Welcome back to what I've been calling my North Star slash in my head for quite a while now.
If you have not read The Devil Knows You're Dead, please understand that this is a sequel fanfiction in which Lucifer Morningstar and Eric Northman have fallen in love. Because, as Eric has been known to say, "Fuck Sookie." (and Chloe too)
I highly recommend reading the first one before proceeding with The Colour Red in a World of Black and White.
Lucifer stood in the centre of his loft, surveying the workmen who were busy installing the state-of-the-art metal shutters that would slip in and out of the walls with ease, shutting the sunlight out and keeping his vampire lover safe during the height of the noon-day sun. He was having a second set of shutters built on the outside of the bedroom's windows as well, but the inner shutters would do for now. Still, it was a bit worrying to know that his boyfriend—yes, yes his boyfriend—was immortal, except for the pesky business about burning up into a crisp in the sunlight.
It had been a month since Eric Northman had been released of his duties as Sheriff of Area 5 in Louisiana, and while Eric had been tying up loose ends back in Shreveport for a few weeks, Lucifer had been making renovations to his loft in Los Angeles, preparing for the vampire's permanent arrival. Of course, the specifications to make his penthouse suite accessible to a vampire was a bit more complicated than he'd expected and the vampire in question was already in L.A. and currently living on the floor just above Lux, Lucifer's club at street level. Lucifer had rented out the empty space—the entire floor being empty for years now, quite possibly because no one wanted to be above the loud thump of Lux's seemingly never ending party—with the intention of turning it into offices for their new detective agency. In the last month he'd also pulled some strings and did some mandatory courses and could legally call himself a private investigator.
Lucifer Morningstar had a new mission in life and he was determined to obtain everything he needed as quickly as possible. It had been surprisingly easy to get PI licenses for both him and his vampire lover, but making sure his home was up to code for a vampire's . . . allergies . . . was proving a bit more complicated. It wasn't just protecting Eric from the sun that Lucifer had worked toward either. The elevator that led from Lux straight to his apartment at the top of the world also had required upgrades—primarily key code and electronic access to gain entry to the apartment. That had been surprisingly easy and he wondered why he hadn't done it sooner—while he worried more about Eric's safety, considering his other weaknesses that could end his immortal life, Lucifer had to admit that privacy was a welcome relief from every single person that just randomly decided to show up at his apartment whenever they felt like it. Which was annoyingly quite a few of them.
He had zero shame about the time Amenadiel had shown up out of the blue while he and Eric were experimenting with the cupboard of, well . . . toys. Or the time Dan and Chloe had barged in looking for him and he had been sharing a meal with Eric. Shame? None at all. Annoyance? Plenty of it.
Lucier had even installed a small fridge behind the bar purely devoted to Tru Blood, even though Eric professed to hate the stuff. He knew the vampire had yet to feed off of anyone but him since they'd established that part of their relationship, but Lucifer knew it must be limiting to the vampire. So until the novelty of drinking the devil's blood wore off and Eric took to getting lunch elsewhere from time to time, Lucifer wanted Tru Blood on hand in case Eric was hungry and Lucifer wasn't around. Besides, he was hoping they'd have more vampire visitors, and having Tru Blood on hand was only the polite thing to do.
However, until Lucifer's bedroom was light-tight, Eric was sleeping in one of the offices on the second floor. They'd rented the entire floor out and there were plenty of inner offices that had no windows, making it an ideal place for a vampire to sleep. And while Lucifer didn't like the notion of Eric sleeping in his coffin inside an empty office, he liked the idea of Eric staying at a hotel even less. At least Eric was just an elevator ride away if Lucifer needed to see him—rather than halfway across town. And surprisingly, Lucifer had gone down at least a handful of times just to sit in the same room as Eric while the vampire slept the sleep of the dead. He never woke him; just sat against the wall and marvelled at the luck of finding such a unique creature in a world of nearly eight billion.
How could Lucifer have gotten so lucky?
As if Lucifer's thoughts of the vampire summoned him, the elevator doors trundled open and out walked Eric Northman, Lucifer's favourite person. Over a thousand years old, he had been turned vampire while he'd been dying on a Viking raid somewhere along the Scandinavian coast. They now both knew that Eric's soul was stuck in the spot where Eric had officially died—although Eric wasn't quite sure exactly where that was. And there was no Godric to ask either, which always seemed to genuinely upset him whenever they talked about it. Not that he had no idea where his soul was—but that he no longer had a maker.
Eric looked the part of a Viking. Tall, blonde, blue-eyed. He wasn't scared of his height either. Rather, he tended to square his shoulders in such a way to make him stand out, look even taller. And when he wasn't gazing at Lucifer—because whether he knew it or not, Eric Northman did indeed gaze when he looked at the devil—he usually sported an icy stare befitting a Viking warrior.
Eric tended toward darker coloured clothes when dressing, accentuating his pale complexion and blonde hair. He'd stopped looking like a gothic metalhead and had begun dressing in more expensive clothes, but he still tended to wear his signature leather jacket anywhere he went. And as a vampire, the heat didn't bother him, so why not?
Lucifer turned on his heel and headed to meet Eric, pulling the icy cold man into a hot embrace, no care in the world that the construction workers saw them kiss. Honestly, he'd never had an issue with someone watching, and was even more inclined to invite someone to his bed play if he was allowed to—and Eric, he had recently learned, had just as many boundaries as Lucifer did. Which was to say none at all.
Loving Eric Northman was easy.
All of their interests seemed to line up perfectly, and the man was certainly a sight for sore eyes.
He had a penchant for punishment, much to Lucifer's delight, although he still did struggle to know where to draw the line. His worry for his soul and what would happen to it when he eventually—hopefully never—died tempered his anger some, but there had been a few occasions where Lucifer had to draw him back from the edge. As someone who lost his temper consistently, Lucifer understood that behaviour only too well—making it just one more thing the two had in common.
"Sleep well, Viking?" Lucifer asked when he let the vampire go.
"No worse than usual," Eric replied as he rocked back from Lucifer and stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets. His eyes flickered over the work that was being done in the bedroom. "I see you've been busy."
"It took some convincing today, but I was finally able to get my building permit through. As soon as that was handled, it was just a matter of calling the contractor and demanding they come out immediately. Seems he owed me a favour; it wasn't hard to do." Lucifer looked back toward the bedroom, cringing at the dust that was going to layer everything for weeks to come. He wondered if he could put a cot in Eric's bare bedroom on the second floor—they could share the space until the construction work was finished.
Lucifer's hands slipped into his pants pockets, making the devil look disarming in his three-piece suit. The dark green Armani one. Eric had said something about his preferring that colour on Lucifer, and well . . . it had suddenly become his favourite suit of the season. Any reason to turn his vampire on was a good reason.
"What would you like your evening to look like?" Lucifer asked.
They both had their PI licenses, and despite Lucifer's putting up a lighted sign next to the one for Lux, they had yet to have a single client. He remained hopeful, but there was no point sitting behind a desk and twiddling their thumbs if they could entertain themselves elsewhere.
"Actually, I was wondering if I couldn't take you for a drive," Eric said, his pale blue gaze sliding to the right to avoid meeting Lucifer's eyes.
"Oh? What's the occasion?" Lucifer asked.
Eric shrugged. "I'd just like to go for a drive. My car."
Well, there was that, Lucifer supposed. Eric had had his silver little number transported from Shreveport just the week before and they had yet to take it out for a spin, always using Lucifer's classic Corvette instead. It had only been time before Eric wanted to be the one behind the wheel—and the vampire most definitely did love his technology, which Lucifer's car decidedly lacked.
"You know, I think that sounds lovely," Lucifer said. "It's a perfect night for it. Shall we?" He gestured for Eric to head back to the elevator and with a quick nod to the contractor in charge of installing his new window shades, Lucifer followed Eric into the lift. With a flash of his new key fob and the five numbers he had memorized plunked into the keypad, the elevator began to descend. They'd hit the parking garage and avoid the club completely.
It was early on in the evening, the sun setting early at this time of the year, but even still, there would definitely be people in Lux. If Lucifer walked through, they'd be looking for his attention. And with Eric's plea for a drive through Los Angeles, he didn't want to pull his attention from the vampire. Eric deserved to be in the spotlight of Lucifer's mind.
Soon enough they were in Eric's sleek Corvette and out from under Lux, sliding into the Los Angeles traffic with ease. Funny how they fit in better in Eric's silver, low-slung number than they ever did with Lucifer's classic car. Well . . . perhaps it made sense. Lucifer liked sticking out. Eric just liked showing off the wealth he had. There was a distinct difference. Eric liked to flaunt his toys; Lucifer wanted to be noticed. The same and different, all at the same time.
A wash of love spread over Lucifer at the thought. That the two of them could be so much alike and yet so uniquely different at the same time. He still couldn't quite believe this was happening to him—that he'd found someone to love that loved him right back. Especially considering how quickly it had all happened. And yet . . .
Here they were, with the windows wide open and the wind in their hair. The hottest couple in Los Angeles, if Lucifer did say so himself.
He only hoped it would last.
There was always that worry that someone would grow bored of him.
He snuck a glance at Eric but the vampire seemed lost in thought as he manoeuvred through traffic, heading them away from the water and toward an area of town that had less of the Hollywood twinkle and more of the gritty dust of the working class. Eric had a little frown on his face, not uncommon on the vampire, and Lucifer was curious to see where this car ride was leading them. He was surprised when Eric turned into the parking lot of a small park. It was after dark and there were hardly any other cars in the little lot, although Lucifer did think it would make for a great place to do nefarious things. At least three of the lights had been shot out.
"What are we doing here?" Lucifer asked, watching Eric get out of the car and enjoying the view of Eric's behind as he did it.
Eric leaned back into the car, giving Lucifer a winning smile. "Come walk with me."
Well.
Lucifer sprung from the Corvette, not needing to be asked twice to go for a romantic walk through a suspiciously dark park. Eric locked and armed the car as soon as they were both out, and offered the devil an arm. Lucifer happily took the proffered arm and together they hit the paved path that wound through the scraggly trees and tired-looking play structures.
The park was probably quite lovely during the day, when kids would swing from monkey bars and dogs would read their daily doggy-mail at the base of every tree and fence post, but at night it was spooky. Almost none of the lights worked and despite the signs indicating the park was technically closed during the dark hours of the day, it was obvious to Lucifer that the two of them were not alone as they wandered the path. He didn't mind; didn't worry. The likelihood of any of the riffraff in the park wanting or planning to harm a vampire was quite slim, and Lucifer himself was invulnerable most of the time now, too. Unless he was busy loving his vampire or fearing for his safety, that was.
As if sensing Lucifer's thoughts about immortality and Eric's weaknesses, the vampire's hand shot out in the dark and found Lucifer's, cool fingers wrapping around his own as he was drawn off the path and onto the grass. They wandered past a few picnic benches, each one chained to concrete pads beneath them, and headed toward the edge of the park. Chain link fence divided the green space from the street, and an unkempt line of shrubs grew sadly in front of it, trying to hide the city block beyond but doing a poor job of it.
Eric stopped by the last picnic table and climbed up to sit on top, his leather boots resting on the bench. Lucifer joined him, leaning into the vampire's coolness. That was one of the great things about Eric Northman—he was cool like the other side of the pillow. Both literally and figuratively. Lucifer would never, ever overheat on a hot Los Angeles night so long as his Viking was by his side.
Lucifer closed his eyes, listening to the sound of traffic shush by beyond the raggedy shrubs just a few feet in front of him. He had no idea why they were in this seedy little park, but he was with Eric in the dark and that was enough to make him content. When Eric's arm slid behind him, pulling him closer, Lucifer smiled to himself, wondering if Eric would mind if they had a quickie right there on the picnic table. The thought excited him and he opened his eyes to focus on Eric and ask.
He found Eric already gazing at him. Yes, gazing. The vampire was a romantic at heart, Lucifer was learning, even if he constantly claimed he didn't have feelings, or at least hated that he had feelings. It wasn't that he didn't have feelings, it was that he didn't know what to do with them most of the time. And once again, Lucifer completely understood. But when it came to love, it seemed Eric knew how—and gladly showed Lucifer in all sorts of fun ways.
"What's so special about this park?" Lucifer asked, no longer wanting to make a randy comment, but rather wanting to know what was on the Viking's mind.
"Nothing much about the park," Eric said. His hand slid onto Lucifer's thigh and he squeezed. "But the view from here is something to see."
"The view?" Lucifer asked, confused. He looked out through the chain link fence to see a variety of storefronts and a single apartment complex. Cars passed in the street and a person on a bicycle weaved between pedestrians on the sidewalk. What view?
"You need to look up," Eric said, a tiny thread of anticipation in his voice. He pointed in the proper direction and Lucifer searched the tops of the buildings.
Surprise blossomed in his chest and Lucifer gave a tiny gasp of delight. "Viking!" he cried out, unable to contain his joy. "You got me a billboard!"
A smile spread across Eric's face, no doubt pleased that he had surprised Lucifer.
The billboard in question was for their agency. North Star Agency was emblazoned across a black background, the 'o' in north made to look like a star. A devil's tail snuck around behind the words, and there were little devil horns on the 'A' in Agency. Vampire fangs graced the 'e'. It was their logo—something they had come up with together. Lucifer had put the logo up on the side of the building as well, right next to the neon lights for Lux.
But a billboard? With their address and phone number on it? Right here in an area of town where maybe, just maybe, there could be supernatural crimes being committed? Well, between that and their continual sarcastic remarks about needing billboards to prove certain things . . .
"I don't think I've ever received a more romantic gift in my life," Lucifer said, turning into Eric and kissing him.
Eric kissed him back, fervently, but then pulled away. "Let it never be said that I did not spell out my love for you on a fucking billboard, Luci."
Lucifer laughed, that feeling of love surrounding him like a warm blanket, despite the chill of Eric's kisses. "Viking, let me take this opportunity to spell it right back for you."
In a surprising show of angelic speed, he pulled the vampire down onto the picnic table and hovered over him, eyes roving over the other man's face as Eric caught his breath. His fangs were out, and the fervour in the vampire's eyes was the only invitation Lucifer needed. He leaned down and kissed the man, tongue snaking out to demand entrance, to feel the sharp fangs that belonged to him.
Lucifer spelled it out as the world passed them by, one torturous, hot kiss at a time.
Thank you for giving my North Star relationship a shot! If you would like to follow along with my playlist, please note that this chapter is named for Billboard by Jonas Blue & Tifa Chen.
The title, The Colour Red in a World of Black and White is in honour of the late, great Windham Lawrence Rotunda, more famously known as Bray Wyatt or the Fiend. We lost an incredible storyteller far, far too young and there will forever be a hole in the WWE Universe without him there to bring to life such amazing stories.
Please note that while I have laid down the start of this fanfiction, I will not be updating quite as quickly as I did with The Devil Knows You're Dead. I have reserved the month of October for creating plotlines—one for this fanfiction and one for my upcoming NaNoWriMo project. Do expect updates, especially in the month of October, but just know I will definitely not be producing chapters every single day, or even every other day this time around. Kogo Shuko needs her rest!