Revival, Again

I did indeed die.

As for how I'm still able to tell you about it, that's a story for another time.

So as I lay there, dead, the Valkyries walked up to check on me.

"Sight, didn't you put the evasive barrier on him?", Lady asked, while examining my lifeless remains.

"Ah...I forgot", Sight scratched his head as if no loss has been incurred.

Surprisingly enough, Grim had quite the same shocked reaction as the rest of them.

"I didn't know it will work", he said, thinking Sight had already put this barrier on me. After all, those guys sure did take their time pepping me up.

Now they all just hovered over me, cluelessly.

As for me, I was in a nicer place.

"Lucy looks like she doesn't care but she asks about you often. Well, you know her", he stood tall, with a careless smirk on his gentle face.

I looked over at Lucy who glared at him and then looked away when I looked her way. I did avert my gaze soon enough, seeing as she was stripped to the bone, as usual.

"She's surprisingly shy", I chuckled.

"Surprisingly? Not at all", he answered.

"Prophet, err...Lucifer, have you been watching everything?", I asked after a pause.

"Well, mostly."

I smiled, weakly.

"You know that red sky reminded me of that place", I said.

"Hmm? Didn't you think I was behind it? Or at least my death was the cause", he saw right through me.

"You know me. But well, I couldn't exactly ignore it."

In one distant corner of that blank room that had nothing but a glass wall separating it from a heavenly view outside, I saw Nasty II.

"He hangs out here?"

"Since you've been so cold to him", Lucifer chuckled.

"Oh, I'd love to warm up to him again. But hey, I told you I wanted to come here if I ever died for real. Guess my wish came true. I'm kind of glad that happened. Now, I suppose we have all the time in the world to catch up", I said.

"Doesn't that remind you of that one journey? It seems the two of us always get stuck for an eternity in the same place together."

I smiled, and kept looking at him. I liked looking at him. Even though, he looked nothing like the Prophet of back then. H was Lucifer. Regardless, I was barely bothered by it. At least, his eyes hadn't changed one bit.

"What's there to do around here, anyway?", I asked.

"Well, this was supposed to be hell. So I was supposed to be alone here. But for some reason I've got this much company. And you're here now, Seraph. So it isn't a hell anymore. Seems like we're just stuck in a strange place now."

I chuckled. I felt like I could always be honest with him. I was at my best when I was with Lucifer. You wouldn't know but it's easy to talk with dead people.

"But still, that's one dumb way to die, Seraph", he said, "And you sure don't waste time looking for dumb chances to die. It wasn't so long ago when you were here. You're always dying, aren't you Seraph?"

"Whatever might you be talking about. Never came this close to death before", I shrugged.

H chuckled, "Come to think of it, back in the underworld, you died about thrice as much as I did. You were always dying. And I had to wait on you to recover. It was such a pain. You ought to make up for that for one."

"No way! I didn't die that often!"

"Sure did! You've got the survival skills of a dandelion flower. And don't you deny that. Nasty here is the witness to that."

We laughed aloud, as insensitive as it was to Nasty.

"Well, I did get him killed. I guess I should have apologized or something."

"Sounds dumb to me. Anyways, was it worth it? Your death this time around?"

"Nope. It was about as dumb and pointless as you said. But I think the real test is for those who are still living right now."

He hummed something to himself, smiling.

"Well, if you say so, that means you still have some time left", he said.

"Huh?"

"If there's work left, if the living world still holds importance, Lady won't let you die yet. You'd be on your way back before you know it, Seraph", he chuckled.

"Huh?! No, no, wait! What's that supposed to mean?!", I shot up, "Oi, Lucifer, you have to...kill me!"

He was laughing out loud now, "What? Why?"

"I don't wanna go back. Lady would kill me!", I was freaking out.

He continued laughing, "Then I'll welcome you back soon."

"No way! I don't wanna go back. It hurts, you know!"

He suppressed his laughter, finally.

"Wouldn't know."

"Oi!!!"

His laughing face was the last thing I was able to see before I was pulled back. A cold sigh was the first thing that escaped my mouth when I came back and saw Lubbock's face hanging over mine.

"OH!!! He's back!", Lubbock exclaimed.

The rest of everyone came to confirm for themselves.

"Oi, you remember us?", asked Chopper.

"No."

"Good, he looks perfect", he said.

The gang flocked to me.

"What's up, boy? You look like you could be dead", Sight's tasteless joke sent ripples of laughter.

They were really making short of my suffering. What's more, they'd apparently made up all nice and sweet after I died. So I had to think my dying did have a purpose. But in truth, this was just a short-lived peace born of their uncontrollable urge to ridicule me every what way possible. Hell, they even gave Prophet a kick out of it.