A/N: You see what happens when I have a day to myself and an empty house? You get an update that's not at nine o'clock at night…Good for you, Lumi. Four for you, Lumi. You go, Lumi. Now, I'm going to shut up and get to work, ok? That way you guys can have a chapter to read this week. There are kids in Africa that would probably love a chapter. (Psst…I know I have fans in South Africa. But they're here for the Ouran fic and the Dramatical Murder fic. Regardless, though. I'm going to shut up now.)
Oh, another family dinner. It had been years since we had done this. Eighteen months, but still. I missed being with the family. Living in England was great. Don't get me wrong. I loved it over there. I had a whole other family waiting for me at the foreign port, but it did have its downsides…The only blood I had over there was my father. And we were slowly, but surely rebuilding that bridge.
"Wait a minute," Anthony squealed from inside, "Who the hell are you two? And when did you get here?"
"Anthony," I pushed the door open, "Relax. They're friends of mine. Hello, Soma, Agni."
"Hello, Lumi!" Soma hugged me tight, "I missed you so much!"
"We just saw each other this morning," I struggled for air. Soma had quite the embrace…Like a bear.
"Agni!" Marcelina ran to him, scaling his leg.
"Hello, Marcelina," Agni sat her on his hip.
"She sure does like him, doesn't she?" Mary joined us.
"For some reason," I nodded, "Hi, Mary."
"Hey, Lumi," she smiled a bit.
"We didn't even see you, Sebastian," Soma chimed, "Hello! We missed you, too!"
"Your highness," Sebastian bowed.
"Your highness?" Anthony gasped, "You're royal?"
"Yes, I am," Soma confirmed.
"Oh my God," Anthony dropped to his knees, "Forgive me, your highness. I'm so sorry. I was going to kick you out of my house!"
"Please rise, my friend," Soma helped him up, "There is no need for formalities. You have allowed me into your home and offered a place at you table. When the sun sets, I am merely a person."
"Just a person with a title," I jabbed.
"Oh, Lumi," Mary beamed, "We missed you so much."
"I missed being back in Boston," I sighed out, "It's good to be home."
"Well," she chimed, "Dinner's ready!"
Mary's cooking was a thing of legends. Only second to Sebastian's. Her whole roasted pig was a gift to humanity and no one could convince me otherwise. So rich, so tender, so delightful. This was worth the three thousand mile journey across the ocean. Granted, I didn't physically need to eat anymore, but this was worth it. However, once dinner was all said and done, I found Sebastian staring off into space again. That's the second time he's done that today.
And I wasn't the only one who took notice. Agni pulled me aside, "Lumi, may I have a word with you in private?"
"Sure," I stepped outside with him and left Sebastian to stare off some more, "What is it?"
"Is Sebastian alright?" he worried, "In all the years I've known him, I've never seen him so withdrawn, so quiet."
"I don't know," I confessed, holding back tears, "He's been this way since we got here."
"Has he ever done this before?" Agni wondered.
"Once," I nodded, "But the last time he was like this, we had just come back from Hell. We presented Marcelina to Lucifer."
"Have you seen Lucifer lately?" he sat with me.
"No," I shook my head. Unless…Unless Sebastian has…I got up, "Excuse me."
I went back inside and made a beeline for my husband. He had the same vacant stare he had when I left him earlier. The same one he had all throughout dinner. Sebastian had me more than worried. He had me scared…
"Sebastian…?" I poked at him.
Nothing.
"Sebastian…" I approached him delicately, "Sebastian, can we talk?"
He shook his head.
"Ok," I allowed, keeping my voice down to not scare the family, "Can I ask you some questions?"
Sebastian shook his head again. My poor baby. It killed me to see him so hurt. All I wanted to do was take care of him and help carry the burden weighing so heavy on his heart. I ran my hand up Sebastian's back, tracing my fingers over his scars…And he flinched. Pouring holy water over him would've been kinder.
"Sebastian, please," I begged, taking my hand away, "Talk to me. Why did you seek audience with Lucifer? You should know better than to go to Hell by yourself."
"You think I was actively seeking him out?" Sebastian growled, "You think I wanted to find Lucifer? He ambushed me in my own mind! He knows he can toy with my head and to him, it never gets old! You think I wanted that? Do you really think I'm that much of a masochist? You want to know what he said? You want to know so bad? He renegotiated our terms!"
Sebastian got up and stormed out, slamming the door behind him. No…We had a deal. Fifty years and Marcelina would be his. Those were the terms. We didn't have to like them, but that was what had been decided.
"Mommy," Marcelina pulled at the bottom of my dress, "Why did Daddy leave?"
"It's complicated, sweetheart," I hugged her tight.
"Is he angry…?"
How was I supposed to explain that to her? Her father was falling apart at the seams because of the physical embodiment of all evil that wanted to take her away. I didn't care about how accelerated her growth rate is. Marcelina is still just a baby. She didn't need to be dealing with all of this, too. It's bad enough she had to see me going through what I went through with Claude Faustus. She didn't need to deal with Lucifer, too, "No, baby. Daddy's not angry. Agni…"
"Yes, Lumi?" Agni chimed in, "What is it?"
"I need you to keep an eye on Marcelina for a while," I put her down, "Can you do that for me?"
"Of course," he agreed.
"Lumi?" Anthony stopped me on my way out the door, "Is everything ok?"
"Don't worry about it," I brushed him off, "I'm sorry you had to get caught up in this, Anthony, but please. You don't need to worry. We'll be fine. Excuse me."
I pushed through the door and started my search around Boston for Sebastian. Every bar, tavern, back alley. Hell, I even checked the old clubhouse where I had taken a mini fortune in from drunk idiots that thought they could best me at poker just because I was a little girl. Took them to the cleaners instead. Wherever Sebastian was, he didn't want to be found. However, just as I began to lose hope and started heading back to Anthony's to get the baby, the dark, familiar figure of a man stood in front of the last place I'd expect someone of his caliber to be. One would never think to find a demon in front of the most beautiful cathedral in all of Boston.
I approached him slowly, quietly. I didn't want him running off on me. But he knew I was there, "Do you think it's too late for me? Perhaps redemption isn't too farfetched for someone like me."
"If you were to be baptized, my love," I wrapped myself around his arm, "The holy water could theoretically kill you."
"It's worth a try," he shrugged.
"Sebastian," I winced, bracing myself for the answer, "How long?"
"About a week in Earth time…" Sebastian shook, "I'm scared, Lumi. Genuinely and actually scared. It's been so long, I forgot what it felt like."
"We'll get through it," I assured, "We can do this."
"Forgive me, darling," he brushed me off, "But I don't think your blind optimism will save us."
"Don't say that," I gave him a little swat, "We will keep our baby, Sebastian. Lucifer can't and won't have her."
"Oh, yes, I will…" an ethereal voice sang in my head, "Mind your tongue, child. The baby will be mine. I can promise you that. And there is nothing you can do to stop me. I've seen you searching for the answers. Reading every book. Arming up with every crystal, every exorcism. There is nothing that can stop me. Once I have her, I'll be all powerful. Marcelina will be mine. And she will be mine very soon. Then, I shall raise Hell on Earth."
A/N: That end kind of gave me chills. In case you didn't piece it together, Sebastian's not the only head Lucifer can get into. He can get into hers, too. And would you look at that? I'm not updating ridiculously late. And I might start posting for another fandom soon! Hell, I can get a decent start on it now. Like I said. It's amazing how productive I can be when I'm by myself. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to stare my computer down, demanding a new episode of Yuri on Ice. See you next chapter! xx
