Vox had locked himself away inside his room for almost two weeks. He had pretty much shut-down, he didn't talk to anyone and avoided contact at all costs. The only time he went out was to feed Vark and even then,he did it at times where no one would realistically notice and always teleported back to his room at unparalleled speed.

Vox had kept a perfect streak, however he did want to go out, it was only so long that you could mope about your room before it started to get old. He decided to go around the bar.

As he walked outside, he took a look around,'Looks like the coast is clear…' Sighing in relief, he headed towards the hotel lobby as quietly as he could. He was about to head outside the door when he heard a nasally voice say,

"Going somewhere, Vox?"

He tensed,'Shit...it's the spider…' He reluctantly turned around and asked,"What do you want now, Angel?"

Angel Dust was sitting at the bar counter wearing a pinked crop top and black pants, likely his attire for going to bed given how late it was.

"Oh me? I was just sneaking in some alcohol. I always do it, but I decided to get some a bit later than usual. I didn't expect to run into you though, I thought you had died again with how cooped up you were inside that room."

Vox scoffed,"Why does my condition concern you again? I'm fucking fine…"

"Well people aren't supposed to go out this late, it's kind of their policy as annoying as it sounds. Second of all, in case you haven't noticed, you've got a bunch of people worried for your ass."

Vox blanked,"What?"

Angel raised an eyebrow at his question,"Are you fucking blind, Vox? People have been worried sick about you. You've just ignored them because you've been locking yourself in your room all the time."

Vox paused, he remembered people going up to his door and asking him to come out, though he always dismissed them and just pretended they weren't there to get them off his back.

He thought they were just trying to annoy him with their pity and figured the best way to get rid of them was acting as though they weren't there in the first place. He didn't think they actually cared honestly, he thought they were just pretending.

"I thought they were all faking it," Vox admitted,"At least, I thought Alastor was. I mean, if that bastard feels bad for me, then either he's pretending or he's got something wrong with him."

"Eh," Angel shrugged,"If Smiles is capable of feeling bad for someone he views as a rival, I guess that means even he views what Val did to you as fucked up."

Vox scoffed,"It's still fucking weird.I don't get why everyone is acting like this around me. It's so weird having people 'feel bad' for you down here. I'm convinced at least half of them are faking it."

"Nah, they ain't like that. I know cuz Val did that shit to me numerous times. Ever since that came out, everyone's been showering me with sympathy and while it is kind of annoying, I can tell they're being genuine."

"Still, what's it to you that I leave? I can handle myself…"

"Do you really want Vaggie on your ass? She's a stickler when it comes to the rules at this place. I doubt you wanna hear her bitch at you for going out past the curfew."

"Curfew? What the fuck am I? Five? I don't need a curfew, I'm a grown ass man, I don't need someone babying me."

"Said the exact same thing, Vaggie still won't let up. As long as you're here, you better get used to the curfew shit unless you wanna deal with Vaggie's temper."

Vox rolled his eyes, he wasn't scared of Vaggie by a long-shot. The only reason he'd even be worried about her being a problem was if Charlie got involved since he knew the princess was stronger than him. The last thing he needed was to piss off Lucifer's spawn in her own hotel.

"Hmph."

"Say Vox, why don't you come sit over here? There's plenty of seats and considering we ain't got nothing better to do, I don't see why we can't have a 1v1 together."

Vox reluctantly walked over and took a seat at the bar. Angel drank from a bottle of alcohol on the shelf,"So Vox..wanna drink? There's plenty of booze back here…"

"Er..sure…"

Angel used his extra arms to open the bottle and pour the glass. He then held out the drink in front of Vox,"You gonna take it or what?"

Vox prepared to grab the drink, only for his vision to flash. Instead of seeing Angel Dust handing him a drink, it changed to Valentino offering the concoction that had knocked him out earlier. Time seemed to freeze in that moment as he could feel his surroundings becoming wonky.

Valentino smirked, darkly chuckling,"Come on, babe. Take a sip, it won't hurt, I promise, Voxy~"

Vox jumped back in terror, instinctively retracting his arm away from the drink at the last second, knocking the drink out of his hands and shouting,"Get that shit away from me, Val!"

Of course, when he did this, the vision immediately ended. When he got back in reality, he noticed that not only had he knocked the drink out of Angel's hand, but he spilled it on him as well. He tensed,"Oh shit, sorry…"

Angel shrugged,"It's fine, these aren't my good clothes anyhow. I've had worse shit thrown at me, it ain't that big of a deal. Besides, I could tell that you were hallucinating…"

"I was? It felt so real…"

"Yeah hallucinations are like that. I've had like hundreds of them over the years, most of them are centered about Val or my family, but mostly Val cuz you know…"

"I can tell…" Vox grumbled,"Is it about...him...doing things to you?"

"By doing things, you mean raping me? Then yeah, a good portion of them are focused on that. The other half are focused on him berating me for some shit that wasn't my fault or at least, not completely. Standard manipulative bullshit."

"All I saw was Val offering me a drink before he...you know…"

"Yeah, I know…" Angel mumbled,"He's done that shit to other people. I've seen it. Sometimes Val drugs people into being workers and makes them sign their soul over to him/have sex with them. I just never thought he'd have the balls to do it to an overlord, let alone someone who was his business partner…"

"I thought we had something," Vox said,"I tried for years to make this shit work. I did everything to make our relationship last and this is how it ends. Val's Studio goes up in flames and I get drugged and assaulted while having no recollection of it. Fucking perfect."

"At least you don't remember him forcing himself on you," Angel said weakly,"Fucking hell, I wish I could just erase that shit from my mind. I tried doing drugs of all kinds to forget, none of them fucking stuck. Every time I look in the mirror I can see myself getting raped by that bastard. I never got to say it, but I always hated that bastard...He ruined my fucking afterlife and he's ruined the lives of those around him. That bastard doesn't give a shit about anyone other than himself and sees those around him as tools to be exploited. You're just the latest victim of Val's bullshit and when he inevitably respawns, you'll probably not be the last…"

Vox narrowed his eyes,"I wouldn't worry about Val when he respawns. By the time he fully picks himself off the ground, he'll realize his empire is nonexistent. Everything of value was in that Studio, all his connections were burnt to ash and cinder. He'll be forced into hiding considering the list of people who want him dead is astronomical."

Vox knew personally that many have tried to kill Val over the years. While he had a few people try to kill him, it was only a couple of people who bothered to try and he managed to deal with them. Val had MANY people attempt to end his life, and while a few got close, Val managed to overcome them and put an end to those who tried to kill him for good.

"So what about you and Velvet?"

"I never had my shit in Val's Studio. I had my own place but since Val's place was closer, I stayed there. Velvet had most of her shit on her phone and the only thing she probably lost was a bunch of stuffed animals that got turned to ash in the fire. What about you?"

"Eh, I moved most of my shit here," Angel admitted,"Maybe I had a few outfits in there, but nothing I can't replace, especially now that Val doesn't own me anymore…"

"So what do you plan on doing now that you're free?"

"Eh, hell if I know," The ex-porn star muttered,"Since Val's Studio burnt down and Val himself is dead, I don't have a job so I'll have to find something, as well as all the other people who worked for him. I ain't gonna rush though, Charlie's letting me stay here free so I've got time to get up on my feet."

There was silence before Angel asked,"How long have you known Val?"

"Seventies," Vox admitted,"Been dead for twenty years before I met him. I was just the standard CEO of my company before Val showed up. Val promised me fame and fortune if I agreed to a partnership and seeing as my company wasn't doing too great, I said why the fuck not. It worked for a while, got all the money and power I could ask for, I produced technology and Val made shit that people wanted. Perfect partnership in theory. But then Val proposed I get into a romantic relationship with him...I was kind of reluctant since I still wasn't over my girlfriend at the time and you know, I wasn't quite in tune about the concept of bisexuality at that point so I was a bit uncomfortable."

"Oh I understand, family wasn't a fan of me being gay, though they found out pretty late considering mobs aren't a fan of homosexuals and it would've been a death sentence if that shit got out. Down here, nobody really cares all too much other than some uptight bitches.I've been with Val since the fifties, I was on my last legs and homeless so when Val saw performing tricks on the street, he took his opportunity and offered me goods if I sold my soul to him. I said yes cuz I was desperate and at first, it was wonderful. Drugs, booze, sex, everything someone like me could ask for, of course Val ended up ruining it by forcing himself on me on a near daily basis. Sometimes he did it as a power-move to put me back in my place, other times he just did it cuz he felt like it. Hardly matters to me since you know, I find those two things interchangeable at this point."

"How many times has he done that?" Vox was aware of Val's treatment of his employees, but he usually tried to avoid seeing the direct effects for obvious reasons. That and telling Val to ease up usually resulted in a fist in his screen and attempts to try and get Val to be nicer in general didn't stick for long.

"Lost count after 100," Angel said,"All I know is that it's happened so many times I can't even look at myself without seeing him. I'll never be the same…"

"I doubt I will honestly, I don't even remember him assaulting me but I still feel shivers up my spine. I can't even feel comfortable drinking without the memories coming back. Sad thing is, I can't bring myself to completely hate Val…"

"How?"

"I know Val's a massive jackass, but I can't fully hate him. He was the only person who seemed interested in me despite my...TV head…Ladies apparently aren't that interested in people with square-heads around here…"

"Why don't you go with Velvet then?" Angel asked,"I'm sure she doesn't give a fuck about your appearance. Besides, I don't get why the girls are complaining, there are a lot weirder things down here than someone with a TV head. We have literal dinos and shit walking around us and they complain about someone having a flat-screen for a head."

Vox stammered,"Well I was 'pretending' to be in a relationship with her to piss off Vol, though I'm not sure Velvet and I are compatible in that way…"

"Aw come on," Angel teased, nudging his shoulder,"Don't be a coward, Vox. Go for it, I'm sure Velvet is a way better partner than Val is. Who knows, maybe you could all share."

"Yeah, and hear Vol's mouth about it…"

"You'll probably have to hear from him anyway," Angel said,"I mean, I think you should talk to him. He's been kind of...out of it."

"What do you mean?"

"Ever since you locked yourself away, Vol's been getting worse attitude wise. I think the guilt is getting to him."

"Guilt?"

"You know he did find Val assaulting you, right? The poor sap blames himself for not saving you in time. We've tried to tell him otherwise but I don't think it's sticking. Maybe you can knock some sense into him since you're the only one he'd listen to about this."

Vox narrowed his eyes,"I'll go talk with him in the morning...Thanks for the heads up. Now if you excuse me, I should be taking my leave. I don't want to risk a rat girl noticing we're awake past the curfew."

"Fair enough," Angel and Vox soon retreated to their rooms to go to bed.

When the next morning came, Vol had made himself some tea in the back, distancing himself from everyone else and going into a separate area to think.

Considering he was downright miserable and drowning in guilt, he figured that it would at least alleviate the pain, albeit temporarily.

As he drank, his eyes widened when he felt someone tap him on the shoulder. He whipped around and scowled,"What?" His gaze softened when he realized it was Vox,"Oh..it's you, Vox. I haven't seen you in a while…."

"Are you alright, Vol? You look tired…"

The fusion's eyes had become drained not just physically but emotionally. It was as if all the life had been sucked out of him and replaced with sadness.

"I'm fine," He lied,"I...I just...felt awful about everything…Which is why I was hoping that you'd come out so that I...could apologize for not being there in time…I'm sorry I couldn't have saved you…"

Vox took a step back at the tone in his voice, the last he heard from Vol, he was fucking pissed since he was excusing Val's actions, now he sounded small and weak. The fusion seemed on the verge of tears, voice hoarse and with an audible tremble.

"Vol, there's no need to be upset. It wasn't your fault...Val raped me, not you. Besides, it's not like I remember what happened," Vox said with a smile, trying to lighten the mood."It's all behind us now..."

Vol...didn't seem amused by Vox's tone, his glare becoming more hostile,"I really dislike what you're doing right now, Vox. It's not helping…"

"Hm?"

"Vox, undermining Val's actions because you don't remember him assaulting you doesn't mean we should just brush this incident off. Just because you have no memory of his violation of your body means nothing, this isn't something you should pretend is ok."

"I'm not, I'm just saying that it's not your fault. Besides,it could easily be worse."

"Just because it could be worse doesn't mean were still assaulted and I came in at the last second. I wish I had saved you, not only because of the assault, but because it'd mean you'd stop trying to undermine the weight of Val's actions just because 'you can't remember' it occurring."

"I really don't remember anything outside of him giving me a drink. I know it happened, but I just can't bring myself to fully hate him despite everything…"

"Why? He doesn't love you, Vox. I know you wanted that, but Val isn't capable of loving anyone other than himself, so please refrain from undermining his actions in front of me. It is not healthy."

"I'll stop when you stop blaming yourself. I know you feel somewhat responsible, but what Val did is on Val, not you. And while I can't fully hate him, I'd prefer to distance myself from him as much as possible…"

"Good," Vol said,"But for the love of all nine circles, please don't undermine his actions again. It really hurts seeing you try and justify Val's treatment of you….Can you at least promise me that, Vox?"

The TV Demon blinked, Vol looked so hurt and it made him flinch just at his pained expression. He was so used to Vol's poker face that he forgot he was fully capable of feeling sadness.

The longer he looked at him, it dawned on him how...innocent he looked? It was strange to think about considering Vol was built to resemble and act like a middle aged man but he seemed to have this childishness about him in appearance from time to time.

Vol's face was pretty much the same face a child would make at their parents. It was rather odd on Vox's part because he knew Vol was more or less a fusion of him and Alastor created into a new person, yet it seemed despite acting mature, Vol had more...child-like traits that he kept hidden.

And in a way, Vol was technically his and Alastor's child, at least in terms of DNA since he was literally a version of them fused together.

While Vol was an adult, he did seem to...act like a moody teenager from time to time and this was evident with this situation, as he seemed to blame himself for what happened and lashed out several times despite being assured otherwise.

"Vol...I...promise…"

Vol weakly smiled,"T-Thank you...Vox…"

Vox's eyes widened when he felt Vol hug him tightly. He hadn't been hugged in ages and Vol being the one to do it caught him off guard, however he slowly returned it….

Still, as heartwarming as the moment was...err..

"Vol? I just want to tell you something real quick…"

"Yes?"

"You're suffocating me...You're grip is really tight…"

"Oh…" Vol quickly let him down, sheepishly scratching his head,"Sorry about that. I forgot how strong I was compared to you…."

"Yeah, I can see that," Vox heaved,"Just be more gentle next time."

Vol warmly smiled, already cheering up,"I will…"

From then on, it felt like progress was being made...Vox doubted the hotel was gonna be that great, but with the people here, he believed that maybe, just maybe, his life would be better, even if it was by an inch.

Thanks for 3,915 views! Tell me what you think and if you have any questions, you're free to ask. See ya!

Mitsuru6: Ha lol. Got that from 'Addict'. Also yeah, I feel Vox's name is something like Vincent, Vincent just feels right to me.

Dogfighter12: Thanks. People are free to ask questions so yeah, I'm fine with answering. Yeah, humanizing is what I'm good at apparently and the relationship with Vark is slowly being rebuilt back up again.