Lucifer's Mansion, Wednesday Evening

[my_own_advocate]

Octavia was back at work. Just like that. Like this was a normal week, and they'd had a normal time, and he entire world hadn't suddenly gone upside down.

Lucifer was having a harder time of it. Perhaps, though, she was right, and what he needed was some... semblance of a routine again.

So on a whim, he'd texted Duke about date night. Then he'd run off to the store to pick up supplies, and... now he was here. In the kitchen. Readying his lasagna for the oven while he waited for Duke to arrive, a bottle of wine sitting on the table.

Everything. Was fine.

[[ for him ]]

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[betterthanaplan]

". . . It is, right?" Duke asked. "I remember being so sure that I solved it. That the troubles were gone. But -- I mean, I was dying. What if . . . I made that up?"

He could contact Gloria, maybe -- should contact her regardless, let her know that they were all alive (probably). But he was a little terrified that Haven would still be swamped, so he hadn't yet.

[my_own_advocate]

"You can cut me and I'll bleed on you if you'd like," Lucifer offered.

Except, could he? What with the whole God thing?

[betterthanaplan]

"That's." Duke had no idea how he felt about that. Part of him wanted to grab a knife instantly, but what if. . . . He let out a low chuckle and ran his hand through his hair. "Fuck. Okay. So it turns out the answer to 'how am I' is 'terrified'."

If he didn't know, then he didn't have to know. But which was worse, never knowing? Or finding out he'd been wrong, and he still had that -- horror -- lurking inside him?

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer let out a low sigh. "Drink more wine, then," he said, not unkindly, and looked at Duke. "But it sounds like you'll have to try eventually, darling."

[betterthanaplan]

"What would we do if I'm wrong?" Duke asked, picking up his wine glass and take a large sip. "If it turns out I'm --" (a monster) "-- still troubled? What could we possibly do?"

He really needed to get this over with. But his heart rate kicked up so hard at the thought that it hurt.

[my_own_advocate]

"The same thing we always do, I suppose," Lucifer said, reaching for the bottle. "Brace ourselves and figure ou the next thing."

[betterthanaplan]

"Okay." Duke nodded. "Okay."

A beat. Another large sip of wine.

"I'm getting a knife."

[my_own_advocate]

"You know where they are," Lucifer said.

Refilling his own glass.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke nodded, setting his glass down. Shaking out his hands as he went to get a small paring knife.

"Prick of the finger should do it," he said. "Never needed more than a drop."

And hey. Maybe less blood would have him unconscious for a shorter amount of time this time?

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer sighed. "Whatever makes you feel better, love," he said, and stretched out an arm towards him, hand held palm up.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke was shaking as he cupped Lucifer’s hand with his free one.

Yeah. ‘Terrified’ was a good word for it.

“Okay,” he said again, resting the knife against Lucifer’s fingertip without pressing down. “Okay. You . . . might need to tell me to actually do it. If that’s okay.”

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer tilted his head.

He exhaled.

"Duke," he said. "Just stab me already, I beg you."

[betterthanaplan]

Duke barked out another laugh. "Fair."

And pricked Lucifer's finger.

[my_own_advocate]

Well. Lucifer had been vaguely terrified himself - that the God thing, or what had come before it, would somehow mean he wouldn't bleed.

But he did.

So that was one concern struck off the list.

[betterthanaplan]

And for the other. . . . Duke set the knife aside and pressed his thumb to the wound he'd made, putting pressure to stop the bleeding even as he waited to see if the blood affected him at all.

He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting.

And waiting.

He opened one eye and slowly lifted his thumb. Lucifer's blood sat on his skin, like it would for anyone else. He let out a delighted bark.

"Trouble free!"

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer let out a bark of a laugh of his own. Didn't mean to match Duke, it just-- slipped out.

"Congratulations, darling!"

This was the correct time to sweep Duke into a hug, yes? Well, he was doing it either way.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke did not argue. He was still laughing, folding Lucifer in a hug in return and letting himself get swept off his feet.

"Oh my god," he said. (No pun intended.) "Oh fuck. It's gone. It's really gone!"

[my_own_advocate]

"Finally," Lucifer said.

Should he...?

Ah, fuck it. He twirled Duke around.

"Trouble-free!"

[betterthanaplan]

Duke was not at all used to being twirled. He was not a small man. But he threw his head back and laughed harder, hanging on tight, letting Lucifer do with him as he liked.

"This means Tavi should be too, right?"

[my_own_advocate]

"... I think you're a better judge of that than I," Lucifer said, setting him back down. "I'm not entirely certain what happened. Outside of what I, ah. Did."

[betterthanaplan]

Duke rested his hands on Lucifer’s shoulders. “Yeah. That part didn’t make any sense to me at all. It kinda still doesn’t.”

[my_own_advocate]

"I... think... I just... told your body to remember how to function," Lucifer admitted. "I can't say I have-- more insight."

[betterthanaplan]

“Yeah, I didn’t mean so much about that. More . . . metaphysically, maybe.” He offered Lucifer a little smile. “And I don’t actually expect an answer.”

[my_own_advocate]

"Good, because I don't have many, I fear." And the idea of going to get any was terrifying. "What did you do?"

[betterthanaplan]

“I think . . . I was stiffed so full of troubles that I sort of saw them from the inside. Saw how they really worked.” Duke shook his head, trying to piece together how to explain something that had seemed utterly obvious at the time but now felt patently absurd. “Mara, she kind of put a leash on a fucking demon. So I . . . let the demon go.”