InsaneJournal

When Lucifer Morningstar opened his eyes, he had a profound sense of deja vu and fully expected to find himself once again aboard the Starship Enterprise.

Not even close. And yet someone was scanning him with one of those high tech Star Trek device things so he just looked at the unwitting medical assistant with a warning, "Don't even attempt to take my blood." Then he sat up and tried to make sense of his situation, until his eyes fell on the woman who could most definitely explain where he was, if not why.

The corners of his lips involuntarily turned upward as she walked over to him.

It wasn't a given that repeat arrivals remembered their time in this century, so Peggy wasn't sure what to expect when she was notified that Lucifer was back. While she had hoped that their shore leave on Risa might make for as quiet an arrivals period as they'd been enjoying recently, she actually laughed when he arrived. It didn't surprise her in the least to hear that the devil had shown up in time for shore leave on a planet nicknamed the 'pleasure planet.'

"Lucifer," she greeted, stopping by his bedside and crossing her arms. "You pulled me away from my mai tai on the beach, you know."

"Oh?" Lucifer asked, but then couldn't help but grin at Peggy. "Bloody hell, I'm glad to see you. Where are we? What happened to the ship? Did the Captain crash it somewhere? Do you know how many times the Enterprise has been destroyed and here we were sailing around on it! What have I missed? Who's still here that I would know? Where are we?"

He paused his barrage of questions to ask one more. "Did you say mai tai on the beach?"

Well, that answered that question. He remembered being here before. She didn't know whether to be relieved or not. "The ship is fine," Peggy said shortly. "It's in orbit. We're on Risa, on shore leave. Just arrived the other day. As before, you'll find a traveler roster on your PADD so I'm not going to stand here and list everyone who has come and gone since you left."

She nodded out the window. "Yes, I was on the beach when I received a comm that you had returned." She fiddled with the tie of her silk robe, which covered the bathing suit she wore. She hadn't had a moment to change into something more appropriate. Perhaps, if it had been someone else besides Lucifer, she would have taken the time to look more professional. Then again, maybe not. She was, after all, on vacation. Technically.

The shortness of her voice surprised him, and Lucifer studied Peggy intently for a moment, his own demeanor changing. "Well, I'm sorry that I've interrupted your day," he said with a frown. He swung himself out of the bed and looked for his newly assigned PADD. "I'm sure I can figure things out from here, if we're back to no longer being friends."

For the first time, the change of scenery was truly jarring, reminding him that he'd been forced from his life once before, then returned to it, only to be forced away again. Everything seemed to catch up with him at once with the unfamiliar tone in Peggy's voice that wasn't quite the welcome he'd expected.

"Weren't you the one who was always telling me to relax and stop working?" she asked, uncrossing her arms and brushing her hair, which she really needed to cut, off her shoulder. "You'll be happy to know that that's about all that can be done around here. We won't even set foot on the ship again for about three weeks." Peggy smiled a little.

"I've assigned you to one of the condos in the city, figuring that might be more your speed than a treehouse or a bungalow, but if you want to move somewhere else, just let me know." She chose to ignore his comment about not being friends anymore because it just sounded ridiculous.

"So you're just upset that I interrupted your mai tai by showing up, not that I've returned?" Lucifer asked. "Are you telling me you actually listened to my advice, finally?" He was grinning again, and slightly more relaxed.

"Is there not a condo on a beach somewhere?" he teased, not really concerned where he was staying if there was a beach with mai tais nearby. "I'm sure it will suffice. I did survive in those overly cramped crew quarters for months, after all." He had not taken his penthouse apartment for granted after that. If there was anything he was going to miss, other than the detective and everyone else once more, it was the space his apartment provided.

"Well, your timing for a return is annoying, as I would have liked to finish my mai tai and have a swim. The water's like bath water and it's crystal clear. I've never seen anything like it before. Then again, before this entire excursion, I never would have believed I'd ever set foot on another planet, so there is that." Peggy smiled and shrugged. "Less following your advice and more ordered to take shore leave."

"Your ID card will let you into your condo. It's only a short walk to the beach. And there are many other things to do here on Risa as well. I'm sure you'll have no trouble finding something to keep you busy."

"That sounds like I won't be spending anytime in the condo," Lucifer commented. "Also seems like I chose the perfect time to return, except I had absolutely no say in it." It was his turn to offer her a shrug. "I'm almost envious of the people who've returned here with no memory. This is like living a double life, except in completely different universes from each other."
With the people he cared about split between those two universes.

"I missed you, by the way," he added.

"I would have been shocked if you'd come back voluntarily, not necessarily because it's out of character for you but more because we are no closer to learning why this is all happening. And then I'd have felt badly when I went and talked to the captain about your experience because they'd probably keep you cooped up to study you."

The corner of her mouth twitched. "I missed you too, Lucifer."

Lucifer laughed, walking over to Peggy to hug her. "Good luck to anyone who attempts to keep me locked up when there are beaches with mai tais to explore," he mused. "Now go away and go swimming, before I start to feel guilty for making you work on your holiday."

He would figure out who was still around and where he was staying, then he'd be on the beach as well. There had to be some perks to go along with being ripped from one's life a second time.

She hugged him back and kissed his cheek. "I'm sure it won't be long before I see you out on the beach as well," Peggy said, "I'll be there with Phil so come by and say hello, please."

"Oh I will," Lucifer promised. "It might be hard to get me to leave the beach in three weeks."

His life could turn upside down all it wanted, if there were beaches and alcohol involved.