Lucifer was in his lounge, thinking of all that had happened in the past few weeks. The door was closed and he had every expectation of privacy, which is why he didn't notice when Ellie opened the door and sneaked in. She wore a low cut dress and and no shoes, which made it easy for her to tiptoe up behind Lucifer's chair and put her hands over his eyes. "Guess who!"

"Eleanor!" Lucifer yelled and turned the chair around, trying to keep his eyes on his wife's face and not let them drop down to her breasts which were bigger than usual, thanks to her pregnancy. He tried his hardest, but she saw anyway.

"See anything you like?" She asked, rubbing his shoulders and nibbling on his ear.

"Eleanor Mikaelson Morningstar, you stop," he told her and tried not to laugh because her lips tickled. "This is not becoming behavior. Stop acting like a child!"

"Oh, come on," she said and hiked up her skirt to give him a glimpse of her panties before she sat on his lap. "I just wanna know what happened with Eloise. I want to know if she's okay because for some reason, your father didn't invite me to the meeting."

"Well, you'll be pleased to know that she's all right," Lucifer said and gently pushed her off his lap. "At home, safe and sound. Now, off you go." He then paused, his hand on her bottom. "Is that...firmer than usual?"

"Yes," Ellie grinned. "Go ahead. You can squeeze if you want. I don't mind." Then, a more wicked smile curved her lips as she straddled his lap and began undoing his tie. "This is a bit tight, isn't it? I think we should get it off of you so you don't get strangled!" She deftly removed his tie, threw it on the floor, and got a few of his shirt buttons undone before he grabbed her wrist.

"You stop that right now," Lucifer said firmly, a warning tone in his voice.

"Why?" She pointed and stroked his stubble-covered face. "I'm so horny right now and only you can make it better."

Lucifer made a noise in his throat. That pout was her greatest weapon. No matter how often he saw it, no matter how angry or not in the mood he thought he was, when he saw that pout, he always had to kiss it. And now was no exception. "Dad help me," he said, looking up before kissing her soundly and picking her up to carry her the short distance to the nearest sofa.

By the time he laid her down on that sofa, she was breathing heavily and her hips were arching forward, her eyes widening as she watched him remove his shirt and shoes and undo his pants, joining her on the sofa and hiking up her skirt to remove her panties.

"Good," she got out as he sucked gently on her nipples and rubbed her. "That's the way to go!" She let this go on for a bit and then, after she climaxed, took his face in her hands, bringing it forward so she could kiss his lips and neck. "Come inside me, please," she whispered.

"Are you sure?" He asked. "Is everything okay? How's our boy?"

"He's fine," Ellie said. "It'll be fine as long as you aren't too forceful."

He smiled, nibbling on her ears and taking her hand before pushing inside her over and over until they both sat up on the couch, clutching each other, hot and sweating. One side of Ellie's red dress was off her shoulder, her breast exposed, and her hair wild.

"Good," she said and kissed Lucifer's cheek. "That's what I needed."

Lucifer kissed her again and righted her dress before pulling her close again. "I'm so sorry Father didn't invite you to the meeting," he said. "I guess he thought it would distress you."

"I would have been fine," Ellie said.

"Maybe not," Lucifer replied. "It's all very...gut-wrenching."

"Oh, yeah?" Ellie said. "Why?"

"Well, you spend lots of time with Astrid and this Eloise business has put her in a very difficult position," he explained. "You're so caring, the sort of person who wants people to talk about it when there's family trouble and Dad didn't want Astrid and Alistair to have to deal with that. Helene doing what she did was very hard for them."

Ellie looked at him, uncomprehending for a few seconds, then her eyes widened as it hit her. "Helene kidnapped Eloise? Oh, my golly! Poor Astrid and Alistair! Why would she do something like that? For the love of Steve!"

"Who knows," Lucifer shrugged. "But she did. It's been determined without a doubt."

"Ah," Ellie nodded. "You don't have to tell me more if you don't want to."

"No, it's all right now," Lucifer told her. "Now that Helene's been caught, I can tell you everything thing that happened. For starters, Helene had an accomplice."

"She did?" Ellie asked. "Do they know who it is?"

"Yes," Lucifer nodded. "One of the werewolves who was making trouble over at Elijah and Selina's ranch."

"Oh, dear," Ellie sighed. "Keep going..."

"See?" His second in command yelled at Ludovic after they got through another day without seeing any of the money that Helene had promised. "That's just dandy. We go out on a limb for that woman because she promised that she would pay us and we haven't seen a single cent. I bet we're not going to. We've been had! All because you were thinking more with your dick than your brain!"

Ludovic punched him and he fell to the ground. "Don't speak like that about me!" He yelled. "I know what I'm doing." He looked around at the other members of the pack. "Does anyone else agree with him?"

"No!" Came the call.

"Good," Ludovic nodded. "We're fine. Nothing is going to happen to us and we will get our money!"

"I'll believe that when I see it," the second replied.

Just then, a bunch of cars and vans pulled into the woods. Silver bullets began flying through the air, and as smoke filled the woods, everyone began running. But it didn't take long for the men and women to start grabbing wolves, cuffing them, and shoving them into the cars. Ludovic heard them all ask about Helene, and, of course, they got the answers they wanted because no one liked Helene much. And when one of the men came for him, Ludovic punched him in the face and took off running. Even though he knew it was a bit of a walk to Helene's, he thought that would be wiser than taking a car. Or maybe he just didn't want to bother. He wasn't sure. All he knew was that Helene was in big trouble and he had to warn her so that, like him, she would have a sporting chance to get away.

Although his sides ached, Ludovic sped up once he spotted Helene's house because he didn't know how much time he had to tell her that the Council was coming for both of them, and probably pretty soon, too.

He burst in and Helene, who was sitting on the couch with her back to the door, let out a cry and turned. "Damn it, what do you want now?" She shook her head and muttered something about changing the locks, and then began yelling more about how impolite and stupid he was, until he grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her hard, then just held her tight against him, while staring at her unblinkingly.

"I don't know why I'm telling you this, but you have to get out of here!" He told her. "Come with me! Your Council has taken my men into custody for whath happened to Eloise. They ratted you out, so you'll be next...and me too. They would have taken me with the rest, but I got away!"

Helene just looked at him and laughed. "Don't be silly! I mean, I'm sorry about your men, and even you, when they come take you, but there's no way the Council will take me."

"What makes you so sure?" Ludovic asked, eyes narrowed. "What makes you so special?"

"Well, my parents run the Council," Helene replied. "Astrid Fale is my mother."

"You're joking!" He yelled. "Did you do this? Did you sell me out so you'd be free?"

"No!" Helene shook her head. "I didn't. Hell, I was even thinking of sticking up for you when you got arrested, but since you accused me of such a horrible thing, now I'm not so sure I want to."

"Helene, dear, come out here!" Her father called from outside at just that moment. His tone sounded like he was angry but trying really hard to be calm so she'd actually do what he said. "We want to have a word with you."

"Quick!" Helene cried, taking Ludovic's hand. "Let's go out the back!"

But even that didn't mean freedom. Once the door closed, they found a car waiting, and her parents, as well as Selina, Elijah, Kai, and Adrian waiting, all staring back at her with sour faces.

She stood still for a few more seconds and then Ludovic gave her a push. "If you're so confident you'll be able to get free, prove it."

"Fine," Helene returned. "I will."

Then she strode up to her mother, who stood, rigid and frowning, arms crossed. "What's going on, Mom? Why are you doing this? I haven't done anything wrong. Anyone who says I did is lying!"

"Shut the fuck up, Helene!" Adrian shouted. "We know you took her! What did you do with my wife?"

Astrid put a stabilizing hand on his back and gave him a push. "I bet she's in the basement," she said. "Run, go quick. We'll deal with this."

"We'll go with him to make sure he doesn't get lost or do anything stupid," Kai volunteered himself and Elijah, who quickly ran after Adrian

Once they were gone, Astrid and Alistair faced their daughter, their hands clutched tightly in each other's.

"It's gonna be okay," Selina said, putting a hand on Alistair's shoulder and a hand on Astrid's.

"Thank you," Astrid said. Then she buried her head in Alistair's shoulder because it was all too much, leaving him to be the one to address their daughter.

"You have disgraced your mother and me," he said firmly. "We raised you better than this. But clearly, we don't matter to you anymore."

"Daddy, I..." Tears began to fill Helene's eyes. She tried to step toward them, but they didn't look at her anymore.

"Now just a minute!" Ludovic said, coming up behind her. "She has a perfectly reasonable-"

"Silence!" Alistair snapped. Then he gestured at one of the men they brought with them. "Take him. And lock him up tight so he can't get away."

Tears began flowing down Helene's cheeks as Ludovic was pulled away from her. Then she reached for her mother. Astrid grabbed her and for a moment, as she stood in her mother's embrace, Helene felt herself calm. Then she got pushed into another officer's arms.

"Take her," Astrid hissed. She didn't look angry. She just looked sad as she watched her daughter be driven off to jail.

"Here!" Kai cried. "Adrian, I found the right door."

"Well, it should be by now, considering that all the other damn doors you checked weren't right." Adrian snapped. Then he shook his head. "Sorry," he apologized. "Didn't mean to go there. It's just that I'm tense and..." He paused, eyes wide. "Wait a minute, what am I standing here babbling for?"

He was just about to hurl himself down the stairway when Elijah put a hand on his shoulder. "Go down reasonably normally," he warned. "That staircase looks uneven at best and you don't want to spend more time away from your wife because you got hurt."

"Right," Adrian nodded. He took the stairs two at a time while Kai and Elijah followed behind at a regular pace. Then he began roaming around, looking for Eloise. He thought about calling out, but he wanted to wait and see the look on her face when she realized he was there to save her.

"Hey, who's there?" She called, her voice surprisingly strong. "Guy? Mystery man? Did you come with more food? Or another blanket? You said you would bring me another blanket and I'm very cold!"

Adrian's guts twisted when he heard that. Her voice sounded different. Strong for the circumstances, but still generally weaker than usual. He ran and let out a growl, which made Eloise flinch in the dark until after he got down on his knees, gripped the bars and she realized who he was. "Adrian!" She cried, dragging herself across the dirty cell floor and getting more dirt and muck on her once lovely violet dress. "Adrian, it's you! You're here!" She got her arms around his neck and burst into tears.

Adrian wanted to say something comforting, but 'It's okay' seemed hollow and not enough. Instead, he just held onto her until her sobs stopped. "You're free now," he whispered to her. "Kai and Elijah are with me. We'll get you out of here, and take you to the hospital to make sure everything is okay."

"No, I'm fine," Eloise sniffled. "I don't want to go anywhere else but home and have a good meal and lots of snuggles. That's what I need. Okay?"

Adrian looked over and saw the pile of rats. "Of course. Have you been living on that pile of vermin in the corner?"

She nodded. "The blood more than anything. Not typically a demon diet but I was told it could sustain me if it had to. Get me out of here, please!"

With a grunt, Adrian pulled the bars apart and swept her into his arms. "You don't have to ask me twice," he said. "Let's go." He picked her up and carried her to the stairway.

"We need to be careful," Eloise told him. "Someone could catch us!"

"No, not anymore," Adrian swore, holding her against him. "No one can hurt you or the baby ever again."

"You know about the baby?" Eloise asked.

"I do," Adrian replied. "My mother let it slip."

"Oh, of course," Eloise chuckled.

Adrian held her to his chest and only let her go for a bit so Kai could hug her too before taking her in his arms again. "Let's get up the stairs," he said.

"Wait," Kai told him. "Eloise, do you want to walk up the stairs yourself?"

"No," Eloise shook her head and cuddled against her husband. "I like it right here, thank you."

"All right, I thought that," Kai said as Elijah led them up the stairs and out of the house. "But I just thought I would check."

As they drove away from the house, Eloise fell asleep in the back, her head on Adrian's lap.

"Are you going to be all right, Adrian?" Elijah asked.

"She didn't have much to eat!" Adrian raged, although quietly, so he wouldn't wake Eloise up. "There was a pile of rats in the corner of her cell. That is something I will not be able to unsee." He began running his fingers through Eloise's hair. "But at least she won't have to go through that anymore. She's safe now; they both are."

"Yes," Elijah nodded. "They certainly are."

Just then, Lucifer's phone rang. And rang. And rang.

"Are you gonna answer that?" Ellie wanted to know. "It could be something important."

"Oh, I doubt it," Lucifer shuddered. "Probably just my father calling again to nag me about seeing Avery the child prodigy. I have no interest in doing that."

"Why not?" Ellie asked.

"I'm not good with children," Lucifer snapped. "And I have no interest in bonding with this one."

"Oh, you're wonderful with children when you want to be," Ellie snapped and grabbed his phone out from under his hand. "Hi, Steve, sorry to keep you waiting. Your son is being a pain in the butt at the moment."

"I'm aware," Steve replied. "We've gone through this song and dance for a while now and the outcome is always the same. But now that I'm speaking to you, it might be different. Would you mind stopping by my and Gwen's house for a quick, painless tea so you can meet Avery? We won't keep you for hours, I promise."

Ellie grinned and locked eyes with her husband, who was making wild motions and shaking his head. "Why yes, Steve. Lucifer and I would love to come to your house and meet Avery! At four? All right, we'll be there!"

"Damn it, Eleanor!" He cried as soon as the phone call ended. "Did you not see me making it clear that I had no desire to go?"

"Well you know what? I think he was gonna call until you agreed, so best get it over with like a mature and sensible person," Ellie shrugged. "Were you like this before you rebelled too?"

"Yes, and I had a good reason then, also," Lucifer told her. "You know, there are times I envision the scene and you're with me."

"Yes?" Ellie raised an eyebrow. "And don't tell me I play along with the ridiculousness in these fantasies of yours?"

"Well, yes..." Lucifer nodded. "You do."

Ellie rolled her eyes. "You know I've got your back but not when you're being stupid. Now, we go in an hour. Shower and dress in the black suit with the red tie. And no dawdling. I'll even scrub you myself if I have to. And not in a nice way!"

Lucifer rolled his eyes as she marched him to the bathroom after they dressed. But then, his mood quickly changed. "You know, if you come in here with me," he said slyly as he peeled off his clothes and turned on the shower, "we'll get this done a lot quicker."

Ellie crossed her arms and shook her head. "Now that you're undressed, please get in the shower."

Lucifer made a face, peeved that his attempt to sway her hadn't worked.

"Remember, just wash your hair, scrub yourself off quick, and then get dressed so we can go," Ellie yelled. "I'll lay stuff out for you. Then I'm gonna watch you put it on."

"Who are you, my mum?" Lucifer questioned. "I find this pestering of yours very unattractive. No sex for you. Not for...a year!"

Ellie chuckled. "Oh, yeah right. I doubt you could hold out that long. I mean, I could, because I can masturbate really well, but you? I don't know. I bet you couldn't even last a day!"

She won in the end, and soon a clean, dressed, and cranky Lucifer was following her out to the car to drive to Steve and Gwen's and meet Avery.

"Hi Steve!" Ellie greeted when he opened the door in response to her knock.

"Hello, Eleanor," Steve replied. He looked exhausted, but gave her a smile and then turned to his son, who stared in silence until Ellie nudged him.

"Say 'Hello' to your father," she got out.

"Hello, Dad," Lucifer got out. "I'm only here because Eleanor forced me to be."

"Well, I could have guessed that," Steve replied. "Come in anyway."

"All right," Lucifer sighed. "Please tell me the child is awake. I won't be kept waiting for hours. I have better things to do."

"No, he doesn't!" Ellie countered. "We really don't. We can stay as long as you'd like to have us."

But luckily, they didn't have to wait. As soon as they sat down, Gwen emerged, holding Avery and looking just as exhausted as Steve.

"Here," she said. "Want to hold her?"

"No, I most certainly do not," Lucifer replied.

"I will," Ellie reached out. "She's so cute!"

"No, she isn't!" Lucifer spat, looking at Avery with distaste. "All red and puffy and..."

"Our babies have looked like that too," Ellie reminded him. "Are you going to be just as much of a jerk with the one who's coming?"

"No, that's different," Lucifer replied. "I fathered him."

"Ah, okay," Ellie sighed deeply. "I see." Then she noticed Avery was reaching one of her little hands in Lucifer's direction. "I think you should take her for a little bit. She wants to say 'Hello'."

"Fine," Lucifer sighed. "Give her over."

So Ellie did and Lucifer held his sister, who seemed to take to him quite easily. In fact, when Gwen tried to move her, she started crying.

"All right, that's it!" Lucifer yelled. "End that terrible shrieking please!"

"Okay," Gwen replied and put her back in Lucifer's lap. She instantly quieted and he narrowed his eyes. "What are you doing?" He asked. "Whatever you're doing, stop. I have no desire to be attached to you in any way, so don't get any ideas."

Just then, the teapot whistled.

"Ellie would you help me get the tea and treats ready while the boys watch Avery?" Gwen questioned.

"Sure," Ellie grinned widely at Lucifer. "Why not?"

"I'll get you for this, Eleanor!" He hissed as she stuck her tongue out at him and followed Gwen to the kitchen.

After everything was set out in the dining room they all sat down at the table.

"So..." Ellie began. "Weather's nice."

"Yes," Gwen smiled. "Avery must've known she was going to see her brother and wanted to make things delightful."

"So you're absolutely positive she can control the weather?" Lucifer gazed at Steve and then took a bite of his tiny sandwich.

"Apparently she can," Steve shrugged. "I mean, it's always sunny over this house on the rainiest days and I know neither Gwen nor I are responsible."

"So naturally, all the credit goes to the infant," Lucifer rolled his eyes. "That makes a lot of sense."

"Well what other explanation would there be?" Steve asked.

"Well there has to be one!" Lucifer stood up. "Why would she be able to do that when I can't?"

"I have no idea," Steve shrugged. "I suppose it's just how things are."

Lucifer's eyes went red, he gulped down the rest of his tea, even though it was still hot enough to burn his throat, and then strode out the door. Then they heard the squeal of tires and the roar of an engine.

"Oh, my...is that him driving away?" Ellie asked and ran for the door. "Did he take the car?"

"Yep," Gwen nodded after getting to the window. "I don't see it in the driveway anymore."

"Oh geez, what a baby!" Ellie hissed and then ran her fingers through her hair. "I know you have a baby to watch, but could one of you drive me home?"

"I will," Steve told her. "No problem."

"Thank you," Ellie told him. "Thank you very much. And I promise that when I see your son next, I won't hurt him too badly."

"Do what you will," Steve sighed. "It's not like I can stop you."