Volastor sighed as he patted the Vark's over the head as they slept in their beds. The sharks were...fairly quiet and while Volastor tried to care for them, the one that Vox originally owned was fairly distant around him.
The loss of his original owner had got to him and while Vol did all he could, he knew damn well he couldn't replace him in the shark's heart. He tried to imitate Vox's form at one point in an attempt to make him happy, but that didn't work so he just settled for making sure the shark didn't starve himself to death.
The only negating factor was that the sharks had grown fond of each other(which was very weird to say given they were once the same shark until this timeline mess happened), meaning they at least had each other whenever Vol wasn't there to take care of them, often settling to playing with toys(sometimes playing tug of war) and so on.
That said, they were very clingy, even by pet standards. Like they legit got upset whenever Vol left for any period of time, likely because they thought he'd just leave and end up dying without bothering to say goodbye, crying and whimpering until he returned if he was gone for long periods of time.
It was a rather pitiful sight to witness and Vol wasn't quite certain what to do at that point. He tried to ease their pain but it seemed like nothing he ever did stuck…
'Dammit Vox...I wish both of you were still here…' He clutched his chest. He still hadn't gotten over what happened back in the other timeline. He may have accepted it, but he'd never forget it…
And as for the other Vox...well..what was left of him went to Vincent and we all know how that turned out…
Truthfully, Vol was beyond miserable. Most of the people had a strong connection to had either died or changed radically through outside forces that it was questionable if they were even the same person anymore.
The only exception to this rule was Velvet and while he was grateful to have her around, he did miss the normal life he once had. Everything went downhill when he went to the Studio and only plunged further when Lucifer and his cronies got involved, resulting in an entire war.
In the end, they had lost more than what they gained. Even though they won the battle, it felt like they lost the war on other fronts..
They lost loved ones, those they considered friends and even parts of themselves…cybernetic bodies. He didn't really interact with him much, but he did hear from Alastor that Husk was miserable and he doubted he was lying.
He remembered back in the other timeline that Husk was still fairly depressed about his wasn't himself.
Now Husk was always depressed, but being converted into a cyborg seemed to make it worse. Apparently waking up with a good portion of your body replaced did something to you, as he was not pleased with this change. He didn't even like his demon form in the first place so these enhancements just made him feel more miserable. He had lost not only a part of himself, but another person in his life.
Even then, seeing another version of Alastor walking around don't seem to bring him any comfort. No matter how similar they appeared, they had stopped being the same person long ago and no nothing could replace that feeling in his heart…Something Vol really couldn't fault him or anyone else in that timeline for…
Before he could think of anything else, he was snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of someone knocking on the door. He looked up, figuring that it was either Velvet or Alastor wanting to converse with him…
Needless to say, he was very puzzled when he saw Vincent on the other side of the door, almost stumbling backwards in response. He stared at him quizzically before slowly asking,"Oh...Hello there, Vincent...Did you by any chance knock on the wrong door? Or are you looking for someone else?"
He couldn't help but feel rather uncomfortable seeing him. Ignoring the negative interaction, there was just something about Vincent's cold icy eyes that made him rather uncomfortable. You'd expect some coldness and cruelty in the eyes of a demon, not in the eyes of a heavenly soul and even a being like himself was unnerved by it.
Vincent didn't say anything at first but then he answered in an unwavering voice,"No. You're exactly the person I'm looking for. Now step aside and let me in." Vincent tried to force his way in, but Vol kept him at bay,"Did you not hear me? Let me in!"
"Wow, you're abrupt aren't you?" Vol asked with a raised eyebrow, clearly unamused by this attitude as he leaned against the door-frame, arms folded over his chest,"Look, Vincent...I don't know what's going on in that head of your's, but you need to adjust that attitude before you come close to me. Not only have you and I not had a positive interaction since we met, but you're trying to invade my room for no reason. I suggest explaining yourself before I remove you from the premises…."
The reformed soul tensed,"I….I…"
"Sentence, Vincent. I don't speak one word syllables. You need to make yourself clear because otherwise you're wasting not only my time, but yours. Come on now, spit it out."
"It's just that...I wanted to...talk to you…"
"Why the hell would you want to talk to me?" Vol seemed flabbergasted before dryly chuckling, a distrubed smile on his face as he pinched the bridge of his nose,"Oh wait, don't TELL me! Alastor and Velvet guilt tripped you into approaching me, didn't they? Let me guess, they wanted you to come all the way here and be friends with me? They think that they can 'fix' me by shoving relationships with those who view me as a freak of nature, hm? In that case, you're better off leaving. I will not tolerate anyone taking pity on me. Not only am I not in the mood for such nonsense, I'll be damned before I take comfort in the person who sees me as nothing more than a 'demon' to offer themselves as a shoulder to cry on. So go on, take your leave. And tell Velvet and Al that while I appreciate the effort, they need to stop bothering with having others put up with me…."
Vol prepared to close the door but Vincent grabbed his arm,"I'm not finished yet, Volastor. I don't know what came over you, but clearly you have something wrong with you internally if you went into such a tirade at my mere presence at your door….Granted, I don't really know anything about you personally but I doubt you were always like this, were you?"
"Even if I was, what does it matter? I thought I was just a demon to you…"
"Demon or not, there's something important I need to talk about with you. I don't want to start a fight, especially since we both know how it will end. I just want to talk to you one on one and understand a few things. Are you willing to do that?"
The fusion didn't respond, merely staring into his eyes, as if he were trying to figure out if he was being genuine. After a moment of stillness, he flatly said,"Fine. I'll hear you out. But don't push your luck, I won't tolerate you trying to start anything and I'll force you out if I have to. Got it?"
"I understand…"
Vincent let himself inside, sitting down on the bed. Vol sat beside him, still keeping his distance from him.
"So what was it that you wanted to discuss again?"
"I just wanted to know why everyone liked Vox so much."
Vol raised an eyebrow,"Why do you ask?"
"Because ever since I got down here, everyone always seems to talk about Vox one way or another and how they want him back. Some have even gone as far as to try and mold me into him in an attempt to relieve the person they cared for…"
"Who was it?"
"Velvet…" Vol seemed ready to say something but he cut him off,"Not your's of course. I'm talking about the Velvet that hails from this timeline."
"Oh…." The fusion averted his gaze,"I see. I can't say I'm too surprised by that conclusion. It makes perfect sense given she doesn't really have any friends around here…"
"She doesn't?"
"No. The only people who Velvet considered friends were Vox and Valentino, both of whom are dead. Considering you were the closest thing she had left of Vox, she was likely under the assumption that his memories were still there somewhere. She was delusional, but I can't really blame her fully on that note…"
"Seriously? No other friends?"
Vol shook his head,"Unless you count her followers on social media, then no. Even then, she really doesn't know those people. They're just people who like watching her content for...questionable reasons. Since the only two people who cared about her are dead, she probably doesn't know what to do with herself."
"So why does she stay here again?"
"Because it's safe if I had to assume. She doesn't really have much of a life anymore, especially since Vox destroyed a good portion of their reputation while he was around. Their empire is pretty much ruined and Vox's enterprise is the only one still standing. Even then, he isn't exactly around to manage it. She really has nothing to go back to and that's probably why she even bothered to stay at the mansion in the first place, even if her presence isn't exactly welcomed…"
"And your Velvet? Is she in a similar state?"
"Not that I can tell. Granted that's likely because she had time to process the loss and that she had others to fall back on. My Velvet had an entire support system back in the other timeline. Even if I wasn't there, she'd have the other Al, and the other hazbins if she needed anything. This Velvet really doesn't have a support system to fall back on. The others really don't like her all that much and I imagine the only reason she hasn't been forced out is because Charlie is too nice to let anyone be booted to the curb. Though that doesn't mean she wasn't unaffected, I remember going into her room once and seeing an old photo of her, Vox and Val...or what was supposed to be Val, given the part where his face had been...torn out."
"I take it she doesn't miss that Valentino person, does she?"
"I think it's more complicated than that. I asked her once if she missed Vox. She said yes. When I asked if she missed Val...she didn't really respond to it. She just...danced over the question and refused to meet me in the eyes, changing the subject rather than directly addressing the issue. Personally, I believe she does miss him deep down. Though I'll never understand why given how much of a monster Val was when he was alive, she clearly must've seen something in him that made her see him as a friend. But at the very least, it seems that the pedestal she once placed him upon is broken beyond repair thanks to his actions. I do think that sometimes, she wishes that Val had given up before he died. If he knew when to quit, he probably would've lived, but he was too blinded by vengeance and hate to let go and would rather take everyone he can with him than quit. It's probably why he had to be killed in two timelines because he was incapable of taking the hint…"
"This Valentino sounds very….stubborn…"
"Believe me, he was. Bastard literally wouldn't leave me alone. He just kept hounding me and he even tried to force himself on me at one point. He's literally incapable of taking no for an answer and he didn't know when to quit. At least karma came back to bite him in the end. Too bad I couldn't have been the one to end it…"
"Oh I'm sor-"
"Don't be. It happened a while ago, I...have come to terms with it." Vol replied wearily,"Trust me, just be glad you never met him."
Vincent fell silent for a moment before saying,"So I take it that Vox was actually missed in comparison?"
"Most definitely. Both versions were. Though we never really bothered giving the other version a funeral because there wasn't a piece left of him to bury. When we held a funeral for this Vox, loads of people came to the funeral. I'm not certain if they actually missed him or not, but a lot of people came to pay respect to him. I think I even saw some of Valentino's ex-workers in the crowd. I doubt any of them really knew Vox, but they probably wanted to show gratitude towards him for killing Val and freeing them."
"Did you miss him?"
"Not at first…." Vol admitted, averting his gaze with deep shame buried in his eyes,"Vox and I were never friends. To put it bluntly...we hated each other for the longest time. Our interactions were always hostile and when he died, I'm ashamed to say that I was somewhat relieved he was gone..."
"So what changed?"
"This…" Vol pulled out his phone and allowed Vincent to see his screen.The reformed soul looked somewhat curious when he saw Vox on screen. This was the first time he even saw what Vox had looked like and it was hard to deny the similarity despite them no longer being the same person.
When Vox spoke, it was like hearing himself speak. They almost sounded the same except for the fact Vox's voice was autotuned.
Though the part that Vincent had paid most attention to was the final section of the video, where Vox addressed the message to Vol instead of Charlie.
"And Vol, if you ever find yourself watching this recording somehow…I just wanna say that I wish I could've been there for you when you needed me. Not only did I fail you, but I failed the promise I made to my other self and ran for it like a coward. I know you probably hate my guts, which is totally understandable by the way, I just want to say that I fucked up real hard back there. Like very hard and it's a shame Ill never be able to make it up to you personally. It doesn't really take away from what I did, but I feel this is the least I can do for you. You're the closest thing I have to a biological child and I failed you every step of the way. So please, if you haven't clicked off the video, don't forget about me, kay? Because even if you hate me...just remember that I still love you…"
Moments later, Vincent heard sobbing and turned, noticing Vol had one hand cover his face while the other half-heartedly clutched the phone. Vincent reluctantly reached out and touched his shoulder, only for Vol to snap at him in a demonic tone, static rising,"Don't touch me!"
He backed away,"I just wanted to-"
"I don't need your help...I don't need anyone's help, dammit! Just leave me alone...I can't do this anymore. You already got what you wanted, now go…" Vol choked, barely able to form a coherent sentence without crying.
Vincent merely sat back, unable to respond. He didn't move away but he feared getting any closer would trigger him, so he settled for merely watching him…
If Vincent was going to be honest, this was one of the most pathetic sights he had ever seen. He never saw someone so strong just utterly break down before. He never anticipated him crying like this when he came ot talk to him…
"Didn't you hear me?" Vol asked again,"You need to leave. I don't want anyone seeing me in such an awful state. It's already embarrassing that you're here to see me like this, don't make it worse by staying…"
Vincent narrowed his eyes,"No…I'm not leaving you."
"I'm not asking you...I'm demanding you leave…"
"Vol, I...don't really know you all that well, but I know leaving you alone isn't going to help. Let me help you, Vol. I know I'm not Vox, but I can at least try to do what he never got the chance of doing by being there for you…"
"I don't need your pity…." Vol grumbled before gasping when Vincent hugged him,"What are you doing!? Get off of me! Stop it!" Vol tried to force Vincent off of him, but he was too emotionally drained to put up much of a fight.Please stop…" He attempted to hold back the tears, biting his lip to avoid making any pathetic noises.
"It's alright..You can cry on me if you want. I won't judge…"
Just then, he felt a wet patch on the back on his coat, Vol clutching onto him tightly as he began muttering incomprehensible sentences. Eventually, Vol exhausted his waterworks and merely allowed Vincent to hug him without an ounce of resistance…
"Volastor, are you still awake?"
There was a weak,"Mhm…." in response.
"I just wanted to say that….I'm sorry for calling you a demon earlier…"
"I mean...I am one…"
"You know what I mean…I'm sorry for treating you like that…."
"Don't be. Honestly, I'm more sorry that you had to see me being so weak and pathetic…"
"Having emotions is not being weak or pathetic, Vol…" Vincent clarified, looking him directly in the eye,"You're a lot stronger than most people, not just physically but emotionally. Just because you have weak points doesn't mean you're weak yourself."
Vol didn't respond, eyes wide and glassy. He then smiled,"I hope you're right…"
"I know I am…"
He chuckled,"You're way too confident, Vincent...It really...reminds me of someone I used to know…"
Vincent sighed,"You know I'm not him, right?"
"I'm aware. But you still remind me so much of him…"
Vincent then felt something nibble on his wing, causing him to move aw from Vol and scream,"Argh! What was that!?"
Vol blinked before noticing the Vark's had woken up and bit Vincent's wings out of curiosity."Oh...it appears that they have found a new chew-toy…."
"My wings are not toys!" He hissed before freeing himself,"Seriously, Vol? Haven't you thought of training your pets?"
"Don't look at me, they never did that before," Vol huffed,"Besides, they aren't really mine…"
"What do you mean?"
"They are Vox's. The one with more bruises is from the other timeline and the other belongs to this one. Since their owners aren't here to take care of them I've been looking after them while they were gone…."
"And the reason they bit me!?"
"Probably because their hungry. They likely thought your wing would provide suitable nutrition and decided to see if it was edible,"The fusion shrugged.
"Well aren't you going to do something?"
"I would, but I don't see why you can't do it. You should give it a try, I promise they won't bite if they're properly fed…."
"Why is this my responsibility?"
"Just do it. It's not that hard…."
Vincent scoffed as he was handed a box of shark treats. He knelt down and handed the sharks treats, bracing himself on the off-chance they bit him…
The Vark's stared at his hand before devouring the treats(without biting him). They then licked his hand, causing him to blank,"What are they doing? I don't have any treats in my hand, why are they licking me?"
"Because they want you to pet them. Go on ahead, that is, if you want to…"
Vincent reluctantly reached out, patting them on the head.
The sharks quickly leapt on him, showering him with affection,"Ack! What's going on!? Vol, they're attacking me! Help!"
Vol chuckled,"Vincent, they're not attacking you. They're just displaying their love for you…"
"Why!? I barley did anything!"
"Probaly because you remind them of someone…"
Vincent soon found himself overwhelmed with love from the sharks,"Don't just stand there! Help me!"
"I'd rather not…This sight is rather amusing to see..."
"Vol!" Vincent screeched.
Once again, the fusion merely stood back with an amused grin on his face.
'They know its not him and yet they still go after him...Its like Vox never left...almost…'
Vol knew life would likely never return to the way he was comfortable with...but if the Varks were happy, that was a sign things were going right for a change…
And as for Vincent…he was hoping that they could be the best of friends….
Thanks for the views, tell me what you think below.
Chronosign: Eh, not too sure I'll include that. I'll think about it. And yeah, autocorrrect fucking sucks.
Mitsuru6: Glad you liked the song. I was listening to it for hours. Hope you enjoy the chapter.
Enigmus288: I have no plans on creating another Vol fic(at least not an entire series) anytime soon, if I ever fucking do, it'll probably be on whim rather than something I plan on doing. Don't worry, we'll get to the other timeline, it's just that we still have things to do here before we wrap up.