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"Dad, Dad, Daddy, Dad!" Lucifer grunted out an unintelligible greeting into the pillow he was face down on, the warm welcoming corners of sleep draining from him as his precocious princess used his spine as a bounce pad. "Dad! Oops" Thankfully whatever had fallen from her tiny hands never made an impact, a rush of air indicating it had been caught. "Charlotte, that is quite enough" a familiar voice scolded with an eerie twang, Lucifer chuckled as Charlie was lifted from his back. He rolled over, wearing a small grin when his vision cleared enough to see Alastor holding the princess up in the crook of his arm. He was dressed down to his shirt sleeves, a dark red apron tied around him. Alastor held Charlie's juice cup just out of reach. She stretched out and groaned with effort as she struggled to reach it for a moment. Her face split into victorious glee when it was returned to her hands, holding it defensively to her chest. Alastor's smile twitched before he placed her on the ground, her little nose twitched for a moment before she squealed in realization."Breakfast! Dessert for Breakfast!" she shrieked in the highest pitch she was able as she ran out the door, nearly tripping over her nightdress.
"Apologies, she's figured out how to unlock the highchair" Alastor explained with a near weary sigh, giving a disdainful look to the splashes of juice on the linens. "It's fine, I should be up anyway" Lucifer stretched, cracking out his stiff joints. He could almost feel the phantom cracks of his hidden wings, He'd need to stretch them out in real life soon lest he forget they exist. Bright yellow eyes popped open when the gentlest kind of kiss was pressed to his cheek. "Aw, you're becoming domestic" Lucifer teased, giggling under his breath when Alastor rolled his eyes dramatically. "Feral as the day I arrived, Sir, just getting your once-a-day out of the way so you don't 'interrupt' your work today" The deer demon responded with a flick of his ear, ignoring Lucifer's hum of disapproval as he made his way back to the kitchenette. Lucifer was glad he put it in when Charlie was born, how he ever lived having to walk across three football fields worth of marble for breakfast he would never know.
Lucifer rolled out of bed, clicking his fingers to replace his well worn pajamas with his usual workshop attire. He followed Alastor's trail with a yawn, giving a tired smile to the display. Alastor was placing Charlie in her chair, her apparent 'unlocking' method being to shatter the rail on the side. The Deer demon fixed it with his power, covering the white wood with a black substance that kept it together. The three-year-old shoved at the reinforcement a bit before a plate was placed in front of her. "Aw..." She mumbled as she poked at the small pieces of cured meat on her adorable dishware. "We can't have dessert for breakfast every morning, Princess" Lucifer offered reluctantly, though pancakes did sound good right now. He patted her head as he took his own seat. His tea was already present with the perfect percentage of milk, he gave Alastor a small thankful smile before the deer demon returned to the kitchen. "Is good" Charlie announced reluctantly, tiny fork poking suspiciously at the vegetable-heavy scrambled eggs.
Lucifer chuckled at her before his eye caught the empty chair across from himself, his chest suddenly feeling awfully tight. That chair had been without a user for a long while but he always expected her there, no matter how much time passed. Lucifer often battled his own hurt feelings to teach Charlotte about the amazing woman who mothered her, the things she had done for their people, how they fell in love but it was getting harder to do so with every month of non-contact. He feared his little princess would soon not even remember her voice. He played her music sometimes and while Charlie did love a song, there was a kind of disconnect festering between the singer and her mother. He sighed, taking a sip of his tea as he looked over his daughter. She was really his mirror image, though he expected she'd be taller being she was already at his mid thigh.
Alastor slid a larger plate in front of Lucifer before eyeing the princess who was carefully eating around the bell peppers on her plate. He was another thing entirely. Lilith had hired him as she had most of the staff who worked in the palace, both Hellborn and Sinner alike despite Lucifer's protests. He had been especially reluctant to allow a sinner to take part in caring for his infant. Despite Lucifer's hesitance, he had actually turned out to be a blessing. He knew Charlie better than most and was strong enough that Lucifer didn't have to send half of the Goetia army with Charlie to the few events he allowed her to attend. When exactly he started taking care of Lucifer as well though, that was unknown. Surely they had fit into some understanding when Lucifer was deep in the pits of an episode, unable to feed himself or talk or do much of anything useful. When did preparing him dinner and ordering him to bed at a regular time turn into chaste kisses and cuddling in the evening? Well Lucifer had a slightly better idea of that timeline.
Alastor was different, as dark and twisted as any other sinner for sure but... Different. Honestly if he didn't bleed red or stink of sinner, Lucifer would have thought him Hellborn. He certainly acted like he was above other sinners or even the overlords, though there were fewer and fewer of those about. Their relationship was another complicated little entanglement. They bickered like a couple frequently but Alastor was completely avoidant of any kind of confirmation other than Lucifer got at least one kiss a day. Lucifer would say he didn't mind having no evidence of intent but he did long to belong to someone like he had before. He ate his breakfast quietly, watching Alastor flit around preparing ingredients for future meals. He never sat down to eat with them, the closest he ever got was taking a reluctant seat at Charlie's tea parties. Lucifer could understand why, if Alastor was like other sinners. A mouth full of unfamiliar daggers made eating delicately a sport. Alastor wasn't like that though, he was all too comfortable with his fangs. Lucifer wouldn't be surprised if the oddball had a similar maw in life. He definitely wasn't afraid to snap his teeth but he rarely did more than drink in front of them.
Lucifer chewed thoughtfully, watching as Alastor tended almost sweetly to Charlie. Alastor was Lilith's employee, but he was still an employee. It would be improper for Lucifer to ask for something as intimate as joining their family meals. Their relationship was already improper as it was. "Something amiss with breakfast, sir?" Alastor asked as he wiped Charlie's cheek. "Hm? No, wonderful as always. Just pondering" Lucifer responded quickly, swallowing his mouthful. Yes, it would be best to return to something more professional. Allow Alastor to focus on his actual duties. After all, Alastor was here to take care of Charlie, not him. He was sure Alastor had other things to be doing rather than babying both Morningstars, palace gossip revealed he had climbed the power ladder quickly in the sinner circles. Why he gave up becoming an overlord to be a live-in Nanny was unknown, though there were plenty of rumors about that too. He was bedding Lilith, he was soul contracted to Von Eldritch, he was trying to assassinate Lucifer, he was Charlie's actual father. (Lucifer would have some explaining to do if that was the case). They were endless and more than a little entertaining.
Lucifer took his last bite just as a small Imp hurried in with a stack of paperwork raised above their head. They were odd creatures, originally for torturing sinners but they had found differing jobs in every ring after the sinners had been condemned to Pride. He was a little fond of them, their love for circus entertainment didn't hurt either. His plate was magicked away as a pile of blueprints from the various sins were slid in front of him. The imp nodded before darting off to Lucifer's bedchambers, he had already forgotten about the juice stains settling into the Egyptian cotton. There goes Alastor, saving him from an uncomfortable nights sleep yet again. "Better get to work then huh?" He said to no one in particular as he tidied the stack before shuffling it under an arm. Alastor lifted Charlie, holding her out for Lucifer. The king chuckled before kissing his princess on each blushed cheek, causing a delightful giggle that melted his heart. "Be good for Alastor Charlie, have fun at music lessons" He cooed, petting her hair lovingly as Alastor rested her on his hip. "I'm always good!" She reassured, grinning almost devilishly at her father when he looked unconvinced.
Every step taken away from his quarters made him want to sink into the floor and rot. Charlie was quite literally the light of his life but it was like holding a torch in a blizzard. The voices and apathy he felt was quieter when he was with her but the more he hyped up to be the parent she deserved, the more drained he felt when she wasn't with him. The short time they had spent as a three person family had been easier, he was able to recharge but there was no changing things now. He sighed as he opened the ornate door to his workshop, the space was cluttered just how he liked. His projects and work-in-progress pieces lied about the room in a sort of organised chaos. A few smaller models of his best inventions are displayed in a cabinet, he tried not to look at it too much. It was so easy to see flaws in something after it was already set in stone. The amount of Duck themed projects covering the various surfaces was becoming lightly concerning but at least they were cute. He sighed as he dropped down to his stool, running a hand through his hair as he got into the blueprints from his sins.
He was halfway through bullshitting his third prototype when a throat was cleared behind him. The car of the duck dark-ride flew into the air as Lucifer yelped, the yellow plastic landing landing hard on his head before it toppled from his desk to the floor with a glorious dramatic crash. He swiveled, holding a nervous smile as his foot hit the duck car, the sharp crunch somehow hurting Lucifer's teeth. Alastor stood with his hands firmly behind his back, an eyebrow raised at the very much unfollowed blue prints for a serpentine roller coaster. "Heh, can I help you Alastor? I don't think I've ever seen you here" He asked as he shoved the half finished diorama behind him. It was certainly not a priority project he should've been working on in that moment. "Charlotte has gone down for her nap, Your imps begged me to ensure you were actually working" Alastor gave a disapproving look to the clutter before his crimson gaze turned to Lucifer.
"Oh That's sweet of them, yes, not wallowing right now just LuLu land stuff" Lucifer excused, waving a hand in the air. "I fear these little things are showing up in all my projects nowadays" He added when Alastor picked up a simplistic rubber duck. "You are acting stranger than normal" Alastor stated, eyes flicking to the piles of half finished crap lying around. "Lots of stuff on the mind, ha" Lucifer chuckled weakly before sighing. "You don't need to worry about me" He added with a nervous smile, though Alastor's face didn't even shift from his normal smile as he dropped a duck, wiping his hand on his coat. "I don't, my only concern is Charlotte, but she'd be a mess if both her parents went AWOL, hm?" Alastor picked up another in progress project. Charlie's birthday present, was supposed to be done for her first but better late than never. Lucifer's smile dimmed a little, heart clenching as he was filled with a sad kind of determination .
"Right, Right. Which is why... We should probably stop...canoodling" Lucifer struggled to get the words out, struggled even harder to not feel disappointed when Alastor gave him a blank stare. "Canoodling sir?" Alastor asked with a small grin, his eyebrows raised. "You know.. The kisses, me sleeping all over you, all that. It's not your job to baby me" Lucifer returned with a bit more fire, embarrassed to admit just how much he had been leaning on the demon these past months, just how comfortable he was sleeping against a demon who could barely say a nice word about him. "I don't want to take advantage of you" Lucifer firmly said, grimacing when Alastor cackled. "Oh please, like you're the big bad boss pushing a damsel into a corner" Alastor laughed. "Oh ha-ha, you know what I meant asshole" Lucifer grumbled, stabbing at a loose screw from the wall of his dark-ride diorama with a screwdriver. "You're a Nanny, not my concubine, You don't get paid enough to even act like you like me " He continued, growling as his aggressive turning of the screw stripped it.
"You're correct, I don't get paid enough to pretend I like you" Alastor stated, looking down on Lucifer from behind. "You're a show off with nothing to show for, a prideful prick and you have horrible taste in furniture, clothes and food. I'd be more comfortable calling you a foe than a beau" He continued, his words stabbing Lucifer right between the wings, right into both lungs. "But you're mine" The red demon whispered, his gloved hands ghosting around Lucifer's neck. He hated how he shivered at that, hated how a sharp flame rose up in his chest in delight at the prospect of belonging to someone. "I am quite entertained by your pining but once I get bored, I'll let you know" Alastor promised, tapping Lucifer's cheek. Lucifer looked up, swallowing a hurtful retort. "I guess that's fair..." He finally said, a sad hum leaving him when Alastor leaned down to kiss his lips. It was gentle and chaste, like most of their kisses. Though this time the barest touch of Alastor's claws against his throat set a fire beneath his skin.
"Now I should get back to preparing lunch before those Imps of yours try starting it" Alastor dusted off his coat, grinning down at Lucifer's face. "Yeah Okay, thanks" Lucifer smiled weakly, giving a slight nod before the demon shuddered into the shadow, disappearing before Lucifer's very eyes. The monarch sighed, running his hand through his hair and resting the palm on his face. That hadn't gone how he hoped but he couldn't say he was displeased fully at the answer. Alastor got entertainment out of him and Lucifer was not about to deny the only comfort he had outside of Charlie. He turned back to his workbench, a slight chill going through him when he noticed the carefully carved red antlered Duck sitting pretty right below his work lamp, entirely visible to anyone within the room. He swallowed as a golden flush crashed over his features, sliding the red duck into a drawer as he rested his face in his hands.
He was so screwed.