"You have a really big forehead!"

That's what Alas=Ramus said one fine day while she was sitting with Urushihara. Maou and Emi had brought her over to the Overlord Castle, and then left for work. They were supposed to leave her in Ashiya's care, but he had to leave for work too. So finally they called Suzuno over to look after her since Urushihara was useless in such matters.

One thing which none of them could understand was why Alas was so attached to Urushihara.

Suzuno was chopping vegetables for lunch while Urushihara and Alas were sitting in front of the computer screen. Alas had taken a break from the game and had been staring at his forehead for three full minutes during which she observed that it looked peculiarly huge. And that was exactly what she told him.

"What?" Urushihara turned his attention from the computer to the child. He raised an eyebrow to her comment which came out of the blue.

"I said, you have a really big forehead!" she said seriously as she motioned to his head indicating that it was large.

Suzuno turned around to make sure he didn't get angry and do something stupid that he'd later regret. She didn't need any cat fight between the Demon General and the daughter of Satan and the Hero. Even though he was a grown person, he still had the attitude of a cocky teenager. She wondered what changed him so drastically from being a feared person to a defensive one.

"Urushihara, be nice okay. She is a small child." Suzuno said as she turned to the vegetables and continued chopping.

Urushihara cocked his head to the left side and said, "Suzuno, do you not trust me? Do you think I'd hurt an innocent child like Alas here?" he motioned to the little girl beside him.

Suzuno stopped chopping but didn't turn around.

"Do you really need me to answer that? Because I think you know that answer all too well." she said in a taunting manner with a tinge of anger in her voice. Saying that was unlike herself, but the topic was a soft spot for her.

"Don't bring up the past." he said grimly.

"It was you who asked the question in the first place. Besides, I thought it deserved a befitting answer." she said as calm as always.

He muttered something under his breath angrily when he realized that Alas was tugging on his shirt, waiting for him to acknowledge her.

"Sorry kiddo." he smiled as he lifted her up and seated her in his lap. Even though he'd never admit it, she was the only living thing which he saw worth cuddling. But he never did that. "Yes my forehead is big," he admitted tapping his forehead and then whispered as though he was telling her a secret, "But that's because I have a big brain inside. And also, it helps me to do this." he brought his forehead close to hers and knocked on it gently.

Her eyes widened with awe and wonder. He chuckled internally. She was definitely something he adored.

"You have a big forehead too. Which means that you have a big brain like mine and you're also strong like me!" he whispered to her cheerfully. She giggled and hugged him tightly. He was shocked at first but soon hugged her back. She was soft… Just like a pillow.

At that moment he didn't care whether she was the Hero and Satan's daughter. For once, he felt that he was really being loved by someone. And he wasn't going to waste that moment.

Soon she pulled away and knocked her forehead against his and started giggling. He smiled and whispered, "Don't tell anyone about this. It's our secret, 'kay?" and he did something that he'd never imagined himself capable of doing. He stuck out his pinky finger. Alas grinned widely and touched his pinky finger with hers and whispered, "Secret!"

"Good girl." he smiled. He switched on a Disney movie and soon she got distracted. He held her in his lap comfortably and handed her a pair of headphones. They watched the movie together, but his focus was on her rather than the movie. He couldn't help but think about her innocence. She was always someone whom he could never ignore, however hard he tried.

"Lunch is ready." Suzuno said, oblivious to the secrets being shared behind her back. Alas took off her headphones and ran to the table and tapped it. "Food!" was all she said and Suzuno sat beside her to feed her.

Urushihara paused the movie and put away the headphones as he tried to get up but unfortunately fell hard on the floor.

"Dammit," he said as he struggled to get up. Suzuno quickly came to his side and pulled his arm onto her shoulder.

"Please ask for help next time." she said as she helped him get up.

"I want to sit at the table today. Besides its vacant so I doubt that there's any problem." he gritted through his teeth. He moved to the table and sat opposite to Alas=Ramus.

Suzuno noticed his weird behaviour but went back to feeding the child without uttering a word.

After food, Suzuno collected the dishes and started cleaning up while Urushihara and Alas continued with the movie.

Soon he realized that the child was asleep so he took off the headphones and laid her down on the floor, careful not to wake her up. She shuffled a bit, but then went back to sleeping soundly.

He switched off his computer and turned to Suzuno.

"Hey, need help with that?" he asked. Surprised, Suzuno turned around and looked at him weirdly.

"Are you sure?" she asked him with some concern. Him having anything to do with work seemed very strange to her.

"Yeah. I can work in a while ya know?" he said. He got up easily this time since he hadn't been sitting for long. He walked over to her side and started washing the dishes.

"You are not acting yourself today. Is something wrong?" she asked out of concern. She searched his eyes for an explanation. Was it something she said earlier that hurt him?

"Nothing is wrong." he smiled genuinely. She was sure that she hadn't seen him smile like that since a long time.

"Well then, what makes you so happy today?" she asked him curiously. Even she wasn't able to understand what was wrong with him.

"The child makes me happy. Happier than anyone has ever made me feel. She makes me feel what I never felt in the Heaven or with Satan." he said shrugging.

It came as a shock to Suzuno. She couldn't believe that he actually liked children… Then why…

"Why'd you destroy those families and children in Ente Isla then?" she asked. She always had a grudge for Satan and his Generals. They were the ones who started the war, due to which people became corrupt and that's why… She was forced to kill her own kind. Her fellow human beings. It was all their fault.

"Look, it's the past now. It was all a mistake, a hasty decision." he said running his hands through his hair. "All I can say now is that I regret it and there's nothing more I can do about it. Can you just think how much I suffered? The heaven was corrupt so I left, the demons wouldn't accept me as one of them. Nobody ever gave me even a little bit of love and affection without trying to use me as an advantage. I was just avenging it." his breaths were short and ragged but he took a deep breath and continued pointing at Alas=Ramus "She did not judge me and gave me love. Even though it might not be a great deal for her, she is like a blessing to me. If I had no heart, I'd have killed the daughter of the woman who killed me."

He took another deep breath and sighed.

"I-I said too much… Sorry I guess I shouldn't have burst out like that…" he said quietly.

It took Suzuno a moment for his words to sink in. She hadn't expected that from him. She thought of him as a demon, but now it was clear to her that they weren't all that different after all.

"It is alright now. Let's not talk about this again." she said as she continued with her chores.

"Yeah," he nodded and finished off the dishes.

.

Everyone had gathered at the apartment for dinner. Alas=Ramus had just woken up a while ago and was happy to see her mom and dad back. All of them sat at the table except one person. Urushihara was sitting in front of the computer and clicking away to glory. There was no place for him at the table so he just took his food and sat in front of the computer.

They were about to start eating at the table. He wasn't paying attention to everyone until he heard Alas=Ramus speak up.

"I want uncle to sit here!" she said loudly. He turned around. Everyone's eyes were on the child, but her eyes were on him and she was pointing beside her. He smiled and said, "Sorry kiddo, there's no place for me there. I don't belong there."

Nobody but Suzuno knew what he really meant.

Tears appeared in the child's eyes as she looked over to Maou and yelled, "Dada tell uncle to sit here!"

Maou couldn't help but give in to her request. "Urushihara, come sit beside Alas." he beckoned him to come over.

Urushihara couldn't believe it at first, but soon he was sitting beside the child. Everyone except Suzuno were still wondering what that child found so special in him.

Just after they finished eating, Alas climbed Urushihara's lap and knocked her head with his. He smiled at the gesture and acted as though he got hurt. He rubbed his forehead and whispered to her, "You're getting stronger than me."

She just giggled and ran off to her mother as he watched her happily.

Yes, she was really precious to him.

…

A/N: Hello, I hope you enjoyed the fic. Just a small one-shot depicting the relationship between Urushihara and Alas=Ramus. In addition to that, of course I always wanted to write about his forehead (I don't know why but I find it quite prominent). I am writing Alas=Ramus's character for the first time and so I'm set for constructive criticism. I might edit the chapter later. Adios for now!

-3mee.