Lucifer's Mansion, Wednesday Afternoon

[my_own_advocate]

That whole awkward mess yesterday had ended in Lucifer inviting Octavia over because, well. Because he felt horrifically guilty, and having long emotional chats wasn't really something he was good at when he wasn't in the middle of his own (Eric's) bloody club.

Also, generally, spending time with people went down more smoothly when there were hot tubs involved.

Either way, he was awake and upright. Hadn't bothered to pull on a suit jacket or anything else over his crisp black shirt because, well, this wasn't exactly a formal occasion.

... which hadn't stopped him from getting snacks delivered and breaking out the brandy, mind you. Either way. He was home.

[[ for her ]]

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[my_own_advocate]

"Earth?" Lucifer guessed. "Your Earth."

[okteiviakom]

A tiny nod.

"We always called it the Ground."

First, from the perspective of being up in the sky. Then, underneath it.

[my_own_advocate]

"Middle ground between Heaven and Hell," Lucifer said lightly.

[okteiviakom]

"Something like that," Octavia muttered.

They couldn't not be maudlin to save their lives, could they? Or maybe it was just her.

[my_own_advocate]

She made him more maudlin. But... not quite in a bad way, somehow. Lucifer smiled at her a little.

"Well, we made it there, didn't we?"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia's voice stayed quiet.

"And where are we now?"

[my_own_advocate]

"Somewhere between Heaven and Hell," Lucifer echoed, mouth quirking, "Which is where I like it, frankly, Heaven is terrible."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia didn't entirely agree. But she figured it really was just her that sometimes felt Fandom was like... a waiting room. Something separate from everything else.

But, her head tilted a little. The curiosity on her face was faint, soft.

"Can I ask what it's like?"

[my_own_advocate]

"Heaven?" Lucifer asked, tilting his head. "Oh, it's all nice and peaceful and utterly boring. Nothing ever happens, everyone's happy all the time, or at least they're expected to be, and Uriel..."

He trailed off.

"Well, I suppose no one has to suffer Uriel's speeching anymore," he said.

[okteiviakom]

"I don't know who that is."

She might have, once upon a time. But now it had been most of a decade since her Wikipedia-level research into his origins, so.

[my_own_advocate]

"One of my brothers," Lucifer said. "He died a few years ago."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia gave that a tiny nod.

Didn't say "I'm sorry", because she knew better than to assume anything.

[my_own_advocate]

It was complicated. At least, one could deduce that by the way Lucifer was suddenly very busy drinking his wine.

[okteiviakom]

And that dissuaded Octavia away from making any follow-up questions, like weren't his siblings supposed to be immortal, like him?

Instead, she turned her attention towards the view again.

"You know, there are mornings I forget I'm here."

[my_own_advocate]

"You forget you're here?" Lucifer asked, frowning.

If relieved not to have to dive into-- yes.

[okteiviakom]

"Yeah?" Octavia replied, with a little shrug. This wasn't a new thing for her. "Some days I wake up, and I'm not sure what I'm going to see when I open my eyes. Or I expect... something else than what ends up being there."

[my_own_advocate]

"Suppose you have been zapped elsewhere against your will often enough," Lucifer said. "Doesn't make for a restful awakening, though."

[okteiviakom]

"No," Octavia agreed, in a mild rasp. "But I'll take it over being elsewhere and wondering if I'm going to forget having even been here."

Because that was also a thing with her.

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer took another sip of his wine and considered her.

"Did you try to write anything down?" he said.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia shook her head.

"Didn't think I would get to keep any writing with me."

Another side effect of her zapping trauma, yes.

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer's mouth curved a little.

"Well... Maybe we should get you one of those tie-around bells, like cats have," he teased gently. "'Is Octavia still here? Shake your ankle once for yes.'"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia snorted, despite herself. "That helps everyone else. Not me."

Because this was clearly a very serious suggestion that called for having its flaws exposed.

[my_own_advocate]

"Well, if you wake up without it, you also know you're not here," Lucifer pointed out," mouth curving.

[okteiviakom]

"So far, I've gotten to keep everything that was actually on me," Octavia retorted.

And flicked some water in his general direction.

Somehow, she managed to make even that seem dry and a little sarcastic.

[my_own_advocate]

"Temporal tracking chip?" Lucifer said merrily. "I'm sure someone 'round here is spacey enough for that."

He flicked some water right back at her.