Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Lucifer believes that this is his dream job. It is his dream job! He’s with his daughter more than he was in his last position, he gets to draw all day, and he gets summers off! Even more time with Charlie! He tells himself this because if he doesn’t remind himself that this is for the best he really will do something he’ll regret. Though it’s hard to remember that drop kicking a child is illegal when he has a whole classroom of the little heathens screaming at the top of their lungs.

Sure, he doesn’t have any time to paint anymore. Sure, this job really is only to cover his ass so his family stops asking him to come back. But hey, you make sacrifices for your children right? Screw all the money you spent on art school and all your hopes and dreams and–   

Anyways… 

The children had just come in from recess and it was evident that they were riled up and not at all ready to be seated for art class. As if art class had any prior respect of course it was placed right after recess on the 3rd grade schedule. Who’s bright idea was that? Probably that asshole assistant principal, Adam. 

Lucifer clapped his hands together, standing up on a chair, trying to find a way to get the kids attention “Hey! Class! Can we use our inside voices, please!”

More like kindly shut the fuck up. 

With a sigh he noticed that a couple of kids did listen to him. His precious Charlie was sitting down with her hands folded neatly on her desk with a bright smile on her face. Her best friend Vaggie sat by her side quietly, looking nervously between the small blonde and her father. He couldn’t help but melt a little at the sight, Vaggie was a new transfer student this year and had been following Charlie around like a puppy for the last couple of weeks. Seems like she may have a crush on his girl, it’s adorable. Charlie, of course, was happy to oblige her new friend and made it her personal mission to make Vaggie feel at home in her class. 

The kids took a couple more minutes before settling in, turning their attention to now making fun of Lucifer standing on his desk chair. 

“Mr. Morningstar is a big kid for sure now!” One of the little creatures, Anthony, yelled loudly. He smiled with pure glee as the rest of the class erupted into laughter at his joke. Low hanging fruit, buddy. Low hanging.

Lucifer grit his teeth and stepped down from the chair, wheeling it away from himself as he picked up the example artwork he’d made the night before. It was a silly project, the kids would be coloring hands with warm and cool colors. 

“If we’re done with the comedy show–” Lucifer started, earning some giggles, “I’d like to explain today’s assignment! Each one of you will get a piece of paper and some markers. I’d like everyone to pick a partner for this.” 

He watched as the kids hurriedly glanced at their friends and rushed to change seats in order to sit with their preferred person. Though not many had to. See, Lucifer was something of an observer and in being one he put the students who gravitated towards each other together on the seating chart. We watched with a proud smile as his little girl paired up with Vaggie before realizing her other friend, Emily, didn’t have a partner and decided to let her join the group. 

“Dad– I mean, Mr. Morningstar? Is it okay if we have a group of three?” She asked sweetly. 

“It’s not a problem at all Charlie!” He replied as he went around the classroom to hand out markers and paper, “Just make sure everyone gets a turn.” 

She sent him a cute little salute and excitedly accepted the paper and markers her father handed out to her. He went on to explain the rest of the assignment as he finished handing out the materials.

“So, I’d like you all to trace your partner’s hand on your paper in black marker. Once you’ve got that done, draw a circle near the hand, expanding out, like a sun emanating light.” He pointed to the example he had made, “Once you’ve finished that, I would like you to color in your hand in either cool or warm colors. Who remembers what the difference is?”

A plethora of hands shot up, Lucifer pointed to a small boy in the front of the class with glasses too large for his face. 

“Cool colors are colors like blue, green, and purple. Warm colors are like yellow, orange, and red! Color helps people know what to feel about the art they’re looking at.” Pentious said smartly, a confident smile on his face. 

“Nerd.” Cherri coughed from beside him, making the black haired boy push up his glasses and blush, glaring at her. 

“That’s right, Pen. Good job.” Lucifer nodded, “We’ll color the inside of the hand as warm or cool colors and the outside of the hand as the opposite of what you choose.” He circled his pointer finger around the example, “It’ll create a cool optical illusion that I’m sure will impress all your parents!” 

Lucifer was proud of coming up with this assignment. It was interesting to him that his passion could shine through even with trivial children’s work like this. It made him miss painting though. God, he should paint again. 

“Now, get to work!” He clapped his hands, “You guys have the rest of class to finish. I’ll see what I can find for us to listen to today.” 

The classroom naturally filled with the constant white noise of the children chatting with each other and drawing contentedly. It was a good group of kids he had, they did well to keep the noise level down which is why he always rewarded them by playing music. 

Usually, he just played whatever he could find off YouTube. Which typically included the same top fifty Disney songs that the kids would always sing along to. Though he did love the chorus of small voices, and he does adore musicals, the kids tended to lose focus as they burst out into song. So, today, Lucifer would try something different. He walked over to the corner of the room and opened an old closet, coughing slightly when a cloud of dust wafted from it. 

He shook his hand in front of his face and reached down to grab the old radio he'd noticed was in there about a year ago. It was a small antique piece of equipment, something he assumed came from the 1930’s but it had been refurbished and with some elbow grease would do the trick. 

He picked up the radio and brought it over to his desk, carefully fiddling with the dials on the bottom of the device. Once it turned on there was a loud static that filled the room, making the children turn their heads. 

“What’s that?” He heard Emily ask, ever the curious tot. 

“It’s a radio, dear Emily. I’m going to see what people are playing today, it’ll be like an adventure for our ears!” He smiled, hoping to intrigue his class. 

He flipped through the stations, most of them drowned out by the static, he could barely hear the music. With a frown he continued to turn the dials, hoping that this wasn’t going to be a bust. The kids would laugh at him if it was and he did not need that humiliation. 

“Aha!” He cheered as he flipped to a station that had clear sound. The kids clapped enthusiastically for his achievement. 

“I hope you enjoyed that last song. What a classic it is!” The voice on the radio spoke smoothly, despite the noise making slight alterations to their tone. 

“For anyone just joining the broadcast, today we are going through the classics of the 1940’s. Listening to familiar tunes from the past such as Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald. I hope my listeners will be attuned to such greatness.” 

Lucifer rolled his eyes, so this guy was a music critic and obviously an old soul. He didn’t realize that radio hosts still existed, this guy must be later on in his years but it was hard to tell. 

“The next hour will be uninterrupted pleasure for your weary souls, take this time to sit back, relax, and enjoy some culture.” He could hear the guy’s grin through the speaker, “We’ll be starting off with one of my favorites– “You’re never fully dressed without a smile” From the classic Broadway show, Annie.” 

The jazzy tune began as Lucifer thought to himself with a small smile of his own, So much for staying away from musicals. 

Lucifer sat down behind his desk, watching the kids for a while as they continued with their task. They spoke in hushed tones as the radio played in the background, some bobbing their heads to the music. Once satisfied that everyone was doing their work, he shifted his attention to some administrative work that needed to be done. 

With a deep sigh, he placed his hands on the keyboard and started typing away. 

When he came to, his head was sideways on the desk, drool pooling from his mouth. Lucifer jolted up, hair askew and wide eyes frantically assessing the damage that may have occurred while he was sleeping. 

Everyone was still in their seats, but they were packing up. The bell rang before Lucifer had the chance to ask how long he’d been out. Clearly it has been at least an hour. What a shitty teacher he was. 

He stepped out from behind the desk to bid the children goodbye as they exited the classroom, each one of them handing him their assignment as they filed out. They giggled as they passed over their artwork, no doubt whispering about how Mr. Morningstar had fallen asleep to the relaxing tunes of 1940’s classics. 

“Great class Mistah M!” Anthony quipped as he walked up to the door, poorly subduing a laugh, “You’re lucky I’m on a good streak or you woulda had trouble!” 

“Thanks Anthony.” Lucifer groaned, he didn’t need a 9 year old to tell him he’d dropped the ball here. 

The boy giggled as he walked out, his desk mate, Husk, giving a judgmental stare to his teacher filing out behind his flamboyant classmate.  

“That wasn't very nice, Angel.” He heard the other boy say as the pair disappeared down the hallway, followed up by loud laughter from Anthony in response. 

As the last kid walked out the door Lucifer closed the door behind them, putting his back to the wood and slightly sliding down. 

He felt two little hands come to rest on his knees and looked down to see Charlie standing in front of him. 

“Charlie! You’re going to be late for your next period, sweetie.” He fussed, opening the door back up and quickly ushering her into the hallway. 

“Dad! Wait! You’ve got–” She vaguely waved her hands across her face, gesturing something but clearly not wanting to say what it was. 

“What, honey? Sleep lines? I’m sorry I fell asleep, Daddy will do better next class. I promise!” He whined before striking a more “serious” pose, “Now, get on before you're late, young lady! 

“Dad–” Charlie started.

“Nope. I’ll see you after school. Have a great rest of your day. Don’t be tardy.” He said quickly, bringing her in for a kiss on the cheek.

She giggled, pulling away, “Make sure you get that stuff off your face, silly.” 

He watched as she ran down the hallway, reaching her next class that was only a few doors down. 

Wait, stuff on my face? 

He backstepped into the classroom and shut the door before spinning on his heel and rushing over to the sink they had for washing paintbrushes. He kept a set of mirrors there for the kids when they needed to do self portraits. 

He brought the handheld mirror up to his face and his expression dropped. Anthony. 

He had a mustache drawn in sharpie above his lip and what could only be described as a poorly drawn dick on his forehead. Who was teaching this kid these things?! 

He noticed a small ‘sorry’ scribbled across his left cheek as well, assuming that came from one of the girls. 

“That little bastard.” He grit out, grabbing the nearest towel to try and scrub his student’s ‘artwork’ off of his pale skin. He kept rubbing as he walked back over to his desk, realizing that the radio show was still on and the host was now speaking again. 

“In bigger news, it’s been said recently that the infamous Sins of Pride City are back on the prowl. This monopolies family has been running the show from the shadows for as long as any local around here can remember. Though, they did recently have a bit of a falling out. It’s all gossip but it’s said that the eldest son left the group and refuses to take up the helm. Maybe bloodshed just isn’t in the cards for the weak-willed.” 

What the hell? How’d this guy go from classic music to gossiping about a well known crime syndicate? Lucifer shuddered at the thought of people starting to pry more and more into the underground world hidden in the background. He gulped, knowing that he was the eldest son this radio host was speaking of. He was the one who upturned the family business. Who forced the drama to become more public. Luckily enough, he was never an outward facing part of the organization, always dealing in backrooms and long, boring meetings at far off warehouses. 

Otherwise he would’ve never landed this job. He’d have to thank Levi for that one, she was the one who had created him a fake resume and background. He’d grown sick of that life, of being in the dark, of being away from Charlie. In complete honesty, it just wasn’t the same after Lilith left, leaving him alone to be the one in charge. Problem was, he never wanted that position.

“-- Aside from gossip I do fear that this will have to be the end of the broadcast for today.” Lucifer tuned back into the voice on the radio, “I do hope you all have enjoyed it to the fullest and I pray you return for the next one, always on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 1 pm sharp. This is your host, the Radio Demon, signing off.” 

And with that the station went silent.

Radio Demon, huh? That name wasn’t very child friendly.

At the end of the day, Lucifer met Charlie at the front gates of the school. He took her and led her down the sidewalk, listening intently as she babbled about her school day. 

“Then Emily went SO fast across the monkey bars.” She quickly jerked her arms up in the air, pretending like she was swinging from the bars herself, “It was so cool Dad! Like she had wings!” 

Lucifer laughed, “Wow. That’s impressive, hun.” 

They reached the door to their apartment complex rather quickly, only being two blocks away from the school. Academy, really, is what he should call it. It was a private academy on the north side of Pride City, the best of the best for grades K-6. Lucifer didn’t necessarily like to flaunt his wealth but it wasn’t something that stayed hidden, he was surprised that no one had questioned him on how he afforded what he had on a teachers salary. 

They rode up the elevator after being let in by the doorman, Lucifer had greeted him with a curt nod, like every day. He could feel his energy draining fast. His depression was under wraps but hadn’t been completely kicked to the curb yet, keeping up a friendly attitude all day was exhausting. 

Once in the penthouse Charlie rushed off to her room to put down her backpack and get changed into more comfortable clothes. Lucifer decided to stay away from his room, lest he fall into bed and forget to make dinner… again. 

He put his work bag down on a messy dining room table and watched as some random items fell off the other side. He’ll clean that up later. 

“Charlie! What do you want for dinner?” He yelled down the hall.

Her little head popped out from her room, “Pancakes!” She responded. 

Lucifer shrugged, “Easy enough.” 

He would be lying if he said he was a good cook. It was rare that he cooked at all. He usually doordashed them food but he had the will to stay out of bed right now so why not grab the opportunity by the balls. 

Charlie was back at the dining room table by the time Lucifer was flipping pancakes onto a plate. She pushed the pile of random papers and trinkets aside to make room for her plate and her homework. Such a good girl. Lucifer could just cry. 

He placed a plate stacked high with pancakes in front of her and doused them in syrup, handing her a fork. As she started to eat he grabbed an armful of the junk that had been pushed off the table and moved it to the living room. He laughed at the notion of “living” in the living room, it was an absolute mess of unfinished creations and other small things Lucifer had thrown to the wayside. 

He grabbed his own plate and flopped down next to his daughter, similarly drowning his own pancakes in syrup. 

“Dad, you really need to clean up.” Charlie scrunched her nose, maneuvering between a pencil and her fork as she multitasked. 

“I know, sweetie. I will. I’ll do it, uhhh, this weekend!” He held his fork up. 

Charlie gave him a deadpan stare, “You said that last week.”

Ouch. Reprimanded by his daughter once again. 

“I know, I know…” He decided to switch the conversation, “How was class today? What happened while I was, ahem, asleep?” 

“Not that much. Anthony did draw on your face.” She took a bite of pancake, “I told him not to though but he really wanted to and it is art class so I guessed it was okay.” 

Lucifer sighed out a weak laugh, “I did tell you all to express yourselves.”

“Mhmm!” His girl nodded, “We also liked that radio show! The songs were reeeeeeeally old but I liked them. It was a good time. That guy didn’t talk while you were asleep though, which was sad because I liked him too.” 

“What did you like about him?” Lucifer cocked a brow, she hadn’t heard him for more than a couple minutes. 

“He talks funny!” She responded with a bright smile. 

“Heh, yeah, I guess he does. Like an old man.” Lucifer teased. 

“Dad! You can’t say that.” She tittered. 

“What? Are you calling me old?!” He gasped in mock hurt and stood up from his chair, “I’ll show you old!” 

Charlie squealed and shot up from her chair, running away as Lucifer gave chase. They went in circles around the cluttered house, hoping over the miscellaneous items left laying around like an obstacle course.

Lucifer finally caught her around the waist and pulled her into the air for a tight hug, they both laughed, breathing hard from running. 

And before he knew it, he was alone in bed. 

He had put Charlie to sleep and put their dishes in the dish washer before flopping into his bed, the dark room illuminated only by a small, dim duck lamp by his bedside. He sat up quickly to grab the pills off the nightstand, tossing them back with a large glug of water. 

He fell back into the mattress facedown with a heavy sigh, pushing his face into the pillow before turning his head and picking up his phone. 

He pulled up his search engine and typed in the words “Radio Demon”, his mind still stuck on the mysterious man he had heard today. 

Most of the information he found was pretty basic. The guy had no social media, no contact, no photos. Mysterious. The only thing that was official that Lucifer could find was a subsection on the website of the radio station the guy worked for. Apparently the show had been going on for about 10 years and was extremely popular, with people begging the host in online threads to move to doing a podcast or starting a channel.

Lucifer huffed, what did the guy have to hide? Didn’t he want the fame? 

He placed the phone back down, curling in on his side and closing his eyes. It wasn’t his business anyways. Some people didn’t want to be found. 

Himself included. 

With those last thoughts of the “Radio Demon” Lucifer drifted off, hoping that this sleep would be restful and calm. 

Chapter Text

“You know, if you wanted to leave, we could.” Lucifer made a move to softly place his hand upon hers, soft and lithe. 

“We can’t, you can’t.” Lilith’s gaze hardened, curling her fingers into a fist under his touch. 

“They’d be fine without me, Lili. It'd be better for Charlie, and would be better for us in the long run as well.” He lifted her hand to his chest, bringing those steely eyes to cast their attention on him instead of the floor. 

“It’s not that simple, Lucifer.” Her chest heaved with a heavy breath, “You’re the eldest child, the future of the family. You can’t abandon them. Not for me.” 

“I’d do anything for you.” He squeezed her hand, biting his lip softly when she looked away, eyes back down to the concrete below them. 

“I–” Lilith took in another deep breath, lifting her head and looking up to the ceiling, “I know you would. But, the problem is. I don’t want you to.” 

The soft smile that had been on Lucifer’s face faltered, “What?” He asked, voice pained. 

Lilith blinked quickly, willing away tears before they flowed down her cheeks, “Lucifer. You’ve been so good for me. Better than anything I ever could’ve ever prayed for. But, I can’t stay here any longer, this isn’t my path.” 

“Not…” He was dumbfounded, shocked, “Not your path?” 

She brought her beautiful blue eyes to him, tears welling in them. He’d always loved how they were deep enough to look purple in hue. His beautiful Lilith. His one and only. Til the end. Right? 

“This is where you’re meant to be. To be with your family. To lead with pride. I can’t be contained here, I cannot be forced to continue to work under these conditions, tied down by these traditions and concepts that I’ll never truly be attached to.” 

“Lil, you’re part of the family too. What–” He let out a short laugh in disbelief, “What are you even talking about right now.” 

“I’m leaving, like you said. But not with you. Not with Charlie. You two are staying here, it’s the only decision that will work in everyone's favor.” Lilith explained, once again willing her tears away and standing gracefully. The hand that had been in Lucifer’s pulled away as if it had been rested on a hot iron. 

“Lilith–” Lucifer stood, disorientingly fast. He attempted to make contact again, to join their hands once more. 

She pulled her hand close to her side, back turned to him, “Don’t follow me. Don’t contact me.” She turned her head over her shoulder, the tears were back, “Please take care of Charlie.” 

“LILITH! WOAH WO–” Lucifer shot up in bed, his heart beating a million miles a second. He rose so quickly that his heavy duvet tangled around his torso and he toppled over the side of the bed in a wretched mess of sweat and tears. 

“Fuuuck…” He groaned, lifting a hand to his head, which had just collided roughly with the hardwood. 

He lay there, staring at the ceiling, legs bent over the side of the bed, wrapped up in the many blankets he slept with for any sense of comfort he could find. As he laid on his back he lifted his right hand into the air, longingly looking at the golden band adorning his ring finger. He couldn’t bear to take it off, it would be wrong. It would make it all feel final. As if her being gone for four years didn’t make it final enough.

Eventually, after who knows how long, Lucifer decided to detangle himself from the wreckage and get up off the cold floor. He stood, attempting to rearrange his sleeping clothes, as if he had any need to be presentable whatsoever. 

As he picked up the covers strewn across his feet to place them back on the bed, he glanced over to the clock on his bedside table. Only 7 am. Surprisingly early for him on a Saturday. 

Charlie would sleep in for at least another hour or so. Perhaps he would actually use this time to be productive for once. He sat on the edge of the bed, fighting the urge to sink slowly into the mattress, wondering if he should just let it consume him again. Consume him like it usually did. Maybe if he went back to sleep he could reenter that dream and convince Lilith to stay with him. But, it would still be nothing more than a dream. There was nothing he could do about something that had occurred years before. 

Before he could be sucked down into that familiar black pit, he stood and smacked his hands on each side of his pale face. It stung and he could feel his cheeks heat up, likely leaving behind a red stain of blood rushing to the surface. Lucifer snatched his phone up, swallowed his pills for the day, and made his way to the door of his bedroom. 

Hopefully Charlie hadn’t heard his fall, he thought as he quietly stepped into the hallway. He tiptoed down the corridor and peeked into Charlie’s room, her door left ajar as usual. She laid in her bed, dead to the world, curled around a giant ducky stuffie that Lucifer had won for her at the last Pride City Annual Fair. The sight brought a smile to his face. It also brought something he hadn’t felt in awhile: inspiration. 

Lucifer straightened up, backing up into the hallway and bringing a hand up to his chin. He felt the desire to paint burn deep in the pit of his stomach, a feeling that he hadn’t experienced in God knows how long. 

He made his way to their mess of a living room, rummaging through his old supplies to see if there was anything usable lying around anymore. 

“No… No…” He threw an empty tin and tube of old oil paint behind his back, there had to be a set around here that wasn’t crusted. 

He heard small footsteps come into the room. Dammit. 

“Charlie!” I’m so sorry, I didn’t wake you did I–” 

“Meow!” Keekee greeted him 

He was fully turned now, looking down at the small black and white cat sitting in front of him, blinking her large yellow eyes slowly at him. 

His lip shot out in a pout and he crooned, “Awh, hewwo Keekee!” He knelt down to pet her soft fur, her body already vibrating from her aggressive purring. He curled his fingers under her chin, giving her some gentle scratches. His eyes wandered to the side and spotted a box under the couch, an unopened set of paints no less! 

“Aha!” He tore his attention from the cat and dove under the couch, pushing junk to the side and grabbing the set of paints. Once it was out in the light he sat in a criss-cross position and tore the top off of it. 

He rummaged through the materials. His excitement degraded back into disappointment as he realized that this set was just as old as all the others had been, the paint was completely dried up or emptied out. Curse his past self for never throwing anything away and keeping things in the boxes they came in! 

“Well, there’s always charcoal.” He wasn’t going to be defeated. If he didn’t currently have the power to paint, he’d draw. 

About 20 messy scrawlings on old newspaper pages later, Charlie made her debut into the living room. Her eyes lit up when she saw her Dad sitting in the middle of the room, his fingers stained a dark black gradient from using the charcoal. 

“Dad! You’re drawing!’ She announced, excitedly bounding over to him, hoping to take a look at his new creation. 

Lucifer, drawn out of his focused creative state, pulled the page of the large sketchbook to the side, nearly knocking the easel over in the process. 

“Uh-uh! Not yet! It’s a surprise.” He brought a finger to his lips as if keeping a secret. 

“Dad!” Charlie whined, crossing her arms and pouting up at him. 

“C’mon Char-Char! It’ll be great once it’s done but right now it’s gotta be a secret. It’s for you, so you can’t see it until it’s finished.” 

“Hmm,” She pondered, still upset, “But I want to see it now. I haven’t seen your drawings in a really, really long time!” 

Lucifer gave her a little chuckle and flipped the page to the one he’d previously drawn on. It was a mess of ducks from all angles, a warm up page if you will. He turned the book to her and saw as she brightened even more, obviously satisfied that she had seen at least some of his new artwork. 

“They’re so cute, Dad!” She hopped up and down.

“Now, is it okay that we keep the other piece a secret?” He asked, closing the book and sliding off the stool he’d been seated on.

“Mhmm!” She nodded, “I can wait now!”

“Great!” He picked up the girl, placing her on his hip, “How would you feel about a little daddy daughter date today? We can go get some pastries and head over to the art supply store.” 

“Yes!!” Charlie whipped her hands up over her head in excitement, nearly punching Lucifer in the face. 

“And we can go to the park to play!” She added as he walked her back to her room to get ready for the day. 

“Of course we can.” He beamed, the sensation of creativity lifting his spirits.

Charlie swung his hand aggressively as they walked down the main street of Pride City. The town was bustling at this time of day, pedestrians crowded the sidewalk on a beautifully sunny Saturday morning. Lucifer held tight to his daughter’s hand, afraid the crowd might sweep her away if he loosened his grip for even a second. 

They were heading to his favorite art supply store, Rosie’s, a small shop that was combined with a specialty boutique that sold vintage clothing (and sometimes homemade pastries). He loved the woman who ran it, sweet and sociable, Rosie was just the person to urge him to continue with this creative spark. 

The familiar tinny sound of a little bell rang as they entered the shop, Charlie took no time to release herself from his grasp and went running over to the counter to look for Rosie. 

Lucifer walked closely behind her, his head on a swivel as he looked at the art supplies while also keeping an eye out for his friend. 

“Is she here?” Charlie asked, bouncing up and down on her heels, tiny fingers gripping the side of the countertop. 

“I’d be surprised if she wasn’t.” Lucifer hummed out, attention stolen by a brand of oil paints he’d never seen before. He crouched down to get a closer look at them, back to Charlie and the counter. 

“Oh my! Well, isn’t my favorite little Princess!” Rosie’s sweet voice broke the quiet of the store. 

Charlie squealed and ran over to the woman who had just come from the back of the store, likely finishing up some stitching for her client work. 

“Rosie!” The girl leapt into her arms as Rosie kneeled to the ground to receive her. 

“How are you, my sweet?” She laughed, lofty and soothing. 

“I’m great! Dad and I are on a daddy-daughter date! We’re gonna go to the cafe after this to get some snacks after he picks up some paint. He was drawing duckies when I woke up!” Charlie explained, rapid fire with her words.

“Luci, dear, you were drawing?” Rosie asked, bringing her deep brown eyes up to him, pooling with unspoken enthusiasm. 

Lucifer gave a shy smile, rubbing the back of his neck, “Yeah. I got a stroke of inspiration this morning. But I, uh–” 

I’m out of paint because everything I’ve ever bought from you has dried up or been unused for years because I’m a sack of depressed shit who can’t even pick up a pencil

“I used up all my paint.” He ended up with 

Rosie made a knowing noise, standing up from her position with Charlie and straightening out the fashionable dress she wore. 

“It’s nice to hear that you’re back at it. Please, take all the time to find what you need.” She offered a gentle smile. 

He’d never told the woman that he didn’t really paint anymore, hadn’t told her that the supplies he came in for were always for his art classes and not for himself, but she could tell. She was an intuitive person, Lucifer was surprised he’s never spilled his guts to her. He bet she’d be a fantastic listener and advice giver. 

“Thanks, Rosie. Mind if I ask you to keep an eye out for Charlie while I look around?” He asked. 

“Of course, dear. She’s safe with me.” 

Lucifer nodded, looking at Charlie, “You know where to find me. Don’t wander off. Listen to what Rosie tells you!” 

“Yeah Dad, I got it!” Charlie waved an annoyed hand at him, stop being overbearing Dad. We’re literally in the same shop, her eyes said. 

He exhaled sharply with amusement. He knew she’d rather chat with Rosie and look at the pretty vintage dresses instead of walking around the shop looking at the same 2 sets of paint, trying to decide which was a better option.

He meandered over to the paint section and began his search, picking up the set he usually bought and the other new brand he hadn’t seen before. He felt a bit out of practice in the store. When he came in on a normal day he left with googly eyes, pipe cleaners, markers, and glue. It’d been a while since he’d enjoyed the fine art section of the store. 

He ran his fingers along the canvases as he walked by them. He should probably get one, if this painting was going to make it out of the sketch stage. So what was it that he needed… 

Paint, canvas, possibly some new brushes, gamsol, gesso… jeez this list was getting extensive. 

He heard the shop bell ring again. He told himself it was just another customer coming in before his anxious mind could tell him that it was his daughter leaving without his permission.

He continued to pursue the aisles for a time longer. The anxiety was building as he noticed no new bodies in the shop. Surely not. Right? 

He shook his head and picked up one of the baskets that was the beginning of the aisle he was in. As he was filling it, he couldn't ignore the pit in his stomach. 

“Rosie–” He said, coming back to the front of the store, trying not to be frantic. 

“Yes?” She answered, up at the register, fixing up some items for display. 

“Where’s Charlie?” He gulped, anxiety clawing up his neck.

Rosie looked up, concern etched in her expression, obviously picking up on the anxious tone of his voice.

“Not to worry, dear. She’s just gone to the flower shop next door. I’ve got a friend–” The rest of the sentence blurred for Lucifer, the anxiety making his head fuzzy. 

He couldn’t even respond, his heart beating in his ears. He ran to the door, basket still in hand and wretched it open, blatant disregard to his own strength. 

Where is she? Next door? She can’t be out on her own. What if she gets kidnapped? Ran over? Stolen? Hurt? Gets scared? What if– 

“Oof!” As soon as he turned to exit out of the shop he was stopped by a large mass heading in his direction. The basket of art supplies he had been carrying was flung up in the air at incredible speed due to the fast pace he had been walking. To make it worse, the quickness of his motions against such a stable blockage managed to knock him on his ass. 

He took in a sharp breath, readying himself to yell his head off at this stranger who’d knocked him over! How dare this person get in the way of him getting to his daughter! He needed to find Charlie! Charlie… 

Who was standing right in front of him? 

Holding flowers? 

Next to a pair of extremely well polished red loafers? 

“Are you alright, sir?” A voice asked, deep and playful, obviously hiding a smirk while staying polite. 

“Dad!” Charlie giggled, her hands coming up to her mouth in surprise at her own laughter. 

Laughing at her father’s misfortune. At least he was hearing her laughter. He felt his body let go of the tense anxiety that had gripped him moments ago. He looked up further and noticed a hand offered to him, the man that had knocked him over. 

He took the stranger’s hand before looking up at the man’s face. He couldn’t bring his eyes up to the other, hoping that he wasn’t blushing too intensely now as he replayed that last minute over and over in his head. 

“Look, I’m so sorry for running into you–” He finally glanced up at the man. Handsome man. 

The stranger was looking at him with half lidded eyes, his lips quirked in a delicate grin. A grin that looked like it could be the natural state of his face. His eyes warm pools of golden brown, sharp and calculating despite staying welcoming and calm. They matched the warm tone of his brown skin, paired with a sharp jawline and curly brown hair in a stylish cut. His outfit looked like he’d walked straight out of a black and white film from days past, a slim-cut red pinstripe suit with pressed black slacks and clear wide rimmed glasses. 

He was snapped out of his trance when the mystery man cleared his throat. He didn’t know how long he’d been staring at the man, or holding his hand. 

“Oh! Sorry!” He dropped the man’s hand, “Again– So sorry, I ran into you. My daughter has disappeared and I was worried so I came running, I obviously wasn’t paying any attention so, yeah, sorry.” He rambled incessantly. 

The man joined his hands behind his back, “It’s no problem. I was actually coming to return dear Charlie. So, it may as well have been fate that we bumped into each other.” That easy smile was so captivating, Lucifer was having trouble hearing the words that those lips were saying.

“Mister Al was bringing some flowers over to Rosie! I helped him pick out the best ones.” Charlie beamed beside the man, looking up at him. 

‘Mister Al’ nodded along, “Indeed. Her input was very insightful.” 

“Ah, well, that was nice of you Char-Char.” An unsure smile crossed his face. He wanted to scold her for running off but she was doing something nice… And she wasn’t that far.

And she’d brought this handsome guy here, so… 

“Al, is it?” Lucifer asked, shifting his attention to the taller man. So tall actually. Lucifer had just noticed that the guy towered over him by at least a foot. 

“Alastor,” He held out his hand again, “A pleasure to be meeting you! Sir?” 

Lucifer took his hand, shaking it this time instead of awkwardly gripping onto it for an inappropriate amount of time. 

“Lucifer.” He said, wondering if eye contact with people is always this intense or it’s just this guy. 

“The devil himself, hm?” The man grinned, those eyes pierced through Lucifer’s soul. Who was the devil here exactly because it looked like his man wanted to eat him alive.

“Ahaaa, yeah, I get that a lot. My parents were… eclectic.” He glanced to the ground nervously, seeing that his art supplies were still scattered around their feet. 

“Shit! I forgot about all that.” He dropped down to pick up his discarded items. Grateful when Charlie joined in and started placing things back in the basket. He dropped everything in and picked the basket up, noticing that Alastor had picked up the canvas he’d flung halfway down the sidewalk in his haste. 

“Here.” The man all but purred, “You’re an artist, I take it?” 

“My dad is the best artist around! He’s a painter!” Charlie interrupted excitedly, now standing next to her father proudly.

Lucifer nodded in return, taking the canvas from Alastor's open grip. 

“Beautiful.” Alastor spoke in a soft inquisitive tone, an almost familiar tone, “It is always nice to see that the traditional arts are still upheld. I’d consider myself a bit of an artist as well. 

“Are you? What do you do?” Lucifer asked, watching as the taller man straightened in excitement to speak about his art. 

“Why, I host a radio show! I’m sure you’ve heard of it,” He ran a hand down one of the lapels of his suit jacket, Lucifer’s eyes naturally following the movement, “Most call me the Radio Demon. The show is all about vintage music, arts, and sometimes some town gossip when the mood strikes.” 

Both Lucifer and Charlie lit up in recognition, “Oh!” They managed to speak at the same time. 

“Dad played you in class yesterday! He brought out this old-timey radio and you were there on it!” Charlie explained. 

“Class, you say?” His eyes trailing from the girl to her father. 

“Dad is my art teacher! At Central Pride academy! You should come to our class, everyone really liked your show.” She smiled brightly.

“An art teacher? Now that, I did not expect.” Alastor’s eyes lingered on the supplies in Lucifer’s hands before coming back up to his face. 

“Yes. I am. That. An art teacher. My only job!” He awkwardly leaned forward with a swing of the arm. He knew he had recognized this guy's voice. Now all he could think about is if Alastor might know about his position in the family business. Surely if he’d done his research before talking ‘gossip’ on his show he would’ve found something that would indicate Lucifer (not a very common name) as the eldest son of the Sins. 

Then again, he did try to erase every single piece of himself off the internet. So, maybe he doesn’t know anything. But something about the man's gaze has him on edge. 

The silence between the group grew for a moment, Lucifer now of a sounder mind, taking in the man in front of him once again. This time noticing that he had streaks of black down the front of his red suit jacket.

Lucifer looked down at his fingers and then back up at the man, “I– I think I may have gotten some charcoal on your jacket…” Ink as well, stupidly he had been testing pens on his hands while he was in the store.

Alastor looked down, lifting his gaze slowly back to Lucifer with a smile, “Not to worry, it was in need of a dry clean anyways.” 

Lucifer shivered at the tone, there was a sharp edge on that lilting voice. 

“No, I insist I’ll pay for it to be cleaned! It’s my fault after all! I’ll take it over and everything.” Lucifer spat out quickly, nearly tumbling over the offer. 

Alastor gave him an amused look and instead of fighting the offer like Lucifer assumed he would, he just nodded, “Alright. That would be appreciated.” 

Weird. Lucifer furrowed his brows as the man began to gracefully take off the coat. 

He handed it over to Lucifer. Who had his hands full, actually. And upon seeing that fact, tossed the coat into the crook of his arm. 

“Take care of it for me.” He patted Lucifer on the shoulder, like a child, that edge to his tone back in his voice. 

Offense taken? Lucifer could feel his feathers ruffle. He was offering to be nice but he wasn’t some kind of servant. He frowned. Who did this guy think he was? 

He watched as the man decided to be done with this conversation and walked over to the door of Rosie’s, “Aren’t you going to pay for that?” He asked over his shoulder, opening the door. 

“Of course I am!” Lucifer huffed, walking in before Alastor got the chance, Charlie in tow behind him. Completely oblivious to the change in the atmosphere. 

“Rosie! Sorry I barged out like that.” He said, with a smile on his face as he placed the basket on the countertop.  

“Don’t worry your pretty head about it, doll.” She began to ring up the items, “It’s my fault anyways. I asked her to go help my dear Alastor pick some flowers up for me.” 

“You two know each other?” He asked, looking over to the shadow of a man, standing in the doorway, his tall frame taking up the space. 

“Yes!” She beamed, “Alastor here has been one of my closest friends for years now! We met only days after I moved into the city and ever since he’s been my rock and trusted confidant. Where do you think he gets all the gossip for that little radio show of his!” She winked. 

Lucifer was glad now that he’d never spilled any of his many secrets to her. 

“Rosie is the best pot of knowledge in town after all! Though there are things even she doesn’t know.” Alastor said, boring a hole into the side of Lucifer's face with that stare. 

“Hey! I know everything, young man. Don’t you even get me started.” She retorted, taking Lucifer’s payment and finishing up his order.

They stood in silence as Rosie finished ringing him up. Lucifer glanced to Alastor, wondering if he had come in to speak with Rosie and wasn't speaking to her because he was here. It made him uneasy. The man was a bit too mysterious for his liking.

“Thanks for everything, Rosie.” Lucifer said when she handed him his bags. He tucked Alastor’s suit jacket across his other arm and took hold of Charlie’s hand. 

“Of course, sweetie! Come back anytime.” She leant across the countertop, giving him a small wave as he walked towards the exit. Past Alastor. 

“How should I get this back to you?” Lucifer asked, craning his neck slightly to look up at the man. 

“Bring it to my station. Any day in the afternoon this coming week will work.” He pulled out a piece of paper and scribbled an address down. 

“Too much of a stranger to just give me your phone number? A text would’ve sufficed.” 

“Bold of you to ask for my number. Sorry to disappoint you, but I don’t have one.” 

“You don’t have a cell phone?” Lucifer deadpanned. 

“I don’t care for them, no. And besides, if I did, I wouldn’t be giving my number out to individuals who don’t wash their hands before leaving their homes.” His grin was something wicked. Another out of the blue jab. 

Lucifer grimaced, cursing the fact that he had Charlie in tow and couldn’t give this guy a good comeback. 

“Whatever.” He said smartly instead, snatching the paper out of Alastor’s hand and opening the door, “See you around.” 

He looked down at the paper, and there in flowy confident writing:

Alastor LeBlanc

300 Envy Way 

Wash your hands next time.

Unbelievable.