He never would be.

His dedication and loyalty to his Father was everlasting, but an unfamiliar sensation bubbled inside of him, strangling him, straining him. He was angry... so very angry.

"Wrath," a calm voice said.

Michael turned, eyes meeting his Father. He sat in His throne, casually watching Michael, a view of the street projected around them. The atmosphere was calm, as was Satan.

"Lucifer," his Father said. "You can call him by his name, son."

Michael stared at Him. He could still feel the anger vibrating through him. Wrath? Impossible. Michael wasn't a sinner, but wrath was a sin. How could he be afflicted with it?

"Your brother tends to have that effect on those around him," He said, waving to the seat beside His throne, wordlessly telling Michael to sit down.

For the first time in his existence, the Archangel didn't obey right away. "What's happening to me?"

A soft, understanding smile greeted him. "Sit down, Michael."

Michael didn't hesitate this time, taking the seat. Silently, his attention drifted to the projecting image. Satan stared at Serah longingly, not showing himself, but Michael knew Serah felt the same pull. He'd seen it in her mind, the draw she felt toward the one in all black who consumed her thoughts and visited her dreams. She longed for him, desired him, although she didn't know why, the sort of craving Michael still felt when he looked into her eyes.

Another sensation twisted Michael, vaguely like the anger, but more focused. Concentrated.

"Envy. Dare I say with a dash of lust?"

Seven deadly sins, and his Father was sensing almost half of them emanating from him?

"More than half," He chimed in calmly, reading Michael's thoughts. "Gluttony, for you needlessly want to claim all of her for yourself, and greed, because you don't want to share... and let's not forget pride, because you believe you deserve her so much more than your brother does."

Michael hung his head in shame. Six out of seven? All that was left was sloth.

"Nobody can accuse you of being lazy, son." He reached over and laid a hand on Michael's shoulder, the simple touch sending a wave of calm through him. All at once Michael felt the resentment fade away, a sense of peace settling over him. "You've hardly taken a moment of rest in the past six months."

"How can I rest with him out there?"

"Is it him being out there that worries you? Or is it her?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean are you more afraid of your brother succeeding or of her failing?"

Michael considered that, his gaze fixed to the projecting image. Nothing seemed to matter more to Satan than listening to Serah's heartbeat. It had become an obsession to the fallen angel, something that terrified Michael.

He remembered the last time Satan became obsessed with a beating heart.

It had changed everything.

"I'm afraid those are the same thing, Father," Michael admitted. "I'm afraid he'll corrupt another innocent mortal, and I can't just stand around and do nothing this time."

"It's mesmerizing, isn't it?"

Lucifer sat alone in a section of vast white space in Heaven. Or at least, he thought he was alone. But the voice behind him shattered the moment of peaceful silence, pulling him from the depths of his thoughts.

He glanced beside him as his brother sat down. Michael looked on in awe, his gaze fixed straight ahead at their Father's newest creation before them.

Earth.

It was the middle of the third day since the project had begun. An abundance of green was growing on the land, the first stitch of life appearing. Lucifer had been sitting there since it started, watching every moment with conflicting feelings.

"Yes," he said. "It's certainly something."

"I wonder why He's making it," Michael said. "Do you have any idea?"

They knew what it was from the beginning, but why had evaded them. Blessed with knowledge, but so far robbed of insight. Lucifer had been trying to riddle it out on his own since it started. He was the closest to their Father, the only one ever granted time alone with Him, but even he had little more than a guess.

He'd been made to leave the throne room when it all started, as if it were supposed to be a surprise. He had a few theories, the current overwhelming him with thoughts of love.

"I think it's paradise," Lucifer said quietly. "A home for His children."

"Home," Michael repeated. "I like the sound of that."

The first sprinkling of color started to appear, what Lucifer seemed to instinctively know as flowers. Although angels weren't all-knowing, they possessed an innate knowledge thanks to their connection to their Father. Lucifer watched with morbid fascination as the plants bloomed, dotting the landscape.

Beautiful.

His lips slowly turned up into a smile. "Me, too."

Michael sat beside him in silence for a long while, watching the landscape shift as another day dawned. Surrounding the Earth, the sun and the moon formed, stars appearing in the sky, seasons created right before their eyes. It was amazing, full of their Father's love.

A true gift.

Lucifer couldn't wait until it was finished. He looked forward to calling it home.

Day four breezed by, dawning day five.

Waves crashed against the land on earth, the water now teeming with life. Lucifer stared in wonder. Thousands upon thousands of different creatures had popped up before his eyes, each one unique and mesmerizing. His Father's ingenuity was beyond anything Lucifer imagined. There were ones with the ability to create, others that could fly; from a massive gentle giant in the ocean to the tiniest speck of a creature in the sky.