I was talking to a friend over on another forum about Belial, and I realised he’s one of the few beings - there are maybe half a dozen or so others, mostly not classed as “demonic” - who I just like: I feel like, even if we don’t see eye-to-eye (so to speak) on everything, my life is the richer for having him in it.
He’s got the human touch for communicating and understanding us (most of the time anyway) without fawning or being obsequious; he’s droll, he seems to observe humans with a kind of open-minded amusement at our antics, and he’s been completely trustworthy in every area under his competance so far, and (amusingly) lies like a dog, completely shamelessly and often in an almost parodic manner, when asked to do anything that’s outside his field of interest.
But sometimes even then he’ll help out in oblique ways, and hook me up with a being who truly can help, or give me a hint as to what I should really be caring about at that point.
There are many demons who are awe-inspiring, fascinating, and immensely dignified - Belial’s one of the few I could imagine having a night out with, cinema then fish and chips, and arguing about who pays the cab fare home.
That’s my take on him, so far at least - I’m not sure if it’s helpful and I don’t mean to dimiss or invalidate anyone’s bad experiences or anything, but I like who I like and their reputation or label doesn’t factor into it. And I like Belial.