Chapter Text
All in all, things were going very well.
Charlie had been invited by Lucifer for tea, and, though she had been a bundle of nerves at the beginning, she had long since relaxed, enjoying a real conversation with her father.
She was talking to her father. They were having fun! She wanted this more often. Not the tea, necessarily, but to just talk. To actually hang out with her dad and have fun. Get to know each other.
"And that's when I said-" Lucifer cackled, barely able to finish his sentence. "Then I said, "How can someone with four eyes be so damn blind!?"" He wheezed, doubling in on himself in amusement.
Charlie let out a surprised bark of laughter, covering her mouth as she tried to hold back her loud giggling.
Lucifer wiped a tear from his eye. "Ohhhhh, well, enough about me for now." He said, clearing his throat. "How've you been, Charlie? I've talked your ear off but haven't asked how things have been going. How's that hotel of yours?" He asked, leaning forward, picking up his tea.
"Oh, don't worry about it! That was hilarious." Charlie quickly reassured, nervously waving her hand in a dismissive gesture. "I've been really good! We haven't gotten any new guests at the hotel, but the ones we have are making great progress! I'm really proud." Charlie smiled a bit nervously, twining her fingers together.
Lucifer reached across the table, putting his hand over her's. "That's so good to hear. I'm really proud of you, Char." He gently told her, a close-lipped smile on his face.
Charlie wiped away the tears building up in her eyes, letting out a small laugh. "Thanks, Dad. That means a lot."
Lucifer squeezed her hand tighter for a moment in a reassuring manner before letting go. "How has Vaggie been?" He questioned, sipping his tea before placing it back on the saucer.
"Oh, Vaggie has just been great!' Charlie excitedly began, rising from her seat slightly in her enthusiasm. "She's been working on this new exercise for everyone to do at the hotel! It's looking amazing!" She raised her hands up quickly in excitement. "I-"
Just as she had risen her hands, though, she noticed her father had..... Flinched? It was a flinch. He had flinched back and his pupils had narrowed to slits. His breathing had gotten only a bit heavier, but noticeably so.
"...Dad?" Charlie gently asked, slowly sitting back down. "Is everything alright?" She felt a deep pit of dread forming in her stomach.
Lucifer barked out an anxiety-ridden laugh, nervously running his hand through his hair. His eyes were still slits, and Charlie couldn't help but notice he was trembling slightly. "I'm fine, Charlie! All good here!" He assured, though unconvincingly. "Now, go on. What has Vaggie been working on?"
"No, no, why did you react like that?" Charlie asked, worry clear in her voice. "You flinched when I raised my hands. Why?" She looked at him pleadingly.
Lucifer bit his lip, looking around nervously as his breathing continued to come out in labored huffs. "It's nothing, Charlie. You don't need to worry about it." He attempted to assure before lifting his teacup. The cup wobbled back and forth as Lucifer's hand shook somewhat violently, tea splashing over the side.
Charlie's eyes darted down to it. "Here, let me-" She reached over to take the cup from his hands, but as soon as her fingers brushed against his, he violently flinched back. The tea spilled onto the table cloth below and onto his sleeves, soaking into the white fabric.
She looked at him, heartbroken. "Dad, it's okay. It's just me. It's me, Charlie, your daughter." She tried to reassure, standing from her chair as slowly as she reasonably could, holding out her hands where Lucifer could see them.
He stared at her in horror, a distant look in his eye as he raised his arm over his head in what appeared to be a defensive move. Charlie felt tears welling up in her eyes.
"Dad-" She started, taking a step towards him, bending down slightly to be more on his level.
"I- I'm sorry!" He exclaimed as he tumbled out of his chair and onto the floor, hat falling off in the process. "I w-won't do it again, I-I promise! I'll be good!" He begged, curling in on himself, covering his head and face with his arms. He was shaking like a leaf.
"Dad, I'm not going to do anything." Charlie pleaded, sitting on her knees a short distance from him. She worried her lip. "I'm not going to hurt you, Dad, I promise."
Lucifer didn't respond, continuing to tremble on the floor.
Charlie shifted a bit closer to him, hand reaching out before she snapped it back. The reaction had been instinctual, to reach out and try to help. She had forgotten it wouldn't help.
The damage had already been done, though.
Lucifer flinched back, curling impossibly further on himself. "I-I'm sorry I d-didn't take them out sooner!" He trembled, unfurling his six wings from seemingly nowhere. "I-I-I'm so s-sorry..."
To say Charlie was horrified was an understatement. She didn't know what to do. She didn't think there really was anything she could do.
After a minute or so of nothing happening, Lucifer shifted, opening his eyes to shakily look around, still hidden behind his arms. "L-Lili?" He quietly asked nobody, his tone confused and scared.
Charlie felt like she had just been shot in the gut. Lili? As in Lilith, her mother? Was her mother responsible for this? Did her mother.......
She couldn't even think about it without feeling sick.
"Just me, Dad." She gently responded. "Charlie."
She saw his eyes widen a bit, lowering his arms a touch. "Ch-Charlie?" He quietly asked. It sounded as if he was in disbelief. The shaking continued.
"Yeah, Dad, it's me, your daughter." She replied as soothingly as she could. She made sure to refrain from moving closer. It was a difficult feat.
She watched as his eyes slowly slid over in the direction her voice had come from. His pupils finally widened from the terrified slits they had been in upon seeing her.
"Charlie." He started, tense. "Charlie, is it j-just us here?"
She nodded slowly. "That's right, Dad. Just the two of us. No one else is here." She gently confirmed. She felt like she was going to pop a blood vessel from the effort she was using to keep herself from going over to her father.
She watched as he fell near limp, relaxing immediately. Now that he had moved his arms out of the way, she could see the still-wet tear tracks running down his face, as well as the cuts in his lip from his teeth. He looked exhausted.
"I-I'm sorry, Charlie. You shouldn't have had to see that." He whispered, closing his eyes as he sighed.
"No, Dad, it's okay." She promised. "Is it..... Is it alright if I come to you?" She asked hesitantly, watching for his reaction.
He inhaled a bit sharply, before nodding slightly.
Charlie smiled a bit, slowly crawling over to her father who still was lying on the floor.
"I'm sorry if I scared you, Char." Lucifer started, trying to sit up. "I really don't know what happened there." He laughed nervously.
Charlie reached down, helping him get up. He flinched at the touch, but didn't pull away. He seemed to move into it.
"Dad, really, it's okay." She assured, leaning him against her once he was upright. "But we need to talk about this."
He sighed. "I know." He rubbed his face.
She was silent for a moment as he simply breathed, resting his face in his hands.
"Would you like some more tea?" She asked, looking down at him. "Maybe it'll help calm your nerves."
He blinked slowly. "That may be nice." He hummed, shifting so she could get up.
She stood with a small groan, moving back to the table to pour tea from the teapot into her father's abandoned cup.
She was extremely concerned about her dad. The man had a full blown panic attack for Satan's sake.
She walked back to Lucifer, who had his knees pulled up to his chest. She sat back down beside him, handing him his tea. He whispered a small "thank you," sipping on the hot drink.
She looked down at him with a small, understanding smile, waiting for him to begin. He nervously looked up at her, gripping his arm a bit tighter.
"I don't...." He began, before taking a breath and placing his tea on the floor. "I don't want to.... Alter your opinion of anyone."
He looked up at her, rubbing his arm in an instinctual attempt to self-comfort.
"It's better for you to form your own opinions on people based on your experiences, not on mine." He told her. She couldn't help but be a bit frustrated. He was suffering and was still more worried about her. Though, she supposed that was a good quality for a parent to have. Still, it felt like she was being treated like a child.
"Dad, this is serious. How can I trust my opinion on anyone if I don't know what they're really like?" She pleaded with him, moving to face him fully. "I can't stand to have a warped view of anyone who would treat a person like..... Like how you were treated." She carefully held his hands in hers, firm enough to be reassuring, but light enough that he could pull away at any time.
He looked so tired. "I.... Suppose that you're right." He smiled up at her. "You're so smart, Charlie. It wouldn't be right of me."
Her smile grew brighter. "I love you, Dad. I just want to help. I care about you, you know?" She comforted.
Charlie startled a bit as her father let out a wet sob, rubbing at his eyes. "You're the best kid a father could ask for, Char." He sniffled.
She gently wrapped her arms around him, carefully pushing his head to rest on her shoulder. "I'm here for you, Dad." She comforted, hugging him a bit tighter. "Talk when you're ready. I'm here."
Lucifer shakily wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her shoulder as he began to sob.
She rubbed his back, holding him as he trembled. He reached up, grabbing the back of her shirt in a death grip as he continued to cry.
She had never seen her father like this. She was so worried she could barely think.
She was snapped out of her thoughts as he began to speak.
"I don't know how much you know about me and your mother's relationship," He began, breathing still a bit ragged. "But, well, it wasn't..... The best."
Charlie felt that pit in her stomach grow. So her suspicion has turned out correct? This was awful.
She had always been closer to her father than her mother. Lilith was just too.... Prim and cold, even to her own family and even in private. Her father, on the other hand, was nearly completely opposite. He was warm and personal. He'd always greet her with a hug, and loved to be touching whoever he was talking to in some way. Whether it was pressing his shoulder to the other person's, or perhaps playfully punch someone when he was particularly amused, it didn't matter. He was constantly in the personal space of who he was speaking to, but in the good way. It made Charlie feel connected to him.
She had to admit, though. Looking back, whenever her mother and father were in the same room, it seemed.... Tense. Lucifer was always much quieter and reserved than was usual, even more withdrawn than when he spoke to a complete stranger. His eyes seemed to be trained on his wife.
She swallowed. "Mom.... Did this? Dad." She pulled him away from her shoulder carefully to look him in the eye. "Dad, did Mom... Abuse you?"
Tears welled in his eyes as he let out a wet, humorless laugh. "That's such a harsh word."
"Does it fit?" Charlie lowered her head a bit in an attempt to be more eye-level, a pleading look in her eyes. "To me, it sounds like it fits. Does it sound like that to you, Dad?"
He looked away, sharp tooth lightly digging into his already bloody lip. "......Maybe a bit." He conceded.
"It's alright, Dad." She quickly assured, moving back in for a hug. "It's nothing to be ashamed of. It's not your fault. She hurt you, Dad. She shouldn't have done that." She looked down at him, tears welling up in her eyes. "You didn't deserve any of it."
He smiled up at her, joyful and appreciative. "Thank you, Char. Really, thank you."
"Of course, Dad." She smiled back, before beginning to stand. "We can talk more about this later. You need some rest. I'll help you to your room." She lowered her hand, holding it out for him to take.
Lucifer's smile stretched across his face. "Thanks, Charlie." He grabbed her hand, pushing himself up. "After that whole.... Ordeal, I must admit I'm a bit tired."
She held him by his shoulders, the two practically hugging as they walked down the hall. "It's no trouble, Dad. You need the rest. I'll be here when you wake up." She tightened her grip on him a bit.
He smiled, seeming truly relaxed and overjoyed. He gently squeezed back, seeming to gain enough energy to get a small pep his step.
"Thank you."