@inferno-principe
Dove, as a secretary to the emperor of Hell himself, was a very busy individual. Thankfully he was also rather quick and efficient in his work, which is why he was appointed for the job in the first place. And yet, sometimes there was just a sudden influx of work which overwhelmed him, out of seemingly nowhere. During such situations, he had no choice but to rely on others to get some of the things done in a timely manner. And thus, little Livia had set out to deliver his messages and other things while he worked on other more important tasks.
She herself was very efficient-- or perhaps it was more a case of being simpleminded. Rather than go the official, complicated route of announcing her arrival at the palace of Akriāqar and waiting to be invited in for an audience, Livia had found the balcony of the royal familyās crown prince. All she had to do was quickly deliver the message and she could be off to the next mission again, why waste precious time on bureaucracy and etiquette she didnāt even really understand?
Sidonai would perhaps notice the small imp land on his balcony already, folding her wings back upon hitting solid ground. But in case he didnāt notice her, she would knock on his window for however long it would take to be let in.
inferno-principeĀ
Sidonai couldnāt help but to chuckle at the girlās enthusiasm. She reminded him so much of Ace in that regard. It was actually quite funny. Dove was such a somber, quiet, serious man, yet he was constantly surrounded by the most energetic companions. He didnāt think he himself could handle all that energy so often.
He noticed Liviaās face falling when she spoke about the mistreatment of imps. It was a subject he was quite familiar with. The hierarchies of Hell were quite twisted that way. Pure blood was deemed to be preferable, and all others were less than.
āAhh, yes. I donāt blame him for that. Iāve seen firsthand the terrible things people can do. Iād hate to think of someone as small as you being confronted by a band of brutes. Paimon is brutish enough already.ā He offered her a sad smile, trying to lift the mood, butā¦it was hard to joke when speaking of such a serious subject. āOne of the staff here, my friend Soris, heās an imp as well. Though heās much bigger than you. Iāve seen the way people can treat him and itās deplorable. But donāt worry, I might not be Dove, but youāre in good hands. If someone tries to bother you, then the both of us can kick their arsā¦.erā¦behinds.ā
With an awkward smile, the prince rubbed the back of his neck. āHow old are you anyway? You look even younger than my cousin.ā
It was quite a relief to hear Sidonai say that he was on her side, and would kick the behinds of any who bothered her. Of course Dove had already told her that the prince was a good friend, but hearing it from the guy himself was even more reassurance. And sheād have another person who could confirm it for her in Soris, another imp who worked at the palace, and who also seemed to be a friend. She recalled her master speaking of this particular imp before. From what sheād gathered, he was very kind and pleasant to work with as well.Ā
Upon being asked how old she was, Livia frowned however. Not because she was offended that heād asked. It was more a case of her not really knowing for certain how old she was by now. Over the years it had become less important to her, and she mostly only remembered her birthdays because those who were close to her celebrated them with her. Her master gave her new gifts each year, as did his charge nowadays, and she was allowed to stuff herself on treats.Ā
The pigeon imp turned to her fingers and silently began counting on them. After a moment of quiet, she answered him: āU-uhmā¦ Think Iām aboutā¦ a hundred and eighty-something years now? Might be a little off, I donāt really remember much of the earlier years anymore. Iād have to ask master.ā She seemed content with that answer, not bothering to think about it much longer. The exact number had become unimportant long ago. She knew why Sidonai asked though, and so she followed up with: āI know I look little, but donāt worry too much, Iām not all helpless! I can fight, Master taught me some things!ā
Trying to prove her point, she hopped up onto her feet in one swift movement and stood on the chaise, spread her teeny wings for a boost and then made a high jump, kicking the air with her talons before landing on the ground, surprisingly gracefully. It was up to Sidonai to now imagine a scenario where that air was an enemy she just kicked square in the face.
Livia quickly crawled back onto her seat and plopped down again, a rather proud expression on her round face. āI can do a lot more than that, too! ...Buuut itās still safer to just not get myself into trouble in the first place, so that I wonāt have to fight.ā That last statement sounded more like she was quoting Dove.
