Friends with the Devil: Hail Satan – LIAH NATAS (Fantasy | Supernatural | Coming-of-Age | Dark Whimsy)

***Chapter One: A Wish in Winter***

Have you ever wondered what it would feel like to have a friend? Not just a friend in need — I mean the kind of friend that flips your world upside down and makes you question reality itself.

Well, my friend wasn't exactly the kind you'd imagine.

I was ten years old when it all began. It was my birthday. Christmas Day. Snow blanketed the world in soft silence, and inside our house, candles flickered while my parents and relatives sang and laughed over cake. But there were no kids. No friends. Just family and me — the quiet boy in the corner.

I didn't say it out loud. Just whispered it in my heart: *"I wish I had a friend. A real one."*

Right then, a light streaked across the sky — fast, bright, and loud enough to rattle the windows. Everyone rushed to the front door, but I was already gone. I knew it wasn't a falling star.

I followed the trail through the woods behind our house until I reached the crater — smoldering, steaming, wild with energy. Something… someone… lay at the center.

A black, charred figure, curled and steaming like it had just crawled out of a volcano.

I should've run. I didn't.

I stepped closer.

Its form shifted.

The creature rose, towering with glowing eyes and massive, flaming horns — a monster of nightmares. I stood there, frozen, staring. I couldn't move. Couldn't scream.

And then… it smiled.

***Chapter Two: Liah Natas***

With a sound like wind shifting direction, the creature morphed — the flames vanished, the skin softened, the horns curled inward until it stood before me as a man. Handsome. Calm. Like someone from a movie.

"Hey, kiddo," he said. "What's up?"

I screamed.

He lunged forward and gently covered my mouth, chuckling. "Shh. No need to freak out. You called me, remember?"

"What… are you?"

"Was my look that scary?" he teased. "Hold on, let me try something more… relatable."

Before I could blink, he changed forms again — this time into a girl. Maybe fifteen, gorgeous, glowing, and... completely naked.

She noticed the way I stared and raised a brow.

"You're one naughty boy, aren't you?"

I nearly choked.

Then she grinned, spun once, and was suddenly clothed in a stunning black and red dress that shimmered like embers.

"I'm Liah Natas," she said proudly.

It took me a second. Then I whispered, "That's… 'Hail Satan' backwards."

"Ding ding! Smart boy," she laughed. "But relax, I'm not *the* Devil. Just an agent. You can call me the Devil if it makes things easier."

My head spun. "Why are you here?"

"Because you wished for a friend. And down below — or up above, who knows these days — we heard you."

"Really?"

She leaned in, winked. "Nah. I've got a mission. But… your wish aligned perfectly with it. So — surprise!"

***Chapter Three: Mischief & Miracles***

From that day on, **Liah was my secret**. No one else could see her. No one else knew.

She lived in the shadows of my room, walked beside me at school, and whispered clever, horrible things into my ear when I needed courage — or chaos.

She helped me deal with bullies by toying with them, sometimes just embarrassing them in public, other times doing worse. Always laughing, always delighted.

But she also helped me stand up for myself.

She taught me things — some wise, some wicked, some wonderful. And sometimes, just to amuse herself, she'd use her magic for unexpected good.

One Sunday, she stood in the middle of a church — invisible to most — and exposed the sins of corrupt priests in a voice that shook the rafters. The congregation fell to their knees. The priest wept. And Liah? She smiled like a kid who'd just won a game.

They called it a miracle. A vision of judgment.

She called it "a bit of heavenly mischief."

***Chapter Four: Purpose***

As I grew older, Liah stayed by my side. She granted little wishes. Made school easier. Helped me cheat on a few tests (I stopped asking eventually). And somehow, she was always there when I felt broken, lost, or alone.

She wasn't just a devil's agent. She became my protector. My companion. My first crush. My family.

My parents never questioned her presence. Maybe they couldn't see her. Or maybe… deep down, they understood I needed her.

And then, on my twenty-first birthday, she told me:

"It's time."

"Time for what?" I asked.

"For me to go."

"What? Why? You said—"

"I said I was your friend. And I am. But my part in your life is complete."

"I never told you to leave."

"You don't have to," she smiled. "You're strong enough now. You've found your own purpose. And I've found mine."

***Chapter Five: Rachel****

Years passed.

I never forgot her.

But life moved on.

Until my thirty-fifth birthday.

I met her again — not in flames or shadows, but in the form of a woman named **Rachel**.

She worked at a publishing firm I'd just joined. We hit it off immediately — the way we laughed, the way she raised her brow just like Liah used to. There was a fire in her smile, but a gentleness in her voice.

And one day, I asked her. Quietly.

"Are you…?"

She smiled, that same secret smile.

"I was. But I'm not anymore."

"You're… human?"

"I chose this. Free will. Mortality. You gave me something no one else ever did — purpose. I stayed with you to guide you. You gave me more than a mission. You gave me something to believe in."

I looked at her. Rachel. Liah. Whatever her name was — she was mine.

And we began again.

Not as devil and boy.

But as two people.

In love.

***Epilogue: A Friend Indeed***

Have you ever wondered what it feels like to have a true friend?

I used to wonder too.

Now I know:

A true friend doesn't always come in expected forms. Sometimes, they fall from the sky. Sometimes, they walk through fire. And sometimes…

They choose to become human, just to stay by your side.

Her name was Liah Natas.

But to me, she'll always be **Rachel**.

**THE END**