Hazbin Hotel: Behind Closed Doors
“Surprise…!”, Vox’ voice rang weakly through the dark room, as Vark butted his head against the TV demon’s shoulder.
Static screamed into Sky’s ears, which pressed back against her head, when Alastor staggered back, the lights flickering and cracking above them.
Her own feelings were cooking up a storm within her, at the sight of Vox alive and yet so utterly broken.
“What is going on?”, Vaggi snapped as she landed next to them. Her one-eyed gaze flicked towards Vox and widened, before she looked at Alastor. “Hide him. Now.”
The Radio Demon just stared at her for a moment, before he shook his head and snapped his fingers.
His shadow gave a quiet chitter, before it draped itself over Vox and hid him from view, with Vark looking around in utter confusion.
And not a moment too early, as Sky realized when Draco and Cherri came around the corner.
Draco’s clawed feet gripped into the carpet floor when he landed and folded his wings against his back. “Why did the lights flicker?”
Before Alastor could speak, Sky interrupted him without realizing it. “Someone fired a gun in one of the rooms after Vark tackled Alastor to greet him”, she lied, as said shark-dog padded over to her again. “Alastor got spooked by that.”
Nobody noticed the twitch of Alastor’s eye as he glared at his partner.
“Oh, okay”, Draco shrugged and glanced at the open door of Sky’s room, before he gave Cherri a nudge and the pair left again.
The moment they were out of earshot, Alastor turned his head around to Sky. “Pray tell, my dearest, why did you decide on a lie such as the one you told?”
Her pupils narrowed at his angry tone, and her tail lashed behind her. “Nobody is going to judge you for one small weakness, Al”, she sneered, ears pinning back. “Stop being so fucking obsessed with your reputation!”
Vaggi in the meantime just stood there and watched the two Overlords growl at each other, when she noticed from her peripheral how the shadowy doppelganger of the Radio Demon melted off Vox’ frame again and made him visible once more.
“You know, 40% of marriages end in divorce”, the TV demon said, his voice breaking at the end of the sentence as another glitch made his body spasm.
That comment made Alastor and Sky pause and look first at Vox, then at each other.
“I-“, Sky began and cleared her throat, her tail wrapping around her legs in shame. “I should have chosen a different lie. Or let you speak first.”
“Perhaps, but I shouldn’t get this worked up over my reputation anymore”, Alastor replied and bowed his head as his ears lowered. “Forgive me.”
“Already happened”, the dragon demoness smiled, her tail giving a happy little flick.
“Hate to ruin the moment”, Vaggi then chimed in and gestured at Vox, who was getting tackled by Vark yet again. “But, what are we going to do with him? Either we kick him out or hide him, because if our guests find out he’s alive, they’ll want to-“ She made a cutting motion with her hand on her neck.
Sky thought for a moment, before she stepped through the door.
“He can stay in my room”, she proposed and ran her hand over Vark’s head. “Nobody will try and enter the room of The Dread.”
“Aren’t you living there?”, the fallen angel asked and rested a hand on her hip.
“Well…” Sky gave a glance towards Alastor, who reciprocated with just the faintest of nods. “I live with Alastor, now. Have been for… pretty much since the day I arrived here.”
“Knew there was something going on”, Vaggi smirked, which earned her a record screech from Alastor and embarrassed blush from Sky, before she turned around. “But just get him away from where the guests can see him. I don’t want to deal with any rioting patrons.”
“Aye, aye”, Sky answered, before she and Alastor fully stepped into the room and closed the door, which locked again automatically.
“How are you feeling?”, the dragon demoness asked once her eyes had adjusted to the dim lighting conditions.
“Like someone tore me apart”, Vox replied and gave a playful glance at Alastor, who just looked away. With a sigh, the television demon pushed himself up against the bedframe. “I tried to move, but there isn’t much I can do.”
“Think you can travel with Alastor’s shadows?”, she inquired as she removed the scraps of cyan stained fabric from Vox’ injuries to look more closely at the gashes and holes in his chest and abdomen. “I’d rather not risk anyone seeing you in the hallway.”
“I’ll manage.” His voice was strained, but he did his best to put on a brave face.
“Al?”, Sky asked and looked at her partner.
With a breath through his nose, the Radio Demon snapped his fingers and warped them towards Sky’s barely used room.
“Welcome to your new home, Vox”, the dragon demoness said half-heartedly and flicked on the light.
Her room did look quite sad. The bed unused, sketch- and notebooks scattered on the desk, curtains pulled shut.
“You didn’t spend much time in here, did you?”, Vox asked and clawed his hands into the wall, to keep himself upright.
Sky was distracted for a moment, when Alastor melted back into the shadows, before she focused back on Vox. “What did you say? Sorry, I wasn’t listening.”
“Nothing important, anyway”, Vox waved it off, as Sky helped him get onto her bed.
“Okay…” With a snap of her fingers, Sky waved over one of the first aid kits she had stored in her room, before slicing the seams of Vox’ bloodied coat open to take it off.
“Hope you’re alright with seeing my abs”, he tried it with a pun but hissed sharply when the damp fabric peeled off his injured flesh.
“Honey, I’ve seen you without a shirt before”, Sky smirked and put some antiseptic onto a clean piece of cloth. “Besides, your abs are torn to pieces at the moment.”
“Tou- Ah!” When the cloth came into contact with his flesh, sparks flew from his screen, before it turned black.
For a moment, she just stared at his dark screen, before she had to hide an involuntary laugh.
“Sky…”, Vox said half calm, half terrified, his hands smacking against his head to get it working again. “Sky, I can’t see. Why can’t I see?”
“You short circuited”, the dragon demoness managed to get out between giggles, before she continued to clean his injuries.
“Oh, grea- Ow! FUck, this hurt”, he sneered, his claws catching in the sheets of the bed. “Are you doing this intentionally?”
“No~”, Sky replied as she kept on without missing a beat.
“That sounded very much like you ah-are”, the TV demon scoffed, his voice hitching when the cloth touched another sensitive spot.
The demoness laughed before she mimicked Vox’ voice and cadence. “Trust me! I am not!”
“Fuck you”, he sneered, which turned into another pained whine. “I’m dying…”
“No, you’re not”, she rolled her eyes and continued tending to his injuries.
There were things they were ignoring, she knew that. Things they still needed to address.
But right now? Right now, that had to wait. She’d waited too long to have this camaraderie back to just ruin the moment like that.
Sky knew that there was no way in Hell, she could reverse the damage to Vox’ artificial organs, so she had to get on her PC and onto Vomazon, where Vox gave her direct instructions on what to buy.
“You know, all this costs about $34.5 million, right?”, she asked and turned her chair around to face Vox on the bed.
He’d shut down his hardware, so he wasn’t moving when he answered her. “I can draw the money from VoxTek directly, and I want the best of the best.”
“Whatever you say..”, Sky huffed and faced her PC again, before she went to checkout.
After she’d entered all the important information and went to pay, she was only mildly surprised by the popup that appeared on her screen.
Seems like you don’t have enough money, you broke bitch.
“How charming”, she hummed and clicked the popup away.
“What happened?”, Vox asked from the bed.
“’Seems like you don’t have enough money, you broke bitch’”, she quoted and looked at the items she had in the cart. “What are the most essential parts that we need in good quality?”
“Right, I’m poor now”, the former CEO muttered, before he let out a thoughtful hum. “I guess I don’t need a brand new flatscreen…”
“Perfect”, she said and removed the flatscreen, before going on VBay and finding an old CRT-TV that was compatible with a sinner’s body.
“But I swear, if you buy a Nokia, I’ll murder you.”
“Why would I do that?”, she asked, but couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled in her throat at the mental image.
“I don’t know, but I know you”, he responded and Sky could imagine the snarky grin perfectly on his face.
“Perhaps I should have, now that I think of it”, she replied with a chuckle, as she went back to her Vomazon cart to replace some other components with cheaper versions. “But no, I got you a CRT.”
“Back to the olden times, I see”, the sinner replied amused. After a moment of silence, he spoke up again. “How long’s the shipping?”
Sky let out a hum as she clicked her way towards the email she’d gotten about the shipment and took a sharp breath when she saw the time. “You don’t wanna know.”
“Hmpf”, he scoffed. “Should have known that this benefit is gone too.”
“Well, seems like it’s time for you to experience the life of a normie”, the dragon demoness grinned and ordered the other parts, before turning her chair around to the bed. “You broke bitch.”
Vox let out a frustrated groan at her teasing. “Why did I decide to make this the popup?”
“I dunno. Ask past-Vox”, she snickered and turned off her PC with the tip of her tail, before getting up. “Al’s shadow will stay here and tell us if something’s happening.”
With a last smile towards Vark, who had curled up next to the bed, she left her room and locked the door behind her.
A sigh escaped her and she ran her hand over her face, before she pushed herself away from the door and began to sing.
“Life… is walking on a tightrope..” Her hand came up to cover her eyes as helplessness flooded her chest. “With nothing but a blindfold.”
“It’s a long way,” She came to a stop next to a window, her gaze straying to the abyss behind the hotel. “It’s a long way down.”
“I’m-“ Her steps carried her towards the narrow staircase her claws raking over her cheeks and blind eye. “Yeah, I’m a little crazy.. But can you really blame me?”
Her eyes widened, tears welling up and blurring her sight. “It’s a long way- It’s a long way down.”
“For every step that I take,” The metal stairs bit into the pads of her feet as she climbed them up. “I take two steps back.”
For a moment, the bright memories of Heaven flashed behind her eyes, Zophiel’s face poisoning each of them. “It’s like a punch to the face.”
“It’s like a knife right in the-“ She pushed the hatch open, before climbing onto the roof, her sharp tail tip scratching over the ground, before she wrapped her tail and arms around herself as her own words echoed around her.
“It’s like a knife right in the back!”
Her eyes closed when suddenly she was overtaken by a fear vision she’d seen inside Vox once, from when he was still human and the blade of his murders turned on him.
“Like a bullet to the head!”
Her eyes snapped open in a new place. A swampy, mucky forest with a human Alastor next to her and staring down the barrel of a rifle.
“Why can’t I understand?” And once more the scene shifted with the blink of an eye, her now standing over the body of one of her victims just prior to her death, police sirens blaring around her. “The blood is on my hands!”
Her hands clawed into her face, before she found herself in the black void of limbo again. “Now I’m standing on the edge with nowhere to go!”
“And this is how it feels-“ Her eyes widened as thousands of images flashed past her eyes, the nightmares of so many demons. “And this is how it feels- How it feels to be…”
Her legs buckled, before she sank to the ground and buried her face in her knees. “Lost…”
When Alastor had decided to catch some air on the roof and to maybe sort his thoughts, he hadn’t exactly expected Sky to be there as well.
“Are you alright, dear?”, he asked and settled down next to her, his uninjured arm wrapping around her shoulders.
“Memories ‘n shit”, she muttered and curled into his side, her ears tilting back as she let her eyes drift over Pentagram City with half opened lids.
The deer demon gave an understanding hum as he rested his chin on the crown of her head and followed her gaze to the city.
The Entertainment District’s reconstructions were well on their way, but it would certainly take a few more months until it was back to its former brilliance.
“Is it over?”, Sky suddenly asked and looked up, her tail curling on the concrete below them.
“Is what over?”, Alastor inquired and brushed a tear from her eye.
She looked away again, and the deer demon almost started to believe she’d lost the point of her question, when she gestured at the sky.
“War.” Her arm lowered again and rested across her side. “When can we return to a peaceful life?”
She turned her head towards him once more, before her gaze dropped to her hand on his thigh. “Or is it impossible for a realm like ours?” Her mismatched pupils shot back to the Entertainment District. “Does this realm know peace?”
Alastor had no answer to that. His ears drooped as he looked at the territory of the Vees again, in search of words he could say to comfort her.
“Maybe”, he ended up with.
Sky only nodded and rested her head against his chest, eyes closing at the steady sound of his heartbeat thrumming both beneath her ear and in her soul.
For a long time after that, there was only silence and the warm wind brushing past them as they let their thoughts drift by without grasping any of them.
Sky’s eyes drifted to her hand, after a few minutes, before she flicked her index finger against her thumb like lighting a match. And voilà, a small, white flame flickered at the tip of her claw.
Alastor’s eyes flicked towards her, and his lips curled into a warm smile as he watched the flame jump between her knuckles. “Valentino still fears you for it..”
“He does?”, she chuckled and let the flame vanish. “Cute.”
“Pathetic is the word you’re looking for, meine Liebe”, he teased and nuzzled her cheek.
“Oh, shush.” With a soft giggle, she playfully pushed his face away. When she looked at the rebuilding district in the distance again, she couldn’t prevent the sigh that escaped her. “Vox is… We had to order some new parts to replace the damaged ones…”
“Mhm”, Alastor hummed, though his ears flicked back in annoyance.
“I’m hoping that Baxter might be able to help me with that, once we get to putting Vox back together.” Her fingers threaded into his as her head found its place against his collarbone again. “I’m glad he’s alive… Even… even after everything his body did…”
Alastor felt like his throat constricted at the thought of the television demon he’d been friends with for so long.
Sky noticed his reaction. Of course she did.
“After he’d taken me away… what happened?”, she asked and tilted his chin down so he would look at her.
“He-“ A flash shot into his mind. His hands red with gold-streaked blood, cries of pain, the smell of death. “I had-“
Before his voice could fully fail him, Sky stopped his stuttering with a brush of her hand against his cheek.
His eyes were more fawn-like than ever as he looked at her, pupils widened into black pools, the brilliant white image of Heaven reflecting in them.
“Breathe, Al”, she whispered and gave the tip of his nose a soft kiss, before wrapping her arms around his neck and moving him, so his head rested against her chest. “Match your heartbeat with mine.”
It was easier said than done, but eventually, he felt his heart calm down from its frantic racing and find its rhythm with her’s again.
“Now”, she then said and ran her fingers through his hair, untangling some of the knots that had formed over the days. “Do you still want to tell me?”
“Yes”, he said, his voice trembling more than he wanted it to. He cleared his throat but couldn’t hope for a big change. “He… made me believe… that I… k-killed you…”
His words came out at a snail’s pace, but at least his voice didn’t fail him again.
“And…” He took a deep breath through his nose. “I… I do want to.. reconcile with him. But…” His gaze flicked up to Sky, who offered him the soft smile he loved so much. “I- I’m… scared, if I’m completely honest…”
“I get that”, she whispered and nuzzled into his hair. “But… we’ll figure something out. This is not the end of the road; it's just the end of the paved path.”
Alastor pulled away a little to look at her properly, but Sky didn’t stop talking.
“After that there's a dirt way with stones and boulders, but it's not impossible to traverse”, she told him and cupped his head in her hands, her thumbs brushing over his eyelids and temples. “We can do it, Allie. Just like we always have.”
The deer demon almost melted into her touch, his arm wrapping around her waist once more to pull himself closer. “You should have been the Overlord of Words, my love.”
The laugh he earned from her with that made his ears perk up, even as he nuzzled into her chest.
“In another universe, perhaps”, she smiled and softly kissed the crown of his head, right between the pair of small antlers. “For now, just call me Sky Shakespeare.”
Now it was his turn to laugh as he shifted and placed a kiss on her neck. “I believe the surname ‘Winter’ suits both of us better, mon amour~”
“Well, Sky Moreau doesn’t sound half bad either, does it?”, she asked amused and wrapped her tail around them.
“Hm, I’d rather not associate another woman with the man who made my Ma’s life a living Hell”, he murmured and let out a warm breath against her velvety skin.
“I suppose you are right”, she agreed and for a moment, her thoughts drifted to what Zophiel had told her in her last moments in Heaven.
“You‘re expecting. I wanted it to be a surprise…”
She felt sick just thinking about it. Zophiel’s offspring, growing within her body, leeching off of her like a parasite.
“Sweetheart, your grip on my hair is quite unpleasant”, Alastor pulled her out of her thoughts, and she quickly loosened her vice-like grip on the red strands.
“Sorry.. Memories”, she muttered and smoothed his hair down.
“Why, you seem to have an awful lot of them”, he chuckled playfully and kissed her forehead.
“They’re quite annoying, I’m telling you”, she scoffed half-jokingly, but her voice was hollow.
“Do you wish to tell me what it was you were thinking about?”, Alastor asked and tilted his head slightly to the side.
Sky only gave a tired sigh and rubbed her face with her hand. “Zophiel and… something she’d said…”
For a second, she wondered if she should tell him about her pregnancy, short as it may have been…
No. That was in the past and he’d only be upset about it on her behalf.
“Care to elaborate?”, he inquired and studied her expression but dropped the topic when he saw even the slightest hint of reluctance. “If you’d feel more secure, I can always leave my shadow with you to be your escort.”
“No”, she slowly said and shook her head. “We need it to monitor Vox. Just in case his injuries worsen, or he relapses back into being possessed.”
“I suppose that is a valid argument”, the deer demon muttered and twirled a strand of Sky’s hair around his finger. Internally, he knew that his shadow wouldn’t react if Vox’ condition was worsening. It saw the television demon as a machine, not a demon. And machines couldn’t die.
“But on the topic of Zophiel and Heaven and all that jazz”, Sky then picked up again. “Do the others know about Lilith? Husk, Angel, Draco, etcetera.”
“I have talked with Charlie about it, and we have come to the conclusion that it might be best to wait until our Queen has revealed why she returned”, he explained and released Sky’s hair again.
“Don’t you think it’s strange that Lilith returns the moment Vox got possessed?”, the dragon demoness suddenly pointed out and crossed her legs, one arm propping up her chin as she narrowed her eyes in contemplation.
“Now, now, I believe that is merely a coincidence, darling”, he said in a playfully chiding voice as he shifted to fold his long legs beneath him. “Besides, Heaven might as well have kept her hostage. Only now that the realms are at a brittle peace, did they allow her to return.”
“Hm, I guess we’ll know eventually”, she said and laid back onto the concrete, her arms crossing beneath her head. “Ain’t no use in making theories and arguing about them.”
“We weren’t arguing, in my eyes, dearest”, he said and lay down on his side next to her, his head propped up in his hand.
“Yeah, but I mean generally.” The demoness shook her head. “Whatever. Fact is, we’ll know when we know.”
“Right you are, sweetheart”, he hummed and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “No matter how complicated you express it.”
Below them in Sky’s old room, Vox was drowning. Metaphorically speaking.
She left because she thinks I’m dangerous, his mind told him. Or was it his mind? Maybe it was the being that had possessed him which was talking to him again. Maybe he’d never actually gotten rid of it.
What if it turns me into that mindless monster again? His metaphorical throat constricted at the thought. What if I hurt Sky? Or Alastor?
He felt Vark’s head nudge his shoulder, making him flinch as his hardware booted up again.
“Stay away from me”, he told the shark-dog, who gave a confused whimper.
Vox breaths came in labored gasps, his gills fluttering at his waist, as he pushed himself against the wall bordering on the bed.
There was nothing but darkness where vision should have been, but his heart broke only thinking about Vark’s startled, maybe frightened expression, when he heard those whimpers.
His claws gripped into the space where his head should have been, hadn’t he ripped it off again a few minutes ago.
“Fuck”, he whispered as his hands wrapped around his shoulders. “God damnit!”
A mug broke against the floor when Vox lashed out into the darkness, sobs ringing through his speakers.
He heard Vark’s scared whine and how the shark-dog pressed himself into a corner.
“Yes!”, Vox snapped, his claws raking over his collar bones and painting his dark blue skin cyan. “Goddamn right, you should be scared of me!”
His body sank into itself as his hand rubbed down his arm, the movement soon turning into scratching at his wrists until the pain shot straight into his artificial heart.
“What am I doing?” He let go of his arm, his mind conjuring up images of cuts littering his forearm and cyan blood dripping onto the blanket.
He let himself fall onto the bed, his claws now curling into the sheets instead of his flesh. “Why am I like this?”
Two days passed for Vox in the same routine that quickly grew old. Sky would come in the morning, check his injuries – she luckily hadn’t noticed the cuts along his arms yet beneath the sleeves of his new shirt – talk with him a little and then leave again, only to return in the evening for the same procedure.
He felt like a burden. He felt sluggish and weak and lazy and unable to do anything, but sit around, mope, listen to the news that slandered him and feel sorry for himself.
“Hey, Vox!” Sky’s voice startled him, before he realized the door had been opened and closed again.
He pushed himself up, the injuries littering his body screaming at the motion, but he ignored it. He was a bitch for even feeling the pain.
“How are your injuries doing?”, the dragon demoness asked as he heard how she sat down at her PC and turned it on.
“No changes”, he lied and let himself fall back onto the bed. “Still as shitty as before.”
His humor had become hollow in the past two days, and Sky had given up on trying to initiate some banter.
She’s trying so hard and I’m ruining it, a thought whispered inside him. He let it settle amongst the others.
“Your parts should arrive in a few days, same as your head”, she informed him and shut down her PC again, before draping one arm over the backrest of her chair and turning towards the headless demon on her bed. “Also, I asked Baxter and he’ll help me with making you better than new.”
“That’s… good to hear”, Vox said, but his voice didn’t sound the part.
Sky opened her mouth to say something, when suddenly the shadows darkened in a corner of the dim room, before Alastor emerged from them.
“I do hope I’m not interrupting you, darling”, the Radio Demon said and focused on his partner, completely ignoring Vox on the bed. “But I am inclined to believe that there is something incredibly interesting going on downstairs~”
“Oh?” Sky stood up and stepped over and smiled at the taller demon. “Now I’m intrigued~”
She managed to give a quick goodbye to Vox, before Alastor melted them both into the shadows again.
The media demon’s heart sank, and he felt how his hand pushed the sleeve of his shirt up, before his sharp claws sliced into flesh once again.
The first thing Sky saw when she landed in the hotel lobby with Alastor was Vaggi’s shocked face.
“How long have I been upstairs that Mista Abstinence now eats up that hottie?”, Angel asked as he and Cherri came down the stairs.
That’s when Sky directed her gaze to the object of everyone’s interest, to find Draco and a truly breathtaking peacock demoness making out just past the open hotel door.
“Did I miss something?”, she asked towards Alastor, whose ear tilted towards her, before he chuckled.
“Trust me, darling, I’m as puzzled as you~”
Which was true, yes, but not only did the deer demon feel confused about the inhibited corvid demon kissing a demoness he’d never spoken about, but he also felt relief as he watched the scene.
Given Draco’s proper nature, the Overlord doubted that the demoness he was greeting so passionately was anything less than his partner, which also assured him that the younger demon most certainly didn’t hold any lingering feelings for Alastor’s favorite demoness anymore.
Not that he’d been concerned about Sky being unfaithful to him, no, quite the opposite. Alastor had feared that Draco might at some point give into his male nature and simply act without consideration.
The Radio Demon’s ears leaned back at simply thinking of Sky being violated like that, pops of static crackling through the air.
As the pair let go of each other, Vaggi let out an uncertain stuttered abomination of a sentence, before turning to Sky. “I- uh.. Let me get Charlie down here.”
“Who’ll handle these two lovebirds?” Literally, the dragon demoness added in thought.
“You!” And with that, the former exorcists had flown up the stairs and disappeared.
“Great!”, Sky said sarcastically and cleared her throat, before looking at Draco and the peacock demoness. “Well.. count me intrigued to hear your story.”
The demoness now gave her attention to Sky too and made a surprised step back, her blue-green eyes widening.
“Wait…” She stepped forward again, the long peacock feathers that trailed after her twitching slightly. “You’re Yule, aren’t you?”
Sky saw Alastor raise a confused eyebrow at her from the corner of her eye, but she ignored it, instead trying to figure out where the Hell the demoness knew her from as her blood froze in her veins.
“Don’t you remember me?”, the demoness continued and stepped closer again, until Sky backed away. “Azaria? From the café?”
For a moment, Sky blanked and she had to reflexively lean against Alastor, who subtly prevented her from falling, by resting his hand against her back.
She knows me from Heaven, Sky had concluded, her ears swiveling around to every demon in the room. She knows I’ve been there. Why can’t I remember her?
The awkward silence persisted for a moment longer, before Draco spoke up. “You know each other?”
Azaria was about to open her mouth when Sky was already chiming in and straightening herself again. “Yes, quite indeed! We’ve met fleetingly in a café once and had ourselves a little chat!”
When she shot Azaria a warning glare, her pale eyes glowing white for a moment, the peacock demoness’ blue wings slightly folded around her, and she tucked her head in.
Of course, Azaria had heard of The Dread and the powers she possessed, so she knew exactly that it was her doing that the image of that room appeared behind her eyes again.
It had been the first time someone had rented her for the less proper kind of indulgence and, of course, it hadn’t been someone but five. Five giants in relation to her small, so malnourished frame.
She felt her abdomen cramp up again at the memory of the pain she’d experienced weeks after.
There had been so much blood…
Finally, her thoughts were released again, and she could focus back on reality.
“Yes!”, she said and cleared her throat. “Yes, a nice change of pace from everyday life.”
The whole flashback must have only taken a second, given how nobody had seemed to notice her drifting off.
The silence that followed after allowed them to hear Niffty drop her knife somewhere in the hallway, just before bouncy footsteps came down the stairs.
“Hi!”, the Princess of Hell said and practically pounced on Azaria. “I’m Charlie! Morningstar, heh. Welcome to the Hazbin Hotel!”, she cheerfully greeted the demoness and spread her arms above her head.
“I’m honored to meet you, your majesty”, Azaria smiled and bowed her head.
“Tell me!” Suddenly, Charlie was right in her face again. “Are you here to be redeemed?”
“Not… exactly, no”, the peacock demoness responded and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Actually, I come from up there.”
Sky could practically hear how everyone’s jaw dropped, followed by a quiet chuckle from Alastor.
“But- but then why are you here?”, the princess asked and looked behind her at the portrait of Sir Pentious. “Did they kick you out?”
“Um, well…” Azaria stapled her fingers together. “I asked them to get me back down here.”
“But why???” Charlie had sunk to her knees, hands grasping at the fallen angel’s arms.
“That’s easy to explain”, Azaria smiled and wrenched Charlie’s hands off of her arms, before stepping towards Draco. “I’m his girlfriend.”
“Woah!”, Angel chimed in and sauntered over to Draco, before slinging an arm around his shoulders. “First Sky, now Azaria? At this point ya basically a pimp!”
“Angel!”, Sky, Alastor, Vaggi, Draco and Husk shouted, making the spider demon cower in faux fear.
Vaggi then cleared her throat and turned back towards Azaria. “So, you’re not here to be redeemed.”
“Obviously, so I was thinking that maybe you could use a receptionist?”, the peacock demoness suggested.
“Um, if I may intervene”, Sky said and stepped forward, one finger raised, before folding her arms behind her back again and looking at the shorter demoness. “Azaria, you are or were known to Hell as Silvio’s star and one of his prettiest dancers. If you work at the front desk, you will risk getting harassed.”
“Perhaps, but I’ve dealt with that sort of scum for longer than I can remember”, the fallen angel smiled, her tail feathers fanning out behind her, before she lowered them again. “I’m pretty sure I can handle myself.”
“Nonetheless”, the Overlord said and turned towards Charlie now. “You need to hire security staff. Al can’t keep an eye on every nook and cranny of the hotel!”
The princess’ jaw nearly dropped again, if it hadn’t been for Vaggi holding it closed. “Wait, really?”
“Well, I was merely keeping an eye out for any male residents intending to harass women”, Alastor quickly explained with a smug grin, before his gaze flicked towards Vaggi. “On, and before I forget, there are about ten drug dealers scurrying around here~”
Somehow, his grin broadened even more when Vaggi’s eye narrowed and her claws flexed, and he couldn’t help himself but lean towards her. “You’re welcome~”
“Oh, hijo de-“ The former exorcist was up and ahead of returning to her old ways, when Charlie quickly intervened and relented.
“Fine, yes.” She looked at Sky who gave her an expectant look. “I’ll take the rest of the day to hire some security staff. Oh, and also the therapist you and Baxter agreed on.”
Her eyes flicked toward Draco who was giving Azaria another kiss that dripped with passion.
“And the kitchen hand to help him.”
“Perfect!”, Sky declared and clapped her hands together. “Now, Charlie, Draco, why not show Azaria around?”
“Great idea, Sky!”, the Princess of Hell said and hooked Azaria’s arm into hers before dragging her along, with Draco scrambling to follow them.
“I’ll just go through the security staff applications already”, Vaggi said and watched the trio fondly, before spreading her wings and flying away.
“Let’s see how often the love-doves smooch!”, Angel grinned and followed after the small group, with Cherri right on his heels.
“One shot for each kiss?”, she suggested, before the duo fist-bumped and disappeared into the kitchen.
Sky huffed fondly, before turning towards the stairs.
“How about a quiet evening in the library?”, Alastor suggested as the pair walked up the stairwell, folding his functional arm behind his back.
“That sounds really nice”, Sky said, her ears tilting back as she averted her eyes. “But I really have to stop procrastinating on my work and start prepping the files of my patients to give to the new therapist.”
Alastor smiled and tutted her gently. “Why, that is clearly more important.”
“Please don’t be mad”, she muttered and glanced up at him.
“Darling, why would I ever be mad at you?”, he asked and gave her a kiss once they had reached the top of the stairs, his right hand coming up to cup her cheek.
A melodic purr resonated in her throat at the gesture, and the tension melted out of her like snow.
“I understand what you are doing is very important”, he said after moving his head back a little. “Not only for our girl Charlie, but also for the guests.”
“Since when do you care about other people?”, Sky asked amused and took his hand from her cheek to lace their fingers together.
“I’ve been… making new experiences”, he answered, before fake contemplating again. “Trying new things.”
“Please stop”, she said half-jokingly and gave his hand a squeeze, before letting go and turning towards the elevator.
“Anytime, my deerling!”, he chanted, before heading for the library.
Vox jumped when he heard the key turning in the lock and quickly pulled his sleeve down again, before pretending that he was sleeping.
“Vox?”, Sky’s voice came from the door, before he heard her chuckle. “Hey, silly.”
Vark let out a quiet bark, before Sky and him walked through the room. Soon after, Vox heard the PC power up and Vark lie down next to her at the desk.
“You keeping me company while I work?”, she asked and the shark dog responded with a happy grumble.
So, she’s here to work, Vox thought, his hands curling into the blanket. She doesn’t like working, so she came here, because she connects this place with negative feelings…
The sinner could just barely suppress the hitched breath, as the claws of his other hand wrapped around his slashed wrist again, already swollen and warm against his artificial skin, and they dug into his flesh once more.
She hated him. Vark hated him. Alastor wouldn’t even so much as acknowledge him.
And Vox knew he had no one to blame but himself.
How long will I keep trying before I finally get it?
