The day is still young ahead.

Some things I wish I knew before starting my day is to have brought a jacket considering today's weather changed really quick.

It's cold, it's an unusual change of pace for the middle of the year in Los Angeles, but I prefer the cold bite of air compared to the blistering hot sun of Californian summer.

Maze wouldn't stop blowing my phone up, she is reminding me of my own birthday which is less than a couple of hours.

For a demon who is openly committed to presenting herself as one of no emotional capacity that of a human woman I found it sweet how she is consistent in showing it was important for her to remind me of my own birth. I didn't think it was of importance, my day of birth, because technically I died and had a big resurrection on a completely different day.

I silenced my phones notifications, maze hadn't gotten the memo to stop texting while I'm on the job, and I put my phone away inside of my jeans. Lucifer is typing on his phone, face stoic without a single word said to me the entire time, and he puts it to his ear. I can't be the one to say I wasn't doing the exact same as him.

" Aunt Chloe found there were seven access keys connected to several different other employees, who have access to the lab itself too, and thanks to some convincing with myself calling around I found out they had some pretty solid alibis. Which also includes Adrian."

" You don't say."

" Yeah. But what struck me as odd is there's in fact another key card, an old one but it is still being used at the factory." I shrugged. " I guess I shouldn't be surprised. It belongs to Mr. Yates's former business partner, Grace Foley." I looked at the sound stage lucifer and I were entering in, it had professional styling trailers that actors had been renting to use for rehearsing their lines. I'm more distracted by lucifer's troubled frown on his face. " She left the company two years ago to start her own rival pudding company, Heavenly pudding. They're shooting their ad campaign, on stage sixty nine, should be just past the creepy Flasher.." I said all the key words towards Lucifer and I didn't the reaction I wanted.

" Okay what is up with you? Sixty nine? Flasher? You got nothing to say to all of that?"

I snap a hand up to lucifer's chest to get him to stop walking. Under the long, silver, stairs that lead up to the overhanging soundstage runway I get him to take his eyes off the phone once I take possession of it. I scrolled the dozens of calls he'd made to Charlotte.

" Lucifer, are you serious? You and I both know your mother isn't Charlotte any more. You gotta stop being paranoid about this." I reasoned, with him, whilst he snatched it away. " You saw it. I saw it. She is in her own world.. I mean literally in her own universe. I can't be any more literal with what I am saying, Luc."

" You don't know that, Ellie. I don't know that. It could be a ploy of hers and she has miraculously, in some form or another, came back to taunt me! It's never just over with her." He's determined on his word, so much so I was beginning to think it as true myself. However in reality I knew it could be just my need to end this discussion and get on with our investigation. " And not to mention this could be yet another case of father meddling with my life and what he's thrown my way."

" Lucifer." I said, the tone of mine empathetic.

" I thought you were finished letting your father... be the one to control and dictate your life." My feet, moving on their own, went up closer to him. " He isn't here. He isn't around to order or tell you to do anything you don't wanna do. So stop it." My tone is sharper this time, which lucifer is startled by. " I say this as your friend. Your best friend. It shouldn't take me to say all of this when it's right before you."

" You're right. You're right." He seemed affected by the word 'friend' being used. " I did say that, didn't I? Okay. I'm not thinking about dad, not thinking about Charlotte.." He is. I sighed. " It's not working, why is it not working?"

" Maybe you need a.. distraction." I listen to what sounds to be heels clacking behind us and I turn to the noise. A beautiful, curvaceous, woman who is wearing a plain white two piece bikini cane in view. 'Oh here we go. Lucifer noticed her.' I knew the grin on his face a little too much. " I meant it should be the case that will be your distraction!" I groaned, following on his heels to the commercial sound stage, knowing I should have retracted my words.

Entering the auditorium used for the commercial my jaw drops at the set. A lot of the models used are in bikinis, the men were in under trunks that were matching the women's glittery bikinis, on a bunch of fake cotton candy pink clouds that were meant to represent heaven. " Not all accurate but I approve."

Lucifer commends the effort to make heaven look like the set of Katy Perry's California girls music video. My personal favourite of hers in her entire career.

" I don't know if this is another one of my father's doing. I am conflicted but also enjoying it at the same time." Oh yeah this is so god's doing.

" No. No! I need more pudding. More pudding! I can't sell the pudding if i can't see the pudding!" Came a irritated voice said by an woman in blue, I am making the assumption she is the one we're here to question Grace Foley, directing her staff to do a better take of the pudding and not all the pretty women modelling. " I want more pudding in, what's her name, blondies mouth. I don't care if she can't breathe! Go, now!" Wow. I thought my aunt was bossy, when I was younger, Grace is one of the bossiest ladies I've seen.

" Miss Foley?"

Grace did a sharp turn and my eyes blinked, fast, at her accusing finger directed at me.

" You. Why are you still in clothes? And you as well? This is a joke right?"

I choked on air and stutter. Did she.. think I am one of these models? And lucifer too? I am flattered she thinks I could be a model. Not that I have any problem with thinking I could be one. I could. I showed my detective badge and it clicked on her face who she is telling orders to.

" LAPD. My partner and I have some questions to ask you."

There was a break call made by grace, giving the models a chance to reapply their own masks up at the numerous of vanity stations, I still had to recover from graces assumption I am a model for her.

" Before you began heavenly pudding, how well did you know mister fisher? Were you two on good terms before and after you left?" I asked, hoping to get some intel on her history with Mr Yates employees, bringing my notebook out with the questions I have written for her. " Any chance there might've been bad blood?"

" Simon? I've been trying to poach that genius ever since I started my own company."

Grace, her phone in her hand facing away from us continues to buzz with insistence she check it but she didn't once, answered. " Then what? You got tired of him rejecting you, so you snuck into his lab and licked the pudding off... his beautiful.. bod.." Lucifer trailed off, his signature flirtatious grin on his stubbed bearded features, following a model who reciprocated the flirtation waving her fingers. He saw my face and corrected himself to focus back on the case. " Right. Sorry. Sorry."

" You think I killed him?"

" Vengeance, corporate sabotage, to name a few. I have heard cases like these happen, before, and it wouldn't be the first to happen considering that I know the feeling is of being a woman in the world of men related industries." I stated, with genuine respect for grace as it isn't easy for us women to be taken seriously in male dominated businesses, sighing. " It makes sense. for you to do that, Miss Foley."

" Much as I appreciate the sovereignty, Sweetie, I didn't kill him. I didn't kill Simon. Even if I did, it seems to me that you'd think I'd admit to killing him. I am not that dumb, sweetheart. Especially without my lawyer present." Grace admitted, her eyes never leaving mine to look away once, and I could hear her voice getting stronger. " Speaking of, let's get her down here, shall we?"

She said to me. I didn't want to sick lucifer on her but more than anything we needed to get answers. I slap a hand to Lucifer, I didn't need to look around at him to know he's checking out the model he had seen before, and he snapped both of his eyes onto me. " Do it." He popped a brow.

" Find out what Grace desires. That way we can know what she knows before her lawyer gets here and we don't have the time for that. So, use that gift of yours. Please, Luc."

" That's all you had to say, Darling. Of course."

I cleared my throat, while allowing Lucifer to do what he does the best, and carefully avoid any of his steps giving him the space he needs. " What.. are you doing? Haven't you heard of any personal space?" Grace rushed out, baffled as to why he is invading the space she stood in, and then just like everyone who meets Lucifer she couldn't resist to stare at him.

" You don't want to call that lawyer of yours, hm? Tell me, Miss Foley, what is it that you truely do desire. More than anything?"

" I... want to stop shooting this exploitative piece of garbage."

" Garbage? This? It's not garbage. It's art!"

Exclaimed a surprised Lucifer, motioning around to the flashy blue and purple lighting of the set of the commercial, and grace seemed perturbed by the way she told her admission and true feelings. " Well, despite the unwelcome reminder of dad and my wings, I've never wanted pudding more in my life!" Correction. He wanted to watch all of these attractive women and men eat pudding half naked.

" Exactly, because we're selling sex, which has... which has absolutely nothing to do with pudding! To distract people from the fact that my pudding tastes like crap."

" Ooh, that's an odd choice of flavours."

" To me it sounds like that is a completely valid.. reason to sneak into Mr. Yates factory, enter the lab, and steal the secret formula to make yours a better one and to sell it. Did Simon get in your way and that is why you killed him?"

" I didn't need to steal their recipe." Grace further goes on to say. " Simon offered to sell it, to me, three days ago. But before I could agree to his terms, he was murdered and not by me." She says looking between Lucifer then to me.

" More than anyone, I needed Simon alive."

Could this case get more and more confusing?

~•~

I manage to have found time to visit doctor Linda at her office. Aunt Chloe had taken over the case, getting up to speed with the details was easy for her to understand thanks to me writing notes on the case, and I started to realise I have lacked the time for my own personal life. That first being my sessions with Linda. I called her ahead of time to give her some preparation, she had already been given a free space to work since a cancellation of one of patients appointments came an hour or two before I made the call, and she greeted me at her door welcoming me inside of her office.

" Ellie, I'm so glad we could have a day to really talk, again! It feels like it's been months since we last got to have a meeting like this." Linda states, bringing me in a hug I personally felt relieved to have, and accepted how Linda rubbed my back. I smiled on the surface of her shoulder. " You must have a lot of new topics you want to discuss, with me, if you have made the time in your life coming back here." She offered her hand to the couch, as to say 'Sit down', which I sat on crossing my legs.

" I have quite the life update to make yes."

I say, trying to put on a smile to convince Linda but she clocked it straight off. I couldn't fake a smile well in my life. She straightened her lips. I Listen to the sound of sigh. " I know that smile, Ellie. In the time I've known you, you have not always been the greatest at hiding, nor faking, a smile." Legs crossing, over themselves, Linda did a minimal effort of keeping her pointed stare off of me. Her eyes are soft.

" What is going on?"

What hasn't been happening in my life? I wanted to say. " Well, for starters, I am now a detective. I passed my exam."

She did a tiny clap applauding me of my new status. A proud smile washed over her.

" But... things are not good, at the station. Or with Lucifer." She motioned for me to continue. I gnawed on my inner lip.

" First he is admitting to not wanting to stay away, from me, saying how he doesn't want to leave me alone. Then he back tracks on those statements and continues to hurt me by reiterating he isn't ready to commit those things he said. it's incredibly frustrating for me having to see him, every day, flirt with these beautiful women."

I sighed, slouching my head to the coffee table, lining my eyes to the glass of the table itself.

" Then the newest lieutenant entered the picture. Marcus Pierce. He.. is difficult to understand but recently we were meant to go on a date.."

" Wait a minute? A date with your boss? Isn't that crossing a professional line that could jeopardise your career if it's goes wrong?"

Linda questioned, genuine concern conveyed in her eyes behind her glasses, and wrote a note on my file.

" Not that I am to judge, cause you know I slept with Lucifer.. as you may know. But I'm worried the implement of conflict will intercept your job, as a recent and newly promoted detective, Ellie."

" The date didn't end up happening, for a second time, considering this job went wrong and we're still considering a third chance of going on that date but it feels like there is... something that is.. intervening with that." I confessed, thinking back to the night Jerry BlackCrow shot at Pierce, and I immediately felt that resurgence of guilt eating at my conscious. " Marcus saved me, from being shot at, even though I would have survived since the bullet would have not penetrated my skin and it would've bounced off me but Marcus.. pushed me away. Like I was still human. It was weird."

" How does that make you feel?"

" How does what make me feel? I'm confused."

" Mr Pierce being the one to put his focus on you. And you only?" Linda asked, simple as can be.

" You express your open frustration, with your own annoyance and vexation, with Lucifer being the one to flirt with the women around him that I can see it's bothering you more than anything."

It dawned on me just how much I am actively, and idiotically, trying to get lucifer to see me.

" You're unintentionally allowing your self at getting Lucifer to see you. Meaning your own conscious is allowing that hurt, your feeling about Lucifer, to manifest in a way you.. how should I say it? In a way it's made you try to get Lucifer to really.. to really see you."

I sit back, leaning into the sofa I am sat on, and I frown. I didn't think of it like that. It makes sense to me. " Think of it this way, Ellie."

Linda goes on to say.

" Is this a healthy mind set to allow your self to be in? When it's obvious, to us both, that if Lucifer continues to unintentionally, or if it be the other way around in this situation, push you away and in the arms of Pierce.. wouldn't you'd be happier with someone that puts you first than to try and be with someone that won't do that?"

I deeply inhale. She had a point. A sound of sighs leave her lipstick painted lips.

" Do you possibly.. think the reason why you.."

She placed down her note pad, coming over to me which she only did if she wanted go off the record and talk to me as my friend and not my therapist, situating herself on my left.

Hand being taken in hers she grasps with a tight squeeze.

" Feel This strongly... is because, somewhere inside of you, you felt guilty about.. I don't know.. lucifer potentially being hurt by you being happy with someone else knowing you two have that connection goddess mentioned?"

It startled me when Linda brought the topic of how the goddess told of me being lucifer's mate.

" Is that the reason? Ellie."

" I.." I didn't think of it in that perspective.

" Am.. not sure, Linda. I'm not entirely certain of how I should feel these days. It's so confusing for me."

" From my understanding, Ellie." She said, with a hand still in mine acting as a supportive median, staring at my shoulder Jimmy barnes shot which I subconsciously start to roll.

" It seems you have developed this kind of guilt. That you think you.. owe Lucifer for saving your life. Like you explain to me last year. It was Lucifer wasn't it? You said he told you he prayed to his father, for a miracle, to save you and goodness me I couldn't believe it myself. He did. He made you an angel."

She palmed my face, tentative with her touch on my cheek, and her mouth turned into a frown as she shook her head. " You don't owe him, Ellie. I am one hundred percent certain that Lucifer will share the sentiment with me. No, I know he does. You aren't indebted to him, Elisabetta."

You aren't indebted to him. You aren't indebted to him. Repeated like a sound of a broken record. I didn't even realise how I was acting, would have come across as me feeling guilty about me being saved and made an immortal. Now it's making a lot of sense I didn't want to understand before.

" That is all I have for time for today." Linda says. " But... I have something I need to give you." She goes ahead and stands up, going around back to her desk, pulling out a small wrapped present for me. " Happy birthday, Ellie. Though I don't know if you technically still do celebrate it since you've stopped aging completely. Like a normal human does. But I got this for you, anyway."

I smiled, whilst accepting my gift, unwrapping it. Linda sat back down as I lose total control of my gasp seeing a certificate. " Congratulations. You have graduated from therapy with flying colours. You don't need me, anymore, and I am happy in the results I've been seeing." She gave another, more personal, smaller mystery box for me to open.

" Now this is your actual present. Open it."

I unwrap the ribbon, keeping it safe in my lap to take it back home to incorporate it with one of my collection of trinkets, and inside the plastic is a glass pendant which resembles angel wings. My confusion must've been visible as Linda takes it.

" I chose this specifically 'cause it reminded me of you. More or so both metaphorical and literal." She takes it out of it's safe kept velvet casing. " It represents you growing, and spreading out your wings, to fly forward into a better version of you."

That is so thoughtful. I started to tear up, never did I think I would cry over an angel related gift but here I am crying. " Thank you, Linda." I shift to sit more towards Linda and rested my head on her shoulder.

" Thank you."

~•~

I didn't think I would be less excited to celebrate my birthday than I am. But exhaustion from the day of talking about my feelings to dealing with a trailblazer of a confession that Yates, Foley and a friend of theirs that was hired were all held with the responsibility of scaring Simon turned out he ended committing suicide to expose the truth. He wanted everyone to see how poisonous both sides were making their puddings.

Home made more sense to me than to go all the way back to the station.

I opened the door, of my house, and clicked the light on seeing everyone I knew exclaim 'surprise!', My mouth drops. They threw a surprise party? For me? Trixie came up and began running at me for me to catch her and I do. Luka barked, erratically, to my presence. He continued to jump on me as I giggled.

" It's your birthday, Betty! Guess what I made you for your birthday?! Can you guess what I did? I will give you a clue! It's a picture!"

She said, with her sweet oblivious self giving away the surprise she didn't realise she told me, and she continued to hold onto me. Mom, uncle Dan, and my dad took each turns of coming up to me as my heart began to feel more fuller. Feeling their love.

" Happy birthday, Honey. You didn't think we'd forget your birthday? Did you?" Uncle dan said, a party related hat on his head supported on a poor construed piece of string, which I shook my head. " Good. 'Cause this party was hard to keep a little secret. I wanted to tell you but that would have defeated the purpose of a surprise party."

" Daddy said we can open presents! Can we? Can we open presents?"

Trixie asked, her excitement infectious as my aunt scowls but not seriously to Trixie being the one to ask if we could open my gifts that were lined on the island a few steps in front of me, and my aunt takes Trixie. " Those are your sisters, not yours, monkey! You gotta wait until it's your day to open gifts. Come on. Let's not crowd her." My aunt says, with a soft smile directed at me, and I feel dad offer me a hug which I lean into without a doubt of worry. I watch my aunt and uncle start talking about Trixie's bed time routine, how aunt Chloe allowed her to stay up later than she would have let her, as dad looked painfully at my aunt.

" Some of these days I wish things would go back to the way they were supposed to. You know? I'd have my sister and brother in law back."

" It's easier this way, Dad." I admit. " It's easier. I don't think aunt Chloe is ready for our world."

Three knocks came at the door. Dad let's go of me so I could answer it, while he goes back to talking and having his conversation with Ella who's quite a little tipsy, and I open the door to find Lucifer.

I am glad he is here but at the same time all of the words doctor Linda said came rushing back up to the surface. Lucifer opened his arms, hugging me tight. I reluctantly put a hand on his shoulder. " Happy birthday, Darling! You are Twenty! How does being one year older feel now?"

I chuckled. " I don't feel older. If that is any, and or, correlation."

I opened the door wider, to allow Lucifer to walk right in, and he passes me an over exaggerative in size box which contains god knows what inside of it. He must've hidden it in the bushes. I laughed, at how ridiculously huge the gift packaging is. My uncle stopped dead in his tracks, to scowl at the sheer size of the gift box is, and I pretend to have some struggles holding it as he helped me place it down.

" Lucifer. Please pray tell, did you buy the entire stock to every single store of LA in one big box? Because what could possibly be this large?"

" That is what a surprise is for, Daniel. I can't tell, nor do I want to disclose, what I did get for her. I do however wanna say it connects to what we, in fact, discuss a few days ago at the station!"

I couldn't help smile at how much uncle began to argue about the principle of equality in gift giving and when too much is too much. Rebecca, with a drink in hand, happily pranced up and she grins. " Happy birthday, El. I saved you a spot, next to me, on the couch. Come on." She tugged on me to follow her.

'Maybe I can stay up for a few more hours.'

JASMINE SPEAKS;

I thought I would add in a few important scenes that will play an important part in Ellie's development as a character.

She no longer needs to see Linda, which is a good step forward on her path of her self discovery as a new girl and a new angel. That is one of the reasons why I say she won't need to see Linda as it will also be pivotal for both lucifer and Ellie. If that makes sense.

What did you think of this chapter? How did you like Ellie visiting Linda again?

Her perspective of Lucifer's place in Ellie's life?