Chapter IV: Therapeutic Ammunition
"I'm back!" Charlie called out as she and Vaggie carried in their 'creative outlet' supplies. Husk was tasked to help them out as well. They brought in a drumkit, guitars, a trumpet, euphonium, a clarinet, and a trombone. Next came in the massive pile of art supplies: canvases, paints, pencils, pads of paper, brushes, erasers, scissors, glue, and palates. Angel Dust and Cherri watched on, seemingly overwhelmed.
"We're going to set up an art room!" Charlie announced with a little too much excitement.
From atop a set of stairs, Alastor looked down at all of them with a glowing smile and announced: "Come to the second floor of the Hazbin Hotel to witness the grand opening of its new jazz lounge!"
They brought the instruments up and the new lounge looked quite sharp! It looked to be modeled after speakeasies and cabarets of the 1920's. Alastor blocked Vaggie's way in and told her: "Sorry darling, but we've a dress code here, and you're missing your most important accessory that makes you fully dressed... SMILE!"
Vaggie forced one just to shut him up.
"It's beautiful!" Charlie declared.
Alastor pranced up onto the stage and with a snap of his fingers, he summoned shadows, and struck up a comedic old tune "Masculine Women, Feminine Men" and it was clear that he was taking a jab at Charlie and Angel Dust. Charlie found it funny and Angel Dust remembered the tune from when he was around ten.
They politely clapped at the end of the tune, rested the instruments, and cleared out of there. They had an art room to set up now. They set up tables, easels, and set them up with a particular medium for a form of art.
"Okay everyone, listen up!" Charlie called out. Once she got their attention, she announced: "Okay, I know that some of you aren't quite inclined to express yourselves by making pictures, but while we were out, Vaggie and I decided that it would be a great idea if you would all make a portrait of yourselves alongside something that brought light to your life and something that turned you to the - well - dark side as some might put it."
"Why?" Husk grumbled.
"Well, it would give others insight about who you are and help me to help you all to follow a path towards redemption," Charlie replied, but Husk, Angel Dust, and Cherri still didn't look too impressed. Charlie let out a sigh and told them: "Plus, if you do this project well, I will let you blow some steam in target practice."
"You actually bought the guns?" Angel Dust asked her.
"Yes, I got them, and they're locked away for now. They're the type that Alastor described."
"I believe that thanks are in order. It's clear that Charlie filled a request for you that she didn't want to," Alastor stated.
"Heh, yeah, this place might actually get fun now... Alright, thanks Charlie, I'll get started on that portrait then," Angel Dust replied. He picked out one of the larger canvases and some tubes of paint before setting to work. Cherri looked at him, shrugged, and picked up some similar items. Alastor - also picking up some motivation, stuck with the pencils and paper.
"You don't paint, Alastor?" Cherri asked.
"The Great Depression left people with little expense for art supplies. Pencils and paper were something that everyone could afford," he replied.
"Eh, maybe for those who worked an honest living. When your family stored money from selling whiskey during prohibition, you were set for the hardship," Angel spoke.
"Are you implying that prohibition ended while you were still alive?" Alastor asked.
"Actually, it ended on the fifth of December in 1933... You don't forget something that shook your family's illegal trade that bad."
A sound of old radio static filled the air as Alastor replied: "I just missed it!"
Angel Dust and Cherri exchanged looks while suppressing the need to laugh.
Ω Ω Ω
They worked tirelessly on their portraits.
"Did Charlie by any chance get some red ink?" Alastor asked as he sifted through the art supplies. He found something to work with and Angel Dust and Cherri noticed some ample application of red.
Angel Dust and Cherri put on the final touches of their portraits and called Charlie and Vaggie over.
"You broads know that you're lookin' at killers, right?" Angel Dust asked them.
"We know, and we're mentally prepared," Vaggie replied, although she really couldn't speak for Charlie.
Cherri did the first reveal, a portrait of a two-eyed young woman with her body facing towards a running trail, but with her head turned to a burning building
"Tell me about this portrait," Charlie spoke.
"I've just always enjoyed thrills and running makes me feel free. It was my pyromania that really did me - and some others - in."
Angel Dust revealed his painting - a rather expressionist style. In the center of a darkly dressed family, there was one guy in a light grey suit. He had slick hair a strong pointed chin, and sharp features holding a flamboyant smile. He was looking down at a dish of lasagna being held by a greying woman in a light green dress - the only other light-colored outfit - while there were goons with guns looking into a briefcase full of drugs. The figure representing Angel Dust was holding a little baggie of said drugs, but looking like he was trying to hide it from the woman in green.
"Who's the lady in green?" Charlie asked.
"Oh, that's my grandma. She always seemed to be kept in the dark about Pops' business; she loved fussing over everyone and her cooking could make even the hardest of us sing with joy. My sister was also pretty sweet, but she was also a part of the family business."
"It's a good piece of work, Angel," Charlie spoke. She then took a deep breath for Alastor's unveiling... his drawing didn't disappoint. It was a front-facing portrait with his figure split between a light and dark half. His human depiction was rather realistic for a mostly black and white drawing. The person in the drawing had hair flopped over his brow, wore pince nez spectacles, and was dressed in a button-up shirt, vest, and bow tie. On the light half, Alastor had drawn the interior of his radio studio with a bulletin of topics he was covering. Also, the half of his portrait on the light side was well groomed and happy.
On the dark half of Alastor's portrait, there was a crack on the lens of his spectacles, his hair was mussed, clothes rumpled and splattered with blood, he was even bruised, and that eye made him look manic. The scenery behind him was of a forest with a trail of several silhouetted bodies behind him and a couple voodoo symbols were drawn in the sky.
"Very straight-foreword, Alastor," Charlie told him.
"Wow, you three actually have some talent in this," Vaggie added. The pictures did give them a good sense of what those three looked like in life - Alastor looked surprisingly like a nervous type being so skinny and wearing those spectacles, Angel Dust looked quite dapper but still mischievous, and Cherri still looked like a punk.
"Alright, while the three of you were working on your drawings, I set up a shooting range, and I also made some snacks. You're free to go there, but Vaggie is in charge of all the ammunition," Charlie told them. They thanked her and followed Vaggie outside where there were targets set up.
Vaggie gave each of them two bullets and one of the guns, reminding them that the only thing that they were to be pointed at were the targets.
"Oh, Winchester Model 1895 - repeating, lever action. Good choice," Angel Dust spoke as he quickly loaded up and took the first shot. Bullseye!
"Great shot as ever, Angie!" Cherri declared. She was less fluid with her loading and firing, but she was still a good shot.
"Now where does a young lady learn to shoot like that?" Alastor asked her.
"When you live a life of anarchy and have a friends like Angie!"
Alastor regarded her for a moment and elegantly loaded and fired at his target. Bullseye!
"Dang Alastor, that's a good shot! I figured you were more accustomed to knives," Angel Dust stated.
"You're not wrong, to kill a person with a gun is too cold in my opinion. However, there weren't many butcher shops in New Orleans that sell venison. With one deer I would be set for over a month with meat, and all it would cost me was the price of a bullet."
"Didn't radio hosts make decent wages back in the day?" Angel Dust asked.
"Yes, but I wasn't exactly the type to live frugally; music and blood was my passion anyway," Alastor replied.
"What exactly happened to you to develop a taste for killing anyway?" Cherri asked him.
"What happened to you that gave you a penchant for explosives?" he retorted, and he fired his second shot, another good hit.
"Everything started with a jackass and a lit match," Cherri replied, and she too fired her second shot.
"I don't think that you've told me that story before," Angel Dust spoke.
"I was getting out of a rough relationship, he got physical and tried to threaten me, and so I set his car on fire," Cherri replied flatly. Angel Dust gave her his second bullet, which she gladly fired.
Ω Ω Ω
"You want to take them on a what?" Charlie asked.
"I know it sounds weird, but when those three were out on the range, they opened up! They were three friends, talking to each other about their pasts, and shooting those events down. I think that if they're out open they might open up even more with each other," Vaggie replied.
"Alright, I'll see about renting a cabin... I can't promise that it's going to be tasteful, but it would be better than tents I suppose," Charlie replied.
Once that was done, Charlie called for Angel Dust, Alastor, and Cherri.
"Okay, so, you three impressed Vaggie out on the range. So, she came up with your next therapy activity," Charlie told them.
"I'm sorry, Vaggie, planned the next one?" Angel Dust questioned.
"Yes, you three are going to get some fresh air, and are going on a hunting trip!"
"THIS WAS VAGGIE'S IDEA?!" Angel Dust exclaimed.
"Excellent idea, Vagatha, the kitchen is frightfully low on venison," Alastor spoke.
"Yes, I came up with the idea, Angel!" Vaggie exclaimed.
"Sounds great, I'm always up for new scenes and fresh air, when do we leave?" Cherri asked.
"I've a cabin ready for you to check in at tomorrow morning and am renting it for two nights. You may want to start packing now. Also, Vaggie will be in charge of the weapons again. Good luck to you now!" Charlie told them. She and Vaggie turned away.
"Well how about that, those broads have a sense of fun after all!" Angel Dust stated.
"Yes, things are getting entertaining," Alastor remarked.
Ω Ω Ω
They were up bright and early the next morning and loaded up in the car. Charlie stayed behind while Vaggie was gone, to manage Husk and Nifty - not that they were really up for any trouble. Also, Charlie was hoping that someone might check in.
The ride out of the city was quiet, but everyone seemed at least in a decent mood. Lively jazz music emanated from Alastor.
"Hey now what's with all the old tunes?" Cherri asked him.
"Alastor didn't really keep up-to-date on events and trends after his death," Angel Dust answered.
"Shame, music took some interesting turns from the thirties through the eighties, the formats too," Cherri replied.
"Another time I'll look into it," Alastor told her.
They made it to the cabin, and Vaggie hoped that it had at least three bedrooms and a couch... Yeah, It came with two bedrooms, a couch, and a note on a table:
Sorry about any close quarters, but this was the largest cabin they had ready. Charlie.
"Okay, let's panic about it later, but someone is going to have to pair up with another for the night," Vaggie told them.
"Eh, I wouldn't mind havin' a partner," Angel Dust replied.
"Alright, then you get a bedroom then, I'll take the couch," Vaggie told them, leaving Cherri and Alastor to figure out which bedroom they would be sleeping in. However, for the moment, they put their bags in the den and headed back outside where Alastor transformed his clothes to a more suitable hunting outfit while the others were simply dressed in muted colors.
"Vagatha, are you aware of any hunting stands in the area?" Alastor asked.
"Nope, and I'm not here to hunt, I'm here to keep my eye and ears on you three."
"Very well then," Alastor spoke and he seemed to just take in the scenery and started into the forest. With him being the most experienced hunter and forest hiker, Cherri and Angel Dust were content to follow him.
Ω Ω Ω
Alastor stopped at a tree and climbed it, the tree would do just fine from a shooting platform. He and Angel Dust helped the girls to climb up it and Vaggie gave each of them a gun loaded with one bullet. Alastor emitted some rather pretty classical music.
"Oi, what's with the violins?" Cherri asked him.
"Shh, whisper darling. Deer will be drawn to the music, but they won't like you talking," he replied.
"You really seem to be in your element, old man," Cherri stated.
Alastor - with his ever-present grin - narrowed his eyes at her: "I beg your pardon, missy, but in retrospect I'm still in my thirties, and Angel Dust was probably born a mere ten years after me."
"It's probably more like thirteen," Angel Dust told him.
"Close enough... To respond to your statement, Cherri, I've found peace, food, and places to bury scum in the forest."
"Y'know, you probably could've saved yourself some trouble if you just dumped those bodies in a swamp or something," Angel Dust replied.
"For me, that would've meant driving a few miles with a bleeding corpse in the backseat, while the forest was just behind my house."
Vaggie was starting to regret this idea. Suddenly, Alastor caught sight of something, quickly took aim, and fired! He turned into his shadow form, slithered off into the distance, and soon came back with a ten-point buck!
"Nice bag, Alastor!" Angel Dust called down. The Radio Demon resumed his position on his branch and Vaggie handed him another bullet, although he didn't load it right away.
"So, what drove you to serial killing? I could go for a scary story right about now," Cherri asked him.
"Well, I felt like a hero after killing my father as he was beating my mother, and she turned out better when he was gone. That stuck with me... Later on in life I developed a fascination for the darker aspects of voodoo and also saw that my father wasn't the only monster disguised as a human. So, I had my targets and means to practice dark occult magic, and I kept my knives sharp. Thanks to my radio host charm and a bit of illegal liquor, I could lure my targets to my home, and had the privacy to look them in the eyes before they met their end... I spent a fair amount of time cleaning blood."
"Oh, man that's sick!" Cherri declared.
"I concur," Vaggie added.
"So, if you were killing guys who were already bad, who was the worst one you killed?" Angel Dust asked.
"A voodoo spell led me to a man who raped and murdered his own fifteen-year-old daughter," Alastor replied.
"Ugh, can you guys please switch over to another topic!" Vaggie groaned.
"You've been assaulted in life, haven't you, Vaggie? Badly too from the look of you," Cherri inquired with a sympathetic look in her eye. Alastor and Angel Dust looked their way.
"There's a reason I'm missing an eye,'' was Vaggie's response.
"Hey, we've been there too, Vaggie. You're not alone... My brother's the reason why I've got a black eye, and I've taken beatings and verbal lashings just because I wanted to date men. Being gay in a mob wasn't easy... Why else would I turn to drugs?" Angel Dust spoke. His words were sinking into Vaggie when he caught sight of some movement and fired his gun. The bullet went through the back of the deer's head and passed through the front.
"Got it!" Angel Dust declared, he started climbing down onto Alastor's branch when he heard static: "Hey, uh, Alastor, are you alright there?"
They paused to look at Angel's deer, fallen and bleeding.
"I feel like I just saw my own death," Alastor spoke. Angel Dust sat on the branch for a moment with Alastor, when suddenly:
CRACK! SNAP!
There were a pair of short screams on the way down followed by twin 'oofs'. During the fall, Angel Dust had fallen on top of Alastor, both on them managed to land on their fronts.
"Ow, dammit!" Angel Dust cussed, not quite realizing what he was laying on: "You okay, Alastor?"
Alastor lifted his head, his antlers grew a bit, his eyes turned to radio dials, and he turned his head 180 degrees: "GET OFF OF ME!" he bellowed.
With another scream, Angel Dust jumped so high that he was able to catch a branch between Cherri and Vaggie both girls bust out laughing, and birds took flight after hearing Alastor's shout.
Alastor's face returned to normal as he got up, but his head was still turned that extreme angle as he spoke: "Normally I don't take too kindly to others laughing at my expense, but it's nice to see you finally smile, Vagatha."
"Yeah, nice sentiments, now will ya put your head straight?" Angel Dust barked down. Alastor turned his body where his head was facing, and climbed back up the tree.
"I'm sorry, but Angel's been such a thorn for a while that having that play out was just hilarious!" Vaggie told them.
Angel Dust climbed onto one of the branches he was holding just as Alastor picked another.
"Hey, come on now, Vaggie, he's had it pretty rough in life and in death," Cherri spoke.
"Don't go into detail, Cherri," Angel interjected.
"Then perhaps I should you a question, Angel... What is something you always wanted but never thought that you could have?" Vaggie asked.
"Ah, damn, I could always go for a smoke when I think on shit like that."
"Angel Dust, it would probably do you well to use more delicate language around the ladies," Alastor spoke.
"Fine... To answer your question, Toots, it would be for a man who looks at me like you and Charlie look at each other. I've made porn and slutted around Hell for quite a while and had found no passion. There, ya happy?"
Vaggie was at a loss for words, the first time she actually felt sorry for him. She had what he wanted most.
"What drove you to such a profession anyway?" Alastor asked.
"I wanted to get away from the family business and I felt like it would be a decent way to express myself in that area... You saw how well that worked out for me and put an end to it... On top of that I thank ya and owe ya for it."
"We could settle with a deal," Alastor replied.
"Yeah, I've just got out of a contract with one demon overlord, I'd rather not get into another."
"You know, Alastor, you've never said anything about your love life," Cherri stated. Her gun was completely relaxed on her lap, like she had no interest in shooting anything.
"That's because it never happened. Oh, women would flirt with me and the occasional man with the scent of too many cocktails would try too, but I could see through them and what their intentions were... Oh, so depraved. When I tried to cool their advances, they would move onto someone else who showed a greater 'appetite' so to speak. People were - admittedly - rightly assumed that there was something wrong with me."
"Actually, Alastor, to me it doesn't sound like there's something wrong with you - except for your sins. It sounds like you're an asexual, meaning that you just aren't drawn to sexual aspects in a relationship, but still could potentially crave romance," Vaggie explained.
That caught everyone's attention... Until Cherri caught sight of a third deer and shot it.
"Thank you, Vagatha, for that enlightening explanation," Alastor spoke. He looked over to Cherri's kill: "I think that it's time to go back to the cabin."
"Yeah, you crazy killers brought down enough meat to set us for months," Vaggie replied.
Ω Ω Ω
There was supposed to be more to this chapter, but I think that this is long enough.