Lightbringer

4. Infernum

TW: Parts of this chapter detail suicide by an original character. This character is stuck in a Hell loop of her suicide. Skip this first scene, and then when first person perspective comes back later with, "There's so much red," skip to "Hell. What a concept." See the end notes for a description of the scene.

There's so much red.

It's kind of beautiful, in a way. It's a sharp contrast between the scarlet crimson and the porcelain white. The bathtub is covered in it. Like morbid artwork.

I can still hear my parents talking downstairs. It's hard to really understand their words, but I want to. I want to hear their voices again, just one more time. I have to strain to catch their words, but it's almost all I want right now.

"Is it almost the end?"

"I think so. We should call Dia so he can intervene before the next reset."

"Hush. Don't let her hear, she won't understand."

They don't sound worried. They don't sound worried. And here I am, dying in the bathroom. They're oblivious. They never truly pay attention to me, yet I still feel guilty. I feel guilty about a lot of things I never said or did.

I suppose everyone does though, when they're about to die by their own hand. There's a lot I wanted to do, but the proper motivation just isn't there. Not anymore.

My eyelids feel so heavy. My limbs feel the same. So tired.

There's so much red.

And then there's only darkness.

⚯

Life with Drakrayel following him isn't as terrible as Lucifer imagined.

The demon is back to his cocky attitude, and he rarely listens to hushed requests or orders to "no, don't touch that! Don't flirt like that either, you have a chastity belt for hell's sake! Sit down!" As Chloe said with a tired roll of her eyes, it's like another Lucifer, and Lucifer is equally annoyed and amused at the same time. When it's his own ire being garnered, it's mostly annoyance, of course, but the demon is amusing, especially as Lucifer watches him stealing from the precinct fridge.

"That better not be Daniel's pudding," the angel says as the demon returns to his side, waiting in one of the glass-walled conference rooms. "He gets rather angry when it's stolen."

"Mmm, have some experience with that, do you, Lu?"

Lucifer merely rolls his eyes at the nickname and nods. "It is rather delicious pudding, isn't it?"

A smirk grows wide on Drakrayel's lips and twists the scar across his face as he offers a spoonful of the chocolate snack. "Want some?"

Lucifer hums in thought for a second before parting his lips and taking the spoon into his mouth. Drakrayel's smirk widens as he feeds the fallen angel with a mocking coo of:

"Good boy, being good for Daddy."

A scowl crosses Lucifer's lips. "I'm several millennia older than you. In addition, brother, I'm not into anything like that."

Drakrayel cackles in amusement, silver eyes glittering brightly, before he goes back to eating the pudding. He plops down in one of the chairs and throws his feet up onto the glass table, leaning back without a care. Lucifer rolls his eyes and, tired of standing, sits next to the demon.

It feels like ages before Chloe finally comes in. She's carrying more manila folders, a tired look in her eyes.

"More case files?" Lucifer asks. "Any new murders to add in?"