Vaggie gazed up at Heaven floating in the sky above Pride, sighing heavily as she thought of the few folks she missed that she had to leave behind. Her mother, her sisters, and a handful of friends who knew her better than anyone else. It hurt, knowing that the only people she'd been allowed to converse with back home the last few years she was there didn't know or care for her at all and saw her as just as disposable as the sinners they claimed deserved to die by their blades.
Vaggie clenched her fists in frustration, letting out a soft growl as she manifested her wings and stretched them wide. The fallen angel roared as she backed up a few steps and charged, leaping off the roof and flapping her wings vigorously. Vaggie laughed as she swooped down, rising up a bit and soared for several yards. "I'd forgotten how great this feels," she exclaimed, "I'm on top of Hell!" Sadly, the mirth was short-lived as just as soon as she'd taken wing, it seemed like all of the lift just left her and she began plummeting, screaming as she tried to regain altitude and slow her descent. Vaggie panicked as she saw Husk running out of the front door, a tall bottle of whiskey clenched tight in his clawed fist.
"Come on, man, get out of the way," Vaggie thought, "I literally cannot stop this thing!" Husk's ears twitched and he turned to see Vaggie coming down towards him fast; his eyes widened in shock and his wings splayed out as he leapt up. At first Vaggie thought he was just dodging, but then she saw him flying up and down towards her.
"Are you insane!?" "Trust me," Husk shouted, tucking the whiskey bottle under one of his suspender straps, "Tuck your wings in, now!" Vaggie let out a yelp as she felt Husk fly down above her and grabbed her by her shirt collar. "Do it now!" Husk shouted. Vaggie had to resist following her combat training and clocking Husk in the jaw; she let out a growl and did as Husk instructed, tucking in her wings just before Husk tossed her up and caught her. Vaggie clung to the old cat, doing her best to ignore the whiskey bottle jabbing her in her lower back and shivering as he came down with a less than graceful stumble and an audible groan.
"You okay?" Husk asked as Vaggie stepped down, "The fuck were you thinking?" Vaggie just huffed, crossing her arms and blowing on her bangs in aggravation. She hoped Husk would just drop it, but she could feel his expectant expression boring holes in her back, waiting for her to say something. "It was nothing," Vaggie finally said, "Guess I'm just a bit rusty at flying. Flew a bit too high, lost the lift. No big deal." "Bet you'd be singing a different song if I hadn't caught you," Husk scoffed, "C'mon, you clearly need a bartender to talk to. What's going on?"
"It's none of your business, alright!?" Vaggie snapped, "Just leave me alone." Husk's face hardened as he let out an offended scoff, pulling the whiskey bottle out from under his strap and said, "Fine, suit yourself," Vaggie watched as the older man turned to walked away, taking a big swig of whiskey before saying with a hoarse groan, "Fuck me for caring, I guess."
Vaggie felt a pang of guilt as she watched the old man walk off, muttering under his breath, "Shit… first Alastor, now this." Vaggie raised her brow as she noticed Husk was limping a bit. Vaggie let out a heavy sigh and called out to him, saying, "Husk, wait." Husk didn't say anything; just flipped her off, letting out a grunt as he rubbed his back and took another swig of whiskey before disappearing through the front door of the hotel.
Husk trudged back into the hotel and made his way to the bar. The cat demon fiddled with the little radio on the shelf until he found a soft jazz tune, sighing as he leaned against the countertop and took another big chug from the whiskey bottle. Husk groaned painfully as he sat the bottle down and carefully sat down on the floor, wincing as he carefully grabbed his right ankle and turned it slightly.
"Fuck… guess I stuck that landing a bit too hard," Husk moaned, "Goddamn it." "Maybe this could help?" a voice asked. Husk groaned as he got onto his feet, turning to see Vaggie standing on the other side of the bar holding out a wrap bandage. Husk gave a small smile as he reached out to take the wrap, only for Vaggie to pull it away. Husk gave the girl an angered look, but Vaggie motioned for him to follow her. Husk groaned as he followed Vaggie out into the lobby. "Sit," Vaggie instructed, pointing to the sofa, "I'll give you a hand." Husk rolled his eyes and sighed, letting out a grunt as he sat down on the couch, saying, "You know, I can do it for myself. Wouldn't be the first time."
"I'm trying to be nice," Vaggie sighed, earning a disinterested hum from the older demon. Husk let out a pained hiss as Vaggie turned his foot and pulled the wrap tighter. "Sorry," "It's alright," Husk groaned, "Just take it easy; you don't have to bind it that tight. The sprain isn't even that bad."
"Well, yeah," Vaggie nodded, "But… I was talking about earlier. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that." Husk arced a brow curiously as Vaggie continued, "I guess I'm just… frustrated. Ever since I got my new wings, I've been wanting to put them to good use. But, it's been three years since I lost my first set, so." "So you're rusty." Husk concluded. Vaggie sighed and nodded, "You could've just told me that instead of biting my head off."
"I know," Vaggie acknowledged, "I know, and I'm sorry." Husk's expression softened a bit as Vaggie put his foot down, standing up and sitting down next to him on the sofa. "You know," Husk purred, "If you're serious about this whole 'wanting to fly again' thing… I just might be able to help you." "Really? How?" Husk just smirked smugly and flared his wings a bit, "Oh, right." Vaggie chuckled, blushing slightly, "I don't know, though," Husk looked at Vaggie questioningly as she continued, "Your wings aren't quite the same as an angel's."
"They're close enough," Husk defended, "And I've seen plenty of Exorcists in action over the years to know exactly how they fly. Hell, not too long ago, I got really up-close and personal with more than a few of them. Damn-near every aspect of our flight techniques are identical. So," Husk let out a groan as he stood up, gimping over until he was standing in front of Vaggie, pointing at himself and said, "You want a coach? You're looking at him."
"Uh… I don't know," Vaggie sighed, "But… I mean, shit, what've I got to lose? R-right?" Husk smiled down at Vaggie and offered her a hand, which the angel gladly took and shook. Vaggie let out a yelp as Husk pulled her close and said, "I expect to see you bright and early." And with that, Husk gimped off back towards the bar.
"W-wait," Vaggie called, "Just how early are we talking here?" "We rise before the sun," Husk called back, "5:00 a.m.; no later. So get some sleep. You'll need it." Vaggie groaned and collapsed onto the sofa, screaming her frustration into a throw pillow and said with a nervous shiver, "What the fuck did I get myself into?"