Beloved Evil

FIFTEEN

Tara had never seen anything like it. She was in fact certain no one on earth had ever seen anything like it.

I front of her laid giant rocks, maybe half the size of a car, covered in flowers and moss. They created small pathways between them, like a welcoming maze. And if she looked further, she could see a lake, with calm water that was so clean and still that it reflected the sky, making white clouds dance across the surface with the golden fish. 

But it was what she saw behind the lake that took her breath away. Mooses, as tall as lampposts, walked amongst each other on a meadow that seemed to stretch on for eternity. They looked majestic, their antlers looking like massive crowns resting upon their heads. 

Tara's mouth fell open. 

"What is that?" she found the strength to ask. 

Lucifer looked at her like she was missing half a brain. 

"Mooses? You have them on earth too."

Tara couldn't tear her eyes away from them. She shook her head in disbelieve and laughed. 

"No, not like these. These are..." she laughed again. "Can we go closer?"

With an annoyed expression on his face, Lucifer led the way through the rocks, knowing exactly when to turn left and when to turn right.

Tara let her fingers brush through the green moss as they walked, inhaling the fresh smell of flowers. This felt like Heaven, not Hell.

The rocks moved closer together, making Lucifer turn to the side to walk through, his shoulders too broad to fit otherwise. Tara couldn't help but stare. She realized she had never seen real sunlight on his skin before, only the dim lights from candles. His eyes looked even more alive outside, like the sun had thrown gasoline on the fire within them. 

The exited the maze and Tara saw the thin fence continue on the other side of the lake, separating them from the mooses. She walked closer until she was standing right by it. The animals looked even bigger from here, their movements slow but precise. They didn't look dangerous or intimidating, but rather peaceful. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. 

"What other creatures don't I know of?"

Lucifer sat down by the lake, looking strangely casual as he did so. 

"There are lots of creatures in Hell," he said as he overlooked the water. "Witches, trolls, giant boars. I could go on for days really."

Tara took one last glance at the magical moose's before sitting down beside him, making sure to hold her distance. 

"Where do they live? Why haven't I seen them?"

Lucifer looked bored as he started to explain it to her, but Tara's eyes were wide, desperate for new information. Hell  was the worst, but she had to admit, that this was rather interesting. 

"Well," Lucifer began, "most of the creatures live in the forest beyond the fence. But witches, you actually have met before, you just didn't know it."

"Who?"

"Mildred for example. And Batibat."

Just the mention of Batibat's name made her shiver. She couldn't help but think about the day before and how she had almost gotten caught in the basement.

She quickly shook off her nerves before Lucifer noticed. Mildred being a witch made a lot of sense. She hadn't heard of any other demons with healing powers. But Batibat?

"I thought Batibat was a demon?"

"She's half," Lucifer said, "half demon, half witch."

"Wow," Tara mumbled, looking down at the water. She was speechless. Hell was right out of a fantasy book; she just hadn't noticed. She had been too busy thinking about all the horrible things around her to stop and think about the magic in this world. To her defence, there hadn't been a lot of time to ponder, but still, it was quite something.