Kathrine Ann rolled her eye's behind her closed lids. She had just started to relax and let go of her frustrations, but, as usual, Lucifer had to come barging in.
"Excuse me?" He asked, and she could hear his response come through gritted teeth.
"I said, no thanks." She replied, still holding her knees against her chest, "I'm not going to be your second choice Lucifer. So what happened? She decided she wanted to go to the play after all and canceled on you?"
After a moment of eerie silence, Kathrine Ann opened her eyes and held in a yelp. Lucifer's face was maybe an inch from hers, their noses almost touching, and his eyes trickled with a hint of red. She swallowed hard. Had she done it this time? Pushed her Devil too far? His fingers touched her cheek, and his thumb ran down to trace her jawline before grasping her chin firmly, forcing her eyes to stay on his.
"Nobody cancels on me, Kathrine Ann." He said slowly, and she could feel his cool breath against her warm lips, "Not unless they're dead or wish to be." He let go and backed up, grabbing the towel again, "I've changed my mind and decided I want to spend the evening with you, so come on, stop wasting time. I don't want to be late for our dinner reservations." He ordered, waiting impatiently with the towel stretched between his hands, eyes closed, and foot tapping while she stared at him dumbfounded. After a moment, she stood up, climbed out of the tub, and into the towel.
"Wonderful, I have already laid out your dress for the evening. Now come on quick, quick." He smirked, opened his eyes, and left the bathroom. Kathrine Ann shook her head and began drying off her body. Leaving the pile of clean clothes she had picked for the evening, she slipped on her robe and exited the bathroom. Lucifer was nowhere to be seen, but she could hear him scurrying around in the closet. Everything happened so fast, and she was a bit confused about Lucifer's sudden change of heart, but at least she was getting to go out. And he was right. No one in their right mind would cancel on him, especially not Angelique, so he must have canceled on her, but why? Was it actually because he wanted to spend time with her? Kathrine Ann's skepticism suddenly washed away, along with any other thoughts, as she looked at the dress laid out on her side of the bed. She lifted the gown out in front of her. It was floor-length form-fitted, with a plunging sweetheart neckline and a long slit up one side. The whole thing was covered in sparkling little disks she would call sequins. The top was shimmering black, but a little below the natural waist, crimson red specks started to appear until the black faded entirely into the red at her feet. She had never seen such a magnificent garment before and had never been so excited to put on a dress. She was so entranced by the way the light sparkled off the surface that she hadn't noticed the reappearance of a particular Devil,
"Gorgeous, isn't it?" He asked, snapping her back to the room, "I had it, along with a couple of others, made for you. Just in case a formal situation arises."
"It's beautiful, but isn't this a bit much for dinner?" She asked, finally tearing her eyes away from the dress to look at Lucifer. He already had a nice pair of black slacks on and was currently buttoning up his waistcoat, which was also black but had a dark red brocade embroidered. A long, untied tie wrapped around his popped shirt collar, and his jacket black jacket lay on the bed,
"Oh yes. Don't get me wrong, where I'm taking you is the nicest restaurant in all of Hell. It has delicacies from all of the worlds, a few you may even recognize, but this attire is for a much more formal event." He grinned, "The grand reopening of Central City Theatre, for example."
"We're going?" She gasped, her eyes moving back to the dress.
"Only if you hurry and get ready, Baby Girl. We haven't much time till our dinner reservation." He explained, straightening out the vest before turning to his dresser and opening the first drawer. Without another word, Kathrine Ann began getting ready. Under the protection of her robe, she pulled on the same lingerie that she wore for their wedding, only to make sure there were no lines, and used the same makeup palette to create a red and black smokey eye accented with a dark red lip. Kathrine Ann sat on the bed, grabbed the pair of Gold colored heels, and slipped them on. They had shimmery laces that she wrapped up her calf and tied just below her knees. Satisfied with the snugness, she got up and grabbed the dress. Glancing at Lucifer, who was preoccupied with cufflinks, Kathrine Ann dropped the robe, quickly stepped into the garment, pulled it up, and zipped it almost all the way, but she struggled to get that last inch. Suddenly, she froze. His warm hands touched her shoulder as he lightly pushed a few loose pieces of hair out of the way and grabbed the zipper, pulling it the rest of the way up and hooking the small eyelet at the top.
"Thank you." She blushed.
"Umhum," he hummed and started pulling at her hair, releasing it from the messy bun and letting it cascade down her back. Brush already in hand, he pulled it through a few times before turning his back to her, walking to the bed, and retrieving the wooden box. He popped it open and took out whatever was inside before returning. Carefully Lucifer placed a thin, golden ring on her head.
"Two crowns in one day?" She smirked as he adjusted it.
"And many more in the closet. A crown to match any outfit."
This one had no draped embellishments hanging on it like the one she wore for her wedding, but it wasn't as simple as the one she wore for lunch. It had an intricate scrolling pattern etched into it, and the part centered on her forehead did dip just a bit and came to a point as if the crown was pointing at her nose. Lucifer turned away again, only to return a minute or so later. He reached around her neck, and she felt a sung chill encircle the skin and then a click. He had put a metal choker of the same color around her neck. He stepped back and fiddled with her hair a touch more before turning his gaze to her reflection in the mirror,
"I think we overdid it." He said with a frown and furrowed brows.
"Overdid what?" She asked, a bit shocked. She thought she looked amazing. What was he trying to say?
"You, um, you look stunning and alluring." He paused as he turned her to him and stepped back, letting his eyes roam all over her while chewing on his bottom lip, "They're all going to be gawking at you. I don't like that." He growled as his eye's turned a bit red, and his lip twitched, "My sexy doll." he said in almost a whisper, causing her face to flush.
"I don't think there's anything to worry about. My Prince will be with me to keep me safe." She smiled, her words triggering something as Lucifer's eyes turned back to all blue, and a smirk stretched across his face.
"Of course I will be." He replied, "Nobody will touch you except for me." His words reignited her cheeks.
Quickly pushing away her embarrassment, Kathrine Ann reached up to his tie, where she began to tie it. It had been over a hundred years, and yet the muscle memory was still there. William was lousy at tie tieing, so she always tied them for him. The bittersweet memory made her smile. Lucifer stood very still, a half-smile on his lips as his eye's followed her movements. Another second or two, and she finished up by adjusting the knot before folding down his collar.
"There. All done." She smiled.
"Almost." He replied, turning for the bathroom and snatching his crown from the dresser.
Kathrine Ann followed so she could get a good look at her face in different lighting. While Lucifer brushed out his hair, she leaned close to the mirror, examining her makeup and ensuring it was neat and clean. Lucifer put down the brush, grabbed a small jar, and twisted the top off. Hair gel,
"Don't do that." She quickly said before he dipped his fingers in, looking at him through the mirror, "I mean, I think it looks better natural, but it's your hair." She blushed as he smirked but put the jar back down,
"As you wish, Baby Girl." He replied and slid the crown over his loose and wavy hair.
Lucifer walked around Kathrine Ann to her right side and slipped his arm around her waist as they both stared at their reflection,
"Hum, you look pretty good on my arm." She smirked before he could beat her to the backhanded compliment she knew he had waiting. He raised an eyebrow at her,
"I suppose I do," He chuckled, "Come on, Princess, your people await."