Lucifer

Far less volatile than his namesake, Lucifer prefers a life of blissful solitude, surrounded by nothing but his tomes. While not quick to anger, little annoys him more than ineptitude, and loud non-magicians clamoring over his spells and yelling wildly about curses and spells that exist nowhere else but their imaginations fit the bill. The fewer visitors to his domain, the better.

{Lore by @Hyzenthlaay. Thank you!}

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Childhood friends with Salem. These two have a friendly rivalry to see who excels faster in their craft than the other. At the moment Lucifer is much more advanced in magic and witchcraft than Salem, who is much better at using weapons and physical force in a fight.

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Candles danced around Lucifer's face, illuminating the tome in front of him. This spell was complicated, a feat of magic so great that only the best sorcerers accomplished it. Lucifer, could that really be his name? Lucid was what he was feeling right now. A feeling of pure bliss, of being alone in complete solitude. There was nothing to distract him, nothing at all.

Or at least, that was what he thought as he pulled a dark, shimmery plant from his cupboard of dangerous ingredients.

The stillness was interrupted by the loud sound of a dragon crashing, landing, and then cursing like a sailor. Cursing about not have any front legs, cursing about the feathers on his wings. Even now, Lucifer could see flashes of grey.

Salem.

The dragon that drove him to be what he was today, not out of friendship (well, maybe a bit), but out of competition, goading him on until he was nothing short of a master. Maybe it was for the better that he had moved outside the other residences, so he could practice his magic without being startled by the much larger dragon that would have caused at least five explosions a day. Not that Lucifer could say much.

The banging startled Lucifer again. Then Salem's voice, which was surprisingly musical for such a strong dragon. He excelled in both areas, strength, and performance.

"Lucifer? Lucy? Are you in there?"

The nickname had been uncalled for, which prompted Lucifer to wait a couple of minutes before responding with: "Yes. What do you want?"

The Skydancer opened the door, the beak-like mask protruding from his face almost hitting the Banescale on his nose.

"Well, uh, I was wondering if you wanted to go on a walk. With me. I-in the forest."

Salem was nervous? That was odd, the feathered dragon had loads of self-confidence that never seemed to run out.

Lucifer straightened his neck - he'd been hunched over the potions for a while and his spine was crying in pain - and glanced towards the forest. It seemed a bit pointless, but it was a nice day out, and Salem's face looked so indescribably hopeful that he had to oblige.

"Fine. I'll go with you."

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Walking through the forest was more peaceful than Lucifer could have imagined. It was nearing springtime, and bright buds of color were blooming on the bushes lining the path. Not yet flowers, but not as tightly closed as a bud should be. They were hanging in the balance, similarly to Lucifer.

But besides the analogies, it really was beautiful.

"Lucifer? I have something else to tell you." Salem muttered.

Lucifer could have guessed this, from the way the grey dragon's wings twitched, and the way his head was staring at the sky as if he was contemplating flying away.

But what did he need to tell Lucifer? Had he set fire to some of the plants he was growing, or maybe he had destroyed one of his tomes-

"I like you, Lucifer." The grey dragon said, sincerity ringing in his tone.

"Well, that's obvious, you being my self-proclaimed best friend and all," Lucifer replied.

The Skydancer could feel his face burning under his mask.

"No, Lucy- Lucifer. I like you, like you."

So that's what this show had been about. A declaration of love, something Lucifer might have noticed had he not been so wrapped up in his studies. Did he feel the same way? Lucifer checked himself and felt that weird butterfly feeling in his chest that he had attributed to love. Yes, he did. But why would Salem like- love him?

"Well, I don't know why you would feel that way. I'm different. You should go for someone who isn't as weird as me."

"Really? What so weird about you?" The Banescale snorted, a gust of air blowing one of Lucifer's candles off course.

"I hide in my hut all day, I don't like other dragons, I cut all of you off, I have bones jutting out of my body-"

"Lucifer. Have you ever considered that I might like you because you're different?"

That was not something he had considered.

But what about the scar on my face, the mask on my head? Would you still love me if-

To Lucifer's surprise, Salem chuckled.

"I promise you, your scar isn't that big of a deal. And neither is your mask. They both look very cool."

Lucifer stopped in his tracks and stared down at the Banescale.

"Can you read minds?" He asked. His tone was almost disapproving, his tongue clicking at the end of his sentence. "And how would you know? You've never seen my scar."

"No, but you pulled your wings up to your ear, and you do that when you're self-conscious. I have seen your scar though, on accident. It looks fine, to me"

There was this wide grin that was spreading up Salem's face, and Lucifer couldn't help but replicate it, even if it was unseeable.

"Now that we have that out of the way," Salem said, a note of triumph in his voice. "Can we consider this a date? Because I'm all out of ideas on where to take you at this point."

"That would be....... fine with me."

"Great! I'll figure out something fun next time! Maybe a hunting trip! Or we could go watch a play! Or maybe....."

The stillness spread over Lucifer's mind again as he walked with his best - no, boyfriend through the forest, even as he spoke with the Banescale. He was lucid, that same feeling of pure bliss that had taken him in his hut. But this time he was with someone, someone that meant something to him. The potions at home could wait. Salem could help him later. He felt like he was floating, and maybe he was. The grey Banescale challenged him to a race, and they spread their wings at the same time. This time the sunset illuminated his face, and he grinned.

Was flying into a sunset with his lover a good ending for his fairy tale? Because that was what it felt like. An old ending, a new beginning, a book that never closed. A candle that never seemed to flicker out.

Lore by @MintyKitsune