[C] A new place

"Mine has been perfected over more years than your mind can comprehend."

He'd been in Deme's position once before. He hadn't been created with perfect powers. Like everyone else, he had been a beginner and learnt through trial and error.

"You will become as good as me some day."

In making animals, at least.

It was a good form of aura manipulation and it kept Deme interested.

"I doubt that."

He replied with a little smile as he looked down at his static rabbit.

If Lucifer had been perfecting it for more years than he could comprehend then he would never be as good as him.

He only had one life, and it was going to be fair shorter than the Fallen's.

Not that he minded that fact at all, it just meant that some things would be beyond his reach if they had to be perfected for that long.

"Do not doubt. Insecurities and failure comes from doubt."

His hands slowly slid down Demetri's shoulders in a comforting gesture.

"Believe you can do it and work hard to do it. You will achieve what you set your mind to."

He'd given this pep talk to a lot of his students in the past and he was certain now that a lot of them had gone on to become great beings, no matter how bittersweet that feeling was for him.

Demetri gave a warm smile as he hugged his rabbit to his chest and nestled back against Lucifer affectionately.

He didn't think about the action, he was just pleased about being encouraged instead of scolded and scoffed at.

Perhaps he really could make Lucifer proud of him if he tried hard enough.

Lucifer's breathing (a habit only) halted when the human leant back against his chest.

He stared down at the top of the boy's head, quirking a brow and pursing his lips. When had the boy become s comfortable with him that he wanted this contact?

He didn't know whether he liked the idea that someone was comfortable enough with him to almost cuddle like this.

Demetri didn't notice the man's reaction, nor did he take much notice of what he had just done, instead he sat back up, calling the pups over, a difficult task considering they were focused on chasing the fawn.

Once he had their attention he tossed the pink rabbit for them to chase, the creature bouncing around on the grass as the boy giggled.

He wanted to make them as sleepy as possible so that they could stay a while longer.

Lucifer leaned back, his hands dropping from Demetri's shoulders.

He watched the pups torn between the bunny and the fawn. It was amusing watching them fall over each other in their attempts to decide which one they wanted to chase.

Lucifer eliminated their struggles with a wave of his hand, sending the deer away in a puff of smoke.

Demetri smiled and laughed as the pups looked confused as the fawn disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

They skidded around and chased after the rabbit after falling over one another.

"I can't imagine then getting bigger."

He muttered, they were little balls of fluff, he couldn't see them getting large and snarly like their mother.

"They will."

Much bigger. These pups were tiny. No bigger than a German Shepherd puppy. They'd grow to be the size of a large horse most likely. Especially with the size their father was. He was one of Lucifer's prized Hellhounds.

"The majority of the pups are male. They should grow to be larger than their mother."

Demetri pouted softly as he looked at the little black puffs.

"But I want them to stay small."

They were adorable and once they were fully grown he knew Lucifer wouldn't let him play with them like this anymore.

Secretly in his mind he had been naming them, he was getting attached.

"They are not likely to grow much larger in your lifetime, short as it is."

It took decades for Hell Hounds to grow to maturity. Their lives were much longer than any mortal creatures, so they had the opportunity to grow at a much slower rate.

It could be four or five decades before they matured into their adult bodies.

Having it pointed out that his life-span was short should have upset him, but the news that he would be able to keep them this small for longer than a few measly months actually made him happier.

"That's good for me then."

He replied, sending the rabbit flying across the yard for them to chase, he could keep them this way for his entire lifetime.

Such a simple, one-track mind...

It almost amazed Lucifer how simple this boy was.

The Fallen shook his head slowly, brushing his hair back away from his face and over his shoulders.

"You will practise making a rabbit daily. You will research the anatomy of a rabbit and become familiar with it."

"Okay then..."

He replied hesitantly, not that he minded that homework but what good would it ultimately do him?

Being able to make a rabbit wouldn't help him in many situations.

Of course he failed to see the bigger picture.

"I will test you weekly to see your improvements."

He arched a brow, letting a small smirk curl his lips. "If I am not pleased with your improvements, I will take the Hounds from you permanently and you will learn the way I used to teach."

A much less enjoyable method.

All remains of his previous content smile disappeared completely as he looked up at Lucifer.

He was going to take the pups away from him if he didn't improve?

"That's not fair."

He whined as he moved away from the man, he didn't like cruelty or being blackmailed and the smirk on the man's face left a bitter taste in his mouth.

"That is life," he replied breezily. Life gave tough situations to people. They just had to find the best way of dealing with those situations.

Lucifer had given the boy the means of dealing with this situation with the best outcome.

"If you want the pups, you should make sure you practise and improve."

Demetri gave a little huff and turned away from the man, going back to practicing making another rabbit while the pups chased the one rolling around on the lawn.

He didn't like being emotionally blackmailed, he had grown attached to the pups and the thought of having them taken away because he wasn't good enough at magic that he had only just learned was upsetting.

Lucifer wasn't asking for miracle work. He just wanted to see little improvements in the magic that Deme was learning.

From his experience, blackmail like this caused some nice improvements early on.

He just wanted to see the boy improve.

The Fallen continued to watch the bunny and the puppies silently.

He was expecting Lucifer to demand huge results, things that were beyond his reach.

He was struggling as it was to model as more lifelike rabbit.

It just looked like a cartoon creature with a head that was far too big for it's body.

Demetri was assuming things about Lucifer again.

That was never a good thing to do. Belial's tongue had spread a lot of shit about him. People's opinions were always o heavily biased in favour of Belial's shit.

If Demetri didn't know his name, would he have made that assumption?

That was some food for thought.

Knowing who Lucifer was now had changed something in his mind, he knew the tales of Lucifer and it frightened him a little.

He knew it shouldn't change his feelings about the man but it was intimidating knowing that he literally had the devil on his shoulder.

Was he going to end up in the very existent hell for what he had done, which in his eyes, didn't seem wrong?

A little smile curled the Fallen's lips as he watched the pups play around.

Despite knowing that playing around like this was detrimental to their training, he couldn't help but admire the way they seemed so happy.

It was a nice change to see something around him actually happy.

He was secluded from a lot of things. He only really saw the occasional hound that he trained and the guards. None of which were ever happy.

he hadn't seen such unadulterated happiness in a long long time.

Demetri didn't sulk well, he faulted after a long moment before looking back at the man.

"Lucifer..."

He muttered, fiddling with the small chunk of his aura that he was playing with.

"I'll try harder okay?"

He added before handing the Fallen the small rabbit he had been making, it looked a tiny bit better than the previous one.

The smile on his face melted as if it were never there when Deme spoke. It had completely disappeared before Deme had even turned around.

His eyes narrowed slightly at the aura, taking in it (few) details as he held it in his open palm.

It was better than the last attempt.

"Well done."