#Halloween Deckerstar Exchange

[flutterflap]

Happy Halloween to my Deckerstar Trick or Devil Exchange giftee, @magicwithcolors! This is chapter 1 of 2, maaaaaaybe 3 (I’m not sure yet. Right now it’s looking like 2.) I was hoping to have the whole thing done for today, but real life happened (as it does). It’s continuing to happen, so I don’t want to make promises about when the next chapter will be up, but it’s in the works! I’m aiming for 2 weeks or less. :)

Summary: Chloe hadn’t been planning to go to Lux’s Halloween party. For one thing, it was a murder mystery party, something she had a hard and fast rule against. She solved real crimes for a living, and didn’t need to spend her free time solving imaginary ones. For another, she usually avoided going out on Halloween; the parties got a little too crazy a little too fast for her taste. And then there was the fact that the host of this particular party had been acting like a grade-A jerk for the last few weeks.

My prompt was “melodramatic.”

[lucks-eterna]

Walk Away- The Script x Deckerstar

This is my TDN’s Incredible Gift Exchange present for @lowritesthings

[lowritesthings]

Hello, it is I, your Deckerstar Network Halloween gift exchange partner. I was just wondering if you had any preference for what gift you would like to receive. I can make you a gif set, a playlist with a mood board or write you a short fan fic. Let me know!

It’s tough to pick! Either a gif set or a fan fic would be wonderful, whichever you’re more inspired to create. Thank you so much!

[pellaaearien]

Chapters: 3/3 Fandom: Lucifer (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar, Chloe Decker & Trixie Decker & Lucifer Morningstar, Chloe Decker & Mazikeen, Linda Martin/Mazikeen (implied), Minor Past Chloe Decker/Marcus Pierce Characters: Chloe Decker, Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV), Trixie Decker, Mazikeen (Lucifer TV), Linda Martin (Lucifer TV), Amenadiel (Lucifer TV) Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Supernatural Elements, Abduction, Witchcraft, Hell, BAMF Chloe Decker, Eventual Happy Ending, Post-Season/Series 03, Chloe Decker knows, TDN's 2018 Hell-oween Exchange, Chloe Decker to the Rescue, Making Sense of Season 3, Season 3 as a Hell Loop, Hellhounds Summary:

A fun day out at a haunted house turns to true horror when Lucifer mysteriously vanishes. To find him, Chloe must attempt a dangerous journey to the unknown - and that's just the beginning. She soon discovers that their combined fates rest in the hands of a Devil who doesn't want to be saved.

[omgluciferlover]

Happy (late) Halloween @pellaaearien ! 

[eastwesthomeisbest]

"Quintessential Deckerstar"

"Dance in Heaven"

------------------------------------

Deckerstar Network Helloween Exchange

A bonus gift to @lucks-eterna

(something away from the prompt)

Happy Halloween!

[telesticmajesty]

HEY omfg I'm sorry I think tumblr ate a message plus I'm delayed. this is your deckerstar anon dashing in like a week before Halloween, how's it going? also my prompts were a bit very random, as in beach and zombie and silver. do you have any ideas? I mostly draw but am a photoshop master as well. I have decent music taste, can't write fiction unfortunately :[

Hi! Nice to meet you!! Oh, that’s okay, don’t worry about it! I’m gonna make a confession, I also completely forgot the DeckerStar Halloween exchange… I just got home and I’ve had a lot to do so it completely slipped my mind, so I hope I have enough time to do something for it myself! I’m pretty okay other than that, though, thanks! 

Regarding the ideas… Hmm… Let me think… Perhaps you could do something to do with the beach kiss or Lucifer burning his wings? Perhaps you could have Lucifer burning his wings and Chloe lingering in the background? Or Silver perhaps could have something else to do with the wings? You could draw something perhaps to do with the last episode of season 3, with Lucifer protecting Chloe with his wings, and they shine silver? I can’t really think of anything to do with zombie… Maybe Chloe’s on a murder case to do with a drug that’s turning people into zombies? Idk... Maybe you could draw Lucifer protecting her from zombies? Oh wow, I’m churning out more ideas for you than I have for my prompts, PFFF! Ah well, I hope you think of something! These were just over the top of my head, if you want anymore help or if you wanna talk about it more, feel free to message me or send me another ask! ♥

[mourningnight-moved]

Ok, I HATE bokeh effects, but then I realized that they looked like nightlights… so I gave it a try  and I like how it turned out.

The real problem was the quote. I had to change it a little bit and I don’t know where it comes from. I’m sorry ;;

Happy Halloween @titconao3  here’s your gift. Hope you like it!!

[blinkplnk]

So I failed at making this queue for the 1st XD Here is me just posting it straight up because clearly I shouldn’t try new tech things.

The prompt was ‘Near Death’ and poor Chloe has been through her fair share of those, but I wanted to pay homage to the fact that, from the beginning, Lucifer wanted to save her from Death. 

Happy (now slightly late) Halloween @bellamysgriffin​

[thedeckerstarnetwork]

              Trick or Devil? • The Deckerstar Halloween Exchange!            

Hello, Deckerstar people!

As the show is about to start again (yay!), we’re also starting October… and so we’re proposing an exchange to celebrate both! The exchange is open to everyone, and all kinds of artists! You can add a Halloween flavour to your work, but it’s not compulsory. Send at least one anonymous message to your prompter to let them know you’re thinking of them :-) and of course, you can ask them as many questions as you need as anon!

Our schedule: Sept 29/Oct 8: fill in that form and give us a one-word prompt! Oct 9/10: assignments sent. Oct 10/31: time to work on your prompt! Nov 1st: posting day! Tag your @giftee and also @thedeckerstarnetwork so they can know they have their present and so we can reblog it!

Participants who do not create a gift will not be accepted in later exchanges.

Banner by the lovely @mrsdecaestecker !

[bellamysgriffin]

Look, if you think that I wouldn’t forgive you for your mistakes or your flaws, if you think I don’t know who you really are by now... you’re wrong.

happy halloween to @hiromystory! hope you enjoy your gift for the deckerstar halloween gift exchange!

[Image 1: Chloe and Lucifer playing board games with Trixie. Chloe is smiling at Lucifer. Text: See, the devil’s got my address.

Image 2: Chloe and Lucifer arriving to a case holding hands. Text: See, the devil’s got my car.

Image 3: Chloe and Lucifer dancing. They are almost kissing. Text: See, the devil ain’t no novice.

Image 4: Lucifer looking at Chloe and whispering Chloe’s name. Text: and the devil ain’t no liar.

Image 5: Chloe and Lucifer kissing at the piano. Text: I’m trying hard to get up, but he made it to my heart.

Image 6: Chloe and Lucifer’s night of passion. Zoom out on them in bed together. Text: So I cannot make it back from the dark.]

[flutterflap]

Chapter 2 of my Deckerstar Halloween Exchange fic for @magicwithcolors, for the prompt “melodramatic.” With thanks to @skaoi-on-ao3 for the beta, and the suggestion that helped me figure out where this chapter was going.

CN: this chapter contains discussion of domestic violence.

Fic summary: Chloe hadn’t been planning to go to Lux’s Halloween party. For one thing, it was a murder mystery party, something she had a hard and fast rule against. She solved real crimes for a living, and didn’t need to spend her free time solving imaginary ones. For another, she usually avoided going out on Halloween; the parties got a little too crazy a little too fast for her taste. And then there was the fact that the host of this particular party had been acting like a grade-A jerk for the last few weeks.

[missielynne]

Nothing In The Dark, A Lucifer Fanfiction

Chloe starts hearing strange music seemingly no one else can and encounters a ghost only she can see, at least until she tells Lucifer, who tells her the identity of the vision, something that surprises her at first, but then isn't so bad after all.

Rated K+/PG. Prompt: Danse Macabre

A gift for @xwingace and part of the Deckerstar Incredible Halloween Exchange

"Thank you for coming to see him," Said the officer's soon-to-be widow as Chloe and Lucifer sat with her in the hospital room. "It's...it's been touch and go, but..." She sniffled. "I don't think he's gonna make it. The doctors are telling me to prepare for the worst." "Yes, well..." Chloe took her hand. "Whatever happens, we're here for you, Cheryl." "He was a good man," Lucifer added. "Jeff didn't deserve to die and what happened to him was a real shame." "Thank--thank you." Chloe then handed her a tissue and put her arms around her as her husband flat-lined, holding her tight as the woman cried on her shoulder. Then, suddenly, she heard music. Music that had not been playing when she and Lucifer had entered the room. "Do you...do you have the radio on?" She asked. "No," Cheryl shook her head. "Why?" "Oh, nothing. Just thought I heard something. Never mind." Then, out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw something, a flash of red dart out of the room. She shook her head. "I'm seeing things," she whispered to herself. "What?" Lucifer asked. "Nothing," Chloe shook her head. "I just...it's been a long night. My mind is wandering. Don't worry about it. Would you go get the doctor?" "Of...of course," Lucifer nodded. But he was looking at her with concern. He probably realized she wasn't being truthful with him but knew better than to force it. Once he was gone, she shook her head and tried to listen for the music. But she heard nothing. Leaving Cheryl for just a moment, she strode out into the hospital hallway and flagged down an orderly. "Excuse me," she said. "Did you...did you see someone in red run from this room not too long ago?" "No, ma'am," the orderly shook his head. "Are you all right? You look pale. Maybe you should sit down." "No, no thanks," Chloe stepped back into the doorway. "I'm fine." The orderly gave her the same skeptical look that Lucifer had but went on his way too, leaving Chloe to sit with Cheryl until Lucifer returned with the doctor and they were sure Cheryl was okay. Then they left. "Thanks...thanks for going with me," Chloe said as they pulled out of the hospital parking lot. "I know that spending all that time watching someone suffer and pass away is not the most enjoyable way to spend an evening." "Well, it's not, but...I agree that it was important for us to be there." Lucifer raised an eyebrow. "Now...do you want to tell me what was wrong back there? You know I won't push you, but I'm concerned." "Just...just something I thought I heard," Chloe shrugged. "It's probably nothing but on the off chance it happens again, I'll tell you everything. I swear." "All right," Lucifer nodded and pushed some hair out of her eyes. "I'm holding you to that." "You don't have to worry," Chloe assured him. "If it turns out this is something, I won't keep it from you." ______________________________________________________________ And it didn't take long for it to happen again. When they arrived at a crime scene the following day, the music, a mournful tune on a violin, was in Chloe's ears once more. "Is it happening again?" Lucifer asked. He could tell by the look on her face. "Yes," Chloe nodded. "Do you...the other night at the hospital, when Jeff passed away, I heard...I heard violin music. It was real faint but there was no mistaking it. Really mournful violin music. And then there was this flash of red...or maybe it was purple...and in a split second, it was gone." Then she looked up and gasped at the purple cloaked figure standing near the body. The cloak opened. The figure had wings. She bend down...and all of a sudden... "Stop!" Chloe cried.  "Get away from her!" "Are...are you okay?" Ella asked. "Maybe you should go sit in the car. I've never seen you so nervous." "There's someone here...standing near the body. Do you see them?" "No...there's no one here," Ella shook her head. "No one at all." But Chloe sensed she was hiding something. "You...you saw it too. The figure, with the wings." Ella blushed. "Yeah, I did." But she said no more. "You..." Lucifer's eyes widened  at Chloe. "You saw her? How..." He pulled Chloe to her feet. "Why don't we talk in the car for a minute?" "Yes," Chloe tried to take a deep breath. "That would be a good idea." They headed to the car and shut the door. "Does...does the person I saw...are they related to you?" She asked. "Yes," Lucifer nodded. "My sister, Azrael. The Angel of Death." "Oh, well...that makes sense. So she's...supposed to be there." "Yes," Lucifer nodded. "Just doing her job." Chloe shook her head. "I'm so ashamed of how I acted. She probably gets that all the time. If we...if we meet again...I'll do better." She smiled. "You know, I hear violin music before I see her. Maybe you and she could do a duet or something." Lucifer chuckled. "That's...new," he said. "Probably a way to ease people's fears before they go. Sweet if you think about it." "If she's so sweet then...what about her blade?" "Oh, you'd really have to anger her for her to pull that out," Lucifer replied. "No worries. The only reason she would want anything to do with you is if you're dead or dying." "Or...if you're going to be her sister-in-law?" Chloe prompted. "I know we thought I had your powers before but I didn't. I wonder if something is going on now since I can see your sister when I know I couldn't before you told me about...everything." "Well, I'm sure I don't know for certain but don't count anything out. Keep watching for her, and I will too. Maybe she'll come see me, and if she does, I'll tell you what she wants." He gave Chloe a soft kiss. "Don't worry, we'll get to the bottom of this. It'll be all right." "I know it will," Chloe nodded, giving him a smile and throwing her arms around him. "Thank you. I feel much better now." ______________________________________________________________ "About time you got back," Azrael said, rising from the chair she was sitting in as Lucifer exited the elevator and walked into the penthouse. "You and I...we need to have a talk." "Yes, we certainly do!" Lucifer nodded. "You do realize Chloe can see you now and while she's not frightened necessarily, it's very confusing for her. She's not...not on your list yet, is she?" "Oh, no," Azrael shook her head. "She's not a risk taker and she takes very good care of herself. I won't see her for ages." "All right, well why else would she be able to see you?" "Well, I wanted her to!" Azrael cried. "She's a skittish one and I thought if I was subtle about it, I wouldn't freak her out. Apparently I was wrong." "Luckily for you, she and I talked and she senses your appearances were about something like that. She also wants to apologize for how she reacted to you before, because she figures everyone acts that harshly toward you." Azrael shrugged. "I don't blame her; I'm used to it now. That's how people usually are. People like her friend Ella are one in a million." "Yes," Lucifer nodded. "I remember you said Miss Lopez has been a very good friend to you." "Yeah." Azrael cleared her throat. "So...what do you think the best way for us to meet would be? Something subtle, like sneaking into her head and giving her a dream, or...?" "You don't have to be that subtle," Lucifer shook his head. "I'll just bring her by the club. We can all talk." "Are you positive she's ready for it? I truly don't want to frighten her." "Yes. She'll be fine. Tomorrow night then?" "Perfect. Tomorrow night it is." ______________________________________________________________ "So," Chloe said, her hand in Ella's as they both sat at a table, the only people in Lux that time of night. "You...you know the Angel of Death? Is that...that the big secret you didn't want to tell me? What you meant when you told me that you'd seen things people wouldn't understand?" "Yeah," Ella nodded. "To you, and everyone else, she's Azrael the Angel of Death but to me, she's just Rae-Rae. She's my friend. Made a big difference after my accident." "I'm glad you pulled through because I don't know what we'd do without you," Chloe told her. "I'm not going anywhere," Ella promised and then stood up. "Except maybe to the bar. You want another drink?" Chloe looked down at her empty glass. White Russians weren't bad. "Maybe one more," she nodded. "Thanks." After they'd finished their drinks, Lucifer called their attention to the front. "Good evening. There has been a request for us to do a little show tonight and after talking it over, my sister and I have decided to play for you this evening." "Really?" Chloe asked. "Oh, this will be wonderful!" "We hope so!" Azrael said. "And feel free to dance if you want. But be kind; we've barely had time to rehearse this." "Wow," Chloe remarked as she and Ella began dancing to the music. "If she hadn't mentioned it, I never would have guessed." "Yeah," Ella nodded as she twirled Chloe around. "They're good! They should put an album out!" They kept dancing and laughing until Chloe found herself twirled right into Lucifer's arms. "Mind if I cut in?" He asked with a grin. "Sure," Chloe nodded. "But I'm not the best at this; I might step on your toes, just to warn you." Lucifer shrugged. "I don't mind. You have to start somewhere. He alternated dancing with her and Ella as Azrael's violin played, until, at last, they looked out the window and realized the sun was coming up. "I...it's been a wonderful night, but...I should be getting home," Chloe said. "Not that it's much of a rush because Trixie's with Dan this week, but..." "If you need to sleep, you know you can always stay here." "Thanks, but...I wouldn't want you to put your own sister out." "Oh, it's fine," Azrael reassured her as Ella began packing up too. "Don't worry about me; I have places to go, souls to harvest. That sort of thing. Lovely to meet you, Chloe." "Yes," Chloe smiled. "You play beautifully." "But I won't for you for a very long time," Azrael told her and winked before disappearing. Then, once she was gone, Lucifer motioned for Chloe to go ahead of him to the elevator. "After you; and if you want something more comfortable to sleep in, you can always borrow one of my shirts." "Thank you," Chloe nodded and took his hand. "I would like that."

The End

[tellemonstar]

Trick or Treat!

Restless - a Deckerstar Fanfic for @detectivemorrningstar for the TDN Incredible Exchange 2020. Trixie's Halloween Bash - a Lucifer fanfic for @detectivemorrningstar for the TDN Incredible Exchange 2020.

Happy Halloween Ava.

[pellaaearien]

Chapters: 1/3 Fandom: Lucifer (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar, Chloe Decker & Trixie Decker & Lucifer Morningstar, Chloe Decker & Mazikeen, Linda Martin/Mazikeen (implied), Minor Past Chloe Decker/Marcus Pierce Characters: Chloe Decker, Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV), Trixie Decker, Mazikeen (Lucifer TV), Linda Martin (Lucifer TV), Amenadiel (Lucifer TV) Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Supernatural Elements, Abduction, Witchcraft, Hell, BAMF Chloe Decker, Eventual Happy Ending, Post-Season/Series 03, Chloe Decker knows, TDN's 2018 Hell-oween Exchange, Chloe Decker to the Rescue, Making Sense of Season 3, Season 3 as a Hell Loop Summary:

A fun day out at a haunted house turns to true horror when Lucifer mysteriously vanishes. To find him, Chloe must attempt a dangerous journey to the unknown - and that's just the beginning. She soon discovers that their combined fates rest in the hands of a Devil who doesn't want to be saved.

Surprise! @casuallydeliciousphilosopher, I am your spOOky exchange buddy! Happy Halloween! I hope you enjoy!

“You have got to be kidding me.” Lucifer craned his neck to look up at the schlocky sign proclaiming TERROR ADVENTURE in large, dripping letters, additionally promising Chills! and Thrills!

Chloe stopped next to him and nudged his arm. “Come on, it’s just for fun,” she said. “Trixie’s old enough now and she wanted to go. Or are you scared?” She grinned.

“Of course not,” Lucifer retorted. “I am the monster other monsters fear.” His voice was light enough, but serious beneath. Chloe reached for his hand. Since her discovery that everything he said about himself was the absolute truth, it had been a daily struggle making sense of the supernatural insanity that was now her life. But one thing she would never believe was Lucifer’s opinion of himself, this supposedly horrible being who deserved to be punished and feared.

“Not to me,” she reminded him gently, unwilling to let the reference pass by even in jest. Lucifer blinked down at her, and she squeezed his hand. “All right then, mister source-of-all-fear, come on over here and let’s take a picture before Trixie decides to leave without us.”

Lucifer rolled his eyes, but allowed himself to be dragged along to where Trixie was bouncing impatiently by the entrance, whipping around at every loud noise emerging from within. “Come on, come on,” she urged.

“All right, hold your horses, Trix,” Chloe called. “It’s not going anywhere.”

The next few moments were a blur of getting Trixie to hold still for the photo, roping Lucifer into taking it (“You’re the one with the longest arms!”) and then finally getting ready to go inside.

Chloe got down to her daughter’s level (not so far as she’d once had to go, she noticed with a rueful pang), holding her shoulders to ensure she had her full attention.

“Now, Trixie, I know you’re very excited. You don’t have to hold my hand, but I want you to promise me you’ll stay close to us, or we’re not going inside. Okay? There’s going to be a lot going on and I don’t want you getting lost, or stuck.”

Trixie nodded frantically - she would have agreed to anything in that moment, and Chloe supposed she’d have to be satisfied.

“All right, let’s go,” she said, and Trixie cheered loudly enough that Lucifer winced. She led the way inside, Chloe and Lucifer trailing behind.

Once they entered, it was instantly pitch black. Muffled bangs and scuffling sounds sounded in the depths. Chloe experienced a moment of instinctual panic, clutching at Lucifer’s elbow. “I can’t see a thing,” she hissed. “Trixie!” she called.

“Right here, Mom,” came Trixie’s voice, very close by, sounding less enthusiastic than before, but determined. Chloe relaxed, and Lucifer chafed her arm reassuringly.

“I can see just fine, darling, I’ll keep an eye on the spawn,” he said.

Oh, right. Chloe looked up to where she guessed Lucifer’s face was. “Are you okay?” she asked, much more quietly. If she’d been pressed to describe what Hell was like, it would have been something similar to this.

“Perfectly all right, thank you.” The slightly strained note in Lucifer’s politeness could just have been her imagination - she knew he never lied.

“Let’s get this over with, then,” she said instead, and Trixie led the way deeper into the dark.

A door slammed open to their right and a man jumped out, wearing all black so his lifelike rubber mask was emphasized by the sudden strobe light. Trixie screamed. Chloe jumped a foot in the air, reaching for her sidearm (which she was, of course, not wearing today). Trixie’s scream dissolved into giggles as they passed, and Chloe shook her head at her daughter’s fortitude, trying to will her heart rate back to normal.

Almost immediately, with a bloodcurdling moan from the soundtrack, strobe lights flashed over a gruesome painting of a clown face, the shadows making it seem alive and menacing. Chloe jumped again, swearing under her breath. She’d never reacted well to being startled, and if those were the only scares in store, her nerves would be a wreck by the end of this. Plus, she’d always hated clowns.

Trixie just ooh-ed and ahh-ed over the face and skipped a little as she continued ahead.

“Why’d it have to be jump scares?” Chloe complained to Lucifer. She was glad she couldn’t see his expression, sure he was laughing at her. Then unexpectedly, he reached down and gently took her hand without a word.

Chloe hesitated, accepting the gesture only because it was a good thing if it stopped her from going for her gun every time. They moved on.

Lucifer squeezed her hand a fraction tighter and hung on as another door banged open to their left this time, and horrible crunching and slobbering sounds emerged. Chloe, forewarned, didn’t startle as hard, and she realized what Lucifer was doing. He, of course, could hear well before the rest of them when something was going to happen.

She squeezed his hand in thanks and they kept walking.

“You know, it’s fascinating,” Lucifer said, his voice cutting through the moaning and thumping now being pumped through the corridor. “The way you humans have learned to prey upon your own sensory shortcomings, for fun.” He sounded almost scandalized.

“Afraid you’ll be out of a job?” Chloe teased, as a man wrapped in bloodied bandages lumbered into view and made a lunge at them. Trixie shrieked and clapped, nearly stumbling into Chloe, who reached out with her free hand to steady her.

“Hardly,” Lucifer scoffed. “There’s a world of difference between the play and true fear.” Chloe was hardly given an opportunity to recover from the implications of the matter-of-fact statement before he was back to his regular self. “Now, really,” he complained, as a dead body (a dummy, Chloe could tell at a glance, being more than familiar with the real thing) dropped on a noose ahead of them. “No effort given to detail at all.”

“That’s a good thing,” Chloe said sharply. She’d never been very happy with this aspect of the holiday, the inexplicable urge some revelers seemed to have to entertain themselves with the very real horrors she faced on a daily basis. “Don’t touch it, Trix, come on,” she said, herding them past.

A spooky laugh floated out from the depths and warm air was blasted in their faces, oscillated as though to suggest wings. Chloe batted at her face and Lucifer caught her other hand.

“It’s just air, darling, nothing’s there.”

“I know,” Chloe snapped. “It just feels horrible.”

Lucifer chuckled, and Chloe fought the urge to fold her arms petulantly. “You and your superior senses,” she muttered, but she wasn’t complaining when he squeezed her hand again and something big and black swooped down on them. Lucifer had to duck because he was so tall.

“Please tell me this is almost over,” Chloe sighed, at the end of her rope, just as a deep, rhythmic chanting started up, accompanied by an irregular drumbeat. Chloe shivered, actually unnerved.

“I don’t like this, Mommy,” Trixie confessed, her voice almost swallowed by the sound.

“Is that…?” Lucifer sounded intrigued, but Chloe never found out what he meant, because the next instant Trixie shouted, “I see the door!” and was off like a shot, through some trailing cobwebby curtains.

“Trixie!” Chloe shouted. “Don’t get too far ahead!” She gave chase, letting go of Lucifer’s hand.

The chanting rose to a fever pitch as Chloe stumbled through the corridor, her footsteps echoing wildly off the metal siding. She found that Trixie was right - the exit was clearly visible, the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. She still couldn’t see anything, and could only hope that Trixie had managed to make it through and hadn’t fallen somewhere.

“Trixie!” she called again as she barrelled through the door, nearly running over the girl in question. “Oh!”

She caught her daughter by the shoulders to keep her from falling. “Trixie!” she gasped, forcing her voice to a lower register, not wanting to shout in her face. “What did I say about running off?”

“Sorry, Mommy,” Trixie said, chastened, and Chloe pulled her into a hug, until the adrenaline response subsided and she was able to think clearly again.

“I’m sorry too, baby,” she sighed, setting Trixie down again and stroking her hair. “You did really well; you were very brave.” She knew Trixie had been wanting to prove herself by doing the haunted house this year, and whatever her thoughts on the matter, she didn’t want to deny her daughter the opportunity. “Mommy was a little scared, though,” she admitted.

Trixie’s eyes were round as saucers. “You were?”

“Mhm.” Chloe nodded, like she was imparting a great secret. “Lucifer had to hold my hand.”

Trixie laughed, clapping a hand over her mouth as though to hold in her mirth, and Chloe smiled. She hoped she could impart to her little monkey that she didn’t have to prove anything, that it was okay to be scared sometimes.

Trixie’s eyebrows drew down in confusion. “Where is Lucifer?” she asked.

Chloe frowned, looking around. Indeed, Lucifer was nowhere to be found.

“That’s odd,” she said. “He was right behind me.” She waited a few more seconds, but Lucifer still had yet to appear.

“What, did he go back to give the actors pointers or something?” Chloe groused, and Trixie giggled again, more uncertainly this time. They walked back up to the exit.

“Lucifer, come on, we’re waiting,” Chloe called. There was an attendant stationed at the door who blocked their way.

“You’re not allowed back in,” he said.

Chloe looked at him. “I know,” she said, annoyed. “We’re missing the third member of our party. He still hasn’t come out yet.”

The attendant gave her a suspicious look. “You came to the fair with a dude named Lucifer?”

Chloe shrugged. “That’s his name.”

The youth still seemed unconvinced. “Right. Well, the only way out is through. They won’t let him back through the front entrance.” He sucked on his teeth, his lack of concern grating on Chloe’s nerves.

“Lucifer!” she yelled again, for lack of any better option. She knew he would hear her, no matter how far back he was. The boy eyed her sidelong. Chloe sighed.

“Look, how long are we supposed to wait out here?” she asked. “Can’t you send someone in after him?”

The attendant put his hands on his hips. “One of the actors’ll send him out. We’re not allowed to send anyone else through until everyone’s out.”

But Chloe had no intention of waiting. “This is ridiculous. He was right behind me. Lucifer!” she shouted, more sharply this time. “You come out here right now!” She’d never known him to ignore a direct order before. She couldn’t have him terrorizing the actors. It wasn’t like him to just leave her hanging like this.

But as the time stretched and nothing happened, Chloe began to get a bad feeling. She pulled out her phone and dialed Lucifer’s number, keeping a firm grip on Trixie, who watched wide-eyed.

“The number you have dialed is not in service. Please hang up…”

Chloe stared at her phone in disbelief. It hadn’t even gone to voice mail. Something was seriously weird.

“Hey.” She addressed the attendant again. “Shouldn’t the next group have come through by now?”

He made a casual gesture, supremely unruffled. “Dunno. Not my problem.”

Chloe was out of patience. Her nerves were too shot to wait for this to run its course. Her gut was telling her to act.

“Ignore them,” she heard Lucifer in the back of her mind. “Trust your instincts.”

Setting her jaw, she pulled out her police badge, flashing it in the young man’s face.

“All right, that’s it, LAPD,” she said. The attendant’s eyes widened. “Shut it down, right now. Or I’m coming with backup and I’ll make sure you stay shut down.”

The boy ran off, presumably to get his manager, and Trixie squeezed Chloe’s hand.

“What’s going on, Mommy?” She sounded frightened. Chloe bent down and stroked her hair.

“I’m not sure yet, monkey. But I’m going to find out. I’m gonna call your dad, okay? You can go home with him.”

“But I wanna stay here!” Trixie protested.

Chloe shook her head. “No, you don’t, it’s gonna be really boring. I’ll bring Lucifer to see you as soon as I find him, okay?” Without giving Trixie a chance to respond, Chloe dialed Dan, who agreed to come pick her up.

In the meantime, the park manager had arrived, a bearded, rough and ready man who made it very clear he didn’t appreciate taking orders from police, much less a “lady police.” Chloe was unmoved, and stared him down until he sighed and gave the order.

“Thank you,” she said curtly.

Trixie didn’t speak again until Dan was walking across the park toward them.

“Is this my fault?” she asked in a small voice. “I wanted to come here.”

“No, Trixie, no,” Chloe exclaimed, wrapping her in a hug. “Of course not. We don’t even know what happened yet, nothing is your fault. Ever. Okay? I’m sure Lucifer just got stuck somewhere. I’ll call you as soon as we get him. Just go with your dad for now so I can sort it all out.” She forced a smile and kissed her daughter on the forehead, rising to give a helpless shrug in response to Dan’s questioning look.

“Thanks for coming so quickly,” she said instead. “I really appreciate it.”

“No problem, Chlo,” Dan said, wrapping an arm around Trixie, who clung to his leg. “Keep me in the loop, yeah?”

“Of course.” Chloe nodded. “I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about.” She turned away, biting the inside of her cheek. She’d been saying that a lot for someone who wasn’t sure of any such thing. Lucifer was the Devil. If he wanted to, he could have ripped his way out of that house like it was tissue paper. So what was keeping him?

“All right, you can go in now, ma’am.” The manager was back, spitting the epithet like it was poison, but Chloe couldn’t have cared less about his resentment. She strode back inside without answering.

The interior was almost more spooky with all the darkness and mystique removed. The harsh light revealed odd angles and deceptive shadows, everything seeming like it was just inches from moving. Chloe gripped her phone, dialing Lucifer’s number and straining her ears to hear an answering ring, the clunky heels of her boots echoing wildly. She wished she had her Glock.

“Lucifer?” she called, her voice bouncing back at her from countless reflective surfaces. She kept jumping, catching glimpses of herself. “Lucifer!”

There was no answer.

She searched the place from beginning to end, using a penlight to peer into every nook and cranny, braving the bizarre decor and stranger smells. The actors had all vanished, likely taking full advantage of the unexpected break, and more importantly, there wasn’t a single sign of Lucifer. It was like he’d never existed, and Chloe couldn’t figure out why.

“Lucifer?” she said again, hating the way her voice quivered. “Lucifer, come on, this isn’t funny. If you’re in here, just come out. Please.”

But she’d never known him to take a prank this far. Nor to ignore the word ‘please.’ He would never be this intentionally cruel, especially when Trixie was involved. Chloe pondered. She didn’t want to place too much importance on the strange chanting they’d heard but there had definitely been something off about it. Even Lucifer had sounded interested.

She paced back slowly toward the exit, passing the creepy clown mask and the wind machines. The black crepe streamers hung limp and innocent, too thin to hide anything. In the last room before the door, there was a design in red paint on the floor. It looked like every cliche satanic design she’d seen in the movies. There were even some symbols she thought she recognized from their visit to the satanists in the first year of their partnership.

Chloe stared at it. “You have got to be kidding me,” she said under her breath.

She bent down to sniff the lines - it smelled like normal paint. And dust. Chloe sneezed.

With a muttered curse, before she could second guess herself, Chloe opened her camera and started taking pictures of every angle of the design and the room. It seemed like absolute nonsense to think that the pentagram or the chanting could have anything to do with Lucifer’s disappearance from a carnival funhouse. But it was the only thing she could think of to do. She was rapidly running out of options. She already lived in a world where Heaven and Hell existed and the Devil was her partner. She couldn’t really afford to rule anything out.

After she finished taking pictures from every angle she could think of, she went to go speak to the manager. It hadn’t escaped her notice that he hadn’t offered her any additional aid apart from shutting down the ride.

“Can I have my attraction back now, ma’am?” he drawled, stubbing out his cigarette.

“Not yet,” Chloe said shortly. “My partner is still missing, and I’d like to ask you a few questions, Mr. Philipson.”

She took him to the back room and showed him the sigil painted in red on the floor. “Do you know who painted this?” she asked. Philipson looked askance at her, but not for the reason she was expecting.

“None of my staff,” he said with certainty. “We don’t go in for any of that devil-worshipping malarky.”

“...Right,” Chloe said, thinking of the hanged man prominently featured in a previous room. It struck her as an odd line to draw. “So this isn’t part of the attraction.”

“Of course not,” he said, crossing his arms and staying well away from the lines. “Why bother with something no one’s gonna even see?”

Chloe had to admit there was some truth to that. “So you’re saying this isn’t supposed to be here.”

“Certainly not!” Philipson exclaimed. Chloe pounced.

“So what you’re saying is that someone managed to vandalize your property without your knowledge. And now someone’s gone missing.” She fought to conceal her growing unease. Concern crossed Philipson’s face for the first time.

“Mr. Philipson, I’m going to need you to remain shut down for the time being, until we can get to the bottom of this. So long as you can’t guarantee that anyone else is going to go missing you could be held personally accountable.”

Philipson grimaced, but was no doubt seeing visions of liability lawsuits dancing in his head and nodded reluctantly.

“Fine. I’ll go along - for now.” He pointed accusingly. “But I’ll be back up and running tomorrow unless you come back with some kind of warrant.”

Chloe nodded. It was more than fair, especially with with what she suspected was actually going on. There was no way she would be able to prove it. A day was the best she could hope for.

“All right. Thank you, Mr. Philipson.”

She drove home alone, in stark contrast to the start of their fun-filled afternoon. Lucifer’s absence ached, like a bruise, or a missing tooth. She was reluctant to leave the place he’d last been, feeling like she was leaving him behind. She blinked back her tears and kept driving. She needed her computer.

I’ll find you, Lucifer, she vowed silently. I promise.

In her silent house, she poured herself a large glass of wine and threw herself into research. It wasn’t until her second glass that she found the connection. There had been a surge of missing persons reports - three in the past three weeks - since the carnival had opened. The fair had been investigated, but not the funhouse itself, which explained why Philipson had been so eager to cooperate.

Dammit. Chloe swore vehemently. For some reason, no one had bothered to investigate the haunted house, so the connection with the fair hadn’t been found. She imagined someone had paid massive amounts of hush money to keep it out of the press. She fisted her hands in her hair. If only she’d known...

But she hadn’t, and there was no point in wasting time thinking about that now. Instead, she called Maze. The pentagram was her biggest lead at this point, and the demon was her best option. As she started to upload the pictures she’d taken to her computer, she came across the picture they’d taken before any of this mess had started. Trixie’s eyes were nearly bugging out in her excitement, and Chloe’s smile had a bit of a wicked glint, having just browbeaten Lucifer into taking the photo. Lucifer wasn’t even looking at the camera, he was looking at her, and the long-suffering affection in his expression twisted like a knife in her gut. She ran her fingers over his face on the screen. Mere hours ago, she’d been holding his hand.

“Lucifer…” she whispered. “Where are you?”

[eastwesthomeisbest]

"The Devil And The Detective"

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Deckerstar Network Helloween Exchange

Here's my gift for @lucks-eterna

Happy Halloween!

(the prompt: the precinct/ecru~off-white~beige/spider~spiderweb)

Well I came up with something that looks like movie posters 😀. Hope you like them!