Chapter Text
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Lucifer’s day starts with Minmar pulling him out of bed. He does not like being pulled out of bed before sunrise, especially because he would get up naturally at sunrise anyway, but he supposes that it’s allowed since Minmar is the one who doesn’t tell anyone that Lucifer does, in fact, have a horse for traveling.
Minmar puts her hands on her hips. “Explain.”
“Explain what?” He puts on his biggest and brightest smile, clicks his teeth so his cat KeeKee shows up to rub against his legs and wait for him to say something, and then puts his hands behind his back to rock on his heels. “Did something happen?”
Minmar is not the person in charge of his wardrobe. Or the Chamberlain. Or the Steward. That did not mean Minmar could not make his life terrible. The falcons he used to talk to his friends were under her charge, and if she decided he was to be alone, he would be.
“Why did Finder drop off a bottle of honey this morning?” She pulls a stick from behind her back and advances on him. He puts up his hands. “You KNOW my falcons aren’t supposed to carry that much weight.”
“How was I supposed to know Bee--” He yelps and dodges her swipe. “Sorry, I’m sorry! Bee didn’t say she was--”
“Listen here. I let you use my falcons without your mother knowing, but if I see one more bottle of honey I’m banning you.” She pauses and tilts her head. “For a month. Goodness, you still need socialization.”
He stays well out of her reach. “Sorry. I really am. I didn’t think Bee would send a whole bottle. I just asked for a sample.”
The stick is lowered as Minmar narrows her eyes at him. She always knows if he’s lying, just like Husk, and she sighs. “Alright. Alright. You’re sharing?”
“Of course I’ll share!” He scoffs. “You think I’m eating an entire bottle of honey without sharing? Please. Min. Don’t insult me.”
She laughs. “Alright, come to breakfast then. You know Husk is going to take you to the gardens as soon as possible.”
He hops to follow.
///
Charlie is still asleep, as is everyone else outside of staff, so Lucifer can walk around without worry. He’s always been an early riser, so he gets to help Minmar take care of the falcons, then he helps in the kitchen (he loves making bread) and eats breakfast with the staff. Finally, he follows Husk out to the gardens. He loves the gardens.
“Come here, Lu.” Husk is a grumpy old man and Lucifer loves bothering him. He pokes at Husk, who swats at him, and then he growls. “If you’re not careful, I won’t teach you how to cultivate snapdragons.”
“No!” Lucifer gasps. “I’m sorry. Please?”
“Better.” Husk narrows his eyes and then they plod along the pathway. That’s the best part of the morning. No need to hurry. No rushing. No putting on pretenses for people who don’t care. Just the crisp air of autumn and the gentle breeze as he enjoys the plants. His favorite are the orchids, but those aren’t around this time of year. “Got a surprise for you. Next summer is going to be great.”
“Oo, don’t promise me a good time.” Lucifer and Husk stop at what feels like a random spot in the garden. He points to a random stick with leaves covering it. There’s a white round thing, almost foamy looking, and Lucifer has to lean closer to get a better look. “What is it?”
“Mantis eggs. Means we had a couple. Didn’t see ‘em, but they left us a treat.” Husk huffs. “Though having some mantis around might mean I have an imbalance somewhere in the garden. They need food after all.”
“I read about them in a book. There’s different kinds, right? Do we know which kind these are?” Lucifer stands up properly to support his back (he’s not getting any younger, and it’s starting to really feel like he’s ancient). Husk rolls his eyes.
“You think I can tell based on some eggs? You think I’m magic or something? Nah, Kid.” Husk starts to wander away and Lucifer follows. “Just let time pass, and we’ll see. Don’t rush life, kid. It’s worth living.”
“I’m not a child, Husk.” Lucifer sighs. “I have a child.”
“Of course you’re not a child.” Husk doesn’t even look behind him as they walk. “Doesn’t mean you’re not a kid to me.”
With a snort, Lucifer checks out the lilies, the gardenias, the other plants that are going to wilt and die with the coming cold, and sighs. Husk is right. He’s not trying to rush life. He rather likes living it.
///
The rest of the day passes as normal. Go to a meeting, fight off accusations that he’s doing something un-princely by talking to commoners, sign paperwork, sigh, look at edicts, and the only highlight to his day is getting to hang out with his daughter at dinner time.
“Charlie!” He scoops her up and spins her around. He gets up before her, and he goes to bed before her, so sometimes he misses her even when she’s right here. Sometimes it feels like she’s growing up without him. “How was the day?”
Vaggie, her bodyguard (he knows better, but he lets them lie to him for now), stands by the door and keeps a lookout. Charlie beams. “I got a new person to donate to the cause!”
The cause. The one that’s educating commoners. He hopes it works. He really does. They deserve a chance to read and learn. “Who was it this time?”
Angelica puts their plates down, eyes him for not helping with the lunch rush, and then disappears behind the serving door. He’ll have to make it up to her.
“Uncle Ozzie!” Ah, that makes sense. Ozzie and him had been friends since they were boys. Running through forests, exploring caves, pretending to fight off invaders, and Lucifer was now too busy to do more than send a falcon. He misses him. He was a brother once. “He was so delighted to hear from me that he even sent me a little invention of his.”
“Oh?” Lucifer looks at the little heart in Charlie’s hand. “What is it?”
“It does this!” She clicks the center of it and the center explodes outward to shower them both in confetti. “Isn’t that cool?”
Ozzie just wanted to get glitter and confetti in the castle. Lucifer knows better. “That’s so cool! I’ll have to send him one of my ducks.”
Glitter war time.
///
He’s woken up the next morning by Minmar’s frantic pacing. “Min?”
“What did you do?” She got a twitch in her hands. She’s getting older, and occasionally she gets the shakes, but she doesn’t typically twitch. “I’m to escort you to your mother this morning. Did you get caught? Tell me you didn’t do something, Lucifer. You tell me right now.”
He holds up his hands and blinks against the rising levels of light. “At sunrise?”
“At sunrise.” Minmar whispers and looks out the window. “Get up. Your mother is sending in the wardrobe and I can’t stop her without looking suspicious.”
He jumps out of bed. He’d rather not be fondled this morning, no thank you, and he’s grateful the other servants keep her well away from him. “How upset did mother look?”
“Not at all.”
Not. Good.
He swallows and waves a hand to dismiss Minmar. “I’ll get dressed. See if you can stall, please.”
“On it.”
Today is going to be a long day.
///
He passes the wardrobe on his way to his mother’s room. She sees him and pouts, and Minmar gives a grin of victory.
///
“Good morning, Mother.” He stands in the center of her room, hands behind his back like a good prince, and waits. She’s sitting at the window, her hair and makeup already done, and doesn’t look his way. Not yet. She’s being dramatic, so he must wait.
She turns, and puts her hands properly in her lap as the light pours in. It gives her a glow, her twisting hair almost a halo above her head, and she frowns. “I need you to go to the village today.”
He resists narrowing his eyes. She knows he loves the village. It’s why she never sends him there. “Did you need something, Mother?”
Queen Sera has been queen for a long time. He doubts he’ll ever get to be King as long as she’s alive, but he doesn’t really care. He doesn’t want to be King anyway. It seems quite stressful. The wrinkles on her face are not ones of joy, not like the ones he’s developing, and as she continues to frown she looks so old. He misses the mother he had in his youth.
He misses when she smiled.
He misses his mother.
“You’ll be going on a trip soon, and I had the blacksmith make a new saddle for the royal horse.” The person talking to him is not his mother. She’s the Queen, and she holds herself as such. He keeps his spine stiff. “Pick it up and bring it back. I would send a courier, but I want as few people to know about your trip as possible. It’s diplomatic in nature.”
Ah.
He nods. He’s been on these types of trips before. Ones that they used to go on together, the ones where his mother would lean in close and tell him everything about the person they were visiting. How to get them to smile, how to get them to give in, how to get everything you wanted out of a trade deal and more, and he misses that too. Her eyes had sparkled when she was teaching him the tricks of the trade.
Now, he goes on them alone.
“Understood.” He nods. “Anything else, Mother?”
She waves a hand and looks back out the window. “Just be quick.”
///
“That’s it? And to the village?” Min mutters as she puts a hand to her cheek. “I don’t trust that. You be careful, Luce, you know you’re--” She stops and blinks. She’s not allowed to say that. He knows anyway though.
He’s family. He grew up in this castle, surrounded by these people, and some of them are older than him and many are younger, but they live together. They work together. They sing together. His heart stutters as he realizes they’re more a family to him than his own mother. When had that happened? Had it been with Lilith died and Minmar held him close? When father died and Husk took him to a secret spot of fireflies and stars?
When had Mom become Mother?
He can’t remember.
He nods and reaches out to pat her biceps. “I’ll be fine, Min. Mother wouldn’t put me in harm’s way. And, just in case, I’ll use KeeKee instead.”
She purses her lips but nods. “KeeKee will enjoy getting out and about.”
///
“KeeKee!” He shouts as he heads to the stables to make it LOOK like he’s going to take the royal horse. Well. They have many royal horses, but Mother always wants him to take Charles. Charles hates Lucifer and Lucifer hates Charles. “Where are you, girl?”
She appears just as he reaches the exit, twirling around his legs like the perfect cat she is, and he kneels down to pat her. “There’s my girl. My perfect, beautiful kitty cat.”
KeeKee meows at him and continues to rub against his legs, leaning into his hands when he gives her chin scritches. “Ready to stretch your legs? We have an appointment in the village.”
She meows again before transforming into the most beautiful black mare.
Good enough.
///
The town has always been one of Lucifer’s favorite places to visit. He doesn’t have to wear his makeup, he doesn’t have to wear his princely garb, because he’s just a person from the palace doing some chores. He’s just a person from the palace doing some housekeeping. He’s just some stable boy right now grabbing a new saddle for the prince.
“Lucy!” Zestial greets him with a smile. An older man, Zestial has been around as long as Lucifer has been alive. “On another errand?”
“I’m always running around.” Lucifer chuckles and then waves a hand at the library. “How’s educating the population going?”
“Ah. It is an exceptional experience. Miss Angelica is reading fluently.” When Zestial nods, and when Lucifer hears Angelica is doing well, he can’t help his beaming smile. Him and Angie have been friends since he was a child. He tried to teach her once upon a time, but when he got older it was harder to help her with her studies. “A moment.”
Lucifer blinks and Zestial is gone into the library. It’s less than a minute before he comes back with a book in hand. “Zest?”
“A gift. For Miss Charlie. May she enjoy the day of her birth.” Zestial winks, he only speaks like that when he wants to make Lucifer feel like he’s 12 again. “Verily, I think she shall enjoy this piece of literature.”
Lucifer rolls his eyes and takes the book. “Sure. Sure. Her birthday isn’t for a month.”
The smile drops. Zestial looks at the book in Lucifer’s hands and reaches out to pat it. “Be careful, Lucy. There have been rumblings of change. I fear for thee.”
“I’m no one important, Zestial. Nothing will happen to me.” Lucifer pulls the book away and puts it in his messenger bag. “Promise.”
Zestial’s smile does not return. “Lucy-- Very well.” He pulls away and steps towards the entrance of the bookstore. “I hope nothing happens to those of importance either.”
He disappears and Lucifer taps at his bag. Zestial is not someone who says things randomly. He’s connected to the very fibers of the town (and the black market and the thieves guild and anything that is underneath the surface of the kingdom). It’s not hard to take Zestial seriously because anyone who knows Zestial knows he doesn’t speak without knowing.
It puts some fear in Lucifer’s heart.
He has a saddle to pick up. He’ll ask Zestial about this when he gets back from his trip. Zestial is a friend, and Lucifer listens to his friends.
He moves and hums to himself as he takes in the town. There’s so much to love in this place. People go about their day, living each moment without worrying about kingdoms to run and being perfect. The baker has his tray like always, bread and rolls to sell piled on top. The farmer has his eggs out, always negotiating with the mother that has six children who run around behind her. She says they’re too expensive, and he groans every time.
And then.
As he reaches Carmilla’s place, his old friend who is basically the palace metal worker who refuses to live inside their walls (he knows it’s because she has daughters, his mother thinks it’s because Carmilla is stubborn), he sees Adam. Ugh. Adam will recognize him, so Lucifer flips up his hood and hides.
He slips into the stalls as Adam passes. Lute is with him, trailing after him and waving off girls who fawn over the ground he walks on. He doesn’t even pay attention, doesn’t say pardon me or excuse me as he bumps someone’s stall and sends bacon and grapes to the ground.
He’s heading to the Palace. Lucifer snorts, as if Adam will make it through the gates. He was banned a decade ago.
Carmilla’s voice cuts through his thoughts. “I find that skulking around gets one in trouble.”
He turns to her with a smile and she shakes her head. “Can’t help it, I’m a skulker. Palace sent word ahead?”
“Of course. The queen follows her proclamations to the letter. Should she say the Palace is to send word ahead, the Palace will send word.” Carmilla reaches to a hook above her head and pulls down the new saddle. There’s bits of gold and silver shining, a clear sign of money and power, and Lucifer hates it. “I disapprove of her taste, but that’s between us.”
“Gaudy?” He mutters as he carefully takes it. “Ensuring everyone knows the prince is riding into diplomacy?”
“It gives away a vulnerable piece in the political game of chess.” Carmilla tucks her arms behind her back and stares at him. “Be careful.”
“I’m not using this thing.” He snorts. “Just a stable boy with a regular horse and no need to use something like this. Ever.”
That makes Carmilla smile. “As long as you put it on the Prince’s horse and no other, I’m sure everything will work out fine.”
For some reason, he feels like she knows something but he’s ignored that for his whole life. It’s easy to ignore things for the sake of continuing friendships. He wants to keep what he’s had for so long, especially because it’s so hard to make new friendships when you’re stuck in a palace. Mother doesn’t let him out very often.
He clears his throat. “I’m sure. I’m here to pick this up and head back. Did you have anything else for the Palace?”
Carmilla hums, her eyes darting over him, and then she reaches into the nearest drawer and pulls out a small, silver dagger. “For the prince. As a gift for helping his daughter do what she needs to do.”
“You don’t have to reward him for doing his job.” Lucifer snorts but takes the dagger. It’s not ornate, not something a prince would usually handle, and he rather enjoys that. It has a silver handle to match its blade and pommel, with a simple engraving that looks like branches of a tree. It’s also small, perfectly suited to hide in a boot. His thumb glides over the handle, perfectly sized for his hand, and he hums. “Gorgeous as always. The prince will be delighted.”
“I would hope so. I used the measurements that I took for his gauntlets.” She pauses. “I wish he would use those.”
“They seem bulky.” He shudders. He hates those things.
“They do the job they were made to do.” He rolls his eyes, and Carmilla smiles. “Have a good day, Lucy.”
“Bye, Carmilla.” He spins while hefting the saddle over his shoulder. Time to get back to the Palace. And pretend he’s happy. Again.