When they'd arrived home for dinner, Clover was instantly hit with the intense smell of garlic and basil. A quick glance towards the kitchen doorway proved it to be left open, the sounds of clattering cutlery and the bright rhythm of swing. A look in Alastors direction told her what she had already assumed.
"Angel."
What she hadn't expected was the extra body that was perched precariously on the edge of the counter when they entered the kitchen.
"Lollie?"
The bright eyed girl turned from her conversation with Angel, smiling around the stick of the sucker that balanced on her tongue.
"Sup, bunny? Fancy seein' you here."
"I live here."
"I know."
The demoness hopped down from the countertop with a sharp clack of heels hitting tile, Lollie grinning brightly at Clover before turning a flirtatious glance towards the Radio Demon still following behind her, drawing the brightly colored sucker from between her lips with a loud pop before turning back to Clover with a question.
"Who's this?"
Clover barely got to fumble through her response before Alastor sprung to life beside her, the pure volume of his voice startling enough to cause her to jump before she steadied herself against the doorframe.
"Alastor's the name, it's a pleasure! Now what, if I may I ask, are you doing in my hotel? If you'd like a room, I'm sure our desk staff would be happy to help!"
Lollie seemed intensely amused at Alastor's theatrics, snorting softly before giving the Overlord a once over before replying.
"Depends, do you charge by the hour?"
Alastor's ears twitched at the harsh cackle that came from Angel Dust, the spider demon doubling over his cooking as Lollie landed her second verbal blow of flirtation.
"Is it a discount if you're included, or would'ja charge double for the trouble?"
Static fizzled sharply in the air, Alastor's ears twitching wildly as the true nature of her implications landed with the slow suck Lollie gave the like-wise named candy that was quickly placed back between smugly smiling lips. Clover felt pity for him somewhere beneath the fury that was tainting her blood till it ran cold and green beneath her skin. It was difficult to work around the cotton that had filled her mouth, but with a sharp cough that drew both the attention of the softly giggling Lollie and the fizzling Alastor, she found enough air to speak.
"Al, this is Lollie, she works at the same club as Angel. I met her when I-"
Clover paused, not really wanting to unload that trauma once again. Alastor luckily caught on to her hesitation, jumping back into the conversation with renewed life.
"Ah! A coworker of our resident celebrity I see! Will you be joining us for dinner Miss-?"
"Pops. Lollie Pops."
A silence hung between them, Alastor's bright smile frozen as Lollie pointedly dangled the offending candy between them, wrist limp with the same laziness that tilted her hips as she shifted. With a click, Alastor's sharp barking laughter was accentuated by the roar of a laugh track.
"Of course it is!"
He turned towards Clover with a short nod and the promise to return once dinner was ready, excusing himself from the group and promptly leaving the kitchen. Lollie waited until long after his footsteps had faded before speaking, turning towards Clover with a smile.
"Calm down sweetheart, I'm not here to cause trouble. I saw Angie at the club and asked about ya'."
Clover turned to Angel for confirmation, the spider demon shrugging his shoulders with a smile.
"She told me about helpin' ya get away from Val, it only seemed right to invite her to dinner as thanks."
Lollie seemed to sense Clover's trepidation, taking a beat before stepping closer, lowering her voice in case anyone else was listening.
"No one knows I'm here sweetheart, and even if they did, I'm a free woman, rememba'?"
It was like all the tension in her body fell through her feet into the floor, Clover wavering for a moment before moving further into the kitchen. Lollie quickly linked arms with her's, pulling her towards the table and smiling brightly as she fell back into the bubbly personality Clover was more familiar with.
"So, ya' rubbin' elbows with the Radio Demon, huh?"
"I-"
"He's her boyfriend."
"Angel!"
Lollie lit up, turning Clover sharply around to face her. She swore the mint demoness had hearts swirling in her eyes.
"You're sweet on an Overlord? Maybe ya' don't need my help afta' all."
"Why would I nee-"
"No wonder you were so nervous sneaking around Val's place! Does he know?"
"He does, he knows everything."
"Don't give him too much credit toots, he doesn't know this yet-"
Angel Dust pushed between them, leaning out the doorway to the kitchen and yelling out into the darkness of the hotel's hallways at full volume.
"Aye! Dinna's ready!"
Charlie was the first to arrive, the princess practically skipping through the doorway before she stopped abruptly once she'd noticed Lollie. Her smile didn't fade as she began to ask questions.
"We have a guest?"
"Yea', uh, she's a danca', a coworker of mine."
Angel didn't seem to bother with answering any more of the questions that sprung forward from the princess, busying himself with setting the table in the adjoining dining room as more of the hotel's occupants poured in. Clover fell into step beside him, quickly gathering enough utensils for their growing numbers and following him into the formal dining setting. Vaguely she could hear Charlie and Lollie talking excitedly, the prior's energy growing to match the former's pace as their conversation followed them to the dinner table. Soon enough, they'd all gathered around and filled their plates, Alastor appearing only to immediately pour himself a glass of wine and pass the bottle along to Clover despite the disapproving glare of Vaggie. Dinner was riddled with polite conversation, Charlie trying her best to rope Lollie into staying at the hotel and taking her shot at redemption despite Lollie shrugging off every attempt in favor of gossipping with Angel about work.
Alastor seemed content to sip through dinner while watching the slowly unfolding chaos from over the rim of his glass, but his attention seemed split. Clover could feel the cold tingle of a shadow floating near her shoulder; gone when she turned slightly in her chair to look, finding only the chill left behind on her skin. Something was off, she could feel the set of crimson eyes beside her burning into her skull, but when she turned to meet them she was faced with only a cheerful grin and an upturned eyebrow. It was only when Charlie brought up the conversation of the Halloween party that Clover had suggested that she included herself in the conversation, if only barely. She was just able to provide some ideas before Charlie was off on her own tangent once again.
Coffee was taken in one of the downstairs living areas, the group of them crowding around the table that Vaggie pushed in between the sets of seating that circled the fireplace. After much convincing of Husker, they'd settled into playing a board game to pass the time, selecting from the minor few that Niffty fetched from the hallway closet and settling on the first one that sparked any major interest in the elder demons of the group. Clover settled herself across from Alastor, allowing Niffty to take a seat beside him due to the excitement of teaching him how to play to instead sit herself between the two rambunctious demons of the group in the hope of helping maintain some semblance of order. Lollie and Angel didn't seem to mind, Angel quickly becoming utterly preoccupied with the game while the mint temptress draped herself across the arm of the loveseat.
Interest was added when Alastor turned the board into a replica of the hotel's first floor with a twist of his wrist, altering the game peices to reflect their owners person with a small smile. The game moved quicker than she would have imagined, the group quickly falling into the rhythm of the game. It was almost hard to keep up with it all, especially with Clover's attention repeatedly being pulled back to the tricks of the crimson demon who sat across from her. Vaggie was the first to throw her hunch into the ring, shuffling through her booklet before smiling to herself and closing her detective's booklet with a sharp slap.
"I think it was Alastor, in the hallway, with the rope."
"It wasn't Alastor."
All eyes turned to Clover, Vaggie sighing heavily before attempting to speak, but stuttering when Lollie spoke up with interest.
"A simp even in fantasy, spicy."
Clover snorted, watching Alastor's ears twitch in confusion at the mint demon's comment. His attention thankfully remained focused on the conversation at hand, his brow raising at her as she stared back, emboldened by the mixture of alcohol and caffeine that was currently running through her system. He was doing a good job of being discreet with his trickery, but Clover was just too attentive for him to get away with it in front of her. Alastor's smile slanted slightly, his head tilting sharply as he began their usual push and pull.
"It's not your turn darling, unless you have a card to prove my innocence, I believe this counts as cheating."
"And you're incriminating yourself, which isn't fair either."
The tilt of Alastor's head only fueled her confidence, crimson eyes narrowing across the table at her as his smile brightened.
"As the sole killer among us, I believe my existence alone is incriminating enough."
"That's a bold assumption."
Attention turned to Lollie once again, Alastor's brow rising to an impressive height as he addressed the demoness.
"Apologies, we've only just met."
"Don't sweat it suga', continue your lovers' quarrel."
Clover jumped at the falter in Alastor's confidence as his smile wavered and he drew a sharp intake of breath, attempting to focus the group's scattered attention back onto the game.
"You're keeping a card hidden. You've shown two of your cards to multiple people, but you've kept the one in the middle of your hand to yourself. There's two suspects who I believe haven't been cleared yet, and I don't think you'd keep the other one hidden. But by keeping your own card hidden, you're letting everyone else stay in the dark and raising your chances of winning by giving yourself more time to gather information."
"Well, then why wouldn't Miss Vagatha have accused them instead?"
"Because it's Vaggie's character, and most people don't assume themselves until they're certain, and she's biased against you anyway."
"Hey!"
"She's not wrong toots."
Ignoring the bantering of Vaggie and Angel Dust, Alastor hummed, glancing at the dumbfounded expression of Charlie before smiling brightly.
"Miss Morningstar, it seems we've come to an impasse. I believe this conversation is bordering on the edge of what would be fair and proper for this game, however should we right these wrongs?"
Charlie frantically looked between the two demons, smiling unsurely at Clover's silent begging for her not to bend to Alastor before facing the Radio Demon. The hellborn chewed her lip in contemplation, looking over the gameboard thoughtfully before reaching for the small envelope that contained the truth of the matter. She held it towards Clover with renewed confidence, smiling brightly as she spoke.
"I think that you should make an accusation to counter Vaggie's. If you're wrong, you lose. If you're right, everyone has to lay down their cards for us all to see and you win. Either way, we all go have cake afterwards!"
Clover thought for a moment, aware of the soft static that tickled her temple from across the game board as Alastor watched. With only a small nodd, Clover took the small envelope, feeling all eyes turn to her as she turned to her notebook momentarily, taking a deep breath to banish her nerves before speaking as confidently as she could muster.
"I think it was Vaggie, in the study, with the rope."
Her fingers fumbled slightly as she opened the small envelope, sliding the cards inside out face down to maintain the tension that hung around them. Slowly, she turned each card over one by one in the empty space of the board, feeling her heartbeat slow with each reveal and catching Alastor leaning in with each twist of her wrist. Finally, all was revealed, and Clover allowed herself to breathe, even as Vaggie sighed heavily and set down her own cards as she spoke.
"Alright, I have to admit that was smart. You're pretty good at this."
"She's attentive to certain things, that's for damn sure."
Ignoring Angel's comment and Lollie's following giggle, Clover stood, stretching her arms above her head with a small sigh. Turning to Charlie, she smiled softly before returning to the princess's earlier suggestion.
"So, cake?"