Hybrid Kingdom PSL

[no1likeme]

{ the “beach” episode }
for some more light-hearted/chaotic stuff happening at the hotel throughout the plot

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[sirenaic]

(( Lucifer hardly moves at the boy's reaction. It's certainly a reasonable one after all he's gone through. The only change happens in his face, his dark eyes widening slightly, softening in the face of such fear.

It takes more will power than Lucifer cares to admit to keep from uttering that old angelic adage be not afraid. How long has it been since he wanted a human to feel comforted by his presence? He can't even recall. ))

That's right. Can you still breathe alright, little prince? I'm not here to do anything to you. I'm actually pleased to see you. I'm very fond of someone with a face like yours.

[comminuted]

[... little prince?

Conor relaxes just a little and tilts his head at Lucifer, blinking rapidly. Glad to see him? Is it possible that Lucifer left because Setekh hurt him, too? He swallows hard and forces himself to relax even a little more, slowly setting his feet back on the floor one by one and hugging himself around the waist instead, and finds that there's room in his heart and mind for curiosity about this man.

This - oh, isn't Lucifer an angel too, originally?]

I heard that you left. You helped to stop him.

[sirenaic]

(( That's right. Just relax. The boy's presently in no danger from Lucifer or anyone else. Anyone who causes trouble in this place is a fool. With so many powerful beings here, yes, it's nothing short of idiocy to try to start shit. ))

You heard right. Though, don't mistake it for altruism. My reasons were completely for my own benefit. I won't hear any slander otherwise.

[comminuted]

[There's no wrong or bad reason to take down someone like Setekh, Conor thinks, but he just nods. Honestly, the way Lucifer insists on his own selfishness is kind of funny.

Sense of humor regain: +1]

I'm not the same person I was then. I don't know who that was or who I am, but they're not the same.

[sirenaic]

I can tell. Your eyes look clearer.

[comminuted]

Really?

[Now that idea pleases Conor a lot. He's felt so horribly foggy since he woke up at the hospital... maybe some of that was because he's forgotten what clarity feels like.

It feels a bit silly to ask Lucifer this, but suddenly Conor wants to know.]

Um - how have you been? Since... all that.

[sirenaic]

(( It's true. There's more going on in his eyes when Lucifer sees them now. And lingering haze he can easily attribute to whatever medications the humans have deemed best for him. Not because of whatever hypnotic effects Setekh had.

Lucifer stands upright then promptly plops down in a chair next to Conor. If they're going to have a conversation, he may as well be comfortable for it. ))

Me? Oh, I'm someone who likes to stay busy. You know, there really aren't that many people that make it to Heaven these days.

[comminuted]

[Conor actually turns toward Lucifer just a bit once he's sat down, which is a rare show of trusting body language for him. Lucifer inspires such a strange combination of nostalgic and safe feelings now, one Conor never thought he'd feel again.

Right... if Lucifer really is Lucifer, then he's in charge of Hell. And there are multiple afterlives just like there are multiple gods.]

Did we get worse, or just less obedient?

[sirenaic]

(( Something very sad flickers over Lucifer's face. It's gone so quickly, maybe Conor didn't notice it. But something a little melancholy remains deep in his eyes. ))

The doors were closed a long time ago. It's nothing you've done.

[comminuted]

[Oh... that's right...]

You came from Heaven. [Conor obviously doesn't mean any harm by stating something hurtful so plainly. It's just how his mind works now, largely filterless, and his voice is heavy with empathy.]

[sirenaic]

(( It's not really hurtful because it's true. And the story people know? Not quite so true. ))

That's right. I was made there.

[comminuted]

Do you ever miss it?

[More cautious this time - Conor knows this one might be a sensitive question.]

[sirenaic]

(( Lucifer pulls in a long breath. Does he miss it? ))

I miss... how it was. Before I left.

[comminuted]

[After a moment of quiet stillness, Conor nods.]

I think... I thought missing was wanting to go back, but I think it's actually knowing it doesn't exist to go back to. Or it never really did.

[sirenaic]

Hiraeth.

(( Said softly, almost musically. ))

That's the name of the feeling you're describing. It means 'homesickness for a home to which you cannot return, a home which maybe never was.'

[comminuted]

[That gets Conor thinking about the massive, nebulous before, in a more literal than poetic sense. He frowns, troubled but not exactly upset.]

My family was killed. They found the bodies. Mom, dad, two sisters. The doctors don't know if it's brain damage or trauma, but I don't remember them at all.

[sirenaic]

(( There's a noticeable pause, a lengthy silence between them. On Lucifer's side of it, it doesn't feel uncomfortable (little makes him truly uncomfortable). ))

Maybe that's some sort of mercy.

[comminuted]

Mm. [Again, Conor nods his agreement. It's hard to tell people about his family because they always want him to feel more than he does - Lucifer's response comes as a relief.

Conor quite likes talking to Lucifer, in fact.]

There's a lot missing. It's like... I'm still the same thing as everyone else, but I'm not like them anymore.

[He's aiming for a bonding thing here, Lucifer vs other angels + Conor vs other humans. He's just too emotionally cautious to be direct about it.]

[sirenaic]

(( A lot missing. Conor's memories, yes. Maybe some bit of what people would call his humanity? Only a very little, perhaps. He certainly isn't a monster, not now. Not by his own accord. He's been through something probably no other human can truly understand because they will never go through it. Still human, but changed, different. ))

Maybe we're not very different, little prince.

[comminuted]

[Conor's smile is always subtle, never wide enough to show his teeth or crease his cheeks, but the change in his eyes is unmistakable.]

I'm glad.

[sirenaic]

(( Nice. That kind of smile, however small or subtle, suits him far better than anything Lucifer saw him sporting while under the cult's influence. ))

Shall we call ourselves friends, then?

[comminuted]

Sure. I've got a lot of professionals and specialists and stuff right now... I could use more friends.

[Though when he really thinks about it, his number of potential friends is getting pretty high. He's sure his wariness with some of the hotel residents will diminish with time, and until then he's also got Lucas and Dae-hyun.

(If there's a little something extra in Conor's smile for the barest flicker of a moment, it's because of that last bit.)]

[sirenaic]

Let me tell you a secret.

(( And just to be a little extra about it, Lucifer looks around suspiciously before leaning in and lifting his hand to cup one side of his mouth as he whispers: ))

You can never have enough friends.