Magic Hunt at MFing Aokigahara

[disorder_heaven]

The fact that Urushihara had a keen eye for patterns and trends was one of his less appreciated skills. As one of the war generals in Demon King Satan's army, it made his division highly feared and nearly unstoppable.

Here, it had gotten him something more along the lines of a snarky comment from Ashiya. "About time," or something like that. Hard to tell. Urushihara hadn't really been listening.

Either way, upon Urushihara's elaboration regarding the Suicide Forest, Ashiya had grown more and more uncertain. Eventually comments about warning signs and body sweeps deteriorated into snide remarks about cell phones failing to work and the pitch blackness that came with noon.

A bowl of miso soup full of something-whatever beta took care of the bitching, but Ashiya managed to come out of the bathroom just long enough to lob a thick volume of Maou's favourite manga at the back of Urushihara's head. So, when Maou returned home from his long, hard day at MgRonald's, it would be to the sight of Urushihara on the ground and Ashiya in the bathroom groaning dramatically.

Just another day at the Devil's Castle.

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[disorder_heaven]

Urushihara was a clever man, and knew full well that Maou was only acting like a complete ass because of the forest's influence. However, that didn't make the pill any less bitter to swallow, and it was hard to excuse him for his behavior. For a time, he flew in silence.

A little ways away from where the forest would spill out and open to the main road, Urushihara stopped.

"If you don't want us spotted," he said quietly, "we should touch down here."

[mickeyd_emon]

"Right. Let's go," Maou said before pencil diving into the foliage, not bothering to spare a glance to see if Urushihara was managing with his wingspan. He alighted on a higher bough, checking for nearby, living humans, before dropping to the floor. He took a few steps toward the treeline ahead, every silent footfall a higher notch turned on the Devil's furnace. The general feeling of wrongness the forest bred camouflaged the strangeness of its effects almost completely, but the anger still didn't quite belong.

So the flames twisted themselves into the right shape, roots writhing in both Lucifer's and Satan's hearts. It hit Maou with the memory of pain he thought he'd long since outgrown, of a wounded ghoul lying alone in a field that held the still bodies of his tribe. A kid hopeless and angry, even at his rescuer. That moment contorted into the heavy blows of losing three of his generals, one by one, like a man gradually losing limbs as he climbed, the clifftop in sight. Sure, the left arm wasn't as big a deal, particularly since he knew it would reattach. Fighting with only one limb of four, however, was a futile endeavor. The fact he still tried didn't mean he didn't feel the phantoms where that support once was.

[disorder_heaven]

Urushihara slipped down into the trees, not entirely unscathed. The branches seemed to reach for him, to tear into his skin as his feet touched the forest floor. In his current form, however, these were nothing more than a momentary discomfort. They vanished quickly, healing as quickly as he'd gotten them.

Pain sank into his heart, not anger but a despair he hadn't felt in what felt like centuries. And centuries it had been. The memory of falling caused a pain that was almost physical, wracking his body to the point of him stumbling back against the gnarled branches of a tree. Like him, it grew more twisted with the passing years, seeking a light it could not find, yet aging despite all reason. Urushihara's body convulsed as the human left him and he became Lucifer, all anger and regret and selfishness and hate. He looked up at Maou, and the pupils of his eyes burned.

He barely noticed Maou's state, all torn up in his own memories. As was his personality, all he could think of to hold back his own pain was a snarky comment, not hurtful but playful, perhaps darkly so.

"Maybe we should've brought Emi along. Better Half could cut a path through this damn forest."

[mickeyd_emon]

Red eyes throbbing and strained snapped back to Lucifer's. Maou's teeth grit. "Yeah, it cuts through a lotta shit, 'specially what's supposed to stay standing."

Even as he said it, he regretted it, but he couldn't stop his tongue from lashing out. When the Demon King hurt, he fixed the source. But he couldn't fix this.

"Unless you feel like gettin' shish kabobbed again t' be left in this damned forest, let's avoid that, okay?"

[disorder_heaven]

The words were unexpectedly harsh, and cut Lucifer as deeply as the blade had. He bared his teeth, the slim strains of light filtering through the trees painting his face with shadows.

He would leave him again, wouldn't he? But Lucifer couldn't say that. He complained quite often as Urushihara, but not as Lucifer. That divide was clear as day while in these forms. Even so, this wasn't Ente Isla, and as loyal as Lucifer was to his master, he could disobey him here and only have the one demon to deal with.

"Fine, Sire. Then let's take the easy way out. We can't all get cut down in battle, so I believe your way of being defeated is to bail." His head shot up, seeking and instantly finding a break in the trees. "And my Gate is there."

One of his wings cuffed the Demon King's damaged horn lightly as he suddenly made to take off, his great speed and agility surpassed only by the king's himself. There was a burst of violet energy that lit up the entire forest, and it appeared now to be full of the bones of humans and animals who had tried and failed to escape, lighting up all the angels who had fallen and demons who Satan had failed to save.

Lucifer wanted out of this forest like any wild animal would want out of a cage, but his words to the king might not have been so easily forgiven.

[mickeyd_emon]

The words stoked the red-hot coals within Maou, but they weren't his main concern. In the middle of war, again, the subordinate with which Satan had the most history was going to leave him high and dry. Fear shouted within his hollowed-out chest that Lucifer was going to create a true Gate and leave.

But this time, he could do something about it.

The only warning was shadows clinging to his body as if his flesh was smoking. Satan stepped forward and all but flicked out of existence like static on a missing channel before reappearing between Lucifer and the canopy, his leg already on the downswing. He was counting on the Fallen Angel's speed to add to the force of his kick. He intended to send Lucifer back down to Earth.

[disorder_heaven]

The pain registered as a wall, blocking conscious thought from Lucifer's mind.

Every attempt to think on what had happened, on what he'd done to deserve as forceful an attack as he'd received, was blocked by a pain that went beyond his ability to heal. Pain caused by demons was pain that stayed. The ground had bent to his form, every imprint of every feather of his wings marking the forest ground. He tried to fold them around himself, but found he could not move.

He didn't understand why, but he couldn't focus hard enough. A cough resulted in warm and wet tickling his cheeks, and he stretched out an arm, hearing the bone crack into place and only then crying out in pain. He pulled himself out from the angel-shaped tomb Satan had tried to cast him into, but could not stand on his own two feet. He stayed, crouched below Satan, his own quivering wings folding to protect himself from the red glow of his master's eyes.

Like falling once hadn't hurt enough. Would he die in this forest? Was that the intention? He could see flashes of red and violet; maybe it was the reflections of their own eyes, but all he saw were angel eyes, the angels before and after Satanel's reign both watching him in utter contempt.

He gripped his arms with both hands for a moment, exhaling shakily and bowing his head to regain himself.

"Fly...up."

That was all he could say. His intention, and his path out of the forest. The floor was their enemy, and now, with it crushed deep all around him, it ate away at all of his nerves and strength, reducing him to a trembling wreck. He made no effort to fly.

Maybe the mistake had been flying ahead of Satan, or trying to escape at all. He didn't know. But he flexed one wing, and another snap echoed across the woods, louder than his snarl of discomfort.

[mickeyd_emon]

The sound of Lucifer's broken wing pierced through the smog of anger and fear that the forest had crafted. The pain of seeing his general so ruined was far worse. The darkness he had gathered melted away, and regret flashed in his dilated pupils.

Fly up.

A heavy click resounded in his mind, eternally echoing with that horrible snap.

"Fuck." Satan dropped down beside the crater, hovering just over the ground. "I'm so sorry, Lucifer. I thought . . . you were gonna go back to Ente Isla. This place-- What you said--"

He swallowed a jumble of words. They were only excuses, and this Demon King didn't deal in excuses.

"I have more than enough magic to heal you. Here. Hold still." He reached out to Lucifer, slowly.

[disorder_heaven]

A million replies, some snarky, some reassuring, and some just pathetic, raced through Lucifer's mind. There was nothing for him in Ente Isla. Why didn't Satan just go back now? He didn't want the devil to pity him. He was fine.

Just fine.

Instead of a response, the action he took spoke. He drew back from Satan's outstretched hand like an animal recoiling further into its cage, embracing the pain for fear of what was unknown. The words were unspoken (Don't touch me!) but Lucifer's face read no distrust one way or another.

His wing had snapped back into place, and he flapped them once, very slow and experimental. He glanced up again, purposefully avoiding Satan's gaze. When he spoke, he didn't sound afraid or bitter or snarky.

"Let's just go."

There was no tone at all.

[mickeyd_emon]

Satan withdrew his hand, slow and accepting. His eyes were downcast, and after a silent beat, he nodded.

"Okay. Exit's that way," he said, pointing toward the evening light. That much was obvious, but he really just needed something to say.

He straightened and glanced at Lucifer, waiting to make sure he could fly or walk on his own. Then Maou could levitate toward the forest's edge. There was no way he was going to touch the earth of Aokigahara again.

[disorder_heaven]

Lucifer flew, but he was obedient despite his burning urge to escape from this whole situation. His wings carried him to a remote part of the edge of a forest, near a mountain trail that was off-limits at such a late hour. A few trees in, just in case, he descended. By the time he'd stepped out onto the path, he'd folded his wings back into himself as though absorbing them.

At least now he'd have some magic stored up... Or whatever he didn't use to heal himself, at any rate.

Despite his misgivings, he waited for Maou, standing alone on the quiet road and watching the ominous line of trees.

[mickeyd_emon]

Maou touched down in the grass beyond the forest not long after Lucifer. Seeing he had waited for Maou, he held up a hand. Wait, please. He wouldn't hold it against Lucifer if he flew off, but Maou needed to take care of something, first.

The Demon King headed to the signs near the trees, his edges glowing red with magic. They, like all the others, pleaded with people to not kill themselves. A message that must have largely gone unheeded. Satan could not save the lives he had lost, or repair all the damage he had done.

But he could at the very least prevent some. He reached out to the line and began intoning Entean. Every sign in sight shimmered momentarily. Maou's words revealed his intention rather quickly. He was casting a spell similar to the magic he had attached to the Tanabata papers at MgRonald's. If they could be summarized in one word, that one was Gather. This was Please. A mild suggestion. Barely even hypnotism. He only gave the signs a little more of a chance.

"Whew," Maou exhaled, now in his human form. That was one problem down. Only 98 to go. He headed over to the road on which Lucifer had been waiting.

"Hey," he said. "I still owe you a real meal."

[disorder_heaven]

"I'm...not really hungry anymore," Urushihara replied, his wings having faded but his tone still very stoic. "To be honest, I'm just tired." And sore. "The sooner we can go home, the better."

He felt better, now that they were out of the suicide forest. Not a lot better, however; his body ached terribly, and he felt as though too heavy a step might cause him to break into pieces. Though he knew better than to blame Maou for what had happened, it was still difficult to look him in the eye.

More bothersome was the fact that all that negativity had stemmed from somewhere. Which meant, deep down... Maybe Maou really did resent Urushihara, perhaps even hate him.

Somehow, that hurt worse than the bones he was still setting. Humans bodies were so weak. He wiped the blood off of his cheeks, finally daring to glance up briefly at Maou. "Shall we?"

[mickeyd_emon]

"Yeah." Maou slipped his hands in his jeans pockets. He refused to give Urushihara anything less than full eye contact. His expression was thoughtfully mild, but otherwise unreadable.

He was concerned about Urushihara's injuries, but he was leagues more worried of what his friend was thinking. His actions--no, he would call it as it was--beating him into the ground didn't seem to affect the strength of Urushihara's loyalty. But if this created a rift in their friendship, Maou would have to put more of his off-hour time into repairing it than he could afford! Literally!

Maou also really wanted to keep their friendship.

He canted his head down the road before heading onward, not chancing a single glance to the evil behind them. They took a train to Sasazuka in relative silence, Maou remaining overly conscious of the space between them for the entirety of the journey. As he planned to do until Urushihara could look at him without looking like he expected a blow. Or, well, he'd accept it being less often, at least. Baby steps.

Before Maou could accomplish any of that, though, they had to walk back to the apartment. Rather than taking his usual route home, however, Maou led them down a dark alley.

[disorder_heaven]

Urushihara kept his head down on the train ride, choosing to stand without complaint by the doors and moving aside to let others pass between each stop. He didn't speak on the journey. As much as he wanted to say it was simply because he was a hermit, the truth was that he really was quite afraid of being recognized as Lucifer; he alone kept his face when he transformed.

He followed Maou obediently, keeping his gaze down to keep himself from attracting any attention to either of them. To Maou, this might have seemed as though he was uneasy, perhaps even afraid. That wasn't the case.

However, when Maou began to lead him into the dark alley that made Urushihara think of the host club ringers around Kabukicho, he hesitated.

"Uh... Dude...?"

[mickeyd_emon]

Maou smiled down at Urushihara, his teeth glinting hungrily. "Relax. I know where we're goin' this time. We're just . . . makin' a little detour first."

He finished his statement with the air of a yakuza boss, rolling the mystery around with his tongue like he were enjoying a particularly delicious poison. There was a layer of comfort lying beneath his tone, which begged the question: which was the lie?

(The answer: neither.)

[disorder_heaven]

It was hard to not be afraid of Maou. He was Satan, after all, and though Lucifer was loyal to him, the situation was what it was. As quick and powerful as Lucifer might have been, Satan was stronger, and faster.

And Urushihara was not Lucifer, so what could he expect from a demon king who was disguised so perfectly at this innocent boy?

"...I'm callin' a taxi," Urushihara drawled lazily, though it was clear he would or could do no such thing.

[mickeyd_emon]

"You're not callin' a taxi," Maou casually called him out. His hands eased into his pockets as he turned forward, mild and nonthreatening. The end of the alley loomed ahead. Just before Maou turned the corner, he grinned back at Urushihara like he was sharing a daring secret.

"I promised you, didn't I?"

The Demon King then disappeared around the corner. Standing before them in all its meaty glory was the yakiniku place he and Ashiya had visited before. Another meal Urushihara had missed out on, and Maou intended to make it up to him.

[disorder_heaven]

It was immediately obvious that Urushihara hadn't been expecting that. What he'd been expecting, he didn't know. But it wasn't that. He stared up at the signage outside of the restaurant, then looked at Maou with wide eyes.

"...What's the catch?"

He was starting to understand why stray dogs tended to be violent around food. After what had happened between them tonight, he thought that he might actually cry if Maou revealed he was only joking.

[mickeyd_emon]

"No catch. I keep my word, and you held up your end o' the bargain," Maou said, his grin slightly strained from the day's hardships. He raised his brow and shrugged airily. "Plus I know if you made food for you and Ashiya, you're the reason he got sick, which means you haven't eaten an actual meal today. Food was the only reason you even wanted to go on this whole hell trip."

His tone wasn't accusing. Maou was only pointing out the facts as he recognized them.

[disorder_heaven]

"You better not be sayin' the food I cooked made him sick. I can cook just fine." It's just that adding Holy Vitamin Beta might have been a little bit mean. "So... You're serious. We're eating out. You and me. For real."

He was delighted, but it didn't show. His face was carefully blank, as always.

[mickeyd_emon]

Maou rolled his eyes. He knew Urushihara knew that Maou realized Celestial Force was involved, so he didn't push it. Instead, he fixed his friend with an intent stare. "Yes. For real."

He wanted Urushihara to know he wasn't kidding. That he planned this from the beginning. That he's appreciated, despite the shit Maou and everyone else gives him. Despite his words in the forest. He had to know. So Maou did his best to communicate paragraphs of the same with the red glint of his eyes.

A beat later, he shed the serious tone for a smile. Maou moved to familiarly nudge Urushihara, then thought better of it and let his arm fall. He thumbed at the restaurant's entrance. "C'mon, man, let's eat. We can't stand out front all night, it's weird."

[disorder_heaven]

"Okay, okay, you got me. This is pretty cool."

It was also unexpected, and a rather delicate situation on top of that. Urushihara followed Maou into the restaurant, leaving it to his senpai to greet the hostess and find a seat.

It was easy to disguise, but Urushihara was actually very nervous in public. When he couldn't summon his wings or make threats, and couldn't be recognized as a force to be reckoned with... That made him uneasy. As a human, he posed little threat. He sat quietly, watching Maou almost as intently as Suzuno tended to watch Emilia when in public.

[mickeyd_emon]

Maou was grinning all the way to their seats, practically growing with pride. Once they had a table, though, he shifted under Urushihara's gaze, then looked down to the menu. He didn't quite peg Urushihara's nervousness as such, but something did feel off. It set in his chest like a subordinate's expectations. Or maybe, he thought, they just weren't used to eating out together because they never did ever.

Either way, Maou would come at the situation like he did everything: charging forward full-throttle. He looked to Urushihara. "Know what you're gonna get yet?"

[disorder_heaven]

The awkwardness was actually a combination of Maou's two best guesses. Urushihara busied himself with the menu, staring for a looooong time before looking up at Maou.

"Ah... No, I guess not. What do you get? Can I just get that?"

He didn't get out enough to know what a lot of these foods were.

...Or what a lot of this kanji meant.