Husk waited for Charlie in the lobby, taking a swig from his flask and waving her down when he saw her exit the elevator. "Hey, Charlie! Can I talk to you about something?" Husk asked, letting out a grunt as he got out of the armchair. "Oh, sure, Husk," Charlie said, sticking her phone away in her pocket, "What is it?"

"You still got that bottle of Champaign I had in my room?" "You… want it back?" Charlie asked nervously, "Is something wrong? I know you got a bit… buzzed last night. No-not that it's a big deal or anything. I'm just," Husk let out a laugh, shaking his head and holding up a hand to cut Charlie off. The old cat just chuckled and said, "Kid, I'm fine. Better than fine, actually. A few of my employees and I are looking to get together tonight and, well… I kind of promised the guys there'd be good booze."

"So… you're not going to be drinking?" Charlie asked. "Oh, fuck no, I'm gonna drink," Husk scoffed, "I bought that stuff; no way I'm not going to have at least one glass." Charlie let out a frustrated groan, earning an eyeroll from Husk who simply said, "Don't worry, I'm not planning on drinking that much of this stuff. I like Champaign, but too much of it makes me sick as a dog. Plus, I know my gang and they all know I've been cutting back. They'll keep me from getting too sloshed. And, Sugar Cube doesn't drink anything beyond the occasional glass of red wine, so she's offered to be our 'designated driver' and make sure none of us go too crazy with the sauce."

"Oh, well, that's good. I think." Charlie said, "So, when do we get to meet them?" "Meet who? My crew?" Husk asked, "Well… knowing them, Sugar Cube will probably be the first to show. Kanban will probably show up not too long after her, given he's got a thing about being punctual. And Shwick and Gate will probably roll around sometime just before ten. He's got a thing for being 'fashionably late' to parties. Though, given what we're celebrating, I wouldn't be surprised if they all show up around the same time. No way they'd be late for this one." Charlie sighed and nodded, signaling him to follow as she led him up to her and Vaggie's room, opening the minifridge and retrieving the bottle of Champaign. "Thanks a lot, Charlie." Husk smiled as Charlie handed him the Champaign bottle, "I really appreciate this."

"No problem, Husk. So, what's the occasion, anyway?" Charlie asked as she and Husk headed back downstairs. "Well, I'm not sure if Angel told anyone yet… I hope he hasn't. He said he'd wait until I was ready to share." "Share what?" Husk and Charlie turned to see Vaggie walking up from behind them, "What is going on? Husk… where'd you get that bottle?"

"It's fine, Vaggie," Charlie assured, "Husk asked me to hold onto it for a while." "And you gave it back to him… why?" Vaggie asked. "Because I bought it," Husk said bluntly, "And I bought it for a purpose. Tonight, it'll finally get to fulfil that purpose. You're both welcome to join us if you want. I'm sure Angel will be joining us once he gets back from the studio. Just… try to keep the whole 'redemption' thing out of the conversations tonight, alright? That's not what tonight is about."

"Then what is it about?" Vaggie asked. "Yeah. Come on, Husk, tell us. Please!?" Charlie pleaded, excitedly bouncing on her heels. Husk took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Alright. Remember when I told you about my kid? Hazel?" Charlie and Vaggie nodded. "Well, what if I told you that a certain someone you know is going to be a grandpa soon?" Charlie and Vaggie exchanged looks, turning back to Husk as their expressions morphed into excited smiles. The girls squealed happily as Charlie lunged forward and wrapped her arms around Husk. "Oh… okay, okay," Husk laughed, "Take it easy, Charlie."

"Sorry, Husk. I'm just so happy for you! You must be so excited!" Charlie gushed. "Yeah, well," Husk looked around for a second and beckoned the girls closer before whispering, "Just between us, I'd appreciate it if you girls could keep this on the downlow for a little while. Especially around Alastor. It's still pretty early in her pregnancy, and Hazel really doesn't want too many folks to know until about halfway her second trimester. Plus, if I'm being honest, I'd rather Alastor hear it from Hazel herself rather than some grapevine."

"Oh, well… okay. But, why? Alastor's family, too. Shouldn't he know?" Charlie asked. Husk shook his head and said, "You might see Alastor as family, but my daughter doesn't. To her, Alastor's just my boss. My boss who runs me ragged and drags me away every chance he gets, usually during the worst possible times… times when she really needs me the most. Besides, over the years my opinions of the man haven't exactly been positive, and he's really given me little reason to change my mind on the matter. I try to be respectful, loyal, but I'm not obligated to like him."

Charlie and Vaggie exchanged looks as Husk let out a sigh and said, "Listen, he's gonna find out eventually. But, for the time being, I'd rather wait and enjoy the relative peace and quiet while I can. I'm sure this is going to blow up on me, but… ugh. I just want to make sure that I'll actually be able to be there when my daughter gives birth, instead of running some errand Alastor just suddenly remembered at the last, and worst possible moment. So, just… keep it to yourselves, okay? At least for now." The girls just nodded, much to Husk's appreciation. "Thanks, girls. Come on, the fellas should be arriving here soon."

Once at the bar, Charlie, Vaggie and Husk were just enjoying a few light drinks and idle chit-chat while they waited for Husk's crew to arrive. "So, Husk," Vaggie pipped, "I don't think you've ever mentioned your… friends much." "Yeah," Charlie nodded, "Tell us, what're they like?"

"Oh, they're a bunch of crazy misfits," Husk chuckled, "Not too unlike me. One of 'em's been my best friend since I was in middle school. After twelve years of it just being me, my folks, and their bullshit… it was nice to finally have a friend around my own age. Before I met Shwick, the only 'friends' I had was my Grammy, who died when I was young, and my Uncle that I didn't get to see nearly often enough. So, yeah, Shwick really was an absolute Godsend for me." "He sounds like a cool guy," Charlie chuckled, "What about the others? What are they like"

"Well, there's Shwick's partner, our head bouncer, Gate. He's a big softie outside of work; a real… mama's boy. But, everyone loves the man. Well, when he's not tossing them out on their heads." Husk and the girls laughed, nodding along as Husk took a swig from his flask and continued, "Then there's Kanban, our accountant. He's actually kind of… new. I think he might've been a member of a Yakuza family or something when he was alive, since he only spoke Japanese when we first met. Fortunately, he has managed to learn English, but he tends to throw a lot of Japanese into the mix. Guess you could say his English skills are… serviceable. Or, as Shwick likes to say," "Good enough for government work." A voice pipped, "Yeah, that joke never gets old."

The group turned to see a tall, fish-like demon walking in through the front door. He looked a bit like a loan shark demon with pale rose-colored skin, white highlights on his face, and two long red wing-like fish fins jutting out of his back that matched the fin on his head, which resembled a pompadour haircut. He was dressed in a very nice red, white and pink suit adorned with a few small red Diamonds on the lapels, belt, and long black tie.

"Hey, hey, hey there, boss!" the fish demon called. "Shwick! Never thought I'd see you to be the first to show up to anything. How you been, you old bastard?" "Pretty good… pretty good." Shwick shrugged, "The in-laws have been a pain in the ass, though, but what else is new? Speaking of which… hurry up, Gate! I ain't gonna hold the door open for you forever."

A few seconds later, a hulking Envy Ring demon lumbered inside; he was dressed in a simple black tux with a few red highlights on the cuffs and collar, and his red bowtie and belt buckle were adorned with black Spades. "Sorry, Shwick," Gate said in a slow, deep voice, "It isn't always easy getting around with a bum knee. At least I'm walking better now."

"Good to hear it, Gate." Husk said with a smile, "Other than the knee, how you feeling?" "Not bad, boss," Gate droned, "The fellas say they've been doing okay without me, but they miss how it's so much easier to handle the more bill-liger-ant ones when I'm there with 'em. Can't wait to get back to work."

"Well, if you're getting around this good, you'll be back tossing folks out on their asses in no time, babe. Which is good, 'cuz it's been so lonely at the club without you." Shwick said in a flirty voice. Gate gently nudged the smaller fish man with his elbow as Husk invited them inside and led them over to the bar. "Charlie, Vaggie, this is Shwick and Gate," Husk said, "Fellas, meet the Princess of Hell, Charlie Morningstar and her girlfriend Vaggie." The larger man gave a little bow as Shwick gave a curtsey as the girls waved and said hello. "Ain't she the one you were tutoring on how to fly a few days back?" Shwick asked, "I heard from Clancy you had a new squeeze."

"Shwick, you know better than to believe half of anything that comes out of Clancy's mouth," Husk scolded, "But… he's not entirely wrong. Nothing official yet, but I have been seeing someone these last couple of months. That someone just ain't Vaggie."

"So, who is the lucky gal?" Gate asked, "And when do we get to meet her?" Shwick followed up, "I wanna personally give this one a good look-see. No way am I allowing a repeat of what happened with the last chick you dated." "Trust me, Sanchez, Angel is nothing like Jezebel," Husk assured, "And he is actually a really fun guy once you get to know him. A bit… intense… sometimes. But he's a good soul."

"The boss-man is dating men now?" Everyone turned and saw a small, monkey-like demon with white fur dressed in a similar outfit as Shwick's walk into the hotel, "Great. Like this business wasn't enough of a sausage-fest." "Oh, please!" Husk scoffed, "You know how I feel about employees wooing other employees, Kanban. Especially when they're part of the management team; it's an HR disaster waiting to happen."

"Whatever," Kanban groaned, "Least last girlfriend didn't take no shit." "I didn't break up with that crazy bitch because she wasn't willing to put up with my shit." Husk snapped, "I broke up with her because she broke rule number three. You do remember what rule number three is, don't you?"

"Nobody fucks with the boss' daughter," Shwick announced, "She might've been able to get away with attempting to break the first two rules. But nobody, and I mean nobody gets away with breaking number three." "Damn straight," Gate nodded, "Never really liked that Jezebel lady, anyway. She always gave off some bad vibes. Plus… she was just mean." Kanban just rolled his eyes and said, "So… where's tall magic lady? She here yet?"

"No, Sugar's not here." Husk said shaking his head, checking his cellphone's clock, "Weird. She's usually the first to show up for stuff like this." "Maybe she got caught in traffic." Vaggie suggested, "Or a random turf war broke out and she had to find another route to take."

"Hmmm… maybe," Husk said as he took out his phone, "I'll just give her a call and ask her if she's at least on her way." Just as Husk found Sugar's number, the fireplace dimmed and the lights flickered. "Uh… is the fireplace supposed to do that?" Shwick asked. Husk chuckled as the lights stabilized and the fireplace reignited; a few small flames leaping out of the fireplace as a small portal opened up a few feet in front of the hearth. A tall, red skinned Succubus with long dark-gray hair stepped through; she wore a pair of long white distressed pants, black sandals and a black crop-top with two white Clubs on the chest.

"There she is," Husk chuckled, "Hey, there Sug! How you been? How's Wren?" "He's good. We've both been good, really good." Sugar drawled, walking up to Husk and wrapping her arms around him, "Ooh… it's been way too damn long, Zeke." Charlie and Vaggie turned to each other slowly as Charlie said, "Zeke?" Vaggie just shrugged as the five demons made their way to the bar. "And who are these lovely ladies?" Sugar asked, pointing to Charlie, "They seem… familiar. Didn't I see y'all on the news with that rumor-witch a few months back?" "Sugar Cube, this is Princess Charlie Morningstar," Husk said, "And her girlfriend, Vaggie."

"Pleased to meet you, uh… Sugar," Charlie said, taking Sugar's hand. "Charmed, really." Sugar smiled. "So what are we here for?" Sugar asked as she turned back to Husk, "I doubt you'd call us here just for shits and giggles." Husk put a hand on his hip and smirked, saying, "Have you ever known me to do anything just for shits and giggles?" Husk reached down behind the bar, pulling out the bottle of Champaign. Husk smiled as the others exchanged excited looks and said, "Lady, gentlemen… and Kanban. Tonight we celebrate!"