"He who envies others does not obtain peace of mind." -Buddha
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The stranger chuckled and moved out of her way. Heaven quickly rushed out of the hall and halfway through, she remembered her grandmother. She halted and turned around, just to bump into someone's bare chest. Stumbling back, she heard a chuckle.
It was him again.
"Are you following me?" She asked angrily.
"Yes."
"Why?"
"You don't want to go around alone wearing this." He said, nodding toward her dress.
"Don't worry. The devil wouldn't let anything happen to me after all the trouble he went through to bring me here. And now he is going through more trouble to make me stay." She was referring to him, and he understood.
"It is true that your grandfather sent me to you. He doesn't want you to be alone since you will be staying here, but now, after I saw you, I am actually curious about you." He said.
Did he not understand the mate thing, or was he so sure she would stay here forever that he would have a chance? If she stayed here, then she would never see Zamiel again because her grandfather would never allow him into his kingdom.
"I know you are planning to leave, but whatever plan you have, don't you think your grandfather already knows?" He asked.
How could her grandfather know her plan when she didn't know it herself? Just like during her mission, she was making a plan as she went. Using opportunities that presented themselves. Unless her grandfather could see the future, he wouldn't be able to know what she would do next. The only thing he knew was that she had no plan to stay here forever.
"Heaven!" Her grandmother came rushing after her.
"I will see you again." Said the stranger then vanished.
"Who was that?" Her grandmother asked as she neared.
"Someone grandfather is using to tempt me." Heaven said simply.
Her grandmother shook her head. "Let's go back."
That night Heaven went to bed with many thoughts in her head. She couldn't stop thinking about her grandfather. He could read thoughts, he could watch the world, he could manipulate, compel, and he couldn't die. He was given all that power, making him undefeatable.
No! Why did she think he was undefeatable? He was immortal, but that didn't have to mean he was undefeatable. She grew up learning she could defeat the devil by having strong morals and not letting herself get manipulated.
Heaven had tried her best, but... possession? That was unexpected, and how was she supposed to fight possession? She had heard of demon possession before, but it almost never happened.
What was the reason?
The devil wasn't supposed to possess. Following him had to be a choice and not something forced on someone.
This could only mean one thing, which she already knew somehow. He didn't want her to follow him. He was using her for something else.
Heaven got out of bed carefully and wrapped herself in a cloak. She looked at her grandmother, who was sleeping peacefully, before she tiptoed out of the room. While walking around the castle earlier, she had seen painted walls that seemed to tell a story. She didn't know why she thought of it now, but she wanted to go back there.
She wandered around in the dimly lit halls until she came to where she wanted to be. The painted walls. The colors glowed in the dark so she could see everything clearly, even in the dim light. Heaven followed the story of the paintings from the beginning.
In the beginning, God created the world and let djinn live in the beautiful lands, but the djinn were ungrateful and caused corruption, turning earth into a dark place. Heaven had already heard this story from Zamiel, so it was familiar, but now she saw something else. When angels were sent to fight the evil djinn, the good djinn, who were only few, joined the angels to fight the evil ones. And her grandfather was one of them.
As a reward, those djinn were raised to the heavens. They lived among the angels and were given names by them. Her grandfather was named Azazel.
Heaven loved the painting because they told more than a thousand words. In the paintings, Azazel was portrayed as the one who worshiped God the most. It was odd to see that.
But things changed when God created the first human. Why? Did Azazel feel threatened, or was he jealous? Or both? She couldn't tell. But as she went on, she understood that pride was his downfall.
After living all those years in heaven, he felt entitled. He was the best amongst all, and now God created a new creature that wasn't even as well created as him.
In the painting Azazel stood tall over the human, showing his superiority. He was more beautiful, faster and stronger. He was prideful.
Azazel was threatened and jealous. He became obsessed with the human, observing his soulless form made of clay. What could be so special about this creature? The human was made of dirt while he was made of smokeless fire. He was like energy. He could float in and out of the human's body.
Heaven halted, watching the painting closely. He entered the body of the human.
Like possessing him, but once he was inside, he found it empty. The body was hollow.
Heaven didn't understand at first, but when she looked at the next painting, she understood that the body he entered had been soulless. The human was given a soul later. But what did all of that mean?
She felt as though this part was crucial. She wanted to know more. Throughout the painting the devil appeared strong, but Heaven could see his insecurities. He hated humans. He blamed God and the humans for being cast out of heaven, and now he was going to have his revenge.
When he could ask one thing of God, he didn't ask for forgiveness. He asked for respite until all were raised from the dead. Until then, he promised to mislead them all.
Later in the painting some were following him, and others were going the opposite way.
What a strange thing, she thought. The whole story was told here, and it didn't portray the devil positively. Why would he keep these paintings?
"Not everyone interprets it the way you did." Suddenly her grandfather was standing next to her and watched the painting. "We all can look at the same painting and see different things."
Heaven looked at him. Why would someone like him even feel jealous? He was right. He was beautiful, strong, fast and many other things, but he let those things define him. He let what he was define him instead of who he was.
He turned his head and glared at her, knowing what she was thinking, but he remained silent.
"What do you see?" She asked him.
He was quiet for a while. "I see someone who spent all of his time worshiping God only to be replaced."
"But you were not replaced."
"I was." He said harshly, startling her. She had never heard him raise his voice before or seen him angry. She was in shock.
Every time she saw him, he had been calm. Even when he acted evil, he kept a smile, but right now his eyes were burning with anger.
"When you are asked to bow down for someone after everything you did, after all the years of worship, then you are replaced." He said with clenched jaw.
"What was your place?" She asked him.
Was he given a certain position?
Her question made his eyes burn with fire. A blue fire. Another new thing she witnessed today. This topic was a sensitive topic to him, she noticed.
"Go back to sleep. You will start your training tomorrow." And just like that, he vanished.
Heaven turned to the painting again, and one particular image caught her attention. The devil eating an apple.