As I said earlier, decided to redo this chapter and I promise this is way better than the other versions. Trust me.
Well, you know what they say, if you want a fresh start, ya better change your look first. So that's what Vanny did the next morning after wiggling herself free from Al's iron grip(biggest pain in the ass ever).
Thankfully, magical powers usually did make choosing an outfit easier. In order to differentiate herself, she got rid of her lace ties and dyed her hair black, white and gold. Gold wasn't really a color Vanny wore outside of special occasions, but it did do the trick. She even got makeup to match said colors while wearing a different outfit entirely, scrapping her old Lolita dress and replacing it with a black tube top with gold-white arm sleeves. She got rid of her lace ties and had a mini skirt underneath with white stockings and gold shoes on her feet.
As she was applying extra perfume on, she heard coughing behind her and turned, forgetting that Alastor was in the room with her. She turned,"Oh hey,Al, what's up!?"
He coughed,"Your perfume is what's up darling...And good lord, it smells so…"
"Pleasant? Amazing? Awesome?"
"I believe the word you're looking for is artificial and fake…"
"Oh come on, Al, it's literally perfume. What do you expect it to smell like? It's supposed to smell like flowers anyway."
"Whoever created that bottle clearly doesn't know why flowers smell like them, because it smells god-awful…"
"Don't be so rude, this is my favorite brand…"
"I don't understand how it could be your favorite given how strong it is…"
"Well that's what's popular nowadays. If you were more into modern stuff you'd probably learn to accept it…"
"You know how I feel about modern conveniences…"
"Yeah, I know, you're an old man, it's kind of obvious…"
"I'm not old!"
"Yeah you are, you died almost a century ago…" Vanny teased,"You may look thirty but we both know you're older than that…"
"Not like matters," He shrugged,"Every sinner stops aging the moment they fall down here. By the way, what's with the attire? Gold isn't your color is it?"
"Nah, not really. Just rocking a new style," She giggled, doing a little twirl,"Wanted a way to differentiate myself, keep up with all the modern trends! Still, I didn't wanna look too fancy so I made this little outfit for myself in the meantime. It's a new day and a new me, meaning the world's gotta get used to me being Vanny now…"
"Is that a nickname you gave yourself?"
"Nah, my ex called me it and considering Velvet was already a nick-name, who's to say I can't use this one? Ain't like anyone else is using it…"
"So what's your game-plan now?"
"Hell, if I know, I'll probably try and get people to like me. Kind of fucked up big time so I'm gonna have to start from scratch when it comes to making friends again…"
"Do you know how?"
"Eh, I haven't really had to make actual friends in years but I do know how the basics work. If you wanna make friends, you gotta make me interested in ya…"
"And how do you plan on doing that again?"
"Trust me, I know what I'm doing. I have just the thing to peak everyone's interest!" She grinned deviously, causing Alastor to actually sweat for a moment.
He knew Vanny was intent on making 'friends' but he had the feeling her methods of doing so would end up causing problems. It was just something about that smile that made him worry what was to come…
The other demons were all crowding around in the main portion of the Mansion. Vincent and Veggie were comparing spears and arguing over whose was bigger(Charlie brought her another one), all while Charlie was frantically trying to get them to understand they were the same size, her voice falling on deaf ears.
Volastor and Velvet were sleeping on the couch together. Husk was drinking, Angel was smoking with Arackniss, who was still annoyed that his almost fully regenerated arm hadn't completely healed, having to keep it bandaged for the time being. Lucifer, Lilith and Micheal were all talking and for once, the brother's weren't at each other's throats. Niffty was absent for some reason, likely because she was doing something she viewed as important at the moment that don't require her to be in their presence.
"My spear is bigger!"
"Mine is!" Vaggie shouted back.
"No it isn't!"
Charlie tensed, trying to calm them down,"Guys, guys, they're the exact same size, we shouldn't be fighting over it. Let's just calm down and play nice, okay?"
"We'll quit fighting when Vincent over here admits mine is bigger!"
"As if! Mine is clearly bigger!"
Once again, they were back to butting heads again, ironing Charlie's attempts to stop the fighting.
Angel narrowed his eyes,"The fuck are those two arguing about? They've been screaming at each other for ten minutes straight."
"Something about the size of their spears," Arackniss mumbled,"All I know is that it's getting annoying. Can't believe these two are fighting over the size of a holy weapon. They sound like bloody children…"
"Eh, ain't the first time I've heard people fight over sizes if you know what I'm talking about," Angel said suggestively.
Arackniss hissed,"Oh my god, get your head out of the gutter, Anthony! You know those two are talking about they're spears, not their dicks! And the moth doesn't even have one anyway! Quit being immature!"
Angel scoffed,"How would you know she doesn't?"
"I'm like 99% sure she doesn't have one. If you're so curious you should go ask Charlie, she probably knows…"
"Relax, Niss. I'm just messing with ya…Still, when are they gonna shut the fuck up?"
"When one concedes that one spear is bigger. In other words,never…"
"Mine is a bigger asshole!" Vaggie growled,"I'll prove it to you by shoving it up your-"
Before Vaggie could finish her threat, Vanny burst and shouted at the top of her lungs,"GUYS, drop what you're doing! I got something fun to do!"
Everyone's neck snapped in her direction, bewildered and slightly concerned glances filling the room. Even those who didn't have an overly negative option on her didn't exactly trust her when it came to ideas, especially since Vanny's idea of fun usually consisted of creepy tea parties or bashing something with her axe over and over again until it bled. The fact Alastor, who was standing beside her looked slightly worried didn't ease anyone's minds…
"What type of fun are we talking about?" Angel asked wearily,"Is this, 'we're in for a helluva time' fun or the 'we're going to lose our limbs and because you're crazy you think it's fun'? Which one is it cuz I'd appreciate you being honest with us…"
"Relax, nobodies gonna die or anything if that's what you're wondering…" Vanny admitted, though her enthusiasm did little to soothe anyone at the moment,"But that doesn't mean we're not gonna have any fun!"
"Uh Vel-"
"Vanny."
"Excuse me?"
"New name, get with the times, Charlie," She said,"Anyway, as I was saying, I understand people have grievances with me, some personal ones at that," Her gaze drifted to Arackniss, who shot her a hostile glare,"But while I can't exactly fix the things I did, I can propose an offering of friendship! And since I bet all of you are kind of weary of me, why don't we lower the tensions by playing a little game?"
"What type of game are we playing exactly?" Vincent asked.
"Truth or dare!"
"What the hell is a truth or dare?" Volastor asked in an annoyed tone, clearly irritated that Vanny had woken him up from his nap.
"It's a game where people ask another person something and either they tell a truth about themselves or do something if they're dared. It's super fun!" She then nudged his shoulder,"And it can be super kinky if you know what I mean…"
"Velvet!" He growled,"Don't think like that!"
"What? I'm just saying from personal experience. Last truth or dare I played I had to have a threesome with some other guys at my school. I didn't wanna pussy out so I did 'em both at the same time! Sure it hurt like a bitch, but I got popularity points so I won out in the end!"
'I forgot how obsessed my girlfriend is for views...it's disturbing…' Volastor stared at her concerningly before turning to Vanny and saying,"There aren't going to be dares to have sex are there? Because I don't want Velvet having sex with anyone here other than me…"
"Why? Are you jealous or something? The sexy shit is what makes things fun!" Vanny pouted,"There's no need to be so protective, Vol. Velvet and I were legit the same person and we went through the same life on Earth. I know what she's done and she ain't above sex even while she's in a relationship…"
"Don't you think I'm aware of that? I still don't want anyone doing anything to her, she's my girlfriend and I don't want anyone trying anything. At the very least, the dares shouldn't go into sexual territory…"
"Ugh! Boring!" Angel shouted,"Y'all are a bunch of pussies!"
"Ob be quiet, Angel,"Vol growled,"This is not the time for sexual situations, especially in a game where everyone is involved!"
"Vol's right actually, my effeminate fellow. It is probably better that way," Alastor admitted, clearly preferring Vol's suggestion,"We should keep sexual acts to an aboslute minimum. After all, we're here to have fun, not screw each other and any sexual interaction should occur once the game is over, not while it's commencing…"
"Seriously? You're no fun…" Angel mumbled.
"I believe the word you're looking for is more reasonable," Alastor chided,"I believe Volastor's suggestion is the only way to keep the peace. We should avoid any overly sexual acts not only out of respect but to prevent any awkward situations from occurring.."
"Ugh fine. Have it your way," Vanny whined,"But to keep it entertaining, drinks are gonna be allowed to keep things spicy if nobody chooses either options."
Husk's attention immediately shot upwards,"Holy shit, why didn't you say so? Let's get this game started!"
Lilith smiled,"My, looks like someone's riled up. Why don't we go join them?"
"Whatever you say, honey…What about you, Micheal?"
"I don't see why not. I don't have anything better to do anyway…"
Everyone soon crowded around into a circle on the floor. In preparation for the event, an entire cabinet's worth of drinks were at the side on the off-chance anyone rejected their truth or dare. Not only that, but it was a way to spice things up for a change…
Still, Vanny was rather upset at how the 'no overly sexual situations' rule had to be implemented. She had some devious ideas in mind for some raunchy dares but Volastor's intervention had foiled her plans, meaning she had to take a PG approach to the situation.
'Alright Vanny, ya still have fun with this. Just gotta be a bit more PG this time around…' She then sighed,"Alright everyone, let's get started with the game! Since some of you haven't played, I'm gonna give an example first to show everyone how it's done! Hey Charlie, truth or dare!"
The princess stammered for a moment upon being thrusted to the spot-light,"Uh...truth?"
"Aw man…" Vanny whined,"I was hoping you were gonna pick dare…"
"Well she didn't, now give her a truth," Vaggie grumbled.
"Fine. Have you ever snuck out of the house before?"
"Lol, are you serious, Vanny?" Angel asked with a grin,"Did ya seriously just ask goody two shoes if she did something bad? She's probably got a clean record, likely hasn't even done anything as small as taking a cookie from the jar…"
"Well actually Angel, I kind of did sneak out…" She admitted, twiddling her fingers together.
"Wait, you did!?" Lucifer asked,"When? I don't remember you doing such a thing!"
"Because you guys never found out about it," She snickered.
"How did this happen again?" Lilith inquired,"I find it hard to believe you snuck out without anyone noticing…"
"You underestimate me! Though I did have a bit of help," Charlie said, rubbing the back of her head,"Ya see, Seviathan wanted me to come over so we could have fun in the woods but since you guys were super strict on me, he had to come to me and help me bust out. Funny part is I remember us almost getting caught but the guard kind of skimmed over us when we hid in the bushes. I think they thought we were wild animals invading the premises because they shouted for us to scream. I was kind of worried that we'd get caught the whole time but Seviathan kept his word and made sure we didn't get caught. I know he was kind of a jerk, but I'm at least glad he was able to keep his promise in not getting us in trouble at the time. Best part is we got away with it too cuz you and Dad were completely unaware of it up until now."
"Damn princess, and I thought you were squeaky clean," Angel teased,"Guess even the gentle ones got secrets to hide, don'tcha?"
"Hey, you're acting like I killed someone. All I did was sneak out like a teenager, nothing too major. I mean, who here hasn't done that when they were a teen?"
"I was too busy being in the mafia to run off," Arackniss said,"Anthony was too. Father didn't give us time to run away and play like the other kids. He was too busy teaching us to shoot assholes who owe us money to care about letting us play on swings so he'd lose his shit if he found out we were trying to have fun from under his nose."
"I was too busy managing the casino I lived in with my Dad to run off," Husk stated,"Fucker wouldn't let me do shit and controlled my every move. It's probably why I was actually happy when he kicked the bucket. That bastard was the biggest nuisance to me and I'm glad that his liver failed him when it did."
"Damn that sucks, I used to sneak out all the time!" Velvet exclaimed,"I did the same thing Charlie did, only difference being it was a different guy who took me out every night cuz I couldn't keep a guy to save my life! We partied hard and had the time of our lives! What about you, Al? Did you sneak out?"
"Sometimes. But it was often to explore the woods if anything. Never did much outside of climbing and exploring. It was too deep to find any animals nearby so I just kicked rocks. It was pretty boring…"
"Hey, that's pretty tame. You're really lucky, Al, because at least you had a childhood," Vol said,"I was literally born as an adult. Only real thing I have of a childhood is the memories you and Vox gave to me which really doesn't help…"
"Aw don't worry, childhood kind of sucks half the time anyway, you didn't miss out!" Velvet assured,"Besides, I'm certain Vincent feels the exact same way, you know since he has no memories of a childhood either, ain't that right, Vincent?"
"I suppose. I don't really know what a childhood is...I never had one and while I don't care either way, it does feel strange knowing everyone had something while I don't…"
"Trust me, I know the feeling," Vol grumbled bitterly.
"Alright now, let's not get off topic," Lucifer said,"We should move onto the game like planned. Since Charlie was asked, she should go next…"
"Ok then…" Charlie then scanned the room before asking,"Hey Arackniss, truth or dare?"
"Dare…"
"I dare you and Angel to swap clothes for the rest of the game."
Arackniss's eye twitched,"You've got to be fucking kidding me…"
"Hey, if you don't wanna do it all you have to do is drink," Vanny teased,"Though this stuff is strong so you might not be able to participate for the rest of the game if you do…"
He grit his teeth before giving Angel a look,"Alright fine…Let's get this over with, Anthony…"
"Whatever you say, Niss…"
When Arackniss and Angel came out of the bathroom with swapped clothes, Arackniss was fidgeting with Angel's top on the way out, grumbling,"How do you walk in this shit? It's so tight! And why are your shorts so short? These things barely cover my ass!" He said this while pulling down Angel's shorts irritably, annoyed how skin-tight they were.
"I'm a porn star, I gotta show off the goods dammit!" Angel hissed,"Though I don't get how you can wear this shit, how can you even breathe in this trench coat? It's so stuffy and black!"
"What's wrong with black? It's far better than this frilly pink shit you wear on a daily basis!" Arackniss then snarled,"And why the fuck is my chest exposed!? Why don't you wear a shirt underneath your tuxedo!? You're not supposed to walk with your chest out!"
"To show off the fluff, everyone loves that shit! It's why everyone thinks I'm a girl when they see me cuz they think this fluff is my cleavage. Maybe if you grew yours out it'd fit you better cuz you're lacking the bust to rock my outfit with that tiny piece of fluff on your chest."
"Maybe that's because I don't like my chest fur looking like breasts. I know your fans are into that shit but I'm not and I can't understand how you can walk in this shit…"
"Aw, you two look so cute!" Charlie squealed.
"Cute!? I look fucking stupid!" The shorter spider snarled.
"Aww don't be like that, Niss. We look amazing...well, I mean, I look amazing. Pink really ain't your color honestly. But me, now I'm a work of art. Ignoring how baggy your clothes are, I still look as sexy as can be…"
"Yeah yeah, whatever…" Arackniss snarled as he reluctantly sat down, glaring at those who seemed to be on the verge of laughing,"If any of you knew what was good for you, you'd all shut the fuck up…"
"Yeah yeah, whatever," Angel said,"Alright Niss, go choose some unlucky sap to answer your question…"
Arackniss huffed,"Fine. Hey Lucifer, truth or dare?"
Lucifer remained silent for a moment before reluctantly saying,"Truth…"
Everyone was noticeably caught off-guard, not expecting this reply.
"Truth? For real?" Velvet asked,"What's the matter, your highness? I thought you were the adventurous type! What gives?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, everyone was kind of thinking you'd go with dare," Vol admitted,"It's surprising to think you wouldn't go for it. Is there something stopping you? Or are you scared?"
"I'm not scared," Lucifer retorted in a matter-of-fact tone,"I just don't want to be dared into doing something stupid or embarrassing, that's all. If I go with truth I won't have to worry about anything stupid happening…"
"Do you love Micheal? As a brother of course..."
Arackniss only asked partly out of curiosity, wondering what the King's response to his question would be. However, the moment he said it, he quickly realized he may have overstepped a boundary as Lucifer quickly became apprehensive at the question, stiffening up and noticeably going into a state of shock.
Charlie stared at her dad in concern, she never saw him just tense up at a question. Usually her father gave out a firm 'yes' or 'no' depending on the situation and question asked but it was rare for him to be rendered speechless ...
"Dad? Are you OK?"
No response. Lilith had to shake him awake, though even when he came around it didn't seem like Lucifer could form a proper response to the question. For a second, it looked like he was going to say something but something inside prevented him from spitting it out and ultimately, he downed a bottle of alcohol to compensate.
Micheal just sat there in utter bemusement. It'd be one thing for his brother to say no,(and to be frank he had expected him to say that), but the fact he didn't even bother to give a response was what struck him the hardest and not in a good way either…
It made him feel uncertain as he had the feeling Lucifer was only withholding his true thoughts to avoid hurting his daughter's feelings. It was hard to tell what Lucifer's true reason for not answering was, especially since he refused to say anything about the matter, preferring to drink the problem away instead of confronting it.
He knew Lucifer still resented him for the whole fall, but he was still hoping there was still a glimmer of care there but that hope was diminishing by the second.
Once Lucifer finished his drink, he directed his gaze at the other players before asking,"Alastor, truth or dare?"
"I'm feeling a bit adventurous today so I suppose I'll go with dare this time around…"
"Alright then, I dare you to spin this bottle and kiss whoever it lands on…"
Alastor stared at him in disbelief,"You jest, right?"
Lucifer chuckled,"I'm 100% serious, Alastor. You know how this game works, there are no take backs and unless you want to drink the whole bottle in order to make up for your refusal to go through with the dare, then you have to spin the bottle ..."
The Radio Demon made a face, he wasn't a fan of kissing anyone but he didn't want to drink an entire bottle either. He didn't want to drink too heavily, especially not at the beginning of the game…Besides, kissing wasn't overly sexual so it was still fair play and Alastor didn't want to look bad in front of everyone.
Thus, he sighed in defeat,"Alright, fine. Hand the bottle over…"
Lucifer tossed it over to him, Alastor then placed it down before spinning the damn thing, nervously watching where it landed in hopes that it was someone decent.'Please don't be bad, please don't be bad, please don't be bad…'
It took a few moments and everyone held their breath in anticipation. When the bottle finally found a person, it landed right on Vincent….
There was a moment of silence before Alastor facepalmed,"God dammit…"
Vincent mumbled, the taller male becoming embarrassed the predicament they were in,"Uh…"
Needless to say, Alastor was starting to wish he just drank the damn bottle from the start by now, though it looked a bit too late to back out now...
For the record, I personally don't care for Vox x Alastor but since Vincent is his reincarnation, I'll let it slide. Personally prefer Voxlie, VelVox or Charlastor or even VelxAl but I don't really hate the ship(Val/Angel can die in a hole and so can Val/Vox, sorry not sorry.)
Anyway, thanks for reading and tell me what you think.