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A Grain of Truth
"There is a grain of truth in every fairy tale," said the witcher quietly.
"Love and blood. They both possess a mighty power. Wizards and learned men have been racking their brains over this for years, but they haven't arrived at anything, except that-"
"Except what, Geralt?"
"It has to be true love."
The Last Wish - Andrzej Sapkowski
A slippery hand slithered with determination out of Chloe’s hold only to be grasped more securely in her clammy palm again. It was the never-ending battle between unfortunate genetics and a fast approaching summer in Los Angeles.
A strong yank broke their connection making Chloe sigh in relief knowing they were finally on the block of their ultimate destination. The marquee was lit and as inviting the others had been with only exception the bold letters confirming that she had not just wasted the past two hours driving to this part of the city for nothing. The absence of a crowd outside only intensified somewhat her relief over the evening’s outcome.
Speeding up to get to her jumping eight-year-old who was waving Molly McDowell at the ticket booth she smiled and shook her head. The energetic dance of Trixie’s doll had caught the attention of the older gentleman inside who was now grinning at the child’s antics.
“Hi, we would like two tickets for screen three.” Her daughter sharply lowered Molly and raised her little hand singling a jiggling two with her madly twitching in excitment fingers.
The man’s pleasant disposition changed to a slight grimace while shuffling the tickets around. Biting his upper lip in concentration, he found a yellow post-it confirming her suspicions. Not daring to speak out loud, minding the child’s perked ears and raised arms for her ticket, he simply shook his head.
Her hand instinctively caressed her little girl’s bouncing head making it stop. It was scary how at such a young age Trixie could catch up with her mother’s sober moods.
“Sold out?” Came a pitiful little voice accompanied with a sigh of resignation.
“We can always watch something else monkey” Chloe tried to mollify the child with a resolve to make it up to her somehow when she was the mournful expression of pure disappointment marring her features.
“It was your favourite. You watched it with gramps… Your first movie together…. But it’s a remake so... I guess it’s not the same…” Her drawling pauses over her attempt to reason the movie was not worth their time, made Chloe wince on how wishful she had been while talking about this movie in particular only to let Trixie down. Again.
They had searched for weeks, and this theatre had a special sing-along screening. It was a long shot, but Chloe had taken it, and in turn, Trixie was now curling her index around Molly's fair hair. Never a good sign for her constantly bottling up, eventually pickled child.
“No, no I guess it’s not…” She swallowed thickly and forced a smile offering her hand to the unsuccessfully to hide it, lip trembling daughter.
“Miss!” The older man had left the booth and was now worrying his thumbs together, keeping his entangled fingers to rest on his lean frame.
“If you are quiet and get in and out when I call for you…” He trailed with a meaningful glance to follow him in the theatre.
Stopping outside screen three the man put a hand on his lips to be quiet and peeking in he quickly ushered them inside and guided them to the far back of the dimly lighted room.
“And remember not a peep!” He told Chloe seriously.
“I thought it was sold out.” The blonde narrowed her eyes and demanded answers in her ever cold interrogation tone.
“It is!” The man insisted and yelled to the projector room to switch off the lights.
“Mommy, why are we alone?” Trixie reverted her mother’s attention who was scaling over the sight of the empty theatre.
“I don’t know baby…” She sighed and gathered her daughter closer hearing the soft murmuring of the projector above them being switched on before a blinding light illuminated the room.
“ARE YOU BLOODY FUCKING KIDDING ME ROBBIE!?” A voice thundered from the entrance of the room making both Chloe and Trixie jump.
“LIGHTS ON, NOW!” The man ordered with his sour face coming into a full view for both Chloe and Trixie to see.
She had seen him in various states of anger, but the most comical one must have been Lucifer's realisation of their presence in this very room with his slacking mouth and a limply held popcorn tub.
“Detective?” Lucifer exclaimed faintly falling to prepare for the speeding child colliding on his long legs consequently making him spill some more of his popcorn on her ponytailed groomed, hair.
“Lucifer” Stated accusingly knowing fully well now how this particular screening had been arranged as well as how it had been sold out.
“Spawn…” He greeted uncomfortably trying to shake her off his trousers and divert Chloe’s focus.
“You said you had a family meeting tonight.” She said accusingly over him skipping paperwork again, but then again she was doing the exact same thing.
The thought of how they both had skipped the much-needed paperwork over Bianca Ruiz’s arrest, had Chloe’s ears reddening, something that didn’t pass unnoticed from Lucifer’s keen eye for everything blushing or red in general.
“Well Amenadiel is running a locker room errand Detective, and I had plans.” He supplied in childish stubbornness, gesturing full-handed with several treats in his arms, the white screen behind him.
“Care to share?” Chloe demanded in her that's-a-one-time-off-deal-take-it! voice.
“With you? Always a pleasure.” He tried to purr but couldn’t hide his growing discomfort of the still attached to his garments child. Awkwardly, he made his way to the middle row of the room with as much elegance and pose he could command considering Trixie’s refusal to let him go.
Settling into their seats, Chloe hid a smile and her surprise over Lucifer sharing his bags of sweet and sour candies, as well as talking alternative sips from his soda with her daughter.
'He is getting soft…'
“Lucifer?” She asked noncommittally during the previews while daring herself to take a handful from his neglected popcorn tub.
“You know that’s a Disney movie, right?” Chloe asked him again suspiciously, now stealing a gulp from his soda much to Lucifer’s undeniably seen amusement.
“Yep!” He quipped settling the ballerina by day, ninja/chemist by night between them.
“Beauty and the Beast. Seriously?” She asked more intrigued by his choice and the length he had gone to watch it undisturbed.
A flash of pain and insecurity shot through his eyes, very much like to the one it had briefly shown on the beach just a few months prior. Forcing the tension from his body to surrender back the control he needed, she heard him cough a hard swallow before passing more candies to her thankfully oblivious daughter.
“Exactly my point, Detective.” He murmured relaxing as the first credits appeared on the screen, from between her silent contemplating and a squealing Trixie.
"Exactly my point..." Lucifer sighed bitterly again, yet unknowingly just audibly enough for her ears to pick it up.
There's something sweet, and almost kind
But he was mean, and he was coarse and unrefined
And now he's dear and so unsure
I wonder why I didn't see it there before…
The End