AN: Thanks again for reading. This one was inspired by last week's episode. I think Lucifer and Ella could potentially have a cute platonic sibling relationship (I can't see them as a romantic couple, sorry).
"LAPD! Stay on the ground, and put your hands behind your head." The words flowed from Chloe's mouth automatically as she levelled the gun at the trembling man on the floor of the abandoned church.
But she knew there was going to be no response from the man. If he'd seen Lucifer's face…
There was no doubt that he had when Chloe took the scene in. Patrick Lopez was muttering the Devil's name over and over in a state of insanity. The body of Nolan Marshall was lying a short distance away with a gunshot wound to the head. Lucifer was standing off to the side, a lit cigarette in his mouth as he avoided eye contact with everyone.
And Ella was leaning against the wall, taking in deep breaths, eyes wide, skin ghost white. At which point Chloe realized that the young woman's father hadn't been the only one to see the Devil's true face.
She wondered if Lucifer was slipping in his old age. After all, he'd revealed his identity repeatedly in the space of a few weeks; Linda, Trixie, herself, Dan…
He's gonna out himself to the whole damn world at this rate, Chloe thought. Though all things considered, Ella was possibly the best person he could've revealed himself to.
Seeing the forensic scientist safe, if shaken up, sent a wave of relief through Chloe as she and Dan hauled the young woman's father to his feet in order to arrest him.
It had been a long day. The normalcy that had become Chloe's life – arriving at the precinct after dropping Trixie off at school, Lucifer arriving shortly afterwards and sitting on her desk, pestering her and bantering with her before turning his attentions on Dan when he arrived – was shattered when Ella didn't turn up for work. It led to Lucifer and Chloe stopping by her place for answers, whereupon they'd discovered her apartment a mess with clear signs of a struggle.
A forensics report showed no fingerprints anywhere other than Ella's, so they were forced to dig deeper before eventually discovering a restraining order that Ella had filed against a young man named Nolan Marshall.
Ella's ex-boyfriend, Chloe recalled. The younger woman had mentioned him briefly during their girls' night out – and as luck would have it, he just so happened to be in LA for unspecified reasons.
It took them less than an hour to track Nolan down.
After uncovering several offences he'd committed that included drug dealing, theft and violence, Chloe was ready to arrest him on the spot despite his claims that he'd "gone straight". But then Lucifer performed his weird hypnotic mojo (and Chloe was still calling it that despite knowing that it was just another ability of the Devil) on Nolan and got him to reveal his true desire: to protect Ella from her father.
Patrick Lopez was the reason Ella moved away from home to begin with. He disapproved of her choice of career and felt that she'd "turned her back on God". Nolan had heard that Patrick was going to take Ella home by force, and had come to warn her.
When they discovered the place where Patrick would most likely take Ella – an old abandoned church located in the rougher part of LA – until he got her out of the city, Lucifer had persuaded Chloe to let him go alone.
"Her ex-roach is certain that the insane dad has a gun," he'd said. "I'd prefer to be bullet proof."
Chloe understood. Lucifer had told her about his vulnerability issue whenever she was around, and if Patrick did indeed have a gun, well, she didn't want him dying on her (again!) if a shootout occurred. "Then take Dan with you."
"No. I've seen men like this. There's a high chance he could shoot Miss Lopez and himself before the police even managed to storm the building."
So she let him go alone, though he also took Nolan, who was desperate to help Ella in any way he could.
Looking down at the young man's body, Chloe realized that he'd kept his promise. He had managed to protect Ella – and had done so with his life.
After handing Patrick over to another cop, Dan walked over to Ella, leaving Chloe to approach her friend. It was occurring to her that the church they were occupying was the very same church where he'd killed his brother, and she couldn't even begin to imagine what he was going through. He was brave to even come at all.
"Hey." She gently touched his arm. "You OK?"
Lucifer dropped his cigarette and stamped it out. "I killed him here. In one of our Father's many houses. I could have killed him anywhere…but no. It had to be here, in some sick and twisted sense of irony. Like…like He planned it all along. I want Him to smite me down. I want Him to punish me; send me some kind of retribution. But instead… Nothing. It's like He doesn't even care that one of His sons is dead, killed by another son. Do you know the story of Cain and Abel, Detective?"
"Yeah." She'd done plenty of research after discovering his true identity – though constantly wondered how much of it was true. She didn't want to ask Lucifer and bombard him with too many questions.
The Devil glanced over at where Nolan's body was being wheeled away. "And now someone else died – because of me."
"No." Chloe shook her head and reached out a hand, using it to turn Lucifer's gaze back on her. "That wasn't your fault. Nolan chose to come with you. And Patrick was the one who shot him. That isn't your fault. Besides…" She nodded her head over to Ella. "She's alive and safe, thanks to you."
"But I doubt she'll ever speak to me again," said Lucifer. "She saw…what I really am."
"Yes," said Chloe. "And so did Linda. So did Dan. So did Trixie. And so did I. Yet we're all still here for you. Just give her time."
Dan walked over to join them before anymore could be said. "Well, you apparently gave Daddy Lopez a serious mind-fuck," he said to Lucifer. "Not that anyone cares. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy."
"What about Ella?" Chloe asked warily.
"You should probably go talk to her," was all Dan said before continuing on out of the church.
Chloe didn't want to leave Lucifer, but then he turned and followed Dan without a word. She wanted to go after him – be there for him through his reawakened guilt – but Ella was her friend too, and no doubt had many, many questions. So with a sigh, Chloe turned and approached the younger woman.
"Ella?" she began, trying to get the young scientist's attention. Ella didn't respond; her eyes were still wide and she was staring at nothing. Chloe had to wave a hand in front of her face to finally snap her out of the thousand-yard stare. She gasped and almost fell, but Chloe managed to catch her. "Hey, it's OK. It's just me. You're safe now. We arrested your dad."
Ella wordlessly nodded, and Chloe could tell that she wasn't thinking about her insane father. "He… Lucifer…"
"He's not a method actor," Chloe said helpfully – while knowing that it was probably the least helpful thing to say.
"Yeah, I got that," said Ella. "He… He came in quietly…and he tried to talk my dad down while Nolan snuck around the side to get to me. But Dad… He…he tried to shoot me. Wanted us to be together in Heaven, and… He pulled the trigger, but Nolan jumped in the way, and… That's when Lucifer lost it."
"Not surprising." Lucifer seemed to like people who had a chance to turn their life around – so it would be no surprise he'd get pissed if that second chance was taken away from them.
"Suddenly Lucifer was there in front of me," Ella continued, "and Dad shot him. But…when he stumbled back and I looked for his wound…there was nothing. Not even a hole in his shirt. Then there was a flash of white light, and I looked up, and I saw… Chloe, they were beautiful and scary all at once… And that's…that's when I realized…"
She trailed off, but Chloe could guess the rest; Lucifer put the fear of Hell into Patrick while also revealing to Ella that everything she believed in was real. And that she worked with the actual Devil.
"I know this is a lot to take in," said Chloe.
"So you know."
"I haven't known for very long," Chloe admitted. "Dan knows, too. And Lucifer's therapist does; Doctor Linda. And so does Trixie."
"And Maze?" Before Chloe could answer, Ella continued with, "Wait, she said that she was "forged in the bowels of Hell" on girls' night. She's a…demon?"
Chloe nodded. "Like I said; a lot to take in. But… Ella, Lucifer is still the Lucifer we know. He's not evil. He's not here to hurt any of us, despite what everyone says about him. Which you probably know, considering your faith…"
"Actually I've always thought the Devil gets a bad rep," Ella stated. "I said that to Lucifer on my first day. He…seemed to appreciate the sentiment…and now I know why…" She sighed. "I can't believe I called him a method actor. What must he think of me?"
"He likes you," said Chloe. "There's not many people he likes. And he did go to you about Azrael's blade, so…"
"Wait…" Ella frowned. "The blade that belongs to the Angel of Death?" Her eyes widened. "That was the blade being used to kill all those yoga people? That's…"
"Messed up?"
She nodded. "No wonder he wanted to be discreet about it."
Chloe tilted her head as she considered the younger woman. "You're actually taking all this pretty well."
"Well, I do believe in it all. Sort of," Ella replied. "I mean, before it was just about having faith without proof, and doubting certain things in order to believe, but now… I have a lot of questions, is all I can say. Would he be offended if I ask him…questions?"
"He got annoyed when Linda kept asking him about what he did in Hell, but I think that was more to do with the fact that his sessions with her were supposed to be about helping him instead of her," Chloe explained. "He didn't mind when I was asking him."
Ella smirked. "I think he didn't mind because you were the one asking him."
Chloe frowned, uncertain how to respond. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"If you haven't figured it out by now, I can't help you." Ella shrugged. "So where did the Big D himself go?"
The pair wandered outside to find him, only to be told by Dan that he was already gone, most likely back to Lux. Chloe didn't know if she should give him some time to himself – being in the church again had clearly given him some nasty flashbacks to the night he killed Uriel – but decided that he would need the company, and the assurance that Ella wasn't running from him.
He needed to know that he hadn't lost a friend.
On the way to Lux, Chloe told Ella about the case with the priest.
"So the Devil became friends with a priest?" Ella was smiling a little at the thought.
Chloe nodded, smiling too. "I called it absurdly adorable." She sighed, unable to stop herself from recalling the sight of the man dying in Lucifer's arms, and then Lucifer nearly killing the shooter in a fit of rage unlike any she'd ever seen. "He didn't deserve to die in the way he did. Lucifer needs friends, after everything he's been through. And Frank… He knew who Lucifer was, and I think he wanted to help."
"Then maybe I can help," said Ella. "Ever since I met him, I've had this sense that he's…lost, in a spiritual way. That's why I brought him to church with me…and only now am I realizing that I brought the Devil to church…"
They both laughed, and shortly afterwards they arrived at Lux.
One elevator ride later found them in Lucifer's apartment. The Devil himself was sat at his piano like he usually was, glass in his hand, blazer removed and his shirt sleeves rolled up. His hair was beginning to curl in that adorable way it did at the end of a long day's work…and Chloe wondered when she started using the word 'adorable' when describing Lucifer…
He turned his gaze towards them, and appeared startled to see them both. Or startled to see Ella, at least. "Detective, Miss Lopez. This is…unexpected."
"Unexpected…how?" asked Chloe. "Unexpected that a friend would come and check on you after what happened?"
"I'm not referring to you, Detective." Lucifer warily glanced at Ella. "I should tell you in advanced that I'm not a vampire, so holding out a cross or splashing Holy water on me won't work. I had a nun throw an entire bucket full over me once. It almost ruined my best suit."
Ella gave a short snort of laughter before giving him a sympathetic glance. "You're being so overly dramatic. Why do you think I'm gonna freak out about this? I mean, yeah, it was a bit of a shock at first…"
"A man once jumped to his death after merely a peek at my wings. And the reaction to my true face is usually grown men wetting their pants in fear before being reduced to weepy piles of messes on the floor," said Lucifer. "Even revealing my face in a nice, calm manner to a friend can break them. Doctor Linda was a slight untethered for almost two weeks after I showed her."
"Dude, I told you before," said Ella. "I grew up in Detroit. If that didn't mess me up for good, I doubt anything else will."
"And Linda's fine now, right?" Chloe pointed out. "Any normal, sane human being would have a little bit of a freak out, Lucifer. I did. Dan did."
"I highly doubt his hysterical laughter can be considered 'little', Detective."
Chloe rolled her eyes. "Look, why don't you and Ella have a little chat while I go clean up a bit in the bathroom. OK?"
Lucifer looked uncertain, but he nodded, and Chloe had faith that Ella would assure him that all was well. She left them to it, disappearing into the bathroom – but she'd been gone for less than a minute before she felt something in her chest. A slight burning sensation, like she was being slowly but gently suffocated.
She'd felt it a week before – when she'd caught Lucifer and Ella together, both times (the whispering and then the hugging), and then when Ella had been demonstrating what had happened with the 'full yoga massacre' and had put Lucifer in all those positions…
I'm not jealous. She bit her lip and refused to believe that Dan's words were true. Definitely not. I mean, Lucifer said that he and Ella were only working, which I knew they were, and he insisted that they weren't sleeping together, and he doesn't lie, and he always announces to the whole world who he sleeps with, so it's not like he'd keep it a secret, meaning there's nothing to be jealous about…
Her eyes widened when she realized that, in assuring herself that there was nothing to be jealous about, she'd just admitted to herself that she had been jealous. And the feeling had immediately vanished when Lucifer assured her that nothing was happening…
And I'm gonna stop thinking about this. Like, yesterday.
Despite knowing that Lucifer and Ella would be nowhere near done talking, Chloe left the bathroom. She assured herself that she wasn't going to make sure they weren't doing anything inappropriate.
They were still talking, and Chloe paused on the threshold to watch them. She didn't mean to eavesdrop, but she couldn't help it.
"You wanted to get out of his shadow," Lucifer was saying. "Have free will. Make your own choices. There's nothing wrong with that. He was in the wrong, and you shouldn't blame yourself for wanting to…well, rebel."
"I didn't have a reason to stay when my last brother left. I just needed to get away from him, you know?" said Ella. "He was destroying my faith in God by being, well, one of those religious extremists people love to hate. I did the rebellion thing; stole cars, dated Nolan… Anything to distance myself from him. I didn't find my faith again until I went to college. I realized that in distancing myself from my dad and trying to be the opposite of what he was, I was forcing myself to be someone who just wasn't…me. Despite all the bad, like my dad and Catholic school, there was a whole lot of good that came from my faith. It's like I said before; I've found out a lot about myself and life since I developed a relationship with…well, your dad, I guess."
"If you're trying to convince me to go to church again, I'll like to decline now," said Lucifer. "I doubt I'll ever be able to have any kind of relationship with my dad again. Your rebellion against your father may have worked out, but mine certainly didn't, as you know."
Ella's head titled slightly out of curiosity. "I don't get that. Everyone thinks that what you did was unforgivable, but I don't think so. I mean, it's just a typical teenage rebellion. Why's that so bad?"
"My Father has a tendency to overreact. Any other questions?"
"Was the Burning Bush really you?"
"Yes. Long story."
Chloe couldn't help but smile at the pair. They reminded her of a brother and sister who hadn't seen each other in years and were catching up. That thought set her heart at ease.
She wondered what that meant.
