It's been a ridiculous amount of time since I last posted. My apologies. I'm a single parent and I have a few other excuses, but let's just dive in and see how Trixie is doing after asking for Amenadiel's help. (Please review. Thanks!)

-HybridVigor999

Chapter 3

When I opened my eyes, it was with a deep sense of regret. I came to consciousness in a miasma of pain.

The IV site at my elbow was aching, and bandages restricted my movement. Thankfully the firm feeling of being wrapped and cast stopped me from reflexively rolling off the side of the hospital bed into a ready crouch. Having already twitched, my muscles, tendons and bones screamed in agony at the small motion. I groaned and tried to deliberately relax my muscles.

A nurse stepped into the room and picked up my chart, flipping through the pages clipped to the board. She made her way to the sink and washed her hands.

"Hi," I said weakly. She turned to look at me.

"You're awake! Good! Your, um...really hot...uncle just left, but he'll be back soon. Let's check you out." She said 'really hot' a little under her breath, but I heard her. I guess she liked the tall, dark and bald type.

She was short and stacked, with dark skin and wavy black hair. Her uniform had cartoon puppies all over a field of purple. She pulled a small penlight out of her stuffed pockets and approached.

"Can you follow the light, please?" I did. My eyeballs protested.

"Great. How's the pain?"

"Hurts. A lot," I croaked dryly.

"You've got some pretty severe bruising and a few fractures. Do you remember what happened? Your uncle said you were hit by a truck. Hit and run?"

"Uh, yeah. I don't really know." I wasn't going to say much. I had no idea how far Amenadiel had taken clean up, so mum was the word. Besides, I really hurt, and I was actually pretty fuzzy on some details.

"You've got some head trauma too, so if you can't remember the accident, that's totally normal.

"Was there anyone else who came in with me? I think I remember an old man got hurt."

The nurse shot a puzzled look at me. "No, I can check though. As far as I know, you came in alone. There wasn't anyone else from the same accident."

That meant Amenadiel had rewound him to right before a demon jumped into him and took him for a joyride. Which also meant I probably wouldn't have to pay to re-carve and set my dad's tombstone. All the damage would have been undone as if it had never happened...except for the knocks I personally took, of course. Being one of the soldiers of Earth, and literally the only neutral party backed by (and for all intents and purposes abandoned by) both Heaven and Hell, I was sort of like...the Buffy. I really didn't want to be Buffy, since most of her life was drama and pain, and her taste in guys was pretty terrible, and I'm not a blonde.

I've been thinking about 'being the Buffy' for a few too many minutes by the time I realize the nurse has taken vitals, adjusted equipment, and left. These must be the good drugs.

Right on time (since my body is bloody bruised pulp, and I've got an IV of the good stuff), Maze appeared. She pushed open the hospital door and stalked in with literal hellfire shining in her eyes.

"I told you not to get hurt!" she yelled.

"Okay, oka-"

"Your body is too BREAKABLE, and I can't stand it! I should have taught you how to BAKE COOKIES instead of teaching you hand to hand behind your mom's back when you were still small enough to fit into LUGGAGE!" Not being the best at emoting and expressing, Mazikeen got randomly louder to the point of shouting as she loomed over me.

"Maze…"

"NO! I TOLD LUCIFER and I told him again and again THAT YOU REALLY CAN'T keep fighting for the neutrality or you'll END UP DEAD!" She gripped the adjustable bed rail that lay between my broken body and her demonic self. I eyed her hands wrapped around the top of the metal bar, and said, "Ummm…" as the metal crimped slightly under the pressure of her squeezing.

And then she burst into tears.

"I don't want you to die, Trix-mix. Just quit, okay?" I could barely make out these words between the sobs, but at least she wasn't going to rip apart my hospital bed with me on it. I lifted the less hurt arm and patted her shoulder, which I could reach because she was hunched over me crying.

"I have to be the buffy though." I said through bruised lips. "Nobody else can be the Buffy." Wait, was that weird? I felt weird about saying that, but it was what I meant. She stopped crying abruptly with a large sniffle, and looked at me with a quirk in her scarred eyebrow.

"The Buffy? What are you…?" She wandered over to my IV stand and picked up my clipboard chart, paging through. "Mmm, yeah. That would do it."

"You're pretty, Maze," I said. Because it was true. She looked just as young and dangerous and beautiful as she did when I was 8 years old. And I wanted to let her know.

"Oh sweetie. You should be on drugs a lot more. Less fighting, more FUN. I told Lucifer that too, but he doesn't seem to have any control over you whatsoever. And I'm DEFINITELY not cut out for it."

"Luci-DAD doesn't scare me. I do what I want," I said, with a bit of attitude. Albeit, a bit slurred.

"I know, munchkin. I just think maybe you should want to make out with a few dozen steaming hot guys, have a few casual orgies, and demolish entire liquor cabinets a bit more. You're still young. You're wasting all your tiny mortality on being beat up by asshole angels and shitty lesser demons that come crawling out the cracks from when Hell shattered."

"Hmm," I hummed in response. I had a lot of thoughts and ideas, but they kind of jumbled up and I couldn't say any words because I couldn't pick a train of thought. Hell cracked the same night mom disappeared and Lucifer went on an absolutely terrifying rampage, likewise cracking the gates of heaven. I don't remember much from that night. I might have blocked a few things.

"You're tired. You would be less tired if you let someone else try to keep Earth neutral. Or, you know, just let the demons and angels fight it out...You know we have a pretty well warded bunker, right? Anyways," she leaned in and kissed my forehead lightly as if she'd taken lessons from Tinkerbell, "I have to get out of here before That Man comes back. I'm not speaking with him right now."

"'Nother fight?!" I murmured, eyes at half mast. They were so hot and cold, but they didn't really fool anyone anymore. The fights were mostly just for the purpose of having make up sex. Mazikeen had a key to Amenadiel's condo.

"I'll tell you about it over some mimosas, AFTER you get out of this disgusting place. Call before you get discharged. One of us will come get you, and you can stay in the penthouse until you're better. Okay?"

"Uh.."

"DO IT." She pointed a finger and glared. Then she walked out. I fell asleep shortly after that. I dreamed about my mom with a slightly rounded belly, the glint of her wedding ring, Lucifer's pure and happy laugh. When I woke, the room was dark, and the sun had fallen.

And I was holding a glowing angel feather in my right hand.

I tried to let it go, to throw it, but before I could get some distance, it flared brightly, like staring at the sun, and melted into my fingers, absorbing into me. My body sucked it in like gasping a breath of air after being submerged for long minutes. The warmth invaded, healing and knitting and soothing as it went, leaving me rejuvenated and whole...in better physical condition than I had been even before the brawl with the demon.

"OH NO," I said loudly. I felt AMAZING. And full of dread. Because someone had just made me break the rules. And things were about to get really, really complicated.