THE DAY WAS fading into a darkening evening as Izzy stood at the parking lot of the Ignacia hotel, the red and blue of the police cars illuminating the peaceful area. Most of the commotion had gone down after Chloe had convinced Kimo to put down the gun by explaining how she had a daughter at home and really wanted to see her again, and that she had been in a car accident — in the process the detective also admitted that despite her claims that it wasn't a big deal, she had been truly freaked out by it. And that was why Izzy was still sticking around, even if she had been cleared to return to the station to finish off the paperwork that the day's events had caused. She wanted to talk to Chloe, and as the detective wrapped everything up indoors, Isadora was leaning against one of the police cars — which, admittedly, looked pretty cool — with her arms crossed over her chest and her eyes scanning the surroundings constantly.

When Detective Decker eventually stepped through the entrance of the hotel, Lucifer behind her, Izzy pushed herself off of the vehicle and sighed happily, a careful smile taking place on her lips once she could place a gentle hand on Chloe's arm. "Hey, how are you doing?", the deputy's eyes were sympathetic and worried, and it made Chloe look at her in gratitude while reassuring she was okay. "Listen, if you ever wanna talk, or even if you don't want to but you gotta, then I'm just one call away, okay? Like I said on girls' night, I got your back. All that", Izzy inhaled, referring to the things Chloe had said to Kimo, "is important and I won't ever mind listening to you."

With a nod, Chloe squeezed Isadora's hand softly. "Thank you, really. It means a lot. And, you know, right back at ya", the woman promised, and at those words, Izzy kind of realized that she, too, had been bottling up a lot lately. Excluding a few chats with Diane at home, she hadn't really unloaded all the emotional baggage in a while, and maybe it was getting to her a little bit. Maybe, she was sort of bad about talking about her own stuff, instead, she just wanted to take care of others — and while that sounded like a sweet thing, one way or another, it would crack her in half. "Okay, uh, do you wanna ride with me or Lucifer or...?", Chloe then turned over to Lucifer, who had been silently standing between the two women so far, and both of them instantly lifted their eyebrows in response.

"Oh, she'll be right with you, detective. I think I should have a word with her before you leave, though", Lucifer was the one to answer Chloe's question, and with that, the blonde parted from the two with a suppressed smile, leaving the Devil alone with his... advisor.

Once Chloe was out of sight, Izzy twirled around to face Lucifer, her eyes curiously inspecting him. "So. Angel brother didn't pan out?", she frowned, making Lucifer chuckle with her comment. "What's that like, huh? Does he have the wings, halo, all that? What about you? Horns? Superpowers like Maze?", a litany of questions poured from her as she eyed Lucifer, who, frankly, was a tad amused by the woman's attempt to solve the whole thing. Nevertheless, he did appreciate the effort — whereas many people shrugged it off as insanity, method acting or using metaphors to hide the true nature of his issues, Izzy took the time to dig deeper. She didn't put labels on Lucifer without first seeing things from his point of view, and that was refreshing.

"No halo, no horns", he lifted his hands up in defeat, but when he didn't deny the wings, Izzy's eyes flew wider. Laughing, Lucifer continued, "I don't have superpowers and neither does Mazikeen, though I am well-versed in the worlds of desire, which you may have noticed", gesturing proudly at his tall frame, making Izzy shake her head and glance down while grinning. "But, it's been a long day, Ms. Holt. And it is yet to end. I must still handle Uriel since my angel brother seems to be lacking on the angel department as of late. Afterwards, though, I'd be more than happy to have a drink with you at Lux and tell you all about it, and whatever you'd like to know", Lucifer's lips curved up into a smile that seemed quite genuine, forcing the same kind of joy onto Izzy's features as she thought about the offer.

Yet, she ended up declining.

"Howzabout, we catch up tomorrow instead? It has been a long day. Or week, really", she suggested, even if she did have a lot of questions, but there would be time for all that later. As much as she wanted to know how many angel brothers Lucifer really had, if she could have bumped into any on the streets — or if the tv shows she had seen them in were accurate at all — and as much as she longed to meet Goddess herself, she no longer tried to hunt for some specific truth. Because, as confusing and complicated as all this sounded, it wasn't a case for her to crack — it was Lucifer's truth, and even if she couldn't firmly believe in it with 100% of conviction, she did believe in him, and for that reason, she saw no reason in investigating the matter further. If he'd want to open up about it someday, she'd be more than happy to listen, but for now, she was done probing his personal life.

Nodding, Lucifer gave her an intrigued gaze, before deciding to make an assumption of his own. "It has. And, albeit I am no expert when it comes to humans and their many, many emotions... Are you sure this hasn't been a way for you to, ehh, distract yourself? I believe you have also been through a lot, lately", the man leaned towards Isadora, his eyes lacking the usual flirt and coyness in them, and his smile melted into an expression of what resembled threateningly concern. It seemed that even if Lucifer wasn't an expert in human emotions, he had had his fair share of practice and it was paying off.

"Yeah", Izzy let out a heavy breath, rolling her slipping sleeves back up to relieve the L.A heat. "I'll admit. Maybe a little bit. Maybe I thought that if you really are the Devil and there are powers greater than all of us, you'd have some magic answer. But I guess there's nothing more to it other than that sometimes, life just sucks, but we can always get back up and appreciate the good moments more", she shrugged, her eyes locking with Lucifer once she lifted her stare from the ground again. "I'm glad Chloe is safe, though", Isadora added one last thing, and with a soft smile, Lucifer agreed.

"As am I, though that is precisely why I should go and find Uriel, to ensure it stays that way", he pulled his hands out of his pockets then, twirling the keys to his Corvette. "Ms. Holt—Izzy, I know that you care about Benjamin a great deal and worried about him, but rest assured, so do I. Trust me, he will be alright", Lucifer gave her a comforting look, before stepping away, but he didn't have the time when he had already turned back around. "Oh, and as for powers greater than all of us, I believe there are very few greater than you and your... unlimited care", the man reassured, and with that, he finally left the parking lot.

And maybe he had a point, about Izzy caring for others, but on the other hand, maybe Chloe had a point too. About needing to let others care too, and with that in mind, Izzy walked over to the detective's car, ready to return to the precinct but also intending to talk to someone later tonight.

—————

"OH, HIYA, BUDDY!" Izzy's voice was filled with honey so sickly sweet that anyone that wasn't Thor would have for sure cringed, but that was the last thing in the woman's mind as she knelt down to her eager dog with a big grin on her face. A long night of paperwork behind her, she was finally returning home, and as she proceeded to rub the impatiently whining Cocker Spaniel's tummy as a proper greeting, Diane appeared from the kitchen and smiled at the heartwarming sight. "Hi, mom", Izzy made sure to greet her as well, and she responded by casually waving her hand before disappearing back to the kitchen to continue washing the dishes.

Some people were always insistent on moving out on their own as soon as possible, but moments like these reminded Izzy of why she had never been one of those — she loved coming to the candlelit house, some movie playing on TV while her dog rolled around on the couch as if he was still a puppy, and her mom offered some dinner. It wasn't that she wasn't mature or responsible enough to move out, but more so that she wanted to appreciate these little things more. With her relationship with her father so estranged, she couldn't afford to lose the bond with Diane as well, so instead, she wanted to take care of her. Bringing people home had barely been an issue for her, as she had concentrated on her studies more than her social life, but with Diane sleeping on the other side of the large, modern house, there wasn't particularly a lack of privacy either.

Maybe one day she'd move out, but for now, this was the little slice of Heaven that she wouldn't exchange for another.

After settling in, Izzy sat by the dining table, munching on the homemade pizza Diane had prepared while Thor patiently rested atop her feet, waiting for something to totally accidentally drop from above. She held her phone in her hand, nervously clenching and unclenching her other hand as she stared at the number on the screen — Maze's, one that she desperately wanted to call, but it felt more difficult than ever before. Admittedly, maybe they weren't in an ideal situation and things had ended awkwardly last time, but they had agreed to be friends, right? They were friends. And all this time, friends was what they had been, nothing more. So why did it feel so nerve-wracking to make the call and ask how she was doing?

"I can hear you overthinking, sweetie", Diane quipped from the living room, "remember to ask yourself if it's really something worth worrying about", an important reminder that usually helped Izzy through moments of spiking anxiety. Questioning it was the key.

Smiling up at Diane as she walked past her, Izzy nodded. "Thanks, mom", she sighed, and after saying their good nights, the eldest Holt retreated into her bedroom to call it a night. In return, Izzy decided to call something else, and with the sudden surge of confidence soaring in her chest, she picked up the phone and drew a deep inhale while listening to the torturous beeps. Nothing. No response ever came, and as much as Izzy would have liked to give up, she decided to give it another try, yearning for Mazikeen's voice and sassy jabs, but instead, she was met with buzzing silence.

And when Izzy eventually climbed into her bed with Thor by her side, she tried to remind herself that Maze was a busy woman, what with finding a new home and helping Lucifer — it wasn't personal. But as she closed her eyes and felt the weight in her chest, she feared that it was.

Nonetheless, she managed to get a good night's rest — so good that waking up felt more of a chore than usually — and as the previous case was being wrapped up at the precinct, a new one was thrown onto Detective Decker's lap soon enough. As per usual, Dan and his protege were called onto the scene, with the latter worrying about the man due to the events of, well, the whole week, while simultaneously stifling a yawn.

"If there's something dark and macabre, then it's a death at a wedding. Or more accurately, a murder at a wedding", Izzy frowned as she gazed upon the pale corpse of a zombie bride. "At least it fits the theme", she sighed sadly, and both Chloe and Dan nodded in agreement, all three of them unhappy to witness such as tragic sight. As Chloe began to talk about the details of what had happened, Izzy let her eyes wander across the surroundings, on the look for anything that would stand out, but also deep in thought regarding Mazikeen.

Had she scared her off? But why would friendship intimidate Maze? Did it have something do with the whole demon thing? Should she ask Lucifer? Where was Lucifer? Or had Maze been hoping for something more to happen between them, and instead of being too forward, Izzy had been too shy?

"Everything okay, Izzy?", Dan nudged the deputy with his elbow, and jumping back to the matter at hand, Isadora parted her lips and glanced at the man while nodding vigorously.

"Oh, yeah", she cleared her throat, disappointed that she had become such a dreamer on the job. "It's just—it's nothing, really. I tried to call Maze yesterday and she wouldn't pick up, which is, uh, a first. But she was probably just busy, so", Izzy ranted, waving her hand in the air as she rambled on, and giving her a sympathetic purse of her lips, Chloe nodded.

"Oh. Well, I saw her just this morning, she was trying to set up a sex swing in our living room if you can imagine. But I'm sure she'll call you when she has the time", the detective reassured, and chuckling, Izzy directed a look at her fidgety feet before turning back to Chloe, who still remained on one knee by the dramatically flayed body of the bride.

"I can, actually. You're really going through with this roommate thing, huh?", Isadora wondered curiously, and concluding from the look that took place on Chloe's face, she couldn't really believe it either. It was a somewhat amusing idea to picture — Maze and her many weapons and leather clothes mixed in with crayons and Pop-Tarts. Of course, what was to stop supernatural beings from enjoying Pop-Tarts?

Laughing, Chloe nodded to confirm that it wasn't just Izzy's imagination, but before she moved back to the case, she added one more thing. "Hey, I'm sure it's nothing. You know how she is. But if you'd like some company tonight, I could take you to The Paddock?", she proposed, and with eyebrows knitted together in confusion, Isadora looked up from the notepad she had flicked open.

"The Paddock?"

Finally, Dan joined the conversation again, a taunting grin on his lips as he gestured towards his ex-wife. "It's a cop bar. Used to be Chloe's least favorite place", he clarified while placing both hands on his hips, and snorting at the comment, Izzy turned to Detective Decker for confirmation, only to spot the woman giving Dan a fake smile, perfected with a teasing glare.

"Sure, sounds fun", Izzy agreed, before giving Dan's shoulder a gentle punch. "You should come too, you know", she pouted, still concerned that the man was crying himself to sleep every night, plagued by the absence of his little brother. However, much to her relief, the smile Dan gave to her wasn't as troubled as it had been yesterday, if anything it seemed rather sincere, surprising Izzy with delight and relief.

"No, it's fine, we can go another time. Also, Benji came home this morning, so—", Dan began, but Izzy had interjected way before he could even dream of finishing his sentence.

"Really? Oh my God!", she clapped her hands together, but her loud cheers were instantly frowned upon amongst the grieving loved ones of the deceased, and cringing at her lack of discretion, Izzy gave the people around her an apologetic look. But right after, she turned back to Chloe and Dan with a wide smile and a quieter voice. "Hey, that's great— Wait, is that Lucifer?", Isadora continued, but her train of thought took a turn when she spotted a disheveled figure stumbling into the crime scene, shirt untucked and unbuttoned and arms tangled with the yellow tape.

Groaning, Chloe stood up from the ground and gave her two friends a tired look. "I'll go handle this", she promised, and as Izzy looked at Lucifer, who went after the wedding cake with wobbly steps, she figured that whatever had gone down with Uriel, hadn't ended well.

Add that to the pile of stuff she was already worried about, and it was safe to say that it was going to be a long day.

»»»

okay first of all, thank you for 10k!! i know updates on this book have been really irregular and at times the plot seems to drag on, but if you've stuck around, you are amazing and i truly appreciate it (:

this chapter was kinda all over the place but?? i have some things that i'm really excited to write, and i'm also planning another book that would feature izzy & benji, but as more minor characters while the main ones would be two whole new ocs. it's still a bit of a mess but i'd really like to write that so i suddenly have a new motivation to finish this one!! i also hid sneaky little references in this chapter (one for an old lucifer fic actually) that probably don't stand out right now but the foreshadowing is there ((:

i'm already rambling but i also feel the need to point out that the part i've least prepared for in this book is what's it like to be a cop?? other than watching numerous cop shows i really don't have any experience + i also started this fic in the belief that "deputy" is the same thing as "police officer", but i'm still not sure if that's the case — anyway the point is, i'm sorry if there are any terrible inaccuracies, i'm relying completely on what i've found on the internet / tv shows!

thank you for reading 🖤✨