Fumbling for the lightswitch, she cursed under her breath as her knee met the hard corner of something large. The sharp stab into her shoulder as she leaned against the wall for support aided in her mission in illuminating the situation, her eyes blinking rapidly to adjust to the flash as the bulb sparked to life before it dimmed to a more acceptable tone. As soon as her vision cleared, she saw him. Crumpled against the cluttered countertop, was Angel Dust, still dressed in the outfit he'd bought for his performance but barely. Clover quickly jumped the minefield that was the floor of his dressing room, avoiding shattered glass and open pill bottles as best she could to get to him, careful not to jostle him as she crouched beside him.

"Angel, Angel wake up, please?"

He stirred slightly at her voice, groaning softly into his crossed arms but making no other moves to signify any semblance of consciousness. Clover didn't want to startle him, especially when she had no idea what could have possibly happened to him since she saw him last, but raising her voice any louder didn't feel like an option in her current circumstances. Gently taking hold of his elbow, all it took was the slightest shift of his arm to throw him off balance, his head nearly falling against the marbled countertop before he caught himself, turning sharply in his seat and almost falling out of it to get away from her.

"Don't fuckin' tou- What the fuck are you doin' 'ere?"

Panic quickly fading from bleary eyes as he attempted to stand, Angel Dust wobbled on high heels for a moment before turning to lay his weight against the counter, balanced on one set of hands while another blindly searched the wall behind him until the lights rimming the mirrored vanity warmed to life. Now able to properly see the state of his dressing room, Clover's heart sunk even further into her stomach, churning and threatening to spill over and up her throat. The overturned dresser had scattered bottles of liquor across the floor, shattering them to pieces and soaking the white fur carpet a mirage of colors. Clothes strewn across the soaked up most of the remaining liquid from the tile beneath, what was left had begun to liquify the multicolored pills and powders that crunched unpleasantly under their feet. Her voice felt like it drowned in the chaos of it all, even as she cleared her throat of her sorrows and reached a hand to lay over Angel's own.

"What happened?"

"I don't- I don't know, I can't…"

His voice cracking as he struggled to respond, Angel turned a hand over to tangle his fingers with hers, squeezing back as she tightened her grip to comfort him. He was seconds from tears, glassy eyes darting across the room as his breathing began to pick up pace. Clover followed after as he stumbled towards the couch, awkwardly set against the far wall, crooked in its place set below torn posters of her effeminate friend. Long arms swept away the remains of a powder blue vase and the crushed bouquet that it had once housed before he fell back onto the cushions, hissing through his teeth before moving himself away from the wet spot he'd sat himself in and dropping his face into his hands. Clover leaned her hip against the arm of the couch beside him, unsure of what to do to comfort him, but trying her best to be there for him without overloading him with concern.

"Are you okay? Did he, uh...I mean did Valentino…"

Angel looked up abruptly, turning to look up at her with renewed panic.

"Fuck, you really shouldn't be here, if Val catches you-"

"I'm not leaving without you."

He looked at her for a long moment, blinking up at her as tears began to well in his eyes. They finally began to roll down his cheeks as he deflated, short sobs hiccuping through him as he blindly reached out to her. She took his hand in his, cupping it between her own. Debating whether she should tell him that she'd already had the displeasure of meeting Valentino plunged her into silence, struggling for what to say next to get the both of them out of there before either of them fell into more trouble. It didn't seem to matter, Angel's head falling against her thigh only to jerk away a moment later, turning up at her as the spider stood suddenly and fell into a furious rambling.

"Fuck! You've already met him, haven't ya'? Ya don't gotta' answer that, I can smell the fuckin' pheromones on ya'."

Pacing in front of her, Angel was a mess of shifting emotions, battling between absolute rage, shoulder shaking sorrow and whatever daze he was still in from the night's events. He wavered on heels, Clover quickly standing to catch most of the thin demon's weight before he lost his balance completely. Looking down at her seemed to trigger something, the light behind his eyes growing brighter as the events of the night seemed to come back to him. A fresh collection of tears fell, soaking the fur of his cheeks and smearing the remains of mascara even further as he fell into her, wrapping long arms around her as he struggled to speak through sobs.

"Oh shit, I'm sorry, I'm so fuckin' sorry toots, I didn't mean tuh'- Valentino, he busted in 'ere before I went on, askin' all kindsa' questions and… he fuckin' shoved some shit down my throat, tore threw my fuckin' bag and- Fuck, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, honey, I didn't realize I had it on me, I shoulda neva'..."

Clover couldn't take seeing him like this, pulling him back towards the couch and getting him to sit down before taking both of his hands in his before he did any damage to himself, sighing softly at the strands of white fur that fell from between his fingertips as she leaned down to look him in the eye.

"Angel, sweetheart, breathe. You can tell me everything at home, we've got to get you out of here first. It's okay. Can you walk? Do you have other clothes?"

The spider blinked all eight eyes at her, glancing down at their clasped hands before speaking softly.

"You shoulda' neva' put yourself in danga' for me, how'd you even know I was still 'ere?"

"Cherri, she came to the hotel looking for you. She said you were supposed to meet up after your dance but never showed up. Speaking of which-"

Slowly letting go of his hand, Clover pulled her phone from her hoodie pocket and opened the text she'd received from Cherri upon sharing her number, typing out a quick text for her to meet them in the alleyway in a few minutes. Fondly placing a hand against Angel's cheek, she tried her best to stay strong for them both in the situation, holding back the strain in her voice as her eyes grew heavy with tears, breathing slowly to hold them back before smiling softly at her four armed friend.

"How was your dance, at least?"

Angel let out a pained laugh, shaking his head before leaning it's weight against her palm.

"I don't know, I was too fuckin' high to rememba'..."

He didn't stop her as she wrapped both arms around him, cradling the back of his neck as he fell against her shoulder in another short wave of soft sobs, humming reassurance against the fluff of his hair. Allowing him a moment to grieve, Clover tried to make sense of Angel's outburst. Whether it was all because she'd put herself in danger or something more, she wasn't sure, something about it felt like there was more weighing on Angel Dust than just the fact that she'd made the unfortunate acquaintance of his boss, but she wasn't going to press him at the moment. She helped him to gather his things, finding his duffle bag turned inside out in a far corner alongside his boots. He changed quickly, wincing as he pulled his hoodie over his head and struggled to get his arms through the sleeves. Clover watched carefully, uncomfortably familiar with the entire situation's tone, unable to keep herself from projecting onto her abnormally feeble friend.

"Can you walk? He didn't...well, he didn't do anything, did he?"

Angel laughed, a sarcastic huff that sent an ache into her chest as he tossed his bag over his shoulder.

"No. Well, not this time at least, just tossed me around like a fuckin' ragdoll, nothin' I can't handle."

He looked at her, sighing heavily at whatever he read from her expression before linking his arm with hers and pulling her out of the dressing room with a careful glance down the hallway. His voice was as close to a whisper as she'd heard from him yet as he closed the door softly behind them, turning the lock with a key. Clover tried her best to keep him upright as they quietly made their way down the staircase into the hallway that she'd met Lollie in, glancing into the still open doorway of what she'd assumed was her dressing room and finding only the rolling click of a finished record player among the mess inside.

Angel winced as she opened the door to the alleyway, tear heavy eyes blinking rapidly before he pressed his palms into their sockets with a groan before tugging his hood over the mess of his hair. The pounding of feet against concrete barely warned them, Clover holding onto Angel's weight just in time to keep Cherri from knocking him over completely.

"Angie! What the fuck happe-"

"Not now, we gotta fuckin' go, I'll explan lata'."

With as much momentum as Cherri Bomb had descended on them with, she quickly pulled Angel towards the opposite end of the alleyway, throwing his arms around her shoulder and supporting his weight as he stumbled alongside her. Her friend now in safe hands, Clover's attention snapped back to their third accomplice, her hip meeting that hard metal of a trash can as she turned quickly, leaving the scattering of cans and bottles behind her as she made her way back towards the club's entrance. The yelling that had distracted Valentino before still persisted, growing louder with each step she took towards the covered front walkway before coming to it's crest as they swung open moments before the large form of Husker tumbled through them, fur standing on end as a yowl echoed off the tall buildings around him. He stopped as his back came into contact with the passenger's side door of a running white limousine, the driver laying on the horn as her grumpy friend righted himself and sent a few choice words towards the vehicle before turning on the now-closing doorway.

"You motha' fuckers! Is this how you treat, a payin' customer? Huh? Why in my day w-"

"Husker!"

He quickly turned towards her, furious expression losing all it's fire as he locked eyes with her. Clover quickly nodded towards the alleyway behind her, motioning for him to follow as the rotating doorway began to spin, it's momentum signalling the exit of more of the club's patrons, this time of their own accord. Husker took long strides, ducking around the corner before taking hold of her shoulders with careful claws as he looked her over.

"You're in one fuckin' piece, you okay, kid?"

Clover couldn't help but roll her eyes at the concerned furrow of his brow, shaking out of his grasp before grabbing his arm with both hands and tugging him towards the running cab that waited at the far end of the alleyway, Cherri anxiously hanging out of the passenger's side door. She didn't have to say anything to spur Husker into movement, the larger demon following after her with little resistance as she pointlessly drug him along, chasing long shadows that spread out across the concrete before them, the high red sun beating down on her back. Her gaze followed the pounding of her sneakers, careful to avoid the debris below their feet in case they stumbled her steps. It was among the broken glass and cigarettes that she noticed it, blinking through the anxious fog that had settled over her in their escape just in case the third form that wound its way between the stretched silhouette of her legs and around the wide form of Husker's wings was a delusion of her dismay, but finding the shadow smiling back at her when her vision cleared once again. A look over her shoulder found only Husker lagging slightly behind, the retreating duo reflected in the pink tinted windows of the luxury car behind them and nothing more.

The shadow disappeared beneath the taxi, mixing with her own as she fumbled for the door handle, not suspecting the door to swing open into her chest from the inside. Angel shifted quickly back towards the far side of the backseat to allow Clover and Husker to slide inside, tucking long limbs against the far door as three demons squeezed into the tiny cab and slammed the door shut behind them. The driver huffed loudly, turning around in his seat to glare at them. The demon cabbie stopped short of telling them off when Angel slammed a hand against the back of his seat, blinking owlishly at the spider as he spoke up, the rest of the car's occupants wincing as he yelled in full hot-headed glory.

"Fuckin' drive Travis!"

The wheels began to spin, squealing against the concrete as he slammed on the gas pedal before it swerved into oncoming traffic with a wide turn before the car righted itself into a more acceptable driving fashion as they began to head back towards the hotel. Silence fell over the car, only broken by her own heavy breathing as relief knocked her lungs back into working order, Clover not knowing how long she'd been holding her breath. Husker was the first person who dared to move as they put distance between themselves and the club, pulling out a pack of cigarettes and tapping them thoughtfully against his knee. He held them out towards her, Clover turning to look up at him, brow furrowed in confusion, only to find a playful smile widening pointed teeth as he spoke softly into the silence.

"How about another cigarette?"

Clover looked at him for a long moment, glancing between the open packet of cigarettes and his raised brow before she finally broke, devolving into a mess of manic giggles against his shoulder as she shoved his offering away from her, her nervous state finally breaking through her calm facade. It only worsened when long arms reached across her, Angel Dust quickly grabbing from the open box before leaning into the front seat to fetch the lighter from its place in the console. Clover turned to watch as he drew in deeply, leaning his head back against the back of his seat reverently before he locked eyes with her hiccuping form, holding his composure for only a moment before the smoke filled the cabin with a long exhale of laughter that forced a snort from her in return.

Angel smiled as she shifted to face him, reaching out a hand to him and allowing him to fill the space between her fingers on his own, squeezing gently when he did. His head fell atop hers when she gently leaned her forehead against his shoulder, allowing her tears to fall among the fading laughter. She wept for the memories of the night before, something she wasn't sure she was ever going to be allowed to experience ever again, for the security she found in Alastor that now felt like a distant memory, and for all that Angel had experienced at the hands of the man she'd made the unfortunate acquaintance of, the knowledge that this experience might change things in this fortunate after-life she'd come to love weighing heavily at the corners of her eyes and pushing forward another fresh stream of tears.

Signing heavily, she tried to ground herself in the smell of cigarette smoke and the hum of the car's engine, pressing her cheek into the fabric of Angel's hoodie for comfort and finding little. She knew that they had more to talk about, that there was going to be far more hell to pay than either of them wanted to handle when they got back to the hotel, even as the heavy weight of exhaustion began to overtake her. Still she found a reason to smile among it all, allowing the fuzzy feeling to overtake all of the other, heavier, emotions and lift her spirits in a flurry of red-painted butterflies as the familiar sound of a radio being tuned filled the cab.