Track 20: Monster I've Become - Three Days Grace/Skillet
Adam was wearing his after-orgy clothes again. It was the first thing Charlie noticed coming down, along with the flexing of his arms as he cut into a stack of pancakes and forked a bite into his mouth. The second was that Vaggie was sitting next to him, rather close even, poring over her character sheet with her eye practically shining as she described some feat or another. The third was- oh shit, pancakes. Mmmm, yes please.
She didn't make any more noise than normal when she sat down, nor did she go out of her way to be especially quiet when she pulled a plate over to herself and served herself up a stack of blueberry pancakes, but even still the two didn't notice her. Which was fine with Charlie, since it allowed her to freely indulge in what was becoming her new favorite hobby: Vadam (Vaggie/Adam) watching.
Once upon a time (four months ago) it had been an exercise in preempting an explosion, carefully watching the two to make sure one didn't set off the other; then (three months ago) it had been an exercise in frustration, trying to figure out how to make them interact in a way that wouldn't lead back to an explosion; sure, them ignoring each other worked a bit but it was only a matter of time before shit went fan-wards; then (two months ago) it had been exercise in confusion, as the two would interact apropos of nothing but in very short, snappy ways; and then (one month ago to present) it had become a treat, watching the two almost shyly talk and chat and figure out where they actually stood with one another.
Charlie doused her pancakes in syrup and took a bite, restraining a moan at the taste. She couldn't help but think of the two of them like…a pair of magnets, always drawn to each other but with a pair of explosives on the end that detonate each time they touched and sent them spinning away…but now, over time, the explosives had been blasted away and now the jagged ends are just trying to find a place to fit together…
She blinked and looked down at her breakfast. Pancakes make me philosophical, huh. Shrugging, she continued to eat as she leaned on her hand, watching Adam and Vaggie talk.
"-then if you go Warlock for a level you can use a Warlock spell slot on one of your Paladin abilities, so you can have an extra Smite, Oath or a Lay On Hands charge, plus Eldritch Blast. If you go Great Old One, the Mortal Reminder passive stacks with your natural Holy crits, though the next campaign isn't gonna be in a tomb, we'll just have to figure out how to work around Angel's vampire spawn character," Adam explained, pointing to Vaggie's character sheet, "That's pretty good already, but if you keep a couple more levels you can go Pact of Blades-"
Watching his bare arms flex and move, Charlie couldn't help but wonder what kind of lover Adam was. Before all this, she probably would've thought, if it all, that he was the selfish kind who only cared about his own pleasure; knowing him now, though, and his apparent ability to satisfy fifty-three women repeatedly, she had to think he was a very generous lover, a very experienced one, or both. Given that, the day before almost every one of his angels had called him away over the course of about ten hours and he still had the moxie for an orgy afterwards…
"-ooh, if I put in more levels of Warlock, I can modify it into Lingering Blast, then hit them with a Smite to trigger a Holy crit!" The fallen enthused, an excited smile on her face.
"Oooh, that's good! Plus-"
Vaggie, despite whatever her appearance and attitude might suggest, was very tender and almost shy in bed. She enjoyed being told what to do, being controlled a bit, and Charlie enjoyed that aspect immensely…however, the biggest flaw, no matter how bad it made Charlie feel just thinking about it: Vaggie simply couldn't keep up.
Sure, the times they spent together were wonderful and pleasurable and all that, just…not entirely satisfying. Vaggie had a whole buffet table laid out, but only visited the salad bar and got a single plate.
"…You know, looking at these," Adam started, running his fingers along the sheets of paper, "I realize that we're relying on you to be the tank and the healer here. I've only got a couple of dedicated healing spells and none prepared…I should swap out some of these so I can support better."
"But…doesn't that throw off your build?" Vaggie asked softly.
Adam grinned at her, wavering a hand. "Only a little bit. This way, you can focus on eating up the damage and dealing it right back, and I can take care of you, whether it's healing or damage."
"Oh, okay…" The way Vaggie blushed, one would've thought he'd just declared his eternal love.
Charlie smiled. They're such nerds, she thought fondly, I love them. She looked between the two, the relatively small (compact maybe being the better word) fallen and the First Man, and couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to be the filling in that sandwich. Adam's large, calloused hands tugging at her hair, pulling her head back so he could attack her neck; Vaggie's silver hair brushing against her thighs as she licked eagerly, then-
"Hehehehe…"
The two nerds looked up from the character sheets and across the table at Charlie. The Princess was red-faced, mumbling something under her breath. Adam and Vaggie traded concerned looks, quietly moving around the table to flank her. "…Is she sick?" He asked, squinting at Charlie, "Are…her pupils hearts? Does that happen?"
"Charlie? Babe?" Vaggie asked cautiously, poking her girlfriend's shoulder and getting no response. "Huh. Did you do something different with breakfast?"
"No, it's just pancakes. Maybe she has a fever?" Adam brushed Charlie's hair aside and touched his forehead to hers. "…I don't have a baseline for what her temperature normally is," he admitted after a minute.
"Ugh, no shit you don't," the fallen rolled her eyes and turned Charlie towards her, pressing their foreheads together. "…I don't have a baseline either, I've never taken her temperature. I don't think she's been sick before."
"Um…" Charlie spoke up, blinking at them, "What're you doing…?"
"Should be asking you that, Charlie!" Vaggie replied, shaking her a little, "Are you okay? You were all red and mumbling."
"Do you want to sit today out?" Adam added from her other side, looking concerned.
"N-no! I was just…lost in thought," Charlie said lamely, trying not to let her embarrassment show and failing terribly. She blinked, recalling some of what she'd seen the night of the party, then turned and threw her arms around Adam's neck. "I'm so sorry, Adam," she sniffled, "About…your son. Adama."
The First Man blinked off the metaphorical whiplash. "You better not say it was your fault, Charlie, that was thousands of years before you were born." He went with the safest option.
"Of course it wasn't my fault, but…what he said, about Lu-my Dad, I…I didn't know…there's a lot of things I don't know…" Charlie whispered miserably, "Just…how much has been kept from me?"
Adam looked over her blonde hair, seeing Vaggie eying them awkwardly. He silently waved her over, the fallen hesitating, biting her lip before tentatively leaning in and hugging Charlie from behind. "It's never too late to learn, you know? And no one can say you haven't learned a lot, Charlie. You know why I didn't want you to see Immaculara, there's things I've done…things I didn't do-" his arms wrapped around Vaggie, pulling the startled fallen into his embrace with Charlie, "-that I'm not proud of. If you really want to watch it, though…I won't stop you. Just…keep in mind the timeframe."
Charlie shared a surprised look with Vaggie. "…All of it?" She asked quietly.
"Yeah, all of it. You deserve to know the truth," he answered softly. "…Except for the sex stuff. That's gettin' fuckin' censored."
"Aww," the Princess groaned playfully, grunting in surprise as Adam pushed them away.
"Alright, you're obviously healthy enough to perv," he grinned, sitting back on his knees, smile fading a bit as he wore a concerned look, "You are okay, right?"
Charlie tried not to blush. "Yeah, I'm fine, I was just…lost in thought." Better to leave those thoughts unsaid…for now. "You guys can go back to whatever you were doing before."
Vaggie hummed skeptically. "…Alright babe. We were buildcrafting, actually," she nodded at Adam, who tapped his finger on the table, making the surface rotate to bring their plates and character sheets over to her side, the Princess frowning slightly as she saw she was now sitting between them. "Do you…want to do it with us?" The fallen sent her girlfriend a small, silently pleading look. What exactly she was pleading for was a mystery to Charlie.
Charlie's heart leapt before she realized the context of the question. Soon, she promised herself. "I don't really know much about it," she shrugged bashfully, an idea occurring, "How about…you two build my character for me?" She subtly scooted her chair back.
Adam and Vaggie traded looks, held their gaze, then nodded. "Alright," the First Man smiled, reaching over and prepping a plate of strawberry pancakes, holding it up to his shoulder, "What about you, sister? Want to build your character?" He asked the empty space next to his head.
Nifty's head suddenly popped up over his shoulder, a smile on the maid's face and she sat in her favorite seat. "Nifty doesn't care, as long as she can punish the unclean!" She took the plate of pancakes with a pleased, surprised coo, kissing Adam on the cheek. "Thanks, Adam."
"No prob, Nifty," he replied, turning back to Vaggie, "So, War Cleric?"
The fallen immediately perked up. "I don't think that fits Charlie as a character, not all the way, maybe if she multi-classed into a Druid?"
Charlie sat back and munched victoriously on her pancakes, proud her two favorite people were getting along and having fun together. An adorable pair of nerds…and all mine, soon.
…
The Final Battle against Charbuam had not gone well. They'd switched out Nifty's dagger and Vaggie had put a level into Warlock, but the fight had almost immediately gone wrong.
The fallen had failed the Religion roll despite Adam hitting her up with Bardic Inspiration and Guidance, so the dragon was at full strength. Angel Dust had tried to be clever by hitting the lich with poison arrows followed by fire arrows again, but his second set of arrows had completely missed.
They'd made up some of the damage by Vaggie casting Moonbeam on Charbuam followed by Inquisitor's Might on Nifty before Adam empowered and threw her; the maid's follow-up Holy-enhanced attacks had done good damage, but another consequence of the failed Religion roll had cropped up: Charbuam had inhaled Nifty, killing the Rogue in one move before spitting her back out as a possessed corpse.
"Nooooooo! Nifty's UNCLEAN!"
Then Nifty's body had Misty Stepped behind Angel Dust and nearly killed him with her attacks. When Angel's turn had come around, he naturally booked it away from her and healed himself with a health potion. That had gotten him in range of Adam, who'd hit him with a Cure Wounds spell before using a Thunderwave to toss Nifty's body into the pit (with profuse apologies).
Not an impossible situation to recover from- except that, in Charbuam's next turn, the dracolich had sucked them in before breathing its necrotic breath on them. Angel Dust had failed the Constitution check, died, and came back as a possessed corpse.
"God-dammit fuck this goddamn game!"
Adam had used another Thunderwave to boot his body into the chasm, also dealing some nice damage to the boss, but that left only Vaggie and the First Man to fight a boss designed for a full party.
Between healing each other, trying to avoid Charbuam's fists and breath attack, they were on their last legs. Adam had long since run out of spells, resorting to running up to the dragon, punching it then running back, avoiding any cantrips to keep his Action Points. Vaggie had hung back, using Eldritch Blast to chip away at the boss' health and chugging health potions to keep herself up, but her supply was quickly running dry.
Then, Charbuam had used his inhale attack once more, dragging them in before breathing his necrotic breath. Both had resisted the curse, but now…
Adam nodded grimly to himself, walking over and picking Vaggie up, carrying her a bit away from the dragon before turning and walking back into melee range. "Wha-Adam! What're you doing?!" The fallen called.
"Charbuam targets those closest to it, and I'm just about useless here," Adam admitted, casting Bardic Inspiration on her, "It'll focus on me next turn, and that should give you enough space to Smite it safely. I've done the math, and my Damage Resistance is high enough that a melee attack won't immediately kill me, just Down me. That should give you another turn, but after that…"
Vaggie gulped, hands wringing the shaft of her halberd. "You…you're sacrificing yourself…for me?" Her eye was wide with realization and worry.
He gave her a small, comforting smile and a thumbs-up. "You've got this, babe. I believe in you." He turned to face Charbuam and punched the dracolich twice. "End turn."
Charbuam slammed a fist down onto Adam, the sickening crunch of bone ripping through the air. When the dragon withdrew its paw, it left the First Man collapsed on the ground, barely holding himself up as he spat blood.
At one point in her life, seeing Adam on the verge of death would've brought a smile to Vaggie's face. As it was now, the sight tore at her heart and her eye watered, a quiet gasp escaping her lips.
"Uugghh My God…"
"DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW, PALADIN?" Charbuam spoke, making the fallen look up at it, "YOU ARE BEREFT. OF YOUR COMPATRIOTS. OF YOUR GODS. AND SOON…OF YOUR VERY SOUL. NONE MAY DENY THE WILL OF CHARBUAM!"
"No…" she whispered, fists clenching. Vaggie looked up at the dracolich, a snarl on her lips, "I am never bereft! Selune is always with me…and while they may be gone, I carry the will and determination of my companions! And for them…I will always deny you!" She thrust her halberd at the dragon, the weapon burning with Holy power. "For the Moon Goddess! For those I love! You shall be denied, here and now!"
There was a sound of rolling dice. Vaggie blinked. …Wait, there was another Religion roll?
There came the victorious chime of a Nat Twenty.
"FOOLISH PALADIN!" Charbuam rebuked, drawing back as its cursed breath glowed between its ribs, "YOUR GODS HAVE NO POWER HERE-"
A beam of soft blue light shone from the ceiling, drawing Vaggie's attention, the dragon twisting his neck with a series of echoing cracks just as the beam grew in intensity, a bolt of power shooting out to slam into the dracolich.
The dragon roared in pain, slamming a bony paw on the ground and narrowly avoiding her. "SO BE IT! YOUR GODS WILL WATCH AS I DEVOUR YOUR SOULS!" There was a symbol of the moon under its health bar that said 'Weakened by Selune.'
"Hey! That was just a fuckin' copy-paste of what happened last time!"
Vaggie breathed deeply, marching towards the dragon, her eye alight with righteous fury. "Let Moonlight run through my soul…and bring you to ruin!" She thrust her halberd into the air and it shone like she grasped a star in her hands. "BLINDING SMITE!" She slammed the axe into the dragon's skull, the lich recoiling as Holy power burned into its bones.
Charbuam roared in pain, the health in its bar dropping significantly…but not all the way.
"Shit!" The fallen gasped as her turn ended, then sighed as the dracolich had been successfully blinded, skipping its turn. Oh fuck, I was kinda relying on that to end it, she thought, eyeing the remaining health, Damn, I'm all out of Smite charges and basically everything else…and even if I get two crits with my basic attacks, that's not enough to kill it. Maybe if I let it target Adam… she glanced over at the Bard, coughing up blood as he clutched his chest, weakly raising his head to look at her… No. I can't do that. Maybe…if I use my last Lay On Hands charge, that should heal him up enough that we can tank the damage- wait.
Vaggie looked up at the dracolich. An undead dragon. Undead. She walked up, used her Lay On Hands charge at the highest level she had, and poked it.
"AAARRRGGGHHH!" Charbuam wailed dramatically, flapping fleshless wings as if trying to fly away from her and only slamming itself into the side of the pit, scraping along the rocky wall until it landed on the other side, facing the throne and desiccated body claiming it. "Joerith, my…old friend…I've failed you…once again…" The green mist burst from within its ribcage, wisps of energy losing color, revealing themselves to be souls now set free. They streamed towards the opening and light of the moon at the top of the tomb, finally released from the Will of Charbuam…and the skeletal corpse made an excellent (and convenient) bridge across the gap.
"Yaaaaay! Unclean has been Purged! Bone boy punished!"
"Christ, what a drama queen."
The fallen blinked, then thrust her arms into the air. "FUCK YEAH!" She whooped, "Eat that you bony dragon bitch! WHOOO!"
"Good…job…" Adam coughed up more (red) blood, successfully making a saving throw.
"Ah! Sorry!" She hurried over and Helped him up, leaving him with only a single health point left. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," he muttered, brushing himself off, "I mean, it definitely hurt but it's not like I was in any actual dan-" Adam noticed Vaggie deflating and coughed, switching tacks and taking her hand, "-You saved me, Vaggie," he said dramatically, giving her a warm, thankful smile, "I will never forget this, Paladin. When you stood on the brink of defeat, you alone rallied your will and denied the lich. You…are truly the hero of this story. And to me."
Vaggie blushed, standing straight to look him in the eye. "No…I may have dealt the final blow, but without your sacrifice, we might all have perished," she clasped his hand with both of hers, "As I told the dragon…the will of Goddess, and the will of my companions…that is what empowered me. I…I couldn't have done it without you…"
"…Fuckin' spare me-ow! Ow!"
"Shut up, shut up! Nifty's watching!"
Vaggie coughed into her hand and stepped back, hoping her hair was hiding her flaming face. "A-anyways, we should probably revive them…and see what loot we got!" She perked up at the thought, already digging in her pouch for the scrolls.
They did so, with Angel Dust looking incredibly exasperated and Nifty with her usual smile…before her eye filled with tears and she leapt the former with a sob. "Nifty's sooooorry!" She wailed, hugging the spider sinner around the waist, "She didn't mean it! I couldn't couldn't control myself again, I'm so-"
"Hey, hey! Easy, Nifty, it's just a game," Angel replied, uneasily patting her on the back, "I mean, it hurt, yeah-" he jumped as the cyclopean demon wailed again, "-but-but-but I wasn't actually hurt or anything! See, I'm perfectly fine!" He tried to show off his un-murdered state, but given that Nifty had her face buried in his chest fur it was ineffective.
"R-really?" She asked tearfully, peering up at him.
"Yup!" Angel bobbed his head desperately, "I'm completely fuckin' fine, I promise!"
Nifty gave him once-over then nodded. "Okay!" She cheered, all traces of her sorrow gone, "Adam! You're dirty! Lemme clean!" She leapt at his back with a handkerchief clutched in her fist.
The party crossed the dragon-skeleton bridge to the other side, with Angel Dust immediately digging into the piles of gold to stuff them into his inventory and Nifty just behind him, scrubbing herself with a handkerchief, while Vaggie and Adam approached the throne. Despite being dusty, the obvious magical quality of the sword propped up against it shone through, her eye going wide as she picked it up.
"Wow, this is a powerful sword," she muttered, glancing at her halberd slung on her back, "Even better than my halberd…"
Adam quirked an eyebrow at her trailing off. "…And? Throw it on, babe, women with swords are always sexy."
Vaggie bit her lip. "Well, the thing is…" She held the sword out to him, letting him view the stats for himself.
Greatsword Of The Bard-King.
"Ah…" Adam realized, "Well, it doesn't fit with my build at all, so you should still use it," he said simply, whooping as he pulled the armor off of the King's corpse, "Now these, clothes that count as mail, definitely fits!" He held up a shiny shirt made of white, extremely fine chain mail. "Light as a feather, strong as dragon scales!"
"Adam," Vaggie interjected, still holding the sword out towards him, "You should take the sword! It's…you're a Bard, it's a sword that counts as an instrument! It even gives free uses for some of the songs!"
"Which means you'll be even more well-rounded when it comes to dealing damage," he continued, his expression growing more incredulous, "Spending a Feat on Great Weapon Fighting would completely ruin my build! You're the only one who can use it, so use it. Especially since the next campaign won't be in a tomb, so you can't rely on Holy crits to boost your damage."
"I-but…" She slumped, putting her halberd into her inventory and equipping the sword, a sheath appearing on her back, "Alright…thank you."
"A Hero deserves a sword, right?" He winked, ducking down to pluck a ring from the skeleton's finger and missing the brief flash of red that crossed her cheeks, "Oh, look at this. A ring that grants vampires and vampire spawn protection from the sun, what a crazy random happenstance," he announced with zero enthusiasm, tossing the ring to Angel Dust.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it," the Ranger muttered, sliding it on a finger. "You know, rings can go on more than just fingers, right?"
"Alright, we can check all the loot later," Adam announced, clapping his hands, "But now that we've finished the game, there's only one way to bring it to an end. Say it with me…Jumanji!"
The other members of the party gave him clueless looks. "Ja-mon-jee? Is that the one game with the electric mouse?" Angel Dust asked, scratching his head.
"No, that's the name of the campaign, right?" Vaggie said, giving Adam an understanding nod.
"No, it's-you-seriously-fuckin'-gah!" Adam growled under his breath, "Game Over!"
With a pop, they were teleported to the observation balcony, which was empty except for some snacks already laid out on the table. "So, how much longer do we gotta wait?" Angel asked, flopping down onto a lounge, "'Cause I am like, super fuckin' tired of all this nerd shit."
"Fuck off, Angel!" Adam and Vaggie said simultaneously, then blinked at each other before sharing a small smile, missing the victorious grin the spider sinner hid behind a teacup. "Actually, just for that, let's go over all the loot we got!"
"Uuuggghhh…"
…
It was a bit over an hour later that the other team of Charlie, Husk, Pentious and Alastor popped up, all of them looking disheveled and rather irritated, with the majority of it being directed towards the Radio demon.
"…Did you guys actually get to the boss this time?" Adam asked, sipping on some tea with a finger sandwich in his other hand.
"No," Charlie groaned, dismissing her equipment and flumping down on the lounge, dropping her head in Vaggie's lap and her feet in Adam's, making them both jolt to avoid spilling their drinks on her, "That one," she waved a hand in Alastor's direction, "Kept trying to hijack the curse on explorers…and there were too many of them. That boss with the dagger kept stabbing me…he was really mean…"
"I told ya, babe, you should've been Domain of Life," the fallen tutted and shook her head, "But you said using healing spells to kill undead was mean."
"Yeah we totally killed the boss and it was really cool and all," Angel Dust interjected, looking completely uninterested, before smirking, "You shoulda heard Vags, though. 'I carry the will of my goddess!' Christ, who knew you were into such nerdy shit, huh."
"Hey!" Charlie interjected with a frown, noticing Vaggie inflating like a steam pipe about to burst, "I think it's cute! And it's a lot of fun, too! I mean…with the right players, so we'll be switching up teams next time. Though next time will be something else, not this and not the Death Maze."
"Yeah, you should've seen her, Charlie," Adam added with a grin, "She fuckin' whooped that dragon's ass, it was glorious. And you keep mentioning this new thing, are you gonna finally tell me what it is?"
"Noooo~," the Princess teased, a victorious smirk on her lips as she noticed Vaggie deflate and blush at Adam's praise, "You're just gonna have to find out with everybody else…"
"Babe," the fallen murmured, gently cupping Charlie's cheek, "You'll tell me, right? I'm not everybody else…" She leaned in like she was going to kiss her girlfriend, eye half-lidded, "Right, babe?"
Charlie gulped audibly. "I-uh, I mean…" She cleared her throat, lifting her head to press their foreheads together, "Noooo~" She grinned at Vaggie's huff and rolled out of their laps, jumping to her feet with a clap of her hands, "Alright! Time for the sharing circle and the next activity! I've been waiting for this one, so without adieu-!"
They were all teleported to the library, except that the table was missing and in its place were several stools next to what looked like motorized lazy susan's, or as they were better known as, pottery wheels.
"It's our next big project!" Charlie announced, bouncing on her heels, eyes aglow with joy, "We're gonna make pots and decorate them! Doesn't that sound awesome?!"
Most of the sinners bobbed their heads, though Adam was smiling in a nostalgic way. "We gonna put anything in them?" Husk asked, sipping from his flask.
"I mean…" the Princess gave him a shrug in reply, "It's a pot. You can put what you want in it, I'm gonna put-"
"-Flowers." Everyone except Charlie, even Nifty, finished for her.
She pouted at them. "Fine, if you're gonna be like that, then you can start…potting, or whatever that's called…" She turned to sit, then stopped and turned back to them with a sheepish look, "So, uh, quick question…does anyone know how to make pots? I uh, don't."
Adam raised his hand. He looked over at the rest of them with their hands firmly by their sides. "…Seriously? Did none of you ever take a fucking arts and crafts class?"
Husk shrugged. "I did some glass blowing for a bit."
That garnered a few impressed looks. "…Really?" Angel Dust asked, "I never woulda guessed. That's pretty neat, Husker!"
"Indeed, a new facet of your personality, revealed," Pentious added with a nod.
"I wanted a custom glass set and a decanter for my office, and it looked interesting," the bartender replied with a shrug, "I haven't done it in a long time, though."
"Good to know you've got experience blowing hot stuff!" Angel added with a grin and a waggle of his eyebrows, "Care to show me later?" Husk huffed and shook his head fondly.
"Yeah, that doesn't really help here, but let's talk about that later," Adam nodded, giving everyone a critical look, "None of you know how to make pots? Seriously?" At their nods, he sighed and rubbed his forehead, "I'm gonna have to Swayze everyone of you fuckers, aren't I…" It wasn't a question.
"S-Swayze?" Vaggie asked nervously, eye darting to everyone around them, "In the open? In front of everyone?"
The First Man turned to give her an incredulous look. "…Yeah? Where else would-"
"I-I don't know if I'm comfortable with that," she muttered, inching behind Charlie, using her bemused girlfriend as a shield.
"You'd be more comfortable in private?" Adam asked, confused.
"I mean…maybe."
Alastor cleared his throat. "Ahem. I think I speak for everyone, old chum, when I say 'what the hell are you talking about exactly?' If it is what it sounds like, I'd like to go first if I'd get a moment to grab the lube. I'll admit I'm quite curious about the experience!"
The First Man slapped a hand to his face. "First, no. Second, it's not a sex thing…I mean, kinda-" Angel Dust rubbed his hands together with an, 'Ohoho!' before Adam waved a hand, "I mean I'll teach you idiots. Seriously…Patrick Swayze? Ghost? Demi? Whoopi? None of this is ringing a bell?" He sighed again, shooting Charlie a dark look. "Movie marathon. Seriously. Before I kill someone."
"Oookay, well, maybe skipping ahead a little," she started bashfully, "Instead, we'll work on the designs for the pots first, then over the next week, Adam…can you teach everyone? Me first, then I can help!" By the end of her idea, she'd perked right back up.
"Yeah," he grunted, snapping his fingers and bringing the usual table back, "D'you know how much of a pain in the ass it is when no one gets my references? Seriously…" He flopped down into a chair, blinking as KeeKee appeared out of nowhere and curled up on his lap. With a shrug, he started stroking her ears as he pulled a sheet of paper towards him.
The Happy Few once more found themselves around the library table, drawing, chatting and snacking. Vaggie frowned a little as she started sketching, stopped, erased what she'd drawn then started sketching again. "…What is this supposed to be, again?" She asked, looking around at Charlie.
"Something significant," the Princess shrugged, finishing a line on her paper and holding it up to show a rather familiar drawing of them all holding hands in front of the hotel, "Like this! I mean, obviously it's gonna be painted on a pot so keep that in mind, but…yeah, just something significant to you!"
"Oh," the fallen muttered, frowning as she tapped her pencil against the table. She blinked as a note card slid under the edge, glancing up to see Adam waggling his eyebrows at her. You play an instrument? Was the question written on it.
"Hey Charlie, your drawing's improved!" Angel Dust commented with a smirk, "It doesn't look like a five-year-old went nuts with the crayons anymore."
"Thanks!" Charlie chirped, before frowning, "…What does it look like?"
I don't, no, she scribbled down, sliding the card back.
"A ten-year-old went nuts with the crayons," Angel said, smirk growing.
The card slid under her hand. No shit? It read. Got one you want to?
"Hey! My drawing's aren't that bad, are they?" Charlie asked her girlfriend with a pout.
"Uh-huh," Vaggie nodded absently, writing down, …Maybe.
"See, Vags agrees with me!" Charlie huffed victoriously, going back to her drawing, "Jerks."
The card got stuck under her glass of lemonade. Tell me, babe. She glanced up at Adam, who nodded encouragingly.
"It legitimately baffles me how you can be so creative with almost everything else," Husk started as Vaggie bit her lip and thought, "And yet completely suck at drawing."
Guitar, she wrote, and flicked the card across the table.
"I don't 'suck' at drawing, right Adam?" Charlie asked, fluttering her eyelashes at the First Man.
"You use bold colors and strong lines," He replied, looking down at the card. Adam blinked in surprise and scribbled a reply.
No shit? Why didn't you say something before? It asked, the card sliding neatly onto her sheet of paper.
"Ha-ha, see? Suck it!" The Princess crowed.
"Would if I could," Angel muttered, grinning as he pointed out, "He didn't say you were good, though."
It's embarrassing, she scribbled down, flicking the card with her eraser and sending it across the table.
Charlie gasped. "Adam, my drawings are good, right?" She gave him a wide-eyed, teary, pleading look.
Adam squinted in thought. "…Well, you can tell the subjects apart from the background, the subjects themselves are identifiably different from each other, and there's very little in the way of wasted space," he shrugged, "So…technically, yeah, your drawings are good, Charlie." He flicked the card back.
Vaggie blinked at the message. Could ask Charlie to teach you. She'd probably like that.
"Hm," Charlie nodded firmly, "He said it, we know he can't lie, so there. I knew you'd have my back, Adam." She sent the First Man a bright smile.
Vaggie underlined and circled her previous message before sending the card back.
"Whatever. Husker, what're you drawing?"
"Nothing complicated, just simple symbols."
Adam glanced up at her, then shrugged and nodded before going back to his drawing. She frowned, eyeing him with a knot in her stomach.
"Pentious, what're you gonna do for your design?" Charlie asked, reaching over to grab a couple of yogurt-covered pretzels from a dish.
"Well, I'm going to draw a few of my inventions, along with books and my friends," the snake sinner announced proudly, showing her a rather neat-looking sketch.
"Ooh, that's nice."
Vaggie's frown deepened, and she started tapping her eraser against the table. Tap-tap, tap, tap-tap, tap.
"Which inventions and friends would those be, hm?" Alastor gleefully needled, "The ones that actually work, or the friends that actually exist?"
"Fuck off, Al," Husk muttered, not looking up from his paper, "At least his ideas don't involve blood and raw meat."
The Radio demon's smile faded a tad, his eyes glowing slightly. "'Al?'"
Tap-tap, tap. Tap-tap, tap. Adam glanced up at Vaggie, their gaze meeting as he arched an eyebrow. She glanced down at the card, then back up at him and tapped her pencil again. He narrowed his eyes and slid the card across the table.
"Would you prefer 'Alas?'" Pentious asked mockingly, "As in, 'Alas, but we must suffer your company!'"
"Nice one Penchy," Angel chuckled, reaching over to give the inventor a high-five.
Vaggie put her pencil to paper and paused, biting her lip. Slowly, she wrote down four words, swallowing subtly as she fidgeted with the card before finally flicking it back.
Adam looked down at the card, eyebrows rising in surprise. Can you teach me? Was the message. He glanced up at Vaggie, who had ducked her head to hide her face behind her hair, her eye peeking out at him from the shadow. He smiled and scribbled a reply before sliding the card her way.
She tentatively took a look and restrained a smile at what was written. Fuck yeah. Any time, any place, name it. Vaggie's eye flicked up to meet his and she nodded, mouthing, 'Later.' She looked back down at her drawing, hair covering her face, and let herself smile.
"What about you, Nifty?" Charlie chirped cheerily, "What's your significant moment?" She shot the First Man a searching look, wondering about his own drawing.
Nifty giggled…but not in her usual, barely-restrained psychopathy way…there was something else there. Something sad. "Nifty can't decide!" She tittered, eye uncomfortably wide as she drew, "Nifty wanted to draw the day she came to life…and the day Nifty became real."
"…There's a difference?" Husk asked cautiously, "Is this…about the day you died?"
The chatter around the table died, and every eye came to land on the demon maid. The previous atmosphere died silently and swiftly.
"Yep! That too!" She giggled in her odd, sad way, "Nifty thinks it's her turn! Time for you to know…how I became like this…I wasn't-Nifty wasn't-" She shook her head, the manic smile fading a bit as she looked up at Adam, their eyes meeting. She shuddered and blinked. "There was a big war going on. My family had moved before it all started, but then our old home attacked our new home, and everyone who looked like us was…the enemy. Nifty's- my parents disappeared, and it was just me and my sister, in a camp full of people who looked like us but weren't. It…"
Her hand started trembling, scratching her pencil against the paper. Silently, Adam appeared behind her, gently laying his hand on her arm. She stilled and sighed, and he glanced down at the paper. helpmehelpmeHELPmeHelpmehElPmE-
"It was terrible!" Nifty continued, a smile still stretching her lips, "So unclean, so dirty- and then it was over. Old home went boom, new home won the war…soldiers came to the camp, told us…we could stay at our new home, or go back to the old home…Nifty-she saw what happened, the craters…she decided to stay. Her sister, Himiko, went back. One of the soldiers, he…liked her, and he seemed…sweet," she grit the word out, smile widening, "But being from her old home…she needed to fit in. To…distance myself. So…I got married. Changed my name to Nancy…and decided to bury Nanako. Deep, where no one could find her." She tapped her temple.
Nifty slumped, her body language changing entirely. Gone was manic energy, and present was…demure, static depression. She looked up at them, smile still painfully etched on her face, but her eye was half-lidded and dull.
"I did my best to be a wife, to be not-Nanako anymore…I forgot the other language, the other words, almost…almost forgot Himiko, too," her eye swam with tears, smile unchanging, "And things were…alright. My husband was a little demanding, but he was a war hero. He bought me my cat, Nifty- Nifty, yes, such a good cat, such a clean cat- and then…he wasn't. Something changed, something I did maybe- nonono not Nancy's fault, Nifty knows- and…I was told to clean everything. If it wasn't clean…" Tears had started to spill from her eye, her lips trembling as she painfully held her smile, "And more. No one ever believed Nancy, not when she was bruised, not when she could barely walk…he was a war hero, she was just some… stupid foreign whore who didn't know what she was talking about."
"Nifty," Charlie whispered, squeezing Vaggie's hand tightly, her eyes wet, "You don't have to-"
Adam snapped a sharp look her way, and Charlie gulped at the light in his eyes. Silently, he shook his head and pressed a finger to his lips.
"Nancy tried to leave," Nifty admitted sadly, "She tried and she tried, but there was nowhere for her to go…then she met her. Ellen. She was sweet, and kind and understanding…she said she would help Nancy leave, and Nancy…" she shook her head, her whole body trembling, "Nancy thought she loved her. Thought maybe they could run away together…" She laughed shrilly, posture changing once again, manic energy returning, "But they didn't~!" Nifty sang, "No, no, Ellen knew. Ellen wanted Nancy's husband, Ellen told him…she tricked Nancy. When Nancy tried to leave, Ellen brought her back, and her husband…he killed Nifty right in front of me. My…my only friend, the only thing that loved me…"
Adam shifted his hand from her arm and let it rest on her back, gently stroking her between the shoulders.
"I…I tried to leave, but…" Nifty tapped her cheek, "They hurt Nancy. Hurt her bad. So bad they couldn't hide it, had to take her to a hospital…and when she woke up and saw her face…" She started to giggle again, shaking as her mirth was intermixed with wracking sobs, "And that's the day Nifty was born! Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me!" The demon maid laughed, a choked, painful sound, "Nancy…poor Nancy, she couldn't handle it. The pain, the suffering…but Nifty? Nifty could handle it. Nifty was such a good cat, so clean…Nifty would clean. Nifty would fix. They wanted everything to be so clean, but they were the dirty ones! Unclean, spreading filth over Nifty's clean home!"
Angel Dust and Pentious jumped at the sudden scream of rage from the tiny cyclops.
"Hehehe…Nifty knew how to fix it, how to clean them all up," she giggled, eye wide and bloodshot, tears still streaming down her cheeks, "They just loved their little garden parties, showing off all the hard work Nifty did, making a mess! And Nifty…Nifty knows how to make drinks. Drinks so good they'd never want to drink again! The whole neighborhood…they all knew. They never helped. Nancy was just some stupid, clumsy foreign whore. She would never be dangerous…"
"Ah, a good ol' fashioned death at dinner, quite the classic!" Alastor chimed in, toasting Nifty with his cup of tea, "Bet you threw a party to die for, my dear."
"'Oh Misses Robinson, that's quite a lovely sundress! Would you care for some more tea?'" Nifty tittered, clapping her hands in amusement before she slumped, "They never saw it coming…but Nifty didn't…I didn't-I mean, why-Nifty couldn't-it was…I didn't mean it…"
"…What didn't you mean?" Angel Dust asked tentatively.
Nifty started to laugh, her smile fading for the first time. She glanced up at Adam, her lips trembling. "I didn't mean it," she said again, "You believe me, right? I wouldn't. I couldn't! I-I didn't mean it! PLEASE!"
Adam simply stroked her head and said nothing.
"…Nifty?" Charlie asked softly.
The demon maid chuckled, shaking her head ruefully. "I didn't mean it…Nifty didn't mean it…she-she never even thought of it. Nancy? Nancy would've known. Nanako…poor, sweet, innocent Nanako, even she would've known…" She gave them a small, pained smile as she cried, "But Nifty? No-no, Nifty didn't know, Nifty wouldn't, why…why would Nifty think that they'd bring their kids?"
The silence was deafening.
"She tried to stop it," Nifty sobbed and laughed, "Oh, Nancy tried so hard…but it was too late. Everything was poisoned, everything. And by the time she realized…the little ones are supposed to be dirty, supposed to be unclean, it's how they're supposed to be…but Nifty cleaned them all. So small…so still…so wrong…and Nancy…Nifty made sure everything else was clean. The Bad Man, Ellen, all the neighbors…she tucked the little ones into the big bed, wrapped them up nice and sweet…then set the house on fire. Purged it all, in fire and flames," she giggled faintly, "Then she settled into bed with them, the ones she never meant to hurt, and drank the tea…and then Nifty woke up down here. Nifty became real."
Charlie and Vaggie were holding each other, eyes wide with horror. Angel, Husk and Pentious had scooted their chairs together and weren't much better. Only Alastor seemed unaffected, but his smile was not quite as toothy as usual.
Adam's face was like stone, but his fingers were soft as he carded them through Nifty's hair.
"It was so…filthy. So unclean. And Nifty…Nifty hoped, if she could clean it all…" she sniffled, "Maybe she could…maybe Nancy, maybe Nanako, maybe she could be forgiven, and then…and then Nifty could finally rest again. No more for her to clean. No more for her to fix…"
The silence returned, broken only by Nifty's soft cries. Adam removed his hand from her head, making her sob, before he carefully scooped her up in his arms and teleported them away.
In his suite, Adam carefully sat down, setting the maid in his lap as she cried into his robe, running his hands through her hair. "How long have you been Nifty, Nifty?" He asked quietly.
"Ever since," she murmured, "When Nifty arrived here…Nancy, and Nanako, they were asleep, and there was only Nifty. She was so lonely, everything was so dirty…she didn't even think about selling her soul to Bad Man, just to have someone around…not even Nifty's soul to begin with. But then…Great Clean One arrived, and…" She looked up at him, her eye watering, "They woke up. They hoped…we hoped that you could help us, but…Nifty knows she doesn't deserve it. Nancy…she's so tired. Nanako…doesn't know what's going on, what happened. They were me, but now, I'm me and Nifty's here…I don't understand, Adam," the maid whispered, "Please…can you help me?"
"I've been trying, you know?" He replied with a small, sad smile, "Letting you in my space, letting you get used to me…this step, though, was one you had to take for yourself. For you…Hell has a way of making things worse. On Earth, your mind fractured but down here, your soul did as well. And…I understand you, Nifty. Better than you'd think."
"How could you-?" She shook her head, pushing herself off of his lap and pacing, her hands tugging at her hair, "Why would you-? I-Nifty's a monster! The things she did! I…I wanted to be free, wanted it all to end, but…" her eyes welled with tears, "Not like that. Never like that. How could you under-?!"
Something cracked, but not bone or wood. The shadows deepened and blackened, growing until abyssal fingers stretched across the walls and the floor. Nifty slowly turned, her breath catching in her throat.
Adam loomed over, his hands hanging limply at his sides, fingers subtly twitching, and she realized why it had gotten so dark: his wings, beacons of warm golden light, were gone. The darkness swallowed his features except for his eyes glowing from within. His pupils were white.
"I understand…" he said softly, almost casually, his tone deeper and lighter at the same time, something primal within her shivering in fear, his pupils growing, teeth flashing in the shadows. Something touched her cheek, not a hand, not a feather, and a tear trailed along the invisible thing in his direction before dropping to the carpet.
"…Because I'm a monster, too."
She gasped. "Adam…?"
"There are ways one could go about fixing your problem, Nifty," he continued in that same eerily causal tone, "Both methods that come to mind are difficult, for wildly different reasons. The first…is acceptance. Not just of yourself, of your pieces, but what they did as well."
"No!" She shouted, crossing her arms tightly, "Not what I- not what Nifty did! Please…"
Adam nodded and his wings reappeared on his back, his eyes returning to normal and the room brightening. He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "You see, Nifty, what happened…it's like you have shards of glass jammed into your skin," he started, shrinking down so he could hold her hand without having to kneel, "If you can't accept them, then the only other option is excision. It'll be painful, but it might work."
She nodded slowly, leaning against Adam and carefully hugging him. "…What do I need to do?"
He squeezed her gently. "Do you want to live, Nanako?" He whispered in her ear.
She shuddered, squeezing her eyes shut. Do it, Nana, Nancy whispered, Take the chance I never got. Let me go.
Do it, Nifty whispered, let Nifty rest. Adam can fix. Nifty tried. Nifty…tired. Let Nifty sleep.
Be free.
"…Yes," Nanako whispered, "Please help me, Adam."
He gently kissed her cheek. "Then here's what we need to do-"
…
Charlie knocked lightly on Adam's door, biting her lip as there was no response once more. "C'mon, answer…please," she groaned, resting her head against the door.
"It's been three days," Vaggie pointed out, laying a hand on her shoulder, "I think we'll just have to leave it be, hun."
"I mean, who knows what they could've been doing on that timeframe!" Alastor added cheerily, "Why, maybe he's killed her? Had to happen at some point, eh?"
"Shut up, Al," Charlie muttered, knocking again, "Adam wouldn't do that, he likes Nifty…"
"Says something about him, doesn't it?" The Radio demon continued, tapping his fingers against his cane, "The one he's the most comfortable with did some bad things…like finds like, as they say!"
"Shut. Up." The Princess shot Alastor a dark look, "Nifty's isn't- whatever. I just-" She jumped as something ran up her spine, "They're in the kitchen." She snapped her fingers and suddenly, they were in the kitchen, too.
Adam was at the stove, cooking something in a pot. He sent them a warning look as Charlie opened her mouth to speak. "-this was her favorite?" He said softly.
"Yeah…" Nifty stood on a stool next to him, also cooking, "I loved Italian food. The noodles reminded me of home, but it was so different compared to what I knew. I could never get a lot, but- tuna's Nifty's favorite! Cod's close, but chicken…mm, even better!" She giggled and sniffed, sighing at the scent.
"Food's on, darling!" Adam announced, dishing up a couple plates of fettuccine alfredo, "Can you take these to table?" He turned to sinners, holding up a sign that read DON'T INTERFERE. He flipped it around and nodded at the pots and pans on the stove. YOU CAN EAT THOUGH.
Nifty giggled and set the plates on a tray, nearly skipping into the dining room. Adam served up two filets of fish and covered them with a domed tray, pointing at his eyes then at the Happy Few in a clear warning. Then he followed the tiny maid out.
They peeked through the door to find that it had been merged with the lounge, with only a single small table in the center of the room, next to the dancefloor. "Mm, this is good," Angel mumbled through a mouthful of pasta, "What the fuck are they doin' though?"
Adam set the domed tray aside and walked over to the table where Nifty was waiting, her usual manic energy traded for a shy, almost demure look and her usual apron for a light blue dress. The First Man shrank as he walked up to her until he was just a little taller, taking Nifty's hand and kissing the back. "I hope you weren't waiting long, Nancy my dear?" He asked charmingly, pulling her chair out.
Nifty/Nancy blushed, smoothing her dress down as she sat. "Not long at all," she said shyly, "I wasn't sure when you'd show up."
"I wouldn't miss this night for the world, darling," Adam replied with a smile, removing the cork from a bottle of wine, pouring them both a glass, "I ordered your favorite." He removed the lid from the tray to reveal the pasta Nifty had brought in, setting plates in front of them. "So tell me, darling, how was your day?"
Charlie stared at the two, agog. "Is this…date night?" She whispered incredulously, jealousy knotting in her chest, "Since when was that a thing?! Since when were they a thing?!" Though, it did give her an idea…
"I dunno, but she usually ends up under his robes most days, who knows what they've been getting up to?" Angel snickered, nudging Charlie with his elbow, "I think they're pretty cute, you know? Good thing we found out about the size-changing thing."
Husk stepped on one of the spider sinners feet, giving him an angry look. Angel mimed something. Husk squinted at him, confused. Angel mimed again, pointing at Nifty, tapping his wrist, then pointed at Charlie. "I guess…she really didn't waste any time?" The bartender said slowly, and Angel Dust nodded.
Charlie bit her lip, subtly shooting a glance Vaggie's way. The fallen wore a conflicted look, arms crossed, though there was something unreadable in her eye.
Pentious swallowed a bite of fish, wiping his mouth on a napkin. "I believe this is more an exercise that Adam is doing with Nifty to help with her conflicted nature," he theorized, before bobbing his head, "Though I admit, they are rather cute together. I ship it…I think that's how the saying goes."
They watched a rather standard date between the cyclopean maid and the First Man, the two eating pasta, drinking wine and holding hands as they chatted. "Care for a little more, my darling?" Adam asked, gesturing to their empty plates and glasses.
"Oh no, I couldn't eat another bite," Nifty/Nancy replied demurely, "It was quite delicious, thank you for bringing me here, my love."
"Well, I hope you aren't too full," he stood up from his chair and offered her his hand as music started playing from nowhere, "May I have this dance?" He asked with a gentle smile.
Nifty/Nancy blushed and took his hand, squeaking adorably as he pulled her to her feet and took them to the dancefloor as Fly Me To The Moon began to play. "Sinatra?" She gasped.
"Especially for you," Adam crooned, pulling her into his arms as they danced.
They spun together on the floor, swaying to the tune. He spun her, dipped her and even lifted her, the cyclopean maid giggling sweetly the whole time. Finally, as the song reached its crescendo, Adam dipped Nancy deeply and kissed her, her foot unconsciously popping.
Charlie seethed silently.
"Oh…oh my," Nancy gasped, leaning heavily on Adam, "I think I may have had a bit too much wine, I'm rather tired all of a sudden."
"Then let us retire, my darling," he murmured, sweeping her off of her feet and into a bridal carry.
Vaggie seethed silently.
"Uh oh," Husk muttered, "If that means what I think it means, I do not want to see that."
Thankfully, Adam only carried Nancy to a nearby couch, sitting down on it with her in his lap, her head resting on his shoulder. He stroked her hair, gently kissing her as they cuddled. "…Has this night been everything you dreamed of?" He asked, his whisper barely carrying.
"Yeah…" Nancy murmured, looking up at him with happy tears in her eye, "It was perfect, Adam. Thank you…" She blushed and ducked her head, "Could you…kiss me again?"
Angel seethed silently.
"Of course," Adam said softly, tilting her chin up pressing his lips to hers. She hummed, caressing his cheek, and they separated with a quiet smack.
"Thank you," she mumbled, her eyes fluttering closed, "Thank you…" She slumped in his arms.
Adam sighed and shifted, reaching under her dress and removing what looked like a small stuffed doll. He set it aside, then set her on the couch and snapped his fingers. The dishes disappeared, the room changed into more of a living room living room/dining room mix, and there was a TV mounted on the wall. He cracked his neck. "Nifty!" He called, the demon maid hopping to her feet like a startled cat and hissing, "Dinner's ready!" He pulled the dome from the tray and let the scent of fresh-cooked fish waft out.
"Ooooh! Nifty's favorite!" Nifty chirped, skipping over to the table and instead of taking a seat in the opposite chair, she planted herself in Adam's lap with an impish smile. "Feed me."
"Imperious little…" Adam grumbled but fed her bites of fish as he petted her head. She hummed smugly and snuggled into his lap.
After the food was all gone, he picked Nifty up on his shoulder and carried her to the couch, sitting her back in his lap as he turned the TV on, the game console underneath it, taking a controller for himself and handing a much smaller one to her.
Charlie wasn't sure what game they were playing, except that it involved some very buff men shouting gruffly and the main weapon seemed to be a gun with a chainsaw attached to it, which Nifty used almost exclusively. The tiny demon giggled as another enemy was chainsawed in half with a fountain of blood spraying over the screen, then had her character run up to another and repeat the process, her laughter growing louder and more maniacal as it continued.
"Focus, it's the final boss!" Adam called, knowing damn well she wouldn't focus and handling it himself.
Triumphant music began to blare as the credits rolled, and Nifty let out a deep sigh as she tossed the controller onto the table. "We did it…" She sighed in an oddly subdued voice.
"Yep," the First Man tossed his controller and leaned back on the couch, "Is there anything else you wanted to do? Movie, maybe?"
"Hmmm…" Nifty hummed mischievously, eyeing him with a smirk, "Nifty mmmmaybe has an idea-" She tackled Adam with a sudden leap, knocking him and the couch over, leaving only his flailing feet visible over the bottom of the couch. Her giggling, his muffled grunting and the smacking of lips was a pretty good sign of what was going on, though.
The noise eventually faded, and Adam sat up with Nifty cradled in his arms. Reaching under her dress, he removed a small stuffed doll and set it on the table next to the other. "Nanako?" He said softly, shaking the cyclopean demon.
She groaned and sat up, blinking at him. Her eye fell on the dolls, emotions swimming in the depths of it, and she slowly reached out to touch them. "I can…feel them," she murmured, gently stroking the dolls.
Adam pulled a small coffin out of his sleeve and set it on the table. "Are you ready?" He asked quietly.
She swallowed audibly and nodded, picking up the dolls and depositing them in the coffin, beginning to cry quietly as she closed the lid. He waved a hand, the wall opening up to reveal the grassy grounds of the hotel, and she took the box in her arms and began to walk outside.
Adam glanced over at The Happy Few and put a finger to his lips, nodding after the tiny maid as she went before following her. Confused, Charlie and the others padded after them, trailing behind Nanako as she carried the box underneath a tree, a hole already dug in the grass and a headstone already placed.
Nanako came to a stop by the hole, kneeling in the grass and carefully lowering the box into the dirt. She sniffled as Adam stepped up beside her, offering her a shovel as he held his own. Together, they buried the little coffin and patted the earth flat. Adam pulled a small bouquet of daisies and yellow daffodils, handing them to Nanako and letting her place them on the mound of dirt.
"N-Nancy…Nifty," she began, voice tremulous, "I'm so sorry for what happened to you…if I'd been stronger, you never would've existed, never would have experienced the pain of…of everything that happened. I…I will be stronger. I'll take everything you taught me, and I'll use them to make myself a better, truer person. Thank you, for everything…please, rest in peace."
Adam bowed his head along with Nanako, and it only felt right for the rest of them to do the same. Charlie had to reach out and press down on the back of his head to make Alastor do it, though.
Nanako coughed, harsh sobs suddenly wracking her body as she knelt on the grass, and proceeded to vomit up a torrent of black and red sludge, the sound of tearing cloth joining it. Again, and again her sick splashed onto the dirt, but it was almost sucked by the earth, leaving the gravesite fresh and pristine.
She wiped her mouth and spat, sitting up and wobbling as the ground seemed farther away. "I…I feel," she blinked at the sound of her voice, looking down at her hands and realizing that they were human instead of the claws she had before. "W-what?"
"Nanako?" Adam asked softly, laying a hand on her shoulder, "How do you feel?"
She blinked up at him, rolling her eyes in thought. "I feel…lighter," she mumbled, experimentally flexing her fingers, before she froze. "I…I can't hear them anymore. Nancy…Nifty, they're…they're gone."
"It worked," the First Man breathed, giving her a hug and laughing quietly, "You're free, Nanako. That's not the only change, either." He pulled a mirror from his sleeve and handed it to her.
She gasped as she looked at herself for the first time. She was still short, around 4'5" but no longer looked like a demonic gremlin; her hair was mostly black but orange approaching red around the fringes, her skin a grayish-white pallor, and most importantly… "My eyes," Nanako whispered, blinking at herself, "I'm me again…mostly." She looked down at herself, realizing that growing more than a foot meant her dress no longer fit and looked more like a swimsuit, clinging to her rather shapely curves. "Ah."
Adam snapped his fingers, clothing her in a loose sundress. "We'll figure out a new wardrobe for you later," he promised, unable to keep a bright, almost boyish smile from his face as he helped her up, "Everyone- Alastor- I'd like you all to meet Nanako."
Nanako blinked up at them, a blush filling her cheeks as she realized that they'd been there the whole time. "Um, hi, everyone," she said lamely, giving them a short bow, "I'm Nanako Yamashita. It's nice to meet you…again."
Charlie smiled warmly as she leaned down and hugged the sinner. "It's great to meet you, Nanako! I'm Charlie Morningstar!"
"You too!" Nanako beamed, squeezing the taller woman tightly, "Call me Nana!"
Vaggie stepped forward next, hand awkwardly raised for a shake. "Hi, um, Nana, I'm Vaggie."
Nana giggled and hugged the fallen around the waist, pressing her cheek to Vaggie's chest. "Hi, Vaggie!"
Husk cleared his throat, giving the smaller sinner a kind smile. "Nana, it's nice to meet you," he said, holding his arms out, "My name's Henry Whitmore, but you can call me Husk if you like."
As the reborn Nana hugged the bartender, Charlie sidled up to Adam. "How the fuck did you do that?" She asked out of the side of her mouth.
"No goddamn clue," he replied subtly, rubbing the back of his head and sighing, "Hell has a way of making things worse, so what would just be a case of traumatic DID instead became literally three shards of one soul. I thought maybe, if we could fulfill the wishes of those personalities and hold a metaphorical and literal funeral, it might actually lay them to rest. I didn't know it would actually work."
"You were guessing?" Vaggie murmured incredulously.
"Fuck yeah," Adam mumbled, hiding a yawn behind his sleeve, "Managed to get Nancy and Nifty to make a pair of bucket lists, and that's what we were doing the last three days." He withdrew a pair of crumpled sheets of paper from his sleeve and passed them to Charlie. "Last thing on the list…a perfect date for Nancy, and a quiet night in for Nifty."
Vaggie looked at the list her girlfriend held, eye widening at the nearly forty items all crossed out. "You did all of these…in three days?" She asked softly, glancing up at him and noticing just how deep and dark the bags around Adam's eyes were, "Did you sleep at all?"
"Nah," he shook his head casually, "She needed me."
"Blowing up a building?" Charlie asked incredulously, "I knew Nifty was violent-"
"-that was Nancy, actually," Adam interjected, "We just went and found an empty warehouse, stuffed it full of explosives and boom. It was pretty fun."
"I'm surprised sex with you isn't on here," the fallen said unthinkingly, "N-not that I was thinking of that, just, Nifty's been-"
"-It was," he grunted, "I convinced them it wasn't necessary. Not easily."
Angel cleared his throat as he stepped up to Nana next. "The name's Angelino Tornincasa," he introduced, "Call me Angel."
"Hello, Angel!" Nana smiled and hugged him.
"Tornincasa?" Charlie echoed confusedly.
"Yeah, it's my last name," the spider sinner shrugged bashfully, "I forgot I never told you guys."
Vaggie nudged Adam's side, noticing that his eyes had started to close. "How'd you come up with this idea, anyway?" She asked, making him jerk.
He blinked blearily down at her. "Well, once I figured the soul shard part out, I was wondering how to merge them back together, and I just thought 'what would Charlie do?'" He flashed her a tired wink. "Worked like a charm."
Charlie blushed deeply, flushing red from the root of her hair to the tips of her toes. Her girlfriend noticed, biting her lip with a conflicted look…but only for a second. "Hear that, babe?" She teased, bumping Charlie with her hip, "You're an inspiration."
"Stoppiiiit!" Charlie whined, hiding her face in her hands. She peeked at them from between her fingers, "…Did you really do that?"
"Yup," Adam said bluntly, "'Make them as happy as possible' was the only idea I really had. And it totally fuckin' worked."
Pentious doffed his hat as he bowed in greeting to Nana. "My dear, I am Phineas Fogge, and it is my great pleasure to make your acquaintance," he said, kissing her knuckles, "You may also call me Pentious."
"Hiya Penchy!" She giggled, bouncing on her heels. Her smile fell as she saw Alastor behind him, inching away and hiding behind Adam. "Bad Man," she murmured.
"An accurate description," Alastor chirped, offering a hand, "Always nice to meet a new employee! What's old is new again, as they say."
Everyone blanched, having forgotten that Alastor owned Nifty's soul, now realizing that this new woman in place of her now belonged to him…everyone except Adam.
"Let's find out," he said simply, gesturing with his finger. Alastor blinked, and everyone else gawked at the First Man. "Go on. Do the chain thing." He crossed arms and watched.
The Radio demon blinked again, then shrugged. "Far be it for me to disagree!" He said, smile growing sharper as he clutched a hand in front of him. Sickly green and black chains curled around his palm, stretching out between him and Nanako…
…They shattered before ever reaching her, shards of energy dissipating into mist before they fell to the grass. Alastor jumped, startled, staring at his hand in disbelief.
"Yup, that's what I thought," Adam muttered, scratching his chin, "You owned Nifty's soul, but Nifty only really 'owned' a third of it, and the other two thirds definitely didn't sell you anything. Majority rules, baby."
The Radio demon goggled at the First Man, disbelief and fury warring over his features.
"That's what you thought, but what if you'd been wrong?" Charlie asked worriedly, protectively hugging a trembling Nana.
"Then I would've demanded Al set her free," Adam shrugged blithely, giving a deep yawn.
"'Demanded?!'" Alastor spat incredulously, "You'd make demands of me? What if I'd said no? What then, oh mighty man?"
Adam fixed the Radio demon with a level stare. "I would've killed you," he said, simply and utterly.
"You…" Alastor sputtered, eyes glowing, "You've stolen from me! Again!"
"Free will is the right of all sentient beings," Adam replied flatly, "I haven't stolen shit."
"You…!"
Vaggie punched Adam on the arm. "That was still a dick move," she pointed out with a scowl, "Did you even think of how she'd feel about that?" She nodded at Nana, who was trembling in Charlie's embrace.
He blinked at her, the bags under his eyes stark in the moonlight. "…Oh. Fuck, you're right," he murmured, turning to the reborn sinner and missing the surprise on the fallen's face, "I'm sorry, Nana, I wasn't thinking. I'm gonna blame me being tired…and on that note, I'm gonna go take a nap."
"Are you ignoring me-?!"
"It's okay," Nana nodded, slipping out of Charlie's arms, "Can I go with you?"
"Sure thing, sister," Adam hefted her up onto his shoulder.
"Wait, you're gonna let her nap with you?" Angel pointed out incredulously, "What the fuck, man? Why not me?!"
The First Man blinked down at him. "…You've never asked," he said simply, then teleported away.
"Technically speaking, given how late it is, it's more like going to sleep than taking a nap," Husk pointed out with a smirk.
"That's even worse!" Angel cried.
Charlie grumbled to herself, "Is it really that easy?" Then her eyes fell on the fresh gravesite, and she couldn't help but smile. "I think we should all get some sleep," she announced, reaching out to take Vaggie's hand and disappearing with a pop.
Angel, Husk and Pentious headed back into the hotel, the latter two teasing the dramatically whining former, leaving Alastor by himself, furiously clutching his cane in a white-knuckled grip.
I will not stand for this, he thought, eyes glowing dangerously, I cannot stand for this. Something must be done.
…
Entry Number…One, I guess?
Being Nifty was…strange. I was myself, but I definitely wasn't at the same time. It feels like I was unconscious for most of my life and even more of my death, with these little flashes of violence that only made me want to burrow deeper…which is probably why things were so terrible. My parents always called me a willful child, told me I'd never get a husband acting like I did. Then they disappeared and it was only me and Himiko.
When he came to release us from the camp and I saw how interested he was, I couldn't help but think back to that time. I was a stranger in a strange land, our old home was ruined…I thought maybe getting a husband would be the best way to protect me and Himiko. But she left, said she wanted to build something with her own two hands…she always was stronger than me.
I changed myself, trying to fit the perfect image of a wife until…I wasn't myself anymore. And I just…stopped being me. It was easier to let Nancy, that face and person I made, be the one to do everything. Until she wasn't strong enough either…
…I don't want to talk about this anymore.
I just can't believe I had to die and go to Hell to actually find myself again. I don't know what kind of monster I would've become if it wasn't for Adam. Or Charlie.
I still feel it, sometimes. That urge for violence. It'd be easy to blame it on Nifty, but I was always like that. Adam helps me with it, playing video games, even the trust exercises…I'm getting stronger, I think.
…I can't help but wonder about Adam. Nifty loved him, Nancy loved him…they wouldn't have felt that way if I didn't, too. I just don't know if he'd ever see me like that…a sinner…he calls me 'sister' too, I don't how I feel about that either.
…But I'll figure it out. Me. Nanako.
And maybe, in time, I'll be able to actually join Adam's Eradicators. I think I'd like that.
I won't run and hide anymore.
Not from who I am.
Not from what I am.
Not from who I was.
Not anymore.
Not after what they've done for me.
I won't let them down.
…
…
…
…
…
…
A/N: And here we come to Nifty's last chapter and oh boy is there a lot to unpack. Let's start at the top:
Charlie's starting to ask some pretty hard questions, but before that she's getting them lovey-lovey feelings for (her soon to be) pair of nerds. And maybe not just lovey feelings, either. Cinnamon is a spice, after all. Plus a little shenaniganery never hurt anyone.
And then the final defeat of Charbuam! Such a big, overdramatic scene for what's essentially a super in-depth LARP…just like a couple of nerds. Vaggie gets to be the big hero, Adam gets to pull the sacrifice play, and the big boss gets poked to death before they get a load of loot. What's not to like? And one can't forget the development in their relationship…Angel certainly can't.
Gotta admit, I very much enjoy writing characters hamming it up. It's fun.
Plus…I mean just look at those nerds. I love 'em so much.
Also, I'm enjoying no one getting Adam's references. The oldest one being the most in-tune with pop cultures is just funny to me.
And look at that, not only have Vaggie and Adam grown closer, she's actually asking him for something! Almost everyone's grown closer together, it's almost like people who openly share and trust each other even though it's difficult can eventually find support and friendship even with people who seem different on the surface holy fuck. It's almost like understanding and addressing your flaws makes you a better person or something.
And then…Nifty. Nancy. Nanako. I haven't really read many stories where Nifty was a main character, so I feel like my take on her situation is fairly unique. Dark, definitely, unfortunately plausible, and with a sad, Hellish twist. The irony is, that whole situation is mirrored with almost everyone else at the hotel: a situation arises that they can't handle, so they mask over their real selves to deal with it, but then that mask becomes their face and it makes things worse. Though not quite to the extent of Nifty.
If the switching of tenses and persons with Nifty/Nancy/Nanako was a bit confusing, that was pretty much the point. Crazy people, like legitimately crazy and not just 'oooh i'm so quirrrky' crazy are kinda confusing, who knew.
Trauma has a way of ruining people.
And, well…what she did, even accidentally is very traumatizing.
And I've that one line 'Why would Nifty think they'd bring their kids?' in my head since I figured out her whole situation.
Plus, it turns out Adam and Nifty got along because of more than the whole Cleanse and Purge thing…but what kinda monster is Adam talking about?
How do you lay your demons to rest? A date night and a game night, turns out. Well, at the tail end of three days worth of bucket-list doing. Felt oddly appropriate that the thing that sealed the deal was just…peaceful interactions, loving even. And I've accidentally convinced myself that Adam/Nanako could actually work out, and not just 'cause she's a short-stack now.
Also Angel's last name. A tip of the hat to Sir Deathclaw for coming up with the name.
Plus, Charlie's become an inspiration! I'm sure that won't make her need any worse or anything…
OTT, OTT
And, well…Hippity hoppity, Alastor's losing even more property~!
It's prolly a little too easy, but I thought the whole 'soul division' thing and the majority rule canceling out Al's claim on a third of a soul was kinda cool. And uh-oh, looks like Al's starting to lose some of his composure…I mean, more. Doesn't seem…optimal for him, does it?
And finally, Nanako's first journal entry. It'll be hard for her, but she's got a support system in place and friends who'll have her back. Because, at the end of the day, that's what the story's all about.
Anyway, next up are Alastor's chapters, and hoo boy are they gonna be fun. Not so much for Al, but hey, can even the worst of the lot find a glimmer of hope? Find out next time.
Big thanks, as always, to NSG for being The Man. I know he's got some good stuff, so why don't you head over and read some of it and tell him I sent you?
Another thanks to the peeps in the discords and whatnot, both my own and the FMC.
And the biggest of thanks to you, for taking the time to read my chapter. Chapter 20, man…this has got to be the longest time I've stuck with a single story. I hope you're enjoying the ride because I sure am, and there's more to come.
Stay Awesome!
~Soleneus
P.S.: Birthday's still coming up. Would be a really nice gift if there was a page or two for this story that I've been working on so hard on tvtropes, just saying…very motivating, I tell you.
Also, I done got a new job. I hope that the transition won't have too much of an affect on my writing, seeing as I've already got two more chapters locked and ready, but we'll see.
Been thinking about some other stories, too. We'll see what comes of that, I guess.
Summer's over, here comes Fall and all its pumpkin-y glory.
Stay Awesome Some More.
~still Soleneus