AN: The entire purpose of this chapter is to make you cry and I hope I have succeeded in doing that.
Disclaimer: I do not own Helluva Boss or Hazbin Hotel
The morning dawn of a new day symbolized new beginnings in the minds of many, but for Blitzo, feeling the rays of sunlight upon his face meant awakening to a harsh reality. For the denizens of Hell, it was expected that you would lose someone to the madness in this place. Be it by violence, overdose, suicide, accident, or other methods, the fact of the matter was that death was a part of life in the underworld's nine circles.
Yet, that didn't mean that just because death was expected, you were always used to it. Blitzo had only ever experienced the painful loss of death twice in his life: The first was when a pet bunny he had growing up in the circus got too close to the chimera cages and was dinner for the beast. The second was when his father suffered a heart attack and died. The first was just a loss of a childhood pet. His father's death, despite being tragic, was ultimately not too sorrowful in the long run. All demons that died returned after a few hundred years or so. Reborn and renewed. Sometimes with their memories, and other times with new personalities.
A few were powerful enough to cheat the system by coming back in a few weeks or months, but they were few and far between. Stolas was one of them...only he wouldn't come back. Ever again. Because there was no coming back if you were killed by anything to kill with the power of Heaven. There was nothing but the void of non-existence.
Opening his eyes to a new crueler Hell, born from yesterday, Blitzo slowly touched his face and felt the still wet tears dripping down his cheeks. The pain from his heart was still hurting deep inside like a knife to the soul, and his mind just continued to whisper the same harsh words over and over again: Stolas was dead, but this time he was never coming back.
"Stolas..." Blitzo whispered as he slowly lifted himself off the floor and rested his head against the crumbled ruins of his desk. He felt a breeze enter through the broken window nearby and wondered what the landlord would say about all this.
Then again, Blitzo didn't give a fuck about him. Or his office. Hell, he didn't give a shit about anything at this point.
Because Stolas was dead.
And Blitzo couldn't save him.
He didn't know who he hated more, the assassins, or himself. He was right there, right in front of the damn prince, and he couldn't protect him. He should have expected it or at least prepared for it just in case. Blitzo was an assassin himself; he was supposed to have known these things.
But no, he got careless, and someone important to him ended up dead because of it.
"I'm sorry..." he whispered, staring at the photo in front of him. It was him blushing like hell as Stolas kissed him on the cheek while taking a photo of them hanging out. Later that day, he had sent it to Blitzo, who, instead of deleting it, put it in a frame and placed it hidden in his office for nobody but him to see. He stroked the bird's cheek on the glass covering with his tears dripping upon it. He knew why he kept this photo. It was because it was a reminder of what they had...but yet Blitzo knew they could never be. A fact more true now than ever before.
A knock on the door made Blitzo growl before closing his eyes. "Go away!"
The knocking continued, which caused Blitzo to get up and march to the door. "I said, go the fuck away!" Opening it, he prepared to yell until he stopped himself upon seeing a set of gentle and carrying eyes staring at him with concern. Eyes that he would always recognize no matter what. "T-Tilla?"
"Blitzo," His big sister whispered, using the actual "o" in his name that he only allowed two beings in all of Hell to use. Before he could react, Tilla wrapped her arms around him and softly let him rest on her chest. He soon lost all efforts to feel angry and slowly relaxed in her embrace. "We came as soon as Loona told us. I'm so sorry, little brother."
"I...he...we?" Blitzo asked.
"Hey, shithead," said a familiar cocky voice. If any stranger was to hear it, they would swear it sounded like Blitzo's only more feminine. He moved his head from Tilla's chest to see his twin sister, Barbie Wire, all dressed in a fancy pink dress decorated in diamonds with a sad smile on her face. "You sure know when to have tragedies. Here I was dating this guy when my niece calls and tells me that you lost your boyfriend." She walked over and hugged him along with her sister. "You're lucky you're my twin, and I love ya, Bro."
"He wasn't...we were...I..." Blitzo suddenly started sobbing and fell to his knees, but his sisters never let go. "I...I want him back! I WANT HIM BACK!"
He screamed again and began to curse, but his sisters never once let go.
"Here," Tilla whispered as she handed Blitzo a cup of fresh warm tea. He took it with a nod of thanks before slowly sitting down on the couch with his twin sister right next to him, stroking his shoulder in comfort.
Sipping the tea, Blitzo felt his body warm-up before slowly shaking his head. "S-Sorry you had to...see me like that..."
"Relax, Blitzo, this isn't the first time we've seen you cry," Barbie said, smirking. "Remember when you learned that there was no tooth fairy?"
"Says the whiny bitch who used to cry crocodile tears when she always lost at Uno?" Blitzo countered with a small smug.
"See! Getting better already," Barbie proclaimed with a smile. "And I would win more often if you didn't cheat half the time."
Blitzo chuckled before slowly looking down at his tea. He just silently stared at it for a few minutes, his sisters respectfully saying nothing until he sighed. "I could have saved him."
"You did the best you could," Tilla whispered. "From what I hear, you couldn't have really prevented it."
"Could I?" Blitzo snorted while making a fist with his claw. "He was right in front of me. I saw him get shot. I felt his blood against my flesh. If I was more alert or even just a few inches closer...Maybe I could have been the one who-"
His sister smacked him upside the head and glared at him. "If you even dare go into that 'It should have been me' crap, I will personally strip you nude, paint you blue and white, and hang you over a flag pole while playing the Star-Spangled Banner." She then poked him in his chest. "Because then Stolas would be morning for you, along with the rest of us, including your employees and daughter. All three of whom are worried about you, by the way."
"Barbie is right," Tilla said, reaching over and touching her brother's hand. "A loss is a loss. Regardless of who it is that die, it's a tragedy that all feel pain from. Don't go getting lost in 'what if's' like I did when...Dad died."
The three siblings lowered their heads in respect for their father as Blitzo muttered, "I kinda wish he was here right now. Though, knowing him, he'd say..." He then cleared his throat before putting on a deep voice, "Suck it up, son! Crying isn't gonna bring your bird boy back from the grave! Ya wanna use those assassination skills of yours and bring the fuckers to justice! After you skull fucked each of them, you can then cry for your boyfriend, just don't cry too much, or you're a pussy!"
The sisters snorted before nodding their heads. "Yeah, that's Dad," they both said as the three chuckled.
"...You're going after them, aren't you?" Barbie asked, turning to her brother.
"Yes," Blitzo said with a venomous tone as his claws began to shake. "What is the one rule that Dad always taught us. The most important rule he drilled over and over into our heads from birth."
"Family always comes first," They both said earnestly.
"Stolas," Blitzo bit his lip before taking a deep breath. "He is...was important to me. He wasn't just someone I slept with; I saw him as a friend. I saw him as someone who was like family...and I...I..." He cursed. Why couldn't he just say it, goddamnit?
"Hey, we get it," Barbie said, patting her brother on the back. "You gotta do what you gotta do for those close to you. Just...promise you won't get yourself killed?"
"...I'll try," Blitzo answered as he smiled at his sister.
The office's main door opened as the three turned around to see Loona, Millie, and Moxxie walk inside. Blitzo slowly got up and made for his team but suddenly found himself nearly tackled by all three, who hugged him tightly. "Everyone...I..."
Moxxie was the first to end the hug before looking up at his boss seriously. "Sir, I just want you to know that...whatever you plan on doing...we're going to be with you all the way."
"What Moxxie said," Millie second, wiping tears from her eyes. "Stolas was a part of this company's family, and...we know how important he was to you...so whoever fucking did this is going to get the I.M.P. treatment with a bullet in their balls."
Loona put a hand over her shoulder and stared at her father in the eyes with a small smile. "So don't go thinking we're going to let you go off on your own without us. We're family, Dad. We'll kick fucking ass together and avenge Stolas. As a family."
With misty eyes, Blitzo slowly nodded as he wrapped his arms around his family and whispered, "Thank you."
Tilla got up and slowly cleared her throat. "Since we're all here, how about I make us some breakfast?"
"Sure, I'll help," Barbie said, getting up with her chest puffed out. "I've gotten a lot better at cooking now."
"What, you now only cause six fires instead of eight?" Blitzo snorted.
"No! I cause only three now!" Barbie stated as the two sisters made their way to the kitchen.
Blitzo was about to follow when a knock on the door stopped him. Sighing, he figured it was a client coming to ask for a target to be eliminated. Opening the door, Blitzo was about to tell them they were close when he noticed it was an imp dressed as a butler that Blitzo recognized as one of Stolas's.
"Mr. Blitzo?" he asked, holding out a letter. "Mistress Octavia asked me to deliver this to you."
"What is it?" he asked, taking the letter.
"An invitation," the imp said with a sorrowful sigh. "To Master Stolas's funeral in two days."
The palace looked to be so...lifeless for the first time since Blitzo arrived at it in an attempt to seduce its owner to get a unique book needed for his new company. The purple and red coloring had been replaced with mourning black and grey, with flowers and banners decorating every inch of the entrance. A giant funeral wreath with Stolas's family crest stood above the door along with his birth and death date. Blitzo stared at the crest for a good while as Moxxie showed the guards their invite.
Everyone had come to the funeral, even his sisters, for moral support. Blitzo hated wearing suits, and he hated wearing them more at funerals. Especially for someone he deeply cared about.
Entering the palace, Blitzo saw that the place was filled to the brim with mourners. None of them he recognized, but he was sure they were all high-class rich pricks who were pretending to be sad. He knew what they were like, and they were all just here for show before seeing how they could increase their own power with the death of one of Hell's most prominent players gone.
It made Blitzo want to start shooting at each of their lying faces off, and he slowly reached for his hidden gun until Loona put her paw on his shoulder. Glancing at her, the hellhound shook her head as if she knew what he was thinking, and he slowly retreated his arm with a grumble. He had to keep calm and focus, but that was the problem.
A funeral meant you had to say your goodbyes to the deceased in person. That meant...saying goodbye to Stolas as he lay there as cold as ice. Deep down, Blitzo didn't want to see him nor say goodbye. Because then it would be the final nail in the coffin of the new reality he was living in—a reality where that damn prince was no longer in his life. Something the old Blitzo long ago would have dreamed about, but the current one would shoot himself if he even thought about that.
The group slowly made their way through the halls, each decorated for the occasion. Never before had Blitzo seen so many flowers that it made him feel like he was in a garden of some sort. He wondered if some of these were from Stolas's own personal garden. He had tried to get Blitzo to try out gardening, but he found the whole thing boring. However, they did make love a few times in it, which had been an exciting experience.
"Anybody want to get a drink?" Barbie asked. "I see some good wine here, and I'm itching for some."
"I think I can use one," Loona said, walking over to her adopted aunt's side.
"We're good, but I just realized we forgot to sign our names in at the guest book," Moxxie pointed out. "I'll go fix that for us."
"Mox, does anybody really read those things?" Loona asked.
"Well, it would still be rude if we didn't do it," Moxxie pointed out.
"You're such a dork, but whatever," Loona said, rolling her eyes as she and Barbie went one way while Moxxie, with Millie in tow, went the other.
Tilla turned to Blitzo and asked, "Do you want to...head to the viewing room?"
Closing his eyes, Blitzo took a deep breath and shook his head. "N-Not yet...I need to...I need some more time."
"Of course," Tilla said, hugging her brother. "I'll be there when you're ready."
He waved goodbye before taking a deep breath and wondered if he should have joined his twin and daughter for that drink. Walking around the palace he had come to know for over three years as almost a second home, Blitzo realized that with Stolas...gone...it felt empty. Say what you will about how big the place was, but it had a life to it with Stolas around. He was always doing something, and the servants had been more than happy to work for him. Now, it felt like the heart had been torn out from its very core and was gone forever.
Entering a small room, he saw mourners placing flowers or tokens at small shrines that seemed to hold photos and memorabilia of Stolas's life. Passing one of them, he saw what appeared to be a child version of Stolas happily being held by his parents as they stood still for a painting. He recalled Stolas mentioning how sad he was his parents died in the Second Devil War fifteen hundred years ago just before he married Stella. He hadn't felt any joy in his life since that day until Octavia was born...and meeting Blitzo for the first time.
Holding back a tear, Blitzo turned around and was about to leave when he spotted a small shrine with a photo that caught his eye. He was in disbelief at first, but he saw that it was indeed a photo of himself on it upon walking over. Not just him, but Stolas, Octavia, Loona, Moxxie, and Millie all posing for the camera with the blue ocean and sky behind them.
He remembered this photo very well. Because it was that day when he had the most significant revelation in his life...
***Two Years Ago***
When Stolas asked Blitzo if he wanted to spend a week at his private island resort that he had specially made on Earth in a location no human knew about, the imp was suspicious at first. He assumed that Stolas would try something crazy to get into the imp's pants again, like they deserted on the island, lost the book, and were forced to survive with one another until they were rescued. Then, to his surprise, Stolas revealed that not only was Octavia coming along but that Blitzo could bring his own daughter and favorite M&M couple with him.
So here he was, day four in his private paradise in the human world, and having the time of his life while wearing his favorite Spirit The Stallion swim trunk (A gift from Loona at last year's Hellmus). He could see Moxxie, dressed in a pair of black and red swim shorts, and Millie, wearing a lovely two blue two-piece that really showed her ass, making a sandcastle nearby while he quickly put his attention back to the volleyball heading his way. Jumping up, he knocked it back up into the air. "Get it, Stolas!"
"On it, Blitzy!" The owl demon cried out as he leaped into the air and spiked it downward. Blitzo made sure not to stare at that feathery ass which, thankfully wasn't in a thong, but still had a tight set of red Hawaiian swim trunks and a red open short sleeve shirt with black feathers designed on it.
Loona dived for the ball in a rather provocative black two-piece swimming suits with a white paw logo on her buttocks but cursed upon missing it and hitting sand instead. The two fathers whooped for joy before high fiving each other. "And that's a tie game! Nice spike, Stolas!"
Octavia, wearing a similar suit to Loona's but red, helped her partner up before whispering something into her ear. The hellhound grinned as she soon grabbed the ball and passed it to Octavia, who prepared to serve.
Licking his lips for the sweet taste of victory, Blitzo prepared for whatever was going to happen. There was no way that the girls' plan was going to-.
"Hey, Moxxie! The doctor said the pregnancy test was positive! Our baby is going to be a boy!" Loona shouted.
"WHAT?!" Screamed Blitzo, Millie, and Moxxie all for different reasons. The volleyball landed right next to Blitzo, but he was too busy making a sprint for his soon to be dead employee for knocking up his baby girl.
"YOU SON OF A BITCH! I'll KILL YOU FOR TOUCHING MY LOONY!" Blitzo shouted as he ran after Moxxie, who was also being chased by a murderous Millie with a knife in each hand.
"NOT AFTER I TEAR HIS DICK OFF AND FUCK HIM IN THE ASS WITH IT FOR CHEATING ON ME FOR THAT BITCH!" Millie shouted with foam in her mouth.
"I DID DO ANYTHING! I SWEAR!" Moxxie shouted, running for his life.
All while this was happening, Octavia and Loona held onto each other while laughing to prevent them from falling into the sand while Stolas just giggled in amusement.
After Loona had calmed everyone down with the truth, Blitzo felt like he needed a drink, and so he returned to his room at the summer home to relax at its personal mini-bar. Mixing up a lemon vodka slush, he was about to enjoy himself when a knock interrupted his drinking. "It's open."
Unsurprisingly, Stolas walked in with a broad smile on his face. "So, celebrating the fact that you're not going to be an uncle yet?"
"Oh, haha," Blitzo muttered, sipping his slush. "You wouldn't be laughing if it was Octavia who pulled that prank."
"True, but I'd have fried Moxxie into ashes with but a snap of my fingers if that happened," Stolas said as he laid on the bed with a smile. "So, how are you enjoying your vacation?"
"I gotta admit, it's nice," Blitzo answered, laying down next to the owl. "I kinda keep forgetting that I don't have to use the book to just kill humans. I can use it to enjoy life on Earth. Far better here than it is in Hell, anyway."
"Yes, but there is the fact that you are a demon, and humans tend to freak out when they see us," Stolas pointed out.
"Eh, I'll just say I'm cosplaying or something. Humans aren't that bright," Blitzo answered before he paused as a thought occurred to him. "Say Stolas, not that I'm really complaining, but why did you invite my company and me here with you? What's the catch? Some late-night sex roleplaying we have to do?"
"Nothing of the sort, Blitzy," Stolas said with a giggle as he turned himself over and rested his head on his hand. "Do you always think I just want you for sex?"
"Um, yeah?" Blitzo said, putting his drink on the table near him. "Isn't that why we agreed to? I get to use the book for my job, and you use it for yours once a month while sucking my cock?"
Sighing, Stolas got up and actually looked disappointed at the answer, which made Blitzo tilt his head. The prince stared at the wall for a bit before he shook his head. "Blitzo, you are not the first person I've cheated with, but do you know how long those lasted? Three weeks at most. All of that was just for sex. You, however, I want more than that."
Blitzo started to feel his cheeks turn red. "W-What?"
"What I'm trying to say, Blitzo," Stolas whispered as he slowly turned around and gave such a cute smile that the assassin felt his heart skip. "Is that I see you more than just a good lay. I've come to see you as a friend, one of the few I have in existence. You've made my life so much better just by being you that I haven't felt so happy in a long time." He slowly began to crawl his way towards Blitzo on the bed, making him squirm and turn redder with each inch closer until he was just about up to his face. "I don't just trust you; I adore you. I care about you. And I want you to see that with me if you're able to."
"...you really mean it?" Blitzo asked nervously as his doubts began to fade. The nodding that Stolas gave started to open Blitzo's eyes as he began to realize that he was speaking the truth. "Then...you don't want to sleep with me anymore?"
"Oh, I never said that," Stolas giggled. "But I won't force you to sleep with me once a month for the book. I trust you to deliver it back and keep it safe when I don't have it. Besides, I can easily summon it back to me at any time with a flick of my wrist."
"What?! You could have done that whenever?!" Blitzo asked in disbelief. Groaning, he facepalmed. "No wonder you were so calm about me stealing it in the first place..."
Sighing, Blitzo rubbed his head before chuckling. "Still...if I'm honest...I kinda have gotten used to that feathery ass of yours...I'm fine with keeping the deal, but I still feel like I owe you for this."
"Hmm, then how about a kiss?" Stolas teased, which made Blitzo turn bright red again.
"A...kiss?" Blitzo asked, blinking. The two of them had never kissed before in all the time they had slept together. "Um, okay."
Closing his eyes, Stolas slowly leaned forward as Blitzo gulped and slowly opened his own lips. A second later, he felt Stolas's beak press against his mouth, and in an instant, something lit up in Blitzo's chest. It was like a fire that was warm and yet cold as ice at the same time. His eyes went wide with euphoria before slowly shutting down in pure bliss.
A kiss that tastes like manna from heaven with the song of heaven singing in his ears. His skin sweating with excitement and shivering with joy. Like being reborn into a new age of wonder and beauty. The kiss soon ended, and Blitzo opened his eyes and saw Stolas in a light he had never seen before. Like how his red eyes were as captivating as the edges of a sinking dusk sun or how soft his feathers were like clouds in the sky. His smile was cute, and his face was so...handsome.
When they fucked, Stolas always wanted Blitzo, but that feeling was reversed for the first time. Now Blitzo wanted Stolas.
Within a heartbeat, Blitzo forced Stolas onto his back and grinned at him. "How long until the feast for tonight?"
"Two hours," Stolas said, also grinning. "Why? Want to fuck for two hours?"
"Fuck? No," Blitzo whispered as he began to caress his chest. "I want to make love for two hours."
***Present***
"Mr. Blitzo?"
Blitzo snapped out of his daydreaming to turn around to see Charlie and her wife looking at him with concern. Both were dressed in fancy black and white dresses for the event as Charlie, teary-eyed, held her hand by an equally depressed Vaggie. She soon reached out and hugged Blitzo, who froze for a second before returning one back. "I'm so sorry! This is all my fault! I should have gotten bulletproof windows or-"
"Princess," Blitzo interrupted before looking her in the eye. "Don't. Just...it's not your fault."
"...He was a good man," Charlie whispered, looking at the photo Blitzo was staring at. "I honestly think if he tried, he could have gone to heaven too."
"Heh, maybe," Blitzo muttered with a shrug. "Have you...see him?"
"We have," Vaggie answered, solemnly. "He looks...peaceful."
"Good...good..." Blitzo nodded his head. "As he should be..."
"My parents are here too if you want to meet them," Charlie offered with a small smile. "My dad thinks your jingle is the best."
"Flattered as I am about that, I think it's best if I give my sympathies to Octavia and-" He paused upon seeing the nervous and depressed looks on the girls' faces. "What's wrong?"
"...Octavia hasn't come out of her room all day," Charlie answered with a heavy sigh. "She's...not allowing anyone to come in."
She could hear everyone down below. All her father's contacts, associates, family members of the Goetia bloodline, and other famous nobles and royalties were here for her father's funeral. A funeral that none of them really cared about, deep down, and we're just here for show or duty. She hated them. All of them. Because one of them, or maybe more, was behind her father's death.
How could she put on a brave face and interact with those parasites who didn't know how good of a man her father really was? How kind, loving, and wise he was both as a father and as a prince. Unlike the others who stayed in their castle, drinking tea, and spending their money on pointless luxuries, Octavia's father actually made an effort to help those under his rule. Imp City and its surrounding lands were once considered to be one of the worst areas in Hell until her father took control and turned life around for them. Better healthcare, jobs, economy, transportation, infrastructure, and more. He didn't just use his power for his own gain; he also did it to better his subjects' lives.
But it wasn't just those under his rule he loved; he loved his family too. For all his faults as a husband, he did try with Stella, but that was doomed to failure. Even Octavia now realized it. It hurt knowing that her parents hated each other, but at least they loved her: her father, most of all.
She remembered that night when she was scared as a little owl and how she couldn't find either of her parents in that terrible dream of hers. How her father came to her room and sang her a lullaby that promised, no matter what, she would be okay. Yet, it was a lie because her father was gone and never coming back. She wanted to hate him for lying to her, but Octavia knew she was stupid in thinking something so childish. Her father was a powerful being, but he wasn't God. There was always the possibility of something happening to him.
She just wished it wasn't so soon. She just wished she could feel okay now.
A knock on her door made Octavia, holding her funeral gown with her gripping talons, growl. "Go away!"
"Octavia?"
Her eyes widen upon hearing that voice. Rushing over to the door, she slowly opened it and saw Blitzo standing at her with a familiar look in his eyes. It was the same look of loss she saw whenever she stared at herself in the mirror. With a tiny sob, she wrapped her arms around Blitzo and began to cry on his shoulder. He, in turn, slowly patted her on the back and said nothing.
Slowly, he guided her back into her room and onto her bed, where she spent a few more minutes crying before wiping her tears with her black veil. "S-Sorry."
"Don't be," Blitzo muttered, shaking his head. "It's normal to cry on a day like today..."
Octavia nodded as the two sat next to each other, staring at the wall in silence. It was funny; when she first got to know Blitzo, she hated him and wanted to blame him for tearing her family apart. Now, she saw him as part of that family, thanks to him and her father.
"I don't want to see him..." Octavia muttered, shutting her eyes. "I don't...I don't want the last thing I see...of my father to be his corpse..."
"...you think I want to either?" Blitzo muttered as he held her hand. "A part of me wants him to just shout 'boo' in that casket and reveal it was all a joke. I'd kill him for doing it, but I'd rather have that than this."
Octavia snorted. "Yeah, me too." She slowly got up and went over to the mirror where she saw a sad little girl in a lovely black dress and veil who looked ready to fall apart like broken glass. "What do I do, Blitzo? I...I'm now the head of my family...with my father gone...it's just Mom and me."
"At least you still have her," Blitzo pointed out.
Scoffing, Octavia nearly punched her mirror out and growled. "My mother has been more busy planning the funeral and treating guests than actually focusing on the fact my father, her husband, is dead. I don't know if she doesn't care or if she's grieving in her own way, but can she quit with the being noble act for five fucking minutes?"
"Well, she is a bitch," Blitzo whispered before getting up and putting his hands on her shoulders. "Look, Octavia. I'm not going to lie...a part of me wishes that I wasn't here either because I don't want to say goodbye. But I know that if I don't do it now, I will regret it for the rest of my life. It's going to hurt. Fuck, it will hurt a lot, but even if it's just for one last moment...I want to see him again. Even if he's never going to open those eyes of his ever again..."
"...did you love him?" Octavia asked.
For a long time, Blitzo didn't answer. It was a question that held so much weight on it that she couldn't blame him. Everyone knew that Stolas loved Blitzo and never hid it from her or anyone. The only uncertain thing was if the imp did the same. Sometimes it seemed like it. Other times he didn't or looked torn between the two feelings. But now, she finally heard his answer.
"Yes," Blitzo confessed as he shed a single small tear. "I loved him. I loved him so much, but I always put it aside out of fear and doubt. I'd give anything to go back even one day to tell him that I loved him."
Octavia hugged him again and let him now sob on his shoulder as she closed her eyes. "Then let's go tell him together..."
It must have been weird, seeing her walk side by side with an imp. Already she could feel the stares of everyone as they entered the viewing room, but she didn't give two shits. All that mattered to Octavia was that she was beside someone who knew her pain. Who knew the love that she had for her father, even if it was a different kind of love.
The viewing room was once the ballroom, the most oversized room that held the parties her parents, mostly her mother, loved to put on every few months. When she was a little girl, Octavia used to love showing off her pretty dresses and twirling around with the adults applauding her. She remembered a time when her father used to dance around while holding her. They laughed as they spun around like a carousel going up and down with smiles on their faces. Now the only thing she could feel in this dark, candlelit room was sorrow.
The casket was paid with no expense in mind: solid gold for its base with silver decorations of symbols in the ancient tongue telling of Stolas' life and death. Candles as tall as plants lit up the room with flowers of all kinds in various floral designs for all to see. A single spotlight shined down like the gates of heaven upon the very end of the room where a picture of her father, smiling warmly to those beyond its painted borders lay above the casket with a simple banner below that made Octavia nearly choke upon seeing it:
"In Loving Memory of Prince Stolas Vincent Goetia. Beloved Father, Husband, and Ruler. Rest in Peace."
She quickly delivered her eyes downward as she got closer and closer to her father's resting bed. Her hand quickly reached for Blitzo's as he said nothing but squeezed in comfort. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her mother staring at her with a stoic expression but then turned away to focus.
The covering top of the casket was made of pure glass, charmed to perverse her father's body forever from rotting away. It was lifted so that visitors could see him clearly one final time. Octavia didn't know why she started singing at the moment, but all she could think about was the song her father always sung to her as a child when she was sad or scared:
"It always seems more quiet in the dark
It always feels so stark
How silence grows under the moon
Constellations gone so soon."
At last, she gazed upon him, and the tears came without pause. Despite her hazy vision, she looked down upon her sleeping father's body with a hand over her mouth. He was dressed in a white royal looking robe with his famous red cape that he was known to wear so much. White velvet cushions made up his casket inside for his body to rest in, along with a soft blue pillow for his head. A bed of purple and red flowers was lined up around his body, their pedals glowing like stars in the sky. His soft talons were neatly folded on his chest, holding a single white rose whose bloom looked like that of a newborn star. And then there was his face. His pale face, whose four eyes were shut forever in eternal slumber. His smile soft and gentle, like that of a newborn dreaming in peace.
Octavia could now hear Blitzo sobbing as well, feeling him shaking under her grip, but she squeezed him to let him know that she was there for him. Just as he was there for her. She continued the song, but she changed the lyrics on the fly. The words coming to her as her heart poured out her feelings in tone:
"I used to think you'd be forever
I used to think you'd always come
Now all your stories have been told except one."
She gently reached into her father's casket and stroked his feathered hair. Memories of all the times they shared flicking her in her mind as she sang:
"As the stars start to align
I hope you take it as a sign I'll be okay
Everything will be okay."
She kissed his forehead before letting Blitzo step forward, staring at him with his own teary eyes. Despite choking up, she continued:
"And if the Seven Rings collapse
Although the day could be my last
I'll will be okay
Even when you're gone, I'll be okay."
Blitzo leaned forward to Stolas's ear and whispered the words he longed to say for so long. "I love you, Stolas. I promise...I'll avenge you."
Octavia also swore, in her heart, she would see her father avenged as well as she slowly embraced Blitzo while the entire room stared in silence. She sang the last verse:
"And when Creation goes to die
I can find you in the sky
Upon the last day
And I will be okay."
She and Blitzo looked at each other before slowly whispering to one another a promise to not only each other but to the man they both loved.
"We will be okay..."
AN: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Things heat up next one. I'm trying to get it done before Christmas Eve, because I'll be busy with holiday stuff until the end of New Years. Hopefully I can get it done in time.
Please like, fave, watch, and comment on the fic. It gives me strength! Please also share this fic with others online and check out my other fanfics as well. In case I cannot get the next chapter done on time, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!