Home is where my Heart is.
Chapter 5: Dad beat Dad pt. 1
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It was late at night, most of the people at the hotel were still asleep. Aside for two.
“Charlie? Dear, why are you still up?” I asked finding her in the living room section downstairs.
“Ah! Miledy! Hi! Umm, I was just figuring out why our hotel isn’t working,” she replies looking at the ‘documents’ in her hands, while she sat by herself on the couch then lifting her head to look at her cork board.
I sit beside her, subconsciously placing my hand over her back in comfort and asked, “Is this about the countdown?”
Her eyes widen finding my touch comfortable and familiar, and softly lets out, “Yeah, we’ve been doing everything, and nothing’s been working that can help them achieve redemption. I just feel a little bit hopeless.”
“Aw, starshine. It’s ok,” I tell her as I pulled her in for a hug which she accepted, her breathing slowed down as she had slowly melted in my touch. “I think a break will do you some good. Say, do you want to stay here with me and cuddle?”
She jumps out of my embrace and replies embarrassed, “N-no! It’s fine! I don’t want to trouble you! Besides, I’m this old enough already I don’t need—”
I just take her hands in mine and asked with a slight smile, “Are you sure you don’t need it?”
She gives me a hesitant look before finally admitting defeat and laid in my embrace. We sat there, my back against the couch while I held the princess in my arms that she had her eyes closed to.
“You feel so warm,” she comments quietly breathing onto my chest where she put her head onto.
I tittered and answered, “That’s a first, most people comment on how cold my body is. I did die from drowning, you know?”
“N-no.I meant that, you remind me of how I was held by my mom,” she said finally opening her eyes but refusing to look at mine while her eyebrows furrowed.
My smile falters and I softly sigh, remembering the story that Lucifer told me. How he wanted me to be there for Charlie when he failed to do so. When he still couldn’t accept himself, when he couldn’t get better. So, I did.
“You know…” I started, “This isn’t the first time we met.”
“7 years ago, I was asked by your father to take care of you when he couldn’t.”
“But why can’t I remember you?”
I give her a grin and asked, “Do you remember having a little stuffed turtle?”
Her eyes widen recalling her favorite toy she kept. It often felt cold but when she was distraught, feeling everything all at once, she hugs the toy and feels like she was wrapped in a warm embrace while she fell asleep crying.
“That gift was from you? I never knew, I always thought my mom gave it to me cause of the melodies it sang,” she mutters in disbelief. “How come you never came and told me?”
I smiled sadly petting her head, “Who knows? All I remember was such a broken girl. She had a hard time picking herself up after her parents split. I can’t imagine how painful it was for you.”
Her eyes welled up in tears remembering more painful times, burying her face more into my chest.
“Well, I performed once in Lu Lu Land by popular demand and our friendship started from there. I was quite surprised that he wasn’t appalled by me. You know how his majesty is with sinners,” I laughed.
She only sighed, and replied, “If only he could listen to me. I’m doing this for our people and yet…”
“This might sound like an excuse but, your father, despite being the sin of pride feels ashamed of himself, Starshine. He’s ashamed that what he thought want humans needed ended up being the root of evil. He’s ashamed of the gift he gave us sinners, but he never knew or understood what good it brought to the world, only believing that he had caused all of this. For them to end up in his dominion, only reminding himself further why he’s here in the first place,” I explained to her combing through her hair, “So the next time you see your dad, go easy on him, okay? He might not be the perfect dad, but he’s the only one you got. Got it?”
She nods and smiles, “I can see why Dad became friends with you so easily. When he needed a friend the most you were there.”
We both fall into a comfortable silence and after moments gone by without saying a word to one another, I started to hum a song for her. Slowly and steadily, her breathing became even falling to a well needed rest.
Charlie woke up a couple hours later with a newfound energy bounding around the room trying to think of a solution to their problem. One by one, all the members of the hotel gathered round watching her fall into a spiral.
“Come on, come on, come on, come on.”
“Charlie? Sweetie? You, uh, you good?” Vaggie asks worriedly behind the couch I was sitting on, while I just looked at Charlie sipping my first tea of the morning.
“Nope! No, not really. Ha ha. I've been up all night trying to figure out why the hotel isn't working. We've done trust falls, we've tried sharing our feelings, we only have a couple months left before the angels come,” she briefly transforms into her demon form then returning, “And at this rate—"
Charlie then runs forward closer to Vaggie screaming, “DON’T SAY IT.”
Charlie then groans while Vaggie tries to explain to her, “Charlie, I know you don't want to, but we need every advantage we can get.”
“I approve of this. Save yourself the energy,” I remark lifting my cup at her.
“Not you too…” she groans. “He let the extermination happen to begin with. They just had a meeting and said, "Go ahead and kill everyone"—gasp Wait, that's it!”
“Kill everyone?” Vaggie and I asked in unison looking at each other wide eyed.
“No! He could get me a meeting with Heaven!”
Didn't we already try that?” Vaggie asks.
“Well. yeah with Adam, he was an asshole~. But he isn't in charge of all of Heaven. We could go to the top. There's sure to be some angels who will listen,” she suggests pulling her phone out.
“What's the holdup? You got daddy issues?” Husk digs at her.
“No, we just have never been close. After he and mom split, he never really wanted to see me. He calls, sometimes, but only if he's bored or like needs me to do something,” she answers unconfidently.
“Daddy issues,” Husk smirks drinking from his mug.
“Well, I'd like to meet the big dick in charge,” Angel leans on the couch from behind me.
“The ultimate bad boy,” Niffty sings with a knife in her hands that Angel throws away, “I bet he's scary.”
I shrug, lifting my hands making the teacup disappear and answer, “Eh, he’s more like a puppy actually. Better go and get my husband filled in on the plan then. Toodles~”
