hesperussword | Meeting With Beelzebub (Open IC Meetings)

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Meeting With Beelzebub (Open IC Meetings)

(This is a general thread for meeting up with Beelzebub in person as opposed to calling him.)

Beelzebub, after awhile, becomes a creature of habit. Perhaps it is the warrior training, or the mind of a tactician with set ways of thinking. Whatever the reason for his habits it made him easy to find. The three most common places a bar, a training field, or his forge.

His choice of bars is always darker, not seedy but places with low light and loud from voices instead of music. It suited his temperament and hatred for loud noises and bright lights. He was also jovial, more likely to be found engaged in a drinking game or a loud conversation than other bar activities like dancing. Good liquor was a must but it fell in below atmosphere and company. Why worry when you could manifest your own. Though even when he altered the drinks he always made sure to buy and keep the place in business. Despite his love of company, a back to the wall and a high chair or stool to accommodate wings was always his preferred placement. More comfortable where he could keep an eye on the door.

The second most common place was at the forge or his training circle. A weapons maker and armorer by trade, he liked to work and perfect his craft. Even after billions of years there were still imperfections or new designs to work out. Though, even above that he liked to mentor man and beast for combat. Some days it was a warhorse he was running through the paces of battle, or a dog training to watch its warriors back and disarm threats. Just as often his sparring companions were others seeking a lesson or foolish enough to come for a challenge. He didn't care either way. Always prepared to wield wooden training swords or steel in a bout. Betting and audiences were not to be discouraged. Where was the fun in friendly confrontation if there was no one to see, and no fun for the spectators?

The forge at his home is an easy place to find the angel. As the weapon and armor smith for embattled angels, he's never short on work. Set at the edge of the property, the forge is open to anyone when the angel is at work either with metal or leather in the nearby tannery building. He will complete fair commissions for weapons, armor, repairs, and leather items. The Forge is one of the places he feels comfortable and happy. It is also one of the rare places where you will find Beelzebub sober.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Beelzebub was working on a relatively wicked looking double bitted hand ax and smiles when Galahad comes in without looking up. "The form is almost done."

He holds up the ax that still needs the engravings and sharpening but has its finished shape. "Moloch busted his ax on an angel. I'm making new ones."

He knows that Galahad doesn't particularly like Moloch but he is his partner in battle. He needs Moloch to be well armed. "What have you been up to?"

One unique aspect of Beelzebub at his forge is that he's always sober when he works. It causes some issues but he needs the focus for the magic he's working.

The knight pauses to look the axe over, his gaze drifting to the hilt to check the weapon's balance. His smile tugs wider at the sight, and he comes closer to find a chair to settle himself into as the angel continues working.

"The balance is good."

Beelzebub is right that Moloch remains one of Galahad's least favorite people, but enough time has passed that he's accepted the role that the dark angel plays as Beelzebub's partner in battle. He can put aside his dislike in favor of knowing this is how the angels have fought together for more than a millennia.

"Translating. Arthur gave me some trade routes to review, too." The knight tips his head a little as he watches the angel hammer for a moment longer. "--But I wanted to talk to you about something important, when you're through."

Beelzebub nods. "It's going to be a nice piece when it's done."

He was already considering the spellwork to carve into the heads when the forging process was done. He was going to keep working but he felt, almost as much as heard, the weight of the discussion Galahad wanted to talk about. He takes a moment to finish the smoothness on the bladed side, then he quenches it. He checks over it and covers the pit to keep the animals safe. Wiping his hands he turns to face his partner.

"What's on your mind?" Beelzebub found it a little more pressing since Galahad rarely came with this much seriousness.

The knight touches the chair next to him to encourage the angel to join him. Whether he does or not, Galahad reaches out to take Beelzebub's hands in his own. Lately it's been helpful to be able to have some contact when they're talking about something more serious, and that remains true now. The angel's hands get a gentle squeeze as Galahad pulls together the way he wants to try and explain what's on his mind.

"I talked to Lucifer about-- some of what's been happening with us lately." A few beats of silence. "Have you ever thought of bonding with someone before?"

Beelzebub takes the seat if only because Galahad seems so nervous, or not nervous exactly or worried but the subtle behaviors suggest uneasiness.

He takes his hand and holds on to offer support but then pulls away to put an arm around his lover, and then a wing. Whatever is on his mind is important.

The question causes him to waver and then shrug. "No."

Given this was his first intimate he had no reason to consider it. "He talked to you about his bond with Balthazar?"

"Aye, he explained how it happened for them and what it felt like." Which had been helpful, and informed a little of what something similar might be like for him and Beelzebub. Galahad has no doubt that the same bonding would be very different for an angel and a human with no Grace to speak of, though. "I talked with him about how my vows had been difficult for us." How they had presented a strain on their relationship that, while not enough to divide them, had led to challenges.

A small, fleeting smile. "I hope that's all right. I thought he would be able to help."

"Lucifer bonds easily to others." Beelzebub adds. He's not surprised that Galahad was starting to ask the other angels what it was like to be in a relationship. It didn't seem out of place. After all, he had gone to Lucifer and the others who had relationships with humans when he needed information too.

"I don't mind." Beelzebub shrugs because this isn't anything he felt was unusual. "Lucifer's my brother and your family. Why do you think I'd have a problem with talking to him?"

Compared to the topic, the idea that Beelzebub might find problems with it was the stranger.

The knight thinks about that and then shrugs his shoulders loosely. He’s glad that Beelzebub doesn’t mind, but it seems an explanation might be in order.

“It’s about something private and between us. Not everything personal can or should be shared with others, even family. I can see you don’t feel that way,” he adds. “But that didn’t mean it wasn’t possible at the time.”

Beelzebub doesn't always understand where the line is between what Galahad sees as private and what he doesn't. "We don't find shame in the same personal matters that humans do."

There were areas of shame for angels but, for the fallen at least, relationships and sexuality were rarely among them. Despite his own feelings on the idea of seeking advice being a worry, the angel tries to sympathize and explain.

"It's very different for us but I'm glad you trust him enough to ask something personal." That was the truth in Beelzebub's eyes. Above anything else, even topic, the fact that Galahad was getting close enough to be open with his family felt good in a way Beelzebub simply didn't have words for.

Seeing Beelzebub happy has an effect on the knight, with that effect only seeming to grow stronger the longer they live together in their home. Sometimes Galahad wonders if it's the feelings that would come from any bond of love between a human and an angel, or if there wasn't something more to it. It's difficult to tell even after almost a year of knowing the angel, but either way, seeing the angel warm relaxes the knight's shoulders and brings back a small smile to his face. There's no harm done here, which he is as pleased about as he is to see Beelzebub seem so happy that he'd gone to Lucifer for help.

"He was helpful. He gave me an idea, but it's... serious, so I told him that I wanted to talk about it with you to see how you felt about it." And that's about as much preamble as Galahad can manage, with how simultaneously eager and a restless as his next words to come make him. Galahad lays a gentle, affectionate hand on Beelzebub's side as he looks up into face. "How would you feel about us bonding? Your Grace to my soul?"

"It's dangerous." He comments first, mostly without thinking. Then he adds. "I'm not as controlled as Lucifer or the others."

Beelzebub does lean in though and pull Galahad a little closer. "It happens naturally with time. I wouldn't mind but I don't know what the consequences would be."

He's amiable and honestly interested in the idea but unlike some of the others he's never bonded with anyone; angel, human or otherwise. There is a nervousness about hurting Galahad accidentally that he can't shake. However, he smiles and remembers that they are supposed to compromise. "Why don't we work on feeling for what's there already?"

"Aye, Lucifer warned me." The knight's smile spreads wider and he feels himself relax further, even as their conversation gets more serious. Even if they decide this is a bad idea, there's no obligation for them to go through with it or wait a little longer. His fingers trace a small, gentle, and pensive circle on Beelzebub's side, the contact helping him ground himself in his thoughts rather than high-minded fantasy of what a bonding could be like if it went perfectly.

"That's why I wanted to talk about it with you. We don't have to-- jump in right away if it might be too dangerous." A thoughtful beat. "But I love you, and if it's something that ended up working out in an ideal way... it could be a way for us to be closer without tripping over my vows, or worrying about your influence."

At that question, Galahad tips his head slightly. "What do you mean by 'feeling for what's there'?"

"I don't want to risk hurting you. An angel can kill a mortal with our presence." Beelzebub explains. He doesn't want to deny the possibility but he needs time to think about this idea and the implications.

He takes a moment just to stroke the knight's curls while he thinks. "I can already feel your presence. There's already a bond forming. You just don't know how to feel it because you're human."

"All right." He gently rubs the angel's arm in a reassuring touch as Beelzebub explains the dangers. This was always a possibility, and one Galahad was prepared to accept when Lucifer first shared the idea. "It sounds like it would be better to follow your lead if the risk of danger is that high."

The knight leans in at the fingers in his hair, slipping his arms loosely around Beelzebub and pressing close to hear the beating of his heart. He's not envious, exactly, that the angel can feel their bonding and he can't, because it's something he feels in the mornings when they wake up together, those times when they do small tasks for each other and when they enjoy those shared, quiet moments in their home once all of the animals have settled down and the chaos of the full house ebbs. "What does it feel like for you? Am I in-- you?"

Beelzebub runs his hands over Galahad's and leans in and places a kiss on his temple. It's a gesture of love and comfort. He doesn't want Galahad to feel unwanted. This was about safety more than what Beelzebub might desire to do. "I will."

The angel slowly pulls Galahad in to lean fully against his body. The physical closeness felt good and given the topic felt right. The question brings quiet and a thoughtful sort of sound as he tries to think about how to describe it. "When you've told me that you can tell I am close in the winter because you can feel the warmth from my wings... it's something like that but in my emotions, maybe?"

He's struggling to find the right words because he hasn't explained this particular feeling before, had never needed to because any angel would understand it without them. "Or.. maybe when someone is in the room and you close your eyes but you still know they are there. It's usually not intense unless I focus. I can feel your heartbeat over it too."

"I trust you with my life and soul, cariad." It would be difficult to feel unwanted when Beelzebub is always so attentive to his feelings and presence while they're together. A bonding is what the knight wants --what he thought the angel would want, with how he works to deepen their relationship-- but he understands the caution the angel's showing. He knows it's a big responsibility to lay in Beelzebub's lap, as much as he may want them to be close.

He presses into the angel's hold as he listens to him speak, the wrapping of his own arms becoming more secure as they snuggle. This is always a warm and loving place to be, in the arms of the being he trusts more than any other.

"Then we're never really apart, in that case. Not truly." A soft smile, and he gently touches the pink ridges of a long-healed scar on the angel's chest. A few beats of silence, and he draws away enough to look the angel in the face. "I wondered, after we fought," he confesses. "What more could I be doing for us both? But the weight of this bonding too, I see, is something that falls more on your shoulders than my own in the end."

"I trust you too." Beelzebub nestles in with the human. He'd shown Galahad so much of what it was to be an angel. He would have to think on this request though. The first instinct is the desire to agree.

He takes his hand where it is touching the scar, holding it and kissing the fingers. "It's the weight the stronger feels in any relationship,e ven between two humans. I'm willing to bear it but I need to learn more before I try."

That was the honest answer. Other angels had bonded with each other and had experience. Beelzebub needed to feel out what he needed to do before trying with something as delicate as a human and one he would never forgive himself for hurting. "Give me some time to talk to Belial and Lucifer, and some of the others."

Then he starts laughing and pulls Galahad tight, maybe it is the drunkenness? "You know, you are agreeing to lie to your entire court for us. I might look like a woman sometimes but I'm still going to be your husband behind doors."

"Thank you." As much as he wishes there were more he could do, the knight's grateful for how much Beelzebub is willing, and able to do for them. It makes sense in some ways given how capable and free most of the angels are, and he and the other humans from his world just... aren't. But the unfairness still grates against his sense of justice sometimes.

As quickly as the angel's agreement to speak to Belial and Lucifer earns Beelzebub a smile, the knight's face falls slightly when the angel mentions the deception they're planning to pull over Arthur's court. It's something that's bothered the knight for some time, with the feeling growing as they steadily become more and committed to their plan.

It's wrong-- there's no getting around that truth. It's not what Arthur and his brothers deserve from him, but he doesn't know what other choice he has-- they have. He knows he could lean on the idea that none of the angels are exactly human despite their illusions, but even that still rings to the knight as being a thin excuse when Beelzebub presents as a man as often as he does. Galahad sighs.

"Aye, I know."

Edited 2020-10-10 01:04 (UTC)

Beelzebub notices the change in expression. It isn't often that Galahad's smile fades when he jokes, an eye roll or a sigh he'd expect but this is different.

"Something's bothering you?" He knows enough about his partner's behavior to sense the shift but it could be anything. There was a lot wrapped up in this commitment for both of them. Whatever it was the angel had given his word to be open and that includes asking questions when it seems needed.

His arms shift while he waits for a response, the grip looser but the warmth and enveloping of the embrace increased.

"I was thinking about what you said about how we'll be lying to Arthur and his court," Galahad confesses. The knight draws a short breath as he gathers his thoughts and decides how to try and explain himself. "'Tis something I've been thinking more on for some time, in truth. I've made my choice," he starts, calmly, judging this as the most salient detail of the conversation. "But 'tis wrong. 'Tis wrong and I cannot deny that." He offers a small, sad smile, the gesture tight around the edges. "'Tis a sinful deed to lie to people who have done nothing but uplift me and fight by my side against any menace that struck Camelot. I know I will be king, but there's no worthiness in that title unless that king, like any servant answering to those who depend on them, is a man of character. I've tried to be thus all my life, but now I fear this lie does make me unworthy in spirit, if not in rightful succession."

Edited 2020-10-11 02:43 (UTC)

"It's also wrong of a religion that claims to embrace love to limit it to one thing to keep control." Beelzebub lets out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding while Galahad spoke. "It's a topic that weighs heavily on the fallen and led a lot to rebel. Angels were created to love without bounds, some like Lucifer are made of it like a man is made of flesh."

He's trying to speak on a personal level and leave religion out for the moment, which is hard when you are a divine member of it but the angel is attempting it anyway. "God told us to be all loving, he's told man the same, and never turn from that in our hearts but it's also people claiming to speak for God that say our commitment is unholy, tainted, and sinful. It was God who has punished Lucifer so many times for love of children and family."

The angel laid his cheek against Galahad's head. "There's no winning when the goals are inconsistent. When I was choosing a king to follow I'd rather see one true to his heart than to some idealistic perfection that even God has fallen short of over time."

Beelzebub sits up and shakes his head. "The day I walk into your court a woman I will be giving control of who I am back to God, even if it's only in the public eye. I'm not going to be walking in there female for you, or me, or even your king, but to appease the demands of God to limit who I can be while in love with you. It doesn't make me less because I think you're worth that sacrifice."

It's moments like these that reaffirm Galahad's choice to himself. What they're doing may be "wrong" in the eyes of God, but anyone who would assert that wrongdoing has never stepped up to support him in reaching for something higher and better in the way Beelzebub does. Although still uncertain, moments like this strengthen what he knows is the right choice even when the rest of his people and world may not agree. There's simply no way that a love as deep and powerful as this could be wrong, regardless of the circumstances or bodies involved.

"I want my world to reach a place where people can love truly regardless of who or what they are." He lays a hand on Beelzebub's arm. "If this is what it means for people to be true to themselves, it's a fate that should be available to all-- a justice that shouldn't be infringed upon because some people disagree or interpret scripture a certain way."

His smile fades slightly into a more sober expression. "If that's not something even the High King of Albion could achieve," without severe diplomatic consequences, "I think I could see, at least, that it stops being punished in those ways that it is."

Freedom is something to aspire for. Freedom is something he wants. But despite having some training in kingcraft, he's not sure where he'd even start. It's a worthwhile thought.

"Humans in our creation aren't very free to love as they choose, either, not in a lot of places." Beelzebub knew his Earth was not much better. After all it was overrun by a strict God and his beliefs being brainwashed into people.

The angel strokes the curly hair and tucks his wings closer. "I'm sure you'll do something to move it in the right direction."

The knight's smile in response to those words is soft, warm, and adoring. He reaches up to take the angel's face gently in his hands, and then leans in to press their lips together. When he pulls away, it's with a last fond touch to the other man's side.

"We can do it together." A small, teasing nudge. "After all, were it not for our paths crossing, I would be marrying a princess or noble lady from my world soon."

Edited 2020-10-26 18:04 (UTC)

Beelzebub smiles and then starts to laugh jovially. "I've saved Camelot from an inferior queen."

Joking about his situation was helpful if at times self deprecating. "I come from the very first line of royalty."

He was not royalty, Lucifer wasn't created that way either but that doesn't change the current state of things. There's joy finally settling in adn it isn't so crushed by thoughts of having to be female in the future. "I wanted to ask when you thought we might go to your world."

Meeting With Beelzebub (Open IC Meetings)

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