Chapter Text
Chloe paced back and forth in the sunlit penthouse, wringing her hands in front of her. She couldn’t help it, she was so anxious she couldn’t stand still. For what seemed like the hundredth time she checked her phone and wondered what could be taking so long.
“It’ll be fine, they’ll be here soon,” Dan assured her from where he stood leaning against the piano, but his words didn’t make her feel any better, especially when she could see how much he was chewing his lip and fiddling with his jacket pockets. He, too, was feeling the pressure.
A ding came from the elevator and her heart, which felt like it had been racing like a race horse, felt a bit of relief. She was already heading towards the lift when the doors opened up and Maze stepped out.
“Hey, I got your message,” Maze began as she saw Chloe coming over. “You sounded freaked out, what’s going on? You look like hell.” She gestured towards Chloe's clothing that was covered in a layer of dirt and grim, with a couple tears here and there.
“Is Amenadiel with you?” Chloe asked quickly. She checked over her roommate’s shoulder to see if her one time lover was following behind.
“What? No, why would he be?” Maze looked around the penthouse and her eyes fell on Dan who gave her a weak wave. “What’s he doing here? And where’s Lucifer?”
“I asked you to bring Amenadiel,” Chloe said instead of answering her.
“Yeah, well, I told him to meet me here,” was the reply. Maze fixed Chloe with a look. “You're acting squirrelly, Decker. What is going on?”
Chloe looked to Dan helplessly, not sure what to say, but he only just shrugged, his face looking just as lost.
“Okay, now I’m getting pissed off,” Maze growled. “Someone had better tell me what the hell is happening or I start throwing punches.”
Just then the elevator chimed and the doors opened again, admitting Amenadiel into the room. Chloe let out a breath of relief and moved towards him.
“Amenadiel, thank God,” she began, “We need your help.”
“Uh, hello to you too,” he said, then took a look at the others in the room. “What’s going on?”
“Just what I’ve been waiting to learn,” Maze said darkly.
Chloe turned back to her roommate and tried to look apologetic. “I’m sorry Maze, but I didn’t know how else to get a hold of him. I figured since you two, well, you know,” she gave a look that implied ‘banged’, “you’d be able to get him here.”
“And just what do I need to be here for?” Amenadiel asked.
“There was an accident,” Chloe replied.
The words seemed to cut through the room, causing a hush of dread. Both Maze and Amenadiel looked at Chloe questioningly, while the detective looked down at her feet, unable to meet their eyes, and Dan seemed to hold his breath where he stood a little bit away from them.
“Where the hell is Lucifer?” Maze finally demanded, once again looking around the room for her former boss. “Why isn’t he here?”
“He is here.” Dan’s voice was soft, but he didn’t have to speak loudly to be heard.
Maze narrowed her eyes as she took a step towards him. “What was that?”
“Lucifer is here,” Chloe explained weakly.
Before either Maze or Amenadiel could ask she walked back towards the couch where she had been pacing before. They followed and found that, not visible from the elevator, Lucifer lay on the couch, eyes closed, looking to all the world like he was sleeping despite the disheveled state of his clothing which was dirty and torn like Chloe's.
“What the hell is this? What's wrong with him?” Maze demanded once she saw him. She quickly moved forward and knelt down beside the sofa. “Is this some kind of joke?”
“No joke,” Dan supplied when it was clear Chloe couldn’t bring herself to say anything. He came over to the rest of the group looking over Lucifer. “He’s been like this since the accident, it happened half an hour ago. We’ve tried waking him up but nothing has worked.”
“What happened?” Amenadiel’s voice was low and even, but Chloe could tell there was something brewing behind eyes.
The detective rubbed her hands together, feeling her mouth go dry, but she knew she had to explain. “It was my fault.”
“Chloe, that’s not fair,” Dan began, but Chloe cut him off.
“No, it was,” she said. “He was with me on a case. We were trying to catch a bomber. She had already set off a car bomb, killing two people. She had sent threatening letters to her next victims saying that she would do it again.”
"You better talk faster, Decker," Maze said through gritted teeth. "How did a bomb do this?"
“I don’t know if it was a bomb,” Chloe admitted, running a nervous hand through her hair. “We tracked the bomber to some private property outside of the city.”
At this point Dan leaned a little forwards and added, “I helped.” Chloe shot him a look that said ‘Really? Now?’ to which Dan gave a sheepish grin and leaned away again.
“Lucifer and I went into a workshop,” she continued, “Dan stayed outside in case she tried to flee. Only the bomber was waiting for us in a room full of explosive ingredients. There was a fight, it all happened so fast-”
“What. Happened. To Lucfier?” Maze said slowly, enunciating each word in a low voice. She didn’t look at anyone, her eyes glued to the unconscious form on the couch, but you could almost see the anger rolling off her.
“I don’t know, Maze,” Chloe nearly pleaded, “I really don’t. I just know there was a roaring sound and a bright light,”
“The place exploded,” Dan interjected. “I watched from the outside. Half of the building was in flames, but when I went in to find Chloe and Lucifer they were lying in a spot where there was no fire, completely untouched. Chloe was awake, but Lucifer wasn't. The two of us had to drag him out. ”
Chloe nodded, then took a deep breath, preparing to say the hard part. The part that could possibly make everyone in the room think she had gone mad.
“But before Dan found us,” she said slowly, heart beating fast, “when I had just come to, I heard a voice.” She stopped, letting the words hang in the air a bit.
For the first time since she started recounting what happened Amenadiel looked away from Lucifer and examined her face, like he wasn’t sure what to make of what she just said.
“You heard a voice?” Dan asked. “You didn’t say that before.”
“Yeah, well I was in shock,” Chloe replied. “I thought maybe I imagined it but the more I go over that moment in my head, the more I’m sure I really heard it.”
“Well, what did it say?” Even though it was Dan that asked it was Amenadiel that Chloe locked eyes with as she began to speak.
“It said “As you wish King of Hell.””
For a moment Amenadiel and Chloe just looked at each other, her eyes pleading for something but his unreadable.
“It must have been the bomber you heard,” Maze muttered from her spot beside the sofa.
“Not possible,” Dan supplied. “She was a charred lump.”
“But you and Lucifer were completely untouched,” Amenadiel said.
Chloe nodded. “We were covered in rubble and pieces of burning building, and Lucifer was unconscious, but other than that completely unscathed.”
“Chloe and I brought Lucifer back here,” Dan finished the story, “She refused to take him to a hospital, instead she called you two here.”
Amenadiel rubbed a hand over his face, suddenly looking very tired. “A hospital wouldn’t do him any good, anyway.”
“No,” Chloe agreed. She stepped closer to Amenadiel. “But you can.”
Maze’s head finally snapped away from Lucifer and stared at Chloe. “What?”
“Yeah, what?” Amenadiel echoed.
“You can heal Lucifer,” Chloe said, feeling confident in her declaration, “because you’re an angel.”
There was a second where the three others stared in disbelief at Chloe while she kept her eyes locked on Amenadiel, a deep feeling in her gut unshakeable.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Dan broke the moment first. He moved towards Chloe looking like he wanted to start checking her over but kept himself from touching her. “Chloe are you okay? Maybe we should have taken both you to the hospital to be checked out.”
“I’m fine, and I’m right.” She stuck her chin out stubbornly. “Aren’t I, Amenadiel?”
The black man tried to give a laugh but it wasn’t very convincing. “An angel? What?”
“Hey, don’t dismiss her like that,” Maze said as she stood up and gave Chloe a nod. “Where’s this coming from, Decker?”
“Lucifer has always said he’s really the Devil,” she replied. “He’s never lied about anything else, so why that? And he does things that no one should be able to do, throw people through plate glass windows and escape locked rooms. Things no human can do.”
Dan groaned. “Oh, come on Chloe.”
She ignored him and spoke to the floor, unable to meet any of their gazes. “I guess I started to believe a long time ago, but I never really wanted to accept it. Because accepting it would mean that Lucifer is really, well, the Devil. The Devil is real, then Hell is real, and all the rest of it.
“And you,” she pointed at Amenadiel, “tried way too hard to convince me that Lucifer was using tricks to do it all. The more you tried to convince me, the more I just felt in my gut what you said was wrong, and the more I believed in Lucifer.”
Maze gave her a small grin of approval. “So what made you finally accept it?”
“That voice,” Chloe said plainly. “The one I heard after the explosion. I didn’t hear it with my ears, I felt like it was inside my head. And not only did a disembodied voice call Lucifer the “King of Hell,” but it didn’t feel human. It wasn’t anything natural, I know in my gut it couldn’t be.”
“I can’t believe what I’m hearing,” Dan muttered. He walked towards the bar at the other end of the penthouse, fully planning on making himself a drink.
Chloe rolled her eyes at his back, but continued. “When we found that Lucifer wouldn’t wake up I was panicked, I didn’t know what we could do for him. But if Lucifer really is the Devil, then his brother,” she nodded towards Amenadiel, “really is an angel. And angels can heal. So you can help him.”
Defeated, Amenadiel gave a long sigh. “Alright, yes, you win. I really am an angel-”
“I knew it,” Chloe uttered with a small shiver of pride.
“Wait, what?” Dan yelled at the same time at the bar.
“-but I can’t help Lucifer,” he continued, ignoring the interruptions. “I imagine my dear brother never told you that I have fallen. I no longer have any of my powers.”
“What, no,” Chloe said, fear and worry suddenly rushing back over her like waves. “You have to.”
Amenadiel gave a sad shake of his head and looked down at his older brother. “I wish I could help Chloe, but I just don’t have the power.”
Desperation on her face she turned to Maze, her voice pleading. “You’re really a demon, right Maze? There has to be something you can do.”
“Well, thanks for coming to me first,” her roommate said a bit snippy, “but demons aren’t really known for their healing properties.”
Chloe felt like she was going to be overwhelmed with helplessness. She turned to look down at Lucifer, lying on the couch, his face soft and relaxed, looking almost angelic. Chloe sank down onto her knees and leaned over her partner’s unconscious form.
“Oh Lucifer,” she uttered, taking one of his hands in her own. “I am so, so sorry.”
Maze and Amenadiel stood over the two of them, taking in the scene. The leather clad demon finally elbowed the angel in the ribs, hard.
“Come on, Amenadiel,” she muttered just loud enough for him to hear. “There has to be something you can do.”
“Don’t you think if there was I would have done it already?” he shot back. “I know we’ve had our differences, but Lucifer is my brother.”
“Didn’t you say that since we sent your whore of a mother back to Hell you’ve gotten some powers back?”
“Just small things. Minor things. I’m a little stronger, my own injuries heal a little faster. I can’t heal a whole celestial being, especially when I have no idea what is ailing him.”
Maze fixed him with a hard glare. “Try.”
He opened his mouth to argue back, then closed it just as fast. No one ever won an argument with Maze, mostly because it usually dissolves into a physical altercation. Instead he moved towards the couch and knelt down beside Chloe.
“Excuse me,” he murmured.
Chloe scooted away to give him some room. Dan finally rejoined the group, drink in hand, a look of placid disbelief on his face. Amenadiel placed one hand softly on Lucifer’s chest, but he turned to address Chloe.
“I don’t know what I can do for him,” he explained. “So I can’t promise that this will have any effect.”
She didn’t reply, just nodded her head. Amenadiel then look back at his brother’s face, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes. He dug deep inside himself, trying to find the power that he took for granted so many times. What was once a blazing fire inside him now felt more like a weak ember, but he focused on the warmth of it. He coaxed it out of inside of him and down to his hand, then urged it from his palms to flow into Lucifer, finding what needed to be healed and to fix it.
As the others watched, a faint glow appeared from Amenadiel’s hand as it lay on Lucifer’s chest. Chloe let out a gasp while Dan muttered a “Holy shit.”
After a moment the glow faded and the angel pulled away his hand. He blinked his eyes open then rubbed his face, suddenly feeling exhausted. Lucifer continued to lay unmoving on the couch, and Chloe couldn’t help but feel disappointment seep in.
“Did that help?” she asked.
“I couldn't do much, but I think so,” Amenadiel replied. He tried to stand up but his legs felt too weak to carry him and nearly fell, but Maze managed to grab him under the arms and hold him up.
The demon gave him a smirk then guided him over to a chair to sit. She gave him a light punch on the shoulder. “You did good,” she said with a grin.
He couldn’t help but smile back, then looked back to Chloe. “As far as I can tell he’s just drained. Once he recovers his strength, he’ll wake up.”
Chloe wanted to feel relief but she didn’t feel better. “How can he be drained?”
“My best guess? However he saved the two of you from that explosion was too much for him.”
“Hold on,” Dan piped in, “You’re saying Lucifer, who is really the Devil, used some kind of power to save him and Chloe from the explosion?”
Amenadiel gave a tired shrug. “How else do you explain the two of them surviving?”
Dan didn’t answer, instead choosing to down the drink in his hand and then return to the bar to get more.
“Then what was the voice I heard?” Chloe asked.
“No idea,” he admitted.
“Well, as long as Lucifer is going to wake up, I’m happy,” Maze said. A wicked grin spread on her face. “I’m going to make him pay for scaring me like this.”
Chloe couldn’t help but let out a chuckle. “You’re not the only one.”
She finally stood up and checked her phone for the time. It was still the middle of the day, and she had to at some point go back to the precinct to explain what happened with the bomber. Still, she wanted to stay and be here when Lucifer woke up.
As she chewed her lip, trying to decide what she was going to do, she noticed that Amenadiel was watching Lucifer’s sleeping form, a deep frown on his face.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Hmm?” Amenadiel looked up at her, then shook his head. “Oh, no, nothing.” But he still looked concerned.
“No, something’s up,” Chloe stated. “What is it?”
“There’s nothing wrong.”
Chloe crossed over and stood right in front of his chair, arms crossed. “You know, you are a terrible liar.”
“Chloe’s right,” Maze added. She stood behind Amenadiel’s chair and leaned over him. “You suck at lying. What’s up?”
“It’s probably nothing,” he said, trying not to look nervous.
Maze placed a hand on his shoulder and gripped it lightly. “Don’t make me hurt you.”
“Okay, okay,” Amenadiel quickly said, then looked from one woman to the other. “It’s just that when I was healing him, Lucifer felt different.”
“Different how?” Chloe asked.
“Different in that he didn’t feel… like his normal self.”
“You have to do better than that,” Maze uttered, her voice hinting a threat.
“Not like an angel,” he explained, “or even a fallen angel.”
He looked over at his sleeping brother, the same look of concern Chloe had seen earlier crossing his face. He took a deep breath, then let it out slowly.
“Lucifer… felt like a mortal.”