Chapter Text
When Paimon had claimed fatherhood was easy, Lucifer should have known that the Lord of Time and Knowledge was for all intense and purposes... was a fucking liar.
On more than one night so far, Lucifer found himself being awoken to the cries of his daughter mid-sleep and his wife next to him with her pillow tucked firmly around her head. Then, once he had managed to pry at least one eye somewhat open, Lucifer would stumble out of bed, try and shove at least one foot into his slippers, and pull on a robe before sleepily weaving his way over to the cradle that held his most precious treasure.
He didn't blame Lilith for trying to snuff out the sound of their daughter's wails. The birth had been traumatic, to say the least for both of them and while they had not discussed it in full, Lucifer was certain that Charlie would be their first, last, and only child. For Lilith, it had led to paranoia whenever Charlie was too quiet, it meant she was no longer breathing. He had caught her more than once checking on Charlie during her naps to be certain she was alive still and the narcosis was starting to show how sleep-deprived she was. As for Lucifer, it had taken a lot of his grace to breathe life into the deceptively tiny body and he wasn't sure he could survive a second time.
Not that he wouldn't happily do so. Not for his children.
“There there, my little Starlight,” He cooed as he lifted the crying infant and held her lovingly in his arms. “Now then, why are you so upset?”
He went about with the mental checklist of possibilities; was it a diaper that needed changing? Was it gas? Perhaps it was a bottle, after all, Charlie did need to be fed often. However, it seemed that as soon as she was in his arms, Charlie calmed down and began to gurgle her usual series of baby babble.
'Comfort it is,' He thought with a sigh and slowly made his way back to her nursery so that Lilith could get some much-needed rest. “Alright, my little Star. Let's see if we can get you back to sleep.”
It would have been a little funny for Lucifer, had he not been REM deprived as he was, that despite the amount of time and thought and planning he had put into Charlie's nursery, it was rarely used. She was about 2 months old now and the number of times she had actually slept in there was once for a five-minute nap before Lilith had gonna and gotten her in fear of not catching any signs of distress.
The room in honesty did not fit in with the aesthetics of Hell, but Lucifer didn't mind this in the least. The walls were painted a pastel yellow with red contrasts to match the theme of Apples and Ducklings, giving the room a warm and welcoming appearance as far as he was concerned. He had taken such pride in finding the perfect crib for her, the softest toys, and the most whimsical books he could imagine.
But his absolute favorite piece in the room? The rocking chair with a matching rocking footstool. Sleepily making his way to it, Lucifer practically moaned in pleasure as he reached his weary bones in the plush seat, summoning a bottle and a weighted red plush blanket with gold trim to cover them as he readied himself for the long night ahead. And while Charlie wasn't interested in the bottle just yet, his short-time experience with her had taught him to keep it close. In the meantime, Charlie just tried her best to grip the tips of his fingers.
He still couldn't believe how he had been blessed with something so pure. Never in his many years did he ever believe he would be rocking a baby to sleep, recalling all the times when his siblings Raphael, Gabriel, Sera and so would tell both him and Michael that they were the last that Father would create. Time and time again, Lucifer recalled the small whining tantrum he would throw when Gabriel would tease him for being the eternal baby of the family because he was so small and Sera always seemed to glow with pride that she was responsible for raising the last clutch. He remembered whining to Uriel about how it wasn't fair and he wanted to try holding a baby too and Uriel merely saying 'If it's meant to be so it shall. As Father wishes it.'.
He doubted though that his father had any plans for this.
Still, his wish had come true, though not as he had hoped for it.
A giggle forced him to open his heavy eyes for a moment to see Charlie giving him a gummy smile, her tiny fragile fingers working their hardest to grasp his fingertips. Was this how humans felt when they held their offspring? Paimon had claimed that life after hatchlings was no different than without them but Lucifer was starting to think maybe he had asked the wrong parental demon for advice. Perhaps Paimon's son would have been better? What was his name? Stanley? Stanford? Stalila? Stiles? Freggo? Twiggy? Fuck he was too tired to remember and who could blame him. Paimon probably had some 40 or so Hell-Born wives with each their own brood of babes. Even the All-Knowing bastard couldn't recall his son's name beyond 'The little bitch crying owl boy'.
'Father of the fucking year alright,' Lucifer scuffed before gently pulling his hand away from Charlie's grasp as she tried to put them in her mouth. He didn't mind the saliva but he was afraid of her cutting her tongue on the tips of his claws. “Ah ah, no no no, my little Starlight. Daddy's fingers are yucky. Here, this is better.”
He moved the bottle to her lips and although she didn't take to it at first, Charlie eventually latched on to the bottle and started to drink. Lucifer hummed at the soft silence that followed, gently rocking back and forth in the rocking chair.
Sometimes, in these little moments, his mind would wander to all the little worries that seemed to follow fatherhood. Was he doing things right? Was Charlie healthy? Was she happy? There had never been a being like her and being a mixture of Fallen angel and God blessed/cursed mortal woman often made Lucifer realize there was no manual for him to check in regards to her milestones. He couldn't exactly call and ask his siblings when he and Mikey had learned to crawl, walk, or speak. Not without risking Charlie in the process.
Not to mention he wasn't sure it would help. Charlie seemed to be going at her own pace, developing slower than an angel but faster than a human as he was sure both he and Michael were at least speaking words at this age if not crawling.
“My special Little Starfire” He mused as he gently rubbed her cheek before a wide yawn forced him to pop his jaw a little. When Charlie spat out the bottle nipple, he gently shifted her to pat her back to burp her. “Let's hope a full tummy will get you to sleep, hm? No?” He looked at her face only to be met with a cheeky grin. “No? You little Hell-spawn. Are you trying to prove you're Daddy's little girl, through and through?”
Cradling her in his arm again and satisfying her need to chew his fingers with a pink paci, Lucifer felt his heart swell with pride as he conjured little ducks of dust about them to swim in circles like a mobile and began to sing a lullaby to her. It wasn't a lullaby known to humans, one he remembered Sera would often sing to both him and Michael when they were going to rest. He didn't sing it often as it hurt to remember what he had lost, but somewhere deep inside, he wanted Charlie to have a connection to his family, regardless of how small.
Not to mention, she seemed to love the song and it did miracles when it came to babies who didn't agree on the need for sleep. After a few times, crooning the two verses over and over like the waves on an ocean, Lucifer watched Charlie's eyes slowly drift shut as she sucked on a pacifier and he slowed to a gentle hum. Leaning back in the chair, Lucifer knew he really should move her to the cradle and return to his bed and wife to sleep. It was safest for Charlie and best for himself so that neither would get too dependent on the other to sleep at night.
What was it Azmodeus had told him when Charlie was 15 days old? It was a phase, right? She would learn to sleep on her own soon and all would be well, right? Lucifer had to admit, he could wait for the day when night feedings and sleeplessness would come to an end.
Why was the crib so far away from the rocking chair anyway? What idiot had thought this was a great idea?... The chair was really comfy though.... as was the blanket..... Charlie didn't seem to mind sleeping on his chest, listening to his heart after all.
Five minutes... he would just close his eyes for five minutes to gather his strength and then he would put Charlie to bed and rejoin his wife.
Just... five... minutes...
* * * Hazbin Hotel * * *
It was nearly 9 in the morning when Lilith awoke to find herself alone in her bedroom. At first, she had been confused, her body noticing the uncomfortable uneasiness of something being off in the morning. Normally, she would have been awoken way earlier from her daughter's demands for breakfast and Lucifer trying and roll out of bed to meet his daughter's demands. He generally failed, falling to the floor from being tangled in the sheets and then promptly passing out on the floor for the next three hours.
But this morning there was neither a disgruntled infant nor a mangled pile of limbs on the floor. Lilith felt her unease grow as she touched Lucifer's spot on the bed to find it cold, telling her he had not slept there for a good while now.
Pulling on her morning robe, Lilith quickly dressed as she rushed as quietly as she could to the nursery, as it was often the first place Lucifer would take Charlie during the rough nights.
And that was how she found them. Lucifer was leaning far back in the plush rocking chair, covered with a comfortable blanket, and his mouth slightly open in a snore as he drooled slightly in his sleep. Charlie was fast asleep as well on his chest, her tiny fist grasping Lucifer's nightshirt. She couldn't be sure when it happened, but sometime during their sleep, Lucifer's wings had manifested and wrapped protectively around Charlie to keep her not only warm but safe from falling.
As she leaned against the door frame for a moment, taking in the sight of the sleeping pair and listening to the soft snore of her husband with the odd suckle of the pacifier, Lilith felt a sense of peace fill her.
She knew Lucifer would argue against til, but for her, this was the sweetest sound of all because it meant everything was alright.
