Here it is. The Dadcifer chapter you've always wanted. It has bonding, ice cream, and even some action!

Read on and enjoy my kookie peeps!

The day was hot. Irritatingly hot. The kind of hot that crept down your spine in long strings of sweat and pooled in the bottom of your shoes. Thankfully Izuku had decided not to wear shoes, instead choosing a pair of red sandals that he'd bought back when burning through shoes was a thing that happened often.

His head turned to the open ocean which sighed over the sounds of the tourists and summer beach visitors. Children laughed and ran across the sand which went right up to the dull stone wall, separating the beach from the pier walk upon which were the small, black metal patio table and chairs upon which Izuku sat.

Beside him, or sometimes even around him, walked throngs of people, chatting and laughing. Shops eagerly sold their wares and barely a few meters down from Izuku a man was shouting while waving ice cream bars about.

They looked deliciously tempting.

Even the unborn seemed to be avoiding the summer heat, as the only two Izuku had seen had dived into cover and hidden from sight as he had passed them by. Or maybe they had just been scared of him.

Either way, he didn't care.

A large green and white patio umbrella hung above him, though it didn't cover every part of his body in its wonderful, thankful shade. His tail drifted out into the sunlight before it twitched back under again. He was used to the burning heat, and he could handle much hotter, but he'd still rather be in the shade.

He wore a simple t-shirt with 'Winter Coat' written on it, and a pair of black cargo shorts that went to his knees. He had a chain attached to it because it was cool, and he had seen both Hitoshi and Fumikage do the same thing. On his feet were a pair of flip-flops.

He also had a large pair of sunglasses on his face.

Izuku dug a hand into his pocket and took out his phone before clicking the screen to life. It was almost ten-too, which meant Lucifer would be arriving at any moment.

The teenager took a second to inhale a breath that tasted slightly of the ocean salt. Meeting Lucifer on his own, with no one else there to protect him. He had done it once before and he had freaked out. Though this time he supposed he was going to be in public which drastically lowered the chances of anything bad happening.

He also felt that by now he had a pretty good idea of what Lucifer was about, and big, flashy public displays of power were not his thing. He was subtle, smart, and enjoyed playing the strings in the background.

Still, that didn't set Izuku's nerves at ease. Neither did the other thought that had loomed over him since he'd gotten yesterday's texts.

'You're the Prince of Hell. It's time you learned what that means.'

What did it mean? Izuku hadn't put a whole lot of thought into it, mostly because neither Azrael nor Lucifer had ever brought it up when he'd texted them. He had started to think it was just one of a million titles he was sure he was going to get thrown on him.

He had learned that the Celestial world tended to do that. A lot.

"Titles are meaningless," Nemesis almost sighed through his mind as he again looked out onto the beach, his chin resting on a palm as he leaned onto the table, "We only need three."

"Oh?"

"Izuku. Nemesis. Morningstar. Our human-half, our Fallen-half, and our unified front. All in three names."

Izuku raised an agreeable eyebrow and nodded at this.

He'd be happy if the names just ended there.

He was about to check his phone again before, suddenly, his ears twitched, and his scars flashed an azure blue.

Lucifer was close. He could sense him, which was a very strange sensation but one he knew all too well. That subtle feeling of the air shifting, of an aura of power approaching him, one which was so terribly in tune to his own.

He turned, looking into the crowd to the spot his instincts told him to look.

And, lo and behold, emerging out of the throng of blissfully unaware people was Lucifer.

But this was not a Lucifer that Izuku had ever seen before.

For starters, this Lucifer was a woman.

He, or rather she, wore a dark navy suit and pants with a light blue shirt under, though seemed Lucifer's idea of 'casual' was simply to not have a tie and leave the top button undone. On her feet were a pair of smart slip-on shoes with no socks. Her hair, still salt-and-pepper black, was combed back and shoulder-length, and she wore a large pair of sunglasses that looked identical to the ones Izuku wore.

Somehow, he was sure Lucifer had done that on purpose.

Over one arm she carried a smart black purse, and she'd put on a wide-brim, floppy white summer hat which shaded her face and neck.

She still looked aged, though in a respectable, Lady-CEO kind of way. But it was still him, still the King of Hell, and that was more than evident the moment she approached the table and dipped her shades down to reveal eyes which were as dark and all-consuming as the oblivion void, broken only by the destroyer-fire blue of her irises.

She slid into the seat across from the shocked boy, pushing her glasses back up. "Izuku! I'm glad to see you're early. Punctuation is a good trait to have."

"… you're a woman."

"Yes, well, no. Not technically," Her voice was different, obviously, the masculine deepness of his male form replaced with a borderline matronly tone. For a split second, he thought she sounded kind of like Inko. "We're not of any sex, or rather, we're of any sex or gender we chose." She frowned at him, "Didn't Azrael tell you that?"

"I… no? Kinda? I don't know, look, I-" He put his hands up for a moment, "This is really… how did you change all of… you? And why?"

Lucifer paused for a moment as if considering the question before carefully answering, "We are Celestial beings, my son. If we want to change, we can change. All beings have a male and female side to themselves, all you need to do is picture your female self and will it into being. It's your body, after all. It should obey what your heart and mind want." A sly smile entered her voice, "You should give it a try sometime."

"Wait, woah, I can't-" Yet before Izuku could protest, his cheeks growing red at the very suggestion, Lucifer continued.

"I mean your mother never minded. I dare say she enjoyed it."

Izuku buried his head into his hands, "Annnnd now I can't get that image out my head. Great. Alcoholism here I come."

"Oh, don't be so dramatic," Lucifer chuckled before adding, "I changed my form because I believe I was being watched."

Izuku quickly lost his embarrassment and concern entered his voice, his scars again flashing blue as fire crept into his blood, "What- what do you mean watched?"

"It's nothing serious," Lucifer waved a dismissive hand, "Nothing I can't handle. And nothing you should be worried about, young man." She gave him a stern, though not too serious, look, "You need to be focused on your upcoming trip."

"Wait- if you're being followed does that means someone knows who you are? Or about me? Or Azrael?" Izuku looked around, conspiratorially and when he spoke, his voice echoed, "It is the work of the Heralds? Is it Satani?"

The group had been quiet for some time now, and no trace of them had been found despite the entire country talking about them after the events of Hosu. The police had been deeply criticized for their lack of results, with detractors even targeting the top heroes. He'd even seen, online at least, people taking shots at All Might.

"If it were my sibling, changing my form wouldn't have worked. I told you, don't worry, it's easily handled."

Izuku hesitated a moment longer before finally giving a short nod in submission.

"We'll be perfectly safe today, I assure you, I wouldn't let anything come between us on our lovely day off together," She chuckled and looked over to the still yelling ice cream man, "Do you want some ice cream? You know entire realm wars have been fought over ice cream."

Izuku didn't answer right away. His hands pressed into his legs as he stared at the table. "… you said you wanted to talk to us about being the Prince of Hell," Again his voice echoed as he spoke, and he allowed the fire in his blood to rise. Nemesis would join him in this, they would face this fate together.

And they would do it now before Lucifer could drag them somewhere private and control the conversation.

"… let's get ice cream first."

"No!" Izuku snapped, drawing a look from a curious passer-by before he relaxed again, "We mean- No distractions. We're here to talk about what it means, right? So, let's talk about it."

"… well, I was hoping we could spend a little time together before talking business," Lucifer replied, her voice bordering on disappointed, "I've barely seen hide nor hair of you since the night in Hosu."

"You've had Kuroiro spying on us," Izuku frowned, "Isn't that enough?"

"Absolutely not," Lucifer sat back and crossed one leg over the other, clearly offended, "The fact I have to have Kuroiro report on your lessons is telling enough! We should spend actual time together, Izuku. Like now!"

"Tell us what you were going to tell us," Izuku pushed, "Or we'll go home. Right now. Don't test us, Lucifer."

The King of Hell sat for a moment, contemplating this before simply asking, "If I agree to do this now, will you agree to at least spend a few more hours with me?" When Izuku didn't reply, Lucifer sighed and removed her glasses, settling them on the table beside her purse.

She locked eyes with Izuku, and Izuku felt the human part of him go cold at that blasphemous gaze. Yet not nearly as much as he had thought. Again, he considered the idea that he was getting used to this, and he wasn't so sure how good of a sign that was.

Either way, he found himself holding his father's eyes, and felt the flame of pride rise in his chest because of it.

"… fine," he finally breathed out, "Do you want us to shake on it?"

"Not needed," Lucifer smiled, and from what Izuku could tell, it was purely genuine, "I only make those kinds of deals with mortals." She then took a breath and leaned onto the table properly, her hands linking together before her as if she were about to deliver some terrible news. "So, are you ready for this?"

The sound of the lapping waves, of the laughing children, of the busy crowds of unaware souls, seemed to die away. Izuku's chest felt tight and an age-old tremor seemed to enter his hands. He balled them tight to stop it from being so noticeable.

He breathed deep, letting the air, heavy with the salt of the sea, fill his lungs. His tail curled, as did his toes, and his fingers clenched into tight fists.

"I'm ready."

Lucifer nodded and her lips were thin line, her eyes tight and focused. "The title I bestowed upon you, the Prince of Hell, was something I knew would always come. Perhaps not in the way it did, but life is full of little surprises," A tiny, amused smile lived and died on her lips, "It's time you knew what responsibilities come with it."

The fire of his Fallen-self was almost at his fingertips and his heart caught in his throat.

"Izuku… I have no idea."

Everything stopped.

"What?"

"I have no idea what it means to be the Prince of Hell," Lucifer's face was still the picture of funerial seriousness.

"… YOU COMPLETE BASTARD," Izuku stood up suddenly, his chair scraping back along the old stone and his head almost hitting the umbrella over them. Unlight coated his hands and flame seemed to leap at the scars along his arms, "YOU COMPLETE AND UTTER BASTARD!"

"Calm down, son," Lucifer looked around, embarrassed at the show. People were turning and looking, and it was obvious they were trying to avoid a scene.

"YOU ALMOST GAVE US A HEART ATTACK!"

"Izuku, sit down."

"We're leaving," He turned and began storming off with a frown so heavy All Might wouldn't have been able to lift it.

"Son!" Lucifer quickly called back, though Izuku ignored her. Instead, he stormed forward through the crowd of slightly confused onlookers, though it took only a handful of seconds for Lucifer to catch up.

She reached for his arm, but he snatched it away and continued walking, "You brought me out here for nothing."

"Not nothing!" Lucifer hissed, again looking around as she matched her son's pace, "Will you just- please stop!"

Izuku finally obeyed, turning to glare at Lucifer with eyes that were quickly becoming dark, even behind his shades.

Lucifer simply huffed a breath and put her hands to her hips, "If you would allow me to explain, the reason I don't know what it means is because there has never been a Prince of Hell before. You're the first." When Izuku didn't turn away, though he most certainly didn't relax either, she continued. "I thought we could work all that out together. Or at least start on it today."

Izuku's eyes narrowed to almost slits, "So you can just trick me some more?"

"I'm not trying to trick you."

"Yes, you are! You said you wanted to discuss all… this, and then you said you have no idea about any of it!" Izuku threw his hands up and turned away from Lucifer, moving over to the guard rail separating himself from the several meter drop to the beach.

Lucifer moved beside him. Izuku didn't turn to look at her.

"I apologize, but I didn't know how else to get you to join me today."

"All my friends are out shopping for camping stuff. I could be with them. Having fun. Instead, I'm stuck here with you." Izuku ran his hands through his hair as he leaned onto the guard rail, "All this otherworld, supernatural, heaven and hell stuff is… it's so annoying and complex and…" He drifted off, letting his silence speak for itself.

Lucifer didn't reply for a long moment. A moment which was filled with a strange, pregnant calm that hung over them both. When she spoke again, her voice held a new tone, one of which Izuku had heard only briefly, when they had been talking with Azrael. "I was your age when I was told about humans."

Izuku raised his head and looked to Lucifer with wide eyes. She put her hands onto the guard rail, despite what had to be a burning summer heat, and leaned forward, her arms held straight and her shoulders hunching. Her eyes were fixed on the horizon of the sparkling blue ocean.

"I wasn't just made like this. None of us were. We were created, yes, in an instant, though myself and my twin sibling Gabriel were made first. Only about a half-micro-second older than the others of course, but still. We always considered ourselves the older siblings, so we always looked out for the others." A small smile again ghosted her lips, though this time it lingered.

Yet to Izuku, it seemed so sad.

"All of this was already made. The world, I mean. It was all there, waiting for us to explore. A true Eden. We wandered the earth, exploring everything there was to explore, learning, and growing and finding what we all specialized in." She paused, her eyes narrowing just a touch behind her shades, "You know I never did understand why our Bastard Father made us so different. But I didn't question it. I didn't question anything. He was our Divine Creator. His word was law."

She chuckled and moved back a step, no longer so hunched, but one hand still on the rail. "But yes. I was just at your age when my Creator took me and Gabriel to one side. He showed us a patch of dirt in what is now Africa. There, there was a little group of beings that He told us were called humans. The first surprise was when he told us they were going to be like us, born with souls and self-awareness, but they were to be free. They could choose to believe in Him, or turn their backs. And then He told us…"

She paused, and her voice seemed to become tight, "He told us we were their guardians. It would be our job to act as the bridge between Him and them, we were to be His messengers, His emissaries, His representatives, and, when needed, His warriors. Suddenly we were to wear clothes, armor, carry weapons, and command the armies of angels created from the souls of the dead."

Izuku was still, his eyes never leaving the King of Hell.

Lucifer's smile turned… angry, disappointed, a mixture of the two. She shook her head and looked down, "We were just children. Children, Izuku. We had no idea how to fight, how to give orders, how to do anything He was asking of us. And to think of these weak, pathetic, idiot things as our equals. It was… it was too much."

She finally turned her eyes back to her son and took a deep, steadying breath. "I know how you feel, with all of this being thrust onto your shoulders. You shouldn't have to carry it, and you don't deserve the pain which is to come. Because there will be pain, my son. There will be fighting and war and pain because that is the curse of the Celestials. Everlasting struggle of the light and the dark. And you have no choice in any of it. Even more so, you, especially, as a child of our world and theirs are caught right in the middle. You don't belong to one or the other, and will never find peace in either. I'm sorry, for all of this, Izuku."

She reached out and placed a strong hand on his shoulder.

He let her touch remain.

"But I will not make the same mistakes my Tyrant Father did with me. I will do all I can to make your path as easy as possible. I will prepare you, and gift you with every advantage I can while keeping you safe. You have the title Prince of Hell, but it is up to you to decide what that means. I will not force you into a role you don't want, and I will never make you a slave to something you aren't ready for. Your life is yours, Izuku. I will never take that from you as my Father did with me."

Izuku didn't know what to say. He felt frozen. The King of Hell had appeared human before, but only ever in flashes between the darkness. But here, now, in this burning sunlight on this busy beachfront.

She seemed undeniably human.

All the while, he felt the fire of his Fallen-self burning within him. Not an angry flame but a watchful, cautious flame.

Nemesis was silent.

"Can I have a strawberry swirl."

"What?"

"Ice cream. Strawberry swirl." Izuku asked again, "I mean, you did say you would buy some."

Lucifer smiled, and it was honest.

A few moments later they strolled along the promenade of Dagoba Beach where the stalls became shops, and the shops became outlet malls.

Large warehouses loomed in the distance and while they could see people diving off the wooden docks, or gathering on large and expensive-looking ships in the marina, it seemed neither the King or the Prince of Hell wished to wander over there.

They were too busy eating their ice creams, after all.

"Do you have a boat?"

"Several."

"How am I not surprised."

Lucifer grinned with sharp fangs, "Hello 'not surprised'."

Izuku's very soul cringed, "No! Not again! It's not-"

"I'm dad!"

The woman burst out into laughter as Izuku buried his head in his hands, and his tail, the end of which fwapped against his forehead.

"You walked right into that one."

"You're an asshole."

"I was always the funniest of my siblings."

"Number one. Never call yourself 'dad' again. Number two, you're not funny, you're the King of Hell, which automatically makes you not funny."

Lucifer simply rolled her eyes at this before looking back out to the docks. There was a moment of comfortable silence before she asked, "So, have you thought on any more duties you'd like to adopt?"

"… well, I could get all your stuff when you die," Izuku grumped before adding, "I'd look great on that throne of yours."

"Don't be so eager to take the Dark Throne," Lucifer said in a chiding tone, "It comes with much responsibility, and besides before you take any throne you need to marry."

Izuku blushed deeply, "What?!"

Lucifer looked to him, eyebrows raised, "Well of course. You're the Prince. I expect you to find a princess to wed eventually. Or another prince, I'm not here to judge."

Izuku made the vocal equivalent of someone smashing their fingers on a keyboard before Lucifer again cracked that wide, mocking, vicious grin.

"I'm kidding! Really, Izuku, you're so easy."

The boy didn't reply, he only frowned in a way that he hoped looked angry and irritated and not pathetic, "Do you want to hear my ideas or not?"

Lucifer waved an open palm before her in an inviting swing.

"Okay, well, I was thinking," Izuku spoke suddenly, trying to cover for the fact he really hadn't been thinking, "You know, Princes tend to do a lot of world traveling and… I guess representing their families in far off places. Like how the current Prince of Japan is out in England right now as a diplomat?" His mouth was running away with his thoughts and he could feel Nemesis suddenly growl through his system in a very 'what are you saying' kind of manner.

"… yes?"

"So, maybe that can be one of my duties?" Izuku added, "I mean, every time you and Azrael talk about my… uncles? Aunts? Whatever- you all seem to just… hate one another. Maybe I can fix that."

"Izuku," Lucifer put a hand up to stop him, "I appreciate the idea, and I think there may be some weight to it, but I'm telling you there is no way in all the realms of Hell that you're somehow going to convince Gabriel to talk to me. They'd most likely try to kill you."

"But-"

"But the idea of you being a diplomat of sorts is an interesting one," Lucifer put a hand to her chin and a sly smile crossed her lips, "You are the link between the celestials and the mortals after all."

Izuku wasn't sure what to say, "Well, I mean- I-"

"What else have you thought of?" Lucifer pushed, her voice mixed with amused interest.

Across the small road, a series of restaurants and tacky tourist shops had been set up. The food smelled delicious and the trinkets looked cheesy.

The crowds had thinned here, if only because most were sitting out under the canopy tents eating delicious, fresh seafood.

Izuku could smell each dish, and it almost made his stomach grumble. However, Lucifer made no sign of stopping, and as such, Izuku didn't want to suddenly demand any food.

"Well, we want to help people, if we can," There was a small, but noticeable echo that entered his tone, "We want to be the symbol of vengeance for those wronged. A hopeful light in the darkness. A warrior without mercy on those who commit great sins upon the earth. That is our goal."

Lucifer seemed to think on this, nodding softly as a breeze picked up along the promenade, "I see. And I agree. There needs to be order within the darkness." She paused, then added, "Hell has always been a place of punishment. Where the souls of the wicked are tortured for all eternity. Yet even I've seen how… old that can get after the first thousand or so years. Perhaps its young Prince can bring some reform to the old system."

Izuku wasn't sure how to reply to that one, so he simply continued, "I was thinking I can… I dunno. Maybe find a way to try and redeem corrupt souls. I mean, my friend Fumikage-"

"The Seventh Son?"

"-Yeah, he doesn't deserve to go to Hell because Dark Shadow has his soul. He didn't ask to have that happen to him."

"His family was cursed, due to the actions of his ancestor," Lucifer mused, "It is his punishment to bear."

"It's not his fault his ancestor did something shitty," Izuku snapped back, "He's a good person! And he's going to be an amazing hero someday. If I can find a way to save him, I will." He sighed softly and mumbled, "It's not like I'm gonna be saved, after all."

"What makes you think that?" Lucifer quickly asked, catching the boy off guard.

"Well, I… you know I…" He had done things. Terrible things. Things that he knew he could never be forgiven for. He had committed the greatest sin, the worst of all sins.

He'd killed someone.

When he didn't reply, Lucifer stopped, fixing Izuku with a calm, curious look, "… Izuku?"

"It's nothing. I don't wanna talk about it."

"You can talk to me about anything," Lucifer smiled that irritatingly human smile of theirs. Though Izuku only further curled back. This was one of those things he could never admit to anyone. Ever. It was his greatest secret and the biggest weight on his soul.

"… I can't. Seriously." He paused, then without knowing why, he added, "Not here."

Lucifer paused on this while Izuku felt Nemesis snap at him from within his own soul. They couldn't tell him! It was practically his father's fault that they had taken the life they did! The memories of that event haunted him still, even if they were remarkably… fuzzy for Nemesis.

It was their first time accessing their Fallen self, so perhaps not everything had lined up quite right.

Still, they were clear enough to haunt the nightmares he still sometimes had.

"… let's go somewhere more private," Lucifer announced with a sharp nod and a quick turn, "There's something I wished to see from you anyway, and we can't do it out in public."

"Wait, what? Where are we going?" Izuku felt nerves again crawling along his arms before a wave of candle-flame quieted those nerves down. By now he was sure Lucifer would never do anything to hurt him, well, at least on purpose. Still, he didn't like the idea of just going into somewhere alone with them.

Lucifer didn't reply. Instead, she led Izuku off the beaten path, down a small alleyway, and together they approached a tall, chain fence. There was no gate, and above it was a line of barbed wire. It was blocking off what looked to be one of the older warehouses, one with plenty of smashed windows and an outside ringed with colorful, and sometimes even creative, graffiti.

"… you know bad things happen to people in old warehouses. I've seen movies, I know the deal."

Lucifer put one hand onto her hip and, for a moment, looked every bit the exasperated mother. "Really, Izuku?"

"Hey, you're the devil, not me."

Lucifer flashed a small, amused smile at that, before stating, "I want to spar with you. To test you. I understand you just did your exams, but I want to see for myself the progress you've been making." Her smile grew wider, "Unless you're afraid to face me."

Izuku instantly burned at the comment, and worse was that he knew Lucifer knew exactly what buttons she was pressing. Even worse was that it worked. He wasn't sure if Lucifer were using some supernatural, unholy power to influence him, or was just that persuasive, but he instantly wished to know what it would be like to fight his father.

Maybe get a few years of unmitigated revenge on the deadbeat.

But the more logical side of him reminded him that this was the creature who almost conquered Heaven. That only one Celestial had ever beaten them, and that Celestial was sitting inside Heaven, still protecting it.

"… look, I know I can't beat you."

"No one said anything about anyone beating anyone else," Lucifer countered, "I'm suggesting we simply spar. I want to know what you can do, what you can't do. Maybe even give you a few pointers."

Izuku knew this was a bad idea. This was a terrible idea. This was one of those giant red flags of an idea that also blinked 'don't do this, you stupid moron' all over them.

But he had darkness in his blood and fire in his heart.

"Alright," A toothy smile stretched on his lips, and he removed his sunglasses to reveal eyes already matching his father's, "Let's do it."

Father and son dropped beside one another. Izuku was a little less graceful than Lucifer, even though he used his wings to slow his descent. Somehow, even without wings, Lucifer managed to make it look easy.

He walked out a few steps into the warehouse, looking around and nodding. The only light was the dusty beams that came through the high, broken windows. The space within held only a few old, rusting metal shipping containers with names like Aperture or Black Mesa written on the sides.

It was a pressure-cooker style of hot, despite how huge and open the warehouse was. Instantly Izuku felt his clothes starting to stick to his skin and he could taste the rising dirt, mold, and other possibly hazardous chemicals in the air.

As the echoes of their arrival faded there was a scattering of unborn as they fled into deeper shadows, hurrying to escape the presence of the two far mightier beings of the dark.

"Yes, this should do fine," Lucifer announced, her voice echoing through the musty warehouse.

She removed her jacket and placed it on some old, forgotten piece of machinery that Izuku couldn't place. It looked like it once pressed things, but by now was so ruined it was good for nothing but scrap.

Within a second, she had shed her human image.

A wave of mild fear ran down Izuku's spine as the King of Hell changed before him. Vast, torn wings of royal ruin spread from her back, a long, spear-tipped tail grew from the base of her spine, her arms became coated in unlight and her fingers like talons. Horns curled up and from her brow, mighty and terrible, like a crown of darkness.

She flexed her shoulders as she had done before and looked back to her son, removing her sunglasses to reveal eyes of a terrible void and destroyer flame blue.

"Well?"

Izuku knew he should have been terrified. He had felt fear every time Lucifer had dropped their guise before. He felt unnerved, slightly disturbed, and that human part of his soul cowered at the figure it knew instinctively was the Enemy of God.

But…

But his Fallen side did not. His Fallen side didn't just stand against this terror, it practically shrugged it off. Just another Celestial, another Fallen. A mighty Fallen, yes, the King of the Fallen.

But nothing new. Nothing they hadn't seen before.

And that worried Izuku in some way he couldn't quite define.

It took him a moment to realize she was waiting on him, and so, despite the floor looking absolutely filthy, he removed his flip flops and was soon standing on clawed, unlight feet.

Allowing Nemesis to emerge through his body felt good. Invigorating. Natural. Soon he too sported wings, horns and he flexed his unlight-clad talons.

Lucifer smiled widely, "You look better that way. I admit it annoys me you can't be your true self at all times."

"Both sides of us are our true selves," Nemesis replied through Izuku's lips, "You should remember that."

Lucifer nodded, though Izuku got the impression she was simply placating them.

"Well, let's see now," The King of Hell looked around the room before moving over to an object on the floor. It was some round metal ball, possibly an old ballast of some kind, and picked it up. The thing must have weight a ton, yet Lucifer held it in one hand as easy as she had previously held her ice cream.

"Let's try this. Knock the ball from my hand. You can use any tactic you wish, I'll only ever defend."

Izuku blinked at this. It seemed a little… easy.

He knew it wouldn't be.

His father's grin became wider and those terrible fangs seemed to flash mockingly, "Well, don't think you can do it?"

For a moment, he seemed to consider his options, then, almost cautiously, he replied, "No, we don't think we can do it."

Lucifer laughed loudly and it echoed through the warehouse, causing Izuku to frown as it seemed to bounce around him. "You're very wise! No, you can't knock this from my hand. But try anyway. Let me see how close you-"

Izuku moved like a lightning bolt, there one second, gone the next. His heart pounded through his chest and his blood ignited with fire as he attacked. His hand reached out, fire pouring from it as he swiped for the metal ball.

Yet it wasn't there.

The world went from split-second fast to agonizingly slow as he blinked, seeing the ball one moment before it vanished.

He skidded to a halt, turning with wide eyes only to see that Lucifer had moved. When he had moved and how he had moved Izuku simply hadn't seen. Even with Nemesis pouring through his blood, with every sense spiking into an unhuman overdrive, he hadn't seen it.

And he was in awe.

There was no other way of putting it. He had seen All Might fight, he had fought All Might himself.

And yet even with his power clearly broken, even with some mighty force having dealt some great, terrible blow to the King of Hell, weakening him in some way that Izuku couldn't see but could only feel.

Even with that, he had no doubt in that second that Lucifer wouldn't kill All Might within moments if they were to fight.

The Fallen Archangel readjusted his stance, toying with the ball she held in one hand.

The fire in her eyes was almost glowing.

Just as it was glowing in Izuku's eyes.

"A good try. Attacking when your opponent is distracted, I see Aizawa's teachings are paying off. But that was a little obvious. Next time, lead your opponent on, make them dance to your plan."

Izuku turned back to fully face his father, his claws once again digging into the floor as he readied himself for another try.

And despite his better judgment, a smile was dancing on his lips.

He attacked again, and again that rush of unholy power ignited his blood, sending every muscle, every hair on his body into overdrive beyond anything any mortal human could ever know.

Again, he missed.

This happened over and over, the sounds of his exertion echoing throughout the warehouse as he tried different tactics, different approaches to this frustratingly simple yet impossibly difficult problem. Lucifer seemed to be able to read his mind, to dodge with effortless speed and fluidity.

"Be sure of your strikes!" The woman barked at him as he reached out again. She ducked under it without effort. "Don't aim to disarm, aim to kill! You can stop yourself at the last second if you truly wish, but not with me!"

Izuku let out a wave of azure fire, Lucifer answered with a wave of her own, one much larger and far more focused that instantly broke apart the one sent against her.

"Focus your flame! It is the Destroyer Flame of Hell itself, and it is your power to command!"

Izuku tried to kick up a wave of dust, trying to blind his opponent.

Lucifer used her tail to cut through the air. "Good! Use your environment against your opponent! Make it work for you!"

The ball was still irritatingly within his Father's clawed grip, and the more he pushed himself the further he could feel the tide of black power rising within him. Nemesis was with him on each strike, on each attack, on each thought and plan and question and answer. But it wasn't enough and they both knew it.

Azrael had moved like the wind, flowing, and steady and soft before turning into a sudden hurricane at the moment of his strike. Lucifer, however, was different. Lucifer moved like an open flame, flickering, darting yet unyielding and vicious. His deflects turned into attacks in the same second, sometimes within the same movements. Each time Izuku even grew close, Lucifer would again strike to redirect or evade or block her son.

Even Nemesis, as burning hot and battle focused as they were, wished desperately to know how to do that. How to move with sure utter surety, strength and force of will.

They knew they couldn't get the iron ball from her hand. They simply weren't good enough.

But that was okay.

They had a plan.

Izuku moved, his fist curled and tight as he again reached for the ball. The Fallen anticipated this and moved to dodge, yet Izuku jinked. Instead of swinging at the ball, he aimed directly at Lucifer herself.

The blast hit the woman full force in the chest, and yet Izuku attacked again, turning and whipping his tail out in a swift slice. In the same moment, his wings spread wide, striking in both directions. His movement was halted by the sudden break and a giant cloud of dust was instantly kicked up around the two.

And at that moment, Izuku reached out, his claws so close…

A hand reached out and grabbed him, suddenly spinning and throwing him back. It took all his effort to twist himself in mid-air and land feet first against the steel container. Even so he felt the impact through his body and it rattled his teeth.

He quickly landed, panting.

And that alone was a shock. He was panting. Had he really been pushing himself that hard?

The dust settled and Lucifer continued to stand, ball in hand, looking down at her son.

"An interesting attack, creative and strong, but ultimately fruitless."

"It wasn't fruitless," Nemesis grinned, "Look."

Lucifer blinked, then looked to the iron ball. Within its skin was carved four large claw marks.

"So, this was your true goal," Lucifer nodded approvingly, moving the ball within her hand to inspect it, "You couldn't dislodge it-"

"But I could damage it," Izuku had already regained his breath but he could still feel a distant weariness on his bones. He breathed out slowly and allowed Nemesis to fall back in good order.

He had to shake his head and screw up his eyes as the hyper-definition of his surroundings faded away. He really hated having to do that.

Now that he had finally stopped, he could tell the air had cooled. Almost drastically so. He glanced up to see the sky above was turning a low crimson. Not quite twilight, but the first wave of it. Had they really been at this for that long?

"… let's stop here today," Lucifer announced, dropping the ball to the floor where it clanged loudly, the noise of metal on concrete booming throughout the warehouse like an exploding bomb. "You've done well, better than well, you're already exceeding my expectations. I'm proud of you."

Izuku couldn't help it. He smiled. And even more infectious was the pride he felt like an inflating balloon in his chest. He knew he shouldn't give a damn what Lucifer said, but… dammit, he kind of did.

And he was glad that the King of Hell acknowledged and appreciated his abilities.

"Maybe one day we'll be good enough to knock you off your throne," He announced, unable to hold back the soft boast in his voice.

"Maybe, one day," Lucifer admitted as they approached him, "Aizawa is right, though. You need to work on your finesse."

Together they sat on what was once an old bench that, for whatever reason, had been pushed against one of the containers.

It was dirty and the wood wobbled, but it was good enough for the moment.

"… so, what is this great sin of yours?" Lucifer asked in a quiet tone.

Izuku felt a chill run across his sweating skin. He looked down, away, his back hunched and his hands linked before him, "I… I can't."

"Izuku, son-"

"Don't call me that."

"-I am the King of Hell," She insisted softly, "There is no sin so great, no crime so terrible, that I have not either taken part in it or witnessed it for my own. I do not consider myself evil, not like the humans consider me evil, but I am no Archangel. Those days have long passed. So please, you can tell me anything. Because I can assure you, I have most likely done worse."

Izuku went very quiet. Very still. Before he had felt as though he hadn't known Lucifer. That while he knew the Fallen Angel, he hadn't known them. But fighting had a curious way of opening up the truth of things. Struggle, conquest, and victory, all had ways of exposing the truth.

He had seen Lucifer in that fight. The focused, disciplined, prideful, and yes, even arrogant creature behind the smile and fire-ice eyes. The one that cared so deeply that they would spit in the face of their own creator to go their own path, forge their own way, and make sure that those they cared for could do the same.

The workout had never been about knocking the ball from her hand. It had been about seeing how far her son had come, seeing what he needed, and getting to know him better.

It'd been a way to communicate in a way that perhaps only beings of their power could truly communicate. Without words, but with actions.

"… when I was five years old, I was walking home alone," Even as he spoke the words and the old memories crept forth into his mind, he felt the fear grip his heart and squeeze his stomach. Not even Nemesis could stop that. "A man approached me. He… he tried to…" He had to take a moment to breathe deep and calm himself, even with Nemesis flowing fire through his blood, "He tried to kidnap me. I panicked, screamed, tried to fight back and… and then Nemesis emerged for the first time." He swallowed deep, his eyes focused on the floor before him as he finally, quietly, and for the first time in a long time, tearfully admitted, "We killed him."

He didn't move. He didn't look to his father. He didn't want to look at anyone. He wanted to just shrink into a ball and stay there and-

"No, you didn't."

Izuku's head whipped up, anger instantly taking over as Nemesis roared, "WHAT? HOW DARE YOU-"

He stopped.

He stopped because he could see the look on Lucifer's face.

The Fallen Angel was completely serious. A deadly, axe-on-neck sort of serious that was barely holding back the fury of the Lord of the Fallen. And what a terrible fury it was.

"No. You didn't. You've not killed anyone."

"How… how could you say that?" Nemesis growling through his lips, his emotions colliding and clashing within him, threatening to unbalance his soul.

"Because I know what a murderer looks like. My siblings are murderers. I'm a murderer. And when you take the life of another being, another soul, it leaves a mark upon your own soul. A mark which never heals." She reached out and placed a hand on Izuku's chest, over his heart, her eyes locking and burning into his. "You have no mark."

"… but… but we…" His mind was falling to pieces, cracking at this revelation. He didn't even accuse the woman of lying, because he could see within his gaze he was not. There was no lie to his words.

"But this does trouble me, greatly. Not the least of which because I wasn't there to save you. I should have… I should have…" Her hand moved back, curling into a fist before Lucifer stood up suddenly.

For a moment she didn't move.

And then she did.

And it was like nothing Izuku had ever seen. Nothing he could even compare to, except perhaps when he had become the worst of Nemesis itself.

Lucifer, not the human mask they wore but Lucifer, struck forwards with a fist of shadowed unlight and blazing, focused flame. The fist smashed through a shipping container like it was made of paper, then within the same moment, as all of this was as fluid as one movement, Lucifer tore the container in two.

Each part was thrown to either end of the warehouse, smashing through everything that stood in their way, the noise a terrible crescendo to their furious regret.

And Lucifer stood there. Not panting, because such a thing was no effort for a being like they, but simply standing. Fists clenched and the very air around them black with their unholy aura.

They took a long, deep breath, and straightened up before turning back to terrified and shocked Izuku.

"… I'm sorry. For… for more than I can apologize for I am sorry," Her head bowed low, her salt-and-pepper hair falling from her shoulder, "I will not ask for forgiveness. My errors have been too great." She straightened up, "But I will find you the perpetrator of this act."

"… what?" Izuku blinked, his mind still processing everything that had just happened. Years upon years of trauma were now both invalidated and validated at the same time. He almost felt as though he should go back to the medication.

It'd at least let him forget all of this, at least for a little while.

"On that day you ended something. A something without a soul." Lucifer calmly though not calmly at all, explained, "You know what that means."

The answer hammered into Izuku's skull, and it took Nemesis to speak the words, "We… we killed a demon."

"Yes." Lucifer stepped back over to her son, "No soul was taken, nor was any life. You simply destroyed the corpse-host of the demon who tried to kidnap you."

Izuku was still finding it difficult to process. He was no murderer. Though in a way, he had still proven himself capable of the act. Twice now, if he counted Legion. Twice he had skirted the line of killing in his own defense.

"So. As recompense for this crime, I will find this demon," Lucifer spoke the words like iron, "I will bring them to you. And together, my child, we will punish them."

Izuku wanted to protest. To say no. To say he didn't want it to be like that, that it would solve nothing. That he couldn't start a career as a redeemer, a reformer, by taking revenge on a demon who tried to do who knew what with him.

… but he didn't.

Because part of him, and it was increasingly a unified part of him, liked the idea.

But… but it wasn't right. Was it?

His mouth opened.

He never got the chance to answer.

Suddenly, cutting through the musty and now sweaty air of the warehouse, a shrill ringtone erupted. Blinking in surprise, Lucifer moved over to the purse she had placed to one side and reached into it to draw out her phone.

Oddly, even through Izuku's slight daze, he could hear her voice change back to her more familiar, masculine tone.

"Hello? Yes. Yes." There was a pause and Izuku looked up to see her face darken again. "… I see. I'll be right there."

"What-"

"I have to go. I'm sorry, you'll have to make your own way home, you can do that from here, yes?" Lucifer was moved to swiftly gather her belongings.

"I- wait- what's wrong?"

She paused just as she was about to put her shades on, turned her dark eyes to her son and, without missing a beat, simply replied, "The Heralds have been sighted. It seems your friend, Hitoshi Shinsou, had a chat with the Ender of Days."

SO. Thus ends the Mumcifer chapter. I was always looking for a chance to show off the Celestial's body-changing abilities. Now I only need to think of a point where I can maybe have Izuku experiment with it too...

Anyway, so this brings to light one of the biggest missing plot points of the story. Kind of. Izuku's apparent almost kidnapping from the beginning of the fic! Yes, that too, as EVERYTHING, was a planned thing. Will it continue to pay off down the line? Perhaps... but I did always want to give a reason for it happening. Finally I can start bringing that reason into the fore.

Not much else to say about the chapter other than it was fun to have Dad and Son bond, and it was fun to pull Izuku away from his friends for a bit, especially when it jinxed the canon. Though speaking of canon, I guess All Might's successor still got caught in the mall, huh?

Well, next update we get to see how all that went down, as well as get a little parallel Dad Might/Son for One bonding there. But what will the Ender of Days have to say to Hitoshi? Well, we'll just have to wait and see.

Till next time my dudes!