Lucifer's Mansion, late Wednesday night

[betterthanaplan]

It took Duke awhile to get really properly trashed -- another sign that maybe he needed to pull back on the casual drinking -- but once he was properly wobbly, he decided to lean into the impulse he'd had at the Devil's Nest tonight and show up drunk on Lucifer's doorstep.

He had a large glass of rum with him in one hand and a bottle of brandy tucked under the other arm. He set the rum down with great drunken ceremony and dignity at the end of Lucifer's front walk for the squirrels -- he really didn't need to be having anymore public meltdowns over this, thanks -- and then sprawled himself down onto Lucifer's front stoop.

And, because he was in fact a drunken sailor and it seemed thematic, he started to sing.

"Eliiiiiiise believe I never wanted this
I thought this time I'd keep all of my promises!"

He maybe should have put out more rum.

[For the one who lives here, and NFB please!]

Comments

[betterthanaplan]

"Being very comfy," Duke said. "How can you physically not get married?"

He was too drunk to remember that Lucifer couldn't get drunk.

[my_own_advocate]

"Physically not get drunk, I've been married," Lucifer specified, sliding the phone back into his pocket because he didn't want to think about it, frankly.

[betterthanaplan]

"Have I heard that story?" Duke asked sleepily. "Sounds like a good story."

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer patted him gently, and brushed his fingers back through his hair.

"I never did tell you about Candy, did I?" he mused. "It was right after I found out about the gift thing. Or rather, mum found out and told me. So I left for Vegas, to process, and... find a way to figure out what mum was up to."

[betterthanaplan]

"Vegas seems like a good place for that," Duke mused, paying more attention to those fingers than he was to the story. "Processing."

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer really needed to stop doing that and he knew that, but he had poor impulse control as it was and most of it was aimed at not doing anything more drastic.

So he kept his fingers moving through Duke's hair.

"It was," he said. "There I met this lounge singer who was in dire straits. Her father's nightclub was deeply in depth and she didn't know how to pay it off, so I helped her. In exchange, we got married, so she could pose as my wife while I tried to ferret out mum's true intentions."

[betterthanaplan]

"That's way better'n my marriage," Duke said. "We got married 'cause we were drunk. And for a con. And 'cause she said so."

[my_own_advocate]

"Because she said so?" Lucifer echoed.

[betterthanaplan]

"Evi was very persuasive."

And -- let's be real -- Duke was extremely suggestible.

[my_own_advocate]

"I worry about you sometimes," Lucifer said, his hand settling as a gentle weight against the side of Duke's neck.

[betterthanaplan]

Everyone around here did. Which was hilarious, because no one did back home.

"I'm a widower," Duke mused absently. "Weird."

[my_own_advocate]

"You should be doing a bit more moping about in all black," Lucifer mused. "Or marrying some poor young thing who'll get you the sons you always wanted."

[betterthanaplan]

"Fuck no," Duke said with a sleepy laugh. "Last thing I need to be doing is preserving my family line."

[my_own_advocate]

"And miss the opportunity to go around stuffily calling your eldest the 'heir' and telling the 'spares' to shape up?" Lucifer asked. "Making them all run around for your approval. I hear that's apparently the fun of it."

He was a little surprised he didn't sound bitter. Just amused, because he knew Duke wouldn't do that, and he realized somewhere in the last few minutes he'd been lulled back into a sense of warmth and calm.

He strayed away from that thought too.

[betterthanaplan]

"In my family, it's more of a 'scatter your seed to the four corners of the earth and hope one survives' kind of deal." Duke shook his head. "Crockers are too blue collar for 'heirs'."

[my_own_advocate]

"Mhm, and how much seed-scattering have you been doing, then?" Lucifer teased, grinning at him.

It was untained by malice or manic energy or anything else terrible slumbering under the surface, for once.

[betterthanaplan]

"Hey now, I have been very careful with my seed. It's always disposed of properly."

He really had never had any plans to be a father.

[my_own_advocate]

"It's just an innocent question," Lucifer said, and brushed a lock of hair away from Duke's forehead.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke would really like it if Lucifer could just keep playing with his hair forever, thanks.

"An' I gave you an innocent answer," he said sleepily.

[my_own_advocate]

"Full of condoms," Lucifer teased. "Almost my favorite kind of answer."

He was just giving up. As far as touching Duke went, it was innocent enough.

[betterthanaplan]

It totally was. This was just what you did for your drunken friend when they flopped on top of you and didn't immediately fall back off.

Duke snorted softly. "Innocently fulla condoms."

He was about one ping three seconds from snoring.

[my_own_advocate]

"Like your nightstand drawer," Lucifer said, grinning still.

[betterthanaplan]

"Gotta keep it stocked. . . ." Duke said, trailing off. And yep, there was the first soft snore.

So much for drinking water before he passed out.

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer dropped his hand. And then dropped back against the sofa, muttering a quiet, "Bugger," to himself.

He slipped out from under Duke carefully, making sure his head didn't just go crashing onto the sofa, and walked to the bed to grab a pillow and a blanket. He pushed the pillow gently under Duke's head, and spread the blanket over the couch.

He left a glass of water and some aspirin on the coffee table.