After her dream, Ellie spent a lot more time outside the house, because she knew if she stayed home, she'd probably see him a lot more. And now that he was developing a habit of getting into her mind as well as her home (cause no matter what he'd tried to trick her into thinking, what had gone on between her and Lucifer in that dream had nothing to do with what she wanted, that was for sure. It was all him, the snake.
She was at the pet store picking up fish food and some toys for Fishy's bowl, and after she paid and left, that was when she ran into Lucifer again, who was loitering outside the store.
"I'm sorry," she apologized automatically without looking up. Then she saw him. "Oh, wait, no I'm not," she recanted. "I should have tried to hit you harder."
"Well, that's very friendly, Eleanor," he said with a smile. "Why is it that whenever I see you, you're always in a bad mood?"
"Cause you just seem to have that effect on me," Ellie gave him a tight-lipped smile and crossed her arms. "So...let's get this over with, come on. What do you want from me? Are you here to brag about that dream you gave me? I bet you were so pleased about what was in it."
"I was," He nodded and followed her to the car. "And you seemed to be enjoying yourself too. What do you think that means?"
"I think it means it was a dream," Ellie told him. "It was a dream, it didn't actually happen, it will not actually happen, and it proves nothing! You will never kiss me or touch me or anything like that!"
"Can I ask why you were so frightened at the end, though? I was not expecting that," Lucifer remarked. "And I hate to see you distressed."
"How can you not know why I was distressed?" Ellie questioned, brown eyes darkening with anger. "You turned into a damn monster without any sort of warning to me!"
"Oh, that's a problem?" Lucifer questioned. "I would have thought you'd be used to that sort of thing, what with your father being a demon and all."
"If Daddy could make faces like that, I never saw them," Ellie told him flatly. "And I think I would remember something so scary."
"Well...well, I apologize for frightening you," Lucifer got out, much to Ellie's surprise.
"Thank you," she told him. "That's nice of you, I guess."
He then got closer to her and grabbed her gently from behind. "Did you know that I'm gonna be the first one you kiss, Eleanor?" He whispered in her ear.
"Oh, I think not," she said and got out of his grip. "I can kiss anyone I want, whenever I want. You're not my only option, that's for sure." She then spotted a tan young man with bleached blonde hair and ripped jeans putting his purchases in his nearby car. He was good looking and from how snugly his shirt fit, she could tell he worked out. "Hey," she called to him. "Hey, you!"
"Me?" He asked. "What?"
"My name's Ellie," she told him, and then pointed at Lucifer over her shoulder. "This idiot is convinced that I'm unattractive to every man but him and I want to prove him wrong. Do you mind if I kiss you?"
"I'm Ricky," he replied, after not so subtly looking her over. "And of course I don't mind, you being so pretty and all."
"Well, aren't you sweet!" Ellie giggled as Ricky bent her over backwards and kissed her quite soundly.
"All right, all right, enough!" Lucifer yelled, sending Ricky flying against his own car, hitting it hard enough that he crumpled in an unconscious pile in the parking lot. "Come, Eleanor," he said firmly and grabbed Ellie by the arm. "You and I need to have a talk."
His grip on her arm was tight and it quickly began to hurt.
"Loosen your grip, would you?" She asked. "My arm's beginning to go numb!"
"Fine," he said and pushed her away. His eyes were going red and she was beginning to see changes in his facial structure that meant the scary face from the dream was probably coming. "Do you realize why I'm mad at you, Eleanor?"
"Yes, I realize it," Eleanor nodded, her eyes still locked on his as she rubbed her arm and tried to keep her voice from shaking. "I know why you're mad, but you have no right to be. I've made it very clear that I have no interest in kissing you or being with you in any way whatsoever. If you choose not to hear that, I don't see why it's my fault. You're really acting childish, you know. Accept what will never be and move on!"
It was then that time seemed to freeze. Nothing in the parking lot moved except her and Lucifer. There wasn't any breeze or anything.
"Oh, my god!" She looked around and shivered, feeling a teensy bit frightened for the first time, although she wouldn't let him see it. "What did you do? What's going on? Why did everything stop except you and me?"
"I did it, Eleanor," Lucifer told her, his voice cold and controlled as he brushed some lint off his black sweater. "I can stop time, you know. I can control it. And in just a few seconds, it'll be as if that kiss with that horrible boy never happened. I think that will be better for both of us, don't you think? You'll forget about the boy, but you'll never be able to forget what I've told you about how things will be between us."
"No!" She cried. "Don't you dare-" But she was cut off as he put a hand on her forehead and gave a little push, making her head bend back a little. Then she gave him a frown, sneezed, and picked up her bags. "What are you looking at?" She questioned. "Can't I even come to get fish food without seeing your face?"
"I just wanted to say 'Hello'," Lucifer smiled. "But I'll be on my way now. See you later, Eleanor."
"Bye," Ellie huffed, putting her bags in the trunk, getting in the car, and then driving back home. Something felt off about their exchange, but she couldn't figure out what it was, no matter how much she wracked her brain. Oh, well, it was probably nothing. And to devote this much of her brain power to figuring out something he did...well, that was just giving him more attention than he deserved. That was for sure.
After she got done at the pet store, she went to get herself some coffee and a couple of cartons of ice cream, one chocolate brownie, and the other chocolate chip cookie dough, before heading home.
"How did things go at the pet store?" Junior questioned. "Did you find everything? Do you need help bringing stuff inside?"
"Yes, please," Ellie smiled. "That would be nice. Just don't leave your wallet in the car while we're getting stuff inside."
"Oh, I won't," Juinor assured her. "I promise."
They went out to the car and after Ellie grabbed all the fish things, Junior grabbed the other bag. "Ice cream," he remarked. "Celebration treat or remedy for a bad day?"
"A little of both," Ellie informed him.
He nodded and put a hand on her shoulder. "Well, if you need to talk, I'm here."
"Thanks," Ellie said and then as he started to walk away, she stopped him. "Hey, can I ask you a question? And answer honestly, please. Don't just say what you think I want to hear."
"All right," Junior nodded. "What can I tell you?"
"Do you think...do you think I'll ever see my dad again?" She got out.
"Well, yeah," Junior nodded and took her hand. "What makes you think you won't?"
"Well, Lucifer says that the only way the demons will be allowed to come back is if I go with him, so...so that means Dad and I might never be in the same place at the same time again, and..." she felt herself start to tear up. "And..."
"It's okay," Junior hugged her and stroked her hair. "Your mother and I know all about Lucifer's plan and we will help you make it so your dad will come back and you'll also be able to see him. We'll do that for you, okay?"
"Okay," Ellie nodded and wiped her eyes. "Thank you." She paused. "Would you...would you want to share some ice cream with me?"
"Yes," Junior nodded, giving her a smile as he went to get the spoons. "I would love to."
"No girl yet, boss?" Asked Lucifer's head minion, Dexter. "I would have thought you'd have her by now. It's never taken you this long to get what you want before."
Lucifer turned to stare at the tall red demon. "Thank you for reminding me of my failure, Dexter. I really appreciate that."
"I didn't mean to," Dexter replied. He was one of a fourth kind of demon, a specific species meant to serve Lucifer in particular, and although he could rustle up a human appearance if need be, the occasion hardly ever presented itself. "I just wondered if everything was all right."
"Oh, yes," Lucifer sighed. "In time, I'm sure I'll get what I want. I always do. Get me a drink."
"All right," Dexter replied. "So I'm assuming you don't want to talk about it?"
"Do I ever?" Lucifer questioned. "Just go about your own damn business!"
Dexter hustled off and came back with his drink and after a few of them, his boss was in a chattier mood.
"You know, when I first saw Ellie, there was something different about her," he said. "Something pure, something simple and good. And sure, it might have been because she was a child, but I still see a bit of it now that she's grown. Just so much goodness...she's damn incorruptible that one. I have a feeling that if I waved diamonds and money in front of her, she wouldn't care. She'd probably spit on me and run away."
"So pick someone else," Dexter shrugged. "There are literally billions of other women on earth. You're the Prince of Darkness. You shouldn't have to work so hard to get what you want."
"No, but see, that's the thing: I need Ellie if I want to better things for myself," Lucifer explained. "I'll be able...I'll be able to be a living man, you see?"
"But why would you want that?" Dexter questioned. "Think about all you have now. Isn't that better?"
"No, Dexter," Lucifer sighed. "It's not, and you can't possibly understand why. There's no use explaining it to you."
"All right," Dexter nodded. "I'll just go and leave you alone, then."
"You do that," Lucifer told him. "That might be best." So he was left alone, thinking about Ellie. About how, as much as he didn't want to admit it, what his many attempts to woo her had shown him was that if he wanted to be near her for any length of time at all, he'd actually have to work at it. Do more than just wave treasure and things in front of her eyes and hope she'd want them. He'd actually have to become a better man. He scoffed. It was all some sort of ridiculous plot. He didn't even understand why, for this girl, of all people, he was trying so hard. But he was. Not that he would let her get off scot-free. Because no matter how self-righteous she acted, she had to desire something deep down. That would be his compensation while he was working on being a better man: Making Ellie acquainted with the very bad woman he knew was deep within her somewhere.
