A/N: 3 months later to the day...Sorry, guys. I'm getting close to finished with this story now, so thanks for sticking through it. Hope you are all staying safe and healthy. Shout out to an author over in the FFVII section of for reminding me that we all go through writer's block and we just have to plug through it!
Recap: Lucifer visited the Silver City to plead his case against Michael with his siblings.
If Lucifer's prolonged disappearances while he was in Hell were anything to go by, Chloe half expected it to take at least a week for him to get back to her. She had resigned herself to the fate of being dragged around by her mother to see the sights on the east coast while her mind lingered far away, trying to imagine a "silver city" and cross-reference it with depictions of heaven. Just how far away was Lucifer's first home? She didn't understand the concept of distance here, and since astronomers hadn't discovered a shining city in the sky, it was all she could do to not lose herself in contemplation.
What Chloe wasn't expecting, however, was the impressive speed at which everything happened instead.
The sun was shining down on the pier as she leaned over the railing and watched the tide creep in, wafting a strong, salty breath towards her with each push and pull. Behind her, the carousel music dinged in cheery fashion as kids screamed around her in delight. She offered a quick glance over her shoulder to catch a glimpse of Trixie, who was just embarking on the back of a shiny, black horse with her grandma's help. Chloe smiled slightly, wishing normalcy upon her daughter's life. Once this was all over, she could only imagine the struggle Dan's funeral would be for all of them.
Her phone chimed once, startling her from her thoughts. Her left hand gripped the rail in anticipation as she pulled it out of her pocket.
Back.
That was all it said, but it was enough. Chloe sighed, releasing tension she hadn't known she was holding in her shoulders out in one large exhale. Her hand left the railing and flew to the phone. On the pier a few miles north. Carousel. Lucifer was back
And back he was as he practically materialized a few minutes later, looking much the same as before. If she looked closely enough, Chloe could swear he looked different though. Calmer? Happier? …Shinier?
"Lucifer, you're glowing," she half-whispered incredulously as he approached. Lucifer's eyes flew open and he glanced quickly about himself before grumbling. There was the familiar reaction; her heart fluttered and she couldn't help but smile.
"Must be a side-effect of being back there for so long," he huffed, clearly annoyed. "No matter, it should wear off soon. I am sorry I kept you waiting, Detective."
Chloe blinked.
"Lucifer, you left last night," she replied in confusion. "You haven't been gone that long."
"Oh – right," Lucifer replied with a snap of his fingers and an eye roll. "Time moves differently than here or Hell up there." His finger pointed dramatically upwards. "It moves more quickly."
"How long have you been gone?" she asked curiously. This was interesting news. Just how long had Lucifer stood where he was once cast down?
He shrugged.
"I'm not the best keeper of time, but I would have said at least a week," he said. "Things can take a long time to be said up there, especially when all of my siblings are in on it."
"So, they were all there then?" She could barely keep the excitement from her voice. "What happened?"
"Lucifer waved his hand, as if to dismiss the subject. His eyes watched the carousel as it began to spin, and Chloe didn't know if he was waiting for the right time, remembering what happened, or avoiding the topic altogether. She turned back to her previous position on the railing, eyes following the waves again.
"Everybody showed up," Lucifer finally answered, and she swore she could make out a slight awe in his voice. "They all listened, gave me the benefit of the doubt in one way or another. It-well, it doesn't make any sense, Detective."
He sounded confused, and she couldn't help but to turn back to him and meet his eyes. There it was, the hope that she had seen hidden beneath the surface. The thought of betrayal usually pushed this expression from his face, save for a few precious moments she had caught him with his guard down.
Chloe pressed her palm to his cheek, staring into his eyes and relishing in that hope.
"You're worth listening to," she promised. "I'm here, aren't I?"
He let out a laugh but didn't move from her hand.
"After all this time, I didn't know," Lucifer said. Chloe felt the urge to kiss him then, to help convey her message a bit more clearly that she did think he was very worth listening to. She didn't get the chance.
"Is that Lucifer?" Penelope Decker called then and Chloe broke eye contact to see her mom fast approaching as she didn't even try to hide the excitement in her voice. Chloe dropped her hand and the beautiful moment was gone. She put on a bright smile and faced her family as they settled in front of her and Lucifer, Trixie looking just as delighted as her mom to see Lucifer.
"Penelope, always a pleasure," Lucifer said warmly, pulling Chloe's mom in for a quick but gentle hug. "You are more radiant every time we meet."
"Oh Lucifer, you flatter me," she replied airily, voice breathless. Chloe tried to keep from rolling her eyes, but couldn't. Trixie giggled and Lucifer raised one eyebrow up at her before pulling back. "You must stay for dinner, darling. We need to catch up!"
"I would be honored to, but I must attend to some family business," he replied smoothly, adjusting the immaculate cuffs on his sleeves. His glow had mostly worn off now, but his pale skin still radiated from the sunlight up above. Chloe wondered if anybody else had noticed. "And I'm afraid I must steal Chloe away for the rest of the day, if that's all right with the two of you, of course."
Trixie nodded with a grin – the first one she had shown that day, Chloe noted – and her mom's smile drooped a little but she nodded too.
"One of these days you will have to join us," she scolded good-naturedly. Lucifer offered her a quick, sultry smile while Chloe rolled her eyes again, and he gently took her elbow, steering her away.
"You're bringing me with?" Chloe asked instantly, previous conversation instantly forgotten. "Are we fighting right now?"
"No, not yet." Lucifer didn't elaborate as he led her away from the bustling pier to the crowded sandy beaches. When he didn't elaborate further, she crossed her arms.
"Lucifer, what's going on?" she asked. "Where are we going?"
They rounded the corner as he steered her up a sand dune trail, leaving behind the busy beach for a secluded, grassy knoll. Chloe was just opening her mouth to retort that she had a right to know what was going on when he interrupted her with a kiss. While she was used to the soft, hesitance of their previous, always ill-timed kisses, this time he kissed her firmly, as if to claim her words himself. She brought a hand up to his cheek again, returning it with one of her own. Then she brought her head back from his and smiled up at him.
"That was overdue," she said breathlessly. He chuckled, sounding a little less composed than usual. "I really would like to do more of that, but can we figure out the plan first?"
"Oh yes, right, of course," he replied absently, eyes still drinking in her face. It was enough to make her blush, so she looked down and slapped him lightly on the shoulder. "The plan."
He hesitated again and Chloe gestured him onward, laughing at his lack of ability to follow through his own train of thought.
"Well, Detective, after much convincing on Amenadiel's part, it was agreed that a few of my brothers will lure him out. Some of them –" he clenched his teeth and scoffed at this part, "seem to think that talking will dissuade him, while I know that this is an absolute waste of time. Amenadiel insisted I go along with their tactics, if only to get them to our side. It just seems like a huge waste of time, trying to talk to him instead of just…you know."
Chloe shook her head and smiled again, internally processing this information.
"What's plan B?" she asked. Lucifer blinked and looked at her.
"Plan B?" he echoed.
"Yes. You know, for when that doesn't work."
Lucifer sighed heavily. "We didn't get that far. We don't go around killing each other, for one, as was made absolutely clear to me by my siblings. Rafael was the worst," he muttered to himself as an afterthought. He cleared his throat and straightened up. "It's no matter. My job is to keep you out of harm's way as much as possible."
"Aw, you got babysitting duty?" she teased him, altogether more than happy that he would be staying safe with her instead of trying to dissuade his maniac brother. Lucifer frowned as he digested her words, and it caused her to laugh again.
"So where do you want to go?" she asked, trying to keep the mood light. Internally, her detective brain was furiously thinking about possible plan B scenarios for when plan A: Talk to Michael didn't work. Chloe hoped it didn't show on her face, however; Lucifer obviously needed a distraction. So she wrapped her fingers around his arm, her senses delighting in the silky smooth texture of his designer suitcoat and the warmth of being closer to him. Smiling up at him, she marveled how he could still have that tinge of a glow around him. Lucifer really, truly was an angel to his core. "Maybe we can get some dinner or something."
Lucifer's eyes shed his worries from earlier and melted into a warmth that made her heart skip a beat.
"We are supposed to stay away from everything," he mused as he smirked at her. "However, if we are going to dinner, you will need to change."
"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" Chloe asked indignantly, removing her hand from his arm, but by then it was too late – the wheels were turning in Lucifer's head now, and he grabbed her hand. Before she could blink, she found herself pressed up against him suddenly as white feathers surrounded her. She gasped.
"Hold on then," he murmured in her ear. Then they were flying.
If she had thought the previous experience flying with an angel had been exhilarating, it was nothing compared to the sheer euphoria she had now, still breathless from their kiss and stunned at the speed which everything happened. What should have been howling wind in her ears and hair was nothing more than an easy breeze, tickling her hair against her neck and making her giggle. Half of her wanted to open her eyes, but the other half was cautious what a sudden discovery of a fear of heights would do to the moment. She squeezed them shut tighter, relishing in the moment as she felt Lucifer wordlessly pull her closer.
All too soon it was over. Her hair was still moving, but this time by a breeze that spun through leaves noisily and cascaded across her face. Lucifer let her go and Chloe took a deep breath in, enamored by the sweet scent of nature and him. She slowly opened her eyes.
They were in a clearing in the middle of a wide forest. Deciduous trees rose tall and steady amongst rose bushes in peak bloom and other assortments of brightly colored flowers, delicately placed in perfectly manicured landscaping. Surrounding them were paver stone pathways leading off in different directions, twisting behind the beautifully-placed nature. She opened her mouth in amazement.
"Lucifer, where are we?" she asked breathlessly, eyes drinking in the sights as she worked to catch her breath from their flight. Instead of answering her, Lucifer held up one slender finger, gave another smirk, and disappeared in a flash. He was back again before she could barely blink, arms full of a large box. He held it out to her wordlessly, his eyes warm.
"I hope you will do me the honor of joining me for dinner?" Lucifer asked in a gentle voice he only reserved for private moments like this. Chloe accepted the box, her eyes widening as she saw the contents inside. Quickly she glanced back up, an astonished refusal on her lips, but when she saw the almost childlike eagerness on his face, she closed her mouth and nodded, feeling a wave of excitement run through her. Lucifer gestured her toward one of the paths, which led to a very fancy looking bathroom. Once there she changed quickly, doing her best not to look at herself in the mirror. Her hair, pulled up in its usual pony, was not nearly fancy enough for the dress he had found her – which fit her perfectly, she noticed with a blush. Lucifer was definitely one to know sizes.
After struggling with the zipper for a few minutes, Chloe finally found the strength to look in one of the full-length mirrors that decorated the too-pretty bathroom. She admired the deep red shade of the dress, traced her fingertips along the soft silk that cinched at her waist and lightly flared out to her mid-thighs. The sweetheart strapless neckline made her neck feel exposed, save for the simple chain necklace with the bullet she had shot Lucifer with back in the day. It somehow seemed to add the perfect finishing touch to the otherwise gaudy outfit. Sighing deeply, she shoved her clothes back in the box and hoisted it under her arm, leaving the restroom to a waiting Lucifer.
He smiled, eyes trailing over her outfit with a warm pleasure very obvious in the way they shone. She tried not to smile, instead thrusting the box back to him. He accepted it gracefully, seeming to make it disappear almost instantly with a waiting maître d', who silently gestured for them to follow him. Lucifer offered his arm in the most gentlemanly fashion, and Chloe took it with a small smile, internally squealing. She had never been the biggest fan of cheesy romance, but Lucifer had a way of making even the cheesiest romance seem like a polished gesture of warmth and love.
As they were seated in the most romantic outdoor setting imaginable, Chloe could almost forget the real reason they were here in the first place – and wondered how plan A was going with the angels.