Chapter 26:
Learning curve
Trying to get all of the pride ring's sovereign overlords together proved to be more difficult then the princess had initially anticipated, mostly due to scheduling issues, but finally, they had a date set when everyone was available, even tho it was 3 weeks later then Charlie had hoped.
This however gave her, Vaggie and her father Lucifer plenty time to conduct their own investigation, all the while the princess could still focus on the new patrons of the hotel.
Since heaven's support, they had began to send down angels to help lighten the load as the princess now boasted a impressive staff consisting of both angels, hellborn demons and even some sinners who volunteered, things were looking up…except for one of their most recent new guests…..
"Come on Velvette, you won't get better if you don't participate" Charlie bargained with the social media overlord, who just lounged on one of the sofas in the lobby.
Velvette would only periodically take her eyes off her phone to look at Charlie with a deadpan expression, give her the middle finger and return her attention to her social media feed.
With a groan, Vaggie would get up from her spot, having had enough of the short fashionista's attitude as she stomped towards her and glared down on her "Everyone else is participating. Fuck, even Angel is taking this serious and he once thought this all as just a big joke. You are the ONLY one who has refused to partake in ANY activity so far"
This would finally cause the short overlord to groan and put her phone away "I'm not gonna fucking embarrass myself by getting on that fucking stage. You can kiss my arse, feathers"
Angel would speak up from the corner of the room "Fuckin Christ, toots, it's just a fucking trust fall, we ain't asking ya to juggle chainsaws. Everyone's doing it" as he gestured to one of the patrons who was currently getting caught by the other guests "Plus, ya kinda already embarrassed yourself by coming here, might as well own it."
Charlie would approach her "Look Velvette, I get that new things…that change….can be scary, but you can't just walk in here and hope your problem magically disappears. If you really want this, you gotta put in the effort. Change takes hard work"
Velvette looked up at the princess, who was looking at her with those big, sweet eyes, which finally made her understand how she managed to get people to go along with her ideas….
She closed her eyes and gave a deep sigh "…fine…..i'll do "ONE" trust fall….… for this week….." as she begrudgingly got up and slowly got onto the small stage as Angel Dust scooted next to charlie and whispered in her ear "Holy shit you actually convinced her? Fucking nice one, toots" as the 2 exchanged a high five.
Looking down on the other hotel patrons from atop the stage, Velvette took a deep breath as she tried to swallow her pride, but just as she was about to open her mouth, Ashley would walk into the lobby.
"i…i….." She lowered her head a bit, not allowing anyone to see her eyes "I…..like somebody….who doesn't like me back….in fact….they hate my guts…..and it eats me up inside…..it's….why I'm here….why I want to change…"
This would cause any kind of murmuring in the lobby to completely come to a stop as all eyes were now fixed on the short overlord.
Vaggie stared at her with wide eyes, Angel Dust whispered under his breath "oh shit…", Ashley would raise an eyebrow in surprise, Alastor was…well….being Alastor, and Charlie just looked at her, her face beaming with pride.
The next words kinda subconsciously slipped out of Velvette's mouth as she made eyecontact with the princess and whimpered "Is this what regret feels like?"
After quickly regaining her composure, she turned her back towards the crowd and as instructed, let herself fall backwards.
Bracing herself for an impact, she was instead caught by the crowd who gently put her back down as Charlie quickly approached her "Oh my gosh Velvette, I'm SO proud of you" as she wanted to embrace the short fashionista in a hug, but quickly caught herself and took a step back "oh yea, wait…not a hugger…..almost forgot….sorry"
Velvette rolled her eyes as she begrudgingly spread her arms " fine…..but just this once….get in here"
Charlie would give a high pitched squeal as she grabbed the short demoness into a tight hug which lifted her slightly, causing Velvette to gasp in surprise before the princess put her back down.
Recognizing this look, Vaggie would smirk "I know right? She's much stronger then she looks" before putting a hand on her shoulder "But really, we all know how hard that was for you to do….you did well today"
Velvette would glance at the princess before she muttered "that felt…..weirdly good?...like….a weight was lifted off my shoulders…"
Charlie would wipe away a single tear with the biggest, dopiest smile on her face as she squeaked out "I'msofuckingproudofyouguys"
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Getting the short overlord to join in on the trust fall had made a fundamental impact on the fashionista as she had began to attend activities more frequently over the course of the last week, however, one of the next tasks that were laid out before her would be the doll demoness's biggest hurdles yet.
With dread in her eyes, Velvette would look at a large banner hanging in the lobby, upon which, it said in big, colorful letters "TODAY'S LESSON: TAKING ACOUNTABILITY AND APOLOGIZING WHEN YOU ARE WRONG"
Seeing the doll demoness fidget with her hair, Angel Dust would approach her "Nervous?"
"That'd be putting it fucking lightly" she answered "….i suppose I have allot to apologize for….i had at one time in my life almost made it a sport to piss off as many people as possible"
As she looked up to the pornstar, who seemed to be sucking on an ice-pop "Eh, better make a checklist then" he joked before softening up a little "I get it tho, there's allot of people I pissed off too…..and let me give ya a rough lesson, some of them are not gonna forgive you. It happens, but then at least you tried"
The short demoness looked up at the spider demon "…..i…..i'm sorry, you know..…..for how Vallentino treated you…..i….i'm the one who made the love potions….i enabled him to…..it should have never fucking happened"
She averted her eyes, there it was again. That unfamiliar, unpleasant feeling in her lower gut that she had since learned to be a combination of shame and regret.
A hand on her shoulder brought her back to her senses as she looked up at the spider demon "Hey….you're learning to be better, right? You're sorry for what you did. That can sometimes go further then you think" Angel smiled before walking off, leaving Velvette with something new to think about.
Pondering for a few seconds, she quickly whipped out her phone and stepped outside of the lobby, before dialing up a number and pressing call. It took a little while but eventually, a voice on the other end of the line spoke up.
"…..You have quite the nerve to call me on my personal number after your little outburst last meeting, Velvette….this better be important, make it quick" A stern, female voice spoke up in a Hispanic accent.
Swallowing her pride, something she found herself doing more and more these last few weeks, she spoke up "Look…..can we talk? In person?"
The line stayed quiet for half a minute, before the familiar voice spoke up again "….My office…..30 minutes…..don't…be…..late…."
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Velvette's heart was almost beating out of her chest as she stood before the large, ornate doors of the office of the infamous angelic arms dealer, Carmilla Carmine.
Normally, she had always just unceremoniously kicked the door in without any regards of other people's property or privacy, but this time was different, and her body was shaking with nerves.
Biting her tongue a bit, she braced herself, pushed the door open and stepped inside. As was expected, the taller, elegant overlord was currently sitting behind her desk, finishing up a stack of paperwork.
Without even looking up at her, Carmilla unceremoniously gestured to a chair in front of her desk, never taking her eyes off her work.
Wincing at this, Velvette approached and sat down without saying a word.
A few agonizing minutes of silence went by, before Carmilla would finally break the tension by clearing her throat and look Velvette in the eye for the first time, her gaze willed with distain "Well? You wanted to speak to me…..go on then…..speak" That last word was almost spat out, every syllable laced with venom.
Velvette would swallow a lump in her throat, had Carmine always been this intimidating before? As she cleared her throat and began "As…..you might have become aware of….i….broke away from the Vee's…."
Carmine would simply raise an eyebrow "I know….i just don't care…."
Velvette sighed "Well there's a reason…i…..somebody….held me up a mirror…and I didn't like what I saw….what I had become…what they had enabled me to become….."
The taller overlord would put down her pen and her gaze shifted ever so slightly, looking more invested "Oh? Is that so?"
"Well yes….but i…..yes….." Velvette continued "I ….what I guess I'm trying to say is…..i mean to say….." She was practically squirming in her chair as she muttered under her breath "Why the fuck is this so hard"
Carmille looked at her with a cold stare, her eyes on Velvette send chills across her skin "Velvette….you are crude…..crass…..vain…" The shorter overlord would flinch with every word, before Carmilla finished "And worst of all….incredibly disrespectful"
The shorter overlord yelped out "YES AND I CAN FUCKING SEE THAT NOW! OK?! I DIDN'T FUCKING CARE BEFORE, BUT I DO NOW!"
This caught the angelic arms dealer off guard as she put the paperwork away in one of her desk's drawers and brought her full attention to the shorter overlord.
"I was fucking smacked in the face with reality, i….found a reason to want to be better….i even went to the fucking princess's hotel…..I'VE BEEN DOING FUCKING TRUST FALLS FOR FUCK SAKE! TRUST FALLS!"
As she came down from her heightened emotional state, Velvette continued "What I'm trying to say is…..i now can see how disrupting I was…..and how bad of an influence the boys were on me…..and I want to fix this shit…so….i guess, what I'm trying to say is-"
"Apology accepted" Velvette was caught by surprise as the taller overlord cut her off.
As she looked up at the other, taller overlord, she was met with a gentle smile "the false bravado you always displayed before, that wasn't bravery…but this? ….admitting one's wrongdoings, owing up to it and making an active effort to apologize? That takes true bravery"
Velvette was awestruck "It…can't be that fucking easy….right?"
The taller overlord got up from her desk and walked towards the large window wall behind her "Velvette, when you've been doing this for as long as I have, you start seeing the same eyes in different faces…..i can tell who is genuine…." As she then turned back to Velvette "…and who is not"
She would then approach the shorter overlord "You used to be all talk, one giant mask…..hiding behind a façade of attitude and bravado…..i saw a spoiled brat" Before she stopped right in front of her and looking her right in the eyes.
Velvette expected to see that stern, face of silent fury she was used to from all those meetings before. What she saw instead was a whole different side of her fellow overlord "….but I don't see that woman anymore…..i see Velvette….the REAL Velvette….and in my opinion, I believe this is the far more superior version"
Velvette would fidget with her hair "Look….Zestial….i…."
Carmilla would put up a dismissive hand "No need to elaborate, I shall deliver your apology to him" before giving her a smile "Tell the princess almost everyone should be present for the meeting she requested"
Velvette would smile as she walked out "I will, carmine…..thank you"