On Verosika's insistence, Blitz was moved to the hospital in his home ring of Pride once he was well enough. He would have been in great danger otherwise and paparazzi were the least of it. Now, a couple days later, he was calling her.

"Hi Blitz."

"Hi, Vera. What's up? I'll cut right to the chase, I have a favour to ask from you." Blitz said. Verosika was expecting it. She did owe him her life, after all. By the rules more ancient than ring division, set in stone in the first age, after the first battle, when the shadows first lengthened it meant that she had to fulfil every boon Blitz chose to name until he said that life debt was paid. He was not her bodyguard, yet he saved her life, with no payment rendered or expected. Technically, Verosika proceeded to save his life not long after, but that didn't count because she was the one who endangered it in the first place. Someone saving your life when you endangered it yourself counted, though, which is what Blitz did and why she owed him everything and more.

"Spill the T, Red. Anything you care to name and within my power, in accordance with the rules. Until the debt is repaid." Verosika replied, her pulse rising in trepidation despite herself. She needed a drink, yet… No. Not after that last brush with death. Never again. Not one drop, Beelze-juice or any other alcohol. It was a pain.

"I can't leave the hospital yet and tomorrow is Loona's birthday. Her friends come in the evening but I don't want her to be sad until they do. Can you… I dunno, gift her something? She'll come visit me tomorrow at 9." Blitz said.

"Can you tell me more? Anything she would like?" Verosika asked.

"No fucking clue. She liked bacon latte I bought her once but I have no idea otherwise. Maybe some makeup or some shit. You know, girly stuff. Clothes or something." Blitz said.

"I'll see what I can do. See you tomorrow at 9." Verosika said. It was cheap as boons go, yet so hard to fulfil. After wracking her head for an hour, Verosika decided to just take Loona shopping and let her pick whatever she wants.

Tomorrow at nine and up to nine thirty was a very awkward situation. Loona didn't like Verosika at all and who could blame her? It took Verosika insisting on ancient rules and her father's and Vortex's urging for the young hellhound to follow her to the car and into the shopping district. The conversation was still awkward, though. Verosika was ex-girlfriend of her father and said father just dumped his daughter on her in a fit of desperation. That one couldn't be not awkward no matter the dimension or species involved.

"Did you have any breakfast?" Verosika asked, while driving.

"Of course I did. I'm not that stupid." Loona replied grumpily.

"So, what sort of style do you prefer, Loona? Where do you usually shop?" Verosika asked her.

"You know… Risky. Dark. Things that Stylish Occults stocks." Loona said.

"Then we can start there. And if you see any makeup you would like, let me know."

"Your dad wishes you to be happy. So I want to fulfil that wish." Verosika added.

"Dad? Happy?!" Loona replied, sounding very annoyed.

"Well, he doesn't want you to be sad on your birthday were his exact words."

"Why don't you just leave me the fuck alone?!"

"Can't. There are rules. If I don't try to fulfil Blitz's request to the best of my ability, bad things are going to happen to everyone involved. Mostly me, but there will be a downpour of unintended consequences to everyone, all of them bad."

"That sounds so fishy. And you actually do smell slightly fishy. Blitz wasn't exaggerating much when he said that he smelled fish miles away."

"Loona…" Vortex warned her, in the voice he used when telling Verosika that she is going too far. It was strange to hear it used on somebody else.

Verosika knew that the girl was just lashing out. It still hurt, though. Not much, but it still hurt. She took a deep breath, so her next words would come out calm, because this was very personal.

"Succubus physiology. What you are smelling with your keen hellhound nose is demonic pheromones. We can turn them down a lot but we can never turn them off. Not during or after puberty. They are stronger when the succubus is ovulating, but they never go away. I can't remove them any more than you can will your fur away. Or fangs. Or blood." Verosika said.

"Oh." Loona said, suddenly wearing a very conflicted expression. Yet, she would never apologize. If Verosika pushed the issue, Loona would double down on it. Blitz was the same way and, when it came right down to it, Verosika was like that too.

"So let's do this shopping, we can have lunch together and you are free to go to your birthday party. It is sad Blitz can't be there with you today, but I'll try to make up for his absence. Okay?"

"Fine! Just get it over with!"

In the end, Verosika bought Loona three shirts, a pair of shoes and two pairs of pants. The hellhound has been slowly loosening up, but never reaching joy or happiness. Loona's style was more of a goth girl, punk aesthetic, like most hellhounds compared to Verosika's glamour popstar. Then they had a quick lunch and Verosika bought her the bacon-flavoured latte Blitz told her about.

"You still seem tense. How about we go to my house and have a quick spa day?" Verosika asked.

"Whatever." Loona replied.

Verosika had both Jacuzzi and sauna in her home.

"Wow, that's huge house. How many dicks in Hell did you have to suck to get all this?" Loona asked, once they were let in beyond front gate.

"Much fewer than you might think." Verosika replied.

"Not that you minded, ha?" Loona said.

"Pretty much. It is like winning a few hotdog eating contests." Verosika said.

"Ha. Touche!" Loona snorted and grinned.

Verosika loaned Loona one of her bathing suits. After Octoman finished giving them their massages, Verosica sent the hired help out of the room and she and Loona were now alone. Dressed in matching bathrobes and with coffee in front of them, the hellhound seemed much more relaxed now.

"It seems like Blitz has another talent I was so far unaware off." Verosika said.

"Yeah?" Loona said, looking up from her phone.

"A talent to find the tall, 'tough outside, sensitive inside' girls. You don't trust people easily, don't you?"

"Who are you calling sensitive?! How dare you!" Loona replied, baring her teeth, but there wasn't much fire in that gesture.

"Myself. And you, girl." Verosika said, ignoring the outburst. "Come with me. There is something I want to show you."

She got up without waiting for Loona to follow, entered one of the rooms and opened the wardrobe.

"What's this all of a sudden?!" Loona said, peering suspiciously.

"Make-up, cosmetics and perfumes, unopened. Untouched. I get a lot of those from my sponsors but I don't get to wear it. If I wore just a tenth of it, I would look like a clown. Or a racoon." Verosika said. "Pick whatever you like. Then Vortex will drive you back to Pentagram City. You have a hound party to prepare for, right?"

"This shit is expensive. Are you… Are you trying to buy my love or some crap like that?! Some scheme to hurt Blitz again?" Loona said.

"I can never have your love, kid. I am not your mom or stepmom or the like and I would never attempt to be. I am not your friend either. I doubt I'll ever be, so I shouldn't even try. Not your friend, not even a cool aunt. I am your father's ex, nothing more, nothing less. No schemes either." Verosika said, then pointed. "That's just expensive shit I don't need. Take it, so I can fulfil what Blitz asked of me. Some perfumes too, so you don't smell like wet dog all the time."

"You can act like an ice cold bitch very well." Loona said.

"Because I am one for most of the time. I have to be to survive. So I have had a lot of practice." Verosika said.

"Fine. I'll pick some of those, because they are free for the taking." Loona said, sifting through the boxes, picking them up and looking at them, smelling them...

"Thank you." The hellhound added, giving her a quick hug. Or maybe Verosika hallucinated or dreamt it, because it was so brief and the hellhound acted like nothing happened afterwards, was smelling and picking through the perfumes and make-up. When you completely cut Beelze-juice, go cold turkey with it and the rest of alcoholic brews, some hallucinations and visions are to be expected. She learned that much at the rehab clinic. At least it was one of the good-ish visions, not a terrifying one.

Hell-brews were tricky like that. Full body hallucinations, all senses included, vision, sound, touch, even taste and smell. Verosika could swear she could smell shampoo and oil on Loona's fur and feel the softness of it through the bathrobe during the microscopically-short hallucinated hug. That is what made the hallucination especially cruel. It is not like she really wanted Loona's love or approval. Not really. No. Not one bit.

"I'll take this perfume and this combo box." Loona finally said.

"You can take much more. How about these? They seem in your style." Verosika offered.

"Nah, these two are enough. I'll finish my coffee and get dressed." Loona said firmly.

"You can keep the swimsuit too, if you want. Alright. I'll call Vortex and tell him to drop you off at Pentagram City."

"And I'll tell Blitz you fulfilled your part, done what he asked of you." Loona said.

"I couldn't ask for more." Verosika said.

When she was gone, Verosika felt the need for alcohol, the urge to get wasted hit her stronger than ever. She went to bed instead and wrapped herself up. Verosika woke up a few hours later and her pillow was wet with tears, though she couldn't remember what dreams she dreamed which caused them to fall.

Note: Finally, an end to this fanfic. See you in the sequel "One Helluva Family" some time in May.

Here's a quick preview: twitter dot com /SLTrueSHDOLord/status/1370511090094772226

I hope you'll like it.