(Untitled)

[necessary_child]

Sam's out the back, sitting on a rock so large it's practically a boulder and feeding one of the giant squid.

Moody Lucifer is moody; minimalist mun is minimal, and semi-plotlocked post is semi-plotlocked. Ping at herworldsonfire on AIM if you want a thread, though.

[The tiny tag that could: Cal Chandler, Charles Monroe, The Pilot.]

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[isaysimplewords]

Cal is finishing his daily run when he spots Sam. He veers over and drops down next to him, because Cal is one of those people who isn't so good at picking up on exactly how open to company someone might or might not be.

"Hi." He's breathless enough to need to keep it to a few syllables at a time, though not as wrecked as last time he encountered Sam after a run. This one he just kept to the one lap.

[necessary_child]

Luckily for Cal he's, well, Cal, so Sam doesn't really mind.

"Hey." He throws a crust of bread neatly into the reach of a waiting tentacle.

[isaysimplewords]

Cal takes a couple more breaths before he says,

"Scared the crap out of me. First time I saw one of those things. Just giant tentacle. Outta nowhere. Fwoosh." He makes the appropriate gesture to accompany the sound effect.

He doesn't mention the part where he kind of fell over. Because he's out of breath and it would be a long sentence, that's why.

[necessary_child]

Of course that's why. Were he to know, Sam would never suspect otherwise. Cal is brave like tadpole!

He chuckles. "There's two in there, I think. Possibly three counting Puck's kid. Maybe."

It's Puck, after all. Some things aren't meant to be understood.

[isaysimplewords]

Cal handles surprises poorly. Especially loud dramatic ones that pop out of the lake when he is just minding his own business, trying to complete his lap without having heart failure.

"Puck's - ? Okay." Milliways. "So fucking glad this got easier. Used to really suck." His breathing is already slowing down. He's going to have to start running longer soon if he wants to keep any kind of challenge in his exercise.

[necessary_child]

"As in the fairy, yes. He's fun."

Sam headtilts at him. "The running?"

[isaysimplewords]

"Yeah." Cal laughs a little. "The first time, I think if I could've died, I would've. And that was Fira going easy on me. We only went halfway around. Lot easier since the nanogenes, though. They cleaned me right up." He rotates one of his wrists, feeling the unmarked skin of his arm rub against the inside of his sleeve. "Turns out heavy drug use is bad for you," he says lightly. "Who knew?"

And then, because mentioning Esfir reminded him and because that particular aspect of his past still isn't a comfortable topic for him, he says, "Oh, I, uh, met another Lucifer. The female one."

It's not directly about Sam, so he figures it's okay.

[necessary_child]

"Funny, that," Sam remarks, reaching out to touch Cal's wrist briefly.

Eyebrow raise. "I thought Lucy had vanished. Or is this another one?"

[isaysimplewords]

Cal blinks. Another one? Of course.

"I don't know," he says. "She didn't really give me a name. Just called herself the Devil. . . . which, I suppose, is her name, so - nevermind."

Had the argument about timing been a little less intense (and a little longer ago), Cal would have followed that up with see you notice how she did that right away? Just came right out with it? I thought that was interesting. But it wasn't, and it's still sensitive, so he doesn't.

[necessary_child]

...That was a very, very good idea, unless Cal is looking for a serious fight.

Because really. No.

Sam's eyebrows go a little higher. "Definitely not Lucy, then. Just because you've been called you something doesn't make it your name."

[isaysimplewords]

Cal's met his quota on those for the decade, thanks.

Cal shrugs. "If she's using it to introduce herself, then it probably is, as far as she's concerned. If she wanted to be called something else, she would have used that."

Cal understands about the important of names maybe a little more than some. It comes with being born into the Chandler family.

[necessary_child]

"Like I said: clearly not Lucy. Lucy was pretty clear on what she wanted to be called, too."

He settles back a little, looking upwards. "There's a lot of names I'll accept, but 'the devil' isn't one of them."

Unless he wants it. Unless he needs it, because Sam is ever of a practical turn of mind.

[isaysimplewords]

"Then it's not yours," Cal says simply.

He knows that's not true. He got enough tabloid ink to know all about getting stuck with names you don't want. But sometimes it's true anyway.

He sits in silence for a moment, helping himself to a bread crust or two to toss to the squid.

Eventually, he says,

"I don't really get how this whole thing works. I mean, the whole - alternate universe twin? Thing? Some people have 'em, some people don't, you have a bunch, and you're the only one whose ones are sort of the same. Enzo's is the Internet, and mine . . ." He rubs his forehead. "Mine fights aliens," he mutters. Then, back to his regular tone: "Is this another thing I should just give up on right now?"

[necessary_child]

"I'm not the only one. There's other Michaels and Gabriels, too. Probably some others: some stories seem to cross the boundaries. But I don't think it follows much logic, no," Sam answers thoughtfully.

"And Jack fights aliens, yeah." He slides a glance at Cal.

Dryly, "He's also an over-the-top, overly loud, overly confident conman with a bigger ego than I could ever dream of achieving."

[isaysimplewords]

Cal is distracted for a second, thinking of the woman named Michael he greeted a little while back, odd in so many small, undefinable ways that had nothing to do with her name.

Or so he'd thought at the time.

He's not clear, exactly, on who Michael is in the scheme of things, but if there can be a female Lucifer . . . ?

He sets that aside as Sam keeps talking, then snorts.

"See, now you're just making things up. A bigger ego than yours would - make stars collapse or something."

He's cooling down enough from the run now to feel the chill of the weather. He doesn't wear his winter jacket running, since it would get unbearably hot within ten minutes, but the running suit he does have isn't warm enough for sitting still. He folds his arms tightly against his chest to try to keep the cold out for a few more minutes.

[necessary_child]

Sam slides an arm around him.

"That's why he keeps on dramatically saving the world and things. His ego is the reason it's in danger."

And ain't that the truth of it.