He's coming back. He's coming back. That thought kept her awake most of that night, and was the first thing in her head when she woke up the next morning. They were still living in the penthouse; somehow, although their old apartment had been restored to order, they had never gotten around to moving back. And Trixie would have complained loudly if she'd had to leave the piano, and there was no way they would fit one in the apartment - not to mention the likely complaints from the neighbors.

At least in the penthouse there was plenty of buffer space between the penthouse rooms and the tenants in the floors below them and above the nightclub. And anyone who lived over a nightclub would be used to noise anyway. As their new landlady, Chloe had met all the tenants at least once, and was impressed at how casual they all were about where they lived.

But then they didn't know that Lucifer was the real devil.

The thought still gave her a thrill every time she thought about it, although she'd had all this time to get to grips with the truth. She just wished she'd had longer with him. She had just reached the point where she could accept him as everything he truly was, and in that moment he had gone. Life felt incredibly cruel.

What would he be like when he returned? Would they pick up just as they had stopped? Would she have to get used to him again? Would he have changed?

What would running Hell do to him? Would he slip back into old ways? Was he still tough enough to do the job? Would he have forgotten what it was like to live on earth, and live a human life? Question after question chased around her head.

The previous evening, they had left Trixie and Charlie with a babysitter and headed down below to Chloe's birthday part at Lux. It had been so different from her impromptu party the year before in the penthouse, but it was another birthday without Lucifer. She had tried to party, but in the end had sat in one of the corner booths sipping on a pina colada and watching her friends dancing and having a good time on the dancefloor.

She had looked up, startled, as Ella slipped in beside her. "What's up, girlfriend?" her friend asked. "You're sitting here looking miserable as hell, and it's your birthday! You should be dancing!"

Chloe gave a weak smile. "I know. I will in a bit. But I'm just…" She hesitated. "Amenadiel says Lucifer's coming back soon, and I don't know how to feel now."

Ella had no such doubts. She gave out a whoop of joy. "He's coming back? Our boy's coming back? Damn, you have no idea how much I've missed that guy. Chloe, that's the best news, isn't it?"

"I guess so. But we don't know when. It might be some time yet."

"And what does that mean? Hours? Days? Weeks?" Ella faltered. "Months?"

There was nothing Chloe could do but shrug.

"Hey, but he's definitely coming back. And that's gotta be a good thing, right?"

But she couldn't shake off the feeling of unease. She had spent so much of the past year longing for him, imagining what life would be like when he returned, and now that it seemed certain he would, she didn't know what would happen next.

And so now she sat on the side of the bed gazing out at the city below, listening to Trixie practicing her scales. She called out a greeting to her daughter, and Trixie's face appeared around the corner of the pillar. "Sorry, Mommy, do you have a hangover? I can practice later if you like."

Chloe laughed, jumping off the bed and scooping her into her arms. "It's all right, monkey. I do have a slight headache, but hey, Amenadiel says Lucifer is coming back. Isn't that great?"

Trixie's face lit up in a smile, but then dropped immediately. "That's great, Mom, but does that mean we'll have to move back to our apartment? What about my piano practice? Can we take the piano with us?"

"We can look into getting you your own piano," Chloe promised, while wondering how they would manage to fit it in. "But yes, we'll move back to our apartment. We should have done it weeks ago, really."

"Do we have to? When does he get back?"

"I'm not sure. Amenadiel said it would take a while, but he wasn't sure how long."

"Then can we stay until he gets back? Please please please?"

Trixie's wide eyes stared up at her pleadingly, and Chloe sighed. "We'll see. I guess it wouldn't hurt to stay here a bit longer. Just until we hear when he's coming back. Or at least until after Charlie's birthday party next month."

Trixie bounced off to get back to her piano and Chloe pulled the bedcovers straight, feeling secretly relieved at the reprieve. She would miss the place. And would Lucifer get back to work at the precinct? She would sign all the money and properties back over to him, of course. Most of it was untouched, although she had paid out for a few things for Trixie, and some of the things they had needed to replace after the flood had damaged them. It hadn't felt right to use any more of it.

Chloe spent the next few days jumping at every sound, seeing Lucifer's face in the crowds, glimpsing his long stride from across the street. She kept telling herself that she had waited this long while not knowing he was able to come back. She could last a little longer for his return now she knew it would happen.

But somehow that didn't help.

She tried to keep busy, to take her mind off Lucifer. But the more she forced him out of her mind during the day, the more he haunted her dreams, until she would wake up at night convinced that she had heard his voice. Once or twice she even got out of bed and checked the rest of the penthouse, just in case he had sneaked in.

What would it be like? Would he just walk in? Would he fly in? Would he just appear? Chloe's mood swung from elated to miserable in seconds, as her thoughts raced until her head ached and she could bear it no more. Then she would encourage Trixie to play the piano, until the noise of that produced a different kind of headache that masked the first.

She even learned to pick out a few tunes herself, remembering her childhood lessons and playing songs that she could sing along softly to.

She visited the apartment, but the idea of living there again felt strange. They'd been at the penthouse for six months now, and had grown used to it, unconventional as it was. And she felt closer to Lucifer that way. Still, she had told Trixie they would move back after Charlie's party, and it would probably be better for them to be settled before Lucifer returned.

A couple of weeks later, Linda and Charlie visited her at the penthouse to discuss the party. Chloe gave her friend a big hug. Charlie was impatient to explore and Trixie wanted to show him the play corner they had made, so Linda put him down to crawl off. He headed straight for the toybox full of toys in the corner of the room, and Trixie helped him to find the car he loved best. Chloe watched them with a smile, remembering the adult toybox that she had placed in the bedroom. Trixie had been curious, but had been forbidden to look in there and had soon lost interest.

"So how are you doing?" Linda asked, looking at her friend closely.

Chloe forced a smile. "I'm really happy. I can't wait to have him back," she said.

"That's good. And now are you going to tell me how you really feel?"

Oh the burden of having a therapist as a friend! Chloe sat down on the settee. "I am happy," she said. "But I'm a little nervous too. What will it be like? What will he be like? He's been in Hell, Linda. As the ruler, but still, what does it do to you? Will he still be the same person? Will he still want the same things?"

Linda nodded wisely. "Lucifer learned a lot in his time on earth," she said. "And he was just starting to make real progress in self-understanding. I just hope he learned enough to sustain him through his time - down there - and to bring him back safely. I've missed him too, you know. Life was always interesting with him around."

"Understatement!" Chloe laughed. She looked at her friend curiously. She found it impossible to forget that her friend was one of the many women who had slept with Lucifer. She had tried to pluck up courage to ask what it was like, but didn't dare. Of course, she herself was one of the few women not to have slept with him.

"Mama!" Charlie called, waving a teddy in the air.

"Hi Charlie," Linda waved at him. She looked at Chloe. "One day he'll start talking properly," she said with a sigh. "And then I suppose I'll be wishing he'd be quieter for a while."

"So is there any news?" Chloe asked. "On when Lucifer will be back? How did it happen? What's going on?" She thought back to that awful night when Charlie had been kidnapped and the city had been invaded by demons. "Is it safe?"

"It was you who figured out the way to bring him back," Linda said, and then laughed at the shocked expression on Chloe's face.

"How? I mean, what's happening?"

"Well, you've been so stubborn about that damn nightclub, and we never thought you'd cope with it, but you insisted that you could still run it and hold down your job, and you found the right manager and you did it. You still have the overall responsibility, but someone else does all the day to day tasks and just asks you if there's a problem."

"So - Lucifer found a manager for Hell?"

"Strange as it seems, yes." Linda paused for a moment to help Charlie out with a toy. "It took a little persuasion from Amenadiel, but their siblings have agreed that it's unfair for him to be left looking after Hell alone. They've agreed that they'll each take a turn, and Lucifer will retain overall control while they have day to day management of the place and can turn to him if they hit problems."

"Wow!" Chloe played with the idea in her mind. "That's incredible. That's - wonderful. So how long until he gets back? Any news yet?"

"We still don't know." Linda sighed. "Honestly, Chloe, we complain about things moving slowly here, but it sounds like it's even worse in the silver city. But hopefully in our terms it will only be a matter of weeks."

"In our terms?" Chloe stared at her, eyes wide. "What does that mean?"

The therapist gave a deep sigh, and seemed reluctant to answer. "Time's different down there, Chloe. Who knows how long it's been in Lucifer's time? But then time's different for him too, I guess, as an immortal. After all, he's been around for eons."

Another idea struck Chloe. "But I thought no one could speak to him."

"Oh, you figured that out too. Azrael started sending messages down with all the newly dead souls she sent to Hell."

"Azrael?"

"Sorry, that's their sister. The angel of death."

"The angel of death is a chick?"

Linda laughed. "That was exactly my reaction. But yeah. Eventually Lucifer listened and responded. And finally agreed to try a new arrangement. Now they just need to get the final details sorted and he'll be clear to return."

They moved on to discussion of the party plans for the next week, but in the lulls in conversation Chloe mulled over the idea that while she had been waiting the best part of a year, for Lucifer it had been longer. What was it like for him? Did he even remember her properly?

On the day of Charlie's birthday, Chloe was busy getting the penthouse ready. Charlie and a few young friends plus their parents would be joining the adults for a celebration of the young half-angel - who so far had shown no sign of being anything more than human, to his father's intense disappointment and his mother's extreme relief. Chloe had offered the penthouse as a venue - it offered enough entertainment and refreshments for the adults, as well as the toy corner and all the extra delights she had arranged for the half-dozen babies and toddlers.

She checked the ball pool - the outside hot tub was securely covered over for the occasion, but large plastic balls should be safe enough - and headed through to the bathroom to check the baby changing facilities. She heard the elevator ping. "Hi Ella," she called through. "Could you blow up the last few balloons I left on the piano please? I'll be out in a minute."

"Are you sure they're balloons?" replied a voice that definitely wasn't Ella.

Chloe froze.

"And I must say, detective, your idea of party hosting is rather different from mine."

Slowly, Chloe put down the pile of diapers and walked to the bathroom door. She hesitated, hand on the door frame, suddenly terrified of walking out there.

"Detective?"

At his quizzical tone, so familiar and yet from what seemed a lifetime ago, she forced herself forward. She stepped timidly into the bedroom entrance and saw Lucifer for the first time in nearly a year.

"Hello, detective." His smile was uncertain, as though he was unsure of his welcome.

For a moment Chloe forgot how to speak. Eventually she managed to force out a sound. "Lucifer!" was all she could gasp before the elevator dinged again.

Ella bounced out. "Hi Chloe, sorry I'm la— Lucifer!" She ran across the room and hugged him tightly, leaving him looking perplexed and uncomfortable. "Hey, Lucifer! It's so good to see you, buddy. We missed you so so much! Of course, Chloe missed you most. But we all missed you. Even Dan." She gave a crooked smile. "I always said he'd come around. He was so miserable after Charlotte… I think he blamed himself. Which is stupid, right? But we all do it. We all blame ourselves—"

"Ella?" Chloe managed to interrupt. "The guests will be here soon. And we really need to finish the party decorations." She looked nervously at Lucifer, who was gazing around him with interest.

Chloe felt cold rush over her as she compared the penthouse as it was now with how he had left it. If only he'd waited another couple of days, then she could have put it all back how he liked it. But now the ball pool sat in one corner, with half a dozen balls escaped and lying nearby. The toy box was open, and one or two select toys laid out on the brightly colored playmat, ready for action. A large rocking horse sat nearby.

Alongside the whiskey bottles on the bar there were now bottles and cans of soda for the adults, plus the odd beer bottle. Balloons and streamers hung everywhere. A new table at the far end of the room by the balcony stood read for the plates of food. And a huge banner across the windows declared "Happy Birthday Charlie!"

The walls were decorated with Trixie's paintings and drawings - at least it proved that she appreciated her birthday present from Lucifer. The books from the bookshelf had been boxed and left in a storage room downstairs, and instead the shelves were full of her novels and children's books. A certificate from Trixie's school, declaring her student of the week, stood in pride of place in a frame on the desk, alongside the photo of Lucifer eating cotton candy. On the other side of the certificate was another copy of the photo of the three of them, which she'd had reprinted.

"I didn't know you'd be back today," she managed, trying to process the fact that after very nearly a year Lucifer was finally back home.

He gave a crooked smile and held his arms out in a shrug. "Well, here I am, detective."

And then the elevator dinged again and Linda, Amenadiel and Charlie arrived, and there was no time for talk as they carried food up from the kitchen and made last-minute adjustments to the room before the guests arrived.

Charlie seemed fascinated by Lucifer, and stared wide-eyed at him from Linda's arms. Chloe felt almost jealous; she would have liked to sit and stare at Lucifer herself, but she was busy playing hostess. Dan had brought Trixie, and had appeared startled to see Lucifer, but had busied himself pouring drinks for everyone, and Chloe was grateful he hadn't tried to make a scene. He had seemed so angry towards Lucifer when he first left.

She had been pretty angry herself. But now he was back, it was as though the last year had not happened; as though he had merely stepped out for a day or two.

And then the memories and the resentment and the longing and the loneliness washed over her again, and she longed to wave her arms, ask everyone to leave and then sit down with him and just talk.

He seemed to sense her watching him, and glanced over. Linda put her hand on his arm and spoken to him earnestly, and Amenadiel hugged him, the first real sign of affection Chloe had ever seen between the brothers.

But apart from that he seemed his usual cheerful self, chatting with Linda and Amenadiel, flirting casually with the mothers of a couple of the children, listening patiently to Ella and watching the children play as though they were likely to attack him at any time.

Charlie, who was sitting on the carpet tucking into a cookie, squashed the last mouthful into his mouth, crawled over to Linda and pulled himself to his feet, staring across the room to where Lucifer was lounging on a chair, trying to look casual but actually looking tense and uncomfortable at the bustle around him.

"Look, Charlie, it's your uncle Lucifer," Linda said, encouraging Charlie to wave at him. "Say hi to Uncle Lucifer."

"Lulu," the child said clearly, and then set off across the room on an uneven lurch, landing with delight with both crumb-coated hands flat on Lucifer's knees. "Lulu." And he held his arms up to be picked up.

"Charlie!" gasped Linda. "That's his first word! And his first steps! Lucifer, you're honored."

And to her surprise, Lucifer just picked him up and held him for a minute, talking softly to him, before setting him back on the floor with instructions to go chat to the girls.

The party felt like it went on forever, but eventually the guests started to leave, the youngest guests looking ready for bed and the adults not looking much different. Dan surprised Chloe by taking her to one side and offering to take Trixie back with him. "I know she was supposed to stay here tonight, but I thought you might need time to - you know - talk?"

"Thanks, Dan," she said gratefully, and gave Trixie a big hug before sending them on their way.

Linda took her to one side. "Are you okay with this?" she asked her.

Chloe looked over her shoulder to where Lucifer and Amenadiel were deep in conversation. "I think so," she said, although she felt far from certain.

"If you need anything, you know where we are," the therapist assured her.

Charlie seemed reluctant to leave his new-found relative, holding out his arms and crying "Lulu! Lulu!" as Amenadiel tried to distract him with one of his new toys.

And then they left too and it was just Chloe and Lucifer.

"I'm sorry," she said, feeling awkward. "Our apartment flooded, and we needed somewhere to stay, and then Trixie started to learn the piano and we never got around to leaving, but I'll pack my things—"

He shook his head. "And you never sold the place?"

"Of course not. It's yours. And I always knew you'd be back." Her voice faltered. "I hoped you'd be back. Lucifer - I wanted you back so badly. There's just one thing I don't understand - Amenadiel said you were locked in Hell with the demons and no one could get in or out, even you."

Lucifer gave that smile she had missed so much. "The jailer is locked into the prison with the prisoners, but he's the one who has control of the key," he pointed out. "And anyone locking themselves in and not holding the key securely would rather foolish, don't you think?"

And then the tears started to flow and he stepped forward and took her in his arms.

She finally felt like she was where she belonged, and as she sobbed into his chest and he held her close, the agony and sorrow of the past year faded to memory. She didn't know how - or if - this would work. She couldn't know what was going to happen. But she knew that now, by some miracle, they had a chance to find out.

A/N: The idea for this story actually came from a Bones story I wrote over a decade ago, A Real Vacation, where I set out to explore Booth's life and home by having Brennan babysit while he was in hospital. That story is on this site if you're interested. I must reread it and see how (or if!) my writing has changed over the years.

So if I've made you miss Lucifer more than you did before, or feel the pain all over again, then I've achieved my purpose.

Sorry!

Note: this story now forms a prequel to a planned trilogy which tells my version of season 5. The first in the trilogy is called Some People are just Evil.