TWENTY-THREE

                                    

                                          
Irina looked up at him from her spot on the bed, confused and worried. The loose tendrils of her white hair shook back and forth with each astonished blink, "Why do you need... a pint of my blood?"
Lucifer couldn't look at her, his guilt was sweltering, "I can't tell you."
Irina frowned, "Why can't you tell me what you need with my blood?" 
"Because I can't and I don't have to." Lucifer was guilty, of course, but he needed her to be compliant and not question him about this, "It's to protect you."
His daughter sat silently, waiting for a better reason but he couldn't give her one. There was no better reason. There was no reason he could tell her. He would reveal a whole world he spent the last 19 years protecting her from. 
"Please." Lucifer insisted, the pleading look in his eyes making her heart ache, "I would never do anything to cause you harm, you know that."  
"Of course, Dad. I trust you. I promise." Irina leaned against the edge of the mattress, her fingers curled under the lump that it made from being squished, "If... if you need it..." 
Lucifer swallowed, closing his eyes in a sigh of relief, "Thank you, my gift. I'm sorry to have even asked but understand that my intentions are not bad. I just can't tell you." 
"I understand, Dad." If she were to be honest, she didn't understand. Not at all. There was no reason to ask for her blood unless he were a vampire, which was even more concerning. 
"I'll have Belphegor find you later and... set things up." Lucifer took a few steps closer, feeling less stressed about the situation, "Happy birthday, Irina." 
"Thanks, Dad." Irina smiled, picking up a yarn skein and unraveling a short length of the yellow wool, "You didn't need to do this much." 
Of course, he did! 
He just asked for a pint of her blood! He needed to make up for that strange favor somehow.  
"I would do anything for you." He replied, "You are my greatest gift. I would never change that." He stroked the side of her head, brushing down the wild strands of her soft white hair. 
Irina smiled, her teeth clenched to prevent any tears. She was an emotional girl, easily touched by moments of sentiment, and he would make her sob if he did not leave soon. She stood quietly, and wrapped her arms around him, her head only reaching the center of his chest, just below his shoulders. She had always been small compared to him; or any of the other brothers. 
"I should, umm, put these hooks to good use and get started on something, I suppose." Irina blubbered, stepping away from her father and shifting her focus to the many gifts, "could Belphegor meet me in the library?" 
"Of course." As long as she was comfortable, he was happy. He could sense her emotions, knowing his daughter all too well. She needed to be alone and he wasn't going to push his luck any further. 
Irina trusted her father, his steady love and attention throughout her whole life gave her no reason not to. But for some reason her heartbeat thundered like heavy drums, carrying her anxiety to a steady beat. 
Why did he need her blood and why couldn't he tell her? 
~•~•~
Azazel never needed company. He was a solitary creature, born out of many centuries spent alone in the lakes of fire. He was more accustomed to his thoughts and his demons than that of another living being. He rarely enjoyed his brothers' company, finding them all burdensome and loud.