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No one would come for him. Lucifer had known it the moment Charlie’s girlfriend walked away, her eyes full of promises she would never keep. No one ever came back for him. Maybe Lilith would have at one point, but she had left him as well.
His hands and legs were bound in a way that denied him even the smallest movement. The metallic probes beneath his skin were cold and intrusive.
Shapeshifting was impossible; the machine devoured his energy as quickly as he produced it. He clenched his teeth. It was the only strength he had left.
He hated the helplessness that gnawed at him like acid.
He refused to let his wings free even though every part of him wanted to fall into his true form and cling to whatever power he had left.
His breath hitched at the idea of those probes near his wings. The thought made him shudder. So he forced the wings to stay curled under his skin. For all the bitterness he held toward them and what they reminded him, he still protected them.
The bad tinkles had long since turned into pure torture, shocks racing through his whole body. Pressure crushed his chest, breath tearing from his lungs. His form peeled at the edges like smoke.
He was coming apart.
In the roaring static of his own breaking body, he could swear he heard her.
Lilith.
The ghost of her voice drifted through the chaos, soft and warm, the memory of a dream she sang to him when the world was still young.
Impossible, he thought. She was gone.
A hallucination, surely.
Yet it was not.
It was their daughter, her voice so painfully like her mother’s.
And others. Sinners. Voices, real or imagined, rose around him, working together. He must have been even more far gone than he believed. Sinners would never do this. They were cruel. They were selfish. They were the worst of creation, the children of his failures.
They were here because of him. Because of the choice he made.
He deserved this.
He should have died long ago.
But Charlie never should.
She was somewhere close enough for him to feel the pull of her song, warm and brilliant and stubborn. That alone kept him from letting go. He could let himself vanish. He could let the weapon burn him into nothing. But not her. Never her.
With the last of his strength, he sent a prayer.
Not a command. Not a demand. Not the proud voice of a fallen king. Just a plea.
To his father.
To the Speaker.
To Sera.
To anyone listening.
Do not take her.
Take me, but not her.
His prayers had never been answered. Not once. Not since the fall. He did not expect this one to be different.
The pain crested like a breaking wave, rising with the faraway music bleeding into his consciousness.
He closed his eyes. The light took everything.
When he came back to himself, it was not like waking. The world was jagged and sharp, a chaos of light and sound slicing through his mind.
He tried to reach for even a shred of grace, of control, but there was nothing left.
And still, he had to go up.
He had to see if Charlie was alive.
He pushed. He forced his hands to respond, even when his body protested. The metal where Charlie’s girlfriend had broken in shifted slowly under his weight.
The sickly, acrid smell of Pride Ring greeted him like a memory of all the wrong he had ever done.
Then he heard it.
“Dad?”
Charlie’s voice carried through the haze of smoke and electricity. His chest tightened. He made his twitching limbs obey, to try and reach for her. And he pulled a smile to his face, fragile and fake, but enough.
“Don’t go down there,” he said, voice low and rough. He turned toward his daughter, the weight of everything he’d done and everything he’d survived pressing down on him.
“It’s a place of pain,” he warned, his voice cracking as his legs buckled beneath him.
He felt Charlie’s presence beside him and her knees hit the ground next to him.
He tried to reassure her, but all that came out was a whimper.
“Dad!” Charlie yelled, panic threading her voice. She clutched at him harder.
A new voice cut through the haze, light and hesitant. Footsteps crunched closer over the debris.
“Is he okay?”
Lucifer opened his eyes and saw someone standing a short distance away. An angel, obvious from the glow and the gown, keeping space between them. He blinked several times, trying to focus.
The first thing he noticed was the messed up wing, bone showing and matted with blood. He flinched in sympathy. Then he counted them. Six, if you counted the ruined one. Ah. This was his replacement.
“It’s…” he tried to speak, but the shock stole his voice. His throat burned. He forced himself to inhale. Shit.
The angel had knelt beside him now too, careful and keeping her distance.
But still, he was closer to an angel than he had been in millennia.
“Dad, Dad, what is wrong?” his daughter cried, her voice thinned with fear. “Shit, is this your blood? Why aren’t you healing?”
Lucifer raised his hand with effort to cup her face. She was so big now, his little girl had grown before his eyes.
“It’s okay, Charlie,” he managed, voice rough and strained. “Just slightly overdid it.”
He tried to console her, to offer some anchor in the chaos, some comfort she could cling to.
“I am sure…”
He was cut off, coughing violently. Blood streaked from his mouth, hot and metallic, and he felt the surge of dread hit him.
Healing took grace. And there was nothing left in him to draw on.
Charlie’s eyes widened, her hands gripping his shoulders as she searched his face for answers.
“Shit! Charlie,” he heard her girlfriend, Maggie, or whatever her name was, say. “If an angel’s grace falls too low…”
She hesitated, glancing at him with wide, horrified eyes. “...Exorcists have died from it.”
Lucifer lifted his head with effort.
“Not an angel,” he said firmly.
“But close enough,” Charlie's girlfriend said, looking at him with worry.
Charlie’s tears fell freely. Her hands shook. He wanted to wipe them away, but his arm wouldn’t move.
“I am here, duckling,” he whispered. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Even if his body felt like it might betray him at any second, he could not let her see the full extent of it. Not yet. He had to stay for her.
“Emily, please,” his daughter pleaded, turning toward the new seraphim. “I know Heaven has a bit of an issue with my dad, but… please.”
Lucifer’s chest tightened. He hated that his baby girl was begging Heaven for him, just like he once had. Heaven never listened anyway.
“Charlie, it’s okay,” he tried again, his voice rough and strained.
“I am sorry. I don’t have much grace left myself,” the angel said, her voice trembling.
The young seraphim’s words caught in her throat. Tears glistened in her eyes.
Since when had Heaven ever cried for him?
Lucifer blinked again and again, trying to process it.
“But just wait, Charlie,” she said, her voice shaking as she turned and got up.
She winced when her wings adjusted, trying to balance naturally. The blood-streaked wing moved with her, a stark reminder of everything that had happened.
“Sera! Sera!” the angel cried.
The air warped before she even finished the call. Light fissured across the space, humming with Heaven’s resonance.
A portal tore open, and Sera stepped through.
Lucifer felt a pang of envy twist inside him. Not his sin, but one he knew all too well.
Of course Sera would come to her. Of course.
“Sera, you need to help him,” the younger seraphim said, gesturing toward Lucifer.
For the first time in ten thousand years, those familiar eyes met his.
He had managed to avoid her gaze when they had come to Hell before, slipping away, keeping the distance that pride demanded. But now there was no avoiding it.
“Hello, Sera,” he panted, voice ragged but firm. “Long time no see, huh?”
Even through the blood and exhaustion, he would not give her the satisfaction of seeing him broken.
“Lucifer.”
Sera’s eyes widened and she stepped in front of the smaller angel, as if bracing for an attack that would never come.
“Emily, you understand who this is,” she said sharply. “He ruined the world. Introduced the sins. All because of his selfish wants.”
Lucifer felt the weight of every world crashing into him at once. Every failure, every consequence, every life affected by his pride and choices pressed down on him like stones.
He had only wanted to help, only wanted to protect, yet he had been too prideful to listen to any warnings. Too stubborn to see the danger before it became catastrophe.
He looked away from Sera’s steady gaze. Pride, shame, and regret twisted inside him, and he felt completely exposed.
Charlie’s hand rested lightly on his arm, grounding him in the moment.
The smaller angel stepped forward before Sera could say anything else.
“He was hurt because of us,” she said quietly. “Because of our exterminations. Hell’s people wanted to resist and they used his powers to do it.”
Lucifer lifted his head slightly at that. That was new. Angels did not say things like that. Angels did not take responsibility for Hell or for him.
“Please, Sera, we need to help,” the younger seraphim said, grabbing Sera’s arm and tugging her forward. “We can’t just leave him like this.”
Lucifer held his breath as they stepped closer. Sera stood towering above him just like she had stood long ago. The same cold authority that had once closed Heaven’s gates in his face now loomed over him again.
He felt Charlie shift, steadying him as his weakened body swayed. Instinct clawed at him to push her behind him, to keep her safe from judgmental eyes and ancient grudges.
Yet Charlie was the only thing holding him even slightly upright. Without her, he would already be flat on the ground.
Failing to protect the one thing he loved most in existence stung sharper than any blade Heaven ever forged.
“Sera, you seem well.”
He tried to make it sound like a joke, light and casual, something that could cut through the tension. He even pulled a smile onto his face, but the involuntary twitch of his limbs ruined the effect.
Sera only stared at him with an unreadable expression.
“Nice meeting you,” he said, wobbling as he tried to get his feet under him.
“But I really need to… goooooo,” he faltered as his balance failed.
He pushed, tried to rise, but his legs folded immediately. The ground hit him faster than he expected, stars dancing in his vision.
“Dad.” Charlie’s voice cracked with worry.
She steadied him, and he squeezed her arm gently to reassure her. He kept the smile on his face because she needed it, no matter how bad he felt.
“Oh, Lucifer.”
Sera’s voice, low and sharp, pulled him back across time, to when he’d been young and naive. When being scolded by her had felt like the worst thing in existence.
“You really did a number on yourself,” she said.
Lucifer huffed, trying to sound casual even though he knew he looked a mess. “As if I wanted to. Fucker took me by surprise.”
Something flickered across Sera’s face, fleeting and controlled.
“You have always been so careless,” she sighed, almost as if she were speaking to the newly made angel he had once been.
Lucifer, older and far from innocent, let the tiniest smirk touch his lips. And showed her his tongue, a small act of defiance, childish and ridiculous, but satisfying in the moment.
Sera’s eyes narrowed just slightly, a mixture of exasperation and faint amusement flashed across her expression.
“Your grace is dangerously low, even for a seraphim,” Sera said carefully, hesitating as she searched his face. “Or at least, for someone who used to be one.”
Lucifer turned his head away. He did not need this lecture. He did not need the reminder of just how weak he was.
“How do you normally restore it in here?” she asked, her voice gentle but probing.
He let out a short, humorless laugh, covering his mouth with his hand as he coughed.
“I really don’t,” he admitted, voice rough and strained. “It’s gonna suck for a few weeks, but I’m gonna be okay.”
He tried to push himself to stand, he would not stay down in front of Sera.
Charlie, however, would have none of it. Her hands gripped his shoulders firmly, stopping him in his tracks.
“No, Dad. Stay down,” she said, her voice both worried and commanding.
He looked at her, at the worry and love etched across her face, and he let his pride yield, just this once.
“You will not be able to heal by waiting,” Sera said quietly. “If you were not fallen, I would take you to the altar rooms, but…”
Lucifer did not hold back the hiss that rose in his throat.
Sera flinched at his reaction. The movement was small, but he caught it. A tiny crack in her perfect composure, and it brought him a brief, sour satisfaction.
The air felt tight around them, stretched thin by everything unspoken.
That silence hung there until the young seraphim finally stepped forward, unable to keep quiet any longer.
“Sera, please. He will not survive if this continues. We cannot just leave him like this.” Her voice was soft but urgent.
Charlie pressed closer to Lucifer, her hands gripping his.
“Please,” she begged, her voice already breaking. “He is dying. You can help him. Please help him.”
“Forget it,” Charlie’s girlfriend spat. “Heaven doesn’t care about the fallen.”
For a moment, Sera didn’t look at Lucifer at all.
She lifted her gaze upward past the smoke, as if she could still see Heaven itself. Her wings trembled slightly as if she were listening for something, waiting for permission that she knew would never come.
Sera let out a long, exhausted sigh.
Her eyes came back to Lucifer, and there was no coldness there this time. Only conflict. Only the weight of an impossible decision resting on her shoulders.
“Charlie,” she said softly, “I hear you.”
She closed her eyes briefly, then opened them with quiet resolve.
“We cannot leave him like this,” she admitted at last. “He will not survive without intervention.”
Lucifer’s jaw tightened the moment Sera’s words settled in the air. He pushed weakly against Charlie’s support, forcing himself taller, trying to look like he had more strength than he did.
“No,” he said, voice rough but firm. “I am not going back. Thank you very much.”
Charlie’s hands gripped her father’s arm. “Dad, please! I can’t lose you. I can’t live without you. Please!” She was shaking.
He looked at her, at her pleading face, and his chest tightened. Pride twisted in him, but beneath it, love burned brighter.
He forced it out. “Fine,” looking down. “For you.” He whispered, voice raw.
Sera’s hand moved carefully to support him. “We’ll restore your grace. Then you leave,” she said, her voice as stern as he remembered it.
“Like I would want to stay,” he snapped back, pulling his hand from hers, only to almost fall with the movement. Luckily, Charlie was there to catch him.
Charlie squeezed his hand, relief flooding her expression. Her girlfriend gave a sharp nod, and the young seraphim stayed close. Together, they guided Lucifer toward the portal, each step heavy but determined.
Lucifer entered Heaven and immediately felt the subtle pull of his grace responding to its home. The realm’s energy stirred something long dormant within him.
He hated how easily his body remembered the longing he tried to ignore.
He leaned heavily on Charlie, letting her steady presence guide him, while Sera led them along the painfully familiar route to the altar rooms. The path echoed with his younger days, those halls where Heaven’s pulse ran strongest and where he had once walked with unguarded pride.
Lucifer remembered those days too vividly, when the joy of creation had swept through him and he ignored every limit, every warning.
Now, shadowing behind her, every step was a reminder of those naive, stupid days.
Sera stopped at the entrance of one of the rooms. Lucifer paused and stared in surprise.
“This should be familiar,” Sera said softly, her voice calm but carrying the weight of memory.
Lucifer blinked, taken aback.
“You remember?” he asked, disbelief threading through his voice.
He thought Sera had buried every memory they shared after his fall, erased them as if he had never mattered.
“Of course I remember,” Sera said, quietly, as if speaking to herself as much as to him.
“I dragged your stubborn wings here more times than I can count,” she added, a touch of sadness creeping into her tone.
Lucifer looked down, the words pressing into him. He had thought she had forgotten him, that her grace had erased every trace of their bond.
Why cling to memories that only brought pain?
Sera opened the door, revealing the altar and adjoining bed.
His gaze was immediately drawn to the view beyond, one of the few places in Heaven where Earth’s brilliant blue glow stretched across the horizon.
With Charlie’s careful support, he made his way to the window and pressed his hand lightly against the glass.
Lucifer felt his daughter gasp beside him. He hated that she would never see Earth’s wonders.
Because of him, she would only ever witness its sins and pain.
He turned to Sera, his voice low and cautious. “You sure?”
Lucifer knew there were other altar rooms, less accommodating, meant for those who were… unfit for heaven. He had waited in one of those himself, during his hearing, before the sentence of his Fall was decreed.
The memory twisted in his chest. Those rooms were cold, sterile, impersonal. They punished more than they healed.
Lucifer exhaled, leaning into Charlie’s support, and let his gaze drift back to the blue of Earth. Even in pain, even weak, even full of pride and regret, he allowed himself a small measure of wonder.
Sera looked toward Earth as well, the glow reflecting softly in her eyes. The smaller seraphim, whose name he really should learn since he owed his life to her, watched Sera silently, still and attentive.
After a long pause, Sera turned to him. Her voice was steady when she finally spoke.
“I am.”
His eyes snapped back to hers.
“I have learned a few things about mistakes in the past few days and…” She trailed off, drawing a sharp breath. “But you will not be able to leave these rooms, and after your grace has returned, you will go back to Hell.”
Lucifer nodded. That was more kindness than he had expected and more than he truly deserved.
“Of course,” he said quietly.
With that, Sera left, casting a lingering glance at the smaller angel before stepping through the door and closing it behind her, leaving him in the quiet of the room.
Charlie helped him carefully onto the bed. He groaned as his bound wings shifted under his skin against the mattress.
“Dad?” she asked, her voice tinged with alarm.
“No worries, sweetie,” he said with a forced smile. “Just tired from the walk.”
Charlie nodded but did not let go of his hand. Her girlfriend set a glass of water by him while the smaller seraphim offered him food.
Exhaustion tugged at him, heavier with each passing moment.
“Charlie,” her girlfriend said gently.
Charlie gave him a conflicted look.
“Dad, I need to check how things are back home,” she said, biting her lip. “But I’ll return as soon as Emily can open another portal. She needs to fix her wing first.”
Lucifer turned to the younger seraphim and realized he had forgotten, if only for a moment, how badly she was hurt compared to himself.
Of course Charlie needed to go. She was an adult now, with her own life and responsibilities beyond him.
“Yeah, yeah, go,” he said, waving her off. “I’m fine.”
He smiled, though the thought of staying alone in Heaven terrified him.
“Are you sure? Maybe Vaggie could…” Charlie began.
“No, no,” he interrupted firmly.
“You two go. Make sure everything is fine. You need all the backup you can get,” he added. “Who knows what those sinners are planning.”
Charlie hesitated for a heartbeat, then nodded, squeezing his hand one last time before stepping away, followed by her girlfriend and the younger seraphim.
Lucifer exhaled, the weight of Heaven pressing around him. He closed his eyes, reminding himself he had to survive here, even as the thought of solitude sent fear crawling along his spine.
He laid there, heart hammering in his chest. His gaze fell on the altar, and for a moment it felt as if it mocked him. Slowly, he sat up and made his unsteady way toward it.
Lucifer took the relics from the altar and set them behind it, a small act of petty defiance.
Then he made his way back to the bed. If he had to crawl the last few feet, so be it. There was no one here to see his shame, no audience for his weakness.
Finally, he reached the bed. He let himself collapse onto it, the mattress rising under the weight of his exhausted body. He allowed himself to drift off from sheer exhaustion.
When he woke, he was still alone. There was no way to tell how much time had passed. He drank some of the water and ate a little of the food that had been left for him, waiting for it to settle.
His wings twitched beneath his skin, aching to stretch, but he could not.
Not here, not now.
So he forced them still. The effort made falling asleep again impossible.
After a moment of quiet thought, he gathered the blanket around his shoulders and made his way to the window. He sat and leaned against the glass, tracing the brilliant blue sphere on the horizon with his gaze.
It was beautiful. From here, none of the damage humans had caused was visible. The planet looked as it had the last time he had seen it, as if no time had passed since he had waited in these rooms.
Yet time had passed. Everything had changed. He had changed, and not for the better.
All because of him.
He sighed and let his head fall against the pleasantly cool glass.
Everything in Heaven was pleasant and he had forgotten how suffocating that could be.
He passed the time staring out the window and searching for what little grace remained in him.
His body felt much better. The electricity was gone from his veins and his limbs were stronger, but his grace was still painfully weak. Whatever that TV-headed creature had done to him had taken more grace than he ever would have spent on his own.
It was difficult to completely drain a seraphim. But he had been cut off from Heaven and could no longer draw on its power. Even here he could feel the barrier between himself and the realm.
His grace would need time to heal without that connection.
So the only thing he could do was rest and wait.
It was boring, but familiar as his last days in Heaven had passed much the same way. The accommodations were far better this time, though, and he still was not sure what had softened Sera enough to allow it.
Charlie had not returned yet, but he was not surprised. She had so much to do now.
And even if she wanted to return, the younger seraphim’s wing likely had to be removed and rebuilt. That would take time if they wanted to avoid damaging her grace further.
At first the waiting was easy because he was simply tired.
His sleep was restless, yet he drifted in and out for most of the day. He handled boredom poorly, so sleep became both a way to pass time and a chance for his grace to recover.
After a few days, measured only by sleep and the quiet arrival of meals, the exhaustion had eased.
Staring out the window had long lost its appeal. Thinking about Earth only made his thoughts spiral. He was definitely not spending his time praying, as proper protocol dictated. Instead, he focused on staring at the ceiling.
His wings cramped inside him, and his mind felt raw from lack of stimulation. He was restless, but his low grace did not allow him to act on it.
He had inspected every corner of the room. At least he no longer had to crawl to get around. Other than one oddly fascinating chip in the paint, there was nothing to look at.
He missed Charlie.
He missed Lilith.
Without his phone, there was nothing. No calls. No games. No music. No way to work on new ducks or half-finished musicals that still played in his head.
Ideas piled up anyway. A duck with a crown. A melody he couldn’t quite catch. A joke Charlie would have liked, if she was here.
He circled back to the beginning. Again. And again.
He wondered if it was worth denting his pride to ask for paper. Or a pen. Or a phone.
Or if Charlie had even asked about him.
But he was also scared that no one would come if he banged on the door.
While imprisoned, no one had come. No one had cared, and he had no reason to believe it was different now.
He leaned against the door, debating with himself, when it suddenly opened behind him.
He stumbled backward with a thud, cursing under his breath, and came face to face with Sera once more.
“Oh,” he muttered, scrambling to his feet. “Fancy seeing you here.”
He had not expected her to come. She looked surprised, frowning slightly.
“I was not trying to leave,” he added quickly, squaring his shoulders.
“So get that look off your face. I have been playing nice,” he said, brushing dust off his suit.
It was a good thing he had never taken it off. Though it was starting to smell and was still torn and stained with his blood.
Sera blinked and shook her head.
“No, I…” She hesitated.
“Has no one brought you new clothes? I assigned a few lower angels to take care of your needs,” she said, studying him with a puzzled expression.
Lucifer looked up in surprise.
“Umm… I have not seen anyone,” he said.
Sera's lips thinned at this.
"Not that I am complaining. The meals have come regularly and I am feeling much better. It should not be long before I can leave,” he added, forcing a smile.
Sera frowned again.
“You are our guest and should be treated with respect,” she said, which was a startling change from before.
She lifted her arm and produced a pair of incredibly soft pajamas patterned with little ducks. He took them and found they were indeed as soft as they looked.
He glanced at her a few times and noticed that she kept avoiding his eyes.
“How did you know?” he finally asked.
“How could I forget?” she replied, her voice unreadable. “Your favorite creation. I spent eons listening to you gush about them as they evolved.”
Lucifer hummed and traced one of the ducks printed on the fabric.
“At least I got something right,” he said with a small laugh.
Ducks and his daughter. The two things he was truly proud of making. Although Charlie was turning out more like Lilith, which was a relief.
“Lucifer…” She trailed off as he lifted his eyes to hers. He waited, sensing the conflict burning behind her silence.
“Why…” Her lips pressed together, the rest caught somewhere between fear and regret.
Lucifer frowned, a quiet, unsure sound breaking from him.
“Why did you do it?” she whispered.
He took a sharp step back, the question cutting deeper than he’d expected.
She looked down. “We… I never asked…”
He stared. Of all the things she could have said, he had never expected that one.
“Woah, way to skip pleasantries,” he said, forcing a smile into his voice as he turned away.
“May I offer you… um…?” He looked around and found only the water pitcher, so he lifted it. “Water?”
“Lucifer, please,” Sera said as she stepped into the room and closed the door. He flinched, realizing he was trapped with her.
“I need to understand,” she said, keeping her distance.
Whether it was kindness or fear, he could not tell, and his instincts urged him to escape.
“About water?” he asked. “Well, you know I was not the one who created it, but most of my creations lived in it, so…”
“Lucifer.” Sera stepped forward, her voice firm. “You owe me this.”
The pitcher slipped from his hands, clattering harmlessly on the floor and spilling nothing. Of course it fucking didn't.
He dug his fingernails into his palms, knuckles white, struggling to steady his breathing.
“You cannot ruin everything and refuse to speak to me,” Sera snapped.
“Why did you not ask ten thousand years ago?” he yelled as he turned to face her.
A surge of power twisted through him, familiar and fierce. His wings itched beneath his skin, yearning to unfurl. The hidden eyes under his suit vents flickered awake, and he swallowed the urge to show them.
He forced himself together quickly, closing his eyes and folding wings and tail back. The power left him panting.
He grabbed the altar for support, noting the irony of needing it to keep from falling.
Sera had taken a step back, her eyes widening. He let out a thin, wet laugh. Of course she was afraid of him now, when he was weak as a kitten and she was Head Seraphim.
“I asked you to come,” Lucifer said bitterly. “While I waited judgment, while my wings were ripped away, while I was cast out.”
Sera lowered her grace but stayed in a tense posture.
“Why do I owe you anything?” he spat, his voice sharp with years of pain and betrayal.
“You had just released evil on the Earth,” Sera cried, her authority and intensity showing through. “What did you expect to happen? Your actions doomed humans. I could not just run in to comfort you.”
“Fuck you,” he hissed without hesitation. “I just wanted to give them a choice.”
“And look how well that turned out,” Sera screeched. “Because of you, mankind is destroying itself, and yet I have not heard you apologize for any of it?”
“I will not apologize for giving her a choice,” Lucifer said, stepping forward. He would stand on his own for this. “I will never apologize for letting Lilith and Eve see the truth.”
“They were happy,” Sera said, tense. “Before you, humans were thriving.”
“Because they had no idea what evil looked like, no way to dream anything better,” he shot back. “Look me in the eye and tell me Adam was a good man. A good husband.”
Sera opened her mouth and closed it, looking down. “Adam was a conflicted individual, but before-”
“No,” he interrupted. “He might have been a godly man, but he was not a kind man before he took the apple, and he was not after."
Sera looked down at him, and at least there they had agreement.
“Lilith learned this the hard way, and she and I decided that Eve deserved to know it too.” Lucifer spoke with his arm wrapped around himself for comfort.
“Do you think it made it right?” Sera asked. “All this because you fell in love with a human and felt sorry for her. Do you even regret what you caused?”
“I regret all the pain and suffering my decision brought to humans, but mankind’s selfishness was already there. Just like it is in every creation trying to survive in a cruel world,” he said.
Lucifer looked down and leaned back against the altar, the admission heavier than the stone beneath his hands.
Sera was now silent.
“I just gave them the knowledge of it, and that has caused far more suffering than I ever planned,” he said, closing his eyes.
“I told you not to intervene, that we cannot make mortals self-aware. It would only cause them harm, yet you never listen.” Sera cried out. “And now all of creation is dying.”
“And for that, I am sorry. I did not mean for them to destroy the world or each other in more and more horrific ways,” Lucifer said as tears slipped from his eyes.
“I will always regret that,” he said quietly. “I loved the world. But I will not regret the choice I made.” Lucifer looked up at her. “Just the consequences of it.”
Sera did a double take, silent once more, letting the pause stretch.
“I… I…” Sera began, her voice shaking. “It was much easier when it was black and white."
Surprised noise escaped from Lucifer. Sera's eyes softened as she looked at him.
"I thought I was doing the right thing, even if it hurt to cast you aside,” she said.
She gave a humorless laugh. “I have been shown I was wrong about that too many times this past week.”
Lucifer lifted his head.
“Who are you and what did you do to Sera?” He asked with a teasing edge to his voice.
She laughed more openly this time.
“I missed you, you know?” She said softly. “I wanted to come to you. I heard your prayers, but…”
She looked toward the window where the Earth rotated below.
“I guess I was young and too prideful too,” she sighed, and turned towards him.
“Let me help you to the bed,” she said, stepping closer.
Lucifer would have declined, but his knees felt weak. He hated being helped by Sera, yet crawling while she watched would have been far worse.
He sat on the bed as Sera lowered him carefully into it.
She looked at him for a moment before snapping her fingers. The soft duck pajamas materialized on him.
“Oh, thank you,” he said, smiling at the cute little baby ducks printed across the fabric.
“Um, I am fine now. You can leave,” he added. His voice sharpened instinctively, trying to keep her at a distance.
Sera gave him a strange, searching look.
“Come on, Sera,” he said, trying to sound casual. “I know you have more important things than little old me to see.”
Sera’s expression softened slightly, almost wistful.
“Yet after this, I don’t know when next I will see little old you,” she whispered.
Lucifer blinked.
“Yeah, well, seeing me has never exactly been a prize," he replied feeling awkward.
Sera frowned at that but said nothing. She simply brought the fallen pitcher back to him.
She gave a quick glance at his back and bit her lip.
“I saw your wings,” Sera said quietly. “You should let them out. It would help.”
Lucifer laughed softly. “I remember all too well what happened the last time my wings were out in Heaven.”
He felt a small, morbid satisfaction at the flicker of discomfort on her face. It had hurt like hell, so he was almost glad that others had been traumatized from witnessing their removal.
“Nothing will happen to you while in Heaven,” Sera said firmly. “You are my guest. No one would dare touch you.”
“Last time, if I remember correctly, you just watched,” he said, idly playing with a loose thread on his pajamas.
Sera went stiff and something passed her face, maybe regret if Lucifer was interpreting her expression correctly.
“...You would be able to leave sooner,” she offered weakly.
Lucifer knew this and had been considering the option more and more.
“You don’t need to be afraid,” she finished.
“Afraid? I am not afraid. I just had a rational worry, and now it has been nullified,” he said, letting his wings unfold.
He kept all his more demonic appearances restrained.
No need to start anything.
Sera looked at his wings and his heart stuttered.
Oh shit. Were those tears?
“What’s wrong? I thought they came out alright,” he asked, trying to look them over himself.
They looked fine to him. Sure, they had seen better days, but literal tears? Come on.
“No, I just…” Sera hesitated, still staring.
“I'm glad they grew back. Yours were always the most beautiful,” she whispered.
Lucifer felt heat rise to his cheeks and hid his smile in a forced cough.
“But you’ve taken terrible care of them,” Sera continued.
“What?” he shrieked. “You try taking care of six wings when you can’t reach them. And I was drained, fucking dry, from the war you almost started, and against Charlie’s very valid points too!”
“Well, turn around,” Sera snapped. “I can reach them just fine, you lazy little troll.”
“Fine. If you stop nagging, you old hag,” he snapped back.
For a moment, neither of them breathed. It was painfully natural to fall back into how they used to be.
“So,” Sera eventually said, “will you turn around?”
Lucifer finally exhaled and slowly turned around. Sera had not been the one who ripped them off, but she had stood there and watched.
Yet she had also been the one who taught him how to care for them. One who had taken care of them once, back when nothing else existed.
He flinched violently at her first touch. Sera paused for a long moment before trying again.
This time he managed to keep still, and soon the familiar feeling was lulling him. He had missed this, the feeling of another pair of hands in his wings.
After Lilith left there had been no one he dared to ask. And even Lilith, for all her effort, did not truly understand the feeling of feathers. She did her best, and he would never complain about her work.
But it was different when another feathered being did it. Someone who understood the trust needed for this.
He was not sure how he still trusted Sera, nor how she trusted him. How she could touch him after everything he had done.
“When did they grow back?” Sera asked while working through a stubborn knot of feathers. “You don’t have to tell me, I just…”
“When Charlie was born,” he said. He wasn’t looking at anything in particular, just somewhere far away.
“She made me realize I didn’t ruin everything. Not if she came to be from my actions.” He continued after a pause.
Sera’s hands stilled. “That would be just a couple thousand years ago,” she asked in shock.
“Yeah.” He laughed softly.
“Had to learn to fly again. Lilith had so much fun watching me make a fool of myself.” He smiled at the memory of the three of them.
“I…” Sera started, her voice wavering. “I am sorry.”
Lucifer turned to look at her.
“For not coming. For not listening,” she said. “For allowing them to hurt you. I should have at least tried to defend you.”
He turned back, looking at his lap, and allowed the silence to stretch as Sera continued to groom his wings. He closed his eyes and let himself relax into the feeling.
“It’s okay,” he finally said. “I mean... it was horrible. But I deserved it. And if I had not fallen, me and Lilith could not have had Charlie.”
Sera’s hands stilled for a moment before continuing.
“She is one of a kind. A brave young woman,” she said quietly.
“She is my pride and joy,” he gushed. “Oh, I wish I had my phone. I could show you all the pictures.”
With that thought he turned around, pulling his wings from Sera’s grasp.
“Oh, oh! Do you think I could get access to a phone that can call to Hell? I want to talk with Charlie!” He bounced with excitement at the idea.
Sera laughed, and that got Lucifer’s attention. Sera never laughed.
“You truly haven’t changed,” she said. “Keep still, I am almost done.”
Lucifer huffed but allowed himself to be manhandled back into the grooming position.
“Unfortunately, Heaven phones don’t have access to Hell’s networks,” she said, expertly catching his shoulders before he could turn again.
“But Emily’s wing was cleared today, and tomorrow she can go and get Charlie.” She paused, steadying him with a touch. “And I am sure to pass your wish for a phone to her.”
Lucifer was almost vibrating with excitement. Soon he could talk with his daughter. Hopefully everything had gone well with Charlie.
Sera huffed as she tried to keep him still.
“Aaand you're done,” she said, straightening up.
Lucifer turned to look at her.
“Umm…” he started. “Thank you? For the wings. No, I mean the grooming… And the pajamas. Those clothes were really starting to itch,” he tried to joke.
To his surprise, Sera smiled again. “You are welcome. I'll see you soon.”
With that, she turned to leave but hesitated at the door. Tightening her hand at the doorway.
“You forgot something?” he asked baffled.
“Your sinners…” She started. “Are you familiar with Sir Pentious?”
“Who?” he asked, frowning. He didn’t really know any sinners. Was it the TV-head guy?
“He stayed at your daughter’s hotel and died in battle with Adam,” Sera said.
Lucifer blinked.
“Are you serious?” she asked, a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “Still bad with names?”
“Not my biggest problem,” he shrugged.
Sera shook her head in disbelief.
“He looks like a snake,” she offered.
“Oh. You mean the Snake Guy? Yeah, Charlie was pretty upset about him dying,” he said.
“He didn’t die,” Sera said.
“Huh? He hid like a coward?” he asked, puzzled. That didn’t seem like something Sera would care about.
“No, he died in battle against Adam,” Sera said. “But he was redeemed. He is now here in Heaven.”
Time seemed to stop.
His brow furrowed. He had spent eons watching sinners squander free will, reveling in chaos. Charlie’s dream of rehabilitation had been noble… but impossible.
He could barely breathe. His hands clenched the bedding; his claws ached to tear something, anything, to vent the disbelief.
“Impossible,” he hissed.
“I thought so too,” Sera said. “But here he is, and the Speaker has confirmed he belongs here.”
“No. Sinners can’t be redeemed.” His claws pushed through as he grabbed the bedding, shredding it. “They are the worst of mankind.”
“Would you like to meet him?” Sera asked. “I am sure he would be hap--”
“NO!” he spat, falling back as flames shot from his mouth. He quickly covered it. He had lost his temper twice in her presence.
This time Sera didn’t even flinch.
“As you wish. But you can change your mind at any time,” she said.
Lucifer nodded, looking down. He would not.
“Rest now. I really should not have imposed on you this long,” she said before leaving.
Lucifer could only lie there and wait for sleep to claim him.
How could this happen? How could the worst of mankind be redeemed, when the first to fall had never been allowed to stand again?
Next day Charlie arrived, and Lucifer was stupidly, overwhelmingly glad to have his daughter back.
Charlie had brought everything she thought he might need, and announced she would stay with him until he recovered. Her girlfriend, apparently, was happily running the hotel in Charlie’s absence.
With his daughter’s presence, time moved differently. It actually moved.
They apologized to each other too. He apologized for trying to start beef with the TV-head guy, and Charlie apologized for her harsh words. He waved her apology off immediately, telling her she didn’t need to. He understood. Her dream meant everything to her.
But she had been so genuinely sorry that he suddenly found himself with a clingy daughter. He didn't complain for a single second.
Oh, how he had missed her when she didn’t want to speak to him.
Charlie spoke about the hotel, about redemption, about hope. And Lucifer nodded along, smiling when he was meant to, laughing when she did.
Every now and then, though, a name hovered at the edge of his thoughts.
Snake Guy.
He didn’t ask about him. Didn’t let the question reach his tongue. If he kept his eyes on Charlie, on her excitement, on her stubborn, beautiful faith, then the rest of it could stay unreal.
He could be happy for her. He could be proud.
He just couldn’t let himself believe it yet.
Every now and then the younger seraphim would join them. And from her Lucifer could imagine what Charlie might have been like had she been born an angel. The young angel, Em-something, was so much like his daughter in temperament.
He was relieved Charlie had found someone who shared her excitement, her optimism, her constant eagerness. In Hell, Charlie had been so alone in those things.
Here, around this bright-feathered seraph, Lucifer saw a little glimpse of a world where his daughter wouldn’t have had to fight so hard to stay hopeful.
He let his wings stay out too. He couldn't remember the last time he had kept them open for so long.
It helped. Even if he couldn't connect to Heaven’s power directly, his wings could draw from it on their own. His grace grew stronger every day.
It did not take long until he was ready to leave.
He had always been first fall, after all.
It was his last day in Heaven.
Charlie had packed everything, and she and Em-something had taken it all back to the hotel, where he had formally been invited back.
He was not stupidly happy about that. Just normal amount happy.
He had summoned his suit back, fresh and clean.
Soon he would leave, but he had asked to meet Sera one final time. Charlie and the younger seraphim had been surprised.
For all her promises, the oldest seraphim had not returned. He did not blame her, but he had something he needed to do before leaving.
“Lucifer.” Sera stepped into the room, smiling. “I heard you are ready to go back.”
“I am.” He bowed theatrically. “Just wished to thank you for the hospitality before leaving.”
He stood up and hesitated.
“You never did return?” he asked, fidgeting with his cane.
“Oh.” Sera looked down. “I didn’t want to impose on your time with Charlie, and I know Emily is a far more hospitable host than me.”
“Well, I would have liked to chat with you too,” he said.
Sera froze for a moment before her face melted into a smile. “Maybe we could use Adam’s old meeting room for that?”
He smiled too. “Yeah, that sounds nice.”
His smile faded and he took a deep breath.
“Before I go…” He hesitated. “I would like to meet him.”
Sera looked shocked for a moment before nodding.
“I will inform him. He should be here shortly,” she said, turning toward the door.
So he waited and paced the room anxiously. He stopped to look at the Earth again.
If sinners were able to redeem themselves, if the worst of the worst were able to climb to Heaven, maybe…
A knock at the door stopped his musing.
“Come in,” he yelled, still looking at Earth, cane in front of him. Better to leave a good first impression.
“Sssire?” the door opened.
“You sssummoned me?” Came the voice from the doorway.
Lucifer counted three seconds in his head before turning.
“Yes, I needed…” His dramatic turn stumbled as his eyes landed hard on the person in front of him.
Snake-like, with features he vaguely recognized from the pictures and statues Charlie had cried over for weeks after the battle.
But he was now unmistakably a winner, all white and gold, wings spread, and a halo floating above his hat.
He managed to catch himself with his cane before he hit the floor.
Snake Guy moved fast toward him. “Sssire? Are you alright?”
Was that real concern?
“I heard you were injured. Maybe you should take it easssy?” His hand hovered close, like he didn’t know if he was allowed to touch him.
Lucifer grabbed his cane tighter and straightened.
“Were you really one of mine?” he asked, dazed. This couldn’t be real.
The snake guy stopped and looked him in the eyes, taking his hat off. His halo adjusted and now hovered properly above his head.
“I wass, but then I came up here,” he said. “After I redeemed the sinss that landed me in Hell.”
“H-How?” Lucifer asked, shaking his head. It should not be possible. Charlie’s dreams were beautiful and he would support her until the end of time, but they were fruitless. Sinners could not be better.
“In my life, my cowardlinesss allowed murder of five other women,” he said, looking down.
“I never forgave myself for that. But at the battle with Adam, I jussst could not stand by and let him kill Cherry, Charlie, my friendss. So I launched a rather fruitless attempt to kill him, only managing to get mysself killed.” He laughed a little.
Lucifer feared his cane would crack if he held it any tighter.
“But I came to Heaven.” He looked back at Lucifer. “I redeemed myssself, just like Charlie visioned could happen.”
“That should be impossible,” Lucifer said. “Hell is forever and we cannot change our actions.”
“I thought so too, and so did Sera and many otherss,” the snake guy whispered, putting his hat back on. “But the Speaker, sshe heard my story and welcomed me.”
It was getting hard to hear over the ringing in his ears. The Speaker had not spoken to him. Had not even come to hear his story.
“The Speaker, she spoke for you?” he asked.
“Yesss. I do not know what would have happened to me if she had not stepped in to intervene,” the snake guy said.
And didn’t that hurt. That the coward who had allowed women to be murdered before him had deserved the Speaker’s attention, but his own mistake had not.
“That can’t be,” he heard himself say. “You can’t erase your mistakes. You can’t bring those women back. So how come your one act of bravery would make it right?”
The snake guy winced.
“I can’t,” he said. “I can never make up for what my cowardliness did to those women. Nothing I sssay or do will take away the hurt I have caused.”
The ex-sinner slithered to stand by the window, watching the Earth too.
“But I can learn from my mistake,” he said. “I can make sure I am better every day, and I can only try to make the world better asss well.”
Lucifer paused, staring at him.
“I learned thiss from Charlie,” Snake guy said, smiling. “I will always try and be a man worthy of her friendship and trusst.”
“Of course,” Lucifer laughed. “She is the one good thing I have done.”
He saw the snake guy open his mouth and hurried to add, “You must hate me, right? You clearly belonged in Heaven. And just because of my actions, you felt the temptation to sin.”
It was the only thing that made sense.
He had always thought sinners were those who messed up, but now it seemed he had done worse than he had ever imagined.
If there were sinners who should have been in Heaven, who had only done wrong because of the temptation he allowed into the world, then it was truly all his fault.
“No,” the snake guy said.
Lucifer turned to him.
“I made my own choicess in life, and those choicess rightly landed me in Hell,” the snake guy said, then shook his head in shame.
Lucifer frowned, he was the one who gave the free will, so wasn't he to blame for those choices even existing?
“The temptation came from my own faultss.” He came closer, studying Lucifer.
“But ssire, you should not be ssso harss on yourself,” he said. “Without you, humans would not have gotten ass far as they are now.”
“And because of that the planet itself is dying. Humans are, and always have been, killing each other by the thousands. What good did I truly bring?” Lucifer turned back to the Earth.
“Maybe it iss because I am a scientist, but I would not have enjoyed my life in a perfect world,” the snake guy said, slithering beside him to look out of the window as well.
“Heaven iss nice, but after spending time here, there iss no wonder. Nothing to create or discover when you can get everything with a snap of your fingerss.” He continued.
Lucifer smiled faintly. He had always preferred Earth too.
Even before the Fall, the planet was ever changing. He had loved creating creatures to inhabit it and watching how they tried, in the most clever ways, to adapt to it.
“And ssso I would thank you,” the snake guy said.
Lucifer’s eyes found his again.
“If not for you, I would not have enjoyed my life as much. What would living have been without the wonder of life and the universe around uss?” Snake guy said, smiling.
“But why?” he said, his voice shaking. “Why do so much harm if you can all see what a wonder life is?”
His voice faltered. “That every life is precious…”
The snake guy looked at him for a moment.
“You are very ssimilar to Sera, you know,” he said. “Humans are afraid. Knowing that life will end will make you do stupid and horrible thingss.”
Lucifer nodded. He was immortal and could not truly grasp the fear of not existing, something he had spent most of his existence wishing he did not.
“I know you have only ever met thosse who have taken the darker path,” the snake guy added. “But Heaven is full of souls that did not, and there are some in Hell too. There are people who fought to make things better.”