Lucifer couldn't tell you how long he was unconscious, that would require him to know the date and time his eyes finally slide shut, but he feels better and worse in a lot of ways when he finally wakes up.
Better because his magic is pretty much back to normal levels, maybe still a little low, but pretty close to good. His abused muscles are relaxed. And all the injuries not made by angelic steel have completely healed.
Bad because all the angelic steel wounds hurt even worse than before, burning and pulling with every breath he takes. They also bled through his bandages, creating more stains to clean up and making him feel crusty. And to make matters worse, the number of messages and misses calls have tripled, at least, making his anxiety spike even higher.
He doesn't have the emotional bandwidth to deal with most of the messages, but he could probably use Belphegor's help. She knows the most medical knowledge out of the Sins, so could definitely stitch the gashes on his back. The last thing he needs is to find out is if he can get an infection in angelic steel wounds. He's sort of traumatized from seeing infections on other people to even want to chance getting one.
He should be glad Lilith never used angelic steel anywhere he couldn't reach. That would have been the worst.
Explaining his current wounds are going to be embarrassing enough, he's not sure if his pride would have let him ask for help if Lilith had given him a wound he couldn't take care of himself.
Those dark thoughts have his eyes draw to his wedding ring as if magnetized. It's dark gold seems to gleam mockingly at him. He stayed faithfully at her side since Eden, forgiving her over and over again when she hurt him, for the beatings, the words, the betrayals... He loves, loved her so much for so long, but it's never been enough.
Even though giving Eve the Fruit of Knowledge was both of their idea, somehow he ended up taking all of the blame. From Heaven, from the Sinners, from her..
Something dark wells up in him. Something he knows has been festering for centuries, but has never let himself truly feel. Not towards Lilith, at least. RAGE.
With a gentleness he isn't feeling, he sets down his phone and pulls off the ring he's never once taken off his finger since the day he gave his wedding vows. He stayed true to those vows, but she had not. The only reason she still has the title of Queen is because of the enchantment on this little piece of tarnished gold.
He vaporizes it with a spark of his magic. Destroying the last tangible link to his first and only love.
Wherever she is, she'll feel her access to his magic instantly cut off.
He's not sure how he feels, his emotions are so chaotic that he just feels numb and a little cold. He stares at his finger for a while, before he wraps his blood stained blanket tighter around himself and picking up his phone again.
Belle's messages are sporadic. She's one of few people to truly understand why he just can't respond sometimes. She also has a hard time keeping up with social obligations, but will always make time if it's important.
The messages start out normal, just normal inquiries about normal things, but a few days after he got kidnapped, the messages start getting concerned, then frantic. Judging by the most recent messages, he was unconscious for around 24 hours.
Charlie apparently has been asking the Sins if they've seen him... He's not ready to deal with that just yet. She likely just wants to yell at him again and he's not ready to deal with that. Not until he gets his injuries taken care of.
It's late enough in the day that Belle is likely at home, and while he hates to disturb her, she'll just be angry with him if he doesn't.
She picks up on the second ring. "LUCIFER??"
"Oow..." He complains, having not expected her to yell, before cringing at how rough his voice is. "Hey, Belle."
"You sound terrible." Her voice is thankfully at a lower volume this time. "Where are you? Are you okay?"
"I.. I've been better." Lucifer doesn't even bother masking how tired he feels. "Do you think you could come by the palace? I need stitches in places I can't reach."
"I'll be there in less than 30 minutes." She promises, filling him with relief.
"Thanks, Belle." He unwraps himself and gingerly scoots to the edge of his bed. "Do you think you could hold off on telling anyone where I am? I need time to process..."
"Of course." She says softly, "Take your time, Lu."
"Thanks." He puts all of his appreciation into that single word. He walks to his dresser, pulling out a new pair of boxers and a pair of sweat pants. "I'm going to take a quick shower to rinse off the blood that bled through my bandages while I slept. Feel free to make yourself at home if you get here before I can drag myself out."
"Alright, but if you use soap, please use antibacterial soap." There's some shuffling on her end as he makes his way to his bathroom.
"Going to be honest, I hadn't gotten that far into the thought process. I'm sore and crusty enough I was only thinking about how nice standing under hot water would feel." Lucifer admits, placing his clothes on the sink counter and shutting the bathroom door. Years of hiding injuries and Lilith making him a insecure about his body have made him rather prudish in a way he hadn't been in Heaven or Eden.
Not to say there wasn't a sense of modesty in Heaven at the time, but he was much more willing to wear things that showed more skin before everything.
The blackened skin on his arms and legs, where ash had stained the burned skin like tattoos, is another post-Fall feature Lilith hadn't liked to look at for very long. It took him a long time to accept and come to terms with it because of her distaste, but now they just are. He got tired of feeling bad about it a long time ago, it's not like he can change it... Well, maybe if he skinned himself? But he's not doing that. He's tired of hurting.
"Hm.. Well, don't soak too long. It could be bad for your wounds."
"Will do." He chuckles, "See you soon."
"See you soon." She agrees, there's more rustling on her end.
"Okay, bye." He says and hangs up. Tiredly muttering to himself, "Ooo, successful social interaction."
He drops the stained boxers directly into the waste bin, before using magic to remove his bandages. Which hurts like he just ripped a bandaid off everywhere they had stuck, and makes some of his wounds weep more blood, but it was easier, and likely did less damage, than if he manually removed them. The bandages join the ruined boxers. He then turns the shower on, setting the temperature to near boiling.
He would have loved to do that yesterday, but water that hot on burn wounds would have been asking for trouble.
He nearly melts into a happy puddle when he steps under the spray. Sure, it stings his raw wounds, but not nearly enough for it to distract from the pleasure.
Then again, he never claimed to not be a bit of a masochist. He's not sure if he was Made that way, or if it developed as a result of living with Lilith. Even they're good moments usually ended with him in some sort temporary pain. She liked being rough and dominating, and he let her, just disassociating if it got too much.
He didn't know disassociating was what he was doing at first, but when the humans started labeling mental things, he was fascinated to know there was a word for when he mentally checked out. Dropping into a headspace where nothing felt real.
He watches his shimmery golden blood whorl down the drain, crusty hardened chunks look like the worst kind of glitter, and thinks about if he believes he even can have a relationship after the shit show his marriage has been.
The thing is Lucifer just wants to be happy and loved. Whether that love is romantic or platonic is irrelevant. He craves a softness he hasn't had since Charlie was little and would come looking for stories and cuddles. He craves the companionship he had before the Fall. He longs for someone to SEE him for who he is and still want to be in his life.
So maybe... maybe if he decides to try dating, he'll keep sex off the table for as long as his impulsive little brain can handle. Sex has always been a double edged sword. It can be fun, sometimes, but the emotional backlash from being so vulnerable sometimes made him throw up, usually when Lilith left him directly after they finished. Something about her just leaving, like his vulnerability meant nothing, had him emotionally crashing and feeling like she abandoned him..
Well, this time she literally had abandoned him. It's been nearly 8 years of complete silence. And maybe he could forgive her for that if it had only been him. Who'd want to stay with such a failure? No one.
But no, she's also been ignoring Charlie. The child she wanted so badly she all but cut him off to raise her nearly alone.
Charlie deserves better than the parents she has... The bellhop was right. Sometimes your birth family is a dud.
If Charlie ever lets him come back to the Hotel, he'll just stay out of the way. He'll do the maintenance, make his ducks in his suite, and keep his mouth shut. That's all he's good for anyways..
He's startled from his thoughts by a knock on the bathroom door.
"Lu?" Belle's voice sounds concerned.
"Just a minute!" He quickly shouts. He realizes most of the blood has been rinsed away. He uses his hands to gently rub away what he could see still clinging to him before shutting of the shower. He ruins another towel drying himself off, but he can't bring himself to care, before pulling on the clean boxers and sweats. Steam rushes out as he pulls open the bathroom door. "Sorry, got lost in thought!"
"It's fine, Lu." Belle is by his desk, which she cleared of his crafting supplies to make room for her medical supplies. She doesn't look at him as she double checks everything. "I was just checking on you. Please sit."
She waves to his desk chair. He's cold now that he's out of the hot bathroom, which makes him feel even more tender as he straddles the chair to give he the best access to his problem wounds. She sucks in a sharp gasp when she finally looks.
"They were made with angelic steel, or they would have healed like the rest of my injuries." Lucifer awkwardly tells her.
"Those Sinners certainly did a number on you." She says softly as equally soft hands touch his tender skin. "These are very deep."
"Hn." Lucifer agrees. She's so warm compared to him, making him want to relax, but the anxiety of someone standing behind him AND seeing him in such a state makes him want to tense. It's very confusing, but he knows relaxing will be better for the stitches, so he tries to force himself to follow that urge.
"Once I take care of these, I'd like to look at the ones you did yourself." Belle tells him, gently.
"I figured." Lucifer sighs.
"I would have preferred if you had let me do all of them." She mutters, withdrawing her hand to grab things off the desk.
"I wasn't in the right head space to make that decision." Lucifer admits, "I was drained of most of my magic and covered in injuries. I did the bare minimum to not bleed to death in my sleep before passing out for 24-ish hours."
Belle falls still, "Your magic?"
Something only the Fallen know is that their life force is literally tied to their magic. When Lucifer crawled out of the torture box he was the closest to death he'd ever been. If the box had ripped two, maybe three, more pulls of his magic out, it's very likely he would have been too far gone to do anything but hope someone came for him, and if they kept going after that it would have just killed him. He's incredibly lucky it broke when it did.
He doesn't feel lucky.
"Fine now that I've slept." He reassures her, "Nearly back to normal and why it's just these stupid gashes left."
"Lu. You know you can talk to me, right?"
"I don't want to." Lucifer frowns at a random rubber duck, it's dressed like a 50's housewife. "Not yet."
"Okay." She easily concedes, recognizing the stubbornness in his voice. "I'm going to begin now."
"Okay." Lucifer echoes, steeling his nerves for the pain.
And there's a lot of pain. The cleaning process burns worse than receiving the wounds had and leaves his nerves raw and inflamed. It makes the stitching process worse, but Lucifer is still able to breath through it all. He doesn't recall treating his wounds last night feeling like this, but he was also suffering from exhaustion and who knows how many other wounds, so it's less likely that it's actually all that worse and more that there's less input to complete with.
"These aren't that bad." Belle compliments when she finally has him turn around to check his work. He doesn't like the suspicious gleam in her eye. "I'll just put some antiseptic cream over them and bandage them for now. But please call me if something is wrong."
"I will." Lucifer promises.
Once he's all bandaged up and Belle starts putting her things back in her bag, he pulls on one of his oversized sweaters. The plush fabric feeling like a barrier between him and the world. It's only then that he realizes Belle must have changed his ruined bedding while he was in the bathroom. The blood stained pink sheets replaced with clean silky replacements in Belle's signature soft pink and purple.
"You should tell the others you're alright. They've been panicking since the broadcast yesterday." Belle tells him, "If not our siblings, then at least your daughter. Someone told her you may have bled to death this morning and has been panicking and blaming herself for not realizing how hurt you were before she got distracted by her friends."
Lucifer feels a rush of defensiveness at the disapproval in Belle's voice over his daughter not noticing how hurt he was... but he can't bring himself to actually say anything. Even with most of the wounds covered, there was no way to miss all the blood or how he couldn't stand. It's likely why the Bellhop was heading towards him. He was an easy target. The Sinner could have done anything to him and Lucifer wouldn't have been able to get away.
The fear and paranoia from the day before creeps back into him, making his breath hitch, but he swallows it down. He's fine now. If any Sinner tries to do anything, he's healed enough to defend himself. He's no longer grounded.
"I'll do that. Can't have people spreading rumors about my untimely demise." He weakly jokes, freeing his hands from the sleeves of his sweater and pulling his phone from the pocket he had slipped it into before leaving the bathroom. His stomach loudly growls at that moment.
"Ah." Belle smiles in amusement, "How about we eat dinner together?"
"I'm not sure what food is still good in the kitchen currently." Lucifer admits, "I hadn't planned to get kidnapped so some of my ingredients are likely bad."
"Most people do not plan to get kidnapped." She points out.
Lucifer shrugs and starts making his way to the kitchen. There's not as much dust as he feared there'd be. He hadn't gotten around to hiring a Hellborn to clean up around the palace on a more consistent basis than his current groundskeeper.
Hellborn, because he can do more than defend himself if they decide to kill him. Is it wrong to hire someone he can kill so that he can kill them if they betray him? Probably. But it gives him a sense of security, and he's only ever killed a hired Hellborn once. The little shit had tried to poison him while he was visibly pregnant with Charlie. Jokes on them, he's immune to most poisons, but it was the thought that counts.
Given how mean to him Lilith was at the time, he'd think she had something to do with it, but it was a poison she'd already tried a century earlier. He knows she remembers every poison she's tried on him for... who knows why. She liked using his power too much for it to be serious attempts on his life. Though, she might start serious attempts now that he's cut her off..
He'll cross that bridge when he gets to it.
Belphegor gently pushes him into a chair when they make it to the kitchen. "I'll make something."
"I.." She gives him a sharp look for daring to protest, making him wilt. "Okay.. Thanks."
"Don't worry about it, Luci." She waves off and starts poking through his kitchen. She only has to throw out a couple of things before starting on some sort of pasta from the looks of it.
He finally opens his phone. He skims through all of the Sins' messages first, sending an "I lived" with a snake emoji before addressing any of the questions or concerns they sent while he was kidnapped or unconscious. He can't help snickering at their enthusiastic replies. It warms his heart to see the proof that there's at least 6 people who care about his well being. He forgets because they're all so busy with their own rings of Hell, so it's nice to be reminded.
It makes him feel more ready to see what Charlie, and probably Vaggi, sent him.
The mystery number proves to be Vanastasia's, so he adds it into his contacts before reading through the messages. He feels a lot of mixed feelings over them. The first few are her apologizing for not being more help when Charlie blew up at him, then she got annoyed he didn't respond and scolded him, then last night there was an apology for not going back for him like she said she would, then this morning was more scolding for not responding to Charlie, before panicked messages inquiring on his health and more apologizes came in throughout the day. There were like forty messages all together.
Which is a lot, but somehow Charlie squeezed in double the amount in about a fourth of the time. There's angry messages from a few days ago, about Angel Dust (he's pretty sure that's the perverted spider?) going missing, then how he can at least help them save Bambi and Angel, something about him being useless, then a bunch of concerned messages that must have happened while he was in the torture-box last night, then messages asking where he went this morning that slowly turn angry when he doesn't respond, before a barrage of apologies and concerned and panicked messages rolled in because the Bellhop told her he might have bled to death.
Which, while true, was rather mean of the Demon to do.
"What a mess." Lucifer sighs, which makes Belle glance at him, but he doesn't explain, instead he hits call on Charlie's contact. She picks up on the first ring.
"Dad!? Where are you!? Are you okay!?" She shouts. Making him realize he has the start of a migraine coming on.
"Ooow! Why do people keep yelling at me?" He whines.
"It's because you worried us." Belle sweetly tells him.
"Who's with you?" Charlie demands. He can vaguely hear Vaggi, the crazy maid, and the fish Demon yelling in the background.
"Your aunty Belle." He answers honestly, trying not to feel bad when Charlie's breath hitches. He decides he's uninterested in telling her exactly how injured he is. No point in stressing her out. "I figured you'd want me to call to tell you I'm fine. Tell Vavanu that I added her number to my contacts."
"It's Vaggi, dad." Charlie sighs in exasperation. "When are you coming back to the Hotel?"
Lucifer can't help the disbelief he feels at the question, and it must be written on his face because Belle looks concerned.
"You want me to come back?"
"Of course! I'm sorry about blowing up at you! I was just really stressed out between Heaven and Vox!" She rambles, "It felt like everything was spiraling out of my control! But I really shouldn't have yelled at you when you were just trying to help!"
"I.. I appreciate your apology." Lucifer decides to say, because he doesn't know how to feel. She sounds genuine, but he can't forget how easily she threw him out.
"What do-?" Charlie starts, sounding disappointed with his answer.
"It's late." He cuts her off. He doesn't feel like feeling guilty for not immediately forgiving her as he has done with so, so many things in the past. This is time wasn't something as easy for him to swallow. "How about I come back tomorrow? Last thing we'd want to do is disturb Bambi."
"Oh!" It's a weak excuse, but sounds like she buys it. "Yeah! That'd be smart! We could make a day of it!"
"Sure, Char-Char." He can't help chuckle. Belle places a plate of some sort of pasta and a large glass of water down in front of him. He didn't think he had half the ingredients he can see, so it's likely she summoned them from her own kitchen. He gives her a quick thanks with a grateful smile. "Listen, we're about to eat dinner, so I'm going to go, but I'll see you tomorrow."
"Okay, dad!" Charlie chirps, "See you tomorrow!"
"By-" The line goes dead, making him frown at his phone, but he just shakes his head and sets it down on the counter.
"Never thought I'd see the day you didn't instantly forgive her." Belle comments, clearly understanding why he chose his words so carefully. "Lu.. What happened?"
"I-She-" Lucifer takes a deep breath. "I made a mistake."
"And?" Belle looks confused, "To make mistakes is to live."
"No. I mean," Lucifer clinches his fists in his lap, "I was trying to help, but the Bix?-Vix?-Box?-Whatever-his-name-is revealed I can't hurt Sinners to all of Pride and twisted the narrative. And Charlie.... Charlie was SO mad. She yelled at me and her girlfriend before telling me to get out of the Hotel..."
"Lu.." Belle knows exactly why Lucifer would be sensitive to being kicked out, not that it's hard to figure out. Everyone and their mother knows about his Fall, even if they don't know the details like the Sins do.
"It's.. Well, it's not fine, but I'll deal." Lucifer grabs his fork, and begins eating small bites so he can continue talking without being gross. "She's my daughter."
"That doesn't make what she did okay." Belle's voice has a chastising element to it. "Or stop it from hurting."
"No." Lucifer agrees, "But I'm still more proud of her on her worst day than I am of myself on my best day."
"Lucifer." She sounds fond and exasperated. Lucifer gives her a tired smile.
"She's my greatest creation."
"Sure, but she's her own person and an adult. She'll need to learn her words and actions can and do have negative impacts on people." Belle tells him very seriously, "Especially on the people closest to her. She's nearly 200 years old, she should knew better."
"I know." Lucifer stares at his plate, "I wish I had more of an active role in her upbringing. I honestly don't know what Lilith had been doing. Sometimes I feel like Charlie's actually naive and other times she seems like she being purposely ignorant, but I can't tell how genuine she is sometimes."
"Speaking of Lilith," She segues awkwardly, clearly not sure what to say to that. "I can't help but notice you took off your wedding ring."
"I'm tired." Lucifer closes his eyes, "I'm tired of pretending my marriage hasn't been over for centuries. Fuck, she's been ignoring me and Charlie for nearly 8 years! I can't keep torturing myself for a woman who doesn't love me anymore!"
'If she ever loved me to begin with..' The thought is a old bitter one he's pretended for .. much, much too long not to have. Lilith had been so sweet and nice and lovely when they met, but the moment everything went wrong, it was like she became a completely different person. He started to wonder if the version he fell in love with was simply a mask to get what she wanted, but he didn't want to believe it, so he pretended and pretended, and forgave and forgave.
He can't do it anymore!
"Lucifer.." Belle sounds heartbroken, and looks equally heartbroken when he opens his eyes. He blinks back tears he can feel forming.
"I'm so tired, Belphegor."
"Then rest." She tells him, getting up and cautiously approaches him. Telegraphing her desire to hug him well before she touches him. "You more than deserve it."
"Thanks, Belle." He leans into her, leaching her warmth.
"No problem, Luci." She nuzzles the top of his head before yawning, "Oh, dear, that's my que to be heading out. Finish eating, drink the entirety of this glass of water-"
She pulls away and lightly taps the glass she had set in front of him.
"-and then get some sleep. Those injuries are no joke, mister."
"Yes, ma'am." He chuckles, "I'll call you if I need anything."
"And even if you don't." She demands, "I don't like that we didn't know that creep kidnapped you."
"I'll try to be better at keeping in touch." He promises.
"I'll be holding you to that." She smiles, summoning her bag to her before opening a portal to her home. "Good luck with Charlie."
"Thanks." He sighs dramatically, just knowing tomorrow is going to be interesting, especially if Charlie keeps her word, before smiling at his sister. "Good-night."
"Good-night." She says and steps through the portal. It closes quickly behind her, leaving Lucifer alone in the much too large and cold building he has reluctantly called home for a millennium.
He had only made it so large because he had wanted to fill it with family and friends, and Lilith wanted to live in luxury, but those plans never panned out and Lilith moved out when Charlie was little. Her excuses centered around not wanting Charlie to interfere with his work and not wanting Charlie to be exposed to his depression. While he mostly didn't want Charlie to accidentally see how Lilith treated him if he refused. It had hurt, but he had thought it was for the best. Lilith had wanted a child for so long and absolutely doted on Charlie.
He may have birthed her, but Lilith is her mother. He can't blame Charlie for clinging to her mother. They have a, or maybe HAD a, special bond that Lucifer will likely never have with Charlie. That doesn't mean he's going to give up on the relationship with Charlie. She still his daughter and he would do anything for her, even leave if she asked...
He focuses on his food to try and distract himself from that depressing thought. It doesn't really work, so he picks his phone back up and starts scrolling through news reports on what happened yesterday. He wasn't really sure WHAT he had been powering, but he's pretty sure it was a gun or canon from the noises he recalls hearing.
The different reports and videos he finds absolutely stun him. Not because of the power, he knows he's strong and the machine had used a fuck-ton of his power. No, it's that there's apparently a ridiculous and glaring loophole to the binds Heaven placed on him. So long as HE's not the one directing the power, it CAN harm Sinners. Bob's death canon had killed and maimed who knows how many Sinners with his power... Hm, this is definitely something to think about. How else can he exploit that loophole?
The dishes from dinner are cleaned and put away with a distracted snap of his fingers. He takes the glass of water Belle told him to drink with him back to his room, sipping at it as he turns the information around in his mind.
Yes. This is definitely something to think about.
Alastor had slept in slightly, his injuries making him feel more tired than usual, (plus he didn't feel like dealing with the crowd that's been slowly trickling in now that redemption has been proven) which is just as well, since he finds Lucifer's stupid "Deer Season" mug was back in it's usual spot when he finally came downstairs. He will never willingly admit to the excitement that floods his veins when he processes that it means the King is back.
He does hope Charlie has properly apologized to the man. He'll be very disappointed in both of the Morningstars if she hasn't, but he still came back. It really wouldn't teach the princess anything good and would prove how little self-respect the King has.
For a being known for being the embodiment of the sin of pride, the King doesn't seem have much actual pride in anything outside of things he had a hand in creating. Things like his craftsmanship or daughter.
It's something Alastor had noticed at some point in their bickering. Comments about the King's looks and clothes were brushed off with a practiced hand, no real offense, and he stayed level-headed enough to give as good as he got. Snide remarks on odd behaviors would hit a nerve, but was still fine. But insulting his daughter or rubber ducks had the man flushing a lovely shade of angelic gold in his murderous rage.
Now that he knows Lucifer CAN'T hurt him even if he wanted to, he can't help wonder if the man would have attacked him in those moments if he could have.
Having a rubber duck thrown at him instead of a blast of magic every time Alastor annoyed the ex-archangel makes a hilarious amount of sense now.
Now, Alastor can't have people knowing he's thrilled the King is back, so he continues through his normal morning routine. He's a little slower than usual because of his arm, which is annoying, but it means he's still there when Nifty bustles in with a rubber duck dressed like a maid. She's so focused on it that she doesn't notice him at first.
"What do you have there, dear?"
She startles slightly before giving him a huge grin and holding her gift up for him to get a better look. Alastor is always a little impressed by the detail the fallen angel puts into the ridiculous toys. The fake fabric has texture, "buttons" have "thread" and "holes", jewelry has different "metal work" and "gem cuts", sometimes feathers are given realistic details, facial expressions vary. The little King's obsession with creating them means he has had a lot of practice, but it's still a sight to behold when Alastor gets to look at one up close.
He may have a small stash in his Bayou pocket dimension that he spirited away after Lucifer threw them at him. His Shadow likes to play with them.
"The Ultimate Bad Boy gave her to me as a thank you for dusting his room yesterday after the princess asked him to come back!" Nifty declares.
"She's lovely." He genuinely compliments the duck, both because it's true and because Nifty clearly loves the little thing. "Speaking of our dear princess, has she apologized to her father?"
Nifty's smile turns even more manic, pulling the duck back to herself to lovingly caress it. "She did."
"Oh?" Alastor fishes.
"The Ultimate Bad Boy didn't sound like he fully forgave her!" Nifty tells him gleefully, "She whined to Vaggi about it after their phone call last night!"
"Interesting." Alastor didn't know the man had it in him to have a back bone when faced with his daughter. Maybe it's because it was through the phone? Charlie does know how to look particularly pitiful in person and the King folds like wet paper when faced with sad faces.
"The Bad Boy is different." Nifty suddenly frowns, looking at her duck, then up at Alastor. "He flinched."
"He flinched?" Alastor prods, because that could mean a lot of things.
"He smells like blood." Nifty confides, "And tried to avoid touching anything."
Her face turns sweetly pleading. "Will the Roach King help the Ultimate Bad Boy?"
"Why, of course, my dear! I'd be just delighted to!" Alastor grins at her. He finds that he isn't even lying. The King is much too entertaining and an unfortunately good person for Alastor to just leave him be.
Plus Alastor has questions about the ex-archangel's powers and bindings. Vox has unintentionally revealed a glaring loophole that Alastor could exploit! Imagine what he could do with access to that kind of power!
Unfortunately, Alastor's going to have to prove to not be a threat and fix some of Lucifer's insecurities to make any sort of deal with the man. He's still working on HOW exactly he's supposed to do that. The little King is older than time, and if Alastor is correct about his theories, has had insecurities forcibly inflicted upon him for nearly the entirety of his existence. He certainly has his work cut out for him, but Alastor always did like a challenge.
"Okay!" Nifty chirps, then runs off with her prize while cackling madly.
Alastor shakes his head fondly before teleporting up to a balcony so he can see the lobby without having to mingle with anyone. Lucifer is easy to spot near his excitable, but oblivious daughter. The ex-archangel is tense, eyes constantly flicking around the room for danger and hands gripping his apple cane tightly, but still easily talking in his awkward way to Charlie and any Sinner who engages with them. He also can't help noticing how carefully Lucifer is about brushing against anyone, and how he seems... quieter or closed off seem the best words, like he's put an emotional wall between him and the world.
Alastor, nor Lucifer it seems, is surprised when Charlie gets distracted by the guests and leaves her father, who valiantly stays in the lobby for another 15-ish minutes, but a Sinner shoulder checking him when he's looking around for the wayward girl seems to be the final straw. The King disappears into a poof of red glittery smoke.
The colour difference in Lucifer's magic is something Alastor wonders about. Sometimes it's a mix of a wine red and glittering pink, and others it's a bright cheerful yellow-ish gold. Alastor's best guess is the red/pink is Lucifer's demonic magic, something he developed in Hell, while the gold is his angelic grace. The gold IS about the same colour as angel blood, which makes him wonder if the two are related in more than just their divinity. If they are, how potent is the King's blood compared to the angels' Alastor tried? The thought makes Alastor's mouth water, but he dismisses it. He's not going to bite the obviously injured man..
Though, he has to wonder why the King is still hurt. Vaggi has always healed quickly from her own injuries and she's nowhere near as powerful.
What exactly did that machine do to Lucifer? He can't help thinking for the millionth time since he saw Lucifer struggling in the aftermath of the battle. And will it have lasting consequences?
Only one way to find out! Alastor shadow travels to his own room, instead of walking up the stairs. He makes sure he looks perfect before he strolls across the hall, his Shadow happily wriggling behind him to see one of his favourite people (Alastor doesn't plan to analysis why his Shadow likes Lucifer so much). Smirking at the returned "No Alastors Allowed" sign.
'We'll see about that!' Alastor mentally laughs as he knocks on the King's door.
"Charlie?" Ooh, the poor dear sounds so hopeful.
"Not quite." Alastor teases as the door opens. The scent of apples and something serpentine wafts from the King as he frowns up at him, BUT notably doesn't slam the door in Alastor's face.
"What do you want, Bambi?"
"Can't I simply welcome you back?" Alastor's amusement grows at the disbelieving look on the King's expressive face. Really, the two Morningstars are so open with their feelings, it's hard not to poke and prod for all their delightful reactions. "I must admit, I missed your brand of idiocy infecting these halls more than I thought."
"You're such an asshole." Lucifer's face and body language is a chaotic mix of touched, offended, and amused. Good, it means Alastor hadn't misread their previous interactions. Lucifer DOES like their bickering.
"The mildest crime I was sent to Hell for, I'm sure." Alastor jokes, now looking into Lucifer's room. He can't quite hide his surprise. "No mountain of ducks, Your Majesty? Are you not planning to stay?"
From what Alastor can see, the dust is gone and most of the books and knick-knacks are back in place, but the hoard of ducks is less than a 10th of it's original size. Lucifer glances into his suite before shrugging and jabbing a thumb at his desk covered in tools.
"I was planning to make more." The Light-Bringer tilts his head and smirks, "Sorry to disappoint, Bellhop."
Alastor rolls his eyes, "That's not what I meant. I was merely surprised that your inane obsession let you part with them."
"I'm not obsessed." Lucifer protests, "I just like them! What's so wrong with that?"
"Nothing. Nothing at all, Your Majesty." Alastor keeps a mocking hint to his voice just to make the man mad, "Do you give them backstories?"
The way the angel blushes is answer enough, making Alastor cackle.
"Shut up!" The man yells and pelts Alastor in the face with a summoned rubber duck, which the demon catches before it can hit the ground. This one is dressed in a tuxedo with a curly mustache.
"Oh! What's this little fellow's story then?" The question is genuine, but full of amusement. "Does he have a name?"
Lucifer mumbles something, still blushing.
"What was that, dear?" Alastor bends down slightly and tilts his head at an odd angle, holding the duck on an open palm between them. The closer distance means Alastor can smell the faintest hint of blood, ointment, and bandages hidden under the King's stark white suit.
"His name is Franklin..." Lucifer repeats through gritted teeth, then moves as if to snatch the duck back, but Alastor quickly straightens and holds the duck above his head.
"Ah, ah, Franklin is mine now." Alastor grins, "If you wanted to keep him, you shouldn't have thrown him at me!"
Lucifer makes a noise of rage and spits some fire, but Alastor is sure even if the King could have, he wouldn't have actually attacked him.
"You'll have to tell me the names of the other ducks you gave me." Alastor chuckles, making the King freeze.
"You kept them all?" There's something vulnerable in his voice that has Alastor uncomfortable, but unwilling to lie.
"Yes, my Shadow quite enjoys the little fellows." As if on que the silly thing makes himself known with happy chitters before snatching Franklin from Alastor's hand. He doesn't need to look to know he's being embarrassingly affectionate to the duck behind him, but Lucifer's surprised and delighted face in response to the display somehow softens the edge of humiliation.
"What exactly is he?" Lucifer asks, gingerly squatting down to be closer to the creature. He reaches a hand out towards it and shadowy clawed hands grab his fingers, making him laugh, a soft pretty sound. "He's very affectionate."
"I'm honestly not quite sure." Alastor admits, a bit stunned to have such a powerful being basically kneeling willingly at his feet. It makes him feel the smugness that was missing when the King had run from him in fright. "He was with me when I woke up in Hell. He's not quite his own creature, nor is he really me."
"Fascinating." The King smiles at the silly creature, "Are you taking good care of my ducks?"
The Shadow enthusiastically nods.
"Thank you." Lucifer is sickeningly sweet and genuine. It makes Alastor feel weird.
The Shadow chitters happily before letting the King's hand go, making Alastor notice that the man's wedding ring is missing. He can't truly remember if the man had still had it on when he last saw him, but the angel never took the thing off so it's definitely something notable.
"Now, Your Majesty," Alastor chastises while bending down to offer Lucifer a hand up with his good arm, "you really shouldn't kneel at a lowly Sinner's feet."
The King rolls his eyes at the words, but hesitated for a couple seconds to accept Alastor's help to stand. The angel is much lighter than he anticipates, accidently pulling too hard and sending him into Alastor's torso. The man's head just tall enough to press into the bottom of the wound he received from Adam, making them both gasp in pain.
"Apologies." Alastor gently helps separate them, "I wasn't expecting you to be so light."
"Most people don't." Lucifer says, face slightly scrunched in pain, but he doesn't seem mad. Just a little annoyed in general at the situation.
The fact Lucifer's so willing to interact, and even touch, Alastor means the man must be MUCH better off in the magic and physical injure categories than the last time they saw each other. Trusting either that Alastor won't do anything or that he could escape through his own means if Alastor does try anything. He'll have to see about fostering the tiny bit of trust the King might possibly feel towards him. Having such a powerful being trust him would be a wonderful boon if something were to happen.
"Are you alright? I didn't reopen any wounds, did I?"
"No. I'm just tender." Lucifer scowls at nothing, before blinking as he remembers something. "Wait, you were injured. too."
"I was." No point in denying it.
"Give me your arm." The King demands, surprising Alastor.
"Why?" He asks suspiciously.
"Just hand it over." The 2 feet of difference between their heights makes the pouting idiot look adorable.
"I'll steal all your ducks if you do any funny business." Alastor warns as he switches what hand his microphone is in and holds out the requested arm.
"Noted." Lucifer dryly states, before he reaches out with hands glowing golden. Alastor's arm itches and stings a little when the hands make contact, but no more than it had already at random intervals, and it only for a moment. The King squeezes his eyes shut in concentration and takes a deep breath before all the pain in Alastor's arm is suddenly gone. He then pulls his hands away and beams up at Alastor. "There. Are you hurt anywhere else?"
Alastor pulls up his sleeve and unravels the bandages to find delicate scarring where there had been a wound.
"If you can heal wounds like this, why do you still smell like you're injured?" Slips from Alastor's mouth before he can think about it. Sue him, he's curious.
"You can-" Lucifer sputters before recollecting himself, angerly explaining, "Normal injuries are easy! Angelic steel injuries don't heal the same way! You have to let them heal naturally!"
"Ah. I see." Alastor supposes that makes sense. Heaven wouldn't want anyone they punish to have an easy time healing. "Unfortunately the only other injury causing me problems was made with angelic steel."
"You.." Lucifer clearly hadn't known about his chest injury. How sweet of him to look so worried for Alastor. "It doesn't have any grace stuck in it, does it?"
"I'm not sure what you mean."
"Just-" Lucifer makes an annoyed noise, before aggressively gesturing for Alastor to come into his suite. "Get in here. I'll check. If there's grace in there, your wound won't heal and could poison an evil Sinner like you."
"But Your Majesty, there's no Alastors allowed." Alastor grins, head tilting to the sign.
"Shut the fuck up." Lucifer's glare is amusing. "I'll tell you the ducks' names."
And with that, Alastor's Shadow is pulling him into the suite.
'Oh, dear. This is not what I expected at all.' Is all Alastor can think as Lucifer's door clicks shut.
Lucifer isn't sure what the hell is even happening anymore. He hadn't expected Alastor to show up at his door or literally anything that happened afterwards. He doesn't know WHY he cares so much about this idiot suddenly.
Well, that's a lie. It's because of the ducks. The Deer Demon has been keeping the ducks and letting his affectionate companion play with them, and not destroying them like Lucifer thought he might be doing when they started going missing after their fights. (He didn't stop because it was his only form of direct physical retaliation he knew he could do. He needed the outlet.)
This whole interaction has been both odd and soothingly normal. Odd because the Radio Demon has been rather kind and nice and weirdly open about his injuries when Lucifer knows he'd usually rather stab himself than admit something hurt. Normal because he's still being creepy, snarky, and rude, which sooths the part that felt paranoid that the man was going to be even more insufferable and possibly try to kill him.
It was so nice compared to the most of the interactions that Lucifer had that day that he impulsively decided to heal Alastor. He'll say it's because Alastor's the Hotel's heavy hitter that can actually harm Sinners if something happens, but it's actually because of bits of genuine care that slipped through the asshole's mask.
But now faced with a jacket-and-tie-less Alastor with his shirt unbuttoned enough to reveal a nasty gash across his chest, Lucifer is violently reminded of his pansexuality. This fucker is unfairly attractive. Not that Lucifer plans to act on the attraction. Alastor is uninterested in any relationships as far as Lucifer's aware, and Lucifer is definitely NOT ready for anything even if Alastor was interested.
Lucifer removed his own top layers to hopefully make the modest demon a bit more comfortable. Keeping them on a more even playing field.
"I'm going to touch your chest now." Lucifer warns the other, who nods slightly, before he lightly presses glowing hands to soft and warm skin. He closes his eyes to more easily focus on the feeling from the wound and map it out in his mind. He's not able to heal it because of it being made with angelic steel, but he can get rid of the grace he can now sense festering in the wound like some sort of hellish infection and keeping it from healing like it should. "This is going to sting."
Lucifer waits for a noise of acknowledgement before he starts pulling on.. Fuck, he recognizes this grace! Adam's still being a pain in the ass from the grave! He pulls Adam's shitty ass grace from the wound as gently as possible, but it still makes Alastor tense and make static noises that are probably his equivalent groans of pain. There's also scraping and crunching wood sounds from the chair's armrests, telling Lucifer he's going to have to fix them later.
"Sorry, almost done." Lucifer mumbles apologetically. It only takes a minute from beginning to end, and it'll definitely hurt less than it has been after it settles from Lucifer's prodding, but he still feels bad for hurting the guy. "There."
Lucifer opens his eyes to find Alastor's face is suddenly much closer than he expected, having apparently scrunched his head forward to fight the pain. The Demon's slightly unfocused eyes are half closed and his permanent smile is strained. Lucifer can feel his cheeks burning as he slowly pulls his hands away and steps back to give the man space. He's unsurprised to find Alastor's fingers are buried deep into the wood of the armrests, but his poor shadow is a pitiful little puddle under the chair. Poor thing must share Alastor's pain.
"It should heal like normal now." Lucifer awkwardly says, fidgeting a little. He's only ever done this kind of thing for Lilith before so he's not really sure what he should do now. Lilith preferred if he fucked off directly after, but he's known plenty people (himself included) who rather have (trusted) company while they recover their wits, so he's not sure what Alastor would prefer him to do.
"Thank you." Alastor says after a moment.
"N-no problem!" Lucifer can't help smiling, warmth spreading in his chest. He forgot how nice it can feel to help people just cause.
"Is there anything I can do to help you?" Alastor startles him by asking. Lucifer seriously hadn't thought he'd be offered anything for something like this. If it was Charlie or the Sins, they'd know that that's just what he does for family, and again, Lilith rather he fuck off and pretend it didn't happen. Not that Alastor is family or his spouse, but still.
"I-? What?"
"Is there something I can do for you as payment?" Alastor is now looking at Lucifer like he's an idiot. Which while true, RUDE. "There must be something."
"I-" Lucifer can feel a headache coming on, so he takes a deep breath. "I didn't do this for payment, Bambi."
"I know. You're much too moral for that." He has the gall to roll his eyes, the bastard. "But I like to not have debts."
"I don't know what to tell you. I've never asked for anything in exchange for healing." Lucifer shrugs.
"That just won't do." The Demon murmurs. They fall into an awkward silence before Alastor's Shadow decides it wants his attention, becoming almost 3 dimensional to grab Lucifer's hand and wave his new ducky around.
"I did tell you I'd tell you the other ducks' names, huh?" Lucifer can't help giggling, taking a seat on the ground to put less stress on the Shadow.
Lucifer then proceeds to honestly ignore Alastor, who's probably judging him, to instead magic up holograms of each of the ducks that Lucifer knows went missing after he pelted Alastor with them. He happily tells the playful creature each of the ducks' names, "backstories", and his inspiration, without going into the reasons why he'd want to lose himself in his own made-up world of rubber ducks. He doesn't need Alastor thinking he's even more pathetic than he already does.
The situation kind of reminds Lucifer of some of the good times when Charlie was little. He'd sit and weave stories for hours with her, making little holograms just for her awe and delight. Sometimes Lilith would join them and sit off to the side making commentary, it was some of the best fun he'd had since Eden... but she'd usually cut their fun short and take Charlie away while scolding him to get back to his job.
All that to say, Lucifer finds Shadow to be adorable for an eldritch shadow creature. It's so excited and happy, playing along with all of Lucifer's sometimes overly complicated stories. Like Rosetta, a baby pink suit wearing duck with brown curly hair, who was orphaned at age 10 because the mob killed her parents, after bouncing around foster care for 3 years, she got sold into human trafficking, but she was bought by someone who simply wanted a daughter, so she ends up being extremely pampered, but she didn't forget where she's from and convinces her adoptive father to let her go to law school, and while there, who should she meet? The son of the person who hired the people who killed her parents. They have an enemies to friends to lovers arch and decide to take over the mob together.
He ends up giving Shadow Rosetta's lover, Thomas, a duck with a fluffy, stylish haircut and wearing a navy suit with no tie and his white button-up, (and explaining his backstory) so that they can be reunited. Rosetta was one of the first ducks to go missing after a fight with Alastor and had made him feel sad losing her.
"You're spoiling him." Alastor's mild compliant startles Lucifer into finally looking up at the Demon. He's freed his fingers from the wood and looks the most relaxed Lucifer has probably ever seen him. "Have you ever thought about writing a book series involving your ducks? There's definitely an audience for the type of world building you do."
"I've never thought about it." Which is mostly the truth. He briefly considered make cute children's book versions for Charlie, but he never had the time and dismissed the idea pretty quickly. "Do you think people would actually like my stories?"
Lucifer nearly winces. That was WAY more vulnerable than he would have liked.
"Yes, you paint quite the picture with your words." Alastor easily assures, surprising the hell out of Lucifer. "If physically writing the stories out is the problem, you could always make one of those knockoff radio shows I've heard people broadcast on those ridiculous phones everyone seems so fond of."
"Oh!" Lucifer knows what he's talking about! "A podcast!"
"Yes, that." Alastor's smile turns a bit creepy, but it's a teasing one... When did he start learning the differences in Alastor's smiles? "I'd offer you a spot on my radio show, but the King of Hell adorably explaining stories about his rubber ducks on a station usually full of threats and the screams of the damned might confuse my dear listeners into rioting."
'Adorably???' Lucifer is now questioning his own sanity over the rollercoaster the word makes him feel, but decides that he doesn't feel like analyzing another thing currently, so he ignores it.
"As if you wouldn't enjoy the chaos. But you're right, I don't think our demographics would be the same, but it could be an amusing one off broadcast. Just confuse the fuck out of people." Lucifer ponders the idea of making a podcast. It'd be a good way to share his creative outlet. He could make the episode picture whichever duck it's about and ramble as he makes the duck. And since he's always making ducks, he could set up a consistent posting schedule that his siblings could track and realize something is wrong faster. "Thank you for the idea, I'll have to think on it."
Alastor chuckles like he won something, which it annoying.
"Glad to be of service, Your Majesty."
"Why do you do that?" Lucifer finally asks.
"Whatever do you mean?" Alastor's eyebrow's crease in confusion.
"Call me "Your Majesty" all the time?" Lucifer clarifies, making the Demon blink as if processing the question.
"Because you're the King of Hell." The silent "Duh!!" is so loud in that statement.
"Sure, but that may as well be a joke when I can't enforce shit." Lucifer points out, "Plus you don't give a shit about that. That'd require you to respect any kind of authority."
"So true!" The demon chortles, which Shadow adorably mimics. "What would you prefer I call you, if not Your Majesty?"
"You could just call me my name." Lucifer rolls his eyes, absently wondering what time it is and if he should get off the floor. He probably needs to change his bandages soon, they're getting itchy.
Speaking of itchy, the unfortunately familiar tickly itch of Lucifer's wings needing to be preened started up in the middle of the night last night. It doesn't surprise him, but it is annoying. He's not sure he can twist and stretch in the ways he'd need to to fix them up. He'll probably fluff them out and preen just enough to not drive him nuts each night while he heals up.
Fuck, it'd be so nice to have someone's help with them, but there's no fucking way he trusts anyone to touch his wings. Not after people he should have been able to trust with them purposely hurt them to hurt him...
Plus they're really sensitive after so long without anyone else touching them.
But what else is new? All of Lucifer is sensitive to touch. Gentle touch to be specific. It's a toss up if it's because only the Sins and Charlie offer him things like hugs on the rare chance he sees them (you'd think he'd see his daughter more often now that they live in the same building, but alas), or if the snake traits he gained as punishment down here just makes everyone feel delightfully warm compared to him. But either way, gentle touch is so nice and warm on his naturally cool skin, it almost burns.
"Like you call me mine?" Alastor jokes.
"Do you want me to, Bambi?" Lucifer asks playfully, and only realizes once it's out of his mouth it sounds more flirty than he meant. Oh, well.
"I'm not convinced you know it." Alastor leans back in his seat, looking like a smug little shit.
Lucifer summons a duck, his name is Jasper, and pelts Alastor in the face. "I do too know your name, ALASTOR."
Jasper bounces off Alastor's stunned face and is then snatched under the chair by Shadow.
"I literally made a sign with your name on it, Bambi. Why are you so surprised?"
"My apologies." Alastor awkwardly straighten in his seat, amusement unmistakably in his voice. "You've never called me by my name and are constantly messing up other people's names, you can't blame me for assuming."
Lucifer grimaces, "Yeah, I'm not sure why it's so hard for names to stick. I don't think I used to be so bad at them?"
"I suppose it's understandable for your mind to not be what it used to be at your old age." Alastor says with faux sympathy.
"You're such an asshole." Lucifer can't help laughing and gets a shit-eating grin in response. The Deer Demon isn't so bad when he's not causing problems for Lucifer on purpose.
One of Lucifer's injuries decides that's the moment to get REALLY itchy, so he lightly rubs the area, hoping to relieve some of the itching without actually scratching. It doesn't really help, but it makes him feel better.
"Hm, since you've been giving me such delightful nicknames," Alastor buttons up his shirt, a shame if you ask Lucifer's attention-starved horny brain, "how about I give you one?"
"What do you have in mind?" Lucifer is suddenly weary. Alastor has been a little shit since the moment they met each other, so even though they seem to be hanging out right now, Lucifer fully expects it to be an insult of some kind.
"Lets see.." Lucifer's surprise that man seems to be thinking pretty hard on it.
"You could just call me Lu." Lucifer offers, "I told Vagastasia to call me that."
You know, directly before she convinced him to intimidate the TV-man and got them in so much trouble with Charlie... Oh, he might be a little mad at Charlie's girlfriend? Letting himself feel his negative emotions towards family or their partners feels so weird.
"I couldn't possibly call you something so informal in public." Alastor "dismisses", but Lucifer can't help notice the wording. Maybe it's just that he's lived in Hell for too long, or because Lucifer saw the recording where Alastor got out of his deal with Vax with word-play, but he'd be an idiot to not think the Demon didn't word it that way on purpose. "How about Starlight?"
" "Starlight"?" Lucifer blinks in confusion.
"Why, yes!" Alastor seems to leer a bit, but that's normal for the weirdo. "I assume you call me "Bambi" because of my deer traits, so I wanted something equivalent, but there's too many people who'd think I was talking to them if I used something based off you being an angel. But you're THE Morning Star. Thus "Starlight"! Is that alright with you, Starlight?"
"That's..." Lucifer just KNOWS he's blushing up a storm. "That's surprisingly sweet of you."
"Slander." Alastor jokes, probably to deflect from positive emotions. He stands and retrieves his jacket. "Since you don't want payment for healing my wounds, but I hate debts, I shall make you dinner for the next week. Is this amenable, Starlight?"
"I'm immune to most poisons." Lucifer "warns" playfully, not actually thinking the man would try to kill him at this point. With how this whole interaction has gone, Lucifer is actually a little guilty for seeing the guy as a threat when he saw him the other day. Not that ANYONE could blame him. The Radio Demon isn't known for benevolence and has been arguing with Lucifer since the moment they met. Of course Lucifer would see him has a threat. He IS a threat.. just maybe not to Lucifer?
"Good to know." Alastor laughs. Once the Demon has his jacket back in place, he stand in front of Lucifer and bends down to offer him a hand up to his feet. Almost exactly how he had when they were in the hall. "You really should get off the floor, Starlight. It can't be that comfortable."
That nickname may actually kill him.
"I don't know, the carpet is pretty plush." Lucifer snarks, but easily takes the offered hand. This time Alastor is prepared for Lucifer's weight and doesn't accidently launch him up, instead gently pulls him to his feet. Lucifer's eyes catch on Alastor's still untied tie. "Here, let me."
Alastor freezes for a fraction of a second when Lucifer grabs his tie, but relaxes realizing he's just tying it. Lucifer probably should have asked, but oh well.
He ties it into an eldritch knot because he thinks he's funny.
"There you go, Bambi."
"Thank you, Lu." Oh, NO! Lucifer did NOT think this through. Lucifer flashes a smirk instead of acknowledging the way his heart sped up.
"No problem, Al." Shadow's chittering makes Lucifer look at the creature. "Yes, I didn't forget about you, Shadow."
Alastor rolls his eyes at their antics. "I shall go get dinner started. I believe we have all the ingredients for curry. I won't use my preferred meat for it, though."
"I appreciate that." Lucifer chuckles. While he's not completely against eating Sinners, it's not like it counts as cannibalism if he does it, he still prefers not to. It makes him feel guilty.. for a lot of reasons, and a bit grossed out, because he has no idea where they've been and he probably doesn't want to know.
"Of course." Alastor and Shadow then disappear into the shadows, likely shadow-traveling to the kitchen.
Lucifer pulls out his phone to check the time and is surprised at how long he and Alastor were basically hanging out in his room. It was at least 5 hours.
There's a couple messages for the Sins, but, disappointingly, nothing from Charlie or Vaggi. Those girls are honestly starting to really annoy him. It's like they only view him as a tool. Just something to call upon when they need something, but otherwise out of sight, out of mind. Just like Lilith.
Those thoughts startle him. It's like finally removing his wedding ring has opened the floodgate on his emotions. Things he's been easily ignoring or pretending to not notice are suddenly like glaring neon signs yelling at him. He's not sure how he feels about that, but it's probably a lot healthier than the repression he's been doing since forever.
Maybe that's why he finds Alastor so refreshing? The Deer will seek him out for no other reason than "entertainment" and doesn't fake where Lucifer stands with him. Guy really came out swinging because of how shitty of a father he thought Lucifer was and transitioned to a more playful antagonism as they, unfortunately, grew on each other.
He's reluctant to admit that he stopped making sure to leave his suite and keep up to date on the ongoings around the Hotel when the Sinner quit. A stupid thing to do for sure, but there hadn't been much for him to do with so little "customers" and maintenance at the time. And maybe he should have just stayed in his room until whatever Alastor had planned with the Vees had played out? Because oh boy, had following Vaggi's suggestion been a mistake.
The itching in the wounds and his wings start making him even more annoyed with his thoughts.
"Ugh, fine!" Lucifer grumbles while removing his shirt. Once it's out of the way, he releases his wings from their pocket dimension. They pull and mess up some of his bandages, but ruffling and fluffing them in the open feels fantastic. A handful of dead feathers fall to the floor without him having to do anything, which is nice, but means he definitely has his work cut out for him.
Around 2/3s of the inside of his wings are easy to do, dead feathers needing plucked and keratin sheaths needing to break are easy to reach, but the last 3rd is harder and harder to preen the closer to his back they get. And the outside of his wings are even harder to do. Having 6 wings is bullshit! At least his snake traits usually make the twisting and bending easier, unfortunately his injuries are making that twisting and bending basically impossible to do without pulling a stitch, so he has to get creative. He ends up using a mirror and his magic to run a specialized comb through the spots he can't get to with his hands currently. It's not a perfect solution, but it'll do for now. It makes his wings significantly less itchy.
He'll need to make a day of properly cleaning and preening his wings when he's healed enough for it.
A knock startles him out of the meditative zone he finds himself in almost every time he does wing care.
"Dad?" Charlie's voice sounds guilty even through the door.
"One moment, sweetie!" Lucifer calls back. He puts his wings away and quickly readjusts the bandages they had messed with, before snapping his fingers and using magic to put his shirt and coat back on, and to magically clean up the dandruff and feathers the subpar preening session left on his floor.
Charlie looks so sad and guilty when he finally pulls open his door. "Dad, I'm SO sorry! I didn't mean to leave you, but there was just so many people and-"
"Charlie." Lucifer holds his hands up and gives her a tired smile, "I'm understand. Your dream-"
"Where's your ring?" Charlie cuts him off and is now staring at his finger. The question makes the smile leave his face, but he manages not to frown. He's unsure what her reaction is going to be.
"I took it off." He says simply, eyeing her wearily.
"Why?" She demands. Oh dear.
"Charlie-"
"What will mom think? What if she comes back and sees you took it off?" Charlie is getting very worked up.
"Charlie-" Lucifer tries again.
"She'll think-"
"That's quite enough, Ms. Charlotte." Alastor's staticky voice has never been such a blessing before.
The two Morningstars look over to find the Radio Demon standing there with a plate of steaming food in his hands.
"But-!" Charlie starts, but Alastor cuts her off again.
"You're not listening. Again." Lucifer is curious, the Demon's tone suggests he's referencing a conversation Lucifer wasn't there for. "You keep talking over your father, instead of letting him explain. Anything could have happened to the thing, but even if nothing had, I wouldn't be surprised if he got tired of waiting for someone who doesn't care enough to even reassure him that she's alive."
"That's not-!" She starts to protest again, but this time Lucifer cuts her off.
"Charlie. Stop." He wraps his arms around his torso in a self soothing manner. "Me and your mother have been having relationship problems for longer than you've been alive... I'm tired of being the only one putting in the work."
"That's not fair!" Lucifer can't help flinching back when Charlie takes a step towards him. It makes her face fall. "Dad?"
"I can't keep doing this, Charlie." Lucifer's voice is soft, but firm when he speaks. He HATES how vulnerable he feels.
He jerks his head to signal for Alastor to enter his suite, so once Charlie leaves he can try to talk him into an understanding that won't end with this being used against him in the future. The Demon slips passed him with little fuss.
"Wha-what do you mean?" Charlie's voice mimics the level of softness he had used. He moves his hand so he can stare at his finger.
"I can't keep pretending everything is fine. We've been effectively divorced since you were a child, and you're an adult now, sweetie." He looks up at her devastated face. "It's time I let go of the delusion your mother cared for me as much as I did her. It's been 8 years of her completely ignoring us and longer since she proved she actually cared about me. I NEED to move on."
"Are you sure you're not just being emotional because of what happened with Vox?" Charlie stubbornly asks, "That you won't regret this once everything calms down?"
"Charlie.." Lucifer sighs, stepping back into the doorway and grabbing the door, "I know this is hard for you, honey, but please think over the words I just said."
"Da-" Lucifer gently, but firmly closes the door.
"Wow, you really have grown a spine when dealing with your daughter." Lucifer almost forgot the asshole was there.
"Yeah, well, I had to wake up to reality eventually. Please don't spread what you just heard around." Lucifer says as he turns towards the Demon, who's still holding the plate of food. "That looks good, by the way."
"Of course." Lucifer's not quite sure which statement that's agreeing to, but the Demon's smile is more genuine than usual, so hopefully all 3. Alastor steps closer and holds the plate out, so Lucifer quickly takes it, flickering his tongue in and out of his mouth (like a snake) to get a good whiff of its scent.
"Smells great, too." Alastor's face does something weird, but Lucifer isn't really sure what it means.
"You flatter me, Starlight." Alastor's eyes drift to the door, but before Lucifer can awkwardly free him of this social situation, he asks. "Would you like company while you eat?"
"Oh!" Lucifer is genuinely surprised by the offer, but finds he'd love some company after what happened with Charlie. "Sure, if you want!"
He awkwardly waves to the breakfast table by one of the large windows facing the beautiful sunset, well Hell's equivalent of a sunset. Sometimes he likes to watch the sky and/or city over there.
"Mn." Alastor summons his own plate of curry and rice to his hands and takes a graceful seat at the chair sized for people much taller than Lucifer is. Lucifer had been hoping Charlie would casually visit more often. "This is a lovely view."
"Thanks." Lucifer doesn't feel nearly as graceful climbing into his own seat. His feet don't touch the ground at all, but he can reach the table. Lucifer catches Alastor's amused look. "Shut up."
"I didn't say anything." Alastor says, but his shit-eating grin widens. Lucifer "threateningly" brandishes the spoon Alastor had given him with the plate.
"You're thinking it. Loudly."
"Are thoughts a crime now?" Alastor tilts his head, a playful gleam in his eye.
"Ugh!" Lucifer dramatically groans and slumps on the table, careful of the food. The warm feeling is back when he hears Alastor chuckle. Shadow ends up startling Lucifer into sitting up by brushing against his legs. Lucifer looks down at the creature with wide eyes. "Oh! Hello again, dear!"
Shadow grins and waves before disappears under the table.
"Your food is going to get cold, Starlight." Alastor says lightly.
"Ah. Sorry." Lucifer blushes again. Ugh, why is he so awkward!?
Lucifer is mildly impressed at how elegant Alastor manages to eat. It makes Lucifer feel a little like a slob in comparison, but there's not much Lucifer can do about it. He's never really mastered the "grace" and "elegance" that people seem to expect of him, but he's never really needed to. He prefers practical and efficient with most mandatory tasks, like eating or paperwork.
"What do you plan to do about Charlie?" Alastor suddenly asks about halfway through their meal.
"What do you mean?" Lucifer frowns, a bit confused.
"She doesn't seem to have her priorities in order." Alastor states, "She seems to care more about being right and things going her way than the people relying on her."
Lucifer freezes, reflexive defensiveness wells up, but he pushes it away, before shaking his head, because he knows exact what Alastor means. The Demon is just trying to help in his own way. "She gets that from her mother, unfortunately. I'm just not sure I can get through to her. I was never able to with Lilith."
"Yes, well, a spouse is different than a parent." Alastor points out. Lucifer turns his eyes to his plate to avoid eye contact as he gets his thoughts in order.
"I suppose you're right." Lucifer sighs wearily, "I'll try to talk to her tomorrow. I think she needs to process me giving up on Lilith tonight."
"May I ask about that?" Alastor merely looks curious when Lucifer glances up at him.
"About Lilith?"
"Yes."
Lucifer fidgets with his spoon as he finds the words to explain.
"I suppose Charlie was a little right about the TV-guy having something to do with my decision." Lucifer grimaces. Well, in for a penny, in for a pound. Alastor already witnessed his vulnerability over this with Charlie. "But it's more that the situation was the last straw that broke the metaphorical camel of my emotions' back. Something about waking up after being humiliated and nearly dying, alone, after all the years of bullshit I dealt with broke through the denial I've been swimming in for who knows how long. I just can't keep pretending anymore that "Hell's greatest love story" is actually a love story. I..."
Lucifer blinks away tears, he refuses to cry, before admitting. "I'm not sure it ever was."
"I see." Alastor sounds sympathetic. "That must be hard. You should sit down with Charlie and explain that to her. She'll never understand if you don't tell her plainly."
"I.. You're right." Lucifer takes a deep breath. "I won't.. can't tell her everything, but she's a good kid. Her heart's in the right spot, usually."
"Would you like someone to be there with you when you have this conversation?" Alastor asks. And Lucifer is unspeakably relieved Alastor didn't ask for details on his relationship with Lilith.
"I.." Lucifer realizes he wouldn't mind Alastor to be nearby when that conversation goes down. The Demon has been constantly on his side the last couple days, even scolding Charlie over her treatment of him while Lucifer was unconscious and unable to defend himself from her accusations. Lucifer would have called you crazy if you had told him the anything that happened since he was kidnapped happened before said kidnapping. "I'd like to try to have the conversation by ourselves first, but I wouldn't mind if you stayed nearby.. in case things get out of hand.."
There's a silence "again" that is very loud, but Lucifer refuses to acknowledge it.
"As you wish, Starlight." Lucifer's heart flutters again. Damn this asshole for being so attractive and gentlemanly all of a sudden. But Again! It's not like the man is an option even if Lucifer was ready for a relationship of a romantic nature!
"Thanks." Lucifer says in response. He can't help the shy sincerity that slips into his voice.
"Of course." The big bad Radio Demon says equally sincerely, then gets skittish, abruptly standing with his empty plate. "It's been a lovely evening, but I shall bind you a good-night."
"Ah." It's kind of cute that Alastor is panicking over positive attention. "Have pleasant dreams, Alastor."
"I don't sleep." The Deer deadpans and disappears into the shadows, leaving Lucifer to question if the other was joking or not.
Wondering if the Radio Demon slept or not is not how Lucifer pictured his day ending! What even is his life?