The following morning Alastor awoke early to prepare coffee when he noticed an envelope had been tucked underneath his door. He rarely received mail, and especially not in this manner since he had a mailbox down in the lobby. However he recognized the violet seal right away as the eye of a peacock feather and he grimaced at the sight of Vera the Volatile's signature. It was an invitation to tea at her estate, and that very afternoon, no less.

Alastor's ear tufts folded back. Of course she would be so gauche as to invite him at such short notice. As much as he loathed being in the presence of that wretched harpy once again, he suspected that the Swan Queen's success was no doubt getting to her and wanted to have a talk with him.

He smirked. He wasn't about to pass up the chance to gloat about Odile's success to her face.

Vera the Volatile was considered one of the lower-tier overlords of Hell, mostly content to the life of a star, only seeking power as a means for it to stay that way.

After her husband Daniel had been sent to Hell, it didn't take long for the idiot to get mixed up with the mob and end up as another one of their pathetic little lapdogs. Fortunately for him, when he was on the docket for execution due to his gross incompetence, Vera was able to make a few shrewd business deals with his bosses and get his sorry ass out of trouble. With that Vera was able to procure a small seat of power in Hell that was most useful to her in her return to stardom.

As such, she made a home for herself in this large estate that resembled a Southern mansion.

Upon his arrival, Alastor recalled that there was a time that this structure seemed so inviting, when he was one of her many, many guests to her lovely annual garden party. Back then it seemed promising as he had hoped to form some kind of alliance with Vera. However the sight of this seemingly beautiful structure left a bitter taste in his mouth as he recalled it didn't take long for Vera to destroy their chances of an alliance that very same night.

He stood outside the metal gates expecting someone to let him in, but then he heard a woman's voice beckon, "The gate's open, darling! Come on in!"

Alastor let himself in, but inside the outer wall he noticed a black-suited guard keeping watch, lest Alastor be led to believe there was lax security at the estate.

Sitting at a glass table in her best Sunday dress and hat was Vera. Tea, sandwiches and scones were laid out in front of her and her jacket was hanging from the back of her chair.

Alastor sat down in front of her and noticed the broad-shouldered falcon demon in a crisp, clean suit that stood beside Vera like a statue.

He raised an eyebrow in mild annoyance. "I was hoping we could discuss matters privately…" he said.

"Oh, don't mind Edwina the Eagle-Eyed," Vera replied. "She's just my right-hand eagle. I just can't get through the day without her."

"I'm a falcon, ma'am," Edwina flatly corrected.

"Yes, yes. Anyway, it's so good to see you again, Alastor dear!" Vera greeted as she held out her hand in a way like she expected him to kiss it.

Alastor grimaced as Edwina served him tea from a very ornate teapot. "I wish I shared the sentiments, Vera."

Vera pulled back her hand and took the rejection in a playful way. "Oh, come now, Alastor. You can't still be mad about what happened then."

"How could I forget?" Alastor retorted. "I'd demand an apology but I wouldn't want to repeat the words you used to describe me in front of Edwina here."

Edwina's brow furrowed. "Wait, what did you call him, ma'am?"

"Oh, that's ancient history," Vera cheerfully waved off. "Can't we just let bygones be bygones?"

"Evidently not." Alastor sniffed at his tea before taking the first sip, as if to make sure it wasn't poisoned. "As you are apparently a repeat-offender for such slander…"

Vera chortled. "'Repeat-offender?' That's rich coming from the famed serial killer."

"So now you find that repugnant? Last time that was what you found so enticing about me…"

"Yes, well, only because my dear Daniel couldn't pull off a hit to save his life. I wanted to show him what a real overlord looks like. You understand."

"Hmm…" It seemed he was never going to get that apology, so Alastor chose to change the subject. "Speaking of which, how is the mister?"

"Oh, sadly, my sweet little Daniel perished in last year's extermination. How was I supposed to know he was still outside when I locked the door…?"

"Hmm…"

"Why? Did you know him?"

"No. No, I didn't." On one hand he was glad to hear the cad who betrayed Odile so long ago got what he deserved. Alastor had just hoped that he'd be the one to carry it out. He helped himself to some cream as he asked, "Now, why is it that you invited me here?"

"I don't know." Vera gave him a flirtatious grin and added, "Why do you think I invited you here?"

Alastor grimaced again in disgust. "No."

"Pardon?"

"I had no interest last time and I have no interest now."

"Oh, please! You are so full of yourself. You really think I still wanna screw a weirdo like you? I've got more important things to deal with. That sweet little ingenue of yours, for instance."

"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about," Alastor lied with a smug look on his face.

"Oh, come now! The one they're calling 'the Swan Queen'. There's no way that a little unknown like her became so popular without the help of an overlord. And since her television and social media presence is considerably limited, it couldn't be Vox or Velvet helping her. It could only be you. So, what, you've gone from radio host to impresario now? Is she your little muse? Are you her Sergei Diaglev to her Vaslav Nijinsky?"

"What does it matter to you?" Alastor gave her the side-eye, hoping she wouldn't see he was blushing as she was kind of correct on that note.

Vera grinned. "So you admit it." She leaned in, eager for him to dish. "Let me guess: Are you two in a sexless relationship? Oh, that is all too precious. Who knew Hell's own little Radio Demon was, in fact, so chaste and innocent…"

Alastor twitched. He hated it when people conflated sexual disinterest with "innocence".

"No, I suppose not," Vera continued. "I've seen her act. She's way too spicy for the likes of you."

"You know nothing about her!" Alastor growled.

"Ooh! Did I touch a nerve, Al? That's so cute!"

Alastor tried to calm himself, but his eye was still twitching. "Look, just cut to the chase, Vera! Why have you invited me here?"

Vera proudly smoothed out the wrinkles in her dress. She felt she had him right where she wanted. "I wanted to offer the opportunity to have your little Swan Queen as my opening act. Seems fitting that two divas with the Siren Voice should appear in the same show, don't you think? Better yet, I would love for her to have a duet with me. Just imagine the crowd the two of us could draw."

"Want to eliminate the competition, eh?" Alastor questioned knowingly.

Vera gave a coy shrug. "More or less. The art world is far too competitive. We should be working together as a unit. Don't you agree with me, Al?"

Not if your coworker is a back-biting snake, thought Alastor. "Yes, as lovely as that sounds I'm going to have to decline."

Vera's friendly facade seemed to crack. "Wait, what?"

Alastor took a scone and added, "You heard me correctly. The Swan Queen would not care for such a business venture."

"And how can you be so sure? Why don't you ask her yourself?"

"I don't need to. I know her quite well and she would not care for that. She doesn't like casual slander."

Now it was Vera's turn for her eye to twitch. "Is that so…?" She took a deep breath and turned to the side, giving opportunity to show off her long, lean legs. "No matter. I know your game. One word from me about your little ingenue's Siren Voice and her career crumbles."

"As will yours with one word from me…" Alastor threatened. "Not only that, I still have your original demo tape…"

Vera's eyes widened in alarm.

"And I have the means to broadcast it," Alastor added.

Edwina stepped forward. "You want me to shut him up, ma'am?"

Alastor raised his free hand, ready to snap his fingers and call in his unspeakably horrifying backup in at any second.

"No, no, Edwina," Vera ordered. "That will not be necessary. We were just finishing up…"

"Indeed," Alastor agreed. He stood up and said, "Thank you for the tea, Vera. I'll show myself out."

Vera gave a courtesy giggle as Alastor walked back out the front gate, her eyes narrowing as soon as he was out of sight.

Edwina leaned down towards Vera's ear. "You sure you don't want me to put a hit on him?"

"Oh, that will be fine, Edwina. It doesn't matter." Vera retrieved her phone from her jacket pocket. "I know his game…" Vera pulled up an article she saved from before. It was an interview with the Swan Queen, one where she was highly encouraging her fans to support this fledgling band called the MurderPonies…