Chapter 116

"Did we not say ten minutes?" Lucifer says, his arms crossed impatiently.

"Well, you said thirty seconds," Gabriel reminds him, "so I figured if I'm gonna take too long, I should take really, really too long."

"What were you doing that it could possibly take twenty minutes to look for one kid?" Lucifer asks, exasperated.

"Actually taking my time and trying to find him," Gabriel says. "You know, asking everyone if they'd seen him. Checking the upstairs because I didn't trust you. You know, normal child-hunting things, since I know I couldn't trust you to do any of them."

"Why would I even try asking anyone else?" Lucifer asks. "The only people here who will even talk to me are you, Michael, and Jo, and obviously you would be no help, and I would rather cut my own face off than try to talk to Michael."

"Fair point, fair point," Gabriel agrees. "But no one's seen him, so it wouldn't have helped anyway."

Lucifer scoffs. "Great. So we lost the kid."

"Well, it's safe to assume he'll be back soon," Gabriel says. "That's what happens every time anyone disappears."

"No, it's not," Lucifer says. "Because sometimes, Chuck pulls them, and we never see them again, and then we get stuck here because we just lost the one kid who could possibly —"

"Okay, Lucifer, you need to take a chill pill," Gabriel says. "He'll be back. We just have to wait."

"Yeah, good luck with that," Lucifer says. "If you see the kid, let me know."

"And where are you gonna be until then?" Gabriel asks.

"As far from everyone else as possible."

And then he's gone.

Gabriel sighs and sits down on the hood of the Impala. Well, this is fantastic. He really, really doesn't like Lucifer, but at least having him here made it feel like they had a chance. Lucifer wouldn't stick around if he thought it was hopeless. But now that he's gone, that's how it's starting to feel.

Hopeless.

~~

Lucifer flies back to the roof. It's probably his best choice — the only two who can bother him up here are Gabriel and Michael, and only the latter has any idea he's here. If all goes well, he'll be alone here until someone finds Jack.

Which is easier than he thought.

Jack is sitting on the roof already, his knees pulled into his chest and his head ducked. He doesn't look up when Lucifer appears, though it's unclear whether it's because he doesn't want to talk, or because he didn't hear the whoosh of Lucifer's wings. Listening to his faint sobbing, Lucifer reasons it could be either.

Part of him wants to yell at the kid to stop crying and get them out, and part of him just wants to leave in silence. But it makes him uncomfortable, seeing him like this, and he's not sure he would feel better if he just left. He can practically guarantee he won't feel better yelling at him.

So instead, Lucifer just sits down next to him, not saying a word. He knows what it's like to not want to talk to anyone, and he's not going to ask Jack to talk if he doesn't want to. But he also knows what it's like to have no one there for him, and he doesn't want that to be Jack's reality. He may be in a new universe with no real friends, but he's not the only outcast, and anyone who's seen Rudolph knows that misfits stick together.

Jack looks over at him and wipes his eyes on his sleeve. "I'm sorry."

Lucifer raises an eyebrow. "You're sorry? For what?"

"I tried to help," Jack says. "I really did. I thought I could do it, but I can't."

"That's okay," Lucifer says. "I'm sure Gabriel and I didn't make it any easier." They probably spent more time bickering than talking to him.

"It doesn't matter," Jack says. "You weren't gonna be able to help, anyway. I thought there was a chance that maybe you could show me, but it didn't work. I still have no idea how to control my powers. I don't think I ever will."

"You made it here, didn't you?"

Jack shakes his head. "I didn't mean to. It just happened."

"Oh."

Jack looks away, staring straight ahead. "See? I'm never gonna figure it out. We never stood a chance."

Lucifer doesn't speak at first. The two sit there in silence for a long time. Occasionally, Lucifer will steal a glance at him, but he's so miserable, he can't bear to look too long.

Finally, Lucifer says, "You know, I said that once, too."

That gets Jack's attention. He looks over, confused. "What do you mean?"

Lucifer sighs, averting his gaze. This isn't a story he's proud of, and in literally any other situation, he would keep it to himself. But it might be the reassurance Jack needs, and if he can help the kid out...

"When God made the angels, it was just me and Michael for the longest time," he says. "And Michael figured out how to do everything. He was making his own creations before I even knew how to fly. And he kept trying to explain it to me, and I just couldn't figure it out. And I really thought that God has messed up. He got too cocky with his first archangel, and the second attempt didn't go as well, and I was never going to be able to do anything."

Lucifer looks over at Jack, who's staring at him, speechless. Lucifer just gives a small shrug.

"But..." Jack pauses. "But how did you figure it out?"

Lucifer sighs. "Honestly, I don't know. I kept trying. I kept asking around. And, slowly but surely, I was able to do stuff."

"And now you're one of the most powerful beings ever," Jack adds quietly.

"And yet," Lucifer says, "I have a feeling you're going to knock me down a spot on that list pretty soon."

"I don't know about that."

Lucifer shakes his head. "Jack, I can feel you getting more powerful every day. That's an advantage I never had. If I can do it, so can you."

"Well, how long did it take you?" Jack asks.

"Well, considering there was no sun so days and years didn't exist, I think it's safe to say that I have absolutely no idea," Lucifer says.

"Well, did it take a while?" Jack asks.

"It felt like it did, but I was also very, very young and time seemed to pass very slowly."

"Oh."

They lapse into silence, and for once, Lucifer doesn't mind not being alone. Jack isn't the child he wanted. He's about as far from it as possible. But for some reason, Lucifer can't help but like the kid. Jack may be the only one here Lucifer that can stand, and honestly, there's not a single person here he'd rather talk to.