To have an accomplishment having taken many long-anticipated years to fulfill held a heat of preserved excitement. Green hues, beaming with delight not just from the artificial moonlight. How it would be to feel the moon again. From the grace of their dance to the jumps of their body swaying, bending, and twirling. Such an expression of passiveness and a gentle smile upon their pastel-tinted green face with glittering freckles dazzling their audience.
Not one harsh gaze was felt. They produced the final bow with hands graving down to their green satin slippered feet. A glance of their eyes reflecting the light. Parting of their lips fangs giving a sparkle before prancing back into the mirror to the comfort of their precarious appearance. Although, there has never been anything deemed fragile in hell for even the gentleness smile had proved to be nothing but a face for the ugliness.
Leaning against the wooden wall of the backstage make-up department listening to the silence of the audience and flicked breakers of the lights being switched back on echoing from down the halls with an electric hum. It was a moment that felt would start against if revealing themselves like this would prove prolific.
How it turned out last time is what made them rare.
Glancing, down at their ballet shoes worn over the interminable hours of restless iteration, trembling with pride and satisfaction coursing through their body. Smiling, contentedly when hearing the other performers thunderous footsteps of excitement coming forth. Shaking their head lightheartedly, expecting this just like all the other three times. Stepping away from the wall bending a knee awaiting to hear what their elfish troupe have to express. Everything felt great.
Surrounded in every direction unable to walk without someone holding onto their hand dragging them to the dressing department unable to have a chance to answer their galvanized questions as they were continuously pushed and pulled. They never scolded them for while they were only excited and never had someone diverse join their performance alone it would be unfeeling to not accept their generosity for allowing them to perform one last time. Plus, they were like hell-born children but without the abominable humor every day.
"Gem that was amazing!" A green fire-hair plaudit, half of their make-up smeared with specks of their fire flickering not doubt having stopped for this.
"You made the whole auditorium lose their voices!" Exclaimed a stitched mouthed being subsequently silenced when the sides of their stitches popped loose creating beads of red causing giggles from their siblings.
Ever since coming to hell in former times their once name used when alive had become broken. Having thought of creating a new name never crossed their mind until reluctantly enjoying a bar amongst hell's pentagram city out of curiosity. Flashing lights with careless dancing kitchen-sink demons. Their name made them smile just from how courtly they spoke, ranting about the roundabout society with no appreciation that somewhere along with the conversation when listening, Gem was created.
A gentle smile never left their lips even when their sharp teeth showed through it was never an intention to cause dismay. Like second nature, they reached a clawed hand up to their outer fangs delicately rubbing the pad of their thumb and knuckle of their pointer finger watching the troupe bicker chatter about. There was never a time of tedium during the durations off-stage, a passing thought to when the times when dancing never had to involve the judgment of life to death.
Guess some things never change.
There was a sudden screech of panic from one of the stitch mouths turning all heads to the red light door that led to the front audience. A roll of eyes knowing outright the indelibly there would be partizans to be coming for a backstage look. It never seemed to change the thought of how a maladroit realm could have such appreciation for the decade waited for performance when some can do their masque. Time to disappoint.
In the left-hand corner of the dressing department leaning amongst the chipped wooden walls with immutable words old and new. A rustic wooden mirror tilting slightly back from its suspended loosely bolted legs. It was an unspoken rule of tell of where the mirror went but many had their imaginations.
In a moment of the backstage door opening to the gentle chime of glass shards opening as home awaited on the other side would be lucky to be granted so much as even for the most dreadful denizen diminished at no sign of the mysterious glass demon.
The adrenaline of almost being caught left their body. When feeling the comforting, coldness of the stone floor. Laughter almost ensued but suppressed when the mirrors began to hum. It felt like freedom to be outside even if it was just to be in another building.
Making a surmised hum, Gem excited the darkroom taking a glance down at the mirrors below making her way towards the stairs descending behind the back of their family opus before entering the northern chapel room into a Greek bathhouse. A pool of charmed resin waving amongst the silver fey made ripples.
A relaxed smile graced Gem slipping off her attire. Stepping down the smothered stairs of the resin pool briefly taking a dive allowing all minor cracks to be sealed before rising back for air. Even in this sinful world demons have basic needs. Tracing resin around her knuckles to the points of her claws. Her tinted body creates a reflection of green waves along the stone walls.
In all the times of purposely hiding, Gem would think nothing of it but to be encased in a resin model shaped either of a diamond or a glass slipper. Extending her body out, not much had been changed except the length of her arms and legs, never thinking that hell would have a concern for the tallest would be the most beautiful.
Leaning back allowing her hair to be consumed, creating an illuminant glow of ripples to reflect on the porcelain pillars like a shining diamond. Blinking up at the groin-vaulted ceiling floating reposefully on her back. It was a peaceful bath even if it was just by themselves.
Rustling in silk blankets shining under the haze of filtered light from decorative glass panels rustling in the comfort of light grey sheets feeling like velvet to the touch. Balmily wallpaper of contrasts silver, green, and purple hyacinth flowers amongst a mural of an oasis home parted adjacent to a bay city. A golden bridge connecting across the sea to the land with traveling cars adventuring to the popularized city.
What a wonderful time it was under the rising sun with morning fog that chilled the air and riding in little cable cars that climbed halfway up to the stars. It felt like a luxury even if it at times felt imaginary towards their rectitude. Death was far from being on their mind but incumbency of other branches' voracity was something to have been learned at the last moment.
Even after all that hard work to bring back everyone was for nothing but another's a pleasure.
Gesturing a hand up as though reaching for the blank ceiling as shards from the window panes oblique like wind chimes constructing just above Gem's fingertips. A ripple across the shards fading revealing the lengthy woman's skin of a pearl gray, the mouth of a smile of sharp teeth with unfilled eyes hallowed back with a raspberry dress colored and feathered bonnet with a rose.
"My dear," spoke the woman, her voice optimistic recognizing the gleam of silver anywhere from the mirror of her vanity table "I was afraid you might have gotten caught with how brutish of those patrons coming backstage."
Gem smiled sheepishly never seeing the point of hiding away her serenity from her idol "Oh, I'm sure all they saw was nothing but a wisp of my hair. Did you enjoy the performance?" The sclera of her eyes turned yellow when glancing up at the glass panes for a moment thinking have seen movement but could have also been from the long centuries of being alone.
"It must have been hard to finally reveal yourself, after all, that time" the women spoke, gracing a hand across the vanity than on a circular hand mirror. "It was marvelous as you had so vaguely enticed. I remember when you had been found chipped and cracking. Naturally, I would have done nothing but that reflection in your eyes said something. I shall not say anything with regret. Repairing you in to how you are now. My glass rose."
Gratitude was reflected in the glass-cut eyes of Gem as a warm feeling of approval was felt throughout her body despite no longer having much of a normal sensorium. "My goal would not have worked without you, Rosie" Gem replied, relaxing her smile bringing the shards over the edge of the queen-sized bed laying on her side with some pieces of hair falling down her neck.
"Hope to have another calligraphy lesson with you Rosie," Gem said "Your lessons are always something I could live up to. Compared to my old teachers who always made it seem like some math lesson."
Rosie laughed giving a curt nod her head turning to what was memorized as the entrance door of the emporium "Afraid our conversation will have to wait another time. I'll be sure to send a gift when I find the time and be on the qui vive my glass rose."
There had been moments where Gem thought that there would be another demon coming through the mirrors to discover this sanctuary they had worked hard to keep. Only one other time had another come through but that was for when it was gifted.
Gem sighed as the shards retired back to the glass panes. It had been a decade since having gone into hiding once more. It had become easy how much time had passed becoming lost to sleeping or simply dancing entirely. Though the pride of revealing themselves still lasted, it had only been two hours since the performance, meaning the denizens of hell who were obsessed with talent were searching.
The hums of the mirrors below allowed for the glass demon to stele further into their bed, eyes closing for rest just as the arms of sleep came to cradle the restless consciousness a writhing noise from outside could be heard as did the hums of the mirrors stop. A silence falling in the tranquility of a peaceful home. It was like leather sliding against a smooth surface.
"Hopefully, they hadn't left the door open" Gem sighed, running a hand to brush away the parted fringe from their tired eyes yet finding no attempt to move from the warmth of their bed. Turning to lay on their stomach having only the briefest of peace before their bedroom door thrust open with inpatient force.
Many times have those doors been pushed open but had never thought to maybe just make the door a two-way mirror for if there was ever to be an unprecedented guest.
"I do sayyy... that was by far the best performance I have seen you do yet!"
An aggravated groan from their peace being disrupted caused the glass demon to get up from their bed giving a tired smile "Better hope you remembered to close the door Pentious" Gem yawned, having no interest in simply summoning a mirror to take her serpentine friend outside.