Work Text:
“And that’s a wrap people” the director shouted out above the cacophony of the onset sounds, signaling the end of filming for the day. Abed, seated behind the director, his dark eyes fixed on the small monitor watching the display closed his three-binder folder of notes. His concept based on his Community College, Second Chances, was being brought to life in front of him. The two actors to embody both Jeff Winger and Annie Edison quietly discussed their scene they just performed, standing in a garden backlit by hanging lights as the crew bustled around them, packing up their equipment for the night.
“Abed!” Neil called out, waving to Abed as he lent down to pick up his backpack to put his folder and headphones in it.
“Yes?” Abed asked, turning to face Neil.
“Some of us are going out to a nightclub for some Season 1 wrap” Neil said “Being that we are all here because of you” they half turned around, gesturing to the actors, crew and set around them “We wanted to know if you wanted to come with us” Neil finished.
“Hmm, a chance to develop my character with some LA Hijinks” Abed thought to himself, his head half cocking to the side in thought.
“Well? We were planning on catching a Uber from here and going to a nightclub I know the bouncer for, all the big names go there” Neil said, his voice betraying a hint of desperation “I told the others that you’d be cool with it and…”
“Sure, sounds like fun” Abed said, his head tilting back straight as he finished his internal dialogue
“Cool, cool cool cool” Neil breathed a sigh of relief, mimicking Abed’s TV show doppelganger Karim’s catchphrase.
A group of people, standing near the doorway leaving the soundstage, waved over to start to walk out of the filming lot, Neil pulling out their phone to call for a Uber. Abed walked slightly behind the group, his eyes quizzically scanning the group, trying to match the person to the stereotype he had in his mind for a night out in LA.
*****
The Uber pulled up in front of the tall sandstone looking building, an upper level being lit up from the inside, beams of laser lights shooting outside in the dim night sky. The moved over towards the door, a large black man in black tee-shirt was standing beside a roped off doorway was holding a clipboard, his bored expression not changing as the crowd moved towards him.
“Duncan, my man” Neil held his hand out to grab at Duncan’s outstretched one “How’s the club going tonight”
“Busy as always” he said in his deep baritone style voice not wavering as he looked down into his hand, paying close attention to the pair of Benjamins in his palm, sliding them into his pants pocket
“Any chance my friends and me can get in tonight, it’s our Season 1 wrap party and I was hoping” he left the sentence hanging as Abed watched the interaction between the two.
Duncan looked over the assembled crowd, mentally counting off the people before him, before he shrugged and unclipped the gold metal hook on the red rope, waving them through with a secondary shrug of his shoulder.
Abed and the group moved into the lobby, following Neil as he moved over towards the elevator, pressing the solid silver call button, it quickly being backlit by a red light as the elevator made its way down the shaft towards them.
Abed looked around the lobby, noting its luxurious appointment of deep timber paneling, red leather and polished hardwood lounges on a dark marbled polished floor. A number of people sat in groups, scattered around the room on the furniture, heads bent towards each other as they took a break from the nightclub upstairs. Abed turned back to the elevator, his hands gripping his messenger’s satchel as the elevator door opened and they all entered.
***
The nightclub isn’t what Abed expected, or even pictured in his mind on the journey up the elevator shaft. The doors slid open revealing a dimly lit room, the word “LUX” emblazoned on the wall opposite a small version of a grand staircase, sweeping down to a bar area and dance floor. On the dance floor, people milled around a Grand Piano, a well dressed British or Welsh man sitting behind the piano, his baritone voice ringing out the final verse of All Along the Watch Tower, his hands moving across the polished white piano keys, deftly and without fault, finishing the final part of the arrangement to the hearty applause of the assembled crowd. The well dressed man stood and bowed, reaching for a glass on top of the piano which was holding a amber liquid before he moved away, allowing for the DJ to take up the song, spinning into a remix of the song before spinning off onto another song as the crowd started to move and sway to the music.
The group moved towards the bar, Abed slightly a step behind the group as his eyes followed the well-dressed man as he made his way through the Crowd, stopping to talk to a group of giggling co-eds who were sitting at a both at the edge of the dance floor, before he laughed himself, putting his hand to his waist, unbuttoning his jacket before joining them
Abed turned back to the group to see Neil staring at him “Who is that?” Abed asked, pointing over his shoulder with his thumb towards the giggle group of Co-eds.
Neil looked over Abed’s shoulder to the group, still giggling as the Well-Dressed man spoke in a low, hypnotic voice to one of them, leaning in and fixing her with a gaze “Who? Him? That’s Lucifer. Lucifer Morningstar, he’s the owner of this club” Neil explained, his arms opening up wide, moving around slightly to gesture to the whole club “He’s one of the most well-known, and well connected men in LA, you want something, he can get it for you, and all he asks for is a favor in return”
“Sounds like the devil at midnight at the crossroad style of thing” Abed said, his eyes again swinging around to the still giggling group of co-eds.
“Huh” Neil thought “Never thought of it like that. Anyway, come on, let’s get a drink” Neil said, throwing his arm around Abed’s shoulder as he steered him towards the Bar, ordering a Beer for himself and a glass of Red, or No-No Juice as Abed called, it for Abed.
“Ladies and Gentlemen” Neil said once they had all moved over to a small round standing table overlooking the dance floor “To Abed” he said, raising his beer “and his Brainchild, Second Chances!” The assembled group cheered, patting Abed on the back as they all took a drink of their glasses.
***
A few hours, and many drinks later, Abed stood around the table, watching his various crew members in various stages of intoxicating behaviour. His first No-No juice still sat there, barely touched as he didn’t feel like drinking tonight. Neil wandered back over to him “Abed, hey Abed” he said, his voice slightly slurred “There is a poker game going on upstairs, we got an invite, want to come up?”
“Poker isn’t really my game” Abed said, turning to look at Neil
“Come on, I’ll introduce you to Lucifer, he’s playing in the game upstairs” Neil offered
Abed thought for a moment, maybe this would be a chance to see up close the man who had such a magnetic persona to be able to call himself Lucifer Morningstar might help him flesh out his characters in the later seasons where they started to spin off on their own. Finally, “Sure, that sounds great” he replied, bending down slightly to get his bag from around his feet where he had put it, slinging it over his shoulder as he followed Neil up the stairs to the elevator.
Waiting for the elevator Neil turned to him “Your going to love this guy” he said, his hand fumbling for elevator control panel as he turned to look at Abed standing next to him “Don’t worry about your buy in, I’ve already covered it, as thanks for the show and my job”
Abed smiled his awkward smile, not knowing how to react to the statement as the elevator doors slid open and they stepped in, Neil reaching over and hitting the top button on the panel and watching the doors slide closed in front of him.
***
The doors slid open shortly after the elevator had stopped in its upwards movement, opening to the penthouse apartment. Abed moved into the room, his eyes wide as they drank in the sight of the Penthouse. To his right was a wall to ceiling bookcase that stretched along the length of the wall, and to his left a bar stretched along the wall over to a raised area behind some carved sandstone walls, in front of him was another Grand Piano, matching the one downstairs.
Just beside the piano, under the decorative chandelier that hung from the ceiling, a poker table had been set up, its deep, dark polished timber legs and deep, dark leather edging contrasting the fresh green felt on its top. The Barmaid from down stairs, still clad in her black leather pants and halter top, stood in the cut out of the poker table, slowly shuffling a deck of cards from one hand to another, looking slightly more than bored and annoyed at the inconvenience of having to be there.
A few people sat around the table, their jackets and handbags over the backs of their chairs, talking quietly to themselves, three chairs still empty as they waited for them to be filled. Neil tapped Abed on the shoulder, getting his attention and leading him over to the chair. The sound of shoes on stairs made Abed turn around to see Lucifer walking down the stairs, a glass of amber liquid in his hand as he took the seat on the edge of the table with Neil between them.
“Welcome Back Mr. Anderson” Lucifer drawled, his Cardiff accent ringing loudly in Abed’s ears as he offered his hand to Neil
“Mr. Morningstar” Neil stammered “Thank you for the offer” he turned slightly in his seat “Let me introduce my Colleague from work” he looked at Abed “Abed Nadir, showrunner and creator of Second Chances”
“Mr. Nadir, welcome to my humble abode” Lucifer said, stretching out his hand to take Abed’s, giving what Abed thought was a quick, but firm handshake “Morningstar, Lucifer Morningstar. Second Chances you say? Well, I’m all about second chances myself”
“Lucifer Morningstar, Interesting Name. Is it a stage name by chance?” Abed said, he head cocked to the side in thought, trying to figure out this man’s trope
“Well, it is mine, god given I’m afraid” he paused for a second, before adding “and don’t believe anything anyone tells you about me”
“Growing up, my father told me stories of a Lucifer, or Iblis as he called him”
“Oh” Lucifer said, raising his glass to his lips “Now that is a name I haven’t heard in a long time”
“So, you’re one and the same, are you?” Abed asked, watching the barmaid start to place cards in front of the players
“Well Mr. Nadir, I am the Devil” he replied, a wicked grin on his face as he lowered the glass to the table, slightly lifting the cards in front of him ready to start the first round.
***
As the night progressed, the pile of chips in front of Abed grew slowly, as Neil deftly described it, Abed had the “luck of the Devil” tonight as he seemed to be able to read the patrons around the table, also hearing their thoughts in his head, telling him when to hold them, and when to fold them. Slowly, one by one the other players around the table started to walk away, licking wounds from defeat to either Abed or Lucifer. Neil had wandered away a while ago, losing his small pile of chips after a few misjudged hands, and was lightly dozing on the couch waiting for Abed to have enough. He looked at the flop in front of him, a 6 of hearts, a 2 of spades and an Ace of Diamond, while in his hand he had a king of Hearts and an Ace of spade. While the Ace pair he had was solid, he wasn’t sure he could beat his opponent sitting across the table from him.
Abed reached into his pile of chips, measuring out a few as he counted them and threw them into the pot “500” he announced, starting the round of betting.
Lucifer raised his hand, looking at his cards, lowering them back to the tabletop and reaching for his chips “Call” he announced, his hand reaching for his ever present amber filled glass as he turned his attention to Abed “So, Mr Nadir, I hear you recently moved out to LA, how are you liking it here so far?” Lucifer asked, his attention drawn to the Barmaid, Maze who was reaching for the next card in the hand, the turn.
“Please, call me Abed” Abed said, his attention also on the card being turned over onto the tabletop, an Ace of Hearts. Abed felt his pulse quicken as he realized that he now had three of a kind, while not a strong hand, hopefully it would be enough. He measured out some chips, throwing them into the center of the table “1000” he announced before turning his attention back to his fellow player “I’m enjoying it immensely. It’s really helping develop my post season 6 character”
Lucifer took a swig of his drink “I’m going to pretend that made any sense at all. Call” he said, throwing the same amount of chips into the center of the table.
Maze turned over the last card, the River, showing a King of Clubs. Abed turned over his cards, revealing a full house of Aces and kings. Lucifer looked in disgust as he two turned over a full house, Aces and sixes.
“Well played Abed” Lucifer congratulated him “Lets see if your “Devils” luck can continue” he said with a grin as he lifted his drink to his mouth.
***
Lucifer sat across the table, the top button of his red silk shirt unbuttoned, a half-lit cigarette hanging from his bottom lip as he lifted the two cards on the green felt tabletop. He put them down again, raising his hand to the throat of his shirt, stretching it out slightly as it felt the temperature in his penthouse has suddenly climbed a few degrees past comfortable. Looking down at the first three cards facing up on the green felt tabletop, the flop, he looked at Mazikeen, who looked bored with the whole situation as she looked at her nails in the dim light cast by the chandelier. He looked up at his last opponent, his dark eyes mysteriously cloudy, like they were dodging all attempts for Lucifer to use his legendary mojo. He looked again at his cards, a small bead of sweat running down his temple "Mr. Nadir, you aren't here as some lesson from Dad are you" he said, his eyes tracking skyward towards the ceiling in frustration.
Lucifer looked down at his now non-existent chip pile, now dwindled away over the course of the night. He again looked at his cards, noticing that his 8 of hearts and Jack of Spade matched in nicely with the flop and turn of the hand. Lucifer reached into his top pocket, pulling out a pewter colored coin out and showing it to Abed “I created the coin when father threw me out of home, sort of like a backdoor key if I needed to get out or back in. It gives you access to one free favor from me, with nothing due in return” he threw it into the pile “Your move Mr. Nadir” he said smugly, leaning back on his chair, silently breathing a sigh of relief.
Abed cocked his head to one side, staring at the coin thrown onto the pile of chips in front of him, raising his cards to look at them, before placing them face down on the green felt and pushing all of his chips in “I feel this is a good move to make at this moment”
“Well Mr. Nadir, you do like to play dangerously don’t you” Lucifer grinned, internally relieved that his game was finally over.
Abed, not sure what to say, nodded and watched as Maze flipped over the river, and 5 of clubs.
Lucifer flipped over his cards, revealing his 8 of hearts and Jack of Spades, with the 7 of clubs, 10 of hearts in the flop, and 9 of diamonds in the turn, creating a straight. “Mr Nadir, if you would kindly show you cards, we can call this game a night” Lucifer announced, looking outside to see the first rays of sunshine emerging from behind the ocean in front of LA.
Abed flipped his cards over firstly revealing a 6 of clubs. He reached for the second card, flipping over an 8 of clubs, matching in with the 7 of clubs and 4 of clubs in the flop and the 5 of clubs in the river, creating a straight flush. He stood up, leaning over the table to pull in his new chip pile as lucifer sat back in his chair, a look at surprise on his face.
Abed pulled his bag from his feet, pushing the chips into them, and pocketing the Pentecostal Coin into his jean’s pocket “Thank you for the game Mr Morningstar” he flicked a chip in Maze’s direction “That’s for you doll” he said in his best bogart style voice he could muster. He walked over to the lounge where Neil slept, shaking him lightly on the shoulder to wake him. Helping Neil up, he turned to the Devil and Maze “We should do this again sometime.” He said, guiding a still sleeping Neil to the elevator.
Maze turned around to take chase to the young mortal who, for the first time in known angelic history, had beaten the Lord of Hell at his own game.
"Maze, let him go" Lucifer announced, his hand waving negligently in the human’s direction and the elevators doors softly closed.
"You’re not going to let him leave, are you?" Maze snapped indignantly, her hands wandering down to her belt as she fingered her ever present demon-forged knives
"He beat me" Lucifer chuckled "What do you know. I wonder if Amenidiel had something to do with this one as well" He stood up, reaching for his scotch glass and raising to his lips with a faint smile "He has my coin now, I now owe him." His smile getting larger as his eyes shone a red ruddy glow "And I know I'll see him again"
***
In the elevator down to the lobby of the nightclub, a sudden thought popped into Abed’s head “I wonder if Jeff and Annie have ever been to Los Angeles”