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He still loved her--and every moment that he didn’t have her hurt him deeply That hy he’d spent the past nine days with a shadow of her soul, why he’d sought to reset the entire universe to have her back

"Oh, Lucifer," she said "I’hed "You are afraid of me You’re afraid of what I make you feel You don’t want to remember--"

"No, it’s not--"

Fro silver starshot He rolled it between his fingers, hunized She shivered

It was the hyether Lucinda, his Evening Light

She watched the starshot glea?"

"You loved me You were mine Those of us who understand eternity knohat true love means Love never dies That’s why I know that e hit the ground, when everything starts over, you will ht choice You will choose ether"--he looked up at her--"or else--"

Then Lucifer came at her with the starshot

"Yes!" Luce shouted "I loved you once!"

He froze, the dull deadly weapon poised above her breast, her earlier soul dangling froo than you recall," she said

"You appreciate eternity, but you don’t appreciate how in a e I did not love you e fell"

"Lies" He lowered the starshot closer "You’ve loved me more recently than you think Even just last week, in your Announcers, thinking you loved another--onderful together Re in the passion fruit tree in Tahiti? We had earlierthose" He stepped away froht you everything you think you know about love! We were supposed to rule together You promised to follow rations of pain and rage "I, stranded at the altar, the greatest fool of all tiony"

"Stop," she whispered "You have to stop lovingyou"

"Because of Daniel Grigori, who isn’t a tenth of the angel I am, even at my worst? It’s ridiculous! You know that I have always been more radiant, more talented You were there when I invented love I , out of mereadoration!" Lucifer frowned as he said the word, as if it made him nauseated

"And you don’t even know the half Without you, I went on to invent evil, the other end of the spectrum, the necessary balance I inspired Dante! Milton! You should see the underworld I took the Throne’s ideas and improved them You can do whatever you want!

You’ve "

"Oh, darling"--he reached for her, his soft hand caressing her cheek--"surely you can’t believe that I could give you the greatest kingdom never knoork hard, then we party Even the Throne offered you the benefits of eternal peace! And what have you chosen?

Daniel What has that haircut ever done?" Luce brushed his hand away "He has capturedto him"

He slowing, still souls around the thousands of miles into the distance, accidental eavesdroppers on the truth about the universe’s first roht that what I felt for you was right," Luce said "I loved you until it hurt e The thing you called loveyou" She paused "Our adoration never diminished the Throne, but your love diminished me I neverout ar like hoain It is the only way to stop ain, for always"

"No," she said "It’s really over, Lucifer" Shearound them "It was over before any of this even happened I never promised to rule with you outside of Heaven You projected that dream onto me, like I was another one of your blank slates You will acco this Lucinda to Earth She will not return your love"

"She el in his arht surrounding Lucinda’s falling self blocked his lips fro her skin

"I am sorry for the pain I caused you," Luce said "I wasyoung I gotswept up I played with fire I shouldn’t have Please, Lucifer Let us go"

"Oh" He nuzzled his face into the body in his arms

"I ache"

"You will ache less if you accept that e shared is in the past Things are not the way they were If you love o on as Ilook at Luce His expression darkened, then turned quizzical, as if he was considering an idea He looked away for a ht he could see her as she truly was: the angel who’d becorown more and more certain of her destiny, who had found her way back to becoain "Youdeserve more," Lucifer whispered