[WP] Lilith has been summoned by many in the past. Women who want babies, Men who want riches and fame. But never a child. Looking through the child’s memories, it’s clear to see why he summoned the mother of demons

Lilith stood over the small 9 year old boy, her nose up in the air, disgusted by this feeble creature that managed to call her name. He was hiding behind a raggedy stuffed bear that looked like it was found on the side of the road, dirty and managed. The room looked just like the bear, a mattress on the floor that offered no real comfort, a soiled blanket, and a bookshelf missing all of its books. Lilith, with her fiery red hair and matching gown, leaned over to the young boy and asked his name.

“A-ad-Adam,” he said.

Of course it was.

“Why have you called upon me, Adam?” she asked. Even saying that name made her feel pain.

She heard his stomach rumbling.

He held out a book he was hiding behind his back.

Angels and Devils: A Complete Guide it said in raised gold letters on a black background. A drawing of an angel intertwined with a devil also graced the cover.

“Yes, and?” she asked.

He didn’t say anything.

She knew it would take ages to get the full story from his mouth. Might as well get it from his mind. She took off her red silk glove to expose her long, bony white fingers and placed her index finger on his forehead.

“You’re a monster!” a woman yelled at a man. He was in his crib and these two adults, his parents or at least those taking care of him, were fighting. A bottle was thrown. Adam cried and no one listened.

“You’re mother is…” and a long slew of hateful words and insults spewed out of Adam’s father’s mouth. This time he was sitting in the backseat of a car as his dad drove Adam away from his house. One of the words that came out was “devil” and Adam latched onto it. It sounded nice in his head, he didn’t know what it meant.

A new memory. This time of his mother crying and shouting at Adam. Another long string of insults and curses, these words he knew, he heard some from some older kids and overheard it in a movie his mother once rented. She slapped him and the memory ended.

This memory was more current. He was in a library looking the books. Someone had left the gold letter-black cover book on a table. Adam was drawn by the beautiful cover art and the word Devil. He knew what it meant now, but he wanted to know more. His teacher called him and he ran to get in line. They boarded the bus. She asked him what books he checked out and he showed her. She was a little surprised, but always felt bad for the little boy. Her name was Ms. Finnigan and Adam was the reason for her very first call to child protective services.

Today’s memory: Adam reading the book and looking at the image of Lilith. They never get her figure correct, they always draw her nude or with some sort of snake motif. She was much more than that these days. But Adam kept reading the entry. He was fascinated by her. He wanted to meet her.

She took her finger off his forehead.

“Why did you call me?” she asked again. “I know all your secrets, but I want to hear it from your own mouth”

“…my mom calls me a monster all the time,” he said. “She yells at me a lot. So does my dad. They always call me names, they hate each other, they call each other names, they always fight. But they always call me a monster. And…well you are the mother of monsters…” he said.

“Oh…oh child,” she said. “You aren’t one of mine. My monsters are vile and angry. They hate and consume. They destroy and pillage. They are creatures that no one but myself could ever love…” He looked disappointed and closed the book. He sniffed and rubbed his eye to erase the well that appeared under his eye.

“You are a child who can go on to do great things. My children are destined to do terrible, awful things. It is just the way things are. You aren’t one of mine…” she said. She wished he was. She had longed for a human child of her own. She was robbed of motherhood. She was robbed of the joy of being a parent to a young child. She was robbed of her life. She was cursed to only give birth to monsters, monsters that could never bring joy to anyone. Monsters that could never make someone smile. Monsters that could never bring light into the world.

She was cursed.

He was just unlucky.

“I can offer you this,” she said as she touched the mangled and torn apart teddy bear. “This bear will protect you from those that betray you. This bear will haunt their dreams if they continue to make your life a nightmare. This bear will come to life and be your savior if they ever raise a hand to you again. This bear is yours and yours alone, no one will ever take it nor want it. Much like my children, this bear is now a monster, but he will protect you, as long as you need him to.”

The bear looked the same to Adam. But its smile was restored.

“I must leave now,” she said. “Adam, you are burdened with the pain of having monsters as parents, whereas I am cursed with the pain of only having monsters as children. I am sorry I couldn’t be of any more help. But you are strong Adam. I cannot save you from these people. I wish I could. I wish I could snap my fingers and they come into this room with love and support. But they have hate in their heart. They are like me, but their hate is temporary. The hate in my heart is my curse. They have chosen to hate. And I cannot fight hate with my own hate, as I never learned what love is. Maybe you can teach them. This is a painful burden and something they don’t deserve, not after what they’ve done to you. But you are strong Adam. You have not been consumed by their hate. I feel your heart and it is warm and strong.” Adam looked at his feet. He ran up to her and hugged her. He hugged her with all his strength. His tears stained her dress. She gently stroked his hair. And in a moment, she was gone.

Lilith arrived back in Hell, and looked at her tear stained gown. The heat and fires of hell quickly dried the dress, leaving two small reminders. She touched the spots where they once were and quietly wept.

For a brief moment, Adam had a mother, and Lilith had a son.