Castifer

You were human. Completely, painfully, undeniably human. And somehow, you were the only human Lucifer ever truly tolerated. More than that, he loved you. Not in the way Lucifer loved humanity. Not in the way he occasionally pretended to care about people when it benefited him. You were different. You were his. The one human he had allowed into his life. The one person he trusted enough to see him when he wasn't performing.

And Lucifer was fiercely protective of you. Almost excessively so. He rarely let you out of his sight. If you went somewhere, he usually came with you. If someone looked at you for too long, Lucifer noticed. If someone threatened you, they tended to regret it. He had never bothered hiding how dangerous he could be when it came to you. Once, you'd asked him why. "Why do you always follow me?" Lucifer had looked at you like the answer was obvious. "Because you're human." You frowned. "That's not an answer." "It is to me." He stepped closer. "You break." You blinked. "Excuse me?" "Humans are fragile." He gently touched your cheek. "You're fragile." You rolled your eyes. "I'm not made of glass." "No." His expression softened. "You're worse." You stared at him. Lucifer sighed. "You can be hurt."

And that was the thing. Lucifer could survive almost anything. You couldn't. So he watched. He protected. He stayed close. And you eventually got used to having the Devil practically attached to your hip.

Lucifer also wasn't exactly the type to explain where he was going. He had his business. You had yours. Sometimes he'd disappear for an afternoon. Sometimes for a few hours. He never gave you much detail. "Where are you going?" "Business." "What kind of business?" "Devilish." You'd roll your eyes. "You're hilarious." "I know." Then he'd kiss your forehead and leave. And usually... he came back. Always. Until he didn't.

At first, you weren't worried. Lucifer disappeared for two days. Then three. You assumed he'd return. He always did. But a week passed. Then another. You started calling him. Nothing. Texting him. Nothing. You tried again. Still nothing. You eventually called one of the people who occasionally worked with him. "Have you seen Lucifer?" The answer was always the same. "No." Nobody knew where he was. Nobody seemed to know why he'd disappeared. And Lucifer had never exactly been forthcoming about his plans. So you waited.

You told yourself he was fine. He had survived thousands of years. He was Lucifer. He couldn't exactly be killed by some random person. Right?

Three weeks became a month. Then two months. And your worry became something much worse. You couldn't sleep properly. Every noise outside made you look toward the door. Every unfamiliar car made your heart jump. You kept expecting him to walk inside. You'd hear the door, turn around, and... nothing.

Eventually, you started looking for him yourself. You called people. Asked questions. Checked places you knew he sometimes visited. Nothing. You even started putting up posters. MISSING — LUCIFER — HAVE YOU SEEN HIM? You stood outside stores and asked strangers, "Have you seen this man?" You showed them his picture. Some people stared at you strangely. Others assumed you were joking. One person actually laughed. You didn't. "Please." You held the picture tighter. "If you've seen him, just tell me." Nobody had.

By the third month, you were exhausted. You had stopped caring if people thought you were crazy. You just wanted him back. You covered the walls with photographs, phone numbers, notes, possible locations, and names of people you had already contacted. You kept his picture on your nightstand. Sometimes you'd stare at it before going to sleep. "Where the hell are you?" you whispered. You didn't know where he was. You didn't know what had happened. You didn't even know if he was alive. And that was what terrified you most.

Because Lucifer had never been gone this long. Not once. You had started imagining the worst. Maybe someone had trapped him. Maybe Heaven had found him. Maybe Hell had turned against him. Maybe he'd gotten himself into something even he couldn't escape. And every possibility made your stomach twist.

Then, one night, you heard the door open. You froze. Your heart immediately began pounding. You slowly stood. "Lucifer?" No answer. You walked toward the hallway. Footsteps. Someone was coming closer. You rushed around the corner and stopped.

A man was standing there. Tall. Trench coat. Black hair. Blue eyes. You stared. You didn't recognize him. Your hand immediately went toward the weapon you'd started carrying ever since Lucifer disappeared. "Who are you?"

The man looked at you. His expression softened. "Hello, sweetheart." You froze. That voice. That tone. The casual arrogance. The faint amusement. Your heart stopped. "...Lucifer?"

The man smiled. "Finally." You stared at him. "No." He tilted his head. "What?" "No." You stepped backward. "You're not Lucifer." He frowned. "Of course I am." You looked him over. Black hair. Blue eyes. A completely different face. "You're not him." He sighed. "Technically, this isn't my face."

Your confusion deepened. "What?" He gestured vaguely toward himself. "This is Castiel." You stared. "Who the hell is Castiel?" Lucifer sighed. "An angel." You blinked. "An angel?" "Yes." "You look like an angel." "I am currently possessing one."

Silence. You stared at him. He stared back. "You expect me to believe that?" Lucifer smiled faintly. "You believe I exist." "That's different!" "Is it?" You shook your head. "This is insane."

Lucifer took a step toward you. You immediately stepped back. He stopped. His expression softened. "Hey." You stared at him. He lowered his voice. "It's me." You swallowed. "Prove it."

Lucifer raised an eyebrow. "You want proof?" "Yes." He sighed. "Fine." He began listing things. "You're terrible at cooking." You frowned. "I can cook." "You nearly burned the kitchen trying to make toast." "That happened once." "Twice." You glared. Lucifer smiled. "You hate thunderstorms." Your expression changed. He continued. "You pretend you don't. You sleep with the television on when I'm gone. And when you're nervous, you bite the inside of your cheek."

Your eyes widened. Nobody knew that. Lucifer stepped closer. "You also hide your favorite snacks behind the cereal because you think I'll eat them." You stared at him. "Lucifer..." He smiled. "There you are."

You swallowed hard. "Why are you in Castiel's body?" Lucifer sighed. "Long story." "I've been looking for you for three months." "I know." "You disappeared!" "I know." "I put up posters!" "I saw them." Your eyes widened. "You saw them?" Lucifer nodded. "I may have laughed."

You smacked his arm. He barely reacted. "You asshole!" Lucifer actually smiled. "I missed you too."