pessimisticoptimistsblog

[pessimisticoptimistsblog]

A/N – Sorry for the wait! Here’s chapter 8. And I’m still taking ideas for a title for this story, I’m struggling with that.

Chapter 8

Ughhh… This Bitch

~The next morning~

Madame C was in field work mode, up before the ‘sun’ and doing rounds around the hotel. By the time any of the other residents had begun to exit their rooms, the shadow demon was stood on the balcony of the second floor watching the bugs scurry. Her second cup of coffee in hand, Madame C’s attention was drawn to the hallway to see the snake demon stretching and heading towards the kitchen with five egg demons trailing him.

Sir Pentious was still rubbing the sleep from his eyes when he caught sight of the shadowy figure, making it downstairs and almost to the kitchen before realizing what he’d seen. By the time he looked back up to find it though, Madame C had moved back to blend into the darkness. Sir Pentious shook his head and pushed on to the kitchen. Meanwhile, Madame C began to make her way down to the parlor and sat on a chair with a good view of the rest of the front room.

Alastor was the next resident to come down with Nifty close behind before she darted off to chase a bug. When Alastor took notice of Madame C, his eye twitched and his grip tightened on his mic staff. Green eyes stared Alastor down daring him to say or do anything. The radio demon had just squared his shoulders, ready to push his luck, before loud talking echoed down the hallway heading towards the lobby.

Madame C smirked as the radio demon deflated slightly then looked to see Vaggie and Charlie heading to the stairs. Charlie was talking animatedly about some exercise she wanted the group to try while Vaggie smiled softly. As they reached the top of the stairs and Alastor, the blonde girl waved excitedly.

“Alastor! Do you want to join our exercise today? It’s going to be awesome!” Then Charlie caught sight of the shadowed demon in the parlor. “Oh! And you too, Madame C! I know neither of you are here for redemption, but it’ll be fuuun!”

Alastor chuckled slightly, “ Not today my dear! I’m afraid I have some errands to run and I must be off.” The deer demon gave a bow then made his way downstairs, briefly narrowing his eyes at Madame C before he exited the hotel.

Madame C had watched the damned radio demon like a hawk, temporarily forgetting Charlie had asked her a question. When she was sure Alastor was gone, the shadow went to return to her coffee and jumped slightly as the princess had moved to stand in front of her. Charlie’s hands were clasped under her chin and she was looking at Madame C with big eyes. Green eyes widened, for a second picturing a different body attached to those eyes before blinking the image away. Lucifer would probably never look at her like that, if he ever looked at her again.

“Well? Will you please join us?! It’ll be a great way for you to officially meet everyone!” Charlie’s hopeful eyes shone brightly and Madame C sighed, the last thing she had wanted to do was mingle, but apparently, she held a soft spot for the Morningstar family.

Finishing the last of her coffee, Madame C looked between Charlie and Vaggie, wanting to gauge if both girls wanted her present. “I suppose it would be best if I know everyone I’m to protect. What exactly do you have planned, Princess?”

Charlie leapt forward to hug the shadowed figure, bouncing in excitement. “Thankyouthankyouthankyou!! Let’s get everyone together, and then I’ll explain it. Everyone else has done this once before, but hopefully there’s a little less fighting and blood this time.” The princess had pulled away, laughing nervously remembering how their last trust exercise hadn’t been the greatest. “But I’m sure it’ll go much better this time! Stay here, and Vaggie and I will go get everyone else!”

Charlie grabbed Vaggie’s hand and pulled her towards the kitchen. Madame C breathed out slowly and tried to relax into the couch. She’d hoped to meet the residents individually and gauge them that way; this way would work, but meant she may not be able to see true colors.

A few minutes later, Vaggie was yelling at everyone for slacking as she pushed the group from the kitchen. Madame C raised a brow; the one-eyed girl was strong and the much more forceful of the pair, good to know.

As the group closed in on the shadow demon, Husk recognized her first, stepping out of the group and walking towards the bar. Charlie ran to stop him, “Husk! C’mon, no time for drinks now!”

The winged cat dodged Charlie shaking his head. “Uh-uh, I need a drink if I’ve gotta be around her.” Madame C raised a brow and narrowed her eyes, what did he mean by that?

Charlie voiced Madame C’s thoughts and Husk turned while pouring his drink. “Small, dark, and quiet gives me the creeps. Plus, no interpreter means she’s just gonna be starin' at us the whole time.” Husk visibly shivered, then gulped down his drink, poured another and finally came back to join the group.

While Husk had been grabbing his drink, Sir Pentious and Angel Dust had noticed Madame C as well. Angel greeted her with a quick hey and a wave, vaguely remembering her from a time she had met with Val at the studio.

Sir Pentious, while having never met or seen the woman before, had knowledge of every overlord and gave the shadow demon a salute. “Madame C! It’sss a pleasure to meet you!”

Once everyone was on the sofa and chairs, Charlie clapped her hands together, smiling bright. “Everyone, meet our newest guest slash bodyguard, Madame C! Let’s all introduce ourselves and make her feel welcome. Say your name and your favorite thing about the hotel! I’ll start!” The blonde jumped up to stand in front of the group. “Hello! My name is Charlie and I love seeing all of your wonderful faces everyday” she said, slightly tearing up. “Vaggie?”

Vaggie and Charlie traded places, the one-eyed girl putting a hand on her hip. “Uh, I’m Vaggie. And I uh.. I like seeing you guys actually putting some effort into this. Angel, you’re next.” Vaggie sat next to Charlie and smiled at her girlfriend, grabbing her hand.

“I’m Angel Dust, famous pornstar if you ever need anything, sweetheart,” the spider paused to throw a wink at Madame C. “I really love the free rent here, and uh the people I guess.” Angel added on the last bit after receiving a glare from Vaggie, further confirming to Madame C that she was the firm hand in the relationship.

Suddenly a small form jumped in front of the shadow demon. “HI! I’m Nifty! I like all the bugs that I get to kill.” The girl’s one eye was gleaming, her sharp smile wide with excitement.

The group watched Nifty scurry away when she spotted a bug before turning their attention to the snake demon. “Me? Oh, um.. I’m Sssir Pentious. And I love how kind every one hasss been to me even though I did try to blow the hotel up to get to Alastor.” He looked slightly ashamed during his introduction, but Madame C knew she’d be watching him a little more closely anyway. Can’t be too careful around destructive demons, repentant or not.

Finally Husk raised his half empty glass slightly, “I’m Husk. I like the booze.” Vaggie looked annoyed while Charlie smiled nervously and turned to motion Madame C to introduce herself.

“My name is Madame C, it’s a pleasure to meet you all. I look forward to finding something to love about this hotel.” Her shadowed form bowed slightly before sitting back down and looking around the room. Charlie was beaming, Vaggie had a half smile thankful someone wasn’t just using her girlfriend, Angel Dust had one brow raised and Sir Pentious looked slightly confused.

Husk was in shock, almost dropping his glass. “When the fuck did you start talkin? Last I checked, you were mute!”

Madame C nodded, “Yes, I used to be mute. A recent venture has made it possible for me to speak again, though.”

Husk waited for more of an explanation. When he realized none was coming, he huffed and got up to get another drink. Charlie jumped up and tried to redirect the group’s attention, beginning to tell them about the exercise for today.

A few short hours later, Madame C was standing on the roof of the hotel looking out at the city. If she focused on the slight breeze instead of the sounds of chaos and destruction, it was rather peaceful, allowing her to reflect on what she had learned about each of the hotel’s guests. Husk was much like how she remembered from when he’d been an overlord - rough on the outside, but a softie looking out for those around him on the inside. Angel was obviously insecure and hid it by constantly talking about sex and his job. Sir Pentious was an open book and she honestly felt for the poor thing because of it. Nifty was just crazy and she planned on staying away from the little psycho. Charlie was a bleeding heart, but she’d known that. Vaggie also seemed insecure, but Madame C couldn’t quite put her finger on why. And the one-eyed girls rough-and-tough attitude she put forward screamed military which could be beneficial come extermination day.

Movement heading towards the hotel brought Madame C out of her thoughts and she turned her attention to the ground, ready to attack if need be. The sight of Alastor casually strolling up to the front door made the shadow demon roll her eyes in annoyance, yet she didn’t look away. The radio demon must have sensed eyes on him, he stopped to glance around then looked up and locked eyes with Madame C. His permanent grin widened slightly and his eye twitched as he waved to the shadow demon on top of the hotel before swiftly entering the hotel.

Alastor was the one resident Madame C didn’t need to know better, she’d known him his whole time in hell and she knew he was trouble. If there ever came an opportunity, the green-eyed woman knew she’d permanently shut down his radio show.

The next few weeks went by in much the same manor - wake before everyone else to check the perimeter, meet with the other guests and occasionally join the exercises, eat dinner, and finish the night on top of the hotel as a final check before going to bed. The first few nights had been rough, knowing Lucifer wasn’t there and wouldn’t be made sleep difficult and fitful. Once she’d finally gotten used to the loneliness she’d known her whole life, though, Madame C was able to practically shut down her mind and work on autopilot.

Just over a month since Madame C came to the hotel, Charlie decided to call her dad while almost everyone was out. Madame C sat on the balcony railing, watching the princess with concern. The blonde paced the parlor area, one hand holding her phone to her ear as the other pulled her hair at the roots. “Dad, it’s been almost two months. I really need this meeting with Heaven!... I know you said it might be difficult but-… I know! Ughh… please, just tell me you’re at least in talks to set it up?... okay, thank you. Please let me know as soon as you get somewhere?... Thanks dad. And if you ever want to come by again, you know you’re always welcome! Love you dad.” Charlie collapsed onto the couch near her, dropping her head in her hands. Vaggie sat next to her girlfriend, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Madame C, seeing this as a private moment for the two women, dissolved into the shadows and reappeared in her room. Throwing up her barrier around her room and dropping her shadows, Caelwen sat on her bed and pulled her phone out of her pocket. Nia had been giving her daily updates on the business, including setting up a meeting with Beelzebub for two weeks after the next extermination. But Caelwen wasn’t looking for a new message from her hell hound assistant, hoping instead to see a notification from Lucifer.

They hadn’t talked since that morning she’d left and Caelwen was scared to reach out and push him further away. She had no idea how romance and affection worked, except for the little parental love her mother had been able to show her while running. Her fingers hesitated over Lucifer’s contact. Maybe if she did reach out, he’d be happy and tell her he’d missed her! Or he’d tell her that it really had just been their close proximity and his loneliness that he’d confused for love.

Just as she was about to press the call button, a knock sounded at her door. In the blink of an eye, she was  cloaked in shadows again and ready to grab for a weapon. Approaching the door, Madame C could sense Alastor’s power through her barrier. She opened the door with a snarl, eyes blazing, “What do you need, radio demon?”

Alastor leaned on his staff towards the shadow demon, unnaturally wide smile fixed in place. “Good afternoon, my dear! I’ve just come to tell you Princess Charlie would like everyone’s assistance in cleaning the hotel and preparing dinner. It seems Lucifer will be joining us tonight.” His staticky voice threatened to give Madame C a head ache.

“I’ll be down in a moment, thank you,” she grumbled and slammed the door in Alastor’s face. Shadows dropping again, Caelwen shook off the gross feeling she always got around the radio demon. Running a hand through her hair, she prepared to head downstairs before she fully processed that Alastor had said Lucifer would be joining them tonight. Caelwen immediately ran around her room, changing into better clothes and trying to tame her hair. Unless something terrible happened, she’d do her best to pull Lucifer aside after dinner and talk to him. At the very least, she needed closure.

The table was full of multiple conversations, everyone sticking to their comfort people. Charlie sat at the head of the table with Vaggie on one side and Alastor on her other, the three laughing at something one of them said. Angel was next to Alastor with Husk across from him trading banter and occasionally bringing Sir Pentious into the conversation and making the poor snake uncomfortable. Occasionally, Nifty could be seen scampering around stabbing at bugs, never stopping to take a seat. Madame C sat across from Sir Pentious and next to Lucifer, who occupied the other end of the table. The green-eyed demon and Lucifer were the only two not talking, only chiming in when asked but otherwise content to watch.

They each tried to sneak glances without the other noticing, both wanting to reach out but unsure of how, especially with so many eyes. As everyone finished their food and conversations died down, one by one they began to leave the table and head to their rooms. Charlie, Vaggie, Madame C, and Lucifer were the last ones to leave, gathering their plates and heading to the kitchen as a group.

Charlie stood next to her dad at the sink handing him clean dishes to dry before grabbing dirty ones from Vaggie. “This was super fun! We should do dinners like this all the time!” The blonde’s grin was bright as she scrubbed food from plates.

“It was pretty great, but maybe we try every other week first? Don’t want to overwhelm everyone, babe,” Vaggie said while putting a hand on Charlie’s shoulder.

Lucifer nodded eagerly, hoping that showing enthusiasm to the dinners despite his dislike for certain sinners would help him earn favor with Charlie. “That’s a great idea, Maggie!”

Madame C grabbed a dry plate from Lucifer and put it away, then turned towards the others. “Perhaps next time we could make a challenge out of it? Split the residents in half and see which team can make a better meal. No magic. Winning team will have bragging rights. It would teach communication and teamwork.”

Charlie’s mouth hung open, her mind running wild with this new idea. “That. Is. Brilliant! Ohmygosh, that would be perfect! Vaggie, we need to start planning. We’ll have to decide who’s on which team and the rules. And we’ll need to get all the food they might need. There’s so much to do, let’s go!” The blonde grabbed her girlfriend’s hand, speeding out of the kitchen.

Lucifer and Madame C stared at the door for a moment before the shadowed woman started giggling. Lucifer turned towards her, wondering what she was laughing at. “I would kill for just a pinch of her enthusiasm and energy! The things I could do…” Still chuckling quietly, Madame C returned to putting away the dry dishes.

Lucifer stared at the shadow form with a smile on his face before he remembered this woman had used him and played with his heart. He crossed his arms and leaned back against the sink, a small frown on his face now as he looked at the ground. When Madame C turned around and saw the look on Lucifer’s face, her own smile fell. She needed to fix this, especially if these dinners continued.

Madame C walked to Lucifer and held out her hand, green eyes staring into yellow and red, asking for a chance. Lucifer slowly took the hand in front of him, clutching tightly when Madame C transported them to her room.

He stepped away from her, taking in the new space quickly before looking back to where the shadow demon had stood. Now, Caelwen stood before him in a dark green dress with a tired look on her face. Lucifer watched as the woman walked to the bed against one wall and sat, patting the spot next to her.

When Lucifer didn’t move, Caelwen sighed and crossed her legs and placed her clasped hands in her lap. “I…,” she fumbled for her words, trying to organize her thoughts. “I know you think I used you and I can understand why you feel that way. But, I want you to know that it was never my intention. You were my last hope and, truthfully, I had already resigned myself to the possibility I may never even get to meet you let alone ask for your help.” Caelwen looked down at her lap and closed her eyes. “I also need you to know that I never intended to fall for you or make you think I was playing with your emotions. The time we spent together was the most amazing week of my life. And before then, I had never bothered to think of romance or love. I’m an outsider here and could never be honest about myself to anyone, that’s not exactly the best foundation for a relationship. But with you, I feel like I belong. Like I could make a real life here, outside of work.”

Lucifer’s shoulders drooped hearing the sincerity of Caelwen’s words and made his way to her side to sit next to her. He reached over and grabbed one of her hands to hold it in his own, making the woman look at him.

Caelwen cleared her throat, wondering when she had started to tear up. “I truly do think I’m beginning to love you. I know we haven’t known each other very long, but I feel whole and happier than I ever have when you’re near. This time here has given me a chance to fully explore my feelings and I can honestly say I hate not seeing or talking to you.”

Caelwen’s eyes sparkled with unshed tears as she squeezed Lucifer’s hand and smiled at him. Lucifer smiled back, returning the squeeze. “Our time apart has given me a chance to reflect as well. Lilith and I were together for millennia and she just left one day. I guess I’ve always blamed myself and thought there would be no way another woman could ever truly love me again. Plus, I’m the king of Hell! People usually only ever want to use me in some way.” Lucifer looked down at their clasped hands, then back into Caelwen’s warm green eyes. “I want to believe you truly want me and nothing else. And seeing you now after our time apart, I can’t deny how nice it feels. I think I’d like to try and explore this, but I can’t make any guarantees. I have my own issues and Charlie comes first, but if you’re serious about not using me…”

Lucifer’s eyes searched Caelwen’s for any hint she was lying, but all he saw was acceptance and love. His heart warmed and he smiled softly. Caelwen returned the smile and placed her free hand on his cheek. “I would love to explore this feeling with you, Lucifer. Be prepared, though - I’ve lost so many people over the years, I don’t plan on letting you go anytime soon!”

Fallen angel and Nephilim laughed quietly as they leaned into each other, eyes slipping closed. Unlike their first kiss, this was soft and short, testing the water. Lucifer disconnected their lips and leaned his forehead to Caelwen’s, the two breathing each other in.

When they finally pulled away entirely, Lucifer glanced at his watch, eyes widening at the time. He stood and pulled Caelwen with him, moving to stand in front of her. “I have to leave for the night, unfortunately. I’m glad we cleared the air and that I listened. I’ll be calling soon for our first date,” he winked. “And I do believe I owe you flying lessons! So we’ll need to fit that in, too!” Lucifer grinned broadly at Calewen, feeling truly excited for the first time in a while.

Caelwen smiled back and pulled Lucifer into a hug. “I can’t wait,” she whispered before pulling back. They two kissed once more, and then Lucifer was gone in a flash or red. Caelwen fell back onto her bed, face stretched into a wide grin as she buzzed with excitement. Things were looking up in her life and nothing could bring her down.

A knock sounded at her door. Caelwen sat up and looked at the door curiously, it was late so no one should be at her door. Another knock came and the brunette quickly covered herself and her room in shadows as she went to open the door. Instead of literally any other resident, there stood Alastor with his stupid grin and mic.

Madame C felt any remaining happiness drain from her at the sight of Alastor. “What do you need?” she asked harshly.

Alastor leaned towards the shadow demon, “I was just wanting to check on you, my dear! You were so quiet during dinner, one would think you wouldn’t stop talking now that you can!” His staticky voice grated on Madame C’s nerves.

The shadow demon leveled Alastor with a glare, “I’m fine. Just doing my job to observe and ensure everyone is safe. Thank you for checking. I’m going to bed now, though, so goodnight.” Closing the door before the radio demon could say anything else, Madame C dropped her shadows and ensured her barrier was sealed tight. Leave it to that fucker to ruin what had been a perfect night.

 

A/N – I have no idea why this was so hard to write. But whatever. Also, this obviously doesn’t take us to extermination day, but I also didn’t want this chapter to be a novel on its own. We’re now about 3 months out from the extermination, and I’m hoping to cover that time in the next chapter. So this story overall will be longer than expected.

A/N 2 – It’ll probably be about a week before the next chapter is out. I’ve gotta flesh out the dates and stuff while not making each one a chapter 🤦‍♀️

Tag list: @leximus98

[pessimisticoptimistsblog]

Quick poll for you guys and what you'd rather read. Option 1 will take me a bit longer to write just because I haven't fully fleshed it out but will have at least a couple moments of Lucifer and Caelwen. Also, Caelwen won't end up going with Vaggie and Charlie if i take this route, it goes a different way. Option 2 will have maybe one Lucifer x Caelwen moment, but will see a better confrontation between Caelwen and Adam since I don't plan on altering the final battle much.

[pessimisticoptimistsblog]

A/N – This chapter practically wrote itself! Hopefully I’m back in my groove a bit and can get another one out by Friday!

CW: language and angst Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

Chapter 7

Hotel

Lucifer walked into his kitchen the next day to see Caelwen at the stove cooking what smelled like bacon. As she flipped pieces in the pan, he could see her wings fluttering slightly. The lack of recent use after having finally learned the muscles probably left them achy and sore. Now that they had broken the seal on her soul, though, Lucifer was excited to focus on teaching her how to fly.

Finally acknowledging the presence behind her, Caelwen turned her head to see Lucifer with a faraway look on his face. She turned back to pull the last few pieces of meat from the pan and turn the stove off. The Nephilim headed towards the kitchen island they’d been eating at for weeks and set the bacon next to the pancakes she had already put out. Caelwen sat and looked expectantly at Lucifer, watching as he finally shook himself out of his daze and came to sit across the island.

“They probably aren’t quite as good as your pancakes, but hopefully you enjoy them!” Caelwen beamed as Lucifer tried one of the sweet disks.

As he chewed, Lucifer looked at Caelwen’s eager grin and smiled to assure her they were good. “They may not be as amazing as mine, but they’re still good. And I can always show you how to make mine tomorrow before we start on flying practice!”

Caelwen’s smile dropped quickly as she looked down and began to push her food around her plate. “I forgot I never got to tell you, I’ll be leaving today. I need to check on my company and I promised Charlie I’d stay at her hotel to personally watch over it to repay her.” Peaking back at Lucifer for his reaction, Caelwen sank into her chair.

Lucifer wasn’t sure how he felt to be honest. He was still coming to terms with the way the Nephilim made him feel and he thought he’d have at least the next few months before extermination to explore those feelings while helping her learn to fly. But maybe some time apart after their week of close proximity followed by a week of him fearing he’d killed her would help him sort through everything without any distractions? Plus, she said she was helping Charlie and he’d do anything if it helped his daughter!

Caelwen interrupted the fallen angel’s thoughts, “I’m sure I can still come here a couple times a week for lessons! If that would be okay, of course. Or you could come to the hotel occasionally, too. Then you’d get to see Charlie, as well!” She was nervous she had upset Lucifer when he hadn’t responded to her at first and hoped her compromise would appeal to him.

Truthfully, she didn’t want to leave, especially to be so close to Alastor. But she had made a deal with Charlie and she had to uphold her end of the bargain. Calewen would love nothing more than to stay here and learn to fly while getting closer to the king of hell. Their kiss was still so fresh in her mind but his reaction to her last night had her wondering if her week of being comatose had changed his feelings.

The two had gone silent, so lost in their own thoughts that when an imp walked into the kitchen they both jumped, forks clattering onto plates. The imp looked between the two in confusion, grabbing a broom and dust pan from the pantry closet before exiting the kitchen. Lucifer and Caelwen stared at the kitchen door then to each other, starting to laugh at the awkwardness of the situation.

“That was so weird!” Caelwen giggled.

Lucifer cleared his throat and tapped his fork on his plate for a moment. “Sooo… why are uh.. why are you staying at the hotel? Does this have to do with your meeting last week?”

“Hmm? Oh, yeah! One of the demons at the hotel is kind of on a ‘Demons I Won’t Let Near My Hounds’ list. Hehe.. I had been under the impression he was dead, but apparently not. And he was causing some issues with the hounds I had stationed there.” Caelwen rolled her eyes, thoughts of Alastor always annoyed her. And now she’d be under the same roof! She wanted to gag.

Lucifer nodded along with Caelwen’s explanation until a thought struck him. “Why are you guarding the hotel though? I mean, obviously I saw those shark demon-things try to tear it apart, but surely they can protect themselves. Not that I mind having someone look out for Charlie, of course! I love that!” He rushed out before taking a breath. “But I have looked into your company and this just seems like an odd job to take on. Plus, you’re not exactly cheap and Charlie hasn’t asked for an extra money to fund security.”

“Oh, its definitely out of the ordinary for us!” Caelwen chuckled. “Charlie came to me before the last extermination to ask for our help. She thought if we could keep sinners from destroying the hotel and maintain a presence, it might encourage more people to check out redemption. She couldn’t afford my rates, but she was insistent. Asked if I wanted redemption or anything else she could possibly get me. I wanted to meet with you since you were the only possible person that could help me with the seal. Obviously, she got me the meeting and now here we are. I owe both of you my life, this is just how I can start repaying that debt.”

Lucifer was nodding along again but this time his gaze was unfocused and Caelwen couldn’t read him. Inside, Lucifer was spiraling; of course a beautiful woman wouldn’t actually want anything to do with him, she just needed his powers and now she was done with him. He knew it had been too good to be true, fuck he was so stupid!

Caelwen reached across the island and grabbed Lucifer’s hand, squeezing it to bring his attention back to her. “I can practically see the steam coming out of your ears! What’s wrong?” She smiled at him before noticing the frown on his face and it clicked why he had spaced out. “Lucifer, please know this – I may have come to you solely for help breaking that seal, but… I truly wish I could stay longer, just to get to know you. I-“ Caelwen pulled back and sighed searching for the right words. “I’ve never had romantic thoughts or feeling for anyone before. I’ve spent my whole life on the defensive and never gave love a thought. With you, I’ve experienced emotions I never thought I would and in such a short amount of time! I know myself well enough to know this isn’t a fleeting feeling, I truly do care for you in a romantic way.”

Her sincerity was lost on Lucifer who had already convinced himself she was just trying to not anger the king of hell. He should’ve known better than to trust her; even if she wasn’t a sinner, she had spent long enough in hell to pick up their manipulative ways. Caelwen could see he was pulling away emotionally and knew there was nothing else she could say at this point. She gathered their empty plates and put them into the sink before returning to Lucifer’s side.

Hesitantly, Caelwen placed her hand on the fallen angel’s shoulder making him look at her. “I can tell you don’t fully believe me and that’s okay. I truly have come to love spending time with you, you’ve made me so happy. I wouldn’t have cared if we never broke the seal, I still had the chance to meet and fall for an amazing, kind, wonderfully awkward man. And I will always cherish that.” She smiled gently down at Lucifer then turned and walked towards the kitchen door. Stopping before she exited, Caelwen turned togive Lucifer one last smile. “If you ever change your mind or want to talk, you know where I’ll be.” And then she was gone, leaving Lucifer alone with his mess of thoughts, unsure of what or how he was feeling anymore.

~Hound Security Headquarters~

Madame C materialized in front of her building, green eyes stared up at the dark brick and took in the small hole being patched up by a couple hell hounds she didn’t recognize. Shaking her head, the woman walked into the building seeing Rocco at the front desk on guard duty.

“Hey Boss! Good to see you back! Nia told me things got a little spooky with your personal stuff. I’m glad you’re okay. I’ll let Nia know your on your way up, she can catch you up on all the fun stuff we’ve delt with.” Rocco rolled his eyes at the word fun then pressed a button on his computer to alert Nia to a visitor.

Madame C waved at the hell hound, signing her thanks and making her way up the stairs towards the 2nd floor where her office sat. Reaching the doors she spotted Echo leaning against the wall looking annoyed. When he caught sight of his boss, he quickly straightened and moved to open one of the doors. Madame C didn’t miss the almost relieved smile on the hell hound’s face making her wonder what she was walking into.

In the office, Nia sat at the desk with her claws pulling at her fur, the phone on speaker and a familiar voice yelling through the phone.

“-I get that she sends you lot to do the job, but it shouldn’t be this hard to see the woman I’m actually paying to voice my complaints! Like, honestly! That bitch needs to actually run her shit company and not leave it for you mangy mutts to fuck everything up! This is ridiculous-“ Madame C sat across from Nia getting the she wolf’s attention and signing for her to let Velvette know she was there.

“Well actually-“

“No! You’re not going to interrupt me! I’m a paying fucking customer, bitch! And I demand to meet with Madame C and you can’t keep-”

“IM TRYING TO TELL YOU THAT SHE'S HERE!! She just got back into the office! And once I’ve had a chance to catch her up, we’ll set your appointment up and let you know. Goodbye!” Nia growled out before slamming her fist on the phone, effectively shattering it. “Shit. Sorry boss, I didn’t- I just…” Nia groaned and slumped down into the chair.

“I take it the Vees are upset about something, or at least Velvette is?” Madame C let her shadows disappear after she deemed the office sealed and sat facing her assistant.

Nia’s hands rubbed over her face as she groaned again. “Yes! Ugh, I don’t even know what her issue is either, because she says she can only talk to you! Says it’s ‘overlord business’ or some shit. And then, I’m sure you saw it, but some asshole tried to take the building down! Tried to use a cannon or whatever and nearly took out the front wall. Everything was going great, and then literally the last 3 days have sucked so bad! I swear, it was all smooth sailing and- wait… did you talk? Did actual sounds just come from your face?!” Nia had gone from angry and throwing her hands in the air to an excited puppy, grinning and bouncing in her seat while wagging her tail.

Caelwen laughed slightly at her assistant, “Yes, we were able to break the seal and now I’m officially whole. I don’t plan on telling anyone until at least after extermination day though, so let’s keep this quiet?” She smirked as Nia punched the air.

“Fuck yeah! You got it boss, no one knows except us. And Lucifer, obviously, but I’m sure he wouldn’t say anything.”

“Good! Well, catch me up. I’ve got to sort this all out and then head to Charlie’s hotel, got a promise to keep.”

“Trust me, boss, it’s not been anything major. The guy that blew up some of our wall is already dead, he picked the day Celine was managing the desk.” Both women shuddered slightly at the mention of the company’s terrifying head training hound. No hell hound could start working for Madame C until they passed Celine’s boot camp, if they made it through.

“As long as no one was hurt and everything has been handled, then I guess that’s all I need to know about that!” Caelwen laughed.

“Yeah, Celine’s a scary bitch. But no one got hurt and Beelzebub was happy to send over a couple extra guys to patch it up. She’s wanting to meet up soon too, by the way. Discuss numbers, possible expansion, all that kinda stuff. And then obviously Velvette has been trying to meet with you for the past could weeks. Started just before the Overlord meeting and hasn’t let up since.”

Caelwen sat back in her seat, taking in everything Nia told her to decide if the issues could wait the couple months until after extermination day. Or if she’d need to subject her hounds to another day of dealing with the Radio Demon while she ensured her clients were taken care of.

“I guess go ahead and set up a meeting with Velvette for tonight. After I finish with her, I’ll head straight to the hotel and relieve whoever we have there now.”

“Ughh… I wish we didn’t need the income from the Vees, I’d throw them all to the exorcists in a heartbeat.” Nia sighed as she got up from the office chair and headed towards the door. She needed to go downstairs and have Rocco contact Velvette as well as get a new phone.

Madame C covered herself with shadows before the door opened and moved to her normal spot behind the desk. Flipping through the papers on her desk, she was happy to see things had been moving smoothly while she was out.

A few short hours later, Madame C was knocking on the front door of the Hazbin Hotel. Velvette had tried to get Madame C to support the Vees idea of a full assault on the exorcists and was pissed to get turned down, again. So, the shadowed woman was not only annoyed she’d had to listen to Velvette bitch again but now she had to deal with Alastor. And after the way the morning had gone with Lucifer, all she wanted was a drink and sleep.

The door swung open to reveal Charlie herself beaming at the shadow figure on the doorstep. “Ohmygosh!! You’re here! Come in come in! I can’t wait for you to meet everyone!” The blonde was bouncing as she grabbed Madame C’s arm and pulled her into the hotel lobby.

Green eyes tiredly took in the room around her. She vaguely remembered each of the people in front of her but honestly couldn’t care too much for introductions at this point in the night. Madame C leaned up to the princess before she could rope them into a conversation.” I appreciate the hospitality, but I would prefer to speak in private and be shown to where I’ll be staying. It’s been a long day,” she whispered.

Charlie stopped, glancing down at the shadowed form in shock before quickly rebounding and grabbing her girlfriend off the couch. “We’re going to get our new guest settled and we can all do introductions tomorrow. Behave guys!” The blonde pushed Vaggie and Madame C up the stairs and down a hall towards her room. Yanking the two women into the room and closing the door behind all of them, Charlie turned towards Madame C in excitement. “You spoke! That means you and my dad figured it out, right? That’s amaaazing!!”

Made C smiled slightly and looked around the room taking note that the curtains were already drawn for the night. She closed her eyes and placed a barrier on the room, she trusted the two in this room and no others with what she was about to show them.

Once she was sure the room was secured, green eyes opened and looked to the princess. “Yes, we were successful. And because of that and my promise to you, I feel I owe you an explanation for exactly why I needed that meeting. First, I need you both to make me a promise. What I am about to show you and tell you can not leave this room.” Madame C glanced between the two girls in front of her, hoping she could convey the severity of the situation.

Charlie and Vaggie looked at each other in confusion, having an entire conversation with one look. “As long as no one here will get hurt, we can keep your secret,” The princess finally said.

“I can assure you, my secret will not harm anyone here. But if it leaves this room, I can no longer make that guarantee.” When the women in front of Madame C finally nodded, the shadows dropped from around the woman. Before Charlie and Vaggie no longer stood an inky black mass that sort of resembled a person, but a very human looking woman. Messy hair sat in its typical bun with pieces framing her face, and she was dressed in a knee-length black dress. The golden wings on her back, though, made Vaggie’s eyes widen in shock, and Charlie’s face went from shock to excitement.

“You.. have. Wings?! What?! That’s so cool! But wouldn’t that-.. are you? B-but then, why are you in hell? I have so many questions-“ Charlie started to ramble as she jumped around Caelwen to take in the new figure in front of her until Vaggie grabbed her arms to calm her girlfriend down.

“Babe, give her a minute. She’s trying to tell us.”

“Thank you, Vaggie.” Caelwen gave the one-eyed woman a smile, then turned her attention back to Charlie. “I am not an angel, I am known as a Nephilim – half angel, half human. I was… shoved, for lack of a better word, into hell by my heavenly parent and had the angelic half of my soul sealed along with my voice. You’re father was my last hope of breaking that seal as only his power could rival my heavenly parent. Now, I am completely whole, and I owe you and Lucifer my life.” Caelwen paused before adding on, “My name is also Caelwen; Madame C was the name I took when I became an overlord.”

Vaggie fixed Caelwen with a hard look, trying to read the young looking woman before her. “I thought Nephilim were a myth. If you’re truly one of them, who’s your ‘heavenly parent’?”

Charlie perked up next to her girlfriend also curious to know the answer. Caelwen let out a sigh and looked away from the questioning eyes in front of her, unsure if she should divulge this piece of her life. But she had trusted Lucifer and even Nia, surely she could trust Lucifer’s daughter, right?

“You must promise this never leaves here. I will force a deal if I must to keep your silence. Are we clear?” The Nephilim woman looked between Vaggie and Charlie, the blonde reaching out her hand to shake before making her girlfriend do the same. Caelwen grasped each of theirs hands, not sealing their promise with magic but to show she appreciated the sincerity. The brunette took a shaky breath, clasping her hands together to steel her nerves, knowing the two in front of her may not react well. “My father is Adam.”

Silence blanketed the room, Charlie and Vaggie blinking owlishly at Caelwen having never expected the name the brunette uttered. Vaggie was the first to respond, with an incredulous “That’s a joke, right?” Caelwen shook her head with a frown on her face.

Charlie finally broke out in nervous laughter as she flipped onto her bed and put her hands in her hair. “You’re the daughter of The Adam? I have the daughter of that asshole protecting the hotel? I sent you to my dad?” The blonde paused before her eyes darted to Caelwen. “Did you tell my dad? Does he know too?!”

Caelwen knelt in front of Charlie , grabbed one of the blonde’s hands in both of her own and looked into her eyes. “Your father was the first person I’ve ever told about all of that. He actually knows even more than you do, I just felt you and Vaggie deserved at least the basics. Lucifer was very aware of my lineage, he wouldn’t even agree to help until I told him everything. I promise, I know what my father has done, but I am not him nor will I ever be. You can ask the sinners in your hotel, I don’t even own any souls and have never tried to!” Caelwen finished with a smile looking from Charlie and Vaggie, who now had a hand on the blonde’s shoulder.

Charlie’s shoulders sagged with relief. “I’m sorry I freaked out for a second there, I just… Adam has done so much to hurt so many of my people, I got kinda scared I might’ve invited that here. To the hotel. But if my dad was willing to trust and help you, knowing everything with his and Adam’s history, then I’m sure we can trust you.” Charlie squeezed both girls’ hands with a small smile on her face.

Caelwen released the blonde and stood. “Well then, as long as we all agree that this stays in this room, I would love to know where I’ll be sleeping. Today has felt never-ending.”

Seeing the brunette’s obvious exhaustion, Charlie jumped up excited to show Caelwen to the room she’d picked out for her. Caelwen paused before they got to the door and covered herself in shadows, and dropped the barrier she had put up.

Once she was settled in a room far away from Alastor’s, Charlie had remembered the woman’s distaste for the radio demon, Caelwen sat on the bed. It wasn’t quite a comfy as Lucifer’s, unfortunately. And the blonde haired man wasn’t going to pop in in the morning to drag her down to breakfast. She wasn’t even sure if Lucifer would visit or want her to come to him; he’d seemed so withdrawn when she’d left this morning. Curling into a tight ball under the covers, Caelwen felt her heart break a little. She’d only just begun to learn what it felt like to be in love, and she’d already lost it.

A/N – Angst! I think? First time writing it, so hopefully, I got it right! Also, I’ve got a couple off-shoot/one shot ideas I’m fleshing out for Lucifer and Caelwen. Once I’ve got at least one more, I’ll make a poll to let you guys vote on which one goes up first! Thank you all for all the love on this series so far!

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I am almost done with chapter 7, guys! It's practically writing itself at this point, and I just have to pick where to end it. Thank you all for being patient. I'm hoping to have it posted tonight or tomorrow morning!

Also, if anyone has ideas for a title for the story, feel free to throw them my way! My brain goes crickets anytime I think about it.

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Master List

Hazbin Hotel

Untitled Lucifer x OC

Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

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A/N – I know this is a day late, depression has been rough this week, and the amount of details in here had me pulling my hair out. This is entirely back story for my OC, very minimal Lucifer. Also, barely proofread, but I needed to get it out of my drafts so I don’t delete the whole thing and my account. Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

CW: language, I think? Also, the phrases and her mom's accent are Scots. Hopefully, the page I used to reference it was accurate

Chapter 6

My History

Caelwen’s eyes snapped open at the sound of birds. She hadn’t heard birds, real birds, in centuries. Propping herself up with her hands, she looked around to find the source of the sound; perhaps Lucifer had made a chirping rubber duck? But instead of the dark reds, pinks and blacks of the fallen angel’s workshop, she saw trees full of green leaves and patches of yellow flowers scattered in the tall grass around her. This couldn’t be hell, so where was she?

The last thing Caelwen remembered was Lucifer above her, casting the spell to break the seal Adam had placed on her. What the fuck happened?

"Hullo! Hou'r ye?” A voice sounded behind Caelwen. The brunette spun around into a crouch to face the stranger with her fists raised. Taking in the woman before her now, Caelwen’s shoulders slumped in disbelief. There stood her mother, wavy light blonde hair tied back with a leather cord and warm brown eyes shining, just the way she looked the last time Caelwen saw her.

Caelwen dropped to her knees fully, making no effort to stop the tears beginning to stream down her face.

“Well? Hou’r ye, love? Been awhile, hasn’t it?” The mother’s smile was bright as she walked closer to kneel next to her daughter. “I’m so happy to see ye, though, the circumstances aren’t ideal” she spoke in a whisper and wiped away her daughter’s tears.

Caelwen’s eyes darted over her mother’s face, taking it in before launching herself into the older woman’s arms. Caelwen squeezed her mother tight, terrified she’d disappear, and sobbed loudly. The last time she had seen her mother, the woman was being dragged off by angry villagers while Caelwen had hid inside a hollowed out tree.

“Now now, wee one, enough of that – we don’t have much time. There’s some things I need to tell ye.” Caelwen pulled away slightly, looking up at her mother in confusion. “You’re sleeping, love. Breaking that seal did a number on your mind and soul, you would’ve died if not for Lucifer’s magic being stronger than your father’s!” She said with a half laugh.

Caelwen raised a hand to her chest, remembering the burning pain from before she passed out. She looked to her mother, opening and closing her mouth a few times, too used to not having a voice to remember what it felt like to use it. “W-what, what do you-,” Caelwen coughed a few times, her throat dry.

Oh! Here, drink. It’ll help.” Her mother handed Caelwen a small pouch filled with water.

Taking a few eager gulps and wiping the couple drops that escaped from her chin, Caelwen tried to speak again. “What do you mean ‘we don’t have much time’? What’s going on?” Her voice was hoarse and quiet.

“Well, ye can’t stay here forever! That man, Lucifer, is losing his mind over you. Ye’ve been asleep for a week, Cae’. Poor thing hasn’t been away from your side for more than a few hours. Ye found a good one, better than I did a’ least!” The blonde woman chuckled while brushing Caelwen’s hair away from her face.

The younger girl blushed at the talk of Lucifer; even though he had told her she hadn’t misread the signs, it was still so odd to hear he had been caring for her. “Do you mean Adam? Is that what we need to talk about?”

“Aye. With you being fully intact now, it’s time ye know everything. Adam and I met not long after me ma and da passed, sweating sickness, and I was doin’ my best to maintain the house. I’d had gentlemen coming around for weeks, but Adam was so charming. He told me he was a knight for the king, didn’t know he meant God at the time o’course, only found that out when I had you! He’d been so kind, told me he’d marry me once he was released from service. When I told him I was carrying you, he got so angry – told me to take something, anything to get rid’a ye and then left. I couldn’t bear to do it, so I started running. After the first few months, I couldn’t hide ye. People started to notice the bump. And that I was alone. They all thought I was a harlot, then a witch, I was barely able to find food and shelter before I’d be shunned. And then I had ye, and you were so perfect! But, ye had these wee little nubs on your back. And after your first year, they’d grown and had feathers; that’s when I realized your da wasn’t human, he’d been the only man I’d laid with so I knew it'd been him.” Caelwen’s mother paused, a sad smile on her face.

Caelwen looked puzzled for a moment, acknowledging what her mother had said. “I don’t remember having wings until a few weeks after you died. How could I have had them when I was a baby?”

The older woman chuckled slightly, “I’m getting to that. When you started toddling around, I couldn’t hide them in a swaddle and a child from a village we passed through saw them. Thankfully, her parents thought she was dreaming. I started looking for ways to hide them and remembered something my ma had taught me. My ma was a witch, but a clever one, no one ever knew except me when she told me as she died. She’d always told me before I knew what she’d meant, that healer women always had the best books. The next village we reached, I found a healer and asked if she knew of a book that might help. She only helped when I told her who my ma was and what I truly needed, and thankfully, I kept the secret well. She also helped me with the seal we used, but she’d tied the seal to my life, so once I died, so too did the seal.”

“And that’s why they only showed up after you died. And grandmother being a witch, explains why Adam believed you bewitched him, everyone back then believed it ran in the family.” Caelwen laid back, staring up at the blue sky before her as she thought over everything she had learned.

“Aye, but there’s one more thing. Your great-great grandmother made a deal with a demon that all of the daughters in her line would honor him and spread his name in exchange for protection from evil men. If we ever failed to uphold our end, we’d all suffer for eternity. But if the demon ever allowed harm to befall her line, that daughter would gain abilities to aid her in the depths of hell. That’s why you were able to survive so long with half of you sealed off, the demons deal took effect when Adam hurt you.” The older woman looked off into the distance as Caelwen sat up, processing everything she had learned.

“What about you, though? Men killed you, so why didn’t you survive in hell?”

“Before they could try me as a witch, one of the farmer’s wives had given me a drink with mandrake. I died before the men could do anything, and I didn’t stand much of a chance when I landed in hell.” Caelwen’s mother had a sad smile on her face - she never should have trusted that woman.

The two sat in silence for a few minutes, taking in everything around them and enjoying each other’s presence.

There was one more mystery for Caelwen, though. “How are you here then? If you’ve already died in hell, how are you here telling me all of this? Even if it is a dream, I couldn’t possibly have any of this information in my subconscious.”

“A deal I made before I died in hell, so that when you made it down here I’d be able to tell you everything I never had a chance to while alive.” The older woman paused, looking at the sky. Then, as if getting a signal, she nodded and turned to Caelwen. “We’re out of time love, you need to start trying to wake up. Come here,” she held her arms out to her daughter.

Wrapping her arms around her mother, Caelwen held her tight, not ready to leave the warm embrace. Her mother pulled away, brushing loose hairs away from Caelwen’s face, then cupping her cheek. Brown eyes gazed into green, “A love ye, Cae. Be safe, please, and kick yer father’s arse for me?”

Caelwen leaned into her mother’s hand, closing her eyes and laughing slightly. “I think I can do that. I love you too.”

When the Nephilim reopened her eyes, her mother was gone, and so was the field. Now surrounded by the inky blackness of her mind, Caelwen crossed her legs and tried to focus on waking up.

~In Hell~

“I’m sorry Charlie, I can’t come today… yes she’s still not awake… I know, but I-…” Lucifer was pacing the floor of his room, shrinking into himself as he spoke to his daughter. He hated to disappoint her, again, but Caelwen could wake up at any time, and he wanted to be with her when she did. Sure, it had been over a week now, and the doctor he'd sworn to secrecy had said it may take a while still, but what if it didn’t and he wasn’t here?!

“You’re right. I’m sorry, Charlie. I’ll- I’ll be there in an hour, okay?... Yeah, see you soon.” Lucifer ended the call before walking closer to his bed. He looked down at Caelwen’s prone form, her hair splayed around her peaceful face. Grabbing her limp hand, Lucifer squeezed it, whispering, “I’ll be back tonight. Can’t keep letting Charlie down, right? Heh…” He laughed awkwardly, releasing Caelwen’s hand and darting out the door before he could change his mind.

Later that night, Lucifer returned home, drained. He loved helping Charlie and bonding, but dealing with the sinners of the hotel was far from enjoyable. Lucifer walked into his room, removing his coat and vest and rolling up his sleeves. He ran a hand through his hair, messing it up while briefly glancing towards his bed and then moving towards his bathroom.

Entering the bathroom, Lucifer looked at his reflection, releasing a heavy sigh. He closed his eyes and hung his head for a moment before his brain finally caught up with him. Lucifer’s eyes sprung open, and he threw open the bathroom door to look at his bed. There was Caelwen sitting up in the bed, green eyes glittering as she tried to hide her laughter behind a hand.

Calewen had stared at Lucifer as he walked into the bathroom, wondering if he had noticed her. She had been awake for a couple hours, long enough to mull over all the information she had learned and stretch out the stiffness in her joints.

“You’re awake? How- uh, how are you feeling? Any pain?” Lucifer questioned the Nephilim in his bed. When she shook her head, he let his shoulders relax. “Did it… have you tried to talk? To see if it worked?” Lucifer nervously fiddled with his fingers as he moved to sit on the edge of the bed.

Caelwen cleared her throat slightly, “It worked. Thank you, Lucifer!” She smiled brightly at the fallen angel before her. “And thank you for taking care of me while I recovered, I’m sorry to have worried you.”

Lucifer smiled tiredly, “I’m just happy you’re okay. And that it worked!”

Noticing the bags under her companions eyes, Caelwen pat the bed and started to rise, “We can talk more in the morning, you look like you could use some sleep. I’ll head to the guest room, it’ll be nice to stretch my legs!”

Before she could swing her legs over the side of the bed, Lucifer was pushing her back down. “No! No, stay, please! I can go sleep somewhere else, no need for you to push yourself!”

Caelwen looked at Lucifer’s panicked face, raising a brow and grabbing his hands that held her shoulders down. Lucifer, realizing what he had done and the position they were in, jumped off the bed, half tripping over his feet as he backed away towards the door.

A quick, high-pitched goodnight was the last thing Caelwen heard before Lucifer had disappeared in a puff of red smoke.

A/N – I’m stopping here for a few reasons, but mostly because this chapter has kicked my butt and I hate it. Sorry it’s a bit shorter than normal, but this took like 2 days to write. Next chapter will be a bit more of like fleshing out the relationship.

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A/N – There is Alastor slander in this. He’s an amazing character so far, and I know some people love him, but he’s literally evil. Also, I messed up the timeline again 🤦‍♀️ I completely forgot that there's 5 months between the first extermination and when Lucifer comes to the hotel. But I have a plan to kinda fix it.. Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

Chapter 5

Radio Bitch

The next morning found Lucifer and Caelwen in the fallen angel’s workshop. He had decided last night, as they gathered every book and scroll that mentioned bindrunes, that they’d be more comfortable in there and could have lunch brought to them. So they wouldn’t have to stop working through the spell, of course! Definitely not because he wanted to invite her into one of his most personal spaces and show her the ducks he was so passionate about! Absolutely nothing like that. Nope.

Caelwen had been taken aback at the sheer number of rubber ducks that greeted her when Lucifer opened the door. She might not have been tall, but some of the piles had to have been almost twice her height! Unfortunately, Lucifer took her look of shock as a negative and let his anxiety override his mouth. He spent the next 10 minutes darting around the room, grabbing random ducks and shoving them into the Nephilim’s arms while explaining what each one did.

“-and this one has a knife inside, for self-defense. This one can be warm or cold to help if you’re sick! Oh and-“

Caelwen had sat the pile of ducks in her arms down before grabbing Lucifer by the shoulders. She leveled him with a gentle stare then pulled away once she was sure he wouldn’t dart off again. *They’re lovely, Lucifer. Truthfully, I’m amazed by how many there are and all that they can do. And one day maybe we can organize them properly and you can tell me about every last one. For now, though, how about we sit down and see if we can’t finish this spell?*

Her genuine smile and kind words eased Lucifer’s racing mind and brought him mostly back from his spiral into a mental breakdown. He loved this room but, apparently, his depression and loneliness were tied rather closely to it. Lucifer grabbed Caelwen’s hands from his shoulders and returned her smile, leading her to the couch near the workshop door. They sat down next to each other, thighs grazing just slightly, as Lucifer snapped his fingers and made their books appear. Caelwen picked up the notebook she had been writing in last night and flipped to her page where they were putting together runes to make their own bindrune that, with Lucifer’s magic, should cancel out the one Adam used.

The next few hours were spent with the two leaning on each other, Lucifer reading from books or scrolls while Caelwen jotted down anything important to what they needed. Soon the page she was working on was full of various runes and notes about how they worked or what they would mean when placed with another rune. The Nephilim tapped Lucifer’s knee and showed him what she had so far. *I think we might have everything here. It doesn’t seem like it needs to be intricate as long as the right intentions are behind it.*

The fallen angel took in the messy scribbles on the page, making out the different runes that were underlined and what they were for, before his attention drifted to green eyes staring at him. The woman looked so hopeful and eager, excitement pouring off of her as she grinned. For a moment, Lucifer took all of her in; from her bright eyes and messy hair slipping from the bun on top of her head, to the faint dimple on the left side of her face and the way her nose scrunched just slightly. Only a week with this woman and he was falling rapidly.

Caelwen had noticed Lucifer’s lack of response and his staring, taking a moment herself to admire the man in front of her and wonder how she had gotten so lucky to earn his attention. His hair was pushed back like normal with just a few pieces falling across his forehead, his smile was small but oh so welcoming, and his yellow and red eyes were soft and warm. They had both started leaning closer towards the other, like magnets pulling each other in.

Suddenly a song played from Lucifer’s pocket, startling the two and sending Lucifer to the floor in surprise.

He fumbled in his pockets for his phone, mentally cursing the offensive device for ruining whatever was about to happen. Once out of his pocket, Lucifer looked to see who dared call him before freezing when he saw the name – Charlie.

“Daughter? Daughter! Daughter calling?!” He panicked, jumping up and beginning to pace. “Oh! Um-uh ‘Hello Charlie’ ‘Hey Char-Char’ No! No, that’s not good. This has to be perfect.” Lucifer paused before finally clicking to answer the phone. “Hey Bitch!”

Caelwen rolled her eyes and chuckled silently. This all-powerful angel was so awkward it was adorable. The Nephilim sat through the phone call watching Lucifer as he paced around the workshop. His nervousness was cute but also concerning; was his relationship with Charlie always this strained? Poor things. Charlie had seemed like such a sweet girl, she hoped they’d be able to mend their bond, they both deserved to know how wonderful the other was.

~Ding~

A quiet chime pulled Caelwen from her thoughts and to her own phone to see a couple messages from Nia.

Nia: Hey boss, not a huge deal or like an issue, but could you maybe check in at that hotel place? Rocco says the radio demon there is making shit difficult. And apparently, one of the other demons is sort of psycho? Not sure about that part, but probably worth looking into?

Nia: If you’re busy, though, I can totally do it. Just not till tomorrow. Maybe. Depends on this bitch Velvette and how many more times she barges in here looking for you.

“I’ll be there in an hour!” Lucifer hung up the phone, excited and feeling lighter than air. His daughter invited him to see her project! Take that depression! He spun in a circle, excitement pumping through his veins before he spotted Caelwen still sitting on the couch looking at him and giggling silently.

*I take it that was a good phone call?*

“ Oh, uh.. yeah it was. Sorry for sort of-.. it was just, just Charlie and it was the first time she’s called me! Well since she asked me to meet with you. But this time, she invited me over! Although that does mean we’ll have to come back to the spell later… I hope that’s okay?” Lucifer was worried he might have upset Caelwen until he saw her smile at him brightly.

Caelwen waved off Lucifer’s apology before signing, *It’s no problem! I’ve waited this long, what’s one more day? Besides, I have something I need to do as well. Nia just messaged me and needs me to check in on the hounds I have at Charlie’s hotel, make sure everything is going as it should.*

The fallen angel’s shoulders slumped in relief, greatful he hadn’t upset his companion. “Thank you for understanding. I promise, as soon as I get back, we will set your soul free. And then- wait did you say you need to go to the hotel too? Did something happen?!”

Lucifer was bursting with panic again - was that why Charlie had called him? Why hadn’t she sounded more urgent?!

Caelwen jumped up from the couch and walked to Lucifer, cupping his face in her hands and making him look at her. *Everything is fine. I promise. It’s just one of the demons there is making things tricky for my employees. I’m just going to make sure he remembers his place, that’s all. I’m sure Charlie is fine. Please, breathe*

Cealwen began taking deep breaths, holding eye contact with Lucifer until he followed suit. As he calmed down, the fallen angel closed his eyes and relaxed into his companions hands still holding his face.

The woman smiled softly, pulling her hands away slowly. *I need to go now though. For one, it’s probably best demons don’t see us walking around together. And secondly, I have a feeling I’ll need a moment with Charlie before you pull her away. The issue seems to be with a demon staying in the hotel that I refuse to allow around my hounds.* Caelwen’s eyes narrowed when she mentioned the issue, a frown set in, and the woman’s aura darkened briefly before she shook it off noticing Lucifer’s concerned gaze.

“Should, uh should I be worried about this demon?” Lucifer asked with an eyebrow raised slightly.

*Of course not! I can handle myself and this demon just fine and one of the hounds I have stationed at the hotel will be there.* Caelwen’s grin turned sadistic, *I dare him to try one of his tricks. His sabbatical will be much more permanent this time if he does.*

Lucifer couldn’t decide if he was concerned, intrigued, or turned on by the Nephilim in front of him; one minute she was so sweet and kind, the next she looked ready to brutally murder anyone that got in her way.

The woman checked the time on her phone, *I should get going. I’ll still be there when you arrive, but I want to handle my mess ASAP.* She waved to Lucifer before leaving the workshop and allowing her shadows to surround and transport her to the Hazbin Hotel.

Outside the hotel, Madame C was greeted by Rocco who had just finished a lap of the perimeter. One of her more mild employees, Rocco stood almost 7 feet tall with an average build, but what he lacked in muscles he more than made up for in his agility.

“Hey boss lady, Nia said you’d be by. Glad you could make it so quickly, honestly. Listen, I know we’re supposed to just power through the annoying or rough clients, but the radio demon is… well he’s not-“ Rocco cut off, a shiver running down his and Madaem C’s spines. They both turned to see the radio demon himself walking up to them, his Cheshire grin firmly in place.

“Hellooo good friends! What a lovely day it is. And how wonderful to see you again Madame C, such a shame you left before we could chat the other day. Now, what exactly brings you to our lovely hotel, dear? Looking to join our cause, perhaps?” Alastor had stopped close to Madame C and proceeded to lean in towards her face as he spoke.

Rocco made to step forward before he felt and saw his boss’s aura rise and darken more than he thought possible. Everyone at the company knew she could be scary, it was how she had earned a place as an overlord while owning no souls, but this chilled his blood and made him take a step back. Rocco even noticed Alastor’s eye twitch slightly.

Madame C’s eyes had begun to glow an eerie neon green and she tilted her head to the side, a wide evil grin rivaling Alastor’s splitting the darkness shielding the rest of her face. Alastor’s radio cane crackled to life sounding like someone switching rapidly between stations.

Suddenly, snippets of recordings could be heard with certain words standing out clearly. “You.. need to…back-UP! My… hounds are…not… FOR.. you… Al..-store. Don’t make… me…put you… in… -your place. AGAIN” Rocco was frozen in shock, he didn’t know his boss could do that.

As the two demons stared each other down, footsteps could be heard coming towards the group. Rocco looked out of the corner of his eye, afraid to fully look away from his boss should she need him, to see Princess Charlie grinning and waving at them.

“Ohmygod, hi! It’s so nice to see you again! Rocco said you might be stopping by soon. Is everything …okaayyy?” The princess trailed off, noticing the tension between Alastor and Madame C. “Uhh.. you two.. know each other, I’m guessing? Heheh…” Charlie trailed off, looking between the two demons and hell hound.

The two demons continued to hold each other’s stare until finally Alastor straightened and looked to Charlie, “Of course! Madame C and I have known each other for quite some time. We’re both very powerful Overlords as well and tend to run in similar circles due to that. She’s a lovely woman!”

Madame C schooled her features and tamed her aura, before turning to Charlie, even though only her eyes were fully visible she refused to let the radio bitch see the affect he had. Her soul hurt to put the strain on it she needed when using the amount of power she had. She grasped her hands together tightly to steady the slight shake and gave a small bow to the princess. She turned, looking to see if Rocco could translate for her, and when he nodded, her hands began to move.

“Yes. Alastor and I met when he was a young demon and tried to kill me.” Charlie and Rocco’s eyes widened, the hell hound stuttering a little, while Alastor’s twitched. “Obviously, I survived. But because of that day as well as his… later behavior, I’m afraid he is not included in the protection my hounds offer. I was called here because he has apparently been making Rocco and Echo’s jobs more difficult than need be.”

Madame C’s face stayed neutral the entire time her hell hound spoke for her, she refused to lie or let Alastor get away with anything he was attempting. She noticed Alastor’s hands clench at his cane.

“That’s… um.. I am so sorry to hear about that… I can’t kick Alastor out though, he’s our hotelier! It’s thanks to him that we’ve been able to make this place as nice as it is so quickly!” Receiving no response from the shadowed demon, Charlie clapped her hands together. “Weellll, how about we all head inside! My dad will be here any moment and when he leaves, you can come to my office and maybe we can see what we can work out? Please?”

Madame C couldn’t say no to the face Charlie gave her, the pleading eyes and hopeful smile reminded her so much of the fallen angel she had spent the last week with. She gave a sign signaling her agreement. Then signed to Rocco, *Take me somewhere secluded please, I wish to talk without the radio bitch hanging over my shoulder.*

The hell hound gave his boss a smirk before turning to Charlie, “You mind if boss lady and I head up to the second floor? We’ll keep an eye on stuff, just need to give her my reports. Kinda private business shit, ya know?” Charlie gave the two a thumbs up before jogging back into the hotel. Rocco and Madame C turned to where Alastor had been only to see him dissolve into shadows.

*Fucking creep.*

“You said it boss! Haha! C’mon, I know where we can go and talk while keeping an eye on everything.”

Together, hell hound and shadow-cloaked woman headed into the hotel and up the stairs, moving around the balcony overlooking the hotel entryway until they reached a corner. Madame C looked over the railing to see the demons in the hotel moving about to prepare for Lucifer, hanging banners and straightening furniture. A small demon ran around stabbing bugs while giggling maniacally, a cat demon with wings she recognized as an ex-Overlord was stood behind a bar drinking straight from a bottle, a snake demon slithered towards a table with a tray of cookies, and lastly a spider demon she recognized as one Valentino had contracted her hounds to protect was adjusting it’s makeup in a small mirror.

Rocco stood off to Madame C’s side, arms crossed as he eyed the demons below him. “They’re a pretty decent bunch, not too much trouble. Spider is Angel Dust, I’ve worked with him before - keeps trying to make a pass at me. The little one is Nifty, apparently Alastor owns her soul, she cleans and kinda creeps me out. Snake guy is new, Sir Pentious I think, was a spy for Vox but got found out preeetty quickly. Heh poor guy. He was able to rip a bit of Alastor’s coat at one point though so props there. Girl attached to Charlie is her girlfriend, Vaggie. I like her, she kinda reminds me of Carina, very drill sergeant vibe. And then Husker, probably the easiest one to put up with, doesn’t do much except drink. And then there’s Alastor.”

Madame C nodded as each demon was named, taking in everything Rocco told her. They continued to observe as Madame C let her thoughts travel to how she could still pay Charlie the debt she owed for connecting her and Lucifer without keeping her hounds near that radio asshole.

Charlie opened the door to the hotel and Lucifer grabbed her in a big hug. “CHAAARLIE! Oh its so good to see you!”

“Hey da-“ Charlie choked out. “It’s good to see you too, dad.” The two pulled away and the blonde girl cleared her throat. “Welcome! To the Hazbin Hotel!” she exclaimed.

Lucifer leaned down to pet a small cat before two winged goat-like demons flew to him and he pet them as well. Lucifer proceeded to take in the hotel lobby, while it wasn’t in shambles, it was far from ideal. It definitely needed some work. “Oh! What in the unholy Hell is that?!” he exclaimed when he saw the bar.

When Madame C saw Alastor appear next to the king of hell and explain that he thought it added color, she rolled her eyes. And when the radio demon put his hand on Charlie’s shoulder a few moments later to say he was happy to fulfill her bizarre requests, the puzzle pieces snapped together in her mind. Alastor was up to something and he needed the support of Charlie. Knowing the radio demon, it’d be best to ensure someone made sure Charlie was never put in a position to need Alastor’s help.

Pulling away from the edge as Lucifer and Alastor began to argue more, Madame C motioned Rocco to follow her away from the crowd and into a nearby hallway. They both looked around to ensure no one was watching them. *I still have some personal business to finish that may take a few more days. If Charlie agrees, I will take your place here when I’m done. Then I can keep a close eye on that radio jerk and keep you all away from him.*

“I appreciate that boss lady. We don’t mind every one else here. Honestly, if it weren’t for Alastor, this would be the best gig I’d ever had – minus when I’m on rotation for the main office!” Rocco chuckled while shoving his hands in his pant’s pockets.

The two spent a few more minutes catching up on everything that had happened with the hotel before a loud bang rattled the hotel. Darting towards the entrance, they saw the hotel in chaos, the front wall was littered with holes, some of the carpet was on fire and most of the demons from the hotel were running for cover.

Madame C allowed her shadows to transport her and Rocco to the main floor, appearing close to Lucifer and Charlie. The demoness turned to her hell hound, *Make sure everyone is safe please. I’ll see what I can do to start patching the wall and holding the sharks off.* Rocco gave a quick nod before darting off to start rounding up the hotel's sinners.

“It doesn’t matter how well intentioned you are, they’re always going to disappoint you!” Lucifer was smug and as much as she agreed with him to an extent, Madame C was still annoyed he’d rather rub in how awful sinners were than help keep the loan sharks from destroying his daughter’s hotel; they’d definitely have to have a chat about that later.

Nifty was trying to clean up some of the debris that kept falling when Sir Pentious grabbed her as a piece of wall came crashing to the ground and Rocco quickly swept both of them up and away to safety.

Vaggie came out and had a spear ready to protect whomever she could, but Alastor pushed her aside, “No, my dear, leave it to me. It’s time I remind everyone why I’m here.”

“Finally! Took ya long enough.” Mimzy stated from the bar.

“A reminder to all not to mess with the Radio Demon.” The radio frequency hurt Madame C’s ears. Watching Alastor make his way outside to kill the loan sharks, she rolled her eyes at his theatrics. At least he was helping in a way. The woman began to create shadow curtains to cover the holes in the walls and smother the fire around her; it wasn’t a perfect solution, but it would help until they could be repaired.

“- How come he can have faith in me but my own father can’t?” Madame C tuned back in to the conversation near her between Charlie and Lucifer. So this was where they stood, Charlie believed sinners were worth saving and helping while Lucifer thought them to be violent psychopaths.

“Dad… just.. help me.” Charlie pleaded.

Madame C looked away from the two, Lucifer had told her a little about being kicked out of Heaven and how he never wanted to lose everything he held dear again. Hearing him sing about it to Charlie nearly brought tears to her eyes. She shook it off, going to stand near everyone else in the lobby as they watched the bonding moment between father and daughter. It was so heart-warming but also broke Madame C’s heart; there was no chance she’d ever have something like this, her mother was long gone and her father was an asshole that only cared about himself.

Soon, Lucifer had left, promising Charlie a meeting with Heaven and wishing her luck. As everyone started to scatter and clean up, Madame C approached Charlie and Vaggie with Rocco at her side. “I know a lot has happened that needs your attention, but could we proceed with our meeting? I have a personal matter to get back to that can’t wait much longer.” The hell hound translated for his boss.

“Oh! Yes, of course, follow us.” Charlie and Vaggie led the two up stairs with Alastor watching from below. Before following the girls around a corner, Madame C turned to look at him and made his radio crackle as a warning, he was not welcome anywhere near this meeting.

Sitting in the office Charlie had brought them to, Madame C and Rocco wasted no time and got right to the point. “I apologize for having to do this, but I must stand by my rules. Unfortunately, the radio demon is not one that is welcome to the services I provide. Not only has he tried to kill me, but he has caused harm and even killed two of my hounds before. I understand he has a place here, though, and would never ask you to do anything you don’t wish to.”

“So then what are we supposed to do? You owe Charlie the protection because she got you that meeting with her dad.” Vaggie was defensive - even though she wasn’t fond of Alastor either, she didn’t want her girlfriend to get screwed out of anything she deserved.

“Yes, I do owe her – quite a lot more than I may ever truly be able to repay – but I do have a solution. My personal matter should be resolved in a couple days, after which I will be available to personally guard this hotel.” Charlie was confused and began to speak before Madame C began signing again. “I know what I told you before. The matter I met with Lucifer about will soon be resolved and will ensure I no longer need constant guards. Should I feel as though I need one whilst here, though, I will cover their pay.”

Charlie was shocked and then giddy, remembering what Madame C had needed to talk to Lucifer about. “You mean my dad was able to help? That’s amaaazing! “ She clapped her hands, bouncing in her seat. Vaggie stood next to her confused, looking back and forth between Charlie and the demon in front of her.

“Yes, it is amazing. I’m forever grateful. But if those conditions are acceptable, then I really must leave.” Madame C stood from her chair, holding a hand out to Charlie the shake. After settling the agreement, the demon turned towards Rocco to give him a nod before she melted into her shadows and left.

A few moments later she appeared at Lucifer’s front door, unable to go further due to protections he had in place to keep out anyone that wasn’t invited in first. After an imp let her in, the shadows around the Nephilim dropped to reveal an exhausted Caelwen. Trying to shake the tiredness clawing at her eyelids, she made her way to Lucifer’s workshop.

Caelwen entered the room and saw Lucifer on the couch with his head in his hands. She walked over to the couch and plopped down before leaning against the fallen angel. She knew he was worried about his daughter, Heaven surely wouldn’t be kind to the daughter of a fallen angel.

Lucifer lifted his head slightly and turned it to look at Caelwen, “I can’t lose her. I already lost everything I had in Heaven, Lilith left me, I can’t lose Charlie before I even get to know who she is.” His distress was evident to the woman next to him as she grabbed his face to bring him from his slouched position.

*You won’t lose her. Charlie is strong and she has an amazing support system that will help her bounce back if need be. You just need to believe in her and support her in whatever way you can.*

“You’re right, I know that, I just need to accept she’s not a little girl that I can hide away.” Lucifer gave a sad chuckle. Before Caelwen could continue to reassure him, the fallen angel straightened himself up more and snapped his fingers to summon her notebook from that morning. “We have more pressing things to tend to than my worrying! Let’s get this show rolling, I’m ready to see if we got this right.”

Caelwen knew they’d talk more about his depression and anxiety later, she wouldn’t let him continue on this self-destructive path. For now, though, they could focus on finishing the bindrune and spell they had been working towards for a week now.

So for the next two hours, Caelwen and Lucifer sketched bindrunes, making combination after combination to see if any had even a slight effect on the Nephilim. Finally, Caelwen was in the midst of making what had to be the thousandth bindrune when she felt a light tug at her chest. She paused, erased a line and the feeling went away. Added the line back and there was that tug again. She added another rune they had on the list and the tug became a pull that made her drop the pencil and rub at her chest.

Lucifer looked over at the sound of the pencil dropping and noticed Caelwen rubbing at her chest with a pained expression. He grabbed the paper she had been looking at and examined it, looking between it and Caelwen a grin growing on his face. “You did it! We’ve got the last bit we need!”

*Yeah, hurts a bit more than I’d hoped honestly. So maybe we move this party along, please?” the grimace on her face was morphing into teeth grinding together as Lucifer held the paper closer to her.

He pulled back quickly to ease her pain. “Right. Right! Of course, sorry! Let’s get everything sorted; you grab a pillow for your head and I’ll get the book with the incantation. And I’ll leave this here so you can breathe a bit.” Lucifer began to rush around the room, locking the door and rummaging until he found the book they had marked with the spell needed.

When he came back towards the couch, he noticed Caelwen had cleared some space on the floor and laid a pillow down. The woman was sitting on the floor ready to lay down but hesitated. Over 500 years had led to this moment, and she was so nervous. What if it didn’t work? What if it did but it killed her in the process? What if she had misread all of the signs from Lucifer and he kicked her out after all of this was over?

As Lucifer kneeled next to Caelwen, she looked up to him, eyes wide and scared. *Before we do this, I need to tell you something. No matter what happens, I have thoroughly enjoyed this last week. You are an amazing, wonderful man and I can never begin to repay you.* Lucifer tried to speak, but the Nephilim in front of him put a finger to his mouth. *I hope I haven’t misread the signs from you, but if I have, I’m terribly sorry for this and will accept whatever consequences come from it.*

Lucifer was confused for a split second before he felt hands pull at the lapels of his coat and soft lips met his roughly. While he was still processing the moment, Caelwen pushed him away and looked to the side unable to face seeing rejection quite yet. When the pieces finally clicked, Lucifer blinked slowly staring at the woman in front of him that still kept him held at arms length. Carefully, he reached a hand up to cup her jaw and turn her face to him looking into her eyes softly.

Lucifer pulled Caelwen in close, lips almost touching, “You didn’t misread the signs, I promise.” Their lips met again, softer and slower this time but with no less emotion. Lucifer cupped Caelwen’s jaw gently, holding her to him while her hands renewed their grip on his suit.

They parted slightly, noses touching and staring into each other’s eyes. “You are one of the most amazing people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. I hope that when you are free of this seal, you’ll stay with me? No matter what happens, I don’t know that I want to spend even a day apart.” Lucifer’s voice was like honey, and Caelwen couldn’t agree fast enough, nodding her head quickly with a brilliant smile taking over her face.

The two kissed, quicker this time, now having a new motive to finish breaking the seal. The sooner they finished this, the sooner they could go back to kissing and exploring this new level of their relationship.

Caelwen laid back on the pillow and ensured Lucifer had access to the center of her chest where the original bindrune sat. The faintest white outline was showing, the seal already reacting to its counterpart being close by. Lucifer pricked one of his fingers before beginning to draw the symbol Caelwen had made on her chest. As he was drawing the last rune, the Nephilim below him was clenching her fists at her sides and gritting her teeth. He hated to see her in pain but knew they couldn’t stop now. Grabbing the book from his kneeling position, Lucifer flipped to the marked page and began reciting the words on the paper.

Just like when Adam and Lute had done this to her all those years ago, a burning sensation enveloped Caelwen, this time it started out centered on her heart before spreading outwards. She let out a silent scream, the fire squeezing at her heart was mind numbing, black spots beginning to creep in at the edges of her vision.

Lucifer’s heart was breaking watching Caelwen struggle, he tried stroking her hair away from her face and rubbing her shoulders to soothe her slightly but it wasn’t working and he couldn’t interfere while the new magic unwound the old.

Caelwen was doing her best to not attempt to claw out her chest, she couldn’t mess up the new bindrune burning its way into her skin. Fuck, she doesn’t remember it being this bad. Slowly, after 10 minutes of agony that had felt like hours, the burning cooled and Caelwen felt like she could finally breathe. Her body ached and her head was spinning. Turning to look at Lucifer, Caelwen managed a weak smile, reaching for him when the dark spots finally claimed her vision and she passed out.

Lucifer stared down at Caelwen, her hair had come loose and was spread around her head, her face relaxed and peaceful. When she still hadn’t opened her eyes after a minute, he began to panic. He leaned down to see if she was still breathing and, after feeling her soft breaths against his face, he pulled back and tried stroking her cheek, shaking her shoulders, pinching her arm, yet nothing worked. Caelwen wouldn’t wake up.

Lucifer gathered the woman in his arms, holding her close as he leaned against the front of the couch. He kept stroking her hair, willing her eyes to open for over an hour before finally falling asleep.

A/N – So, yeah. This feels longer than any chapter so far, but this is a pretty big episode, probably my second favorite of the whole season. Also, to solve the timeline issue, it’s just gonna be Heaven being jerks about meeting with Charlie. Totally NOT a coma… maybe. We’ll see.

I wrote this all in a day, btw so if there’s issues other than the timeline, I’m sorry. I just really wanted to get this out since I won’t be writing much, if at all, until Friday

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@leximus98

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A/N: Two chapters in two days, I'm on a roll! I hope you all like this, finally getting some of the show in this.

Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

Chapter 4

What the fuck

Grabbing another book off the dwindling pile in front of them, Caelwen��s shoulders slumped. This was the 4th day that she and Lucifer had been in the library. As much as she was enjoying the fallen angel’s presence, every book that wasn’t what they were looking for made her want to cry.

The news of the extermination moving up had come as a surprise and shock, Heaven truly was heartless. But it also moved Caelwen’s deadline up, she was too close to making Adam pay to wait until the following extermination – it had to be this one.

Lucifer tossed another book on the pile of useless ones, having given up on putting them away for now. Looking over to see his companion also growing weary, he checked his watch to see it was almost lunch time. Lucifer tapped Caelwen on the shoulder to pull her away from her current book. “Let’s pause and get lunch, we could both use a break.”

In the kitchen, Lucifer summoned ingredients for some sandwiches to the island, arranging them so they could both make their own. As Caelwen was going to sit, she felt her phone buzz in the pocket of her dress. Pulling it out, she noticed a message from Nia.

Nia: hope it’s going okay boss lady. We’re all good here, Velvette was a bitch but I handled it. Don’t forget about overlord meeting tomorrow. I know you don’t normally go but with everything happening…

Caelwen: Thank you. Yes, I was thinking this might be the time to go. I’ll go alone though, I’m more interested in seeing who still stands and assuring them I’m still capable.

Nia: let me know if you change your mind, okay? I’m here if needed.

Caelwen finally sat down, rubbing the bridge of her nose; she hated those meetings but with all the chaos of the extermination being moved up, she knew being present could make or break her company and position.

“Is everything okay? Your assistant hasn’t let your business burn to the ground, hopefully?” Lucifer asked with a chuckle.

Caelwen gave him a small smile *Yes, she was telling me that all is well. She also reminded me that there is an overlord meeting tomorrow. Despite not owning any souls, I rank rather high amongst the demons apparently. I’ve been considered an overlord for almost 300 years now, but it’s been a few decades since I last attended a meeting. With the extermination moving up, this is one I don’t think I should miss.*

Lucifer’s was slightly taken aback, he had always thought the sinners were only led by fear and power. This woman in front of him seemed so gentle, how could she have gained respect amongst heartless demons? Caelwen could see his confusion and chuckled silently.

*I can be quite scary when I need to be. Plus, I do have support from Beelzebub with my business. And that’s been a helpful bonus* Caelwen finished with a smirk.

Chuckling, Lucifer agreed with the Nephilim – not too many sinners would willingly try to piss of one of the sins. Though he wasn’t sure he could ever see Caelwen as scary.

Back down in the library, the two continued the cycle they had established on the first day. The 14th and 13th centuries had been a bust, nothing had come close to the symbol Caelwen had been branded with. Despite their lack of success, though, they were both smiling and laughing. Between sharing stories from their lives and making small jokes there were secretive glances, light touches that lingered on hands or shoulders, and faint blushes that they each did their best to conceal.

Caelwen had never felt so light in her life. In spite of how long she had lived in Hell, the Nephilim had always been more concerned with staying alive and hidden then with maintaining her company and image. She had never bothered with romance; she’d read about it, sure, but never looked for it. Still, here she sat, next to the strongest being in all of Hell, blushing and feeling as though her heart might beat out of her chest every time his hand brushed hers. And, fuck, if he kept brushing the feathers of her wings she might combust – she’d never realized how sensitive they were!

When night rolled around and they retired to their separate rooms, Caelwen lay awake, trying to sort through her feelings. Having been unable to speak for so long, she’d become well-attuned to her surroundings and reading people. She knew Lucifer was reciprocating her actions, truthfully he’d been the first one to start lingering when handing her books or moving her wings to a better position. The problem was that she didn’t know how to proceed or if she even should.

~ The Next Day ~

Caelwen was gone after breakfast, expressing her desire to check on the office and Nia as well as grab some clean clothes before the Overlord meeting. She hated taking a break from their search, but Lucifer assured her he’d keep looking while she was out.

After changing into a clean, sleek black dress and assuring she was consumed in shadows, Caelwen headed into her office. There, she saw Nia sitting in her chair with her legs propped on the desk with a phone to her ear. Plopping down into a chair across from the hell hound, Caelwen waited for the call to wrap up. From the eye rolls and the hand yanking at her hair, it was obviously not a fun conversation.

Finally slamming the phone down after a gruff ‘fuck off’, Nia turned to her boss with a grin. “How’s it goin’ boss lady? Any luck with the books?”

*Unfortunately, not yet. We’ve worked through quite a lot though and Lucifer is going to keep going while I’m out today.* Caelwen leaned forward then, peering at the spread of papers on her desk before looking back to Nia. *I assume everything here is still okay? No one has died or tried to get one over on us?*

Nia smirked, “Duh! I’m pretty good at this shit. You know, if you ever wanted to take some time off, I’d be more than happy to run this place for awhile!”

*Good. I may take you up on that; once this seal is broken, I’ll probably need some extra time to adjust and get myself in order before the extermination.* The two women smiled at each other then Nia began to catch her boss up on everything that had happened over the last few days.

An hour later, Caelwen was standing in an elevator of the tall building, and the overlord meeting would be held in. Consumed in shadows, she took a deep breath to center herself and mentally assume her alter ego. The elevator door opened, and Madame C exited and turned to walk towards the meeting room. Entering the room, she noticed Carmilla walking to the head of the table. Madame C looked around, taking note of each Overlord in front of her, a couple she didn’t fully recall, but most were the same. When her eyes landed on Alastor and his unnerving grin, a shiver rolled down her spine – she’d thought for sure he had died, wished for it honestly.

“Welcome Hell’s sovereign Overlords. I’ve invited you all here because you represent the controlling powers of our city. Together you own millions of souls, souls at risk with the new extermination schedule. We need to discuss what can be done to minimize the impact to our interests.”

As the tall woman was talking, Madame C made her way around the table towards her chair. Despite not being present for a few decades, the chair next to Carmilla and opposite to Zestial had always been hers, and no one had bothered to try and occupy it.

“Zestial, so good to see you my friend”

“Enchanted as always Carmilla” the spider demon said, summoning a cup of tea.

The arms dealer then turned towards the radio demon in surprise, calling his name. It seemed Madame C wasn’t the only one who had thought him dead.

“Oh, yes, I know I’ve been absent some time. I’m sure you’ve all been wandering!” How she hated the sound of his staticky voice, like nails on a chalk board.

“Not really,” Carmilla shrugged. “But welcome back in any case.” She turned to the shadow-encased woman beside her next. “I’m glad to see you as well, Madame C. It’s been some time since you’ve graced these halls.”

Madame C gave a short wave and nod of her head, eager to be done with the niceties and this meeting.

Carmilla snapped her fingers and was handed a clipboard. “This years extermination was brutal, far more even than years past. We have assessed that about 16% of the population was lost. With the Angelic legions returning twice as quickly, I think it prudent we-“

The door was kicked open by Velvette, entering the meeting late and on her phone. ‘Children’ Madame C had never liked the Vees much either, to brash for her taste. She propped her elbow on the table and placed her head in her hand, doing her best to tune out the youngest Overlord.

Madame C jolted back as a head rolled towards her before stopping. It was the head of an exorcist, golden blood leaking from where it had been severed from its body. Bringing a hand to her mouth, the shadowed woman looked away to re-center herself.

“Where did you get this” Carmilla asked Velvette.

“We found it during extermination day. If these Holy Rollers can be killed, the game has changed!” She hopped up on the table walking towards the center, “We can take the fight to them. The boys and I have come up with a full assault plan –“

Loud slurping interrupted Velvette’s tirade, thankfully. Everyone turned to Zestial.

“If it be true thee and thy colleagues desire to war with such meager proof, thou art far more foolish than I be thought.”

Madame C gave a subtle nod agreeing with the spider, one exorcist meant nothing in the grand scheme, no matter how wonderful the thought of eliminating the holy army was.

Velvette snorted, “’Meager proof’? It’s a dead fucking exorcist. I’d say that pretty fucking definitive. You goin’ blind, old man?”

“We know not how this perished. Mayhaps t’was not by a demon’s hand at all. If we rush to war without knowing, mightn’t they purge all of Hell for daring an uprising?” A round of agreements was heard from every overlord around the table, angering Velvette.

“Oh I get it. So, grandpa is too pussy to fight so I guess there’s no point. Right?” She got into Zestial’s face. “Oh what’s the matter, fossil? Too senile to make a real power grab?” Madame C clenched her fists to keep from throttling the girl, letting Carmilla stand up for Zestial.

The two women began to battle it out over showing respect. Madame C felt a headache forming behind her eyes, doing her best to not lose her mind over the shit show this meeting had become. She could have been with Lucifer - looking through the library, getting closer to actually flying, sharing more stories. Testing the boundaries of their growing friendship. Instead, she was stuck here watching a child argue for all out war with angels trained to kill sinners.

Madame C tuned back into the conversation when she heard Velvette accuse Carmilla of knowing why the angel was headless. If it was true that Carmilla had killed or at least knew how to kill the exorcist, she’d need that information for later.

Carmilla called for the end of the meeting abruptly as Velvette tried to get a confession, leaving the other Overlords confused and upset. They had all taken the time to gather, and the meeting had barely begun before it was over. Madame C had not missed the chaos these meetings could be.

Rising from her seat with the other Overlords, Madame C made her way to the elevators, avoiding any questions thrown her way. It wasn’t like she could answer, so why did they try?

Once out of the building, shadows consumed her and transported her to Lucifer’s front door; she didn’t want to bother with being interrogated by Nia after the disastrous meeting. Greeting the imp that opened the door, Caelwen dropped her shadows as she waited in the entryway for Lucifer. Less than two minutes passed before a portal opened in front of the green-eyed woman, a black gloved hand hastily pulled her through.

Stumbling, Caelwen was caught at her shoulders by a grinning Lucifer, his smile so wide it nearly split his face.

“I found it! It’s not the exact symbol, but that’s because he changed it to make it what he needed. I’ve spent the last hour triple-checking and I can’t believe I forgot about bindrunes! They’re very old, but powerful and it makes perfect sense for the timing and-“ he cut himself off, running a hand through his hair. “We can break this seal within the next couple of days, just need to get a couple things first!”

Caelwen’s jaw had gone slack, her brain silent, eyes wide in disbelief. When Lucifer said she’d be whole in just a few days, she couldn’t contain her body and threw herself at the blonde man, wrapping him in a tight hug. She felt his arms slowly encircle her waist, returning the hug slowly as his mind processed the action.

Pulling her head back to look Lucifer in the eyes, it took everything she had to not kiss him. Instead, she grinned at his shocked face before squeezing him tighter and then pulling away slowly. Caelwen grabbed Lucifer’s hand and gestured for him to show her the book, her headache completely forgotten as the two lost themselves in reading through the book together and making a list of everything they might need.

Whether they realized it or not, neither one made any attempt to pull their hand from the other’s, content with the connection as they basked in their victory.

A/N – Ahhh!! I’ve done a quick proofread of this, so hopefully, I didn’t miss anything. We got a little peak into Caelwen’s mind this chapter which was fun. I’ve been developing her since the season premiered on prime, and it’s so nice to get her written down. Hope you all enjoy; likes, reblogs, and comments are so appreciated. They’ve literally kept me out of a depressed funk this past week, so thank you all!

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@leximus98

[pessimisticoptimistsblog]

A/N – Chapter 3, lovelies! I struggled with this because there’s like none of the show in this, so I didn’t have anything to kinda cycle ideas through. All the same, I hope you all enjoy! Feel free to leave criticism, too. This is pretty new to me, and all advice is nice. Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

Chapter 3

Between the Aisles

Caelwen struggled to open her eyes the next morning, whether from the strain yesterday had placed on her soul or because the bed Lucifer had placed her on felt like she was laying on a cloud was unclear. Finally winning the battle with her eyelids, she looked around the room. It was simple, for a room in a mansion that belonged to the king of hell that is. A lone window was off to the left side of the bed, the curtains allowing sprinkles of red light to peak through illuminating the room. A vanity and dresser sat on the wall across from the bed and immediately to the right of the bed were two doors, one obviously led to the rest of the home so she assumed the other to be a bathroom. The room was decorated in black, gold and various shades of reds keeping with theme of hell itself, it seemed.

When Caelwen finally found the strength to leave the bed she used the wall as a crutch, making her way towards the door she hoped was for the bathroom. A splash of cold water would hopefully perk her up enough to go find Lucifer; the sooner they started, the sooner she could be out of his way and on her way to revenge. Reaching the bathroom, Caelwen immediately headed to the sink catching her reflection in the mirror. Fuck, she looked rough – her unruly hair had fallen haphazardly from the bun she had it in, her face was paler than she was used to, and the bags under her eyes seemed have doubled. She looked around the bathroom quickly, maybe there was soap and a towel she could use to wash her face and refresh a bit better than just splashing water. Finding a small bottle at the far end of the sink counter labeled face, Caelwen got to work on fixing her appearance.

A few minutes into her refresh, Lucifer was walking up to the guest room door. He had checked on the young Nephilim throughout the night, unable to sleep much having learned everything that had happened in his domain while he was none the wiser. Any time the girl twitched in her sleep, he had held his breath, for what he hadn’t sure. Reaching her door, he could hear water running on the other side. Knowing she must be awake and in the bathroom he opted to knock loudly on the door to hopefully catch her attention before he opened the door. Caelwen peaked her head out of the bathroom door at the sound to see Lucifer and motioned for him to give her another minute.

When she finally exited the bathroom, Lucifer was standing just inside the room relaxing against his cane. He perked up, noticing his guest before asking, “Did you sleep okay?”

*Yes, thank you. The bed was very comfortable.* Caelwen signed slowly, watching Lucifer’s face to make sure he truly could understand her.

“Wonderful! Well then, we should eat some breakfast and dive right in, if you’re feeling up to it of course.” He held his elbow out Caelwen waiting for her to grab it before beginning to lead her to the kitchen. “I hope you like pancakes, I make the best pancakes,” Lucifer finished with a quick wink, his face alight with a prideful grin as they entered the kitchen.

Caelwen looked at him slightly perplexed, not at his bragging – he was the embodiment of pride after all, but at the fact he was planning to cook for her. Releasing Lucifer’s elbow, she began to sign, *You don’t have to cook for me, your highness. I don’t mind to have just a piece of fruit or an energy bar.*

Lucifer waved off her worries, “Nonsense! We have a lot of books to go through and we’ll need all the energy we can get! Besides, I want pancakes, and what the king says, goes.” The fallen angel looked extremely proud of himself before he motioned Caelwen to a stool on the other side of the kitchen island he stood at, turning to the counter once she sat. Lucifer stretched his fingers before summoning the ingredients and supplies he needed and let them organize in front of him. Another flick of his fingers and the ingredients began pouring into the bowl and he mixed it with his free hand.

Once the pancakes were cooked and plated, the two finished breakfast quickly, both eager to begin researching. Lucifer held his elbow out to Caelwen again before his magic enveloped them, transporting them to his personal library. Most of the books had been curated by Lilith over the centuries, but a small section was filled with tomes Lucifer had been able to sneak out of heaven. Caelwen looked around in amazement, yet felt a shiver of fear crawl up her spine; there were so many books, too many. Lucifer noticed her expression twitch from awe to apprehension. Clapping his hands and startling Caelwen from her thoughts he looked around forming his plan quickly. “Do you happen to remember anything about the book Adam had? Or what the symbol he drew looked like? Anything to help narrow down what we’re looking for. I doubt it was a heavenly book, but I’m not sure how he would have gotten ahold of it otherwise.” Lucifer looked at Caelwen as she searched her memory for anything to help.

*I remember the book being a brown color with… gold lettering? Maybe. I could draw the symbol in my sleep though. I’ve used a variation of it since starting my security business. I didn’t want to risk forgetting it.* Lucifer took this information in, snapping his fingers to summon a pen and paper for Caelwen. Taking the items, she began sketching the basics of the symbol before adding in the details that differed from her logo. Rubbing her chest lightly at the twinge of pain from the memory, she handed the paper to Lucifer, hopeful he had enough to narrow down their search.

Lucifer studied the drawing - twisting it left, right, upside down, even flipping the paper over to see it reversed. The symbol mimicked sigils for the sins, a series of interconnected lines within a circle but he didn’t recognize it. “This definitely isn’t a holy-type of symbol which is good, means I should have something to help. Unfortunately, a lot of books are brown and gold… hmm…” He was still twisting the paper, yet it’s meaning or origin still escaped him. “Do you remember about what year you were born? I know it’s been a few centuries since I last heard talk of Nephilim,” Lucifer looked to Caelwen.

Caelwen’s eyes took on a faraway look, trying to remember if her mother had ever told her what year she was born or if a year had ever been mentioned at all. *I don’t think I was ever told what year I was born, just that my birthday fell on the autumn equinox. I know I was 17 when I came here and it’s been roughly..* she paused briefly to count on her fingers. *548 years,* she finished with a nod.

Lucifers heart broke a little, this poor woman had been in his domain for over 5 centuries and he had been completely unaware. Shaking the thought from his head, Lucifer began leading Caelwen through the shelves. “So we won’t need to look much past the 14th century, makes this a bit easier!” When the two reached a row of tall shelves, the fallen angel clapped his hands together before snapping his fingers to summon every brown book from the shelves. Dozens of books came floating down on golden sparkling magic before settling in front of them. Looking at each other and then back to the stacks in front of them, Caelwen and Lucifer dove in and began to leaf through the ancient pages book by book.

Only 20 minutes in, Lucifer began to get antsy at the repetitive sounds of pages flipping and books closing. Looking to his companion, he tried to be nonchalant. Seeing her invested in her current book, he leaned back slightly to better see her back. The back of her dress was just low enough he could see a peak of her golden wings peaking through. He must have stared too long because before he knew it a book slamming closed startled him. His eyes snapped to hers, taking in the raised eyebrow and questioning look in the green orbs.

“Oh! U-Uh sorry! It’s just, I couldn’t help but notice your wings. They must be kind of cramped like that. You know you can stretch them here – if you want, of course!” Lucifer was worried he might have crossed a line when Caelwen frowned and looked back at the stacks of books.

Caelwen picked at her fingernails for a second, a nervous tic she thought she had kicked. *I’ve always kept them bound close so no one would ever see them. I’m not sure they even can move much anymore.* Green eyes looked at Lucifer nervously to see him looking determined and standing up to walk to her side.

“No time like now to stretch a bit then! Plus, once we get this mess sorted and you’re ready to kick Adam’s ass, you’ll need those wings.” Hands on his hips, Lucifer looked down at the young Nephilim with a grin.

After a moment and one finger now bleeding from her picking, Caelwen reached back to her dress zipper and pulled it down slightly. Once there was enough space, she focused on muscles she hadn’t used in forever to at least wiggle the feathered appendages. Seeing her struggle, Lucifer reached forward and slowly, softly helped free Caelwen’s wings. They hung limply at her back, a subtle twitch every time she tried to move them.

“Well, we certainly have a lot of work to do.” Seeing the green eyed girl deflate Lucifer backtracked quickly, “But that’s okay! We’ll make a game of it or something! By the time we break that seal, you might even be able to keep up with me! Promise.” Lucifer held his hand out to shake Caelwen’s and seal his deal with her. She was skeptical but accepted his promise, if anyone down here could help her it’d be a fallen angel.

The rest of their day was a mix of books being leafed through before they were sent back to their places on shelves and Lucifer walking Caelwen through any exercise he could think of to strengthen her wing muscles. By the end of the day, the young Nephilim was exhausted and starving, but she could now fully stretch her wings and even flap them for a few seconds. Her feet had never left the ground, but Lucifer had assured her that would come.

While they still hadn’t come any closer to finding the origin of the seal on Caelwen’s chest, it was agreed dinner and sleep were necessary. Sitting across from each other at the island in the kitchen, the two ate their dinner. Caelwen was doing her best to not nod off into her pasta, meanwhile Lucifer was debating a question that had been bugging him since he had seen her wings.

“If you don’t mind me asking, how come you’ve never used your wings? Surely they’d be at least somewhat useful for your business – security, right?”

Putting her fork down, Caelwen tapped her fingers against the table while thinking about her answer. *I guess I just never wanted to risk being associated with angels, that wouldn’t look great when I market that I protect assets from extermination* She looked at Lucifer with a wry grin.

“Good point,” he responded with a chuckle. Before he could say anything else, he noticed the woman’s hands beginning to move again.

*I also just didn’t want to have another constant reminder of my father. My hair is bad enough, but bright gold wings are very distinctly from him. When they’re bound, I can forget they’re there* Caelwen rubbed her neck, half embarrassed at her confession.

“I see… They are smaller than Adams though, so at least they’re not a perfect match” Lucifer hummed while picking at the last of his dinner, his mind jumping around to other questions he was dying to ask. When he looked back to Caelwen, he took notice of her drooping eyelids and decided his questions could wait. “Let’s get you to bed, those books won’t read themselves, ya know!”

Lucifer walked her to the guest room she had stayed in the night before. When they reached the door, Caelwen looked to the king of hell with a tired smile before she pushed into the room and closed the door behind her. While she passed out quickly on the plush bed, Lucifer made his way to his own room, letting his thoughts wander.

The next day found the two back in the library much the same as the day before, alternating between flipping through books and small exercises to strengthen Caelwen’s wings. During one of the stretches, the woman noticed her companion seemed distracted. Pausing to catch Lucifer’s eye, she raised an eyebrow at him with concern etched on her features. *Is everything okay? We can take a break for lunch, if you’d like.*

Lucifer straightened up, waving his hands in front of him, “No! No, I’m fine!”

His fake smile didn’t fool Caelwen though. *Your mind seems to be elsewhere. If you have other things to do, you can leave me to keep going.*

“Honestly, I’m fine! I… it’s-it’s Charlie. Today’s the day she meets with Heaven to discuss her hotel and the exterminations. I’m just worried, they didn’t exactly go easy on me. And I was one of them! And Charlie already doesn’t talk to me, what if she decides to cut me out completely because of whatever they say?!” Lucifer’s hands were pulling at his hair as his panic increased.

Caelwen reached to grasp his hands, easing them from his hair as she peered up into his eyes. Once red met green, she placed Lucifer’s hands in his lap. *I’m sure she will be fine. When she came to me for help, I could tell she had a strong heart! No matter what happens, she will bounce back. Worrying yourself like this will not help. Prepare yourself to be a pillar she can lean on; if this goes badly, she’ll need you.*

Caelwen’s soft smile and ‘words’ had Lucifer taking a breath, slowly relaxing the tension in his shoulders. She was right, Charlie would be okay! And he’d be here if she needed him. Lucifer grabbed one of Caelwen’s hands, “Thank you. I needed that.”

A comfortable silence took over the room before Caelwen gave Lucifer's hand a squeeze before releasing it. *Let’s get back to these books, I have a feeling we have to be getting close!”

The rest of the night ended much like the one before, the two alternating between flipping through books and wing exercises. As the hours passed though, they seemed to move closer and closer to each other, exchanging stories of their lives and sharing small smiles. By the time Lucifer realized they had missed dinner, he looked to Caelwen only to find her asleep on his shoulder. Marking his current page, Lucifer carefully maneuvered himself to pick the woman up before using his magic to transport them to her room. He laid her on the bed and pulled the covers over her. Brushing a stray hair away from her face, Lucifer felt a flutter in his chest that made him pull his arm back quickly.

Caelwen was beginning to make him feel things he had only ever felt with Lilith, with her warm smiles and calm demeanor. Her silent laughter that made her face light up at a joke earlier had scared him with how warm and fuzzy it had made him feel. The way he had gone from simply feeling bad for this woman to eagerly awaiting the possibility of just earing her voice in such a short amount of time was terrifying. But he also wasn’t sure he wanted to stop it. After being so lonely and depressed for so long, it was nice to feel like this.

A/N – This was shorter until like 2 hours ago, and I finally figured out what it needed, lol. Chapter 4 will include the overlord meeting and a bit more bonding. Possibly some romance? Definitely a look into Caelwens mind since this one hit on Lucifer’s. (I hope I’ve captured his personality, at least a little.) Hopefully, I can have that out by tomorrow night or Sunday!

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@leximus98

[pessimisticoptimistsblog]

A/N: So I finally rewatched the pilot and realized that the extermination happened before the interview Charlie did 🤦‍♀️ BUT! I’m just going to roll with it being set up my way because it’s honestly not a huge factor imo. Anyway, here’s chapter 2!

Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

Chapter 2

Deal With the Devil

It had been 2 days since the annual extermination, and Madame C and Nia were taking the final calls confirming their clients were all accounted for. It had been close with a few of the more reckless sinners, but thankfully, only a couple of scrapes and bruises had been reported. The real scare had been the inane turf-war on the west side that resulted in a hell hound being put out of work for at least a month. He had been new and inexperienced and made a stupid mistake, resulting in Madame C having to reorganize her roster to cover for his absence. White gloved hands dragged down her shadowed face, the stress from the last few days, and her upcoming meeting with the king of hell himself had made for a headache that pulsed behind her eyes. Nia could feel her boss’s frustration practically rolling off of her, but the she-wolf just focused harder on doing the final check-in.

“Fiona and Gus are good - their charge is accounted for with no issues. And that was the last client we needed to account for! No sinners lost this year, so everyone will get a 1% increase on their next renewal and we all get our bonuses! Yes! I’ve been looking forward to this, got a new bike I’ve had my eyes on for a while now.” Nia began to ramble on about the specs of the motorcycle she hoped to buy as Madame C relaxed back into her chair and watched the she-wolf become more and more animated.

The shadow demon was glad her assistant had found a bright side; Madame C hated any hiccups on extermination days, but at least this year was minor and she could now place her focus on her meeting with Lucifer tomorrow. Time had flown these last few days, her nerves becoming more frazzled as the meeting grew closer. If Lucifer couldn’t help her, at least then she’d know her only hope would be God which meant being voiceless would be forever; but if he just wouldn’t help… well, she’d rather not think of how she’d respond.

Nia closed her notebook loudly startling Madame C out of her thoughts, “Welp, that’s it for all this, boss! I think we’re done for today, a little early too. Should give you plenty of time to prepare whatever speech you plan on giving tomorrow since we both know you probably won’t sleep!” The she-wolf gave a wry grin to her boss, the woman barely slept as it was, it was no doubt her current state of mind had left her unable to rest.

*I’ve had a speech planned for almost 300 years, I’m over-thinking it at this point,” a small grin from Madame C as she paused her hands for a moment. *I do agree, we should stop for today. An early night may help me get some sleep.*

“Can’t argue with the boss! An early night sounds fucking great, I’ve got a couple sleeping pills from Sloth I’ve been dying to try. Don’t worry, though, I won’t be late tomorrow!” During her talk, Nia had gathered her purse and begun heading towards the office doors. Before exiting she looked back at Madame C one last time, “Try to get a little sleep, okay? I’ve got a feeling you’re gonna need all the energy you can get.” And then the hell hound was gone, leaving the shadow demon to gather the rest of the papers on the desk before heading to the file room.

After placing the files in their proper spots and grabbing an energy bar from the kitchen, Madame C headed to the basement where a small gym had been installed as a perk for her employees. And at the very back of the room stood a door only she had a key for, her private studio. After living in hell as long as she had, the shadow demon’s home had been destroyed and rebuilt more times than she cared to remember. This room had stood the test of time, though, and now stood at the base of her building in Pentagram City, protected on all sides by thick concrete and other rooms beyond that. It was the only room Madame C lifted her shadows, besides her room and the curtains were always closed in there.

Locking the door behind her, the woman lifted he cloak of darkness before looking around at her personal sanctuary. The room was fairly plain, mats lined half of the floor for when she wanted to work out, the other half was wood with a small rack of weights, a rolled up yoga mat, a couple bo staffs, and a large mirror that took up most of the wall. Madame C began stretching her arms while looking in the mirror; without her shadows, she was reminded of how human she still looked. Her father had pushed her down here when she had just turned 17 and she had only aged a few years since now looking at most in her mid 20s. Her slow aging was the only perk she was happy to have inherited from her father. She had her mother’s upturned nose, green eyes she was told were her grandmother’s accompanied by dark circles that seemed permanent at this point, and was just over 5 feet tall. Her brown hair was still unruly, now reaching the middle of her shoulder blades. She hated it, her mother’s family all had light blonde hair, but brown hair was entirely her father’s contribution. Thankfully, the only other thing she got from her father were her wings that she always kept tightly pressed to her back.

Tying her hair back and removing her dress to reveal workout shorts and a sports bra, the young woman began to stretch eager to burn off some nervous energy.

~The next day~

Madame C and Nia stood on Lucifer’s doorstep having just knocked on the ornate door. “This place is kinda not as bad as I expected. Figured the king of Hell would have a fancier place, honestly. Not that this isn’t! It’s just, ya know, not what I imagined, that’s all. Also, like how long does it take for someone to op-“ the she-wolf’s nervous rambling was cut off as an imp opened the door before inviting the two women in. He led them up a set of stairs and down a couple hallways before stopping outside of a simple door. He knocked twice before opening it and letting Nia and her boss inside then bowed as he closed the door and left.

The walls were covered in portraits and photos of the royal family and the sins. Nia and Madame C glanced around taking all of them in as well as the desk and large chair sat in front of a floor length window with the curtains drawn closed. In the chair sat Lucifer, his head propped up on one fist while his other hand twirled a pen, boredom clear on his face. Madame C knew of the kings dislike for sinners so she hadn’t expected him to be excited, but his expression set her nerves alight all over again.

“Come, sit. Charlie said this was important, so tell me what it is you need and I’ll decide if it’s something I want to do,” Lucifer droned. His eyes appraised each woman, brows drawing together slightly at seeing one entirely cloaked in darkness.

Nia made it to her seat first with Madame C close behind. After settling, they looked at each other and Madame C began to sign while Nia interpreted. *I am known as Madame C amongst the sinners, you may just call me C if you like. I don’t know what your daughter has told you but I am here to ask if you know of a spell that could break a seal placed by a powerful man. He sealed half of my soul and my voice when I arrived in hell so that I would never be able to reveal his transgressions.* They had rehearsed this part on the drive here, but the demon’s hands still shook lightly, her chest already beginning to constrict from the seal. The two women watched as Lucifer rested his elbows on his desk and placed his chin on his clasped hands. He was staring Madame C down, searching for something, but the demon didn’t know what.

He seemed to have found what it was as he opened his mouth, a resolve clear on his face, “You’re hiding some pretty important details. Either tell me everything, or I won’t even consider helping.” A scowl was set on his face now, and the female demon knew she had no choice but to reveal all of her cards.

Nia reached over to grasp one white gloved hand to show her support. Slowly, the shadowy veil lifted from Madame C to reveal her true form covered in a knee-length, long-sleeved black dress with her hair tied back neatly into a bun, a couple pieces framing her face. She averted her green eyes to the floor, not ready to see anyone’s reaction to her.

Taking a slow deep breath, she began to sign again, *I was 17 when my father found me…*

~Flashback~

Year 1470

She could barely catch her breath, the man- no, the angel was faster than anyone she had ever ran from and he had finally cornered her. She stared at him in fear, wishing she had had more time to train her newfound wings, maybe then she could have escaped him. His eyes were furious, a scowl deep set on his face yet not a hair out of place. Not far behind him she saw a petite woman, another angel judging by her wings, with short white hair catching up as well. Together, their golden eyes held the young girl frozen in place, she knew she was caught.

“Ya know, your mom was a real bitch. What kind of ‘good Christian’ woman seduces an angel? Props to her for actually having you, I guess, but you being alive ain’t really good for my image. Half-breeds aren’t allowed as is, but especially mine? The big-wigs definitely wouldn’t look past that. So unfor-“ Adam was cut off abruptly.

“What are you talking about?! How can you be my father? My mother said my father was a farmer, not an angel. And she would never lie to me! Who even are you?” The girl was yelling by the end, out of breath once again with green eyes wide and confused.

The two angels approached again, the girl toppling back, trying to maintain distance. “Who am I? Bitch, I’m Adam! THE first man, the original man! Also, the reason you’ve got those little wings starting to grow out of your back there, but that doesn’t matter. I’m fucking important, and I can’t have a half-breed ruining what I’ve got up in heaven. Sooo, Lute, you wanna take over?” Adam held his hand toward the other angel now know as Lute as a sadistic grin came over her face.

“We’re going to send you to hell where you belong. And we’re going to make sure you never tell another soul anything. Ever. Again!” Lute grabbed the girl by her shirt collar, lifting her off the ground and closer to her face. “Maybe, if you’re lucky, your whore mommy will still be down there. She probably died again, though, so don’t get your hopes up,” Lute’s grin was sadistic, showing no remorse.

A portal opened under them, Lute flying in, still holding Adam’s daughter with Adam close behind. They landed in a barren area of the pride ring on the outskirts of the growing Pentagram City, the white-haired angel throwing their captive to the hard ground. Adam pulls a book out of his white robes and flips straight to an ear-marked page. His eyes scanned the page, head nodding as he read it over, “Alrighty, just need to draw this thing on your chest - Lute, you mind ripping this shit?” Adam motioned to the young girl’s chest covered by a high necked dress. Lute complied immediately, the girl barely fighting, still in shock by everything happening. “Cool! Now, I just do a little this, and that… What’d you say your name was again? Need that for the seal,” he stared expectantly.

“C-Caelwen. But please-“

Adam didn’t give her a chance to finish before he pushed her back into the ground and motioned Lute to hold her shoulders down. “Listen, kid, I can’t have this reaching heaven. I’ve got a great gig up there, and you’re not gonna ruin it. And I can’t exactly kill you, so this will have to do. Just stay still and let me finish this shit so Lute and I can get the fuck out of here, okay?” Adam didn’t give her a chance to talk again, pricking his finger to add a drop of his blood to the seal he had drawn on her chest. He mumbled a few strange words and suddenly Caelwen felt a fiery heat surround her that began to rapidly squeeze her. It felt like it cut through her body before clenching around her heart. She tried to scream, but nothing came out.

After a couple minutes, the heat settled to a dull burn, and the girl looked to where her two captors stood watching her to make sure their plan had worked. She tried to ask what they had done, but again, nothing came out. Over and over, she tried screaming, yelling, crying, yet nothing escaped her. The angels looked down at her, grins nearly splitting their faces, it had worked.

“Listen, I hate to split before we can bond or whatever, kid, but I’ve got some important shit to take care of in heaven. So, get comfy. You’ll be spending the rest of your life here, unable to ever tell a soul what happened without killing yourself.” Adam’s aura had darkened, making the girl cower further into the ground. “Don’t worry, though! I’m sure a little demon will be along soon to kill you. Have fun!” With that, Lute and Adam flew off into a new portal leaving Caelwen on her own, her dress ripped, and a seal burned into her chest that was fading quickly. Everything hit her all at once, and she dissolved into sobs, wishing she could have stopped them somehow.

~End Flashback~

Madame C, Caelwen, clutched a hand to her chest, doubling over as tears threatened to fall. Her chest burned, and she was shaking, trying to hold in the pain she felt. She could only think it felt like having her heart ripped out with a hand consumed by fire. Nia reached out for her boss, distraught to see her boss in so much pain. Caelwen shakily waved her off, doing her best to sit back up and look towards Lucifer. She was taken aback at the man in front of her, unsure of how to take his response.

Lucifer was seething. He had known heaven wasn’t fond of Nephilim, they had outlawed their creation when the first one was simply proposed and any that were created had their souls reaped within their first 2 years of life by the angel of death. To know now that one had slipped under their radar just to be thrown into his domain and left for dead by her own heavenly father, he was pissed. Adam was a dick to begin with and now this? All to avoid the consequences of his actions.

Lucifer looked to the Nephilim in front of him, seeing her pained expression, he recalled the last part of her story and reached a clawed hand towards her hoping his abilities could lessen the effects of her seal. Once she seemed to relax slightly, Lucifer relaxed and reigned in his anger, he couldn’t hurt Adam due to their agreement, but he could certainly do his part to make the cocky angel pay. “I can’t say for certain that I have the exact book we’ll need, but I will do everything in my power to help you. Unfortunately, if I don’t have what we need, it’s most likely in heaven and it takes time to get a meeting with them if they’re not interested.” Lucifer reached across his desk for Caelwen’s hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “For tonight, you can sleep here- in a guest room so I can make sure the curse on that seal doesn’t have another wave. And tomorrow, we can start searching the archives. Miss. Nia, you are welcomed to stay as well if you wish. But I do have a decent grasp on sign language if there are other matters you’re needed for?” The king looked between the two women for an answer.

*Go home and rest. Tomorrow you can handle my meeting with Velvette and cancel the others. I’ll call for you if we need you. Thank you. For everything* Caelwen then placed a hand on Nia’s knee, hoping to convey her gratitude the vest she could while still in pain.

Nia grasped her hand in reassurance, “Don’t worry boss lady, I can handle the mutts and assholes while you figure this out.” The she-wolf’s easy grin eased the other girls mind, she knew her assistant could more than handle the office and any bullshit their clients threw their way. Nia rose from her chair and headed towards the door, stopping to wave goodbye to her boss before leaving.

“Let’s get you into a bed so you can rest, okay?” Lucifer’s voice was gentle as he reached for the young girl, noticing her wings peaking out of her dress now that he was above her. Caelwen nodded, looking up at him before placing her hand in his outstretched one. Standing proved difficult as her legs shook and then gave out beneath the Nephilim, with Lucifer quickly scooping her up with a soft ‘I’ve got ya’. Seeing how exhausted the girl was, Lucifer opted to portal to a guest room near his own in case any problems arose during the night. Although it took no time at all, Caelwen was out cold when Lucifer laid her in down in the bed. Seeing her face relaxed in sleep, he could finally take in her features and couldn’t help but notice she certainly inherited the angelic beauty. A clawed hand reached out to brush a stray hair from her face before he quickly shook his head and portaled to his own room, they had a difficult task ahead and he’d need all the sleep he could get.

A/N – I have edited and reread this chapter so many times today. I’m still not completely happy, but if I don’t post it now I’ll scrap it and hate myself later. But, I hope you all enjoy this chapter! Chapter 3 probably won’t be out until Saturday because of work, but maybe sooner, we’ll see.

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@leximus98

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A/N – So, here is chapter one! Lots of detail to flesh out  characters and whatnot. Plus, we see Charlie! Hopefully, I captured her character pretty well. I plan on this story mostly keeping the same pace as the show, but with a filler chapter to cover the 6 month gap. This chapter takes place before the extermination that’s in the pilot and we all know the stuff on Netflix moved pretty quickly after that.

Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

I hope you guys like this! I plan on starting chapter 2 tomorrow. Depending on if my brain decides it likes me, I could have it out by Monday? Or, if you guys want a longer chapter, probably Thursday. Constructive criticism is always welcome! Enjoy! 😊

CW: Language again

Chapter One

Meeting With the Princess

~PRESENT DAY~

“Listen, Valentino, Madame C said no discounts, no exceptions. Doesn’t matter if you’re a fellow overlord, no means no. Accept that before we remove all security detail from all of your “actors”, okay?” Nia was beginning to lose what little patience she possessed; the moth demon always made her angry especially when he was trying to take advantage of her boss. Valentino knew Madame C charged the most for security details because she paid the hell hounds better than anyone else, which meant they tended to work harder and more efficiently than any other security group. And, despite wanting top-notch protection for the more profitable souls he owned, Val hated having to pay the shadowy mute so much. Every month he attempted to negotiate a lower price, and each time he would push until he was threatened with a rise in his rate or termination of their contract.

The moth demon was getting just as irritated, he was so used to getting his way with any demon he considered below him, yet the shadowed overlord in front of him never seemed phased by his tricks. Instead he glanced from the hell hound before him to Madame C, her unsettling eyes narrowed and gloved hands clasped in front of her. “Well, if there’s no convincing you, I suppose that’s that. Just know I will be exploring my options, you’re not the only one providing guards these days,” Valentino said nonchalantly before rising from his chair and crossing his arms; his last attempt to maintain some sort of superiority.

Madame C sat back in her chair, a smirk crossing her face briefly knowing Valentino was bluffing. She turned her smirk into a grin before beginning to sign for Nia to relay her message.

“My boss says, ‘I understand your frustration. If you find comparable security for a better price, please do not hesitate to cancel your service with us.’ Hope that’s clear enough for ya’ perv.” Nia’s distaste for Valentino was clear as she finished and began to move towards the closed office doors. Opening one she motioned towards a hell hound from outside, “Echo, please show Valentino here the exit. His bill has been paid and his meeting is over.”

The muscular hell hound that entered the office was one of the most intimidating Madame C employed, scars from his younger days covered his arms and most of his face and his mouth seemed set in a permanent scowl. He narrowed his eyes at the moth demon, before gesturing towards the door, “Time to go, sir.” The two men left, Valentino seething but doing his best to cling to his pride, with Nia closing the doors behind them.

Nia made her way to the shadow demons desk, flopping down into a chair with a heavy sigh. “I fuckin’ hate that bitch. Don’t know why you still do business with him, C. Prick always tries to cheat you somehow.”

*He’s a paying client. Not happily, but his money helps me make sure everyone I employ can live comfortably, including you.* Madame C gives Nia an exasperated look, she knows none of her employees truly like being assigned to Valentino in any way or even just being around the pimp, but she also knows that without his contracts the other Vees would also pull out and with them a decent percentage of her revenue would be gone.

The young hell hound threw her head back with an exaggerated groan, “I know! Doesn’t make it any easier to tolerate him.” Nia then glanced at her notebook to see who would be walking through the doors next, her red eyes widening seeing the name C. Morningstar. “Oh shit! I forgot that was today! Fuck! The princess is your last meeting, you need me to grab some tea or something? Dammit, what do royal demons like? I completely forgot, I am so sorry, ugh!” Nia was pulling at her fur, distressed she had forgotten such a big deal appointment.

White gloved hands grabbed the she wolf’s wrists and guided them to the younger girl's sides before pulling away to sign, *Breathe Nia. Go grab 3 mugs of cocoa for all of us. We have enough time before she should be here.* Madame C’s hands ceased signing and returned to the papers in front of her, sorting out what needed signed and what could be filed away. Meanwhile Nia rushed out of the office and downstairs to the kitchen, trying to make the aforementioned drinks as quickly as possible without making an obscenely large mess.

As she began to make her way up the stairs to the office, the hell hound caught sight of long blonde hair and a flash of red clothing turning the corner at the top of the stairs. Recognizing Charlie Morningstar from her recent news interview, Nia picked up her pace as carefully as possible hoping to catch up before the princess reached the office. With only a few drops of cocoa spilled, she met Charlie in front of Madame C’s doors only slightly out of breath. “Ms. Morningstar! It’s so nice to finally meet you, I’m Nia, Madame C’s assistant. I’m the one you talked to on the phone last week!”

Charlie’s grin widened, “It’s so nice to meet you! Thank you for getting Madame C to see me, I really think she’s gonna like what I have to talk to her about!” The blonde’s excitement was unrestrained, she was practically bouncing in place.

“I hope so, you made whatever it is sound like a great opportunity for us. Plus, boss lady loves working with royals. Says you all are her easiest and nicest clients!”

The two girls walked into the office, Nia making her way past Charlie to place the tray of cocoa on Madame C’s desk. The older woman looked up from organizing the remaining papers on her desk to the two girls before giving a small wave to the princess.

“Remember, Madame C can’t talk, so I’ll be interpreting for her. Usually first meetings like this are all about you pitching what you want or need, though. So whenever you’re ready, let’s hear it!” Nia smiled as she took a seat in one of the 2 chairs facing her boss, gesturing for Charlie to take the other.

The blonde took a deep breath before sitting down in the chair, pulling her own papers out of seemingly nowhere. She looked up at the demon in front of her, only seeing a shadowy outline with 2 bright green eyes already watching her. A gloved hand motioned for the princess to make her pitch. “Okay, so, I have a hotel for sinners to redeem themselves. I believe that if they work hard and do all the right things, heaven will have to let them in! And then the exorcist won’t have to come down and less sinners will have to die! It’s definitely going to work, I just have to talk to heaven… but I know they’ll say yes! They have to! But, anyway, I have the hotel and we have staff and our first resident too. The only problem is, since my interview on the news, some people haven’t exactly been open-minded or accepting and have kinda… destroyed several walls? Heh heh… but it’s totally not an issue! I know they’ll stop eventually and then they’ll all realize they want to be redeemed and come stay at the hotel!” The princess was out of breath when she paused to gauge Madame C’s reaction before moving on to what she really came for, unfortunately the shadow demon's eyes stared back almost blankly. Charlie took another deep breath and squared her shoulders, “What I’m getting at is, we could probably use a little help keeping people from blasting down our walls or breaking the door down. Plus! If sinners see that we have security to keep them safe from anyone that might want to hurt them, they’ll be even more likely to come stay! It'll a win-win!” Charlie finished with a grin, hoping the woman in front of her understood the vision she was trying to convey.

Madame C clasped her gloved hands together under her chin, the idea of redemption was intriguing to her even though she doubted many would actually want it. She began to sign while Nia translated, “Your idea is interesting. I can’t say I fully believe many sinners will want redemption, but I still would be more than happy to assign a couple of hell hounds to your hotel. The question then is, can you afford my fee? I believe Nia told you, I do not offer any discounts, not even for the princess of hell.”

At the mention of payment, Charlie cringed a little, she could afford it, but not without cutting costs elsewhere. “I was actually wondering if maybe we could make a compromise of sorts? You said you think it’s an interesting idea, so maybe you’d like to come stay at the hotel! You could stay for free, obviously, and work on redemption if you want, and then just knowing you’re there will deter people from breaking the hotel! No offense, but you have a scary reputation… But! That would work and then maybe we’d only need one hell hound that I would obviously pay for,” Charlie finished with a hopeful grin.

“No.”

One simple gesture made the princesses grin drop instantly. She glanced at the once smiling hell hound next to her to see Nia already looking apologetic. Both girls turned back to the shadow cloaked demon, Charlie ready to try again, but Madame C held her hand up to stop her. “My staying at the hotel would only put a larger target on you. And it would actually mean you would be paying for more hell hound security. I have at least 3 in this building and 2 outside at all times. Redemption is not for me either, heaven is full of hypocrisy and backstabbing. I have no interest in ever ascending to live with angels.” The last part of her explanation, Madame C’s hands and eyes expressed just how much she loathed heaven. “Unless you are willing to pay the fee you have been told, I’m afraid there is nothing more for us to talk about.”

Charlie was raking a hand through her hair, searching her brain for something, anything she could use to possibly make the older woman budge. “Isn’t there something you want or need that no one else might be able to get for you? Anything? I hate using my title, but I am the princess of hell, I can do a lot more than anyone else, except my dad of course…But please! I need this hotel to work, I have to do something to protect my people!”

Madame C smiled slightly, signing, “Unless you have some magic spell book that could give me a voice, I already have everything I could need or want. I’m sorry.” Nia seemed slightly confused as she translated, she never realized her boss might not enjoy being unable to speak. She had figured someone born with such a disability probably never cared for something they never had to begin with.

The blonde princess looked frustrated for a second, thinking over the fact she didn’t know of any such spell. Maybe her mom or dad did, but Lilith had been gone for 7 years and her dad… well.. maybe? She didn’t talk to her dad much, had no idea what he had even been doing recently. But, this hotel HAD to succeed! And she knew she’d need to ask him about a meeting with heaven anyway. There was no guarantee that such a spell existed or if Lucifer would even help a sinner, but it had to be worth a shot. Charlie’s head shot up, resolve clear on her face, “What if I can set up a meeting with my dad? Surely he’ll know how to give you a voice or if it can even be done. And then, would you make an exception on the contract? Even just a little?”

Madame C sat forward, surprised the girl in front of her would offer the one thing she had never been able to get. Schooling her features to not show just how elated her heart was for the first time in over 500 years. If anyone could break the chains her father had bound her in, it would be the king of hell. “Arrange the meeting. If he agrees, I will cover the cost of 1 hell hound so you will only be responsible for the 2nd. That is my final offer. If your father refuses to meet, no deal.”

Charlie jumped up, squealing and clapping her hands. “Don’t worry, I’m sure he’ll help! Thank you thank you thank you!!! I’ll call him when I leave and I’ll let Nia know what he says by tonight!” The princess couldn’t control herself, reaching for the shadow demon’s hands and shaking them vigorously before running out of the office, excited that her plans were all falling into place. Charlie popped her head back through the office door, “Thank you! I promise, you won’t regret this!” And with that, she was gone.

Meanwhile, Madame C shook her head softly while crossing her arms. Nia looked from the now closed office doors to her boss, chuckling lowly at the energetic princess. After a minute, though, her expression changed to one of contemplation. “I didn’t realize you might have an issue, not being able to talk. I’m sure Vox coulda’ made something to help, even if ya’ don’t like the guy,” she said softly.

Looking to her assistant, Madame C debated internally if she was ready to entrust the young woman with what she was about to divulge. Ultimately, she decided Nia would be smart enough to keep this secret once she knew. Stretching her fingers for the explanation she was about to give, the older woman debated how in depth she wanted to go. Finally, *When I came to hell, I had a voice. Unfortunately, a powerful man decided he didn’t like my existence. He used his power to seal part of my soul away and my voice so that I would never be able to tell anyone what he had done. He knew it would destroy him if anyone knew about me, so he hoped that by making me weak and vulnerable a sinner would kill me before I could ever find a way to break his chains.* A sad smile graced Madame C’s face, only noticeable by the sadness and tears her eyes barely held back.

Nia couldn’t believe her boss had held onto a secret like this for so long. That the woman before her had lived in hell as long as she had and become a powerful overlord with a portion of her sealed away. Madame C had had a voice at one point. The she wolf wondered what it sounded like. “I hope the king can and will help, I think I’d really like hearing you talk. And we could always still use sign when we need to talk shit about the Vees!” The two women looked at each other with big grins, Nia laughing a little.

*We should get back to our plans for the extermination coming up, I want to ensure everyone we’re protecting is secure this time – last year was a mess. I don’t want to lose a single sinner this time.* Madame C signed after a few moments, as giddy as she was with the possibility of getting her voice back, the extermination was in a week and she couldn’t afford another mishap like last year. It may have been the sinner’s fault for skirting their security detail, but Velvette had been particularly upset about losing one of her favorite girls.

Nia mock-saluted her boss with a grin, “Yes ma’am! I’ll go grab everything we’ve got and start making contact with each of our hounds that are on the ground. No slip-ups this year, only perfection!”

Madame C watched the she-wolf skip off to the file room with a small smile fading as she fell into her thoughts and relaxed back into her chair. A gloved hand reached up to the center of her chest, anytime she came close to spilling the whole truth, she could feel the chains around her soul tighten. The ache was one she hadn’t felt in so long, but she knew that if she gained this meeting with Lucifer she’d have to endure it again to hopefully sway him. The green-eyed woman felt so nervous but also hopeful, more so than she had since she was a small girl, running through trees with her mother. While she would never see the woman again, if she could get her voice back, she could finally get her revenge on the man who had ruined everything

A few short hours later, Nia and Madame C were wrapping up their last check-in calls and making notes of any sinners they suspected might try something stupid on extermination day. They both jumped slightly at the sound of Nia’s hell phone buzzing briefly on the table. The she-wolf put her pen down and checked the notification, her ears perking up at seeing the name C. Morningstar. She quickly unlocked her phone and clicked the text pop-up, red eyes scanning the message before a large grin split her face. Tail wagging, Nia looked at her boss, “She did it! You have a meeting with Lucifer 3 days after the extermination!”

~ A/N ~ likes and comments are appreciated and make me squeal a little every time!

[pessimisticoptimistsblog]

AN: It’s been YEARS, possibly like a decade honestly, since I’ve written down a story idea, but I have like this incessant story bug in my brain. This series and Lucifer especially have me in a chokehold, so hopefully, this helps to ease the brain rot a bit… this is inspired by the series, obviously, but also by a clip I’ve seen of Supernatural that mentioned Nephilim and them being not accepted by heaven (I think? I’ve never watched SPN, so maybe I got the idea wrong, and the clip was out of context.. oh well, in this story, Nephilim exists, and heaven doesn’t like that.)

Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

This has been lightly proofread. I needed to get the idea down finally since it's been circling my brian since I watched the finale. Also  chapter 1 is written! I’ll probably edit it a bit more tomorrow and post it by tomorrow evening. Anytime my oc is just signing and it isn't being interpreted by her assistant, it will be like this *text*. If her assistant is translating, then it will appear as regular speech.

CW: Not much yet, just some cursing

Summary: He claimed her mother seduced him, bewitched him with some devil-magic to make him fall for her, making her inherently evil. How else would a mere human have come to carry a half-angel? So he forced their offspring into hell, hid her amongst the “Losers,” and sealed her angelic half and her voice away so no one would ever know what he had done. With the extermination creeping closer to her doorstep and now being moved up, Madame C has finally had enough of her father’s hypocrisy. It’s time to leave the shadows and show Heaven and her father they’re not as great as they think.

Prologue

~ THE BEGINNING ~

Year – 1467

Quickly, wee one, only a bit further. We cannae’ risk being found!” The urgency in the older woman’s voice was barely masked, wishing the younger girl holding her hand could still think of this as nothing more than a game. The two slipped into a small cave opening, and the mother raised a finger to her mouth with a shaky grin.

Her tired brown eyes peaked out after a few moments searching the wood for any sign of the mob they had just outrun. The village they had only just reached a fortnight ago seemed to have decided the woman was a witch when they caught her using herbs to heal a scrape on her daughters knee. The village elder had gathered every able-bodied man and some women, armed them with anything sharp they could grab, and set the woman’s small home on fire. One had seen the “witch” and her daughter trying to sneak out of a window, and soon, the mob had begun chasing the two into the woods surrounding the village.

The woman scanned the trees half a dozen times, hoping and praying that some diety would hear her and the villagers would give up soon. She knew her daughter was growing weary, and at nearly 13, she was too heavy for the small woman to carry while trying to escape certain death. After a few tense moments of eerie silence and no sign of flames or shadowy figures, the mother breathed a small sigh and sunk into the wall of the cave. She looked to her side, seeing her daughters green eyes wide and scared – scanning her mother’s face for whether they would begin running again or if they were finally safe. For now.

In truth, the duo had been doing this for years. The young girl could barely remember a time they weren’t running or hiding, and she had only recently begun to grasp why. Witch hysteria was gripping the continent, and women healers and single women were being targeted. Someone like her mother, a healer and mother with no husband in sight, was no doubt evil and wicked. So the two were hunted, like animals, no matter how far they tried to stay away from civilization. This time, the mother had hoped to use a ruse of her husband dying on their travels to gain acceptance into a small village. It had worked for a short while until one of the older men tried to court her, and her rejection immediately put her under suspicion. Only a few short days later, their new home was behind them, and they had even fewer belongings than what they had come with, unable to grab much in their haste.

The young girl stared at her mother a few moments longer until a gentle, calloused hand began to smooth out unruly brown hair and a small smile stretched on the older woman’s face. Just barely gracing the planet for 28 years, the woman looked much older in this moment. So tired and broken from the last 11 years of running and hiding, unable to give her daughter the life she deserved, all because of a “man” that had promised her everything and then disappeared. The girl wanted nothing more than to ease her mother’s worries, put a stop to the need to run, and escape certain death. With exhaustion pulling her closer to sleep, all she could do at the time was collapse into her mother’s lap and cuddle into the last bit of safety she would feel for many years.

~ PRESENT DAY ~

Green eyes cracked open at the sound of a knock on the bedroom door. Red light was peeking through curtains, unable to break through the darkness of the rest of the room.

“Madame C? We’ve got breakfast ready, and Miss Carmine’ll be here in an hour,” a gruff voice called through the door before footsteps could be heard pacing away from the door.

The woman In the bed stretched before sitting up in bed and rubbing her eyes. Slowly rising from her bed, her feet softly padded over the wooden floors towards her small ensuite bathroom. After washing her face and getting dressed, she allowed herself to be enveloped in darkness, appearing to everyone as a shadow figure anywhere she went. The only visible part of her – green eyes and the short white gloves she wore so everyone could see her sign. The rest of her appearance she had found, after the first hundred years, was too close to her father’s for Hell.

Exiting her room, there stood a slightly buff hell hound watching the area around her door. He began to follow her to her office while speaking into an ear mic, “Madame C is on the move. Bring breakfast to the office.” Reaching the large double doors to her office, the first hell hound greeted another smaller, younger hell hound with a nod before they opened and shut the doors, allowing their boss through and positioning themselves on either side. Inside the office, the small shadow figure seemed to float to her desk, turning on a small light on her way and taking a seat in her chair with a sigh.

Not long later, a female hell hound came through the doors; dressed in leather and spikes, the only sign she was a secretary was the tray of food in one hand and a stack of files in another. The hell hound’s mouth turned up into a smirk seeing her boss slumped in her chair already. “C’mon boss lady, don’t tell me ya didn’t get any sleep? You got important shit to take care of today!”

Madame C gave a wry grin. When did she ever sleep well? She made a motion with her hand, waving off Nia’s question before signing to ask for the coffee on the breakfast tray. After setting the tray down and handing the coffee to her boss, Nia launched into a spiel about who had scheduled a meeting and why. Sipping her coffee, Madame C sat and listened to her assistant before a knock sounded on the office doors, signaling the start of another long day for the woman blanketed in shadows.

Hours later, Nia was absently scribbling in a notebook, bored out of her mind and not bothering to hide it. The meetings had ended 30 minutes ago; new contracts had been made, old ones were closed and paid out, and others would have to have bill collectors sent out to ensure clients paid their dues. Madame C sat back in her chair after signing checks for the hell hounds she employees, stretching her fingers out and rolling her shoulders to ease the ache that had settled in.

She looked at Nia with a small smile before tapping her desk to catch the young hell hound’s attention. Her white gloved hands began to move as soon as Nia looked up, *You should go. Beelzebub has a party tonight, right? Go.*

The female hell hound's head perked up, and her tail began to wag as she practically vibrated out of her seat. “Oh my Satan! Are you sure?! It’s supposed to be a big one tonight, so that’d be amazing if I could leave, like, now, but I totally understand if you need me! But, there’s also, like, this super hot guy that’s supposed to be there and I really want to shoot my shot, ya know? Ugh! He’s so fucking hot. I just-“

*Yes! Go! Please.* Hands moved quickly to cut the hell hound off. The green-eyed woman cut off Nia’s rambling, all but pushing her out of the office doors. Nia shouted a quick thank you, running off with the pile of envelopes leaving Madame C and the 2 hell hounds outside her office shaking their heads in amusement. The smaller demon looked between her 2 guards, signing that they should be heading home, too.

“You sure, ma’am?” One questioned.

“We don’t mind sticking around. Sinners are getting a bit braver with the next extermination coming up,” the other added.

*Go home, I could use the quiet. Plus, Carmilla left me a couple of new toys. I might enjoy a reason to test them!* White gloves signed as green eyes shone bright and sharp white teeth poked through a grin, accompanied with a short, silent laugh.

After sending the rest of her employees home, Madame C closed her office doors and collapsed onto a small couch to the side of the room, releasing a sigh. She had dreamt of that awful night again, the last time she had been able to hug her mother and feel her warmth. Her final moments of life before they came and cornered her and her mother. Before she was cast into hell and striped of her identity and voice. A gloved hand reached up to the center of her chest, where binding marks lay beneath her clothes.

One day, she’ll break the chains her father wrapped her in and show everyone just how evil he truly is.

Soon. Very soon. Were her last thoughts before she allowed sleep to claim her, hoping for no dreams to plague her tonight.

~I'm screaming inside. I hope ya'll like this at least a little. 🙏~

[pessimisticoptimistsblog]