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One of the things you really liked to do was draw. You found it therapeutic, and you liked giving your imagination a chance to run wild. Nothing really stopped you from pulling out a pad and pencil anywhere, but you preferred places that were quiet so you could focus. Normally that excluded the main lobby of the hotel, since everyone seemed to congregate there, but today was a lucky day for you. Everyone was either out or wrapped up in their own business, so it left the hotel rather quiet.
You settled down on the couch, curling up a bit on the end of it with your pad on your knees, open to the next clean page as you started sketching randomly. You didn’t have any ideas in mind at first, but eventually an idea started to take form. You remembered pretty vividly an interesting looking snake you had seen on your walk around the back gardens yesterday, so you started trying to sketch it from memory. It took a lot of concentration, so you were completely absorbed in your sketching, the quiet scritch -ing of the pencil on the paper making a lovely background noise you could lose yourself in.
“Y/N?”
You jumped a bit, eyes darting up at the sound of Lucifer’s voice.
The short king was standing a little ways in front of you, he had a friendly smile on his face. The two of you had bumped into each other a lot more since the whole pastry incident, and like the others you had grown slightly more relaxed around him. Slightly. Lucifer was the king of Hell, and being that he was, it still made him just a touch intimidating to be around… Even if he was a dorky goofball most of the time.
“O-oh, hi Lucifer.” You greeted, letting out a soft breath as you relaxed.
He chuckled. “Sorry, didn’t mean to frighten you.” His eyes flicked down to the pad in your hands. “I didn’t realize you drew.”
You smiled a bit, nodding your head bashfully. “A little bit…” You said modestly, turning to watch as he sat down next to you. Now you actually noticed the sketchpad tucked under his arm, pencil slid into the spiral binding at the top.
He held out a hand. “Can I see?”
You hesitated. You were a bit, well, shy, when it came to your artwork. Most artists probably felt the same way about their art, being self-conscious about it. You just really didn’t like showing people your work… But, part of you felt like you could trust Lucifer. Besides, you couldn’t really deny a request from the king of Hell, could you?
“Sure.” You nodded, then handed the pad over to him. To his credit, he was gentle with your pad, but you still felt like your stomach was in knots as he started to flip through it.
Lucifer didn’t know what to expect when he started flipping through your drawings, but he was immediately taken aback at them. They were actually really good! You definitely focused on detail a lot on some, but others seemed more abstract. There were pictures of flowers and animals from the garden outback, half-formed sketches of the comedic cast that lived at the hotel, landscapes from around Hell, and a bunch of others.
He looked up at you and smiled, immediately chuckling a bit at your nervous face. “These are really good! You’ve got talent.” He complimented, offering the pad back.
You hugged it to your chest a bit, ducking your head as your cheeks flushed. “They’re okay… They could use a lot more work, I think.” Every artist was their own worst critic, and you certainly weren’t an exception to that.
Lucifer shook his head. “I think they’re good the way they are.” He said sincerely, ducking his head a bit so he could catch your eyes. “I mean it.”
After a small while, you finally managed to meet his eyes, except this time you were smiling a bit more genuinely. “Thank you.”
Lucifer sat back, seeming pleased with how you seemed to be relaxing again, at least a little bit. You were such a shy thing… Kind of adorable, although he would keep that comment under his hat.
“So… Mind if I join you?” He gestured to the couch.
You laughed lightly. “Sure. I mean, you already sat down. It would be rude to ask you to move.”
Lucifer adopted a similar position to you, back pressed against the armrest and knees propped up to use as a makeshift easel to balance the sketchpad on. He actually laughed at your comment.
“Ooh~ We’re getting a bit sassy now, aren’t we?” He grinned over his knees at you, though when you blushed a bit he shook his head. “Don’t go getting all bashful now. I like it.” He reassured, though that made you blush even worse honestly.
“Well, don’t worry. I’m sure I’ll be sassy enough in no time.” You muttered with a light smile, ducking your head down to continue drawing.
The two of you sketched in silence for a few minutes, and honestly it was a surprisingly comfortable silence. The scratching of your pencils on paper made a nice background noise to focus on in the back of your head.
But after a while, Lucifer started striking up conversation with you. At first, it took some coaxing from him to get you to talk, but you started opening up after a little bit. Lucifer asked you about your drawings, where you got your inspirations from, what kind of stuff you drew or were interested in, etc. It wasn’t long before you both were chatting back and forth like casual friends, and by the time dinner started rolling around, you felt a lot more relaxed around the king. Talking to him like this, casually, no formalities or anything, it felt… Normal. Not to mention he seemed generally interested in what you had to say.
“Dad? Are you- Oh!”
Both you and Lucifer looked up from your pads at once, towards the stairs where Charlie’s voice had come from. She was on the stairs, looking at you both with a very surprised look on her face that quickly morphed into a bit of an overly happy one.
“Hey Char-char!” Lucifer greeted.
“Hi Charlie.” You smiled, ducking your head a little bit.
“Sorry… I didn’t mean to interrupt you two.” She grinned, looking back and forth between the two of you. “I just came to let you know that dinner is almost ready.”
Both of you nodded.
“Thanks Charlie.” He smiled at her. “We’ll be there soon.” He cast a side look at you, and you nodded as well.
“Alright! Cool, take your time! There’s no rush.” She smiled, gesturing at the two of you before she headed off to the dining room. “See you both soon!” She seemed just a smidge awkward, but you were kind of happy that she didn’t grow over-happy and enthusiastic. It looked like she wanted to… It must be that self-lesson she gave herself on boundaries not so long ago.
Lucifer watched her leave before he turned back to you, flipping the pad shut and tucking the pencil away, before he snapped them away. Likely back to his room.
“Well, let’s not keep her waiting.” He chuckled.
“Yeah… Uh, Lucifer?”
He turned his head as he stepped off the couch.
You had actually enjoyed this a lot. You didn’t really sketch with other people around, but Lucifer’s presence was surprisingly calming, not to mention the talking was nice as well. It actually helped you focus, not to mention it gave you a few ideas… Though you weren’t about to mention to anyone that you had been drawing Lucifer for the past hour or so.
“Um… I normally do this out back, in the gardens out back. It’s quieter there for the most part… If you wanted to do something like this again…” You trailed off.
His smile brightened, if that were even possible, and he nodded. “I’d actually like that. This was kind of fun. Nice.”
You nodded. “It was.” You agreed with a soft smile. “I enjoyed it.”
“Me too.” He smiled sincerely before he perked up. “So, are you coming? To dinner?”
You chuckled. “I’ll catch up. I’ve got a few finishing touches I want to put on this.” You gestured vaguely to the pad.
“Right! I get that. So, I’ll uh, see you in a little bit then.” He waved at you a bit as he headed off after Charlie.
You smiled a little more as you watched him head off, then dipped your head back down to the drawing you had done of him while you had been talking. It was probably some of your better work, honestly, then again you had the subject of your drawing across from you for most of the process.
You could get used to this. Although, something was starting to itch at the back of your head that things were shaping up just a little bit different than you might have thought.
You twisted and turned in your bed until you thought for sure that you had tried every position imaginable, but sleep was just not coming to you. Well, not after a nightmare like that. To be fair, it was the same one that had been plaguing you for years, so you already knew you likely wouldn’t be sleeping with that fresh terror in your head. Still, points to you for trying, right?
You sighed, pulling the covers off your head before you threw them off entirely, shoving your feet into some slippers and a light sweatshirt on.
Maybe some tea would help.
You padded lightly down the halls, careful not to make much noise in respect to anyone else that was around, and headed to the kitchen to put the kettle on for some tea. At least, that was your plan, until you quite literally bumped into someone on your way down.
You were still understandably jumpy from the recent nightmare, so the fact that you bumped into someone in the near dark, having not heard them and not seen them with how unfocused you were, well, it gave you a small heart attack. You sucked in a breath and nearly choked on it and your tongue as you swallowed a scream, jumping, which would have sent you spilling down the stairs in a heap if the person didn’t reach out and snatch you, tugging you tight to them. Once you registered being grabbed, you thrashed a bit in a panic.
“Y/N? Hey, calm down! It’s me.” Lucifer frowned a bit out of concern, releasing you as you slowly registered him.
“Lucifer?” You let out a shaky breath. “Fuck… Sorry…”
“Hey, you’ve got nothing to be sorry about.” He cocked his head. “Are you okay?”
You nodded lightly. “Yeah, I… Well, I had a bit of a… Nightmare.” You admitted, hugging yourself as it that would provide you comfort. It did, a little bit.
Lucifer’s expression turned sympathetic. “Ah, well, that uh, sucks.” He trailed off awkwardly.
Despite yourself, you laughed a little bit. “Yeah, it does.” You smiled a little. “What are you doing up?”
“Oh me?” He scratched the back of his head with a slightly awkward look. “I uh, I can’t sleep. Figured coming down for a drink or something might help. You?”
“Tea.” You shrugged. “Do you want to join me…?” You offered.
“Yeah, sure.” He nodded, gesturing for you to go ahead.
You smiled a little as you led the pair of you down the stairs, managing to find your way reasonably well in the darkness to the kitchen. Both of you hissed a bit when you flicked on the lights, but after you adjusted you headed over to the stove.
“Do you like tea or coffee, and how do you take it?”
“Oh, hot cocoa? With milk, and maybe a few marshmallows…” He added, standing a bit awkwardly to the side as you set everything up to boil. It wouldn’t take very long.
You chuckled. “You sound like Charlie.” You mused.
Lucifer grinned. “Well, like daddy, like daughter.” He chuckled.
You nodded. “In more ways than one.” You acknowledged, handing him his cup of cocoa.
The two of you fell into idle chatter, just some small talk that edged towards awkward at some points, and made your way over to the couches around the lobby. With a pretty flashy snap, Lucifer lit up the fireplace, and both of you settled into a relaxed silence on the couch as you sipped at your drinks and enjoyed the silence. For a little while.
“So…” He started, turning to face you a bit. “What was the, uh, nightmare about? From earlier… If you want to talk about it! No pressure or anything!”
You laughed softly despite yourself. You couldn’t really help it. He normally came off as pretty confident, so watching him break out in these moments of panicked awkwardness (when he picked up on the fact he was being awkward) really were endearing.
“Well…” You looked down. “It’s, uh, well it’s kind of hard to talk about… Let’s just say, I lost someone I was close to down here. And sometimes, the memory pops up…”
“Oh, I, uh… I’m sorry.” He looked like he wanted to disappear into the couch cushions a bit with how hard he cringed. “Were they, like, a boyfriend or girlfriend, or something?”
You shook your head. “She was more like a mother figure… She took care of me down here. It was nice, while it lasted, having someone looking out for me…” You sighed.
Lucifer grimaced. This was… Really bad. Like, he honestly didn’t mean to make you depressed! He thought he could maybe help, but this just started making everything more awkward. Damn it, he really wasn’t good with stuff like this.
He blinked when he heard you chuckle at him.
“Don’t look at me like that.” You settled back with a light smile. “Really, I know I seem sad, but I just try to remember the good memories I had with her. It’s better to have some good memories to hang onto than none at all, right?”
He nodded, and his mind drifted a bit with what you said. That was… Really wise of you, actually. It kind of reminded him of him and Lilith. They had so many good memories together, even with what happened after. Then again, thinking back on those good memories and how much he missed his wife tended to send him spiraling, so maybe- No, stop. Not now…
“Lucifer?”
He shook his head and turned to you.
“What?”
You smiled. “I asked if you were alright…? You were kind of just looking at the wall…”
“Oh, yeah, I’m fine!” He clarified, though he seemed to regard you with a new look. “You know, it’s actually been really nice getting to know you. You’re…” He looked just a bit awkward now, but his smile was still sincere. “You’re a lot different from the other sinners I’ve met.”
You tried to ignore the faint dusting on your cheeks.
“Not all of us are terrible…” You smiled. “Some of us are… Well, some of us are here because we had to make a hard choice, others on a fluke… Sometimes we’re just not good enough.”
“Which are you?” Lucifer cocked his head.
You shrugged. “Dunno. But either way, I don’t mind being down here. I’ve come to like it.”
Lucifer went quiet for a moment. “Well, I’m glad you ended up down here.” He smiled again.
“I am too, Lucifer.” You smiled back, his encouraging your own.
Both of you fell into swathes of silence with intermittent conversation, just small talk. You felt much calmer than you had before, much calmer, even to the point where you were starting to get tired again. Normally that didn’t happen. After most nightmares, you often stayed up the rest of the night, the light of day chasing away the remnants of the dreams. Now, you were actually resisting the urge to yawn.
You slowly rolled your shoulders, yawning off to the side as you stretched.
Lucifer chuckled, though his eyes looked a bit droopy as well. “Feeling tired again?”
“Yeah…” You shook your head as another yawn shook you. “Mmm… I should probably head to bed…” You lifted your head to look at him. “We both should try to get some sleep before morning.”
Lucifer nodded, and watching you yawn honestly made him feel like yawning too. “Yeah, probably.” He agreed, joining you as you slowly slid from the comfy couch and stood, plodding towards the stairs.
You headed up side by side, splitting off from each other with muffled ‘good night’s as you took your separate paths towards your rooms. As soon as your feet hit the edge of the mattress, you flopped onto bed like a fish and were pretty much out cold as soon as your head hit the sheets.
Like you had hoped, instead of nightmares, your mind was filled with pleasant thoughts and memories… Some of them rather unnervingly focused on a certain short King.
But you could unpack those implications later, when you were awake. For now, you just wanted to sleep a little bit.
If there was one thing that anyone could tell you about Lucifer, it was that he had a not so little obsession when it came to ducks. While you and Lucifer had been drawing one lazy afternoon, you had commented on one of the drawings he had shown you, a ducky toy of some kind with a rather adorable outfit, and you had both spent the rest of the afternoon talking about his ideas involving ducks. His little workshop came up, eventually, and after a little bit of begging on your part, though you were sure it was mainly for show for him, he invited you up to see his workshop/office.
That was what you were up to now, actually, as you skittered your way along the halls and up to his tower. Thankfully he had the space all to himself, so as soon as you got to his wing, you relaxed as you slowed to a walk instead of a nervous dash. You were getting a bit better being around people, but some of the new residents still took some getting used to, so you intended on avoiding them until they became a bit, well, less intimidating.
You stopped just shy of Lucifer’s door, biting your lip a bit as you really contemplated knocking on the door. You had texted Lucifer earlier, and he said he’d be in his office all day, so you knew he was in there… And he had invited you over in a casual sense the other day… But you really needed to get over your nerves about this. Maybe it was going into someone’s private room, which you tended to avoid (Angel was actually the only exception, since as much as he blustered, he was actually a really big softie who honestly acted like the hotel’s big brother), or maybe it was something more confusing going on with you, but you needed to tackle this head on.
You took a calming breath and knocked on Lucifer’s door, taking a step back as you waited. There was a bit of a commotion behind the door, and it sounded like Lucifer tripped over something and nearly faceplanted, before he hurried over and yanked open the door.
He was dressed down much more than what you usually saw of him. He wasn’t wearing his suit jacket or hat, instead seeming to have decided on just his dress shirt and vest, sleeves rolled up to show off a bit of his arms.
Now listen. You knew that Lucifer was attractive; he was a fallen angel, quite literally one of if not the most handsome creature in all of creation. You were an (amateur) artist, and you could certainly appreciate beauty when you saw it. Back when you had both spent the night in the lobby, your sleep deprived and fear-ridden mind really didn’t let you register that was probably the most dressed down and normal that you had seen him. But like this… This had a rather interesting effect on your heart as it picked up beating in your chest.
“Y/N?”
You shook your head and blinked, then immediately looked a bit sheepish. “Sorry. I, uh, lost my train of thought there.”
Lucifer chuckled. “Oh don’t worry! That happens all the time to me.” He smiled, cocking his head at you. “What can I help you with?”
You cleared your throat. “You, uhm, invited me over, remember?”
“I did?” He blinked, looking genuinely confused for a moment before he remembered. “Ah, I did! Right, come in!” He stood off to the side a bit, beckoning you inside. “Welcome to my humble abode!”
His excitement did actually calm your nerves a bit, making you giggle as you stepped through the door, and he let it drift shut behind you both as he stepped up next to you. At first glance, his room was a lot different than some of the other rooms. It was more decorated to fit royalty - Huge bed, lots of space, big windows in front of where his desk was, an ensuite bathroom (which you could tell was larger than average just by glancing through the cracked open door), etc. It made sense given his position in Hellish hierarchy. But what really made it stand out was the ducks. There were ducks everywhere . They were on shelves, littered his desk, piled in a few random corners of the room, on his nightstand, and those were only the ones you could see. They varied from generic rubber ducks, to toys, and some that were designed to look a bit classy, since they were dressed in rather adorable little outfits and accessories. There was even a larger stuffed one sitting at the head of the bed.
“Oh my gosh…” You gushed as he led you over towards where he displayed some of the ducks he designed, the ones in little outfits. “These are so cute!”
“I know, right!” He beamed, and any minor nerves he might have had about showing you his collection completely vanishing as he launched into excited chatter about his ducks.
You stayed for a good portion of the afternoon, actually, just listening to him go on and on about his ducks, watching as he showed you some of his favorites and even formally introduced you to some of them (one of them was apparently a rubber duck named ‘Sir Duckington’ that accompanied him in the bath, and had a little navy hat on it’s head). The entire time he was just so excited and animated, not to mention so happy, and you really loved how he fell into something he loved so completely.
Some people might view ‘childishness’ like this as an unattractive trait. You didn’t. Someone who could look at the world with a child-like sense of wonder and imagination as an adult was someone to cherish. Growing up tended to make people jaded and stiff, and they forget how to dream and imagine things unless they clutched tightly to those things…
Lucifer was a dreamer, with a very creative nature and active imagination, and you only loved him more for it… Platonically! Platonic love! Like, in a friend!
Lucifer cocked his head after a longer moment of silence from you. “Why are you looking at me like that? Do I have something on my face or something?”
You giggled. “No, you don’t.” You smiled, resting your chin on your knees from where you were sitting on the edge of his bed. “I just… It’s nice, seeing you so into this. Your ducks.”
Lucifer blinked, a light tinge of pink across his cheeks as he scratched the back of his head. “Really?” He chuckled nervously. “Most people, eh, find it a biiiit weird.”
You shook your head with a smile. “True, this may not be to everyone’s tastes, but there’s nothing wrong with being passionate about something.”
Lucifer had another look on his face, one that you really couldn’t make out still, but he had had it on before. Most of the time, it was when you said something that surprised him or caught him off guard, almost like he was looking at you in a new light…
“I, uh, I have something for you.” He coughed, looking just a smidge nervous as he turned and headed towards his desk.
“For me?” You blinked.
“Y-yeah! I mean, you don’t have to take it if you don’t want it, I just, um, here.” He stumbled over himself as he grabbed something off the desk, then returned to you and held his gift towards you in cupped hands.
In his hands was a small duck, and this one was dressed in a similar fashion to what you tended to wear, complete with your own little demonic traits that you had gotten when you fell. You took it with gentle hands, lightly running your fingers over its head almost reverently.
“You… You made this for me?”
He nodded, and that pink was back on his cheeks. “Do you like it?”
You smiled. “I love it.” You clutched the little duck closer to your chest. “How long did this take you?”
“Eh, a little while. No big deal though.” He brushed it off, though you could tell that you loving your little present really shot his mood up.
“Well it may not be a big deal to you, but it is to me. She’s going on a shelf in my room, place of honor, in fact.” You announced.
Lucifer seemed very taken aback, but touched and happy all the same. That moment was slightly interrupted by his phone buzzing in his pocket. He dug it out, confused at first, but then his face went slightly panicked.
“Oh golly, is that the time?!” He gave you an apologetic look as he snagged his suit jacket and hat, then looked around for his cane. “Y/N, I’m sorry, but I gotta go! I have a meeting with Charlie about something she wants to do with the hotel and I-”
“Lucifer.” You laughed a little. “It’s alright. I understand. Go. I’ll see myself out.”
He gave you an apologetic smile. “Thanks.” He snapped his fingers and a portal appeared. “I’ll see you later!” He called out as he dipped through the portal and vanished.
You were quiet for a moment, lightly squeezing your new ducky friend in your hands before you slid off the bed and left Lucifer’s room. Now that you were alone, and the realization had fully hit you that Lucifer had gone out of his way to make you a custom duck… Well, you couldn’t ignore how your heart was hammering in your chest at the sentiment behind it.
“Fuck.” You muttered, biting your lip as you tried to rationalize away the welling thoughts and meanings behind what your brain was starting to conjure up. You were… Not ready for that conversation with yourself. Not at all.
It was no secret that you didn’t tend to have the ferocity and confidence that most demons had down here. When compared to the others, naturally you came across as a bit mousy, someone who faded into the background and had a bit of trouble when it came to most social interactions. You had gotten so much better thanks to staying at the Hotel. Charlie of course was always super encouraging, and being around Angel definitely helped you grow a spine, but you really were improving. You joined conversations more, were a bit more forthcoming with your opinions, and even grew comfortable telling a few jokes… But, that was with the main cast you had come to know. New residents were a completely different thing.
To be perfectly fair to them, you tried to adopt the same optimistic view of them that Charlie had, giving them the benefit of the doubt. For the most part, you were able to avoid the more intimidating ones and skirt by interactions with the more ‘normal’ ones.
For the most part.
For some reason or another, one of the sinners that had just joined the hotel seemed to take an interest in you, and not a welcome one. He was tall, muscled, and just reeked of sleaze. He was some sort of lizard by appearance, and every time you were in the same room with him his eyes followed you. If you were close enough, he sometimes tried to corner you, but thankfully either Angel inserted himself in the situation (flirting, though you knew by the winks he shot you that he was doing this to help you out, which you were super grateful for) or you were able to skitter away.
Today though, you weren’t so lucky. To be fair, you were a bit careless since your nose was buried in your phone and you weren’t paying attention, so the lizard sinner had a chance to sneak up on you.
“There you are, pretty girl.”
You felt your heart seize up in your chest, and slowly raised your eyes to look at the taller demon. He was leaning against the wall, trying to pull off looking nonchalant, though he was clearly leering at you. Although you also noticed that he had you wedged between the couch and the corner of the room, so the only way you were getting away from him was either through him or over the couch… And you had a feeling he’d use it as an excuse to grab you if you tried.
“Been looking for ya all over.” He tried his attempt at purring, which just made you visibly cringe. “I know we kinda got interrupted by the slutty spider last time, but we can pick up where we left off.”
“We didn’t leave off anywhere.” You swallowed. “Look, whatever it is you want from me, I’m not interested.”
“Aw, come on, now, don’t be like that.” He grinned lazily, leaning further down and closer to you.
“I told you I’m not interested. Leave me alone.”
You watched as his eye twitched, and he leaned down with slightly bared teeth. “Did I fucking ask if you were interested-”
“Excuse me there.”
Both of you turned, and where you had a look of relief on your face, your harasser just blinked before growling.
Lucifer stood there, and he had a slightly forced polite look on his face, his eyes darting between the other sinner and you, though his main focus was on the lizard. “I believe this lovely young woman told you to leave her alone-”
“Fuck off, little man, this doesn’t concern you.” He snarled, turning away from him and back to you.
You just gave a wide eyed look towards Lucifer, watching as the smile dropped and he looked completely dumbfounded for a moment before he looked angry.
You see, most people didn’t really recognize Lucifer, given how removed from the public eye he was for so long, and most people who did recognize him didn’t tend to treat him seriously. You could, in theory, understand that… But the difference between you and other people was that you were very aware of how dangerous Lucifer could be. He was the first demon, the first fallen angel, and he had enough strength alone to likely crush anyone he wanted, and that was leaving out his magic. He could pretty much do anything that struck his mind.
“You… Look, just leave me alone, and maybe-” You started, though you yelped as the guy made a lunge for you, which you just narrowly ducked under.
“Shut the-”
Lucifer had to have teleported with how quickly he appeared between the both of you, shielding you protectively as he faced off against your harasser. He had dropped the nice guy act, and he had shifted into his fully fallen form. All three pairs of wings erupted out of his back, splayed wide and flapping in a fury, his horns branched out, a ball of red hot hellfire hovering between them. You couldn’t see it since his back was to you, but his eyes were burning red with anger.
Finally, the sinner seemed to realize that he might have fucked up.
Lucifer grabbed him by the shirt and hauled him up, to where his feet weren’t touching the ground, bringing him painfully close to him. “I tried to be nice.” He growled. “But I’m tired of sinners like you showing no respect. Of forgetting your place.” He tightened his grip as he started to struggle, but he wasn’t letting go. “If you ever go near her again, I swear that I’ll-”
“Dad? What are you doing?!”
Lucifer stiffened, turning slightly to glance at Charlie, who looked mortified, and Alastor, who looked annoyingly interested in the development. Oh shit. This, well, this didn’t exactly look good for his daughter’s efforts to redeem sinners, not with him threatening one like this. Even if he deserved it. He could feel the heat of his anger begin to dip, but before he lost it completely, he slammed the guy into the ground, nearly hard enough to crack the floor, but still with enough force to rattle him.
He dropped back down to the floor, letting his demon features fade as he looked at Charlie with an apologetic look as the pair of them approached. Charlie looked upset and by golly did that twist his heart.
“Dad, why did you do that?”
“I’m sorry, Charlie.” He frowned. “I… He was harassing Y/N! I had to do something.”
“He was doing what?” Charlie’s look of disappointment was thankfully diverted to the sinner, who was struggling to scoot off now that he had been outed.
“Yes. And this isn’t the first time.”
“Filth.” Alastor’s smile strained, black shadowy tendrils lashing the sinner to the floor as static blared. “That is no way to treat a lady.”
Charlie and Alastor had a brief back and forth over what to do with him, Charlie arguing that they should either give him another chance or kick him out, while Alastor suggested adding his soul to his microphone (which meant that for once, Lucifer and Alastor were in agreement about something), but Lucifer wasn’t paying any attention to them for the moment.
He looked back at where you had been standing, blinking when he realized that you were completely gone. He looked concerned. “Hey, did either of you see where Y/N went?”
Alastor turned his head, gesturing up towards the stairs. “I believe she retreated to the safety of her room.”
Charlie also looked up. “You should go and talk to her, make sure she’s okay.”
“Yeah, that’s what I was thinking.” Lucifer started upstairs, but paused and looked back. “Are you mad at me?” He asked quietly.
Charlie shook her head. “I can’t be, not for trying to stick up for her. Just… Maybe a little less hellfire next time?” She suggested with an uneasy smile.
Lucifer actually grinned. “Sure thing, though hopefully there isn’t a next time.”
Lucifer took off upstairs, racing along the halls as he headed to your room, almost plowing into it with how fast he was running. Thankfully he pulled up just short, and immediately knocked on the door a few times.
“Y/N? It’s me! Are you in there?” He asked, practically bouncing out of nerves as he waited for you to respond.
It took you a minute, but eventually you called out. “Come in.”
Lucifer yanked the door open and headed inside, pulling it shut behind him so you two were alone. You were sat on the edge of your bed, knees to your chest, and head down, looking down at the floor.
Lucifer slowly stepped closer, fidgeting a bit as he neared you.
“Are you, ah… Alright?” He asked, hesitatingly.
You finally tilted your head a bit to look at him, nodding ever so slightly. “Yeah.”
Lucifer frowned, and sat next to you, though he kept a bit of distance between you. He could understand being rattled after something like that, but he didn’t like how you weren’t looking at him. He had the sudden anxiety-ridden thought that maybe he had scared you when he went full demon downstairs, and that really twisted his insides.
“Are you… Did I scare you…? Because if I did, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.” He rambled a bit, though he stopped a bit when your head snapped up and looked at him with wide eyes and an exasperated look.
“Lucifer.” You shook your head. “I’m not afraid of you! How could I be? I just… I’m not used to people sticking up for me like that…” You finished softly. “I was scared, but not of you.”
Lucifer relaxed at your reassurance, and gently reached over to lay a hand on your shoulder, a soft look on his face. “Well, I couldn’t just stand by and watch him come on to you like that.” He lightly squeezed your shoulder. “I’m sorry I wasn’t faster. He shouldn’t have even been able to corner you like that.”
You chuckled lightly. “Don’t apologize. You were there when I needed you there, that’s what matters.” You looked down again, and Lucifer could tell that even though you meant what you said, you were still rattled about the whole thing.
He frowned again, eyes joining yours on the floor as he racked his brain for a way to cheer you up and distract you. A metaphorical light bulb went off in his head as he had a thought, looking at you with a grin.
“You know…” He started, watching as your head lifted. “Charlie always said I gave the best hugs. Always made her feel better when she was younger, and even now…” He opened an arm, encouraging and beckoning.
You hesitated, but just for a moment, before you shifted to close the distance and tuck your head against his shoulder. Lucifer allowed that, for the moment, his arm curling more around your shoulders before he carefully pulled you into a full hug. It took you a minute to relax, given how long it had been since you had a hug, but you melted after you did, letting your arms hug his middle as you buried your head against his chest, mainly so he couldn’t see your heated cheeks.
Lucifer hugged you tightly. “Y/N, I promise. As long as you’re here, you’ll never have to worry about stuff like that. I won’t let it happen.”
Charlie was right. Lucifer did give the best hugs.
It was another night for a “family” dinner, and Lucifer and Charlie had tackled dinner that night. Despite the antics that naturally came with the pair working together (namely, both of them being overly excited and slightly clueless on different topics, with Lucifer more than likely being the one to try and reign her in in Vaggie’s absence), the pair of them had made a pretty damn decent dinner, and they both had gotten compliments on it. Honestly, Lucifer was just thrilled to be spending father-daughter time with Charlie. It had taken a lot of work on his part to beat back all the anxiety and inner fears that plagued him, and they still welled up every now and then, but he had a good handle of himself now. Turns out Charlie’s therapy ideas actually worked when put into practice. And, well, you being there to offer some advice always helped as well…
As the gathering came to an end and everyone started dissipating, Lucifer started gathering up the dishes with a bit of magical flair.
You smiled and chuckled a little. “I was going to ask if you needed any help…”
Lucifer turned to you with a light chuckle. “Nah, I think I have this handled.” He brushed off, giving you a confident grin.
You just smiled and nodded, standing up from your seat. “Well, in that case, I’ll head to my room.” You waved, ducking your head a little as you headed out. “Night Lucifer.”
“Night Y/N! Sweet dreams.” Lucifer called after you, watching you leave for a short moment before he wandered into the kitchen to make sure everything involving cleanup was going as planned.
Lucifer was, well, he was struggling a lot lately. Mentally. Ah, well, that wasn’t a new concept for him really. He had a lot on his mind most of the time. Duck obsessions. Anxiety and fear that he was going to let down Charlie in some way and that she’d want nothing to do with him and he’d be alone again. Yearnings for his wife, wondering where she was and what he had done to warrant such a long period of absence… Yeah, his mind was a mess.
But, something else was on his mind lately. You. He had been admittedly a little curious about you at first, but as the two of you hung out more and got to know each other, Lucifer began to feel his opinion of you shifting. You were so sweet, so kind, caring, creative! He loved watching you draw, he loved listening to you talk about the things you were passionate about, watching you smile and laugh at something either funny or embarrassing that he did… He was attracted to you, pure and simple, and you as a person was just so… So wonderful. When he was around you, you made him feel more at ease (even in instances where he was super awkward due to putting his foot in his mouth) and happy, and the pain he tended to carry with him seemed to completely disappear. But with the realization that he was starting to fall head over heels in love with you had him spiraling into a completely different mental war.
He agonized mentally for hell knows how long. Thoughts drifted to his wife, naturally. He was a married man, happily married for countless hundreds of years before things started falling apart and they separated. He loved Lillith, and he hated the idea of what she might think if she learned he had moved on… Even though it had been a long time, so technically it was safe to say that they were free to see who they pleased. That line of thought eventually let him think about you both together without feeling guilty, but that also brought up something else. Charlie. He loved his daughter, and he had no idea how she might feel about this whole thing, about him dating someone. It would pretty obviously announce that he was moving on from Lilith. Would she be upset? Would she be angry? Would she-
“Dad?”
He blinked, realizing that he had been standing in the kitchen for quite some time now, dishes cleaned and put away in their places.
“Whoops. Hey Char-char.” He spun, greeting her with a big smile, though it had a bit of an anxious look to it.
“Hi.” She cocked her head, smiling a bit cheerfully. “Soo, just gonna throw this out there… You and Y/N seem to be getting close…”
“Huh, oh yeah! She’s great.” He smiled fondly. “She’s amazing, Charlie, honestly. I love spending time with her. She’s just so…” He sighed, scratching the back of his head. Oh boy. “Actually, I have something to talk to you about… About her and I, actually.”
Charlie frowned. “Is something wrong?”
“NO! No, nothing’s wrong. Nothing at all. Complete opposite of wrong, I promise. Er, hope. I hope.” He reassured, chuckling a bit awkwardly before he relaxed. Just a smidge. “I uh, oh golly this is hard…” He lightly thrummed his fingers against his arm. “How would you… Well, I’ve been thinking… I have a…” He smacked his forehead.
“Dad, it’s alright.” She smiled again. “You can tell me anything, you know that right?”
Lucifer took a breath. “I’ve been… I’ve been, well, I’ve started getting certain feelings for her, and… I think I want to, you know, ask her out.”
Charlie blinked, and then she squealed happily and practically beamed at him. “Oh my SATAN, really?! I knew it! I can’t wait to tell Vaggie!” She gasped. “Does she know? Have you told her yet? Have you-”
Lucifer felt the stress leak off him in waves, letting out a laugh. “Wait, wait, calm down, Charlie.” He smiled, looking relieved as she piped down immediately, bouncing like an excited puppy. “You’re not… You’re not upset?”
“Upset? Why would I be upset?” She looked genuinely surprised.
He tugged at his collar. “Well… You know, your mom and I…”
“Dad.” Charlie shook her head with a gentle look. “I’m not upset. Actually, I’m happy for you! As long as you’re happy, I am too… And besides. You and mom have been separated for years. I’d say it’s actually about time you started looking for someone to make you happy.”
Lucifer took a deep breath, struggling and thankfully succeeding in not crying in front of his daughter, though his eyes were still a bit watery. “I’m so happy to have you as a daughter, Charlie.”
“And I’m happy that you’re my dad.” She smiled, and Lucifer practically tackled her into a hug for a few minutes before they pulled away.
“So… Got any advice for your old man?” He laughed nervously. “I haven’t exactly been in the dating game in awhile… I’m out of my element here. And I really don’t want to fuck this up.” He admitted.
“Well, have you told her how you feel yet?”
“Yeah… No, I haven’t. I’m still a bit, uh… Nervous.” He sighed.
Charlie smiled. “The best advice I can give. Talk from the heart. Just tell her how you feel about her.”
Lucifer blinked. “That simple?”
“That simple.” Charlie smiled, nodding.
Lucifer took a breath. “Okay. I’m going to tell her how I feel. I can do this.” He grinned, jumping up to give Charlie another tight hug. “Thanks Char-char! Wish me luck!”
“Good luck dad!” She called after him. She waited a minute before she squealed, and immediately raced upstairs. She couldn’t wait to tell Vaggie!