There was a bit of time left before the retreat was scheduled to take place. Things were still a bit tense for a while; it wasn’t easy for Melody to forget she had almost died. She was also fairly tired. Although she didn’t remember any nightmares by the time she woke up, she felt like she must be having them because of how worn out she felt in the mornings. Being a bit lethargic didn’t go unnoticed by the brothers, especially those who she had a pact with, as well as Lucifer, who was just mindful of her wellbeing in general. Again, it was for the program’s sake, not her own, or so she assumed. Beel, of course, linked it back to food, and tried to get Melody to eat a variety of different things, some of which were more successful than others. Levi really didn’t have a clue why she was so tired, though he did keep an eye on how late he would keep her gaming. Mammon actually brought some vitamin D pills he acquired ‘by accident’ to hopefully make up for the lack of sunlight.

But as Melody became a little more relaxed, and stopped thinking that the next person who entered the room was going to kill her, things picked up a bit. Although she still felt tired, she didn’t feel like anything bad was hanging over her head. ‘Her’ three demons were still a bit concerned at how tired she seemed, but since she seemed a little more positive now, they didn’t fret too much. Not that any of them would ever admit to fretting, though Beel also wouldn’t deny it if asked, unlike the other two.

Apart from being a little groggy first thing in the morning, and going to bed a bit earlier at night, Melody’s general routine wasn’t affected too much by her tired state. And, she had a plan she was working on to keep herself occupied. Even after all this time, she felt uneasy about her pact with Mammon, and hadn’t gotten a good opportunity to really talk to him about it. So, she was working on something to help her do just that. It wasn’t always easy to find time. She needed to do her school work, attend classes, and game a bit with Levi so his envy wouldn’t be stirred up too much, though she was definitely playing less with him. He didn’t seem to mind too much, though sometimes she caught him looking a bit anxious. Still, she couldn’t know for sure that it had anything to do with her.

There was one other thing she had to take care of, and it did weigh quite a bit on her mind. She had no idea where to even start to look for a dress for the formal dinner and dance. She hadn’t even attended prom when she finished High School. Her clothes were generally comfortable and practical rather than fashionable. Surprisingly enough, it was once again Asmodeus that came to her rescue. Ever since he had shown her to her room, he had largely ignored her, other than to put her on the spot during his verbal sparring with Satan and the other brothers. But, it was almost as if he could sense her floundering.

“You’re going to run out of time soon,” Asmo said casually one day, as they met in the hall.

“T-time for what?” asked Melody, alarmed. Was there a project due she was missing somehow? Was she in danger.

“Relax, sweetie. Remember, wrinkles are bad!” Asmo chirped. “I was just talking about clothes for the dance coming up. You simply can’t go wearing the things you usually do around here. And I’ve kept an eye open. You have nothing at all suitable.”

“Oh. Right.” Melody tried to relax her face, but it didn’t work so well. “Um, I don’t really know much about fancy dances and dinners,” she admitted. Asmodeus just laughed.

“I could have told you that just by looking at you, honey,” he pointed out. “But, didn’t I tell you that I always take the best care of people. Clear your schedule for tomorrow evening; we’re going to remove the ‘wall’ from wallflower, and let you bloom.”

“I… um… okay,” replied Melody meekly. She really did need help, and Asmo was the only one who even stopped to think that she might need it. Levi probably had as much fashion sense as she did, so he wouldn’t be much help, and Beel also seemed the type to wear comfortable, casual clothes. In addition, Beel didn’t seem like he’d know how to dress a girl up. Mammon seemed a little more likely, but probably would try to get her to buy more things for him than herself. Despite any worries about going with Asmo, she felt it was probably the better course of action. Even though Asmo had seemed disappointed a while ago, when she turned up safe, he had never once intimated that he wished to harm her himself. “But, I don’t know if I have that kind of money in my budget,” she pointed out after a moment of thought.

“I’ll sort that out with Lucifer for you,” Asmo promised with a smile. “He won’t want the little exchange student to embarrass herself when she’s under his wing, so to speak.” Melody twitched slightly at the thought of being an embarrassment to anyone; it was too uncomfortably close to home for her, and she looked down at her hands. “Oh, but sweetie, I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen, so leave yourself in my very capable hands.”

“Oi! Melody doesn’t need to know anythin’ about yer hands, Asmo,” Mammon shouted, coming around the corner and getting in Asmo’s face. “Go on, shoo!”

“I’m here helping Melody, which is more than what I can say for you,” Asmodeus said, scowling at his older brother. “You certainly can’t be trusted to buy things for anyone except yourself.”

“Well, then you certainly can’t be trusted to be alone with Melody for the same reason,” retorted back Mammon. If he had to admit to his sin, greed, then he’d make sure Asmo would admit to his own, lust.

“The difference between us is that I always make sure my partner is interested in what I have to offer. You just take things indiscriminately,” returned Asmo. “Besides, we all know that I’m the only one who can really make her shine.” Mammon couldn’t really debate either matter, and that just made him grumpy.

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“Um… it’s okay, really,” Melody said quietly, moving towards Mammon and touching his wrist. Mammon looked startled; Melody hadn’t really shown she was comfortable enough with him to do that before. For the moment, Asmodeus was forgotten. “I really wouldn’t know what sort of dress to get, and he did offer to help.” She didn’t want to see the two of them fight. “But, I needed to talk to you too.”

“Alright, I’m listenin’,” Mammon said, glancing sideways to see what Asmodeus had to say about that. But the Avatar of Lust had already wandered off, finding talking to Melody wasn’t nearly as interesting with his brother standing there.

“Well, actually, I have something to give you,” Melody said. Mammon stared at her for a few moments. Most of the time people didn’t give him stuff. Usually he was the one either begging for something, or taking it on the sly, which was why he couldn’t refute Asmo’s earlier words.

“What kind of something?” Despite the fact that Mammon had seen no evidence of Melody being sneaky or malicious, he was still wary.

“It’s in my room right now,” Melody said. “I’m not really sure how to say what it is in a word or two, so, it’s probably better if I just show you.” She smiled a bit. “Unless you’re busy right now.”

“Not too busy, no,” Mammon said. Truth be told, he was curious, and at least he wouldn’t be left hanging. Time was money, but time without a plan wasn’t going to get him much of anything anyhow, so he might as well go with Melody. Sliding his hands into his pockets, he followed Melody down the hall. She opened her door and stepped inside without any fanfare. The room, of course, looked differently than when he first brought her to the House of Lamentation, due to Beel’s rampage. It was mostly the same, but a lot of the decor was in lighter colors, and looked less grim and gloomy. Not that Melody had ever complained about her room, but given her disposition, when the room had to be refinished, it was done in a much milder way.

“I just have to get it from a drawer,” Melody explained and she motioned for Mammon to take a seat if he wanted to. He declined, still not sure if this was some kind of prank or joke, and wanting to be able to bolt if he had to. Not that he could really do anything if Melody decided to use the pact, but she hadn’t harmed him with it so far. But, well, demons just weren’t a very trusting, or trustworthy, bunch. Idly he watched as Melody rummaged around in a drawer. Finally she brought out a small black box. Shyly, she handed it to him.

Mammon opened the box. Nestled inside was what looked like a rectangle of yellow-gold silk cloth. At first he thought it was some kind of handkerchief, but as he pulled it out, he realized it was more like a pouch. The material it was made of was the yellow silk, but also had black edges of a stiffer material, and seemed to be filled with something soft, like quilt batting. He wasn’t entirely sure what it was.

“What, exactly, is this? Some kind of human thing?” Mammon asked. Melody just blushed a bit and shook her head.

“Not really. More like… um… it’s kind of silly, but, it’s for Goldie,” Melody murmured. “Because she’s obviously very important to you, so, it’s somewhere to keep her safe and w-warm. Since, you know, she was frozen.” Melody felt like it was very childish and lame, now that she had to explain it all. It made sense in her head. Mammon stared at her for a few moments, his expression blank. Then, he laughed. But it wasn’t a mocking laugh, it was a sound that was a mix of joy and relief.

“This is probably the most thoughtful thing anyone has ever given me!” Mammon said. Yes, it was a bit childish, but the gift itself wasn’t what made him so thrilled. Melody had not only remembered that Goldie was important to him, but she wasn’t demeaning him for the way he personified his credit card. She wasn’t calling him gross or stupid for it. Instead she had completely validated it by making something for his card. It was like, a little sleeping bag for his baby. Then, realizing that he was being a little too enthusiastic, he had to add, “You did alright, for a human, I guess.”

Even that couldn’t dampen Melody’s spirit. Mammon was always backpedaling, she had come to expect that of him. But he did seem happy about the gift, and she noticed the careful way he put it back in the box. He didn’t just stuff it back in, or jam it into his pockets. And, there was that telltale blush when he was outed as being nicer than he wanted to appear to be. Melody just didn’t think it was right to ask him about it. Not yet.

“Hopefully the color is okay.”

“The color is good,” Mammon agreed. Gold was something that always caught his eye. “But, what’s the occasion?” he asked her, looking over the rim of his glasses, as if wanting to see her properly.

“Well…” Melody shifted from one foot to the other. “I still feel bad for letting Levi bully you into making a pact with me,” Melody admitted. “It seems like we’ve never really talked about it, and I wanted to make a peace offering.” She offered him a sad little smile. “Levi made the decision on his own, and so did Beel, but as far as I know, we can’t undo the pact, so, it’s important to me to make sure that things are going to be okay between us.”

“Yeah, we’re okay,” Mammon said, his voice a bit gruff. Obviously Melody took this situation very seriously. Even though she had gotten into pacts with two of his younger brothers, she hadn’t forgotten the circumstance of his pact, nor justified it to herself. If only his brothers would show him that kind of consideration. Then again, he hadn’t really taken much from Melody; without knowing it, she had already given him one of the few things he desired. So, of course, she wouldn’t have much reason to be angry with him, though he hadn’t really given her a fair chance on that first day. “After all, I left ya hangin’ in the beginnin’, so maybe we’re even now?”

“I wasn’t planning on keeping score,” Melody said softly. “But, I understand what you mean. If you can forgive me for being weak, then, I can definitely forgive you for not showing me around that first day.”

“You got me back my Goldie, and it was Levi who made the terms, not you. If ya remember, I told you to make the pact, so even though it wasn’t my idea to begin with, it wasn’t like you were tryin’ to trick me or anything,” Mammon pointed out, shrugging his shoulders. He had thought looking after her was a drag, and Melody did seem to get into a lot of trouble, but she never seemed to do it on purpose. He supposed it was just the natural consequences of bringing a non-magical human into the Devildom. But there was just something about Melody that made him want to protect her, and evidently his brothers felt the same. At least, Levi and Beel did, or else they never would have agreed to those pacts. Yes, maybe Mammon was a little late to the game, but he was definitely going to do a better job in the future. Maybe. He very easily became distracted, after all.

“I’m glad to hear you say that,” said Melody, smiling more genuinely this time.