When Souta finally spoke make sure to the entirety of the question. His answer stayed true to the respect his tone bespoke of, and gave her what, to her, seemed like the entirety of the truth. She nodded as he continued, signifying both her understanding and attentiveness - it wouldn't do to not listen after she had asked him a question, after all. She remained at a respectful distance, but nevertheless rested her gaze on him, intense as it was. 

Nothing he said came as much of a surprise. He was only human, and like every living being they acted within a certain set of parameters, the vast majority of times. The mention of the small demon girl, however, made her perk up. She lifted an eyebrow at his expectation of being forgotten as quickly as she had. Truthfully, Lily didn't know the name of that girl, but she hadn't attempted to distinguish herself, or even make her presence known. Her demise had, in all honesty, completely passed Lily by. Souta, however, was different. 

"That's where you're wrong," she said, closing the distance between them so only the forge separated the two. "You've made yourself known, to me at least. You didn't willingly fade into the background and let your own death come for you. So no, you won't be forgotten were you to come face to face with your death while working with us." She let the corners of her lips turn upwards, giving him a reassuring smile. 

Given the nature of its deliverer, Souta hadn’t known if Lily’s reply would be sympathetic, dismissive, or cutting.  When it came and resolved itself to be encouragement, it nevertheless left him lukewarm.  What her response boiled down to, at least in his mind, was ‘since you took the time to contribute and get to know us even if it wasn’t much, you’ll leave at least a little bit of an impression’.  Such a statement didn’t exactly fill the smith with determination, but from a demon it could be about as good as he could hope to get for all he knew.  Plus, her little smile told him that Lily was indeed trying to make him feel better.  “It’s a start,” he said after a moment, his tone somewhat lighter than it had been.

"You almost make it sound like I have some quota of reassurances to fill," Lily jested, now openly grinning. She regarded him a moment, then, as what felt like a hundred different further replies flew through her head. Another question? Reassurances? Truths about herself? In the end she decided to ask another of the questions she had had in mind. 

"I wonder, what do you think of present company? And I don't only mean myself, but also Mary, Fenn, and the rest. I realise the strange nature of the question, but please humour me."

A strange question, alright.  Souta couldn’t imagine that such a powerful and long-lived being as Lily would have much regard for what a lowly human thought of herself and her other coworkers.  Perhaps she was simply curious, but he had the sneaking suspicion that the inquiry was a kind of test.  Either way, he found after a moment of thinking that he didn’t have too much of an opinion of most of the Agents.  He began with what he knew best.  “Well, Akoni’s an old fart, but he’s a good guy I think.  Just helping out in his own annoying way.”  That summed it up pretty well.  Hopefully Lily wouldn’t blabber to the mage about Souta’s tolerance for him.  “I don’t really know Wrath.  He seemed surprisingly down-to-earth on that mission.  “As for Fenn...well, I know you two are friends or something like that, so rest assured I respect his fighting ability.  Might have saved me during the final fight.  On the subject, I admit that I admire your skill and power.  I bet you’re the strongest out of all of us.”  The concession was fairly genuine, but he also hoped that if Lily had cast her net out for praise, this would be satisfactory.  Meanwhile, he cast his mind further back.  “Mary’s nicer than anyone has a right to be in a place like this, but I haven’t really seen much of her.  In action, I mean.”  Some boyish, idiotic part of him had imagined that he might have a chance with her, but the fight in the Library had convinced him that even one of the more human Agents was still far out of his league.  Thoughts of the library returned visions of two more individuals he’d neglected to mention.  “There was that other guy.  I don’t remember much about him.  He used...projected magic weapons?  Midori was there too.  That was the little demon girl’s name.”

He couldn’t drudge up much of anything else.  “Uh, and I think it goes without saying that Pantoptos and the other watchers can suck a collective fat one.  Even if they’re on our side, they’re living proof that power corrupts.  That all about covers it, I guess.  Is that...what you were looking for?”

Lily’s eyes widened imperceptibly, her smile seeming to wide with each word of his. His words were, to say the least, interesting. That he talked about their fellow agents as if they were people, individuals, and not demons or monsters, did not pass her by. It meant that, despite their appearances and their powers, he saw them as [i]’People’[/i] first and foremost, looking past everything inhuman, even if only unconsciously. He was right, he had given her what she was looking for: An honest opinion. 

There was only one problem, she thought, he hadn’t mentioned the proverbial elephant in the room. She gave him a nod, and said, in a tone as playful yet innocent as she could make it,“It is, but I was wondering what you thought of me, not as a fighter, but as an… individual. You only mentioned my strength, not your actual opinion of me. And don’t worry, I’m not gonna get angry whatever your opinion.” 

The bushy black eyebrows of Souta furrowed.  What was it that Lily was fishing for?  “Well, I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to add that you’re enigmatic.  Even without the whole shapeshifting deal, I’m sure you’d be the mysterious, tricksy type.”  Perhaps she hadn’t heard him, juxtaposed as his reflection on her was next to Fenn’s in his dialogue.  He felt an urge to return to work.  “Y’know, I have a question of my own you might be able to help me with.  What’s the deal with the Council?  I never even heard of them before a few days ago, but now it seems like some kind of unknown primeval force is my boss.”  He crossed his own arms, hoping that the demon might have some informative answers for him.  As pointless as it was to think about changing his situation, it couldn’t hurt to know more about it.  Knowledge was power, after all; depending on the precise angle of the hammer blow, its strength, and the thickness of the tool, a smith could mold a piece of metal into something greater or smash it to bits.  Souta wanted to know where he could apply himself.

If Lily was annoyed at the sudden change of subject, she didn't show it. Much. Aside from a brief frown, she let the topic of their discussion change. So the human was unaware of the Charred Council? Not very surprising given that humans were ignorant of anything that wasn't right in front of their noses. She often found that, when people weren't in awe of her power and superhuman feats, they often tried to explain it away as something that, to them, was a rational explanation. 

She mulled over the question for only a short moment, debating whether to answer the question or to withhold it. In the end she decided that there was nothing to gain by keeping it from him. "The Charred Council is the single most powerful faction in existence. They were the ones who forced a ceasefire between heaven and hell, constructed the Seals of the Apocalypse, among other things. They act as some sort of mediators, making certain that there is balance in the universe. The stories - and I am pretty certain they are the truth - say that they created the seals to allow mankind to grow in peace without fear, until such a time that they grow powerful enough to participate in the end war between heaven, hell, and now humanity. As it is, humanity is still woefully outmatched, and that is why we seek the seals to protect. Or that's the official job description. There are some things that are a little bit fishy, but those aren't important. Not right now at any rate." She fell silent, regarding Souta while he digested the information given to him.

A few quiet moments passed, with only the perennial ambiance of flowing lava filling the time the smith took to mull over the news.  He rubbed his chin, where he felt his latest crop of stubble bend back and forth as his hand passed over.  Shaving, like so many little things, was an inconvenient impracticality thanks to the situation in which he found himself embroiled.  After considering what Lily said, he stated, “Huh.  I don’t like the sound of ‘end war’.  You made it sound inevitable.  I knew a little about our mission, but now that I’ve got more of the picture, it seems to me like the Council could easily be hoarding the Seals to use as it sees fit, not necessarily for protection.  But maybe I’m behind the curve.”  Solitude called out to him, its allure hard to resist.  Putting aside the other details Lily mentioned, he said, “Well, anything else I can help you with?  I’m itching to figure out the rest of the forge’s abilities.  Once I know what I need, I can start looking for materials and tools to really kick the place into gear.”

"But that's the point, it [i]is[/i] inevitable. Hell and Heaven have been in constant conflict since millennia before I was born. A conflict such as that is not something that is quelled. Think of it like summer and winter: Polar opposites, you both have to exist for life to flourish. The relationship between heaven and hell is somewhat similar. Both have to exist, because they always have. And the war will always happen, because it has always been going on." 

She stepped around the anvil, putting a hand on Souta's shoulder, saying, "But don't worry, it's won't happen for thousands of years yet." She let her other hand rise to cup his cheek, holding him in place with a gentle strength while once more seeking to look him in the eyes. There was a twinkle in her eyes as she fully wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him full on the mouth. She pulled away several seconds later, a large, genuine, grin on her face. 

"Cross that off your bucket list," she whispered before letting go and heading towards one of the several exits from the Forge. 

As much as ten seconds passed since Lily’s departure before Souta moved.  The look on his face could not be described as anything less than dopey--a completely confused, overwhelmed, blank stare.  Dimly, he tried to figure out what happened.  All of his critique of Lily’s form and how its uncanny perfection surpassed feasibility had melted away.  Along with them, thoughts of heaven and hell had been banished, and somewhere along the line Souta’s brain had turned to mush.  [i]Am I...cursed?[/i] he pondered ponderously.  His head swam and his entire body felt red-hot despite the blessing of the Council and his aura of water.  He couldn’t bring himself to move as he pieced his consciousness back together.  [i]No,[/i] he decided.  [i]She just kissed me.  What the hell?  I’m swooning like a teenaged girl.”[/i]  A glance around the forge filled him with disinterest.  He could only think of Lily.  His gaze landed on the door to his room, and he made up his mind quickly.  “Good night, everybody!” he told the tools, taking only one with him as he returned to his chamber.