Chapter LXVI: Slices of Paradise Part 3
Angel was trying to put himself together for the crawfish boil that was happening today. He knew that it was the last great party his mother and mother-in-law would have before being reborn into the new world, but for the afterlife of him, he couldn't conceal the mark on his neck!
The night before, he had asked Alastor what he thought he should wear to the party and Alastor told pulled out a dress that was a bit on the more casual side of the Roaring '20's and then a couple shirts – masculine button-up and a lady's blouse – along with some dark slacks. He modeled all three looks for Alastor, Alastor got a whiff of the new pear and cherry blossom perfume that he was wearing, and in a flirtatious tone, Alastor told him: "Angel, it's dangerous to smell this delicious around a cannibal."
It had led into a pretty intense make-out session involving some nipping, and now Angel was boasting a massive hickey!
Maybe I should have him heal it, but this is the first one he's ever given me, and it's so hard to get a bruise up here, I kind of want to keep it for that. Angel thought, he'll just have to explain it, but he still wore a silk neck-scarf that coordinated with the blouse. It hid the hickey enough for the Thorns to not really notice, but an eagle-eyed mama would.
Now dressed, he headed downstairs where he met up with his husband, siblings, and…
… the horror that was Sir Pentious' outfit!
He walked into the room with a beaming Cherri on his arm, wearing a baseball cap backwards, his hair was untidy, there were aviator sunglasses on his face, a gold chain around his neck, a white t-shirt that hung loose on him with a graphic that made no sense to anyone – save for Cherri perhaps – and jeans that had holes in them.
"Che cazzo fai, Pent!?" Franco swore.
"What the blazes is this?!" Alastor all-but shrieked, his eyes flashed, radio sounds did the shrieking for him, and then his hand suddenly clapped over his eye and he gave an inward hiss of pain. Upon revelation, his eye was a cracked radio-dial – more of a grey-cream blend this time as opposed to crimson.
"Yo, no need to go postal, dog, I'm just trying to be hip with the in crowd," Sir Pentious replied.
"You crazy cat, ya fuckin' broke Alastor!" Angel exclaimed.
Cherri was now doubled-over laughing at the scene.
"Chill, dog, so you don't dig my new threads."
Franco buried his face in his hands and groaned: "Oh, Pent, I can't even look at ya."
Neither could Alastor, but he couldn't voice it. His shadow brought in a radio as he manifested his microphone and smacked Sir Pentious on the shoulder with the head of it, and suddenly his outfit turned into a fool's motley.
"Now, I daresay that looks a great deal more dignified!" came a voice from the radio.
"Fine, I'll wear this to the party then!" Sir Pentious declared. He started for the door with a confident stride while the other Thorns shot looks to Alastor. Alastor then waved his hand and Sir Pentious' outfit was turned into a simple button-up shirt of bright orchid and slacks.
Ω Ω Ω
The venue was packed, the smell of corn roasting and crawfish was in the air, there was a live jazz band, a bar serving cocktails, and the place was decorated well enough for a big Madri Gras party! It was set up on a spot of farmland with a hill boasting a beautiful orchard and a pond in the valley.
Among the guests were relations of Angel, Molly, and Franco that went way back, friends that Estelle had in life and a few of her relations, but then there were also friends such as Charlie and her Uncle Raphael and her wife Vaggie; and Mabel with her family.
Franco was driving and parked as Alastor directed him to. Alastor himself was a little jittery and was borrowing Sir Pentious' aviators on the account that his tubes were still blown out.
People gathered to set up the buffet: the Thorns brought more crawfish, Mabel brought pies, Estelle supplied most of the vegetables while her friends and family brought in sausages and more crawfish.
Amelia and Estelle were dressed gaily in dresses of bright colors from the 1910's – Estelle in periwinkle and Amelia in sea green. They were at the table overseeing the buffet's setup while the guests took turns tending to the boil.
Then, Estelle noticed Angel and Alastor approaching with his catch of crawfish.
"Alastor, I don't think I've ever seen you in sunglasses before," she stated.
He lowered the shades and peered over the lenses to reveal why he was wearing them – cracked radio-dial eye.
"How did you manage that?"
"Essie, he can't speak when he's like this, and I don't know how well regeneration works up here, so he could be stuck like this for a while… Anyway, he blew out his tubes because Pent showed up in a rather tasteless outfit with his hair all messed up – our Victorian – and then he started talkin' in weird slang. Seein' him so outta character was all it took ta break Alastor."
Estelle took another look at him and then told him in a hushed voice: "Raphael's here, near the pond when I last saw him."
Angel and Alastor looked and spotted the archangel. Alastor then turned and took Estelle's hand and gave it a kiss before he revealed his wings and flew over to Raphael.
He landed at Raphael's side – he was busy talking to Charlie – and so tapped him on his shoulder.
"I beg your pardon?" Raphael spoke as he turned away from his niece. Alastor made apologetic gestures and then pulled off the sunglasses.
"Alastor, how did you blow out your tubes?" Charlie asked him, shocked. He gave her some frustrated gestures to remind her that he couldn't speak in this state.
"Oh, you poor soul," Raphael told him sympathetically, and then he blessed Alastor with a healing miracle, mending his eye and restoring his voice. Alastor tested it by humming a few notes: "Hmm-hum-hmmm, thank you Lord Raphael, and it's good to see you here."
"Thank you, now, you go take care and have fun… Try not to overindulge with the liquor," Raphael told him.
"It's good to see that you're still doing well," Charlie added
"You're welcome to the Thorns' table, all of you," Alastor replied, and then he flew back to Angel and Estelle. Angel perked up when he landed and stated: "Hey, you're all mended!"
"Yes, Raphael's a miracle worker… Mother, you're looking quite well."
"Thank you, Amelia's sense of glamour, humor, and fashion has rubbed off on me… Oh, Ange, Loretta is here, and she has a couple things that she wants to tell you," Estelle replied.
"Great, thanks, I'll go see her in a moment."
"Oh, and Alastor, you and your Thorns are welcome to take the stage and sing with the band if inclined," Estelle added.
"Wonderful! I'll be sure to take that up later," he replied.
…
The food was ready, and Loretta approached the table the Thorns had picked. At her side was a lady wearing a dress that was certainly from the 1500's but simpler – of that of someone not overly wealthy – and her gown was in a brilliant crimson hue.
"Ah, my little spiders! Franco, Molly, Anthony, I'd like for you to meet Nonna Prudentia, she's your great-great-something-grandmother born in the 16th century," Loretta told them.
"Buongiorno, Nonna," they greeted.
"Oh, please, no need to-a-be so formal, and English is fine… Call me Nana Prue."
Alastor got to his feet and offered Prudentia his hand, she took it and gave it a shake, and Alastor told her: "A delight to meet you, I'm Alastor – the Red Dandy – and Angel's husband."
"Now-a who is Angel?"
"That'll be me," he piped up, casting a glance to Alastor.
"Ah, si, I know you, 'Angel in a New Light', Loretta introduced me to-the your music, you are a good singer."
Angel cast another glance to Alastor as he sat back down next to him – Alastor seemed to be studying Prudentia – and then Angel asked: "So, you're not bothered by this?" as he gestured between Alastor and himself.
"Not a bit. All actors of my time were men – so 'Romeo and Juliet' might as well be 'Romeo and Julio' – and Senor Shakespeare could lean to woman or man… as could my infernal husband and brother."
Angel pulled a face that was quite taken aback: "Gay runs in the familia?"
"It would seem so." Loretta replied.
Franco then got up and pulled out seats for the nonnas: "Please sit and join us."
"Oh, Loretta, your spiders are charming."
"They'll be yours soon enough," Loretta told Prudentia.
Franco and Molly froze while Angel asked: "Nonna, what d'ya mean?"
Loretta sighed and explained: "Your Mama showed me the papers detailing her next life… You know well enough that I was your father's mother, and Amelia's papers showed that she will – once again – marry a man involved in shady business – not the mafia mind you… My sweet spiders, if I am to be reborn and be your Nonna again, I would be doomed to repeat a life I've already lived. I love you, but I don't want that, and Nana Prue wants to live a life where carriages and wagons can move without horses or oxen, to immigrate to a new land, and so on. So, while I stay for the Merging, she will be in the new world in my place."
The siblings were dumbstruck and were prepared to protest when Alastor snapped his fingers to keep them mute: "Loretta has made her choice and Prue now wants to be in your lives, you ought to respect their decisions. You have both of them right now, so make what you will of it instead of arguing," he told them, and he snapped his fingers again to return their voices, and sat back so the siblings could talk some more.
…
So, while the siblings got to know their future grandmother better, the other Thorns had eaten their fill, and Cherri took Sir Pentious to the barn.
"Cherri, what's this about?"
"There's something I want to tell you, and – well – it's that I regret breaking up with you."
Sir Pentious straightened and spoke: "So you want me back."
"Yes."
"Cherri, I'm not some – what's the term now – gigolo? Tell me, what do you want from me and do with me if I take you back?"
"I want to go to the movies with you and rest my head on your shoulder, show you how to be actually hip with people of my era – you did alright this morning, the problem was that none of the other Thorns lived to see the years of my life – and thanks to Rosie's finishing school lessons, Downstairs, I've gotten enough sense of class to want you to take me to see a Shakespearean play."
"We could do all of those things as friends," Sir Pentious replied.
"Errgh! Why do you have to be so difficult about this?"
"I want to know if you'll commit to me!"
By now, the both of them had glowing eyes, Sir Pentious' more fuchsia while Cherri's were golden, but she couldn't hold her composure and wrapped her arms around herself as she admitted: "I'll promise an effort."
Sir Pentious eased up and rested a hand on her shoulder: "That'll do then." Cherri then threw her arms around him, he hugged her back and the sounds of the jazz band playing sounded through the barn, so he spoke again: "I believe you learned how to dance properly to this music, will you show me how it's done?"
With a bright smile on her face she led him to the dance floor and showed him the Charleston.
…
John brought over three cocktails one for himself, Mabel, and Alastor – gone off to mingle now that Angel was otherwise occupied. They thanked him for the drinks but Alastor noticed that Mabel sipped hers with a certain attitude.
"You're not looking all that chipper, Mabel, did something happen?" he asked her.
"John took me out on a date in the Medieval area, and I ended up Marking six souls to be Cleaned in one day. It got to the point where we had to leave before the surrounding souls would turn on me and I would have to Mark more of them! Six souls for a Cleaner in one day! It was a record, and not one that I wanted to make!"
"Mabel, my dearest, it's not your fault those souls turned sour. You just happened to be the Cleaner that noticed them first," John told her.
"John's right, you were just doing you job… but surly you knew that when you became a Cleaner, you were going to become the most terrifying thing that Heaven had to offer."
"Alastor!" John exclaimed.
"Hey now, John, as a former demon, I know what awaits those she's Marked, I even saw those soured souls fall during the first Cleaning; some even dropped in front of me and I watched as their fair façades molded into demons – oh how they screamed! However, John, you're right, Mabel didn't do anything wrong – so you shouldn't feel down. Still, Mabel, you're now feeling something other than happiness or contentment."
Mabel lit up: "You're right! Oh, I feel a bit more alive now! Thanks, both of you!" John and Alastor raised their glasses to her and took a sip. Then, as their attention turned to the dance floor, she piped up: "Hey, look at that, your friend Cherri's dancing with Pent."
"Hmm, looks like they've gotten back together," he replied.
"They've dated?"
"Indeed, though Cherri broke up with him because Angel started to see Pent as a father figure."
"Ah, yes, I remember that now. Angie and his brother bickering and Pent broke them up and gave them a scolding… and then you all ran out to go fight a bunch of overlords."
"Good times," Alastor replied.
Mabel took a sip of a cocktail she'd gotten as John piped up: "I've thought about what you said to that broad at Teddy's, the one that Mabel Marked for Cleaning… Do you really miss Hell?"
Alastor took a sip of his cocktail and admitted: "In some ways… but I know well enough that they're not worth damning myself all over again, not when a new life is drawing closer."
"We also like having you up here, you Bloody Bambi, you Thorns make it interesting up here," John told him with a playful jab of his elbow.
"Thank you, John," he replied, then he looked about and then asked: "Now, where's Angel gone off to?"
Mabel pointed: "He's at the bar."
"Oh, dear me, let's see how drunk he's getting," and Alastor winged his way over to him.
Angel had two empty glasses in front of him and was halfway through a third drink – something pink – and humming to himself while swaying until he noticed Alastor approaching him: "He~ey, come ta check out the go~ods?" he slurred.
"No, I've had a good fill of them, I'm making sure that you're not making a fool out of yourself," Alastor told him.
Angel let out a dramatic sigh, took another swig of his drink, and started muttering to himself about: how good he had it, and how it had been a couple years since he sucked a dick by now.
"Okay, that's quite enough of that! Angel, time to sober up!" Alastor exclaimed as he pulled Angel away from the bar. He didn't protest, even with some of his drink still remaining while Alastor excused himself from his friends and started leading Angel to the barn.
"Let's go for a thrill inside!" Angel told him. Alastor grinned at him and led him to a nice and dark corner and told Angel: "I used to see couples sneak away from parties for a moment – likely with lustful intentions – It would be nice to have a little bit with you."
Angel leaned in and started kissing him, to Alastor, Angel's lips still had a buttery taste from the crawfish and a sting of liquor, he let it get a little intense and went as far as to grope Angel's ass, but the session only lasted a moment.
…
It was a great party, they ate, danced, and the brilliant talents of Raphael, Charlie, and the Thorns took turns to get up on the stage and sing; but now that night had fallen, Estelle found Alastor as he was helping himself to another serving of crawfish and cornbread.
"This is quite the affair, Mother… Pray tell, what is the occasion?"
Estelle fidgeted a bit before telling him: "Alastor, Amelia and I are due to be reborn in a couple days… This party is our sendoff."
Alastor froze and looked slightly dumbfounded: "Why didn't you tell me about that sooner?"
"I didn't want you to feel pressured to spend more time with me… Alastor, I'm looking forward to starting over again, and I know that when the time for you comes, you're going to have a good home – everyone's made sure
of that. All I ask is that until then, you enjoy as much as Heaven has to offer you.
Alastor pulled her into his arms: "I'm going to miss you."
"There's still tomorrow if you want to come by."
"N-No, come to the Beelze-Belfry, Mother, we have plenty of room for you – Amelia too – and we're not dealing with any former-demon patrons at the moment."
"Alright then, I'll come by in the morning."
They parted, Alastor rounded up the Thorns, and they drove for home.
Ω Ω Ω
Upon their return Angel spent a couple hours with Franco and Molly as they were all dealing with the conundrum that Amelia would be leaving soon and finding out that their Nonna Loretta wasn't going to be a part of their next lives. They just sat around and shared memories for a while before Angel was ready to call it a day.
When entering the bedroom he found Alastor sitting in a chair with Mitzi purring on his lap and looking rather crimson.
"Oh, you're in demon form!" Angel spoke with surprise.
Alastor's 'ears' drooped, his smile was gone, he looked up, but didn't say anything. Angel stepped further into the room and switched to his demon form – wearing only a pair of pajama shorts – before sitting upon the bed: "Come here, ya look like you could use some 'ear' pets."
He took Mitzi in his arms and approached Angel, who guided him to rest his head on his lap.
"I'm sure ya'd rather burry ya face inta my chest now, but if ya let ya-self break – which I'll understand if ya do – it could mat my fluff and that ain't pleasant."
"We should be happy for them," Alastor replied, feeling Angel's fingers comb through his hair.
"You're right, but it still means that we're not goin' ta ever see 'em again in this afterlife," Angel spoke, and he felt Alastor begin to crack. Angel scratched Alastor's head and told him: "Stay like this as long as you need to." He felt Alastor draw a sigh before speaking: "Mother's wish for me is to explore all Heaven has to offer me."
"I believe I know where this is goin' – ya practically snarled at me when I brought up the matter – I think that it would be a good experience for ya, and you're the only Thorn up here that hasn't partaken in it – we had ta do some things while we were waitin' on ya ta get up here… I'll join ya, and if there's somethin' ya are worried about me findin' out, just go in knowin' that we can spend some time tagether without me gettin' horny."
Alastor brightened up as he let out a chuckle: "Okay, I believe you've sold me on it"
"You'll have fun, you have my word on that," Mitzi piped up.
"I'll have to believe it, it's not you can lie up here," Alastor told her.
"That, and we cherubs have to supervise our souls when they're in that state."
Alastor looked up and told Angel: "I'll be ready soon after our mothers leave. Mine's coming over in the morning."
"Make her last day in Paradise a good one then," he replied.
Ω Ω Ω
Well, where there was Estelle, there was Amelia, and there was a day of great food, card games, stories, and then the Thorns opened up the Beelze-Belfry to the public for the premiere of 'Inner Beast' starring Mabel, playing the role of a woman just suffering as the world kills off her husband, is only able to get a job that pays a pittance with a boss that's hitting on her hard, and was forced to downsize her living quarters.
Alastor played as the voice of her inner demon, he was costumed in a black suit with a bright red shirt and crimson spats on his shoes, and for the purposes of the film, he kept his eyes consistently crimson.
Mabel's character was sinking to a low she'd never been before, when Alastor approached her in her vulnerable state as he whispered in her ear: "Why do you let them do these things to you? You know that your boss is a scumbag, perhaps it's time to let the world know him for what he truly is."
Mabel took it upon herself to gather evidence to prove that her boss was not just married, but also had a circle of mistresses. It led to her boss getting divorced and later turning up dead – likely killed by an angered mistress or the angered husband of one.
Satisfied with how her revenge turned out, Mabel's proceeded to take her vengeance out on the world through other means. Now fed up with living in an apartment with shitty neighbors, she set out to find a better job to get a better home – enter Angel's character, the right hand of a shady business tycoon as they employ Mabel's character to be their career femme fatale to seduce and discover scandals to help her boss and his business partners eliminate their competition and – oh – they paid her enough to afford a decent house and supplied her with enough benefits to really make it all that more desirable to never leave them and to abandon the dirty work she was doing for them. Her inner demon was always there to remind her that what she was doing was necessary.
However, throughout the rest of the film, Mabel's character showed more and more the influence that her inner demon had on her, she started playing more into her vanity, playing up lust as baited her targets, really started to enjoy this job, and her boss played more into her developing greed. All the while, Alastor – in his dark and reddened visage – gradually started showing more and more being surrounded by an angelic light as he became her voice of reason, until at the end of the film she looked into a mirror and screamed as her reflection showed her the demon she'd become beneath her glamorous façade.
The reflection actually came as a jumpscare that had even the audience screaming after such a chain of suspense building up through the picture. It really didn't disappoint.
Near the end of the picture, Angel and Alastor left their mothers' sides for a moment to track down John and handed him a bouquet of flowers.
"What're these for?" he asked.
"Ta give ta your wife. Downstairs, whenever one of our productions was done showing, Alastor would give me flowers."
"And for her first acting performance, she did brilliantly," Alastor added. They soon split from John, and not a moment too soon as Mabel appeared and saw the flowers.
"Are those for me?" she asked.
"They are, movie starlets deserve roses," John replied, and Mabel pulled him in for a passionate kiss as she accepted the flowers.
"Come, dear, how's about we go out for a nice dinner to further celebrate the occasion?" John offered. He led her out as she let out a couple giggles of excitement, and as they passed some of the audience members, they could hear just how intense the picture was.
…
After the movie, the Thorns simply held a nice family-style dinner, and had Estelle and Amelia talk of what they were excited for in the next life – finding out that some forms of magic existing in the new world really piqued Alastor's interest, Amelia was eager to have New Orleans and Estelle being a part of her life, and the chance to see her kids grow up.
That statement actually drove Molly to ask: "Exactly how did Nonna Loretta react when you exterminated Pops?"
"Your grandmother disowned her son when she found out about his crimes."
"So how come you two embraced us?" Franco asked gesturing to the other Thorns.
"For me, I put part of the blame for what you became on myself, and it wasn't like your father gave you much of a choice in what you became, that's also why I became your Redeemer. You – Franco – and Molly helped me to forgive myself," Amelia answered.
"I felt close to the same way, and then I found that Alastor wanted to repent," Estelle added.
There was quiet nodding for a moment.
"So, Mother, anything else you're looking forward to?" Alastor asked.
Estelle pulled out her papers from Charlie, and declared wit pizzazz: "Mm, perhaps meeting the would-be war vet that I'm gonna catch!"
"Mother!" Alastor exclaimed while the rest of the table let out some laughter. He took the page from Estelle to look it over briefly: "It looks like you've got a nice setup for this next life."
"It is, may not be luxurious, but I'll have all I need… Though, if you're Amelia, luxury is a need."
"Hey now! You throwing jabs at me! So I like having a few furs and diamonds. Nothing wrong with that!"
"So long as you don't yearn for too many of them," Estelle replied with a smirk.
"Oh, dear, Mother, where did all of this attitude come from?"
"From hanging around Amelia."
…
It had been a big day and it was time to turn in, though it was a bit hard to say goodnight to Amelia and Estelle knowing that it would be the last night they would spend in Heaven.
Come that morning, a cab came for them, and bittersweet farewells and hugs were exchanged, they got into the cab, and as it pulled away, it was the last Heaven ever saw of them.
Ω Ω Ω
As far as Mitzi could tell, he looked to be about ten years old and quite overwhelmed. Then again, that's not too atypical when a soul entered this part of Heaven or the first time, it was simply called Joyland, and was a place where souls were free to be kids again. It was quite popular, but for a soul that had a rough childhood, it was understandable why they'd be reluctant to go.
It was also disorienting for the souls, as Joyland wipes their adult and afterlife memories.
Mitzi floated before Alastor – now dressed in simple clothes, like a cotton t-shirt and khaki shorts, great for running around in – and spoke in her cheerful cherub voice: "Hey there! Come with me, and I'll show you around."
Alastor didn't speak, which – despite knowing his whole background – surprised Mitzi. This soul loved talking, humming, and singing, but now he was like a shy fawn.
Don't worry, he's just new to this… Gosh… he also hasn't been a kid in over 110 years, and back then those years weren't good to him. Okay, just show him to Angel, maybe he'll open up more then. Mitzi thought to herself.
As Alastor followed her, they passed through a park with a brilliant playground with slippery metal slides, several types of ladders to climb, structures made to look like a giant castle and a huge pirate ship, different types of swings, and other forms of play equipment, it was honestly a child's dream park!
However, as Mitzi turned to encourage Alastor to have some fun, she found him reaching for something off one of the flowers that lined the path. Curious as the kitty was, she floated over to him and saw that he was now holding a couple ladybugs.
"Momma liked having ladybugs in the garden. You know they eat pests like aphids, and they're so colorful!"
Of course, he knows that she's gone from him. A little nostalgia doesn't hurt, but he's not here to be a sad boy. Mitzi thought. So she then told him: "I didn't know you liked bugs, you know there's a whole zoo here in Joyland and there's a whole exhibit dedicated to bugs. We'll go there, but first let's enjoy the park and find someone for you to play with."
Mitzi looked and spotted Collin watching over Angel on the castle play structure, making his way to the ship. He spotted her too as he called out her name.
"Collin, we're both finally here with our souls… Alastor, come and meet Angel!"
Angel – as a ten-year-old boy – was a fair-haired and freckle-faced boy brimming with confidence, and had an impish smirk. Though their memories suffered a wipe upon entering Joyland, both Angel and Alastor sensed a familiarity between themselves; and so, Angel stuck out his hand and spoke: "Hi, Alastor right? I'm Angel."
Alastor, being a young gentleman, gave Angel's hand a polite shake, and Angel told him: "Come on, I'll race ya up to the crow's nest," and he darted for the rope ladders leading up the ship. Alastor, also being competitive, quickly chased after the scamp and they both scrambled their way up, but Alastor was just a wee bit quicker and made it to the top first.
"Alright, ya got some good climbin' skills. Wha'cha say ta that?"
"You were pretty fair competition."
Angel brought out his wings and fluttered down to the ground while Alastor decided that he'd rather glide over to one of the larger slides and ride that down the rest of the way to the ground.
"Yeah, you're a guy that knows how to have some fun! Think that you can catch me?" Angel spoke.
"I'm faster than you at climbing, perhaps running too," Alastor told him.
"I'll keep my wings out then."
Mitzi and Collin watched as their souls ran all over the park, over the structures, climbing and going down slides, and Angel cheating a couple times by taking flying leaps until Alastor brought out his wings and tagged him in midair.
"Alright boys, are you ready to go to the zoo?" Mitzi asked them.
"Oh cool! They've got a great zoo here!" Angel told Alastor.
…
Indeed, the Joyland Zoo was quite amazing. Not only were there lions, tigers, elephants, penguins, monkeys, and all one might expect to see in a zoo, there were also examples of animals that had gone extinct in the living world, such as dodo birds, velociraptors, and giant sloths.
As Mitzi had promised, they had an awesome bug exhibit, with beetles that shone like jewels, beautiful butterflies, millipedes, and mantids! There was a separate exhibit for arachnids for those who weren't absolutely fuckin' terrified of them, and Angel and Alastor were among those that could enjoy them, from the scorpions to the exotic spiders – which seemed to fascinate Angel for reasons he couldn't quite figure, and Alastor was simply enjoying the info placards that were featured for each creature.
On top of the zoo was the aquarium, where the boys spent a fair amount of time watching the fish and octopi – Alastor seemed to be mesmerized by their tentacles. Of course, there was a good focus on the sharks and dolphins too.
However, when they got back to focusing on the land animals, they also enjoyed watching tigers running about their enclosures and splashing in their pools, ocelots climbing trees, and a lion trying to play with his own tail.
…
At the end of the zoo trip, the cherubs led their souls to a nice kiddie diner where they could get some tasty chicken tenders and a malt – Angel got strawberry while Alastor went with an orange cream.
"You've been quiet for a bit, Alastor," Angel stated, Collin tapped him on the shoulder and told him: "He's never been here before, let's not get too pushy with him."
"Oh," and Angel busied himself with his meal for a bit. Despite the memory wipe he had a sense of what happens when you enter Joyland, the life had outside Joyland felt like a dream of some recollection but was outside waking experience, but entering it for the first time requires a soul to reestablish a sense of identity. With multiple visits, Joyland became more familiar and less disorienting or overwhelming upon entry.
"I like music," Alastor told him.
"I know a good spot for that here!" Angel replied.
"Hold up now, it's going to get dark soon, and you two need a place to spend the night. Now what sounds good?" Mitzi asked them.
"Under the stars," Alastor told her.
"What, like a campout?" she questioned, and Alastor gave her a nod.
"I don't know if I've ever really been campin'," Angel stated, his face looked as if it was straining to find a memory to confirm this but couldn't find it.
"It's fun! The fireflies emit soft lights, the crickets, frogs, and some birds sing you a lullaby, and we could share a few stories around a campfire before turning in for the night."
"Man, you're pretty outdoorsy, aren't you?"
"Doesn't it sound like fun, Angel?" Collin asked.
"It sounds like somethin' different."
…
So, after the diner, they were shown to a campground, and found a spot surrounded by berry-bearing bushes that they could snack off of.
The cherubs sent the boys off to collect some wood for a fire while they set up the fire pit and rolled out a pair of cots and draped blankets over them.
"Oof, an energetic pair, those two," Mitzi told Collin.
"What were you expecting?"
"It was just an observation… I didn't know Alastor had a fascination for insects and I wasn't quite expecting him to be as shy as he's been today. It's almost made me forget that he used to be a demon."
"Not one anymore though."
"I know, and seeing him like this, I kind of feel sorry that he was driven to become one, but I know that's why he wants his second chance… Hoo, I'm going to miss them when they go."
"I will too, they're interesting souls," Collin replied.
Pretty soon, Angel and Alastor returned with enough wood for a fire and stacked it in the pit. A thought then crossed Alastor's mind, he stuck out his hand, and a spark passed from his palm and ignited the wood into a nice campfire.
They sat down and got comfortable, and Alastor started telling a story about three kids whose parents told them that it was dangerous to go out into a swamp at night, but then the kids heard that a witch lived in the swamp, and so decided to sneak out at night. They found the swamp witch's home and she caught sight of them. Two of the children she turned into alligators and she fed them the third child. The child eaten by the alligators was doomed to haunt the swamp as a ghost*.
"Okay, that was a creepy one," Angel stated.
"Do you have one?"
Angel decided to tell a happier story to lift the spirit of circumstances: two brothers were without a home and no one would take them in, and so they decided that the only place for them was the forest. It happed that as they were venturing, they found a fairy's magic wand. The older brother picked it up and pointed it at the younger, and the younger turned into a fox. Out of surprise, the older brother dropped the wand, the younger brother picked it up in his teeth, and pointed it at the older brother, and he was turned into a stag. It was then that the fairy returned to discover what happened, picked up her wand, and then huffed: "It's just as well, men are beasts to begin with!" and she flew away.
By that point, the day had worn on them, and they tucked into bed with their cherubs snuggling up to them. There was a bit of stargazing before they fell asleep.
…
The visit at Joyland lasted for a fair while, with Cherri and Angel's siblings joining them eventually as they ventured to beaches where they swam with colorful fish and friendly dolphins and collected shells to decorate sandcastles, amusement parks where they rode some exciting roller coasters, and even a theatre showing some of the most beloved family features.
However, good things must come to an end.
Upon leaving Joyland, the Thorns resumed matured ages and their stay felt like a series of pleasant memories.
"So, how was it for ya?" Angel asked Alastor.
"Took me a while to get adjusted, but it was… I actually had a good deal of fun."
"You should go back again," Mitzi told him.
Alastor's smile broadened a bit as he told her: "I think you're right, but not for a while, though it would be nice to go back within our last few months up here."
"Well, it won't be that much longer," Angel replied.
"He's right, you're down to just under a year now," Collin added.
Cherri, who'd stayed with them the rest of their visit in Joyland then piped up: "What are we going to do about the Beelze-Belfry when that time comes?"
"Well, we're not going to need it anymore, and the whole realm of Heaven and Hell is going to change, perhaps we should just blow it up on our last night up here," Alastor suggested.
"Oh, look at Alastor speakin' to my inner demon!"
"Well, there aren't any rules up here saying that you can't blow it up," Collin replied.
"Getting the explosives will be a challenge though," Nadine added.
"Nonsense, I may not be a demon overlord anymore, but I've enough magic to take care of that. Otherwise, I'm sure that Pent would love to help us build the means for that," Alastor told them.
"Guess it's settled then, at the end of our term up here, we'll throw ourselves a party, and blow the Beelze-Belfry to bits," Angel declared.
"Ho-yeah! We need a big send off!" Cherri exclaimed.
Ω Ω Ω
So, some of Nonna Prudentia's dialogue was inspired by hearing other Italians speaking English and adding those extra syllables, and some of William Shakespeare's works hint at a possible attraction to men.
*Alastor's story was inspired by a Grimm's Fairy Tale: Frau Traude wherein a girl is transformed into a hunk of wood by the witch and thrown onto her fire.
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