Chapter Text
Lucifer watched the new arrivals with little interest. The area was always crowded but not just with new sinners. Sinners that were disoriented and confused were easy pickings if one wanted to get souls quickly. What most didn’t realize though was that having a lot of souls didn’t equate with power. Having an army was useful but if they didn’t know how to fight there was only so far they could take you.
It was a toss up if the soul you collected would actually be worth anything in time. That was another thing, it always took time to adjust and make a place in Hell. There were definitely naturally talented sinners out there but even they had to get used to this new feeding ground.
There were no rules in place and anything could happen at any moment. If one didn’t know how to navigate the territories then they could easily end up pissing off an Overlord. Death would be the least of their troubles then.
This area was considered ‘holy’ grounds. A proverbial safe haven for the new sinners to land without immediately angering someone powerful. It was a small portion of the city but it was enough for them to figure out that their new home is only slightly more shitty than Earth. Some embraced it rather quickly.
Lucifer was sitting on the lip of a fountain he’d built long ago. It had long since been desecrated and the intricate patterns he’d carved into the stone were faded to almost nothing.
Ungrateful bastards, he thought with annoyance.
The point of the fountain was so that new sinners had access to water. He, and the other Angels, used to bathe in enormous fountains like this one. He’d assumed humans would be the same but they had evolved over time and though the water and fountain were self cleaning, no one used it. It didn’t help that humans had also become more modest over time.
Lucifer sighed with disappointment. It seemed that there were no interesting sinners that day either. His daughter had been filling him with false hope lately about the good in every sinner. He figured that if anyone in Hell could be redeemed then it would be a new arrival.
He perked up slightly when a newish sinner waltz across the grass. He’d landed in Hell a week ago and Lucifer had noticed him immediately due to his bright red suit. He maintained Lucifer’s interest because of his cute red deer ears and antlers. He had sharp yellow teeth but they were pulled up into a charming smile.
A smile that could charm the devil himself, Lucifer chuckled at his own joke.
The deer had come back everyday but he didn’t speak to any of the new arrivals. Instead, he approached the trickster sinners and chatted with them for a while. The exuberant way he moved sparked Lucifer’s curiosity.
It made him want to talk to the wayward sinner.
Lucifer looked down at himself to ensure that his glamor was still intact. He didn’t want to blow his cover as the King of Hell. His skin was primarily pink but his forearms and hands were obsidian. His long imp tail matched his hands but the spade at the end had a pink heart in the center. The two horns protruding from his forehead were a darker pink than his skin and transitioned to black near the tips. He’d decided to keep his blond hair and red irises.
He had decided to pose as an incubus and had the Sin of Lust pick out an outfit for him. He wore thigh high black boots with red shorts that barely covered his ass. A white crop top and red collar finished his scandalous outfit.
It amused him that humans were so modest and wore clothes but then made outfits that revealed so much of their body. They had all walked around naked for a few generations before they had thought to cover up.
By the time he looked back up, the sinner had disappeared.
His shoulders drooped in disappointment before he decided to simply head back to the palace. Lucifer stood with a full body stretch and made a small noise that attracted a few sinners’ gazes. He ignored them as his tiny black bat wings flared out.
Lucifer decided to take a short walk around town before heading back. He picked a random direction and set off. He dodged the random mayhem of the streets, someone was always getting murdered.
He paused in shock when he noticed the deer from earlier. He was holding the door open for a sheep sinner to enter. He nodded a greeting, then simply let the door close behind her and walked away with a small brown bag in his hand.
That was kindness, he thought numbly.
A huge excited smile broke out on his face from the small gesture. This had to be the tiny amount of kindness that Charlie was talking about.
Maybe there was some hope for these sinners after all! Maybe his daughter was on to something after all!
The deer paused as he reached the seam between the connected buildings then swiftly made his way back into the shop. Lucifer sprang forward to peek into the shop window and his eyes widened as he watched a now thinner gangly deer ripped apart a bull sinner. He was taller while his claws had grown much longer and his black antlers were five times their original size. He was a lot less cute in his form and Lucifer knew he’d look terrifying to any normal sinner.
There was a static in the air that seemed to instill fear in those around him.
Lucifer watched him eat the pieces he pulled off the other screaming sinner with a grimace.
A cannibal, he thought with disgust. That’s what happens when he gets his hopes up.
A movement in the corner of the room caught his attention. The sheep sinner was hugging herself and cowering in the corner of the room. It took a few moments of confusion before Lucifer realized that that meant.
That bull had probably tried to kill the poor sheep for meat. It was a sadistic way to go about it but the deer was simply trying to save her. His daughter had never said that sinners were good, just that they were capable of small kindnesses. They were full of the potential to be good.
His daughter was looking for sinners to test out some project of hers and this one might be a good fit. Lucifer would need to interrogate him to ensure he’d never try anything funny with his daughter first though.
Lucifer hid and waited for the deer to emerge. He was holding substantially more meat than his previous exit.
Lucifer checked to see if the sheep was still alive, she was, before following nonchalantly after him. It would ruin his plans to get caught, not that it seemed like the deer had noticed.
The sinner turned a corner and Lucifer jogged to catch up but was met with a dead end ally. He entered slowly and looked around but the deer was truly gone. He looked up but it didn’t seem like that sinner could scale the building or fly.
He stiffened when he felt a presence behind him. It seemed like the hunter had become the hunted. Lucifer smirked but didn’t turn around. This guy was craftier than he seemed and Lucifer was excited to be acquainted with him.
But first he needed to show this deer just who was in charge.
Lucifer made a show of inspecting the alley before enlarging his bat wings. He easily took off to the sky to show this sinner that no one could trap him.
Something wrapped around his ankle and pulled him back to the ground. He coughed from the cloud of dust produced from his landing and fanned the air to clear it as he sat up.
That was unexpected, he thought with slight irritation.
Black tendrils grew from the ground and encased his wings to prevent him from flying while the one around his ankle slowly encircled his calf.
Lucifer looked up at the demonic deer’s form. He looked the same as in the butcher shop but now he had a good look at the sinner’s face. Green stitches pulled the corners of his mouth as he grinned down creepily at Lucifer. His eyes seemed to be dials and black blood dripped from his lips.
A shadow on the wall behind the sinner caught his attention. It had a similar eerie smile to its master. The deer manipulated the shadows to teleport behind him. For only being around for a week, this sinner was already great at using his new found magic. He was definitely a natural.
Lucifer smiled up at him without an ounce of fear in his body.
“ Why are you stalking me ?” His mouth didn’t move and his teeth glowed yellow when he spoke. The words themselves had an overlay of static on them.
“Hm, I had a question for you,” Lucifer chirped honestly.
The deer tilted his head at an impossible angle.
“I saw you help that sheep earlier,” Lucifer tried to mimic his head tilt. “I wanted to know why.”
“ Prepare for disappointment ,” he growled, the static making it sound more intense. “ I should devour you for wasting my time .”
Lucifer blinked and the deer returned to normal. He twirled his cane as he approached.
“But you seem like an entertaining fellow,” his voice still had the filter but it was less staticy. “Your soul for your life, do we have a deal?”
He held out his hand and it radiated green magic.
“No,” Lucifer replied simply. “I don’t do deals.”
The deer straightened and blinked his wide eyes with surprise.
“Well, if you’re not going to answer my question,” Lucifer crossed his arms. “I should get going.”
“Hm,” he chuckled. “How about a bet then? The winner gets a favor.”
Would that favor happen to have something to do with his soul, Lucifer rolled his eyes but smirked. He could win any wager.
“What’s the bet?” he stood when the tendril released him.
“A simple race back to the butcher shop,” he proposed. “No flying.”
“No shadow travel either,” Lucifer countered. “Only the strength of our own two legs.”
“Deal,” the deer offered his hand again.
Lucifer only hesitated for a moment before taking it.
Green and pink lights flashed between them.
“I’ll give you a head start with your tiny legs,” the deer offered and wiggled two fingers as if they were running.
“How generous,” Lucifer started to jog toward the alley entrance. “If I don’t at least see you pass me up then it doesn’t count.”
“See you soon,” he waved with a friendly grin.
Lucifer started to sprint the second he turned the corner and kept his eyes peeled for a trick. There was no way a sinner like that would play fair.
A tendril grew out of the ground and attempted to grab him. He easily dodged and kept going forward. Shadow beings tried to latch onto him to slow him down and the deer’s shadow itself also tried to trip him. It was starting to feel more like an obstacle course than a race.
The deer caught up to him easily.
“It seems I must go now,” he smirked. “The finish line awaits.”
“But not for you,” Lucifer laughed and used his tail to trip the deer at the last moment.
The sinner stumbled and fell to his knees while Lucifer touched the shop.
“Now you owe me a favor,” Lucifer smirked down at him. “Show me… your favorite place to unwind.”
“That’s it?” he asked.
Lucifer nodded with a smile.
“Very well,” the deer stood and dusted himself off. “Follow me.”
If Lucifer was a normal sinner, he would not have followed an evil stranger to parts unknown. Since he knew no one could ever hurt him, he skipped next to the sinner excitedly. He never really got the chance to explore the city and it would help with his research on finding out if the deer was redemption material.
He hummed happily and stared at the deer. He could look monstrous if he wanted to but he looked so cute and friendly like this. Unassuming.
“You first,” the deer opened the door to some unmarked building. He waved his hand in front of him to usher Lucifer in.
“Ok,” Lucifer waltzed right in, expecting a trap of some sort but nothing happened.
The further he walked down the hall the louder the music became. He was pretty sure it was jazz, but since it was newer he wasn’t entirely sure. Eventually the hallway opened up into a dark club. Smoke filled the air causing Lucifer to scrunch his nose. He would never understand the appeal.
The deer pressed a hand gently against the small of his back and guided him to a sofa in the corner, where they sat in silence for a few songs. Lucifer closed his eyes and tapped his foot along to the music. It didn’t take long for him to relax against the seat.
“Whiskey?” the deer asked.
Lucifer opened his eyes and took the glass offered to him with a nod of thanks. He didn’t usually drink hard liquor, preferring sweet wines or fruity cocktails. He sipped it and tried not to grimace. He couldn’t get drunk so the appeal of the drink lost meaning to him.
“This is a nice place,” he said as he set the empty glass on the table in front of them.
“A friend of mine runs it,” the deer looked relaxed as well. “She’s a spitfire, that one.”
“More so than you?” Lucifer laughed and managed to get a chuckle from his companion.
Lucifer noticed his tail flicking back and forth. He forgot about it when he wasn’t actively using it. He didn’t usually have it out in his normal form either. He wrapped the tail around his own waist and tucked the spade between the tail folds to keep it in place. He’d learned to keep it contained when inside after slapping a few sinners with it.
He noticed the deer staring at his waist from the corner of his eye but didn’t comment on it. He tried to look average with the glamor but something about his angelic presence made him attractive to others.
“Do they allow dancing here?” Lucifer asked. “I wanna dance.”
“I’ll be right back,” the deer excused himself and stood.
After twenty minutes, Lucifer felt like he’d been ditched.
He could have just said he was leaving. He had no obligation to hang out with Lucifer. The deal was that he only had to show him this place.
Lucifer ordered a bottle of red wine and crossed his arms. He wondered what Lilith and Charlie were up to. Lilith probably didn’t even notice he wasn’t in the palace. She’d been growing more distant with each passing year. She said she was busy with ruling but he knew that was just an excuse.
Charlie was probably in her room, working on her redemption idea. Lucifer wanted to support her but Lilith convinced him it would be better to let her discover the truth on her own. Instead of completely listening though, he went out to find a sinner that could help Charlie achieve her dream. Even if she only saved one soul, at least she could prove redemption worked. Or maybe she’d fail and be sad like him. He really hoped that wasn’t the case.
After he finished the bottle he stood and stretched. He’d been out longer than he’d planned and should head back. Maybe he could tell Charlie about the somewhat kind sinner today. She’d love that.