 11 AM, breakfast would be long over, and he would probably miss the chance to apologize to Alicia for missing their plans. He was sure that they all ate regardless, but he thought he timed himself. 

He walked through the doors at the house of Lamination and looked around. It was quiet enough to hear Levi gaming from the second floor. Everyone else must've been gone. He sighed and walked to the kitchen, not noticing much use. He grabbed a Princess Poison Apple from the fridge and walked to Alicia's door. 

"Hey, Alicia?" Mammon knocked on the door gently and stopped when it opened. He looked down at the girl, she looked like she was heading out somewhere. 

"Sorry Mammon, I have an appointment I can't miss." Alicia closed the door behind her and started for the entrance, Mammon trailing behind her.

"W...Wait. I wanted to apologize for this morning. I had a meeting and it ran pretty late." When she didn't stop so he could talk, he reached out and grabbed her shoulder. "Hey, I told you I was busy."

She quickly shrugged him off her shoulder and turned to look at him. "I know, it's okay. You're a busy guy so it's whatever. But now I have an appointment and I can't miss it. I'm a little busy right now." She threw her arms back behind her head and pulled her hair into a low puffball. "You have a plate in the microwave." Her hands dropped and she leaned in to sniff him for a second. With a scoff, she shook her head and left. Mammon stood there, leaning a bit with a weight of guilt on his shoulders. Didn't he clean up enough? Or did she still smell the Witch sisters on him?

20 minutes later, Alicia knocked on a black wood door. She looked around the hall with interest. She'd never been to Diavolo's castle before, it was so big for only one person to live there. She took in the golden accents on the walls, the thoroughly cleaned velvet rug beneath her feet. She saw a giant portrait of the last king when she walked in, and she was able to tell that Diavolo looked just like his father. She wondered if he was similar to him in other ways. 

Her thought process was cut off when the door in front of her opened. She was greeted by a smiling Barbatos, and she returned the smile. "Thank you for seeing me on such short notice."

"It's not a problem Alicia, please come in." Alicia stepped into the room and looked around, a little confused. It reminded her of a music video she'd seen when she was a child, but couldn't recall the name of. Plenty of stairs, and plenty of doors. Barbatos rested his hand on his chin with a smile. "I take it Lucifer didn't explain my powers to you."

"He didn't." 

"Ah, very well. When you enter into my space, you step out of time. Lord Diavolo asked me to assist you as your therapist because, in this space, you can speak for as long as you'd like without feeling burdened by time."

"I wouldn't want to keep you from Diavolo. I wish Lucifer hadn't bothered you both." Alicia moved to take a seat on one of the steps, while Barbatos sat on one of the nearby chairs. 

"It's not a bother. By the sounds of it, it sounds like we have much in common. Why don't we get started with what's causing you stress?" Barbatos opened his palms and crossed his legs. 

Taking her cue, Alicia leaned forward on her knees. "Hmph, I'm just not used to not being home, not being in charge." She lunged into the story of her life, how despite the fact that she and her siblings were all related, they were all adopted by an older woman who has physical limitations. How she had to step up as a second mother to make sure everyone was fine, becoming an official home health aid to care for her mother when she could no longer care for herself. She was a full-time student in high school, and this was supposed to be her junior year, but she probably wouldn't have given it her undivided attention because of her job, stress about her friends' problems. The more she spoke, the more Barbatos understood why Lucifer and Diavolo asked him to assist her with her problems. 

After letting her ramble for what would've been 45 minutes in her timeline, Barbatos cleared his throat. "You should probably sit up. Leaning over like that isn't good for your spine." The girl sat up straight and he smiled. "Now, it seems as though you're lacking an image outside of being a caregiver."

"Excuse me?"

"You've just sat here for a while, listing off everything that's been causing you stress. Not one of those things has anything to do with you and personal issues. Every single item you just listed revolves around your family, your friends back at home, and stress about work and school. You've fixated your personality on taking care of those around you." He slowly stood up and smiled down at her. "It's very similar to what I've done, allowing my life to be about keeping busy, and currently, it's busy serving the young lord. To me, this is nothing because my life thus far has no foreseeable end. For you, this is problematic behavior." He extended his hand to help the girl up. 

Alicia pouted and took his hand, standing up straight and dusting off her pants. "I'm not sure how to fix this...I just made breakfast for everyone because the routine keeps me calm."

"There's nothing wrong with routine, but I suggest finding one that centers you and your wellbeing. Maybe keep a journal, go for a run, but don't find yourself doting on the brothers or anyone else. The point of this program is for you to get stronger and grow as a person. Spend this week focusing on you. We can schedule another meeting next week to see how it went." Barbatos reached out and put his hand on Alicia's shoulder with a small smile. "People like us...We live to serve.  I would never advise someone to do something that might not make them happy, but I'd like to see you do this."

"Sure...I can do this...no problem." Alicia smiled at the demon before walking out of his room. She leaned against the wall, trying to figure out what she could do to keep herself from worrying about everyone else, it wasn't an impossible task...just a really hard one. She felt her device buzzing in her pocket and she sighed. She walked out of Diavolo's castle and pulled out her D.D.D, frowning when she saw what was popping up. 

Mammon: Alicia!

Mammon: Alicia!

Mammon: Alicia!

Mammon: Please stop ignoring my texts! 

Mammon: At least give me the chance to explain why I wasn't there.

Mammon: Licia?