Is being transgender such a bad thing ?
Angel tried to seek through the archives of his memory, but didn't find anything : Alastor had never mentioned this one detail before. And while yet he knew how much of a struggle it was to be transgender, he still tried to figure what it meant for that overlord he just saw earlier naked in the bathroom ?
He remembered the Radio Demon had quite a lot of fans, in fact... and many had probably a conventional cisnormative view over his anatomy, surrounded by a bunch of fantasies...
He wondered how many people would have potentially imagined Alastor could be a transman... well, probably not a lot in fact.
But why... why would be transgender such a bad thing ? Would it really kill Alastor's image ? Make him lose his credibility, the terror that made other people shiver ? Somewhat crush his authority ? As a matter of fact... though he wasn't sure, he perceived something strange, scarier than a typical dick between his legs. Something that looked like... teeth. It intrigued him, somewhat... but he remembered this man still had to carry the burden of periods at the same time. Yes, this matter that happened to be both a burden... and a societal taboo at the same time. And Alastor didn't seem to be very open to show his distress either...
In fact he also had a reputation to keep, while some media happened yet to be quite judgemental about this type of LGBTQ+ related things unfortunately. The memory of that journalist, Katie Killjoy, then came back to his mind. He remembered how she called his spider self a " hooker " while openly making fun of him and of Charlie some time ago. Ugh...
"Angel ? You finally recuperated what you left in the bathroom ? We are waiting for you", Charlie suddenly interrupted.
"Uh, I guess so ? Weeell... Finally, I think I will stay as well ! I could cook for you too !", the arachnid demon suggested, while yet looking nervous.
"Huh ? Are you sure ?", Charlie took a moment and thought about something. "Did you talk to Alastor since so, by the way? He offered to cook too..."
"Well, I didn't ... He must be busy or sleeping ?", Angel lied while shrugging with his four visible arms.
The blond haired princess showed a puzzled expression over her face. Well, to say so, she looked somewhat skeptical...
"Forget about it", Vaggie suddenly added. "I bet this pervert wants to stay alone with the other demon to try something out..."
A pervert..?
Angel tried to respond something bu-
"Okaaay.. ? Well, as you wish...", Charlie ended up complying. "See you later then ?"
"See you...", the tallest one responded, while giving up on finding any more excuse.
The two women left, before leaving Angel now alone... with Alastor somewhere in the house.
Angel sighed.
So this was the image he was giving out of himself, right.. ?
… The one of a pervert.
He reconsidered some of his past actions.
It's true he had spent quite a lot of time making inuendos... jokes, to say so. They were so... systematic, such as a flow that randomly came out of his mouth. And did he make too many questionable things, too ? Addictive things, to say so... among other things that he didn't dare to give a second thought to. Angel was for sure in hell for a reason, but maybe was it too much.. ? Maybe, did he eventually deserve what was happening to him with Valentino, in the end ? Maybe, he just happened to be a creep who deserved to be punished after all. As a slut, as a "hooker"... as some worthless piece of dust. In fact, yes, deep inside him... he felt like some disgusting piece of shit. And did he wish he could change... but yet, it was at the same time so part of him, engraved deep in his personality. However, could he keep living as such ? And how could he yet get rid of this ? He had no idea...
A noise suddenly pulled him out of his chaotic bubble. A door...
Oh, Alastor, he remembered... he was still in the house, right ? But he didn't join Angel though. Uhm, come to think of it, he probably prefered to shut himself in his room...
Then, Dust remembered something else.
"Oh well... cooking ! But what am I even going to cook anyway ?", he asked himself out loud.
He checked in the drawers, and the luggages... but not much was left in there.
He figured he would have to look for some store nearby. Perhaps a good opportunity for him to go for a walk and discover around after all ?
A wide silence had been filling up the car for some time now.
"So... we're both left alone, right ?", Charlie started.
"I guess so", Vagatha replied, while laying her head over her hand.
Charlotte felt something strange was happening, but she wasn't sure. Something... that Angel Dust might not have mentioned earlier. And it probably involved Alastor, whose behavior had happened to be somewhat odd since their departure... while yet, she had to recognize he was such a peculiar individual in the first place ?
Despite what most would have considered as being part of her "naive" personality, she could not help but feel concerned, as she sensed something was not... doing right. He had been somewhat absent-minded. Or, maybe, it wasn't that unusual for the Radio Demon to have this type of days once in awhile ?
It was true that she didn't have to deal with his problems in a daily basis, as they usually all had enough space to make their lives separately. Nonetheless, in this very specific context, they would have to spend a whole week together in a more restricted place, and the circumstances would be somewhat different. Was it perhaps an opportunity to familiarize herself more with her coworkers.. ? More than she ordinarly did anyway.
She wished she could somehow help, but was it the type of issues she could potentially be familiar with.. ? Uhm, she wasn't sure (as she didn't know what was going on in the first place) and she got to think if he never mentioned it, there might be a reason. But, was she seriously considering helping the Radio Demon anyway ? What a strange thought, come to think of it...
They arrived over a hill from which they could contemplate the sight of a lake.
Everyone left the car, before the driver took a cigarette and smoked on his side.
"This looks like the perfect place to have a walk !", Charlie exclaimed joyfully.
And it was true the setting was beautiful per se : it had been awhile she hadn't had the opportunity to enjoy such a peaceful place.
"I guess now I'll be able to have a romantic time with my girl ?", Vaggie simply said, while offering her hand. Charlie stared at her eyes with a bright smile, then accepted the invitation by holding it back.
They directed their walk toward the water spot, while contemplating the landscape that was now offered to them : there were hills, but also mountains way further behind the lake. And what was supposed to be vegetation was atypically dominating over the lands : a phenomenon you would not be used to observe in hell anymore, as the overcrowded cityscapes ended up taking over most of the places. Nonetheless, this type of areas still existed for some reason, if you got to look for the right spots.
But wasn't it strange to think hell was overpopulated in fact ? Such as a finite world... while you would have yet intuitively thought the opposite.
"You know how you look beautiful, don't you ?"
"Oh, Vaggie..."
Vagatha's gaze was devoring her girlfriend...as if she was eager for something. Perhaps was it some call for love, as much as her demanding eyes were seeking Charlie's heart ?
Eyes started playing some sort of hint game, till she briskly grasped her and layed a kiss on her lips. Charlie got surprised by this sudden move, but willingly followed the gesture as she placed her hands around the grey skinned girl's waist. Vaggie caressed her blond hair in a passionate, but yet affectionate way while their lips were dancing together.
The calm atmosphere, along with the scenery joined the whole scene to make it magic. Their heart beats were fluttering, possibly in a synchronous way as the minutes were flying around them... and time faded, disappeared... lost its whole sense.
Five minutes ? Fifteen, thirty minutes ? Perhaps a hour ? They didn't know for how long they had been kissing, but it didn't really matter. It was their romantic time, their world, their moment for the only two of them. They opened back their eyes, to re-observe the world that was surrounding them.
Now, they realized how it felt nice to be standing there, alone together.
Perhaps the afternoon would have been different if Angel had come with them, in the end.. ?
Charlie ended up thinking he was probably enjoying his time on his side, though she couldn't help but wonder what he might be doing at this same instant...
Anyway, they still had some walk ahead to do ! Though they shouldn't lose track of time, either...
That was quite a lot of walk to do, Angel ended up thinking...
But he eventually got to perceive something like a store that he was about to reach at some point. Less than a kilometer was left anyway, right ? Nevertheless, he couldn't help but focus his attention on his aching feet : blisters, probably. He might as well want to buy some material for this one issue... well, if by any chance they sold this type of material !
He eventually arrived, and stopped in front of the building to catch his breath. It was nice to live in the countryside for sure, but... damn, the time it took to reach anything "nearby" when you didn't have any car ! Then he got to remember he would have yet to walk the other way around afterward... He sighed, then entered the store.
The place was quite typical in fact : just one of these supermarkets with basical stuff... but it would probably be sufficient enough for him to find some ingredients, and make something out of them anyway, right ? Oh, but what could he cook actually ?
He observed the sections of the store to give himself a little idea... uhm, well. He had to acknowledge something though : cooking wasn't his specialty. But perhaps, he could try to do something basical after all ? He couldn't miss something as basical as... and he got an idea !
He grasped some items in the process, then stopped by the parapharmaceutic section : he needed to take care of these blisters ! Well, perhaps he could just sit somewhere in front of the store and apply band-aids around his toes before going back to the little "family house" after all ? This would make his way back more... bearable, to say so at least.
He checked a few of them to compare their qualities, then picked one. His eyes were about to seek the checkout counter, when he noticed this hot-water bottle standing there alone in a corner. It reminded him of someone who might actually need this...
He approached the counter, with a bag full of the items he picked earlier.
"Hi, Ma'am", the cashier threw while grasping the items.
Madam ?
"Hey, I'm a Sir, actually", Angel responded back, while trying to contain himself.
"Whatever", the cashier just replied. "You look like a woman, though."
"Oh, but I'm a man ? So you should call me 'Sir' instead..."
"Sure, Madam. Anyway, how are you going to pay ?"
At this point, Angel felt like strangling this lady who was standing there, in front of him...
"Well. I already told you I'm NOT a woman. So, how about you respect people ? It's part of your damn job, right ?"
"Ok, listen, lady. Either you pay, either you leave. I don't have any time to waste with your bullshit, got it ? If you want me to talk to you like a man, how about you dress up accordingly to begin with, then we'll see ?"
"That's my way to be. Just deal with it !", Angel retorted.
"So, don't be surprised if people treat you in a certain way ? Remember you're in hell here, and people won't just do things according to what you want if you don't put any effort to it. People aren't tender here", she said then paused. "If I had an advice, well... I think you should be more concerned about the image you give to others."
The image... you... give to... others.
These words stroke his mind, and echoed loudly in his head...
"So how are you going to pay ?", the cashier reiterated.
Angel pondered, before taking a decision.
"Uhm well, cash I guess?"
He started rummaging through the jumble of his bag, and grasped a few coins... then more coins...
then more co-...
"Are you seriously going to pay with this ?!"
… and more coins, more coins, more coins... till his hands were full of them. He spread them all over the counter.
"Sure ! That's money, right ?"
The cashier sighed.
Her manager wasn't around today, and she was literally alone to deal with customers... Unfortunately for her, Angel was right about one thing : no rule applied here regarding the number of coins he could use to pay his purchase, though she had already brought this type of issues to her manager before ?
"Alriiiiiiiight... so I guess you will have to stay here, till I finish the counting process, eh ?"
"No problem, I have my time", the arachnid creature said with now a satisfied expression over his face.
The woman rolled her eyes, and started counting under his patient gaze as she heaved an exasperated sigh and grumpled a few times.
About ten minutes passed before he eventually left the store.
He found a bench to sit down on, and took off his shoes. Boots with heels, eh ? What an idea was it to walk with those in the first place...
He raised an eyebrow when he noticed the mess it did to his feet... Oh crap, it really looked irritated. And, while he happened to dislike how they looked, he had to acknowledge this short instant when he was barefoot was terribly pleasant ! His feet could finally... breathe ? He applied the aids over the painful areas, hoping it would at least enable him to go back to his steps. Then he put his shoes back on... perhaps, he should finally take a break before restarting? Thankfully, he carried some water and a snack with him !
He shut his eyes for a little moment and took a deep breath. He was just left there, without anyone bugging him while he could feel the silent melody of the sweet wind gently brushing the fur of his face and his limbs... and that was it : just a moment of peace.
He re-opened his eyes as he was mentally preparing to stand back up when he noticed something : there was a bike left here. Well, as a matter of fact, he saw no other customer in the area... perhaps did it belong to that cashier he saw earlier ? No car... just a bike. Oh well...
At this point, Angel had quite a few kilometers to make with his injured feet, so...
He grasped the bike and fixed it at his height before putting his purchase in the front basket. He then got onto it. And here he went !
"HEY ! COME BACK HERE !", a female voice screamt from a certain distance.
He perceived the silhouette of that cashier running after him, but he was way too fast, and now way too far to be reached back anyway...
"Good afternoon !", an old lady exclaimed as she was waving at the couple.
"Good afternoon!", the two protagonists responded back.
"What a nice day today, right ?", she simply said with a smile.
The two women stopped.
"Well, I guess so ?", Charlie replied.
"I've never seen you around ? You probably aren't from here... but I'm sure I've already seen your face somewhere?", the old woman quiered, quite unsure...
"Oh, I'm Charlie... Charlie Magne. The Princess of Hell.. ? Also the daughter of Lucifer and Lilith Magne."
"Oh, so this is it. This is it... This is such a great honor then ! May I ask what's bringing you here?", the old looking demon asked in a curious, but yet quite friendly way while readjusting her glasses.
"We came with a few friends for some vacation ! And we thought this place would really be a good idea. It's true it looks quite... yes, peaceful over here !", the blond-haired girl replied.
"Oh, I see... Peaceful, isn't it ? That's why I decided to live here. It's just peaceful... I went to the cities, but life in hell is so terrific when you come accross all these people... I don't know how you deal with this ? But I really hope this place will stay as peaceful as it is now... though I guess unfortunately this might change over the time", the stranger remarked.
"I guess you somewhat... get used to it ?", Charlie suggested.
"I guess so... I haven't been in hell since this long ago in fact. Maybe five years ? So... I might still need some time to get used to the atmosphere over here."
"Five years ? Oh... may I ask, I mean, if you wish to answer to this, how come you ended in hell ? You sound like... such a nice person", Charlie asked more timidly, as she didn't want to disturb.
"I killed my husband some time ago, I guess... that must be it. I needed to protect my children from this monster... but that's a long story. This is how I got punished myself, then... they sent me over here."
Charlotte rethought about the fate of demons in hell... and how unfair she judged it to be.
She got now to ponder about one thing : what if... people were sent to hell too systematically? Some demons could just have been unlucky one day, to end up taking the wrong decisions in their life. But did they really deserve to be sent to hell in the first place ?
Perhaps was it why she decided to create this hotel : to fix a "justice" that was full of imperfections. A justice... that might also be responsible of this overpopulation, in fact. Come to think of it...
But was there any justice in hell, actually? This realm looked like a collapsed kingdom, ruined by the sins of its inhabitants. But yet, she refused to think someone might have somewhat failed to build up any type of regulated justice system at the same time...
"I'm sorry for your children", Vagatha commented as she took part in the discussion. "I guess this is normal for a mother to protect her children, right ?"
"Thank you for your sympathy, young lady. Well... today, I'm rethinking how I might no more be able to see my children anymore. One of them ended up yet in hell too, but...", the old lady looked down. "He got killed here."
"What ?", Charlie now looked at the eldery woman with a concerned face, but didn't dare to ask...
"I don't know what exactly happened. You know... I have a farm nearby, and he was supposed to bring something for the animals as he usually does... but what I didn't know is that it would be the last time I would see him. I was at some store, not far from here … and when I came back, the house was empty. So... I waited a few hours, then days, then a whole week. I was worried, I couldn't sleep... and...", she said while tears started coming down over her cheeks. "And... one of my friends called me, and told me she found his rests somewhere... we identified him as he was wearing the pendant I offered him for his birthday."
Charlie and Vagatha didn't know what to respond to this statement. This poor lady sounded so affected by this tragic event, that her loud pain stroke the two protagonists' hearts.
"… then I got to learn one of the overlords killed him, very likely ? And... even, even ate him ? Rumors saying he would have cannibalistic traits, I guess ? Not much was left out of my son anyway, so this is how we figured it could be possible... And this is what my friend t-told me. It never really got b-brought up on the news though. They don't bring this type of things in the news. That's just unfair... that's just... disgusting... How... how... c-could someone even do that ?"
The lady started crying, now...
"I am... really sorry for what happened to your son... I'm very sorry... this really saddens me to hear so !", Charlie said, while a part of her was really eager to comfort the lady with a hug. But she tried to contain herself : she didn't want to sound too rude or intrusive in any way. In fact, how to react in such a situation ?
"Well, do you have an idea of who could have murdered your son ?", Vaggie inquired all of a sudden.
The lady tried to catch her breath, as she wiped her tears with a tissue she had kept inside her pocket.
"I don't know all the names... I think it's that one with the radio ? He's apparently... horrible. Really mean."
"Wait... Alastor ?", Charlie asked, as she blinked.
"I think... so ? Alastor, huh ? That Alastor ! How could he... how could HE have taken away my son ? My son... and, I ! As a mother ! How do I even know if there is anything after hell ? This man... does he even have a mother ? What would have his mother said in this situation ? Does she know what her son has become since then ? A psychopath ? A monster ? Is she proud of him ? This man is so confused ! His mind is fucked up, right ?!"
Vaggie started gritting her teeth, as she tried to hold her wrath.
"Uh, wow. I don't know about his mother... but how about his father ?", Charlie said. "In fact, we don't know much about him. He's so... mysterious ? But maybe we could ask him as he works with u-..."
"… he works for the radio ! I'm sure there is a way to catch him ?", Vagatha threw as she discretely nudged Charlie.
"Oh no, young ladies, don't do that... You don't know what he's capable of ! I wouldn't want you to get in trouble... We don't need another tragedy ! Please, stay away from this fuss, ok ? Please..."
The two women got back in the car that was now on its way back to the little home.
"Hey, Vaggie. You know this lady... uhm, do you think we could welcome her at the hotel ?", Charlie asked while she looked somewhat lost in her thoughts. "I think we should give her a chance to reach redemption !"
"Ugh", Vagatha facepalmed. "Remember ? Alastor works with us... How are we going to deal with this ?"
About ten long and heavy seconds passed during which a blank filled the discussion.
"What a jerk though... I don't even know how we could trust this bastard in the first place... he's just...", Vagatha threw now as she absolutely needed to share her anger.
"Well, we don't really know if Alastor is responsible of this in the first place", Charlie pointed out. "I mean... maybe we don't know everything either. And, she was talking about rumors … it's easy to spread rumors, right ?"
"You're so innocent, Charlie... Who else could have killed her son ?", Vagatha questioned.
"I don't know... there are so many demons who could have done this, actually ! Maybe, maybe I could try to have a little talk with him about this at some point ?", the princess suggested as she noticed how her girlfriend was crossing her arms with a grumpy expression over her face.
"As you wish... though I'd assume for him everything's just a game anyway."
"I guess it's the only way to know for sure ? I mean... maybe not tonight, but tomorrow ? I'm gonna try to find the right time to ask... that's my duty, after all !", Charlie exclaimed as she tried to raise in confidence. "I'll try to set this up accordingly !"
Accordingly.
… But deep inside, she wasn't sure at all. And what if Alastor was just a heartless monster, after all ? Vagatha was probably right in this case... while she already assumed the overlord didn't plan to change on his side, either. Nevertheless, a doubt kept hovering her mind about something...
Maybe his main motivation was to spice up his boring life, and to satisfy his sadism but at the same time... something sounded wrong. If he really wanted to be mean... he could have already hurt them, right ? So why was he willing to take part in this business so much? He had so many other ways to entertain himself if he wanted to...
And what if, what if...
A strange thought suddenly came up to her mind.
What if Alastor was just... a lonely man who needed to make new friends?
What if his hidden motivation was something deeper than what he wanted it to sound like ? Would it just be some sort of disguised excuse ? And if so, why would it be that bad ?
While yet he seemed to be the type of man who was way too proud to show anything similar... or at least, from an external viewpoint ?
But... at the same time, maybe she was just overinterpreting his behavior after all. As Vaggie said, she might just be too innocent...
Now, she glanced at her white haired girlfriend who was just staring through the window in a quite contemplative manner. She might be pondering about something too, probably... but she wasn't being very communicative either.
Phew !
Angel finally put the groceries away in the fridge and the drawers. He congratulated himself for his journey ! But now he had another task to accomplish : cooking. And what was he about to make out of what he bought ? Ah right... PASTA.
Simple, easy... he couldn't fail. And technically... everyone likes pasta, right ?
He prepared everything on the table, and gazed at these few items that were laying there. Where was he about to start ?
Oh... maybe, he should just boil the water, and then put the pasta inside. Easy.
Nevertheless... there was just one little detail he had to think about : the quantities. He wasn't even sure how much each would eat... oh well, whatever. He'd just... you know, improvize ? Perhaps he should just see big !
He grasped a huge pan that he filled with water then placed over a hotplate. He didn't wait for long before putting the pasta inside the boiling water afterward...
Then, he simply stared at it while his hands were resting over his hips : oh well... perhaps he should prepare the rest, right ? How about... yeah, salad ? He should be able to make something out of it, after all. Perhaps he could also prepare the table and make it look pretty ?
He checked the clock, and figured something though : the end of the day was approaching, and his two friends were about to come back very soon...
After he took some time to make up the table, he just looked back at the pan : it looked ready ? He reached it with one of his pairs of arms, and as he was about to place it over the table...
He lost his balance, and...
… all the content fell over the table and the floor.
"OH SHIT !", he screamt out of surprise, while he realized the mess he just did. Thankfully, he was wearing his shoes, as a part of the boiling water got spilled over his feet.
He was now just standing there, assessing the level of disaster it turned out to be. Oh, god...
"Can I help you ?", a familiar voice suddenly emerged behind him.
"Wh-what ?!", Angel responded as he got caught off guard. He then looked back.
"What were you trying to do already ?", Alastor asked while he was standing there with his typical smile.
"Uhhh, pasta with salad. But I guess I messed up, right.. ?", the spider demon assumed, as his mind was processing the whole situation.
"We can do this together then ! How about you clean up, and I help with the cooking part?", the overlord suggested.
Angel stared at him with a puzzled expression over his face, but accepted to execute this task.
It surprised him how Alastor had the ability to find solutions to problems in such an easy and fluent way... while yet, he was standing there earlier at the store, still wondering what he would cook on his side ?
He almost finished to clean up the floor, when he just looked up and noticed how close he was to Alastor's legs. How funny it was to perceive him from this angle : from his heeled shoes to his long and slender legs... It somewhat added some grandeur to his presence, and Angel felt so small at this point, while yet he was technically taller than him?
It didn't look like Alastor was paying much attention to him though : he seemed to be too busy cutting the vegetables to notice the arachnid creature under the table who was staring at him.
Angel stood back up as he finished his task, and decided to check on Fat Nuggets who was now... sleeping on his bed. The little thing opened his eyes and enjoyed a few belly rubs.
"You alright ?", Angel simply asked as he brought some food.
The little pig jumped out of the bed, and sniffed the food before munching on it.
Angel stared at him with a satisfied smile over his face.
He considered himself lucky to have this friend with him...
In fact, he was like the little amount of joy that was missing in his life. And he needed this, after all the struggle he had been going through over the past years. Nobody noticed it... but Fat Nuggets happened to be his main source of comfort, of tenderness in his daily life. If he had to take care of another being than himself, it was with all his heart that he would give his affection to Fat Nuggets, in fact...
Angel left the room to join the kitchen.
And, as he opened the door, he noticed Alastor pressing his lower belly again with quite a lot of discomfort... Oof, it turned out today Angel happened to show up at those times when he probably shouldn't be around... or should he ?
"Are you alright ?", he couldn't help but ask as he blinked.
Alastor immediately noticed him, and suddenly put his hands behind his back, as he forced (?) a smile.
"The dinner is doing perfectly fine !", he just answered while somewhat attempting to sound enthusiastic.
"I see. Hey, uh... I thought you might want this. Y'know, maybe this could help you ?", Angel said as he seeked through the bag. He then took out a hot-water bottle from it...
Alastor's face suddenly flushed, as he tried to contain his embarrassment with a wide smile... but did he know his face was bright red in fact ?
"Who would need this ?", he just asked.
"You do ? Well, Al... you don't need to hide this from me ? I'm sure it could really soothe your pain. It's not a shame", Angel tried to rationalize while he was completely unsure if this would lead to anything in the discussion, in fact...
"And who said I need this ? I'm perfectly fine, my dear", the overlord tried to assure with a poised tone (but yet, a red face).
"Well, does anyone need to tell me ? I can feel things too ! And it's ok... I mean, it's ok to be transgender. You don't need to lie about this either", he just threw forwardly at his interlocutor as he shrugged.
A blank suddenly filled the room...
Oops ?
...
"Hahaha! Tell me, my dear fellow...", Alastor paused as he stared at the other demon. "When did I say I was not transgender in the first place ?"
Angel pondered.
In fact, Alastor was right. Besides showing up as a man, he never specified he was transgender. But he had never stated the opposite either. This didn't make him a liar in any way actually... Alastor was just a man. And that was all that mattered at this point. He didn't need to justify himself about it either... it was no one's business after all.
"Heh, I guess you're right. You never did. So you won't take this, right?", Dust said as he showed the item he brought from earlier.
Alastor just turned his back on him, then opened the front door.
"Oh ! That was fast ! Well, hi again I guess ?", Charlie said, surprised to see the overlord right in front of the door ?
"Good evening, dear ladies !", Alastor exclaimed cordially.
Angel shoved the bottle back into the bag that he pushed discretely in a corner. He greeted the two women who were now back from their journey outside.
"A bike ?", Charlie noticed as her attention got caught by what was left in front of the hall. "Angel, you bought a bike ?"
"Uhh... well, kind of. That's a long story", he just replied while avoiding eye contact.
Alastor joined the table with a big meal, under the observation of his companions who were already sitting around it. In fact, it smelt good : the man for sure managed to do something out of what Angel brought up from the groceries ! The challenge was succeeded.
"Enjoy, my friends !", Alastor just exclaimed as he sat down now.
Everyone started eating, and was it a good opportunity for each to narrate something about their afternoon... Well, at least for Charlie.
"The place was beautiful ! There was a farm nearby ! It's funny to think this type of place still exists in hell !", she exclaimed in a cheery way.
"Like heaven in hell, right ?", Vagatha commented with a modest smile.
"Pretty much ! A heavenly place, I guess. Oh, and what have you both been up to on your sides?", Charlie asked while seeking Angel's gaze.
And obviously, she would only ask to Angel as she felt the anxiety flowing in her veins.
She remembered she would need to have a little discussion with Alastor later... but, tonight wasn't the right time for this she figured. She didn't want to spoil the jovial atmosphere that was currently filling up this place, and at the same time, she was just tired...
"Well, it for sure happened to be... rough ? I went to some store, and the lady who welcomed me there was just fully rude with me. So... yes, it was rough.", the spider demon responded as he limited the amount of details.
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear so... Is it where you got the bike from ?", Charlie asked.
"Uh, sort of... yes, actually ! I bought it as the price happened to be... kinda low ?", Angel attempted to explain while hoping his lie wouldn't be too obvious.
"I see... It's good to take opportunities when you can. Also, I really like this meal ! I guess you took part in the cooking process, right?"
"Of course, our dear fellow helped me !", Alastor suddenly interfered.
The eight limbed protagonist raised an eyebrow, but didn't add anything to this last statement.
Angel decided to clean up the dishes, as he felt this was the least he could do at this point.
What a mess it had been today, right ? He restarted thinking of the whole day, as the events started parading accross his mind... till a sudden fatigue weighed upon his body. He yawned... then he remembered something.
He checked the bag he had left there, and... oh ? What happened to the hot-water bottle ?
Wait... He hadn't touched it since he left it there? Well, maybe Alastor finally took it for himself after all. Err, at this point it was somewhat hard to understand his psychology, Angel concluded.
But he still made a sigh of relief : maybe, his efforts weren't going to waste after all. If this could have helped somehow...
Anyway, the tiredness started really weighing on his eyelids... it was probably time to collapse.
Now, the lights were off...
Angel heard a strange noise in the middle of the dark room. As if... he wasn't alone ? It sounded like someone was heaving deep sighs... He looked around, but could hardly see anything.
He walked, and as he approached... the breathing sounded somewhat louder, but yet muffled at the same time. The lines of what looked like a bare silhouette eventually showed up in the void of this strange space that was surrounding him... and it looked familiar, so familiar...
Was it.. ?
Now, Angel stopped.
He was standing right there, as his mind tried to process what his eyes were actually observing : the silhouette in the matter was sitting there, with two open legs and a hand placed in between.
But the porn star wasn't that clueless about the whole situation: he quickly figured what was going on... while yet, it intrigued him even more.
As he paid more attention to the details, he noticed that those fingers, covered in blood, were caressing what was in the middle of these two floppy labia... like a shell inside which there was a pearl to dance with. But he couldn't see this pearl... only those fingers buried between the doors of this intimacy, tainted by the paint of menses.
The owner looked completely carried away by the waves of the lustful delight he was taking from it... and that was fascinating, to say the least.
Angel approached some more.
"Alastor ?"
The designated man noticed Angel, who had now come even closer to him. And, as a natural move, the arachnid suddenly skimmed his arm...
Alastor looked at him and, approached his hand covered by the blood that came out of his intimacy previously. But now, Angel could no more resist... no, he couldn't...
He grasped this same hand and started licking on the fingertips.
An explosion of happiness suddenly emerged in his mind : oh god... how good it was to feel that juice full of sins, full of taboos ! And, at the same time... did he just like to think he was tasting something he shouldn't ? He felt like a dirty slut standing now on his knees, as he was tasting what came out of Alastor's old fucking slit.
Alastor looked at Angel, and inserted more deeply his fingers inside his mouth, who was now vividly sucking on them. A few drops of saliva came out as he felt Alastor's claws nearly bumped into his throat...
The overlord pulled his fingers out. Angel took some time to catch his breath...
Now, he looked down at Alastor's opening that restarted bleeding again. He suddenly felt the urge to... taste the source of this red fountain. The source of life... but also of death ? Heaven's doors... or was it hell's doors in fact ? He also wanted to play with this pearl that was hiding in between... He wanted to discover this universe that had yet to be visited, but that still remained a mystery to his eyes...
A strange smile suddenly showed upon Alastor's face.
"So, tell me my dear... You want that cunt, don't you ?"
Angel was surprised. And just stared at him, perhaps confusingly ?
But was yet already drowning in his lust...
"Y-yes, my lord... I want it so bad. Treat me like your slave, please..."
Alastor's grin suddenly appeared more pronounced... but in a more machiavelic, creepy way ?
Angel looked back at his intimacy, but this time... there were teeth. Teeth, covered with blood...
What even.. ?
He saw the silhouette of those open toothed lips widening, and widening... as if they were about to reach him. Now, Angel felt so... tiny in front of what looked like a monstruous opening that was about to... wrap him completely. What in the...
Angel wanted to escape... but he couldn't. He tried to scream... but no sound came out of his mouth ! He was about to turn into... dust...
… then he woke up.
He opened his eyes under the thrill of anxiety, till his mind got back into reality.
So, all of this was just a dream. Or a nightmare, in fact.. ?
His whole body was sweating, and... ugh, what was that ? He felt something uncomfortable around his crotch area... Well, the whole thing for sure triggered a few physiological reactions in his body. As the first part probably turned him on... and the second, well. He could literally talk about a "wet" dream at this point ?
He now examined the room : Fat Nuggets was peacefully sleeping in a corner, and everything was being quiet. Well, everyone was probably sleeping...
He inserted his feet inside his slippers, then resolved to join the kitchen. Perhaps he just needed to take a glass of water after all...
But as he approached his destination, he found out the lights were already on ?
He opened the door... and found an Alastor, sitting there with a mug in his right hand.
Angel jumped out of surprise, before being noticed by the overlord who just glanced back at him.
He then, took a deep breath...
"What are you doing up that late ?", the arachnid finally inquired.