Lucifer

"This is Frank, Lucy. Frank, this is Lucy, my librarian friend," Julia said as she introduced Frank and Lucy.

Frank stared at Lucy for some time and then suddenly grabbing her from the collar of her dress, he said in a threatening tone," You. Who are you?"

Julia, shocked and flustered because of Frank's behavior, looked at the two in panic and tried to calm Frank down.

But Lucy stopped her and said," Stop Julia, he knows."

Julia looked at Frank in surprise and then at Lucy with the same expression.

"He does…?" She mumbled at length.

Frank let go of Lucy and said," You better show your true form now."

As Frank said that, Lucy nodded and took off a necklace she had been hiding under her clothes.

The moment the necklace was down, her body let out a green light and when the light was gone, there stood a boy of about twelve, with same features as Lucy.

Julia sighed and said." Let me introduce you two again. Frank, this Lucifer, my partner in the Secrets' Bureau that I operate secretly."

"What bureau?" Frank looked at Julia, confused. Julia gave him a similar confused look back.

"He didn't know about the bureau, Julia. He just knew that I was a boy," Lucifer said as he put his hand on his forehead and sighed.

"But hey! What are you doing a lady's room in the middle of the night. Don't you have any sense?!" Frank yelled at Lucifer, now that he had a chance.

Lucifer looked at him in absolute disgust, as if looking at an ugly insect.

"YOU, of all people, have no right to say that when you were sneaking into the supposed LADY's room. At least I had permission before coming in. AND, I have no such interest in Julia, to be doubted in the first place, unlike someone here. AND, I have a viable reason to be here, again unlike someone here.", Lucifer said as casted disgusted and annoyed looks both at Frank as well as Julia.

Frank, who had just discovered ten times the things he had come to know, now just sat there quietly, listening. Too much of his self was exposed and too severely at that.

"But, you, how did you know I was a boy?" Lucifer asked at length.

"Oh, you had a male's light coming from y…", Frank immediately put his hand on his mouth as he stopped himself from saying further, but it was already too late.

"What?! You can see people's lights?! Are you a healer?"

"Of course, he's a healer if he can see those lights."

Julia and Lucifer were shouting as they heard it.

"Um, I'm not actually what you would call a healer", Frank said at last.

"Not a healer? Why?" Lucifer asked with a keen interest.

"Well, I also thought I was a healer when I was little, but it actually isn't the case…." Frank started explaining.

"Then what are you? A monster?" Lucifer said, a little annoyed.

"Hey! Let him explain", Julia said pinching Lucifer's arm.

"Ow! That hurt!" Lucifer squealed.

"And what you said didn't? Don't go around calling people monsters, or you'll actually become one." Julia said as she asked Frank to continue.

Delighted at Julia taking his side, Frank continued," Well, the orphanage where I stayed also thought I was healer at first but I could never actually heal anyone. And I could use fire magic since I was small. But I wasn't a witch-kind because I didn't metamorphosize. So, they just called me the odd-one and I was told to keep my abilities hidden, both the fire magic as well as about the lights."

"Doesn't that mean you're a half-healer and half witch-kind?" Lucifer asked at length.

"No, it could be something similar to my case." Julia said looking at Frank.

"You mean a witch's blessings?" Lucifer said looking at Julia. "But why does he see the lights then?"

"Think about it, Luci", Julia said with an amazed expression as she looked at Frank who was looking at the two in confusion.

"No way," Lucifer stammered as he understood what Julia meant. "He was born a healer but received a witch's blessings."

Julia nodded.

"But why would a witch bless a healer? Aren't they like, arch-enemies?" Lucifer said after contemplating.

"Don't know, but that seems to be the case anyway," Julia said shuffling her hand through Frank's golden bangs.

"How do you know all that?" Frank asked after not being able to hold his curiosity.

"We are the Secrets' Bureau. We know people's secrets that even they themselves don't know." Lucifer said proudly.

Frank looked at Julia and Lucifer in awe for some time. Then suddenly realizing the possibility, he asked, "Can you find my parents?"

Lucifer and Julia stared blankly at Frank's sudden request, while Frank looked at them with his eyes gleaming.

"It needs money, kid. We don't do stuff for free," Lucifer said standing up and putting back his necklace on.

"But if it's Frank, maybe we could….," Julia tried to speak but Lucifer cut her off and said, "No personal exceptions in business, Julia. He pays if he wants something, just like everyone else. The Bureau is not for charity but for our purpose. And for that we need the payment."

Julia went silent at Lucifer's words. She couldn't oppose him when it came to the Bureau, because Lucifer was the one who put in the most efforts to establish the Bureau.

"I…. I would do anything you want me to do," Frank said after listening to what Lucifer had said. "I don't have any money yet, but I promise to pay you back. And till that time, I'm willing to do anything you ask of me. So, so, can you please find my parents, if they are alive, for me? I won't ever complain no matter how hard the work is or how long it takes. But please…"

Tears started falling down his eyes as beads on his clothes and slightly drenching his clothes.

'Huh? Why am I crying?' Frank was amazed at his tears. So far in his ten years of life, he had never once missed his parents. He even resented them for abandoning him like that to the orphanage. Even after the orphanage was destroyed and he had to slave for mercenaries for survival, never once he longed to find his parents. Even when he had lost the Lart family that adopted him later on, he didn't even flinch. But, why was it hitting him so hard that day?

And before he knew it, he started sobbing.

So far, it had been the third time he cried after coming to the Shuzar estate. Was it the unconditional trust the people there were giving him, that made him so sensitive?

Julia, who had seen Frank crying for the first time today, took him into her arms without a second thought and hugged him tightly. It wasn't because she liked him that she wanted to comfort him. But his sobs were so sad, that if it had been anyone else sobbing that sadly in front of her, she would have embraced them.

Lucifer, looking at this whole crazy development with an absolutely disgusted face, said, "What can we even use you for? Aren't you practically useless, if you can't heal someone?"

Julia glared at him at this moment and Lucifer sighed.

He contemplated over it for some time, then shook his head a couple of times, mulling over the impossibility if the solution. At length, he groaned and turned towards the two, who were still hugging and watching him with anticipation. The one getting comforted had even stopped crying. Lucifer felt a little ticked at their shameless behavior but he still conceded.

"Ugh, fine. Bring him to the library this weekend and I'll look into his case," Lucifer said, groaning. Julia and Frank's face brightened up as they heard it.

"But he'll have to work for the bureau until he can pay us back," Lucifer stammered at the end.

"Yes, I will," Frank said hurriedly.

"Well, whatever, I'm leaving now," Lucifer said, slightly flustered by Frank. "And why don't you two let go of each other now? Isn't it uncomfortable to be like that."

Frank and Julia immediately pulled away from each other and blushed. Lucifer, now in his girl body, but still obviously disgusted by the two, left through the window from which Frank had come.

And now, left alone with each other (and a dog), Julia and Frank stared at each other.