Hey guys!

Get ready for a whole lot of pure fluff, and maybe a slightly angry Devil in the beggining.

Enjoy!

It wouldn't be ludicrous to think that Lucifer Morningstar isn't scared of anything. Why would he be? He's the Lord of Hell, after all, one would imagine he'd seen every horrible thing there is to see. And he did, which is exactly why he thought the same thing: there is nothing in this world that he'd ever be scared of.

Goodness, was he wrong. So, so wrong.

In the last few months, he'd been scared of losing people he cared about. He'd been scared he would mess things up and hurt them. He'd been scared they would be afraid of him once they learned his true identity. Hell, he'd even been scared of dying. Pathetic, just pathetic. It was asif he was anxiety walking on two legs. And he'd been scared the fear would never end. Thankfully though, it did.

So was there anything else he was scared of? Well, nothing he'd admit to, but yes, there was. His reputation would suffer a big crack if anyone ever found out and so he kept it as a secret that he wouldn't ever tell anyone, not even Chloe. He knew she'd make fun of him, because it was a rather irrational fear, perhaps she'd even pull pranks on him. It's not like she was huge on pranking people, but he was sure she'd make an exception for him. And no one makes fun of the Devil. Not without serious consequences, that is...

It was 2 am in the morning and Lucifer was trying hard to fall asleep. Not that he needed sleep, he just loved to. And yet he screwed it up for himself. You may wonder how that happened. Well... he'd just watched a horror movie.

Now, not just any horror movie, the Devil was tougher than that. Ghosts, demons, evil spirits, you name it; he'd dealt with all of those before and didn't even flinch at the sight of them. He'd laugh at human tomfoolery and their painfully incorrect representations of the occult. Until... yes, until one certain movie. Because in the center of the movie was a human child.

Now, he'd always been very open about his general opinion on children. Hideous little creatures, terrible taxing burdens, sticky, loud, annoying, needy miscreants... but that wasn't all. Some of them were outright scary. Those few times he went grocery shopping and saw parents dragging their screaming offsprings on the floor... their screams were worse than the tortured souls' in Hell. The human desire to procreate was something he'd never understand...

Back to the movie though, the child was around the age of nine, posessed by some kind of an evil spirit and terrorized his parents as well as his siblings. He'd have episodes; sometimes the spirit would leave him be and he'd be just like any other child, sometimes it'd force him to do unspeakable things. Lucifer would never admit, but he was terrified. Not „biting his nails" terrified, but „squealing at jumpscares and hiding his face in a blanket with a racing heart" terrified. Once the movie was over he felt quite embarrased about his behaviour, but kept looking over his shoulder when he went to get himself a drink. His penthouse was big and there were so many places an evil demon-child could hide... not that they were a thing, of course. He knew that, he wasn't an idiot. Which is why he kept getting angrier and angrier whenever he jumped at every small noise he heard...

Eventually, he decided to go to bed anyway, because he wasn't a nitwit. That's what he told himself, anyway, but his nerves seemed to contradict that. He was tossing and turning in his huge bed, getting more and more frustrated with every passing minute. After a few hours though, his exhaustion seemed to take over and his eyelids became heavy. For a second, it even seemed asif all were well ... and then, something horrible happened.

He heard something. Something that couldn't be mistaken for anything else. Footsteps. Careful, slow footsteps. Small ones. Like... a child's.

At first, he figured he was only imagining it and closed his eyes tighter. The steps stopped, but continued only a few moments later. Now he felt somewhat uneasy, but refused to acknowledge the noises still. It wasn't until the footseps came closer and stopped at his bed on the side he was lying on, did he freeze.

Bloody hell.

Silence. Lucifer was torn in-between trying to be brave and open his eyes and pulling the blanket over his head in fear. He didn't have much time to think before he heard a tiny but bone-chilling whisper.

„Lucifer..."

„Aaaaaaaaah!"

He hadn't meant to shriek so high-pitched but his reaction was instinctive and he immediately flickered on the lights, wheezing heavily and preparing for the worst. What he saw next, he never would have expected. More like who...

Trixie, the Detective's offspring was standing at the side of his bed in a robe and pajamas, her hair messy and nearly covering her eyes. She had black circles around her eyes and while she seemed a bit tired, she was just as frightened as he was.

„Bloody hell, child!" He bellowed, unable to control his anger as he sat up in his bed, looking her up and down. „What the hell are you doing here?!"

The little girl flinched at his raised voice but tried to put on a brave face, at least for a little while.

„I didn't mean to scare you, Lucifer." Her voice was filled with guilt and her big, puppy dog-like brown eyes showed nothing but pure innocence. „I'm really sorry..."

Lucifer was slightly wheezing still, but took a moment to analyze her facial expression. No matter how much she scared him, it was hard to be really mad at her when she looked at him like that. Besides, he shouldn't even have been scared in the first place. He realized that she jumped when he yelled at her, and a strange feeling took over him. Something he could only describe as similar to... guilt. He was starting to understand himself less and less. To distract himself, he asked her again.

„What are you doing here?"

Trixie stared at the ground, now looking rather embarrassed as she tried to find the right words. When she lifted her head again, her eyes were slightly teary. Lucifer's eyes widened.

Dear Dad, no. Oh no. Oh no no no no no no. To everything unholy, if the child starts leaking again...

„Mommy and Daddy are out of town for work." She started and Lucifer nodded, he knew that. „And grandma's been taking care of me but Mommy told me not to wake her up after she'd taken her pills. But..." Her voice started trembling, sending chills down the Devil's spine. „I had a bad dream and..." Now she was sniffling. „I'm scared, Lucifer..."

Said man stared at the little girl helplessly, watching with a racing heart as her small shoulders started to shake and she broke into quiet sobs.

Bloody hell. Bloody, bloody hell. Holy shit.

Lucifer's limbs were stiff as a rock and his heart was still beating out of his chest. This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all... he took a breath and tried to think of something. What to do, what to do... what to say?!

„Wait a second, child..." He suddenly frowned, looking around. „How ever did you get here?" He doubted that any Uber driver would pick up a child alone, especially this late at night. And if they did, that's even scarier... „Surely you didn't-"

„I walked." She hiccupped, taking her phone out of her pocket and showing it to him. „I... I used GPS..."

„You did what?" He raised his voice again, this time being even louder and he saw her flinch again but it didn't stop him this time. He suddenly felt a sharp pain in his stomach. He jumped out of bed, towering over her. „Did no one ever tell you what kind of things could happen to you this late at night? Alone? In the dark? Huh?" He grabbed her shoulders, dropping to his knees and shaking her firmly. „What were you thinking?! You could have been killed! Or worse!"

Trixie's face was red from crying now, tears streaming down her cheeks like waterfall. Her eyes were squeezed shut, she didn't dare to look at Lucifer.

„I'm sorry, Lucifer..." She wailed frantically, unable to say anything else. „I'm really sorry... I'm sorry..."

Anger was raging inside of him and he wanted to shake her again and give her another piece of his mind when it suddenly hit him, and all he could do was stare at her.

She was terrified. And not just from her nightmare... she was starting to fear him as well.

Trixie dropped to the ground with more sobs, and he watched with a heavy heart as she buried her face in her hands, sitting cross-legged and trying to look as small as she could. It was a pityful sight and he felt his anger melt away instantly. What have I done?

The child was clearly in deep distress. First she had a nightmare – which Lucifer understood very well, he had those for eons after his banishment to Hell. Falling endlessy over and over again, then waking up drenched in sweat. Then, realizing she had no one to turn to at home, she walked all the way to Lux to see him, knowing she might get lost on the way. She made quite the distance, scared all the while and waiting for the moment they'd meet and he'd comfort her. And what did he do? He yelled at her. He scolded her, when it clearly wasn't time for it. After comforting her, a stern talking to was definitely due, but for the moment he should have just been there for her. Yet he screwed up. He screwed up bad...

„Oh, Beatrice..." His voice was barely above a whisper, guilt filling his entire body as he placed gentle hands on her shoulders. She didn't pull away. „Forgive me, I shouldn't have yelled at you. I lost my temper. Please, forgive me..."

With slight fear of rejection, he sat down on the ground and placed his hands under the little one's arms. Thankfully, she didn't object and he lifted her onto his lap, only to feel her small arms wrap around his neck immediately. Instead of freezing like he always did, he wrapped his arms around her protectively and held her close to his chest, letting his head rest on top of hers.

„All is well now, my dear, fear no more. You're safe..."

„I'm sorry..." She cried again and he squeezed her a bit tighter, shushing her gently.

„Shh, my darling. It's quite alright. Be at peace now, it's all over."

His fingers brushed through her hair repeatedly, letting her bury her face into his shoulder and whispering more soothing words into her ear. For a while he didn't even realize, but he was rocking her, too. He wondered where that came from... he had no parental instincts, nothing even similar to that. He learnt how to do hugs from the Detective, and he thought that's all he knew... apparently, he was better at this than he thought. Or so it seemed as the child's sobs slowly quieted down and eventually stopped. A few seconds later, she lifted her head from his shoulder. He looked her deep in the eye, not letting her go for a second.

„Are you alright, Urchin?" He tucked a loose hair behind her ear as he waited for her response. The smallest smile showed in the corner of her lips as she nodded, looking much calmer now. Lucifer let out a relieved sigh as he smiled back at her, unsure of what to do now. He was just glad she was okay...

„Are you okay?" She suddenly asked him and he had to let out a tiny laugh, her concern somewhat endearing. „With all the screaming I mean... I really scared you when I woke you up..."

„Oh." He chuckled awkwardly, his hands wrapped around her waist, still keeping her close as he spoke. „Yeah, I'm... I... uh... wasn't sleeping. I couldn't sleep..." He didn't know why he just told her that. It just came out.

„Did you have a nightmare, too?" Her voice was filled with serious worry now and he quickly shook his head with a light smile.

„Nothing like that, Urchin, don't you fret."

She looked at him questioningly.

„So what happened then?"

He really wanted her to drop the topic, but she was too worried about him to do so. It was... somewhat heartwarming. Not that he had a heart it just... felt asif he did for a brief second.

Lucifer bit down on his lip and thought hard. He wasn't one to lie and the Detective's spawn was rather good at sneaking around and breaking rules. He knew she was also trustworthy... with enough chocolate cake (or cash), he would be able to pull this off.

„Say, small human..." He dropped his chin slightly to be able to look into her eyes, the corner of his lips curling slightly. „Can you keep a secret?"

Trixie immediately nodded and squirmed a bit on his lap, leaning closer to him. Her eyes were wide with curiousity, and Lucifer almost had to laugh at the sight. One might say it was almost... adorable.

„Alright, well, here it goes..." He sighed deeply, and held his breath for a second before speaking up. „I watched a horror movie."

The little girl's eyes widened, her jaw dropping.

„Lucifer, you're not supposed to do that!" Her tone was almost reprimanding, much to his amusement. „They make you too scared to sleep at night!"

„Do they now?" He raised an eyebrow as he unwrapped his arms from around her. „If I were you, I'd rather not talk about what others are and aren't supposed to do, little Miss „Walked Half an Hour All Alone at Night"." He gently prodded her belly and a wave of happiness hit him as she giggled and covered her torso, apparently being ticklish. That was some useful information there.

„I'm sorry." She said again, obviously still feeling guilty. Lucifer sighed and thought for a moment before gently taking her small hands in his.

„We do need to talk about that, you know." His voice was soft yet firm, and she nodded rapidly, trying to avoid eye contact. He brought up his hand to lightly lift her chin; it was important that she looked at him. „I promise you, I won't yell."

Trixie bit down on her lip but nodded again. One of Lucifer's thumbs was drawing gentle circles on the back of her small hand.

„I'm not angry with you, dear. I might have seemed angry, but the truth is, you scared me." He confessed. The little girl was quiet and so he continued, trying to sound as serious as possible. „You put your life in jeopardy. You know why you're not supposed to walk around outside at night, don't you?" He didn't wait for an answer. „There's bad people out there who might try to take you. You could get lost or get hit by a car. This isn't a game, Beatrice. Your parents would never live it down if you didn't come home one day." He gulped at the thought and made another confession. „I would never live it down if you didn't come home one day."

Trixie once again teared up and he quickly reached out to wipe her eyes, not wanting her to get upset again.

„Now, now, there's no need to cry, darling. We just want you to stay safe, alright? Can you promise me that?" He tried to give her a small smile and she smiled back at him, giving a quiet sniffle as she nodded. „You know, you can always call my phone and I'll drive up to you in a heartbeat." He added. „Promise me you'll stay safe?"

„I promise." She said, and he nodded, relieved.

„Good." He squeezed her hands gently, getting out his serious tone one last time. „Because I promise you that if anything like this happens ever again, you are going to be in bigger trouble than you can imagine, and I will make sure your mother gives you the punishment you deserve. Am I being clear?" His voice was stern, but not at all threatening.

„Yes, sir." She nodded, and he was glad to be able to finally drop his serious voice.

„Please, don't call me that, Urchin." He rolled his eyes playfully at her. „It makes me feel old." And yes, technically he was old. Ancient, to be exact, but he didn't want to be reminded of it.

„Aren't you?" The little girl asked with a mischevious little grin. Lucifer gasped, pretending to be offended.

„Old?! I beg your pardon!" He lifted her off his lap, gently laying her on her back and leaning over her with an evil grin. „Now that definitely deserves punishment."

Within just a second, the room was filled with Trixie's loud squeals and giggles. Lucifer's long fingers spidered up and down her torso, prodding, squeezing and gently pinching at her sensitive skin.

„Lucifer!" She shrieked throughout her laughter and lifted her small arms to protect herself, but that only enabled the Devil to reach another very ticklish spot and she was sent into even more giggles as his fingers dug into her armpits.

„Yes, Urchin?" He grinned as he kept at his task, enjoying this little juvenile revenge and being able to make her laugh. Something about the sound of it made his insides tingle with happiness.

„P-please, I'm s-sorry! Lucifer!" Her small hands tried to push him away but he was relentless, pushing his fingers into her sides and wiggling them around, watching with glee as she curled up in a small ball with fits of laughter.

„See, that's just it, you little hellion." He teased her. „Right now, you're just sorry for getting what's coming to you." He reached out to tickle her small, sock-covered feet to get her out of her current position, then attacked her abdomen, which he found to be the most ticklish spot. „Soon you'll be sorry for calling me old, too."

Uncontrollable laughter bubbled out of her as her most sensitive spot was attacked, barely able to get any words out as she rolled from side to side. There was no escaping Lucifer's big hands; his fingers always found an unprotected spot to poke and he laughed along with his victim happily.

„L-lucifer! P-please! I'm so-ho-rry-hee!" She pleaded again, making him chuckle.

„Now we're getting there, Urchin..." He grinned, giving her a small pause but keeping a firm grip on her shoulders, playfully squinting at her. „But how do I know you won't do it again?"

Still giggling a bit, she squirmed under him.

„I promise..." Her breathing slowly became more and more normal. „I promise I won't..."

Lucifer rested his elbows on either of her sides and his head on his intertwined hands, putting on a thoughtful face.

„Hmm..." He finally nodded, but there was a mischevious glint in his eyes. „I believe you, but just to be sure..."

„No!"

Another loud squeal escaped her lips as his fingers assaulted her belly again, moving around faster this time and she went into a frenzy of laughter.

„Lucifer! Stop! Lucifer!" Tears showed in the corner of her eyes and he released her just a few seconds later.

„Right. That shall do it." He grinned, watching in amusement as she stopped giggling and just laid there, trying to catch her breath. For whatever reason, he soon found himself lying down on his back beside her, staring at the ceiling. Trixie slowly calmed down and turned her head to look at him. He had his eyebrows furrowed together.

„What's wrong, Lucifer?" She asked him and he snapped out of his thoughts, smiling at her quickly.

„Nothing, darling." He replied, leaning on his elbows. „I just think it's time for your ride home now. It's well past your bedtime, isn't it?"

Trixie's face dropped a bit.

„But I wanna stay with you! Can't I just sleep here tonight? I promise I'll be good!" She begged, widening her eyes in an attempt to soften him, and he had to laugh a little at the act. She was almost as good as him. But just almost.

„Your grandmother's going to worry, Urchin. We wouldn't want that now, would be?" He questioned and she shook her head, but the pout still remained on her face. He smiled lightly and thought a bit before continuing. „But if you really need me to stay with you, I can..."

„Really?!" The little girl's face lit up and he could barely sit up before she threw herself at him, making him chuckle lightly.

„Yes, really. I suppose she wouldn't mind if I stayed the night..."

„She wouldn't." Trixie grinned at him and stood up, offering a hand to help him do the same. The sentiment behind the gesture was endearing and he made a show of getting up from the floor for her, making it look like she was the one dragging him up.

In a way, that couldn't have been closer to the truth.

Just fifteen minutes later Lucifer was lying in a child-sized bed, his feet hanging down uncomfortably and Trixie on top of him, but he couldn't have been more content. Penelope was a deep sleeper and knew nothing of the little girl's shenanigans. Of course, he wasn't planning on telling her. Or Chloe and Dan. She trusted Trixie, he knew he could.

„Lucifer?" The little one whispered. The Devil's hand was rested on her back, his index finger drawing slow circles on it.

„Yes, Urchin?"

She squirmed a bit before speaking up again.

„Are you still afraid of the movie you watched?"

Lucifer smiled, his eyebrows raised in surprise. He'd completely forgotten about it by now. His finger drew another circle as he answered.

„Not anymore." He paused. „Are you still afraid after that bad dream?"

The little girl snuggled deeper into his chest.

„Not anymore. You made it go away."

Five words that had the Devil smitten. I made it go away? He couldn't imagine how he had that effect on her, but he was glad he did. After all, he was her protector. He had to make her feel safe.

„Good night, sweet Beatrice." He whispered a few seconds later, but only got the sound of her slow, steady breathing in response. She was fast asleep on his chest and his own eyelids became heavy as his finger drew one last circle on her back. Just a few seconds later, he'd drifted off to Dreamland.

Thank you for reading! Thoughts?