Interlude: A conversation between old friends "Oh come on," Lucy leaned forward, golden hair gleaming in the sun, "how can you have a rebellion of the angels when God sees all and knows all?" "Well," the young priest hesitated, brown hair falling before round spectacles. "The only way the Morningstar could have rebelled is if God let him," Lucy said, her lovely blue eyes glowing with satisfaction of an argument won, "which makes the war between heaven and hell just an elaborate game of solitaire." "It's not quite that simple," he started when another woman walked over to them. With a weary sigh the tall woman put her hand on Lucy's shoulder, giving the priest an apologetic smile. "Don't mind her," the black haired lady said, her voice oddly beautiful like the songs of an angels, "she gets argumentative when she's tanked." "I do not," Lucy complained, ignoring the bottles that nearly covered the little table. "Actually I rather enjoyed the conversation," he confided to them as he rose, "but it seems my work awaits me." With that he collected his coat and moved off, soon disappearing into the teeming crowds on the nearby street. The open air cafe was set on a side street, food and wine flowing freely as waiters and waitresses hurried to serve the evening's clients. The food was good, university students and the kids from the nearby religious college coming together to drink and talk eagerly. "I was just having fun, Michael," Lucy complained as a waiter collected all the bottles and left them two beers. Michael sat down, opened her beer and took a drink, sighing at the pleasure of the taste. "You were taking advantage," she pointed out, "after all, you were there Lucifer." Lucy casually twisted the cap off her own beer and sighed, "yeah, well, it was a long time ago and the wench is dead." "Shakespeare," Michael noted, "he was one of your best creations." Lucy paused with her beer part way to her mouth and asked the archangel, "I thought that he was one of yours?" Michael shrugged, "Or maybe he was just a human with a spark of creativity." Lucy nodded glumly in agreement. Humans were confusing to both Angels and Fallen, to say the least. It was the whole free will thing that was the root of the problem. A human could choose to create something of incredible beauty or inflict incredible horror on his fellow man, sometimes caused by the very same person. Good and evil lived together within the hearts of men, just waiting for the right circumstances to come to bloom. "So who gets to take the blame for George W. Bush?" Lucy asked her wryly. "I don't think either side wants him," Michael flatly answered. She flipped open the menu and read thoughtfully, "You know, I don't remember the last time I've had chocolate." Lucy looked at her in disbelief, "You must be kidding, chocolate is one of the best reasons to become incarnate." She smiled wickedly, "That, and sex." "You never change," Michael sighed. With a flash of seriousness Lucy answered, "Oh I have changed, quite a bit." "I know," Michael sighed out. She saw a waiter going by and flagged him down to place her order for lunch and chocolate fudge ice cream for desert. Lucy smirked as she ordered her own food, going one better than her companion by ordering a thick milkshake with dinner along with the same desert. She picked up her beer and finished it off, wiping her mouth and sighing, "I wish we could get really drunk, rather than just buzzed." "Divine or infernal beings should not let their faculties be impaired by alcohol," Michael said to her stiffly. Lucy just rolled her eyes at that, "You need to loosen up." Michael finished her own beer, "I'm about as loose as I'm going to get." "Ain't that the truth,:" Lucy murmured. The waiter came over with the two fully loaded trays and set them down, then hurried to meet another call. Thick slabs of burgers, wedge fries and drinks were set up, along with the decadent Death by Chocolate deserts waiting till they were done. "Forgive me for my gluttony," Michael took the time to murmur before digging in. Lucy tried not to groan. "I think the big guy will forgive one of his warrior host for this," she commented as she dug into her own burger. Michael dipped some fries in ketchup, sighing happily as she ate. "I hate to bring up business...." she started to say quietly. Lucy slurped some of her milkshake, "I didn't think you wanted to see me for my personality, Michael. What's up?" Michael bit into her burger, "A demon-golem servant was sent to Earth a few months ago, intended to open one of the gates." "Summoned by a human," Lucy smiled grimly, "therefore within the rules." "I don't deny it," Michael agreed, "it's what happened afterward that concerns us." "Ah," Lucy got it, "the human soul that possessed the golem. Your side has always had issues with humans possessing that kind of power." "Power, especially that granted by demons, corrupts," Michael took a drink. "Considering the human is using the power to fight human evil," Lucy commented, "it certainly hasn't corrupted the human soul yet." "It's only a matter of time," Michael sighed. She dipped her fries in more ketchup, "As the human soul was already damned for summoning the demon, could you call them both back?" Lucy shook her head, "It's not that simple." A wry smile, "The soul in question has begun to tip towards good, I cannot influence it in it's current condition." "Why was I not told...?" Michael looked surprised. "The Throne's ways are often mysterious," Lucy said with a devilish little twinkle in her eyes. She finished off her burger and fries then slurped up more of the milkshake, "But don't you have a agent on the spot?" Michael made a face, "The knight is hard to reach, and unless she chooses to call upon higher powers we cannot communicate with her." "And neither of us can directly intervene," Lucy noted with a smile. Finishing off her drink she pulled the desert over, "Though personally, I'd rather just let the two of them work." Michael finished off her dinner, burping softly. "I thought the woman they are opposing, Lady Diana, was one of yours?" she asked. "She is supported by a patron demon," Lucy conceded. She looked thoughtful, "However she's getting... ambitious." "I thought your side liked that," Michael smirked. Lucy scooped up chocolate and munched happily, "In moderation, yes. The Lady seems to be interested in gaining more power than I'd care to see her have, though." "Is she a threat to the Throne as well?" Michael sounded concerned. "Not yet," Lucy said frankly. She licked her lips, "She'd like to upset the balance of power below before she attempts to challenge the Throne." Michael glumly ate some chocolate, "We wouldn't want to see things change too much in your realm, either." "There are still pieces on the board who haven't been revealed," Lucy said, "we'll just have to see how things play out." "I hate waiting," Michael scowled, pointing at Lucy with her spoon. Lucy bent forward, catching a drip of chocolate from the spoon with her tongue. "I know," she purred, "it's one of your few flaws." "Don't tease," Michael blushed. "But it's so fun," Lucy smirked. She looked at Michael, "Do you ever think about how we were before the Fall?" "Yes," Michael's eyes were touched by sorrow. She quickly shook her head as she added, "But the past is gone, Lucifer." "True enough," Lucy finished her food then rose, flashing a regretful smile before walking out onto the street and disappearing. Michael sat there alone for a moment, toying with the last of her desert until the waiter appeared. "Ma'am," he smiled, "the young lady explained you'll be taking care of the bill." Michael stared at the sheet then looked around wildly before yelling, "Lucy!?" Impish laughter was the only reply. To be continued.... Authors Note: I did a lot of borrowing in this episode, sorry to say. Part of this episode was inspired by Good Omens, a novel by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. There are some very amusing angel/demon conversations in there, of which I've probably ripped off a little. The idea that all angels and demons are female is partially inspired by Todd McFarlane's Spawn comics, with my own twists tossed in. Refering to 'the Throne' comes from Kevin Smith's Dogma.
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