Chapter 8
When Lucifer woke up the next morning, the first thing he noticed was that, in his sleep, his arms and wings had wrapped protectively around the detective. She was snoring softly, rather than like her usual Albanian field wench, and her breath was huffing gently against his collar bone. As he watched, a slight frown appeared on her face, as though she had sensed him watching, and she slowly stretched and blinked herself awake.
"Good morning, Detective." Lucifer smiled at her.
Chloe blinked at him sleepily for a moment. She smiled, closing her eyes with a whispered "Good morning" and then pressed her lips against his.
Lucifer froze for a second, his eyes widening in shock before they fluttered closed and he kissed her back. After a moment, they separated and Lucifer stared down at her, his heart pounding in his chest.
"What was that for?" Lucifer asked, pulling back slightly.
Chloe sighed and pulled herself out of the warm cocoon of Lucifer's wings. "I know things have been a bit weird since you came back from Hell." She said, sitting up and watching as her partner did the same. "I still love you, though, and it just seemed like the right thing to do."
Lucifer stared, his mouth falling open, hardly daring to believe what he was hearing. "You still love me?" He asked. "Even after everything we learned yesterday, about why my Father created you?"
"Look," Chloe said, taking Lucifer's hand in her own. "Whatever your Father's reasons were for creating me, they don't matter. He doesn't matter!" Lucifer's mouth opened, as though he was about to remind her that nobody could claim that God didn't matter, so Chloe kept talking before he could interrupt. "No, listen. He may have created me so that you could have children again, but, if anything, that just gives us more choice. We have that possibility, but we don't have to do it if we don't want to."
"Don't you want to?" Lucifer asked with a frown.
"That's not what I'm saying." Chloe explained with an understanding smile. "I'd actually love to, one day. My point is that that would be our choice, not your Dad's. If you don't want to have kids one day, you don't have to. It's up to you, not Him."
"I never thought about it." Lucifer told her, sitting up and shrugging his wings away. "After Damael, I never dared to create another child myself and I never really wanted to. It felt like I would be betraying him."
"I get that." Chloe said sadly. "If you do decide to do it in the future, though, you wouldn't be replacing him and it doesn't mean you'll forget him. It just means you'll love another child as much as I know you will always love him."
Lucifer frowned in thought, staring at the duvet, looking confused and lost. After a moment, he leaned in and kissed Chloe gently on the lips. "One day, maybe." He whispered as he pulled away and held her tightly in a hug. "Not yet, but maybe one day I will be ready."
After getting up, Lucifer showered and then made breakfast while Chloe had a shower. He then woke Trixie up gently, prompting her to get ready for school while her mother got dressed ready for work.
As they were eating breakfast, Chloe's phone rang and she answered it with a frown and a quick "Hey, Dan, what's up."
Lucifer watched as Chloe's frown deepened and her eyes met his in confusion. "What do you mean something's wrong with Lucifer?" She asked, bewildered. There was a moment's silence as she listened to her ex, her eyes widening in alarm. "He can't be there." She said insistently. "Lucifer's right here."
Lucifer suddenly jumped up and grabbed the phone from Chloe's hand. "Daniel!" He barked into the phone, racing from the bar area and grabbing his jacket from the back of the sofa. "Are you saying I'm there now?"
"Yeah." Dan said over the phone, sounding confused. "What the hell is going on?"
"Just stay away from him." Lucifer said as he pulled his jacket on and grabbed Trixie's bag, holding out and shaking it for her to take. "Whatever you do, do not approach him. I'm on my way."
Lucifer hung up the phone and pushed it into Chloe's hand before pulling his own phone out of his pocket and dialling Amenadiel's number. As soon as his brother answered, he snapped into the phone, "Meet me at the precinct, brother. I can't explain now but it's an emergency. Bring Charlie and Linda. Do not let them out of your sight!"
"What's going on?" Chloe asked, pulling on her own coat and following Lucifer's panicked steps to the elevator.
"Another celestial shitstorm, I fear." Lucifer told her, furiously pounding the button to take them to the parking garage. "Beatrice will need to stay with us for now, until I'm sure it's safe."
Chloe didn't argue with the Devil as he led her and Trixie to her car, his eyes blazing red. They jumped into the car, Lucifer taking the driver's seat without asking, and he pulled out of the garage with a squeal of tyres before either of the humans had a chance to finished fastening their seatbelts.
An alarmingly short time later, Lucifer threw open the door of the precinct, marching in with the fury of an avenging angel, Trixie and Chloe following him, frightened and confused.
He ignored Amenadiel, who was waiting with Linda and Charlie in the foyer, and marched up to Dan.
"Where is he?" Lucifer demanded, his eyes wild with both fear and fury.
"At Chloe's desk." Dan said, pointing in that direction and taking a step back from the raging Devil. "What's going on, man?"
Lucifer ignored him and stormed over to Chloe's desk after glancing over his shoulder to make sure the detective and her daughter followed.
"What are you doing here?" He growled, grabbing the man at Chloe's desk by the throat and slamming him against the wall.
Chloe stared, her mouth falling open. She could see why Dan had been confused. The man being throttled by her partner was his exact double. She didn't think even she would have been able to tell them apart.
"Sam…" The man choked, clawing at Lucifer's hands and trying to pull them away from his throat. Amenadiel jumped forwards and joined in pulling Lucifer away.
"What are you doing here, Michael?" Amenadiel asked, pushing the two of them apart. All around them, a crowd of curious police officers had gathered to watch the scene unfold.
"Michael?" Chloe asked, stunned. "The Michael?"
"Yes." Lucifer said through gritted teeth. "The Michael. My twin. And the universe's greatest traitor."
"Look, Sam," Michael said, clearing his throat and holding his hands up placatingly. "I know I betrayed you but…"
"But what?" Lucifer interrupted, his eyes blazing again. "Are you really about to try to justify what you did? Refusing to help me save my son? Chaining me up and throwing me out?"
"No." Michael told him, briefly looking to the heavens and taking a deep breath. "I can't justify that. I can't apologise because it will be meaningless. I will say, though, that I know now I was wrong. We all do, and we would do anything to fix it."
Lucifer stared, the fire fading from his eyes as he tried to comprehend his brother's remorse. "You can't fix it." He whispered, his voice cracking. "I begged you when he was dying. I begged you and Raph and even Father, but none of you did anything. You just stood there and watched him die."
"I know. I'm so sorry, Sam."
"What do you want, Mike?" Lucifer sighed, stepping back and dropping down into his usual seat at Chloe's desk. "I thought you might have been here to punish me for trying to punch Dad but I know the difference between your revenge face and your grovelling face."
"Because they're the same as your revenge face and your grovelling face?" Michael quipped, reaching hesitantly for his brother's shoulder.
"Don't touch me!" Lucifer snarled, shaking his twin's hand away. "And don't try to be funny with me, Mike. You're eons too late for that party. Just tell me why you're here."
Michael took a deep breath, looking sadly at his brother's grief-stricken face. Then, he crouched down onto one knee in front of his brother. "Perhaps I can't bring Damael back for you." He said softly. "But there was a time when we used our gifts to help each other. You used to play wonderful music to ease my pain when I was sad, and I would create pictures to raise your spirits when you were sad."
"What's your point?" Lucifer snapped, memories of happier times making him more resentful rather than making him feel better. "Are you just here for a trip down memory lane?"
"No." Michael told him, reaching into his pocket and pulling out two pieces of paper. "I wanted to at least try to ease some of your pain again, so I created these for you." He held out the papers for Lucifer, waiting with bated breath.
After a moment's hesitation, Lucifer reached out and snatched the papers from his twin's hand. He glanced down and his mouth fell open in shock.
The image of a small boy gazed up at him from the first sheet of paper, so detailed it could have been mistaken for a photograph. The boy's pale face was framed by dark hair which fell softly around his ears. A gentle smile rested on his face and his eyes sparkled with starlight as he looked up from the paper. On the other page, Lucifer's own face was alight with joy as he held the child in his arms. The child was smiling at his father, his finger pointing to the stars, a question on his lips.
"I remember this." Lucifer whispered, running trembling fingers over the image of himself and his son. "He asked if we could visit the stars."
"I was watching." Michael told him sadly. "And I remembered. You were both so happy back then. I thought you should have something to help you treasure those memories."
Lucifer tore his eyes away from his son's face and looked down at his twin instead.
"This doesn't make everything better." He said, swallowing around the lump in his throat.
"I know." Michael said, rising to his feet. "But, for what it's worth, I am so sorry."
Lucifer watched as his twin walked away towards the exit to the precinct. Just as he reached the door, he called out. "Mike?" Michael stopped and turned back. Lucifer took a deep breath and said, with a small smile, "Thank you, brother."
Michael folded his wings away as he landed in the Silver City. Glancing at his brother and sister, he silently walked towards his chambers, confident that they would follow.
When he reached his sitting room, he closed and locked his door before turning to face his siblings. "It's time." He said, leaning heavily on the back of an ornate time. "Can you do this?"
"I can do it." Raphael the Healer nodded, his eyes fierce and determined.
"Absolutely." Azrael the Guide nodded, her own jaw set in determination. "Can you, Mikey?"
Michael the Artist took a deep breath and looked at them both. "I can." He said resolutely. "I know I can now. Let's begin."