Radio Prince °alastorXreader °

° Angel °

“Another.”

“Geez, ain't you had enough?”

“I said another.” I sat the glass on the bar a bit too harsh, sending a few ice cubes clattering across the wood. Husk said nothing, just turned to grab the bottle of whisky to refill the glass. I hadn't seen Alastor for days. Lucifer was staying at the hotel, his presence seeming to send the radio demon running off with his tail tucked between his legs. A heated argument between the two about the hotel was what finally sent Alastor off, presumably licking his wounds until he was ready to return.

The whisky no longer burned, tunneling down my throat as if it were water. I didn't care if my reaction to Alastor's disappearance made things between us obvious. He lied to me. He said he wouldn't leave again.

“Y/n,” a voice came from behind me. One I was hoping to avoid. I couldn't be rude or disrespectful to him. “Your highness,” I didn't bother looking at him. Only acknowledgement.

The king took a seat beside me, a gesture that I hadn't expected. He didn't believe having a bar inside the hotel was going to do any good for helping sinners be redeemed. In fact, he despised the idea of the bar's existence to begin with. For him to even come this close to it was a miracle.

“What has you so tense?”

I swirled the caramel liquid around in the glass. Lucifer seemed so kind, despite having every reason not to be. Especially since he knew my dirty little secret. I wondered if he knew it was Alastor that held my soul. Husk had his back turned, but I saw his ears twitching with anticipation.

“It's nothing.”

“People don't drink for nothing.”

“I don't want to talk about it.”

The king hesitated, yet continued to press for answers. The only time I'd make my presence known the past few days was when I came to drink. Specifically at night when no one was around to judge or come up with theories on why I was so upset. The alcohol wasn't to forget.. it was to remember. To remember that night with Alastor, how he acted, how he accused me of loving him.

Lucifer leaned back in his chair, his gaze piercing through the dimly lit lobby. "Is it me?" he remarked with a sly grin, clearly trying to toy with my emotions.

Devil.

I stiffened, hopefully not too obviously. A scoff escaped my lips before I took another sip of my drink.

“I said I don't want to talk about it.”

“You've been seeking refuge at the bar for days & it's obviously more than just a casual drink.”

“I appreciate the concern, but I'd still rather not discuss it.”

Lucifer still didn't seem satisfied with my answer. He shifted in his seat, resting his feet on the foot rest of the stool. A solidifying indication he wasn't going anywhere & was going to continue prying for answers.

Husk noticed my now empty glass & without saying a word, gave another refill. Concern was etched on his feline features, but likely not because I was so very obviously upset. He was likely concerned that the king was going to make me talk, whether I wanted to or not.

“You aren't the only one burdened by bad decisions,” Lucifer said with a more soft, comforting tone. It felt as if the entire conversation shifted.

“Some burdens are meant to be carried alone,” I snapped back quickly. Why was he so concerned with my feelings? Why was he pressing me so hard? It wasn't his problem, yet he was involving himself as if it was.

“I'm just saying,” he said with a small shrug. He was surprisingly calm. That smoothness in his voice washed over me like a cool breeze. Part of me wanted to trust him & open up.. but I couldn't explain emotions that I myself didn't even comprehend.

“Why do you even care?” I finally mustered the courage to look at him. His crimson eyes bore into me, yet a smirk hinted at a complexity beneath the surface. "Call it a moment of uncharacteristic kindness, or perhaps a selfish desire for intriguing stories. Either way, you can consider it an offer.” He shrugged.

Husk's attention turned to us, presumably finally taking now as his cue to leave. With a pleasant goodbye, he left the bottle of whisky between the king & I before ascending the stairs to the east wing.

A dull ache settled in my chest as memories of Alastor resurfaced. Alcohol helped me think, but it didn't matter how much I thought about him. It wasn't bringing him back. Did I love him? That couldn't be the right word. It didn't feel like love. ‘Love’ didn't feel right.

Love or not, the absence of Alastor left an undeniable void.

“Do you think the hotel is going to work?” I asked the king, attempting to shift the conversation elsewhere. I didn't want to think about Alastor anymore.

“It's a gamble, always subject to change… The devil is in the details.” Lucifer chuckled to himself, the sound pulling a small grin at my lips. The fallen angel rested his elbow on the bar, his hand cupping his face as he stared at me.

“You remind me of someone,” he mused, the aura of the room changing quickly.

“Who?”

“Someone I used to know. So unsure of themselves at first, but they grew out of it. I see that same fire in your eyes,” He paused for a moment. “Life has a way of intertwining stories. You're different from them though.”

“Very different,” he repeated. His gaze was distant as if he was reliving a distant memory. “We fought through the complexities of love & power. Lilith… she was something fierce. Life in hell sculpted her, changed her in ways both beautiful & horrifying.” I realized that under the surface, Lucifer bore scars of his own. His ex-wife wasn't someone I'd expected him to want to discuss. He looked slightly pained to bring her up.

My fingers traced the edge of the empty glass for a moment before I refilled it with the bottle Husk had so generously left. I assumed Lucifer was trying to open up to me in hopes of me doing the same, but I wasn't going to discuss Alastor with him. They already didn't like each other as it is. I'm sure the king's opinion on the radio demon would be biased, despite me trying to shine more light on him.

“You know,” I paused for a moment to sip my drink. Lightheaded & full of liquid courage, I was ready to discuss something different. “Even if I still had my soul, I wouldn't be eligible for redemption.”

“How so?”

“My previous life. I can't remember it.” I softly laughed at myself. The entire situation was a joke. The hope of redemption had slipped from my grasp the moment Charlie made it clear we could not undo sins that we had no knowledge of. “Every attempt at memory feels like grasping smoke. It's there, I can feel it, but I can't break the veil.”

“Quite a predicament indeed..” The king's tone was softer. “Being held accountable for sins you can't recall. A past shrouded in mystery adds an alluring edge to you, (y/n).”

“You seem quite intrigued by the unknown,” I softly laughed, breaking eye contact. I glanced at him through my eyelashes, his already flushed cheeks growing more red by the second. 

We playfully bantered back & forth, the king discreetly flustered & my alcohol induced lightheadedness only grew more intense with the rising mischievous tone in his voice. Lucifer held an air about him that was somewhat intimidating, yet the more we talked, the more I could see his true colors exposing themselves.