Chapter Text
In a cold wisp of shadows, Alastor arrived at the hotel, slinking in, pleased to find the very man he had hoped stuck around. Despite Angel’s apparent boredom, tapping away on his phone, long, lanky body filling the couch as he lazily lounged about, he was still under the constraints of whatever deal Vox had struck with him. Alastor wondered about the specifics for a brief second before waving the thought away. It hardly mattered at the moment.
He strode over and sat primly on the edge of the couch, smiling politely at Angel, who raised a brow at him in return. After a prolonged silence of the two staring at each other, Angel groaned.
“Just spit it out already! I know it ain’t gonna be good so we might as well get it over with.”
Alastor chuckled. “How very hasty of you.”
“Yeah, yeah. What d’ya want?”
“I’m sure you’re well aware that I’ll soon need to depart this ever-lovely hellish plane of ours. I won’t waste a second more of your time; I’m in need of a favour from you.”
Angel lowered his phone, dread etched in his expression. Alastor’s smile grew when he saw the glimmer of their deal shimmering into view.
“Shit,” Angel breathed, setting his phone aside.
“Oh, don’t look so glum!” The tip of his claw tapped Angel’s knee in a jovial manner. “I daresay you’re the only one who might be up to the task I have in mind.”
A pair of ghoulish eyes stalked him from the shadows, watching intently as Alastor’s throat constricted. He had to choose his words very carefully, lest his maker become privy to the deeper workings of his plan.
“You see, I cannot have you running around, relaying this and that to our flat-faced friend. With such an important trip coming up, who knows what kind of sensitive information might fall into our hands? It would be just terrible if our favourite spider on the wall went opening his mouth, and even worse if he found himself at the bottom of my shoe!”
Angel sat up, tucking his knees to his chest and shrugging, unfazed by Alastor’s obvious threat. “I can’t just leave. I made a deal.”
His words clung to the walls, seeping through the ears of the darkness that haunted them. Alastor’s gaze flicked down, only quick enough to find his shadow coiled worriedly around his leg.
“I sincerely doubt you would have agreed to any deal that had you permanently relocating to the hotel. All I want you to do is a job. Something simple, really. You wouldn’t have any trouble at all.”
“A job,” Angel repeated with a pinched frown. “I’m gonna regret askin’, but… what kinda job?”
“I’ll need you to infiltrate that showy, no-good tower of Vox’s and keep all eight of your beady, little eyes on those pesky Vees. If they’re sending you to spy on us, then I suspect they’re up to something.”
“What’s the job, Alastor?” Angel asked again, his voice wavering with urgency, as if he knew what task was about to befall onto his lap.
Alastor wished he could say he would enjoy revealing the nature of his request. Maybe, in the distant past, he would’ve. Now, it felt almost too cruel, what with his knowledge of the situation.
Still, it needed to be done.
“I hear Valentino is hiring. He would be tickled pink to have one of his best employees back under his thumb.”
“No,” Angel choked out, narrowing his eyes before jolting to his feet. “No!”
Alastor didn’t humour the frantic spider with a response. Instead, he scooted so his back was leaning against the cushion, crossing a leg over the other as he waited out Angel’s expected reaction.
“Alastor, you can’t—you can’t do that to me. You know what he put me through. You—” Angel laughed wildly, gripping his hair. “Oh god.”
Silence.
“You’re a monster,” Angel snarled, pointing his trembling finger. “A fuckin’ monster! You can’t make me do this, Alastor—”
“Oh, but I can. You owe me.”
“Anything else. You can ask anything else of me, but not this.”
Alastor studied his nails with an air of disinterest. “I’m afraid this is all I want from you.”
The piercing hiss of a rattle caught his attention as Alastor calmly peered up at the sight of Angel’s demonic form, the sharp end of one of his arachnid arms aimed for his neck.
“I’d rather kill you than go through with this,” Angel barked, his voice distorted, sounding borderline animalistic with its tormented accompaniment of angry clicks and clacks.
“That wouldn’t change a thing,” Alastor drawled, gently nudging the claw away from himself.
“It’d change everything. I’d kill you and take all your fuckin’ souls and you’d—”
Before he could finish speaking, Angel was hurled into the wall behind him. Shadows and tendrils kept him in place, most notably his head and limbs, so he couldn’t administer poison into his binds. Alastor remained seated, suppressing a yawn. Then, he stood, stalking towards his prey.
“I think you forget who you’re dealing with, Angel,” Alastor said, standing in front of him. “What you might face at the hands of Valentino is nothing in comparison to what I might do to you for your disobedience. I am the only reason you have any power at all in this pathetic existence of yours, so I recommend not overstepping your bounds because I can just as easily take it all away.”
Angel bared his fangs, struggling against his pinned position. Alastor watched the spider’s futile attempts at escape, and when it seemed clear he wasn’t getting anywhere with it, he slumped, head bowed low in submission.
“Finished?” Alastor asked.
“I’ll tell Charlie,” Angel tried in one last-ditch attempt. Alastor almost commended him for his tenacity.
“I’d make you disappear without a trace before you could even muster a breath in her general direction. How does a year in solitary sound?”
Alastor was bluffing, of course. He would never condemn even his foulest of foes to what he had suffered, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t.
“Sure beats lookin’ at your ugly mug,” Angel growled. “Do what you want. Make me disappear, since you’re such a hotshot. I’d take a year in solitary over another second with that bastard, Valentino.”
“You haven’t a clue what you’re talking about. Solitary is not to be sniffed at.”
“Talkin’ from experience?”
Alastor hesitated for a moment longer than he should’ve, enough for Angel to catch on, and certainly enough for the lurking darkness to slither closer, displeased by Alastor’s slip up. His throat constricted as his master took the reins, locking Alastor in his internal cage.
“Not personal experience,” The Shadow said through Alastor’s lips, “but I’ve broken enough souls with a mere month. I could show you, if you’d like. Perhaps you could stay for a day, just to have a taste.”
Alastor banged on the walls of his mental enclosure, giving it one good, frustrated kick before he sat down and huffed. It always had to interfere, didn’t it? Alastor was making good work with Angel, and it wasn’t as if he was revealing anything particularly incriminating. For all Angel knew, he could’ve been talking about solitary confinement in prison!
His ears perked up when he heard the snap of his fingers, and a familiar chill running down his spine. The portal to nothing.
“Off you go, dear spider!” The Shadow laughed cruelly, and Alastor heard the faintest of yells from Angel before—
He blinked, glancing down at his hands, clenching and unclenching as he regained control over himself. A swift look around informed him that Angel had, in fact, gone missing, and it didn’t take Alastor long to know where he had gone missing to.
“Annoying, that one,” The Shadow whispered into his ear from behind. “I’ll let him out after a week, then you shall be able to do with him as you please.”
“You’re a fool,” Alastor scowled. “Angel has more grit than you give him credit for.”
“We’ll see.”
“No, truly, you are an idiot. I do not have a week to sort this out. I’m expected to leave in a few days! ”
The Shadow’s grin grew viciously taut against its wispy face.
“Why the rush, sweet fawn? If your concern was in this Angel fellow relaying sensitive information, he will not be a problem. I will merely release him once you are done with your heavenly duties.”
Alastor straightened. “He is not yours to toy with in that accursed place!”
“And yet, there he shall stay.”
Alastor took a deep breath, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“One hour,” he demanded. “He’ll stay there for one hour. That should be enough for him to realise the severity of the situation.”
It chuckled. “You’ve gotten braver. Perhaps you’d like to join him.”
Alastor’s ears pinned down to his skull as he bowed his head, adrenaline pinching his nerves and heart thrumming anxiously.
“I am nothing if not merciful,” The Shadow asserted calmly, brushing away at Alastor’s shoulders, picking at the lint. “But let this be a warning to you, Alastor. You may have behaved as of late, but I will not tolerate insubordination.”
Slowly, pathetically, like the coward he was, Alastor nodded, eyes still glued to his feet.
“Good. I will release him in twenty-four hours.”
There was the sound of distant chattering as Charlie and Lucifer rounded the corner. The Shadow melted into the ground, out of sight, but for Alastor, not out of mind.
“Oh! There you are, Alastor,” Charlie beamed, and Alastor returned her smile.
“Here I am indeed, Princess. What can I do for you?”
“Have you started packing?”
“It’s a day trip, is it not?”
“Well, yeah, but you gotta be prepared for anything. We might need to stay the night, especially because this is a really big deal. I mean, somebody got redeemed! That’s not something you see every day,” Charlie rambled, words tumbling out her mouth, in one of Alastor’s ears and out the other.
He was far too distracted by a pair of scarlet eyes staring him down. Or… up, one should say. He was such a short thing, the king. Dreadfully amusing, Alastor thought. His closed-lip grin grew as he tipped his head to acknowledge Lucifer’s presence.
“You better take care of my Charlie,” Lucifer warned, tapping the end of his cane on Alastor’s chest.
“And here I was, hoping to push her off a cloud. All’s the pity,” Alastor sighed wistfully, navigating the cane away in swift motion.
“Ha, you’re hilarious,” Lucifer drawled, before something else caught his attention.
He raised a brow and studied the room, trailing the walls with his hardened gaze. Alastor watched intently, curious to know what he might be sensing. It couldn’t possibly be—
“Charlie,” Lucifer said suddenly, “why don’t you check on that girlfriend of yours? Bet she’s all frazzled since she’ll be expected to keep an eye on the hotel.”
Lucifer didn’t break a smirk over his own joke, Alastor had to wonder if he had even heard it. Although, he doubted Lucifer ever truly heard himself. The man was quite the moron.
“Oh, uh, okay. You’re probably right. I’ve gotta go over everything with her so she knows just what to do. She’ll be okay, though. I trust her, and she’s got you and Niffty helping out, and maybe Angel too.” Charlie then glanced around. “Where is Angel? I swore he was just on that couch last I saw him.”
“I imagine he’s checking on his district,” Alastor lied, expression unwavering. “You know how busy us Overlords tend to be.”
“Tch. Busy.” Lucifer rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. “Busy being a buncha’ wannabe royalty. Amiright, Char-char? Put ‘er there.”
Lucifer lifted his hand for a high-five. Alastor could barely stifle the snort he made when she seemed too preoccupied counting something on her fingers to notice.
“Okay, I gotta go,” Charlie said, reassured by whatever result she came to after her supposed mathematical equation. “I’ll see you guys later! Bye Dad, bye Alastor.”
The princess left while Lucifer paled, his hand hovering in defeat.
“My, that was rather embarrassing,” Alastor chimed. “I would offer to clap hands with you, but I don’t know where you’ve been.”
Lucifer dropped his arm, scowling at Alastor before he moved past him, tracing the wall as he continued down the room. Alastor stayed firmly planted in place, resting his hands over his cane as he twisted his head to follow Lucifer’s path.
“Something is in here with us,” the king muttered, a frown pinching his thick brows together. “Something…”
“Something?”
“Dark.”
Alastor felt the presence of his owner dissipate into thin air, leaving the establishment.
“Must’ve been the wind. Or perhaps, my own shadow?” Alastor gestured to his tenebrous friend who waved awkwardly.
“It’s gone,” Lucifer stated, but he didn’t sound one bit relieved. If anything, he seemed more concerned than when he sensed its presence in the first place.
“Your age might be catching up to you, sir,” Alastor remarked, trying to distract him.
It didn’t work quite as well as he’d hoped. Lucifer strolled towards Alastor, calm and collected, as he took one last glance around the room.
“It’s a good thing Charlie will be gone. Gives me a chance to give this place a proper inspection. Who knows what kind of creatures are living within these walls?”
Lucifer’s sharp gaze locked onto Alastor, who coolly stared back.
“Or what some of her new friends could’ve brought with them.”
Alastor waved a dismissive hand. “I’m sure you’ll have plenty of fun with your needless perusal of the hotel while we’re out. You ought to ask Niffty for her assistance. She’s particularly well-versed in the layout of the hotel, what with all the nooks and crannies she finds in the midst of one of her cleaning frenzies.”
“There’s something about you,” Lucifer noted, disdain and distrust dancing atop his curled upper lip. “You’re hiding something big, I know it, and believe me, I’m going to figure out what. You threw yourself into battle against an archangel, and for what purpose? Because I highly doubt it had anything to do with protecting Charlie or her hotel. Was it to show off your power? That you survived that fight? Instill fear upon the common sinner?”
Alastor didn’t respond, content with riding out whatever nonsense Lucifer was spewing.
“Or were you forced?” Lucifer leaned closer. “Maybe you’re on somebody’s chain, thrown to the wolves for the sake of entertainment.”
Not quite, but Alastor was amused by Lucifer’s guesses.
“Awfully quiet. Did I hit a chord?”
“Of course not,” Alastor scoffed, playfully offended. “Though, if you’re finished, I would like to be on my way. There’s much to be done before my trip.”
Lucifer sighed through his nose in defeat, opening his mouth to retort but closing it soon after without uttering a word. Alastor took that as his cue to leave, bowing his head politely to the tiresome monarch before stalking away, his shadow close behind.
Alastor could barely sleep that night, haunted by flashes of darkness, even while his lights remained flickering above his bed, their glow dim, the barest of comforts. Angel would be wandering the nothingness with not even his own chittering shadow to talk to, anxiety likely biting his skin the way it did Alastor. Guilt gnawed his stomach, twisting and pulling, a feeling that Alastor wasn’t too familiar with when it came to those outside Vox and his mother.
Hours passed by with Alastor not moving an inch, hands clasped above his stomach and sights set on the tear in the canopy over his bed.
“What is on your mind?” came a quiet voice.
Alastor glanced a little to the right, where his shadow plastered himself into the fabric.
“Don’t be nosy,” Alastor chided lightly.
“But I don’t have a nose—not really, anyway.”
The joke dragged a reluctant chuckle out of Alastor. His shadow smiled, spreading to the wall and down to the space beside Alastor.
“Is it about Vox?” his shadow asked.
“Shocking as it may sound, no. Not this time.”
“Is it—”
A barrage of furious bangs and knocks at Alastor’s door interrupted his shadow, the two of them eyeing the source warily.
“Open the damn door, Alastor!”
Husk?
Alastor’s eyes narrowed.
Husk. And a very infuriated Husk at that.
The pounding continued until Alastor opened the door, posing as though he wasn’t sure why the feline would show up in such a quarrelsome state.
“How can I—”
“Don’t you fuckin’ dare,” Husk hisses, pushing Alastor aside as he stormed into the room, slamming the door shut with his tail.
Alastor blinked as Husk whipped his tail around, biting down a growl like he was a feral animal. It seemed that Alastor wasn’t the only sinner cursed with the nature of his hellish form beyond appearances.
“Angel. Where is he?” Husk demanded.
“Is there a reason you’d expect me to know?”
“Well, he ain’t at the hotel, and he sure as hell ain’t in our district. Last I checked, he was sent to keep an eye on you. Now, I can’t find hair nor tail of him. Tell me why I shouldn’t suspect you to be involved in this shit.”
Alastor peered at the time. Still about seven hours to go. He regarded Husk with a dry look.
“You’re in an awful tizzy for not having seen him in a day. Some might think you’re suffocating the poor boy.”
“Charlie said she hasn’t seen him since early yesterday evening. Angel can fuck around all he wants. He could take a week off from me if it’d make him happy, but he wouldn’t do it without leaving a trace.” Husk brought out his phone, frowning at it. “‘Sides, he and I were supposed to have dinner together, and he hasn’t answered any of my calls. Call me crazy, but I got a bad feeling about it.”
“How horrible for you.” Alastor stuck out his lower lip in a mock pout, reaching to pet his ear.
Husk slapped him away with a snarl. “Where is he, Alastor?”
“I don’t know,” Alastor lied.
“Bullshit. I knew you wouldn’t take kindly to the whole deal crap between Angel and Vox, so tell me what you’ve done with him.”
Uncomfortable shame burned Alastor from the inside, scalding hot and bubbling, yet, he remained perfectly composed, only taking one steadily deep breath.
“Although I have no idea where Angel might have fled off to, I’m not above offering my assistance.”
“Forget it. I’m not making another fucking deal with you,” Husk said through gritted teeth, clenching his paws.
“No, no. There’s no deal to be made here, old friend. You have my word.”
“So there’s a catch.”
“Is it so hard to believe that I might be offering my aid on the basis of us being chums?”
Husk scoffed, arching a brow. “Who do you think you’re talking to? Think I just met you yesterday?”
Alastor couldn’t fault him there. He didn’t have the best track record of being friendly just for the sake of being so. There was always a catch, a game, and a due to be paid.
“You’re free to doubt my intentions, Husker. The fact remains that I do not know where he is. If I were you, I would come back later, perhaps in the evening. If he hasn’t returned by then, I’m sure Charlie would be more than happy to send out a search party, especially now that he is a guest here.”
Husk gruffed and groused, tapping a claw on his arm before his shoulders slumped. At his reluctant acceptance of the situation, Alastor strode to the door and opened it.
“Now, if you could kindly leave so that I may carry on with my day?”
“Fine. But if I find out you’ve hurt so much as a hair on him, then you better sleep with one eye open.”
“Whatever you say,” Alastor chimed with a smile, as though he found Husk’s threat nothing more than amusing.
Casting one final glare, Husk beat out his wings, a gust of wind knocking knick-knacks onto the ground. With lightning speed, he flew out the room, while Alastor remained unfazed, straightening his hair and monocle before closing the door.
Without any prying eyes, he allowed himself to mourn the inevitable loss of friendship between himself and Husk, knowing what’s to come.
Angel groaned, rubbing his face with a hand while propping himself up with his other arms. Bright, red tipped shoes greeted him the second he peeled his eyes open, and when he gazed up, he was met with an unwaveringly sharp grin.
He was back in the parlor, with nobody but Alastor to witness the darkness spitting him out like chewed gum. Trying to swallow down a dry throat proved a difficult task for Angel, like there were spikes embedded in his esophagus, biting the inner walls of his neck. Twenty-four hours without water, light, or food. Without sound or sight. Without Husk.
Angel shook his head. He couldn’t bear it. Or maybe he could, but he certainly wouldn’t like to test the waters and see how long he would survive in that empty void. He must’ve been going crazy, because he could’ve sworn he saw Alastor’s eyes soften.
“Pain is better than nothing,” Alastor murmured, sounding almost kind and empathetic as he offered a hand. “I would recommend you heed my words. Perhaps now, you might be ready to discuss that favour you owe?”
No. Pain wasn’t better than nothing. Not when it came to Valentino. Angel dug his nails into the floor, grinding his teeth and screwing his eyes shut. If he chose the only other option available to him, what would become of Husk? He would be worried sick, and Angel doubted Alastor would ever tell him the truth. If Husk wasn’t a concern, the choice would’ve been a no-brainer.
He wanted to throw up.
It wasn’t fair.
This wasn’t fair.
He had suffered enough in life under Valentino’s thumb.
“Please don’t…” Angel pleaded, clasping his hands together, hanging his head down low. “Anything else… I’ll—I’ll do anything else.”
His eyes stung as tears fell freely. He was pathetic and weak, even though he had worked hard to get to where he was. What kind of Overlord did begging at Alastor’s feet make him? Chains appeared clamped over two of Angel’s wrists, with Alastor tugging him up by them.
“I would’ve preferred you to be amicable, but alas, it can’t be helped,” Alastor sighed. “As per our deal, I am requesting a favour.”
Angel winced as his chains tightened. “No…” he whimpered. “Just send me back into that freaky dark portal or whatever! Don’t do this.”
No, Angel was a fool to have thought he had a choice.
“You will go to V Tower and sign a work contract with Valentino.” Before Alastor continued, he shared a brief glance with his shadow. He continued, but this time, quieter. “Once that is done, you will keep an eye on Valentino and do your best to lend a helping hand to Vox, should he need assistance in fending off the foul creature. You will find a way to alert me at once if Vox is in any immediate danger.”
“All this to protect Vox.” Angel glared through his tear-flooded eyes. “You’d throw me to the wolves if it meant protecting your precious Vox.”
“Oh, I would do much more than that to protect him,” Alastor corrected. “Although, I do apologise that this is the fate that befell you.”
The chains disappeared, and Angel’s orders were written on his skin, glimmering before fading from view. Angel stumbled back and rubbed his wrist, scowling.
“I’m gonna kill you the first chance I get. Mark my words, you are dead to me.”
Alastor lifted Angel’s head by the chin with the end of his cane, tipping his gaze.
“I’ll hold you to it, dear.”
Shadows tangled over Alastor’s limbs before fully coating his form, and just like that, he was gone. Angel let out an anguished scream, curling in on himself as footsteps hurried into the room. Soon, a pair of familiar, warm arms tugged him close, and Angel found himself surrounded by concerned guests and staff. He sought comfort in Husk’s golden eyes, unable to stop his lower lip from quivering as he crumbled into his arms.
At least, for now, he felt safe.