Chapter 36: Ludwig

A/N: Hey everyone! It's been a while but I'm back! I heard the latest episode of Helluva Boss was a tear jerker so I thought we could all use a chapter to cheer up!

We're finally going to find out who Lue really is. I've kept you all in the dark about him for long enough so now you get to find out!

This is a bit of a short chapter but I thought this would be a nice 'filler' for when we start the next 'arch' of the story. Next chapter you all are going to get a very, very nice surprise (evil grin)

Anyway lets get on with the story!

Disclaimer: I don't own Hazbin Hotel or Helluva Boss. I just own my characters.

Enjoy!

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Lucifer had a deer the headlights look on his face as Lue continued to glare at him.

He was in deep shit.

Quickly putting on a fake smile, he thought he could cause a distraction.

"Ludwig! Perfect timing! Check out this duck I just made! It does a little dance as it spits-AHHHH!"

He let out a girly scream and ducked his head as Lue slammed his blade into the wall inches from where Lucifer's face was.

"What did I say about using my real name when I'm down here?" he asked icily.

"Quit stalling. What were you thinking when you decided to have your daughter go to that meeting with Lilith's ex?"

Lucifer poked his head out like a turtle from his shirt.

"Oh, come on!" he groaned.

"I didn't think this was going to turn into the shit show it became"

"Really? You thought Adam seeing the daughter his ex had with you wouldn't end bad?" Lue asked dryly.

"When I agreed to watch out for Charlie at the hotel that didn't include cleaning up both of your messes"

"She had to see first hand how shitty Heaven is!" Lucifer insisted.

"She keeps talking about redeeming Sinners and wanting to help them. She needed to see that Heaven wasn't going to listen!"

"Yeah, well thanks to your little 'lesson', it caused Adam to speed up Extermination Day. Now not only is the city in chaos but this put a kink in my work as well" Lue said.

"You should have known this would have happened if Adam saw Charlie. He might have moved on with Eve but he holds grudges. You should have gone with her!"

Lucifer flinched and looked away.

"I know" he said quietly.

"It's just…getting too hard lately…I don't even know what I'm supposed to do anymore"

Lue sighed and dragged a hand down his face. He patted Lucifer on the shoulder.

"Come one. We need a drink"

Lucifer numbly left his work bench and followed Lue over to the bar in the corner of his office. Lue took off his torn ratty jacket revealing six wings on his back. He sighed as he let them stretch out and move around since they weren't confined in his jacket for the moment. He set his hat on the counter and let a gold halo manifest on top of his head.

"Do you really need to dress up like a homeless person for this task?" Lucifer asked.

"Don't tell me how to do my job when you can hardly do yours, boy" Lue said tartly.

He opened a bottle of brandy and poured them each a drink.

"I wouldn't have to dress up like this if you had listened to me in first place when you spouted your idea"

Lucifer slumped as he was scolded by Lue. He might have been the ruler of Hell but that wouldn't stop his mentor from lecturing him.

Lue otherwise known as Ludwig the Balancer was once one of the oldest Angels in Heaven. He was a Seraphim-one of the highest ranking Angels that ruled over the golden city in the sky. He made sure peace was balanced and uniformed. Eden was the way it was thinks to his dedicated work in making sure everything was in order.

And he was also Lucifer's mentor. Even though he was one of the older angels as well, he was considered the 'youngest' out of all of them. He was full of bright ideas that he thought would be helpful for humanity-like giving humans free will.

Ludwig tried to talk Lucifer out of his idea. While it was a novel idea he knew humanity wasn't ready for that kind of power just yet. However being the rebellious soul that he was, Lucifer went with his plan anyway and as a result Eve ate the Apple of Knowledge.

Thanks to his recklessness, Lucifer was thrown out of Heaven and was forced to rule over Hell where he watched over the corrupted that he gave free will to.

While Ludwig had no part in Lucifer's act, he was punished just the same since he didn't stop his student. While he wasn't banished from Heaven he had to stay in Hell and make sure that one of the evils that was born from the realm never escaped to cause havoc in the realm of the living.

It was a nasty job, but it was the only way to make sure humanity wasn't ruined any further.

Lue downed his drink in one gulp and sighed.

"That Adam was always a piece of work. Sera really dropped the ball by making him leader of the Exterminators"

"It's one of the reasons why Lilith left him" Lucifer said lamely.

Lue looked at his student. Even though Lucifer caused his mess, he felt responsible for not stopping him. If he had waited and tuned out his idea more, maybe their world would have turned out differently.

"I know things have been hard since you and Lilith split. It sucks and hurts but that shouldn't be an excuse to neglect your duties as King of this realm. You should be protecting your people from the Extermination-not letting Heaven walk all over you like a doormat"

Lucifer downed his drink and slammed the glass on the counter. He gave his mentor an icy stare.

"Protect my people? Let me tell you what my 'people' are: murderers, thieves, liars, abusers, druggies, cannibals, the list goes on. I gave them free will and this is what they used it on when they were alive! Why would I protect these monsters from being exterminated?!"

"Because despite the horrible things they had done when they were alive, they are still lost souls who have no one else to turn to. Heaven turned them away, don't you turn away from them either" Lue reasoned.

"You need to talk to Heaven and try to stop this"

Lucifer had angry tears in his eyes.

"I can't!" he cried.

"They never listened to me before! They won't listen to me now! No matter how much I beg, they'll keep reminding me of the mistake I made! They won't help!"

"That's not stopping Charlie from trying" Lue pointed out.

"I swear that girl is your carbon copy. A head filled with ideas. Her ideas might be as crazy as yours was, but she's still trying. And even if she made this mess with the new Extermination, she's still trying to fix this mess and prove her idea can happen"

Lucifer wilted a little as he thought about his daughter. He had been so neglectful. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy being a father-he loved Charlie to death and would tear anyone apart if they tried to hurt her. It was just the fact that he felt ashamed of his past actions and that she had to live with those consequences herself. He had failed so many lives, he couldn't fail his precious daughter.

"How is she?" he asked quietly.

Lue finally let a small smile appear on his lips.

"She's fine. A little too bubbly and cheerful for what's going on but she's trying to make lemons into lemonade out of all of this. This hotel of hers might sound crazy…but something tells me she might have a shot at this. She's acquired quite the colorful group of friends so far"

Lucifer looked at the pattern that was etched into the counter. He might have stayed locked up is his room, but he was not oblivious to what was going on outside.

"…That girl that's staying with her...what have you found out about her?"

Lucifer wasn't as dumb he made himself look. When he saw Jenny on the news for burning some of the angels he knew there was something off about that woman. That was one of the reasons he asked Lue to stay at the hotel and pretend to be a client. He should have looked into it himself, but he was nervous about being near Charlie still.

"There is something interesting about little Songbird. I know there's something off about her, but I haven't figured it out yet. She has made things lively down here though"

"Is she a threat?"

"She isn't but she's attracted the attention of a few worrying individuals…particularly one prince"

Lucifer didn't need to ask who this prince was.

"Has he done anything?"

"Not yet, but you know once he has his eyes set on something he won't back down until he has it. Did you want me to bring her here?"

Lucifer thought about it for a moment. The logical thing would have been to have found her immediately after what she did on Extermination Day. Sinners were not supposed to have that kind of power over angels. He should have looked into it because there was something very off about Jenny. But on the other hand was morbidly curious to see what she could do with that freaky blood of hers. She was able to harm Adam's top angel. He found it oddly satisfying. And she was keeping a low profile and not flaunting off her blood. If she wasn't causing trouble why go looking for it?

"Just keep an eye on everything for now. If Charlie doesn't see her as a threat then I won't" he said.

"I was hoping you'd say that. It's been years since I've been entertained and songbird has scratched an itch that has been bugging me for decades" Lue laughed.

He grabbed his coat and hat from the counter.

"I need to head back to the hotel. Don't want them to start wondering what I've been up to"

"Please keep an eye on Charlie for me. You're the only one I can really trust down here" Lucifer begged.

Lue patted his pupil on the shoulder as he walked by.

"You have a good head on your shoulder, Luci. It's ok to let other people in down here. Not everyone is as cruel and heartless as you think. They're just as lost as you are"

Lucifer scoffed weakly as he fiddled with a rubber duck in his hand.

"You don't know that" he said quietly.

"I've been out on the streets and seen all walks of life down here. Not all Sinners are bad" Lue pointed out.

He put his coat and hat back on and slipped out of Lucifer's office.

The king of Hell looked at the rubber duck in his hand. He wanted to help Charlie and fix this mess but he didn't know how. Even if he could, he would just make a big mess as well. It was his fault that things turned to shit when he offered free will.

No one could fix this mess.

Right?

/

A/N: So now you know who Lue is. He wasn't Lucifer but he's acting as his eyes and ears.

I don't know if the order of angels and how they rule over Heaven is correct. If I was wrong on something let me know.

Hope you guys enjoyed this little chapter!

Please review and tell me what you think!

Take care!