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No matter how long Chloe and Lucifer have been together, Lucifer doesn’t ever think he’ll get used to small humans. All they do is make messes, act awkward, and try to give Lucifer unwanted attention. In the five years he and Chloe have been married he’s gotten used to Trixie and, although he wouldn’t admit it, even loved the attention from her. Trixie easily became one of the two most important things in his life, the other being her mother. However, on days like today Lucifer could have done without having a teenage step-daughter.
Although her birthday was a few weeks ago, they decided to have Trixie’s 16th birthday party today. Due to the importance of the age, they hosted a party of about 30 people at the Decker-Morningstar household. Even though there were plenty of adults there too, Linda and Amenadiel, Ella, and Maze among them, Lucifer still felt extremely uncomfortable by the abundance of children. Lucifer could deal with Trixie, but not the other cretins she considered her friends.
Lucifer sighs and looks out the window into the backyard full of teenage girls. Most of them are talking in small circles or taking selfies. “Doing alright honey?” Chloe asks from behind him, wrapping her arms around his midsection.
He shuts his eyes and smiles, leaning back into his wife’s touch. “Mmmmm better now that you’re here, Detective.” he jokes, earning a playful smack. “When are they leaving? I want to give Trixie her present from me.”
Chloe smiles at his words. When they first met, Lucifer merely put up with her child, but now he loves the girl as if she were his own. He had gone from a larger than life night club owner to a happily married domestic man. “Be patient, they should be leaving in the next hour or so.”
Lucifer sighs and turns around in the detective’s arms to hug her fully, a smile plastered across his face at the thought of the hormone monsters leaving their home. “Well I guess now is as good a time as any for cake- let’s sugar them up and then send them back home to their parents.” Lucifer says with an evil grin.
Chloe rolls her eyes and plants a kiss on his lips before grabbing the cake off the counter. “You really are the devil.”
---
After all of Trixie’s friends leave, the family and their adult friends begin to clean up the mess in their backyard. While Chloe and Linda do the bulk of the work, Lucifer practically radiates with excitement at the thought of giving Trixie her gift. It took years of convincing to get the Detective to agree to letting him buy it, but ultimately he won her over. When the last piece of trash is thrown into the garbage, Chloe feels Lucifer’s eyes bearing into the back of her head. She lets out a sigh and turns around to face him, giving a nod of approval.
“Trixie, Lucifer has a present he wants to give you.” Chloe shouts across the yard to her daughter. Trixie bounds over, face a mixture of curiosity and excitement as Lucifer practically sprints inside to get her gift.
“After he gives me his gift, can I give him mine?” Trixie asks her mother.
Chloe smiles softly and nods. “Of course monkey, let’s focus on one thing at a time though.”
Lucifer pokes his head around the door, hiding what he has behind the wall. The grin plastered across his face is practically illuminating, radiating pure joy. Chloe’s heart swells at his expression, especially knowing that her daughter is on the receiving end of it.
“Urchin!” he shouts, getting Trixie’s attention. “Are you ready?”
Trixie nods in response. Lucifer steps fully into the doorway and sets down a chestnut colored Irish Setter puppy on the grass. Everyone knew this was coming except Trixie, so they all look to see her reaction to the gift. Trixie’s jaw drops and she collapses to the ground to open her arms to the puppy. The dog catches her eye and her tail starts wagging vigorously as she bounds over with the grace of a newborn giraffe. “Oh my god!” Trixie exclaims as the puppy attacks her with kisses. “Lucifer, how did you know?”
Lucifer smiles as he joins Trixie on the grass. Normally he would turn his nose up at getting one of his suits dirty, but at this moment he couldn’t care less. “You’ve been asking your mother for a dog since we’ve been married, and I would bet probably even before that. It took me a while to convince her but I just wanted you to-hmph!”
Lucifer is cut off sharply by Trixie throwing her arms around his neck in a tight hug. He stays still for a moment before wrapping his arms back around her tightly. “Thank you.” Trixie chokes out, voice catching in a sob. Lucifer’s eyes go wide at the sudden display of emotion as he hugs her tighter, allowing her to cry into his shirt.
Chloe bends down and rubs her daughters back gently. “Hey babe, you okay? What’s wrong?” she asks carefully, concern lacing her voice.
“I’m just really happy.” she manages to mumble after a minute. She pulls away from Lucifer and wipes her tears away quickly, clearly embarrassed by the outburst of emotion. “I’m sorry.”
Lucifer brings a hand up to her face and plants a kiss on the girl's forehead. “Don’t apologize for your teenage hormones, child. I’m glad you’re happy, you deserve it more than anyone after what you’ve had to endure these past two years.”
Trixie nods and runs her fingertips over the leather bracelet her father had given to her for her fourteenth birthday. It was the last birthday present she would ever receive from him. Dan had died a few weeks later after a stakeout went wrong. He had been shot in the abdomen and lost nearly two liters of blood before paramedics arrived. Somehow he managed to survive the surgery but it was the infection that did him in. He knew death was imminent and fortunately he was able to pass on with his friends and family by his side.
You treat her how she deserves . Dan had said to Lucifer in a rare moment of privacy. You be the father to her that I never was.
When Dan took his final breath, Lucifer did something he hardly ever did- sucked up his pride. He flew down to hell immediately to collect Daniel before he could even make it to orientation. Although he may not have been the best man during his time on earth, he certainly did not deserve eternal punishment. Lucifer carried Dan in his arms up to the Silver City and delivered him to the locked gates. Only when he got on his knees to plead for Daniel to be let in, did the gates open. He wasn’t doing it for Daniel, Chloe, or anyone else. He was doing it for Trixie. At least now when Trixie passed on many years from now, her father would be there waiting from her.
On that day Lucifer swore on his life that he would protect the child as long as she was on earth. He went above and beyond in his role as the sole father figure in Trixie’s life. Lucifer always cared for the urchin and she knew it, but from then on he never wanted her to feel like she was anything less than loved wholeheartedly. Even if that meant showing up to every performance of every musical she was in, regardless of her tone deaf classmates (because seriously, who thought it would be a good idea to let high schoolers do a rendition of Hamilton?). He volunteered to chaperone at her field trips, drive her and her friends wherever they wanted, and so much more. He wanted to be the father neither of them had, but both of them deserved.
Lucifer shakes the thoughts of the past out of his head and returns his attention back to his step-daughter and new puppy. Chloe leans down to stroke the young pups soft fur and can’t help but smile at her husband.
“Aww, look at you guys!” Ella gushes. “You guys are the cutest family ever!”
Lucifer lets a smile spread across his face. Family . He had never thought he would settle down on earth but here he was- step daughter, wife, and puppy. They were the picture of domestic bliss, and he wouldn’t change any of it for the world.
A nervous smile makes its way onto Trixie’s face. “I have a surprise for you too.” she says carefully.
“For me?” Lucifer questions, clearly both confused and intrigued. “It’s your birthday party I don’t want this day to be about anyone except you.”
Chloe shrugs her shoulders and places a reassuring hand on Lucifer’s back. “We just got it in the mail today and I don’t think she could have waited another day to give it to you.” she admits with a small chuckle.
“Sorry for keeping this from you but I helped them out with it.” Linda pipes up as she pulls a manila folder out of her purse.
She hands it to Trixie, who immediately hands it off to Lucifer. “Do you love me?” she asks suddenly, catching the older man off guard.
Lucifer looks to his friends, unsure if this is some kind of joke. They all share matching smiles, clearly something is up. Hell, even the bloody dog seems to be smiling at him. “That’s a stupid question, of course I do.” Lucifer replies, anger now rising in him. Were kids teasing her for having a stepfather? Potentially insinuating that his love for her wasn’t real just because they weren’t biologically connected?
“How much do you love me?” Trixie prods.
His eyes soften and he reaches out to hold one of her hands in his. “Child, I love you as if you were my own.”
“Then can we make it official?”
Lucifer cocks his head to the side in confusion, still not understanding what she’s driving at. How could he make his love for the girl more obvious than it already is? “Make what official?” he asks curiously, turning to Chloe for some kind of explanation.
“I think opening the folder will help clarify what she means.” Chloe says softly. Lucifer looks around to his friends, noticing that both Ella and Amenadiel are recording him with their cell phones. Certainly this can’t be good.
Lucifer slowly opens the envelope, peering inside cautiously as if something is going to jump out of him. To his surprise there is only what looks like paperwork. Was this a secret coup by the detective to get him to help with more paperwork? He pulls the contents out and looks at the documents, finding them to be extremely legal looking, not helping his paperwork theory.
The words Adoption Request are written in clear bold lettering at the top of the page. Lucifer sucks in a sharp breath of air after reading those words. He opens his mouth to say something, but can’t seem to make any words form. His vision blurs as he continues to try and read the pages, unable to see past the tears building up in his eyes.
“Beatrice…” he finally manages to get out, his voice barely a whisper. “What… what does this mean?”
“Lucifer, will you adopt me?”
~~~
Lucifer lays motionless in bed, staring at the ceiling deep in thought. Of course he had said yes to Trixie’s proposal, how could he not? It was everything he wanted to be for her. He could legally be her parent on paper, and be the father she deserved. Despite the abundance of positives that would come out of being her official father, he couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming amount of fear. Fear that he wouldn’t measure up to either of their standards, fear that he would somehow do more harm than good.
The door to the master bathroom opens and Chloe steps into their bedroom in nothing except one of Lucifer’s dress shirts. Normally this would get some sort of reaction out of him, but he keeps his eyes focused on the ceiling. The detective sighs and makes her way to the bed to lay down under the covers with him. She doesn’t make a move to snuggle with him, instead opting to lay shoulder to shoulder with him to also stare at the ceiling. “Do you want to talk about what’s going on in your head?” she questions carefully after settling into her position.
The devil sighs and shakes his head. “It’s about me adopting Trixie.” he admits glumly. “I don’t know that it’s the best idea.”
Chloe feels her chest tighten at his words but she keeps her voice even. “Well then you shouldn’t have told her yes in the first place if you didn’t want to adopt her.”
“No it’s not that at all, I would love nothing more than to be the girl's father.” Lucifer quickly reassures. “I just don’t know if it’s what is best for her. I’d be a rubbish dad.”
Chloe immediately rolls over and props herself up on her elbow to look at Lucifer. “What? How could you possibly think that?”
Lucifer thinks back to all the times his own father had royally screwed him over, and the pain he still felt to this day, LITERAL eons later. What if he took after his father in that department and turned out to be a horrible parent? One small slip up in his role as Trixie’s father could result in permanent psychological damage. Lucifer sighs and moves to look Chloe in the eyes. “I don’t want to accidentally become my father.” he admits.
“Lucifer, you will never become your father.” she tries to reassure, but her words fall flat against his ears.
“I can’t risk it. Even though it’s what I desire more than anything, I will not do that to Trixie. If I adopt her that means she is legally tied to me and any mistakes that I make. I refuse to cause her any more pain than what she already has had to suffer through.” Lucifer looks away from his wife and closes his eyes tightly, not wanting to become overly emotional about the situation. He had always had a hard time not taking what he wanted, and he wanted to be Trixie’s father more than anything else.
“Honey, look at me.” Chloe pleads, placing a hand on his face. She rubs his stubble gently until he finally opens his eyes to look at her. His eyes are red, clearly from holding back tears. “What you just said is how I know that you will be an incredible father.”
Lucifer raises an eyebrow at her, clearly confused but also intrigued by her statement. “I don’t understand.”
“The most important part of being a parent is doing anything for your child to make sure that they are as happy as possible. The reason you don’t want to adopt Trixie isn’t for yourself- it is for her. You are protecting her from potential hurt because you feel like you won’t be good enough for her, and you’re doing it at the expense of your own happiness. That self sacrifice is something not every person has, and that is exactly what will make you an incredible father.”
Lucifer inhales sharply and bites his bottom lip. He had never considered that one of his greatest shortcomings, the crippling fear of becoming just like his father, would help feed into a new strength. A strength that he never thought he would ever have. Who would have thought that having a horrible dad would be what would help him make an amazing one?
He opens his mouth to speak but finds that nothing he can say will do justice to what she just told him. A tear makes its way down his cheek and he opens his arms up to Chloe. She immediately wraps her arms around him and kisses his cheek before laying down on his chest. She finds his hand with her own and squeezes it gently.
“Thank you, Detective.” Lucifer finally whispers,
Three months later
Black suit, black shirt, red pocket square? No, too dark. Black suit, white shirt, white pocket square? No, too formal. Purple suit, white shirt, white pocket square? No, too immature. Lucifer sighs and rubs his hand over his face. He can’t remember being this nervous about picking an outfit since the night he asked Chloe to marry him.
“Detective!” he shouts in his usual annoying tone. “Can you come here and help me?”
The door to their closet opens and Lucifer is thankful he is wearing pants, because instead of the Detective, Trixie walks in, along with their growing Irish Setter puppy. “Mom is outside with Linda. What do you need help with?”
Lucifer can’t help but gasp at his little girl and how grown up she looks. She is already dressed and ready to go to the courthouse, wearing a short sleeve navy blue dress with lace accents at the sleeves and bottom. The dress has a conservative neckline and the length goes to just above her knee. The dress is very modest and typical of a girl Trixie’s age, but to Lucifer she looks stunningly beautiful.
“Beatrice… you look absolutely amazing.” he can’t help but admit, feeling tears prick at his eyes. If this is having such an effect on him, he can’t imagine what a wreck he will be when she goes away to college.
Trixie smiles at the ground, feeling bashful. “Thanks… what are you going to wear?”
“That’s actually what I was trying to get your mother to help me with. Perhaps you could pick something out for me instead?” he suggests.
Trixie looks at the long line of suits in her parents closet, but her eyes eventually settle on one. She walks to it and pulls out a slim fitting navy blue jacket and pants. “If you wear this then we can match!” she exclaims happily, a grin spreading across her face.
Lucifer smiles and takes the suit from her. “It’s perfect. Why don’t you go pick out a pocket square for me to wear too?”
Trixie nods and runs out of the closet to let him get dressed. He puts on a light blue button up shirt underneath the suit jacket and decides against a vest and tie for fear of looking too formal. Lucifer exits the closet and finds Trixie waiting for him with a blush pink pocket square. He tucks it into his suit pocket and can’t help but smile at how nice they both look.
“You look great.” Trixie complements, chuffed at the fact that it is her own work.
Lucifer nods and a smile makes its way onto his face. “You’re just missing one thing.” he admits. Trixie raises an eyebrow as Lucifer walks to his bedside drawer and pulls out a small neatly wrapped gift box. He tosses it to her and she catches it before opening the lid. She gasps and pulls out a delicate silver bracelet with an infinity loop on the front. The words Plus qu’hier, Moins que demain are written within the loop.
“What do these words mean?” Trixie asks as Lucifer helps her clasp the bracelet onto her wrist.
He opens his mouth to continue but is interrupted by Amenadiel walking into the room. “You guys ready to go? Chloe says we are going to be late if we don’t leave soon.”
Lucifer nods and turns to Trixie. “I’ll tell you later, I promise. We better get going.” he says with a wink.
They follow Amenadiel outside and are met with a chorus of aww’s at their matching outfits. When Chloe and Lucifer had set the adoption date, all of their friends insisted on coming, not that they would have argued. Among them are Linda, Amenadiel, and Charlie, Maze, and Ella. All of his friends are dressed sharply, which they hardly ever get to do, but today is a special occasion.
“Aww you guys! Your Deckerstar family cuteness is going to make me cry!” Ella exclaims, fanning her eyes to try to avoid messing up her makeup.
“You two look amazing.” Chloe comments, stepping out from behind Amenadiel. She is wearing a mid thigh length, long sleeve black dress with an earthy toned floral pattern. Her hair is flowing naturally in curls around her face, and she is wearing the bullet necklace Lucifer got for her all those years ago.
“So do you, darling.” Lucifer says with a smile. He leans forward to give his wife a soft peck on the lips. “Ready to go?”
Chloe nods and the group heads away from the Deckerstar house to their respective cars. Lucifer opens the door for his wife and step-daughter before hopping into the passenger seat of Chloe’s car. Chloe starts the engine and pulls out of their driveway to head to the courthouse. Lucifer stays quiet, uncharacteristically nervous about the court proceedings. What if he said something wrong and messed up the adoption process?
Trixie begins to chatter about school and her role in the next school play. Lucifer can’t help but smile, happy for the distraction to his lingering thoughts. Within a matter of minutes they arrive at the courthouse and are heading into one of the courtrooms to begin the adoption trial.
Lucifer, Chloe, and Trixie take their seats at the bench while their friends sit behind them. Lucifer had been told by Linda that adoption hearings were sought after by all judges, a stark contrast between the horrible cases they are normally burdened with, meaning it was nothing to be nervous about. However, Lucifer can’t help it. His hands shake nervously and he can’t help but tap his foot against the floor.
Chloe grabs his hand and squeezes it gently. “You okay?” she whispers softly. Lucifer only nods in response.
The judge walks into the room and everyone straightens up. “Good morning everyone!” she says happily, flashing a wide smile at everyone. She makes her way to her seat and shuffles a few papers around before the trial begins.
They go through all the dreadfully boring procedures (most of which Lucifer ignores) before the judge asks the three of them to stand up and state their names for the record.
“Beatrice Espinosa.”
“Chloe Morningstar-Decker.”
“Lucifer Morningstar-Decker.”
At the sound of Lucifer stating his name, the judge turns her nose up and peers at him through her glasses. “Is that your real name?” she questions, clearly appalled at a man with the name Lucifer potentially raising a child. “It’s certainly… interesting.” she finishes with an uncomfortable chuckle.
“My given name is Samael.” he states softly, dropping his head in shame. He glances over at Chloe, whose eyes are widened in concern for him.
Never before had he been ashamed of his chosen name of Lucifer. Going by a different name was something that helped distance himself from his father and heaven, a place where he wasn’t accepted. The name ‘Lucifer’ was a fresh start. The people who genuinely cared for him (and didn’t know about his true nature) didn’t think twice about it, and those who did ultimately didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. However, seeing the judge immediately turn her nose up sent fear up his spine. It was her opinion that mattered the most, at least for today anyways.
“But you changed your name legally to Lucifer?” the judge presses.
Lucifer flinches at the question and clenches his jaw to prevent himself from making a sarcastic remark. “Yes ma’am.”
The judge nods and writes a note down on a piece of paper at the desk. “Before we can make the adoption official I have a few questions for you to answer.” she states with a sigh, clearly ready to write him off as a legal parent at the first chance she can get. “How long have you lived in Los Angeles?”
“Nearly fifteen years now.”
“And how many of those years have you been living in the same household as Trixie?”
“Seven years, The Detective and I have been married for five of those years now.”
The judge offers a small smile in reassurance at his words and looks down at the papers in front of her. “It says here that both you and your wife work for the LAPD. Her as a detective, and you as her partner.” she interjects, clearly happy that he works in law enforcement. “Do you have any other sources of income from another occupation?”
Lucifer swallows thickly and sighs. “I also own a nightclub called Lux.”
The smile that had been on the judge’s face instantly drops at his words. Just when Lucifer thought he had taken a step forward, he immediately takes two steps back. Although the questions weren’t anything out of the ordinary, he realized how it must have looked to the judge. A man named Lucifer, who owned a nightclub, wanted to adopt a child… it sounded like a big joke when he thought about it.
The judge shakes her head and takes more notes down on her paper. “Your Honour.” Lucifer interrupts, causing everyone to look at him in surprise. “I know how it must look, but please don’t count me out now based solely on how it appears-”
“Mr. Morningstar, with all due respect, how am I supposed to ignore what it looks like?” The judge demands, squinting her eyes at him. “Having a child be legally tied to you is a huge responsibility! Are you ready to take on this child should anything happen to your wife?”
“Of course!”
“And how are you supposed to help her succeed in life while you are simultaneously running a nightclub?”
Lucifer stays silent at her question. He had given up directly managing Lux years ago in order to spend more time with Chloe and Trixie in the evenings. Although he still loved a nice glass of scotch and a party, he valued his domestic family life much more. How was he supposed to explain this to the judge though?
“Mr. Morningstar-”
“It’s Morningstar-Decker now, Your Honour.” he bites out, feeling his blood beginning to boil. Chloe takes his hand and gives it a soft squeeze, trying to get him to calm down before he makes a mistake.
The judge narrows her eyes at him and sits back in her chair. “Mr. Morningstar-Decker,” she corrects herself. “Given everything you have just said. Do you truly believe it is in Trixie’s best interest for you to adopt her?”
He thinks of all the stupid things he had done in the past that hurt people- lying to Chloe about his true nature for so long, running off to Las Vegas and getting married, abandoning all his friends for months to go back to Hell, refusing to admit to his true feelings and spiraling into deep holes, and all the celestial craziness that plagues his life on a daily basis.
Then he thinks of all the improvements he has made in the past few years. Things he never would have done when he first came to Los Angeles- having game night with Chloe and Trixie, supporting Chloe emotionally during her father’s murder case, taking a bullet in the stomach and dying to save their lives, and countless other things. As the years progressed, his love for both Chloe and the child grew stronger and stronger every day. He can’t help but smile to himself at the revelation.
“ Car, vois-tu, chaque jour je t’aime davantage, Aujourd’hui plus qu’hier et bien moins que demain .” Lucifer replies simply, the French rolling off his tongue easily.
Trixie, who Lucifer had been tutoring in French for school, understands and covers her mouth with her hand. She looks down at her bracelet plus qu’hier, moins que demain and it finally makes sense. More than today, less than tomorrow. Tears fill the young girl’s eyes and she lets out a soft cry before pushing through her mother to get to her step-Devil.
Lucifer opens his arms to her and catches her in a massive hug. The judge looks startled at the young girl’s sudden movement, as does everyone else. “Mr. Morningstar-Decker... I’m sorry but not all of us speak French.” she says, vocalizing the thoughts of the room.
Lucifer pulls back and wipes the tears away from Trixie’s eyes. He glances at the judge briefly before turning his attention back to the teenager in front of him. “For you see, each day I love you more, Today more than yesterday and less than tomorrow.”
His voice cracks on the last word, emotion beginning to bubble through his exterior. He didn’t like getting emotional in front of anyone besides Chloe, but in this moment he could care less about who was watching, this moment was for him and Trixie.
“If I am being honest, I don’t know that I deserve to be your father.” he begins, chuckling slightly. “But I will say this- I love you so much already, and every day I love you more and more. You are an incredible young lady- passionate, hard working, kind to everyone you meet, and in all my years on earth I have never been as happy as when I’ve been with you and your mother. You’ve shown me unconditional love and made me a better man because of it. In a way, I have always felt like you were my daughter, and I can only hope that I can show you as much love as you’ve shown me.”
Lucifer pulls Trixie back into his arms and lets tears fall freely from his eyes as he hugs the young girl. Lucifer glances to his friends and Chloe, who are also openly crying at his passionate speech. He had grown so much over the years. Lucifer opens one of his arms to Chloe, who immediately hugs both him and her daughter softly. “No matter what happens today, you are Trixie’s father. Don’t ever doubt that for a second.” Chloe whispers. Lucifer nods and smiles as she tucks her head under his chin.
The judge clears her throat and Lucifer turns slightly to face her. Much to his surprise, she is wiping away tears from her own eyes. She offers a soft smile and shakes her head. “I have to admit that I judged you a little too harshly at first. I think that I have all the evidence I need that not only will you be an incredible legal parent, but you already have been one for quite some time now. I hereby approve this adoption.” She bangs her gavel on the desk, finalizing her decision. Their friends cheer and rush the bench to join in on the family hug.
Lucifer can’t help but smile to himself. Before meeting them he had everything he thought he wanted in life- money to burn, a successful nightclub, a plethora of men and women to keep him company, and endless amounts of booze and drugs. But now all of that was gone. All he had now was a job with the LAPD that gave him purpose, unconditional love and support from his friends, and a family he adored more than anything.
Life couldn’t get much better than that.