The expression ‘when Hell freezes over’ was a well-used one among the living, but Hell did have its relatively cold days (though it had indeed not yet frozen over).

It was one of those days that Lucifer used his magic to open a portal right into the hotel lobby. By Pride standards it was downright chilly, and having spent so many millennia there, Lucifer was cold . A shiver ran through him at the temperature still lingering from when he’d been outside his palace earlier this morning. He was trying his best not to turn into a recluse again, and sometimes forcing himself to just be in his own garden helped with that, even if it was just to give him a breath of fresh (ish) air for a couple of minutes.

Today however it just made the chill seep all the way into his bones. He could feel it in his back.

 

He perked up at the sound of Charlie’s voice, feeling the depression gnawing at his ankles pushed just a tiny bit further away for a moment.

Wandering farther inside, he spotted Charlie and Vaggie at the surprisingly vacant bar, no Husk behind it to give snarky comments. In fact, it seemed like the bartop was overtaken by papers littered all over it.

“Good morning!” Charlie looked up, the smile on her face making his heart grow soft.

“Dad!” Charlie greeted excitedly, wrapping her arms around him at his offered hug. “We’re making new posters for the hotel! Now that we know redemption really works, I’m expecting us to have more luck recruiting.”

Getting a closer look at the papers, he took in the messy mockups and the more cleaned-up versions that looked just about ready to be finalised. “This looks great, sweetie! I’m so happy things are moving forward.”

Frankly, he hadn’t believed his eyes when Sera had shown him and Charlie the heavenly-arrived Sir Pentious. It had taken him a moment to actually trust what he was seeing and being told. But even with his own fears lingering, he couldn’t be more happy for Charlie that her efforts were actually paying off, where his own had failed.

“Why are you doing it at the bar though? Surely there are better surfaces for this?”

He looked over toward the couches, where he knew a table stood.

Well, used to, as there was currently no table to be found.

What he did find however was Angel lying on his back on one of the couches, long legs draped over one armrest, his head resting on a pillow that was propped against the other. Tightly secured in his arms was Husk, who looked like he had put up enough of a fuss to pretend to be an unwilling participant in the situation.

“Cherri blew it up this morning and we haven’t fixed it yet. As for them… Husk got annoyed with us taking up the bar so Angel roped him into cuddling.”

“Ah, I see.”

He snapped his fingers, and with a puff of golden sparkles, he materialised a brand new table, as close to what the old one looked as he could remember. He smiled at Charlie’s thank you before letting Vaggie steal her away to work once more.

Wandering over to the other occupants of the room, he took in the state of them. It was the first time he’d seen Angel dressed more comfortably, dressed in a lilac sweater dress. Husk was in a shirt for once, suggesting that Lucifer might not be the only one feeling a little bit chilly. It was a deep red that looked stunning on him, even with how rumpled it was from having Angel’s arms all over him.

“Hey ya Highness,” Angel greeted, a crooked smile on his face. “You’re lookin’ extra delicious today. Pink’s really ya colour.”

Lucifer adjusted his bowtie, feeling a tiny bit flustered despite how often Angel would flirt with him.

“Thank you, Angel. You’re looking very nice today too. It suits you well.”

The flush on Angel’s face was apparent even through his fur, though he made a good effort of pretending it wasn’t there. Until he spotted the grin on Husk’s face, which made him promptly cover Husk’s smug look behind his hand. “Shut up.”

“Wasn’t saying nothing.”

Lucifer smiled, and was just about to sit down on the armchair next to Angel and Husk when an arm shot out, grabbing him. Had he expected danger, he would have dodged, but there was nothing to fear in this moment.

He looked into Angel’s eyes. They were sparkling with mischief. “What- whoa!”

He landed on top of both of them with a soft thud, Husk groaning at the impact. It didn’t sound loud enough for Lucifer to fear that his elbows or knees had hit anything delicate.

Lucifer’s cheeks were golden as he was half draped over both of them. He would have fallen onto the floor had it not been for Angel, with the additional help of his wings sprouting from his back on instinct at the fall, the size of them enough to cushion his side.

“Ah, Angel?”

“Yeeees, Sweetcheeks?”

He had to clear his throat as his eyes moved between Angel and Husk. “What are you doing?”

“Cuddlin’ ya. Looked like ya needed it.”

Honestly speaking, he could always use a cuddle. Seldom did he indulge in them in public, however. He threw a glance in the bar’s direction, but it seemed like Charlie had gotten fully absorbed into her work. He was pretty sure Vaggie was keeping track of them, though.  “I don’t think this couch was meant for three,” came his response, sidestepping the rest of his emotions entirely.

“We can figure it out,” Angel chirped. “Right, Husky?”

Having spent enough time around them by now, Lucifer could tell that the grumble in Husk’s chest was agreeable.

“Well…”

The solution wasn’t slow to come to him, and with a flurry of gold, he settled around them, long body winding around both Angel and Husk. He lifted his head to be able to look at them. “How about this?”

“Fantastic,” Angel ran his hand along white and pink scales, his fur soft and warm against them. He could feel Husk’s breath tickle his side as he huffed out a silent laugh.

He let his head rest on Angel’s chest, cheek pressed against the top of Husk’s head, closing his eyes.

The snake in him always craved heat. After his fall he’d become cold-blooded, and the form that made him the most comfortable out of all that he could shift into had always been the snake. Funny that, all things considered.

Surely Charlie would have questions for him later, but for now, he was content with letting the warmth of Husk and Angel’s bodies seep into him.

All the way into his bones.

 

 

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