Chapter Text
Lucifer had been summoned more times than he cared to keep up with. Lilith and the Sins had been too. At first, he had kept track of their Summons; writing diligently in journals for centuries.
Some mortals wanted favors, others skills, while even more wanted riches and someone to warm their bed. It was tiresome and often painful for Lucifer to handle such things. Lilith would hold him and assure him he wasn’t horrible for facing those deals.
He refused more often than not. Quickly learning to find the loopholes in such deals so that he could get away from the Summoner. But like anything else that came into being. Someone made a mistake.
He often wondered if it had been on purpose though. Around the 1000-year mark, his summons changed. Some mortal managed to get a Holy Mark. The summoning done with that had put a chain around his neck that he could still feel the burn of.
Two centuries of fighting. Of feeding into an egotistical state of nightmare that slaughtered so many. It’d taken him centuries to move past his guilt and accept he had been a prisoner and victim just like the Sinners.
That’s not to say he didn’t still feel that twist of darkness. He did. And there were many times he couldn’t move beneath its weight. But with his Chosen Family, he could manage.
… … … …
It had been a long time since he had been summoned. Not so long as to be forgotten but long enough he couldn’t remember the finer details.
He stood outside, beneath a brilliant blue sky with a beating sun that burned him through his thin clothes. The grass was greener than he remembered, tickling against his bare feet with the persistence of an itch. There were trees a short distance away, dark green and almost brown bark casting short shadows. The air was clean. Not like Eden, but far superior to Hell’s noxious fumes. He could hear birds and something distinctively metal creating a strange sort of peace. All in all. It was nice. Possibly one of the nicer areas to be summoned, if he was honest.
“Hello Heylel,” the soft voice and call to a name he hadn’t heard in centuries had him turning away from his surroundings. A woman sat cross-legged off to his right, wearing a vibrant red shirt that reminded him of the candied cherries Beelzebub liked. There was a bundle on her lap that drew his eye.
“You call me by a name older than your line. What do you want?” Lucifer felt a mix of anger and sick pull at him as he connected what sacrifice was being offered. “Riches, power, lust?”
“None.” The brunette told him firmly. He scoffed but lifted his gaze away from the bundle to look into blue eyes that reminded him of his brother’s own. “I’m returning something instead.” The woman went on and adjusted her body to lift up the bundle for him to see.
The baby made his chest hurt. Why were mortals willing to sacrifice their own? He couldn’t imagine doing something close to that with his own child. The little one slept, oblivious to its fate. Messy black hair stuck out around their face, resembling wisps of smoke against the impossibly white skin and red cheeks. Lucifer blinked. The baby’s cheeks and skin were more akin to his own. He couldn’t see their eyes or much else but he did wonder.
“Unlike your son, it looks like you.” The brunette told him, pushing the babe closer to him. Habit from years before rose up as he carefully took the swaddled creature and adjusted to let them rest against him.
“My…son?” He would admit that there had been children aside from Charlie. But none he’d claim or Named. He wouldn’t do that. No matter what a Summoner did or threatened.
“It’s what I could figure out.” The brunette shrugged, eyes on the babe but posture unworried. “You gave a son to a woman and I had that son’s child.”
“And you’re giving…What’s their name?” He wasn't going to agree or disagree with the mortal. A part of him knew she wasn’t lying. Or she was at least telling him what she believed to be the truth. He could see from appearance that the child resembled him slightly but he had given mortals a bit of his seed in the past and appearances can reappear in generations.
“I haven’t named it. I won’t. That’s your job. Your son is dead and I don’t want it.” The blunt answer had him rocking in place. “It’s simple. In exchange for your grandchild, I can move on with my life without the repercussions of having just abandoned it somewhere.”
He felt sick. She would give up a child for her reputation? He could deny the deal, but knowing what he did now made him hesitate. Technically, a child with a bit of his essence could survive Hell. If he Named them, they would become his and his responsibility. They would be stuck to Hell though. He had done that to his daughter and hated himself for it at times.
“If you don’t want it. If you won’t take it, I’ll leave it here anyway.” The mortal was lying, but not completely. They’d leave the baby somewhere, Lucifer knew, but he didn’t know if he could let that happen now.
“I’ll take them. But you won’t ever be truly happy. You’ll be haunted by what you’ve done.” He warned, letting a bit of his energy out to push against the borders of his summons.
The mortal smiled at him. Smiled! As if what she was doing wasn’t disgusting or rage-inducing. “God will forgive me.”
“Do we have a deal?” He fought the loathing building ash and fire in his throat. Pulling the swaddle to one side, he freed a hand to shake. The mortal’s hand was in his for the span of a heartbeat, long enough for the deal to be sealed and for him to emblazon a mark into the palm.
“You will suffer as you walk this realm. And I’ll see you in mine soon.” He growled as the mortal yelled in pain and waved her burned hand.
Without another word, he disappeared. He let the comfort of his Angelic Power flood over him and wrap him and the babe in comfort as they returned to his palace. He needed to do a lot. Suddenly having a child was going to put a strain on him.
He’d keep them. For now. Perhaps he could return them to Earth. Give them a mortal life and family. Fuck, what had he done with taking them? Even a few hours in Hell could hurt them.
Sniffling drew him from his spiral. Looking down at the babe showed big baby blue eyes watching him. They seemed to frown at him, licking their lips before turning their head to the side. Their weight seemed to grow as they wiggled until a small four-digit hand came loose and swiped across their face.
Oh.
Lucifer moved to a table. Magic cleared it as he set the babe down and carefully unwrapped them. They wore a tiny shirt with a prism on the front, resembling a nightie on them more than a shirt. Lifting the shirt showed the stub of an umbilical cord and a wet diaper. They really were a newborn. Fuck what was he going to do? “Ok, Little Duck. Let’s start with a new diaper. That’ll help, won’t it?” He spoke softly, trying to smile at the baby while using a knuckle to gently brush their face. The baby turned to the contact, mouth open to latch and he winced. “No, no Little Duck, I’ll get you a bottle. My hands are bad.” He assured and tried to rack his brain for anything else he could think they would need.
“Fuck me.” He muttered and flinched when the baby began to cry.