Chapter 32
Start Small
During her seven months in the afterlife, Eliza never realized two very important things about Hell. Firstly, and probably because she spends most of her time indoors anymore, is the fact that Hell apparently has many weather hazards. Even though the Pride Ring seems to have the best weather, it still has its fair share of phenomenal elemental catastrophes. Because they're few and far between, no one really prepared for them as much as just rode them out. Why not, right? After all, if a sinner gets caught in one and dies, they'll just reform and drop somewhere else in a few days to try again. Still, when something major does happen, it causes a lot of destruction.
The other is that Eliza may have grossly underestimated the size of Pentagram City.
She's wandered a good bit of the Cannibal Colony and seen a few local areas, but during her research into getting the garden idea in order, she learned that the Hazbin Hotel was located near the fringes of the West side of the Pentagram, and that the city was divided into six sections; the five points of the star as well as the center. At first she didn't think much of it, figuring that of course the city had to be huge because of the sheer amount of people on Earth that probably fall into Hell every day. There just had to be room for them all somehow, even if overpopulation was still an issue. That changed, however, when she realized that in this section, the architecture and people tended to be rather… familiar, even if Hell often sports a more surreal style.
Where were the other cultures?
Why, when she went walking through the Cannibal Colony, did it make her think solely of old-timey American and Canadian styles? Why were all the different cultures in the area, such as Angel Dust's Italian roots or Vagatha's Latin-American descent, still very reminiscent of North or even Middle America exclusively, the differences usually represented by the time-period rather than a difference of location? All the variety in local civilization were more like America's melting-pot rather than an actual gathering of people from different lands. So, where were they?
In the other points of the Pentagram's star, apparently, because a little digging revealed that each section seems to represent different parts of the world. Excluding Antarctica, which was uninhabited, every other continent had its own space, which she found very curious. Was that where they dropped as well, or did they have to find their way to their own sector? Did people get lost often? She dropped into the perfect spot, but was that rare?
If not, then the only thing she could assume was that people were congregating into familiar groups to feel a sense of security, though how they seem to remain so deeply segregated over such a long period of time was something that amazed her. No matter how hard sinners might try to make it otherwise, it's all still the one city in the end. How did they manage to remain so truly separate? Did no one mingle with the other sections, or were they so few that it really didn't make a difference?
Then she remembered that, while demons are able to have children, sinners apparently can't. In the end, if cultures mix, it's because they came down that way, not because they were born in a unified Hell. So if there's a large enough population of sinners from a time when people were separate and proud of it, maybe it would be easier to maintain than she thought. After all, despite every opportunity the internet provided, there were still many ignorant people in the world. It could take decades or longer to actually change anything.
That, and if there's one thing Hell's taught her in such a limited amount of time, it's that in the end humanity really hasn't changed much over generations. People were still people, and people often instinctually flocked to places or social circles that felt familiar. It's similar to the reason why someone often chooses a partner reminiscent of a prominent parent or parental figure, or why a person gravitates to certain types of friends over and over even if they're detrimental in some significant way.
Learning all of this left Eliza with such strong wanderlust that staying indoors began to drive her nuts. As it was, she simply had no way to reach these other sections of Pentagram City because she had no means of transportation, nor money for a cab. Instead, she decided to scrape together what was left of Vox's donation money and walk to Plaisirs Crus instead. It'd been a while since she's really been able to treat Alucard to a good meal (though Alastor's 'random' treats were giving her feathered friend some pudge), and it's been a long time since she's been able to talk to the managers or wait-staff. She wondered if Talon still worked there; maybe she would see if he knew more anime. She wasn't much of a fanatic, but she knew a few, and she could use some funny or bizarre quotes right now.
What she didn't need was the welcoming committee that greeted her at the edge of the cannibal colony. The moment she reached the familiar, well-kept sign marking the entrance to the colony, she immediately felt like she was being watched. It wasn't really the first time, as she always felt there were eyes on her from the shadows here, but the other times felt more curious than threatening. Today…
Not so much.
It didn't take long for a group of six women (none of whom she recognized) to block her path, circling her in a pack-like manner. For once, Eliza's wings wasted no time showing themselves, and she kept them semi-open in preparation. They were growling at her, and one young woman, a cyclops with black pigtails and dark brown skin, stepped up with a glare. When Alucard ruffled his feathers at the threat, Eliza reached up to scratch his beak to calm him down. They weren't attacking… yet.
"You've gotta lotta nerve showin' up 'ere after what you did to Alastor!"
Eliza felt both opposing halves of her mind face-palm in unison as her heart jumped. These people knew about that? How? It seemed to her that Alastor was trying to keep quiet about it, but the colony knew about what happened. Or at least part of it, or else they would know…
"I don't know what you're talking about," she sighed. "I never did anything to Alastor."
"Oh, don't lie ta us," she hissed, and a couple of the ladies spit in her direction. "We know ya met with Vox, and that Alastor was real mad 'bout it. What'd ya do?"
Eliza didn't know which she felt more; betrayed that they only knew the worst about what happened and were never told the whole truth, or hypocritical for feeling betrayed in the first place. How did they even know that this happened? She certainly didn't publicise it; she found it to be a rather embarrassing waste of her time. Plus, she didn't even know that Vox planned to screw over Alastor when she agreed to meet up with him! So why? Why did he tell them?
He seemed to be trying to make her comfortable again, but now she finds out that she's not welcome in the colony anymore. Not only that, but it was likely no one here knew about the fact that he attacked her right before everything happened, yet they knew that she was offered a deal to hurt him.
What is he playing at?!
"I did nothing," she repeated, flatly. "Alastor is fine, and Vox is no longer involved with me."
"Saying you're innocent, eh?" one of the other ladies growled. "Not likely."
"Alastor looked so upset," someone else added, almost defensively. She was a smaller woman with four short horns and dark scales, her tongue darting out in a snakey manner. "And he mentioned you by name! I've seen you around a few times. You always go to the same restaurant but never eat anything; just feed it to your bird. Maybe you're making fun of us!"
"Maybe she thinks she's better than us!" another piped up, and they started to slowly close in.
"No one hurts Alastor and gets away with it!"
'Time to fuck these bitches up,' Id growled, and the fingers of the wings flexed out. 'Ignorant sacks of shit-'
"Oh my! What a terrible spectacle you ladies are making."
Id groaned. 'Oh for fuck's sake…'
All the ladies turned in surprise to see Rosie rounding a nearby corner, dabbing her chin in a very posh manner. There was blood on the handkerchief, which was plainly visible to all.
"So sorry, miss!" the cyclops girl whimpered. "We didn't mean ta interrupt yer meal!"
"An inspection, actually," Rosie corrected in a testy tone, causing the dark-skinned demoness to flinch slightly.
Eliza turned and cocked an eyebrow. "Inspection?"
"I make sure to check the quality of all butcher shops in the colony every now and then," Rosie answered simply. "I took the liberty of checking a shop further in who ran afoul of a good friend of mine, who suggested I keep a close eye on his stock for… Oh, how did he put it again? 'Bad meat.' Yes, something to that effect, I believe. I found his stock… Disappointing." As she said that, she stuffed the handkerchief back into her pocket, the corners of her smile sharpening in a sadistic way.
"...Ah." Eliza almost felt pity for the other guy, but whoever he crossed must have been royally pissed to sick Rosie herself on him. She couldn't help but wonder what he did, but she only had a second to spare a thought for that before two of the women behind her thought to get opportunistic.
Still, before they had a chance to pounce, Rosie tapped her umbrella to the ground. "Enough!" Eliza froze as streams of shadowy thread poured out of it, moving around her in a manner that made her very aware of how dangerous things would become if they decided to close in on her. Instead, she risked looking behind to see the two ladies getting wrapped up around the joints, and the threads vanished as quickly as they appeared. The women stood up straight for a moment before falling limply to the ground, looks of terror frozen on their faces.
When they started to get up from the street, they didn't move right. They jerked this way and that as they rose, and once they got to their feet they stood unnaturally straight, though their heads were slightly lulled as though not fully supported. Placing themselves between Eliza and the rest of the group, the therapist took a closer look and saw the tiniest of strands wrapped in key places, like marionettes. Taking a step back from her unwilling protectors, she felt almost more afraid of them than the four remaining threats. Oh God, their movements creeped her out!
"It's alright, dearie," Rosie reassured her with a gentle smile. "I assure you they are perfectly harmless!"
"...I'm not a fan of puppets," she stated bluntly, staring uncertainly at the threads as they left her feeling deeply disturbed.
Rosie giggled at Eliza's anxious expression, unfolding her fan and hiding her smile. "It takes a firm hand to correct childish behaviour." Though her eyes didn't change, her next statement made it very clear that her smile had probably fallen to something far less civil. "And this is simply abhorrent treatment of one of my preferred guests."
"B-But miss," whined the woman from before who claimed to have heard Alastor directly, "you were there! You know that she-"
"-Is as innocent as she claims to be." The fan didn't move away from her face as she spoke, but no one could miss how the light in the area seemed to dim slightly. "Or at the very least not as guilty as you believe. She has done nothing to harm him, and you will leave her be." For a long moment the women didn't move, glaring at Eliza with distrust, and Rosie's patience evaporated. She snapped her fan closed, throwing her arm out and leering down at the women with swirling black sockets, her smile returning rapidly, but…
The teeth!
"NOW!"
Needles. Serrated needles. Her claws became long and pointed to match her terrifying teeth, and her already thin waist stretched until she was looming above them all. Wrapped around those claws were strings; hundreds of strings reaching out in every direction, waiting to wrap around joints and necks.
The women scattered like cockroaches, and the two she had tied up into obedient puppets were released to follow, running down the street to get as far away as possible from the angry demoness. Eliza stared upward, absolutely mesmerized but also very uncertain. If the cannibal ladies knew something, then it was likely that Rosie was the best informed about what happened with Vox. But also…
Or at the very least not as guilty as you believe.
If Rosie decided that Eliza was guilty of something bad, she became very aware at that moment that she wouldn't stand a chance against the angry overlord. She radiated power like this, and if she was able to so easily take control of others, Eliza's wings wouldn't be any help at all. If anything, she'd probably make a really strong weapon in a fight if used as a puppet.
That was a very disconcerting realization.
In an almost literal flash that left Eliza staring at the sky where the looming demoness used to be, Rosie was back to her usual fair form, once again blocking her mouth with her fan. When the therapist finally looked down and registered the sudden change, Rosie's face was tilted off to the side, as if she was looking down. "I apologize for the show, dearie. I… actually find that form somewhat embarrassing. So unbefitting of a lady, but it is what it is!" She folded the fan and smacked it into her palm, her expression back to the usual smile that the therapist was far more familiar with. "I do hope you can forgive their terrible manners; not everyone is as well informed as I, though admittedly I didn't realize that your association with Alastor's rival was such public knowledge! I will be sure to address this."
Silence. Rosie tilted her head at Eliza's quiet and heavily thoughtful expression. She's very accustomed to the young woman being very guarded around her, but now she watched as the rose on her chest seemed to recoil, closing and protecting itself as Eliza looked up with a small smile and otherwise blank but polite expression. Rosie could see why Alastor found that look so very frustrating. "Thank you very much, Rosie, but please don't worry about it. I… think I've lost the desire to wander today."
Unlike Alastor, however, Rosie had an advantage on reading the woman, and watched as her aura fell to a shadow of what it had been moments before. When the conflict first started, that very aura had alerted her that a major fight was about to take place in her colony, and she had appeared to address it and possibly protect her residents. It was actually quite a surprise to see that it had belonged to Eliza, who's aura has never fluctuated so strongly, at least not where she could sense it. The hurt was plain to see, as was the anger bubbling under the surface. It was so rare to see the woman need to hide such highly volatile emotions.
"Nonsense, dearie! You are always welcome here, and I insist that you accompany me back to the Emporium!"
For once, Superego piped up instead of Id. 'That is a terrible idea. For all we know, this is a trap because she's just as mad about Vox as the rest and simply wants to take you out personally!'
'And what's to stop her from shoving those strings up our ass if we say no?' Id argued.
'...Fair point.'
"If you insist," Eliza sighed. She held back a grimace as she walked up beside the smiling woman; Rosie's Emporium was deeper into the colony than she wanted to go, especially after such a hostile confrontation. However, saying no to the woman after her power display felt even less likely to end well for her, so really what choice was there but to follow?
After walking a little ways, Rosie turned her head towards her unhappy companion. "Oh, come now dear, no need to be so quiet! It's quite the walk for silent travel." When Eliza just shared an uncertain glance with her, Rosie faced forward with a sigh. "Very well then, I shall begin. I have heard much from Alastor, but I would very much like to hear what answers you give me."
"I've been talking about this non-stop since it happened," Eliza grumbled.
"You made a very risky move," Rosie stated, and Eliza wasn't sure if she was being chastised or praised. Maybe both. "Many will have questions, especially those you could have wronged."
"Then let me make something clear," Eliza droned. "I wasn't aware of what Vox wanted to talk about until I was already there. Before he picked me up, all he said was that he wanted to offer me a job so that I wasn't working for free anymore. I had no idea he knew about what happened between Alastor and myself." Then, after a moment of silence, she asked, "Do you know what happened beforehand?"
"I do," Rosie confirmed.
Eliza narrowed her eyes but never stopped staring forward. "Then why didn't they know about it, since they knew about the other stuff?"
"For the same reason no one can currently hear what we're saying despite us being out in the open," Rosie stated, drawing a small symbol and revealing a fully transparent bubble surrounding them, making Eliza stop walking in shock. "I know when to keep a conversation private, dearie."
Eliza's eye twitched as she found yet another reason to feel tense in her presence. She had no idea they were surrounded by some weird silencing spell, and it made her feel very self-conscious. "Then why..?"
"I'm afraid that, when he started listening in on your meeting with Vox, I was unprepared. We had gone out to help take his mind off that morning's unfortunate events. He was very upset over the whole ordeal, you see." Rosie thought about it for a moment and decided that, perhaps, it would be best not to mention whose establishment they had visited, lest Eliza believe that Mimzy was spreading rumors. Despite the short woman's temptation to ruin the good name of a potential rival for Alastor's affection, she would do nothing that risked hurting the wendigo instead. Still, it would not be an unreasonable conclusion for the therapist to arrive at, seeing as she didn't know the woman very well. "He wanted good food and entertainment, so we went to a restaurant that serves cannibals as well as others. It's likely that Cassie- you remember the snake-like woman- was probably there, and she spread her misinformation around. Don't worry too much about it; no one will make a move against you now that you're with me, but don't expect friendly glances."
"Of course."
Despite the verbal agreement, her wings wrapped around her shoulders protectively as Id growled, 'Don't expect me to go away just because she says so.'
"Still, you knew of their rivalry, correct?"
Eliza's face fell into an exhausted expression. "Yes, I did."
"Then surely you knew it would upset Alastor when he found out you were seeing him. Why do it if you didn't want to hurt him?"
Rosie's eyeless sockets made it hard to tell when she was looking at someone, and she used that advantage readily. From the corner of her gaze she watched the therapist's aura closely, monitoring every change and fluctuation. She saw the anger steadily rise just to be buried back down, but the layers of repressed rage hid other things. Wisps of emotions that were kept concealed from lesser eyes.
"I don't expect all of my friends to be friends with each other," she answered dismissively, clearly trying to avoid the conversation. Her frustration was about ready to bubble over.
"Was it to get his attention?"
Eliza paused and raised an eyebrow at the overlord. "If I wanted his attention, he would have found out long before now. Besides, there are better ways to get someone's attention than making them angry."
"Not if it's to make him jealous."
Stopping all other forms of movement, Eliza's head recoiled slowly as she gave Rosie an incredulous stare before turning on her heel. "I am not having this conversation with you, Rosie. Good day."
After letting the woman take a few steps, Rosie chimed up, "It is a credit to you that you didn't mention his attack, dearie."
Pausing in her retreat despite Id's constant stream of obscenities playing through her mind, she turned around to meet her gaze. "What?"
"You could have easily tried to drag his name through the mud," she explained, quietly. "You had his rival's attention, you were under attack by his fans, yet you never actually told them about what he did. Despite my feelings on the matter, I can't deny that you had every right to, and I am grateful that you did not."
That… had not been what Eliza expected, and her anger subsided as confusion took root.
"Come now," Rosie called, reaching out a hand to her with a softer smile, "let us continue our walk! We're close to the Emporium now. I know you've been there before, but I assure you there's much more to the store than just lovely fabric and a collection of fine designs!"
After giving an exhausted sigh, Eliza agreed. With one condition. "Just please keep Prally from drooling over me while I'm there. She can be a bit… off-putting."
"Yes, she can be a bit obsessive over pretty things," Rosie giggled. After another moment she lowered her hand when she realized the therapist was not going to take it. "Well then, come along!"
After a few steps, Eliza realized that this could actually be a good opportunity for something else, and perhaps she could keep the conversation steered away from the uncomfortable implications of Rosie's statement. "Actually, could you tell me how you deal with Hell's weather hazards?"
The overlord tilted her head curiously. "Oh? And why do you ask?"
"I'm trying to present the idea of starting a garden around the hotel, but I need it to get approved first. It's to give the residents a healthy outlet for excess energy, offers a form of positive fulfillment to replace the need for unhealthy gratification, and lets the hotel grow its own food to take care of the low food budget problem."
"That sounds lovely, dearie!" Rosie praised sweetly, and Eliza was immediately reminded of how demeaning she could sound, like talking to a child. "But why put so much work into getting it approved? That sounds like something the princess would adore!"
"Charlie and Vaggie will love it, I'm sure," Eliza agreed, finally feeling her smile return as the conversation became easy again. "But there's still one little road-block I need to figure out how to get around before I can feel sure that it'll go through."
"And what would that be? Isn't the hotel run by the princess and her escort?"
Eliza almost snorted at hearing Vaggie called an 'escort'. The moth would have slapped the woman had she been here to hear that. "Yes, but they don't run the hotel's budget."
"Oh? And whose hands have they left the money in?"
"...Alastor."
"A wise decision!" Rosie praised. "He has a very keen sense for business. I didn't realize he also managed all the finances. No wonder he's been too busy to call!"
"He's the one I'm trying to convince to approve the garden."
"That shouldn't be too difficult," Rosie said, fanning herself. "I've known him to greatly enjoy naturally beautiful areas. A garden should be right up his alley, especially with the offer of fresh food to eat and cook with! Though I don't recommend letting him touch the plants."
Eliza cocked her head to the side. "Why?"
"He has quite the black thumb, I'm afraid," Rosie sighed. "I've seen positively lovely flowers wilt in his hands almost instantly. I doubt seeds and seedlings would avoid similar fates if given to his care. And as for your question about the weather, perhaps instead of trying to overcome such obstacles you should simply work through them."
"How do you work through a lack of seasons? And what about all the different weather hazards?"
"Many plants grow well indoors, so static weather is hardly a problem," Rosie stated matter-of-factly, "and the weather is sporadic at times but usually rather mild. Much of Hell's food comes from the Wrath Ring, and they suffer far greater catastrophes than we do. Stop over-thinking it, dearie. The hotel has plenty of land for a fine garden, and the downtrodden of Hell are quite accustomed to starting over again when necessary. My advice? Don't even bring it up to Alastor. If you want a garden started, do it yourself without even seeking his permission."
"I'll still need permission from Charlie since she owns the land, but I doubt she'll mind. Still… is starting so small wise? I mean, the whole point of this is to involve the hotel guests."
Rosie's smile softened significantly as the Emporium came into view. "Do you think my lovely shop started out as the grand boutique it is today? Surely not! It was such a small place when I decided to open it; a hole in the wall that few noticed. What matters isn't size, dearie. Even in Hell, quality means a lot. After all…" Rosie turned to Eliza with a playfully malicious grin. "There's a reason Vox has yet to kill the radio, you know!"
Rosie watched as the therapist's small smile softened into something much more sentimental, followed by the woman's aura shifting to something calmer and less guarded. It was only for a moment, but the emotion was very real and almost raw. In some ways Eliza was as much a woman as any could expect, but in others she reminded Rosie of a child. One who has yet to experience many important parts of maturity.
Then the young woman crinkled her nose, and Rosie gave her a questioning look. "I don't know if not telling him is the best decision."
"Why?"
"If I don't involve him somehow, I just know he's going to punish me with plant puns."
Rosie about broke down laughing.
Author's Notes:
I pose a question to my Ace readers. So, by my understanding, Ace is basically like any other sexuality, which is to say that like how a lesbian only finds other women attractive, an Ace person just doesn't really see people as 'attractive' in the sense of 'I want to sleep with that person.' So if they get in an emotional relationship, sex is still on the table as an option, but it has less to do with finding the person attractive as much as making them happy, as well as enjoying the sex themselves. After all, not finding others 'attractive' doesn't change the fact that sex feels good. But during my research there was a section that said that there are 'promiscuous Aesexual people.'
...
How does that work if they don't find people attractive? Does it mean they enjoy sex so much they'll sleep with anyone who says yes in spite of not really seeing people that way? I mean, promiscuous means multiple partners, not just lots of sex with the same partner, so I find that detail very confusing.
Following that theme, I think I'll just save these three questions from the Q & A. They are the most prominent after all; I've seen lots of people get grief over shipping Alastor with people because he's Ace. Everyone seems to think Aces just stay abstinent all their lives. Guess all Aces are monks; who knew?
Q: So, if you're keeping Alastor ace, why did he react to a pheromone when you said that they never worked on him before?
A: That will actually get explained fairly soon, but Eliza's pheromone works differently from most. It's not just capable of attracting potential mates, but also able to repulse unwanted ones, based on her own psychological needs. But in reference specifically to Alastor, that's actually going to dive into a bit of serial killer psychology that I think gets a bit overlooked, especially when a serial killer is labeled Ace.
Q: Why not just use him being Ace? What's the link between being a serial killer and an Aesexual?
A: Actually, nothing. See, being a serial killer and being Ace are, obviously, mutually exclusive. That's why what I'm going to bring up may get overlooked. Basically, his specific reaction to the pheromone is what makes the difference between a serial killer and a murderer. If he were JUST Ace, his reaction would have actually been very, VERY different, but no less potent.
Q: Again, 30+ chapters in and no one's getting any sex or anything! What's taking so long?
A: We're dealing with a sex-repulsed Ace with psycho-sociopathic tendencies and an aversion to touch in general, a virgin therapist who's curious about sex but has her own issues with it, and a horny spider who's falling in love with a tsundere cat. He may be labeled pansexual in canon, but let's be honest here: it's hard to get tsundere characters to put out. Poor Angel's gotta work his way through a lotta shit to get some.
