#DP/HH | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

mdizzle999872 · 17 days ago

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Injured Resident part: A

Sequel to my other DP/HH story titled: The Line

Pain. This was the first thing Danny Fenton noticed. He felt like he had just gone ten rounds with Pariah Dark without an Ecto-Skeleton on.

He was also lightheaded, his head was swimming so much that there was a good chance that he had a concussion.

Another thing to notice was he felt weightless. Not unusual for him given the life he's lead but this was different. Different in that he could feel something was holding him up, something that had a grip on each of his limbs.

Danny finally ventured for answers and opened his eyes. Even that hurt.

The situation was a bit worse than he thought. Danny was hanging. From the ceiling. By chains.

Never a good way to wake up from his experience.

It looked like he was in a lab of some kind. A metal dissection table stood underneath him and a swivel chair sat in the far end of the room. If he was seeing things right then someone attached a flat screen to the top of the chair?

He hated how weird his life got sometimes.

The chair suddenly swiveled around to reveal that the TV he thought was attached to the chair was actually attached to a person. He was rather skinny but Danny couldn't take notice of that as he was too distracted by the face with the evil grin on the screen.

"Mr. Fenton!" he greeted. "Awake at last I see!"

Danny struggled with his chains but he was too weakened to do anything other than make them rattle. This distraction was why it came as a surprise when the TV man closed the gap between them to talk straight to his face.

"My name is Vox, and I am a HUGE fan of the way you punched out Alastor!"

Danny's eyes looked at Vox and then at his chains.

"Now when you say 'fan'..."

Vox threw his... Screen (?) back with a laugh.

"No. Such things are somebody else's department. Which reminds me, now that you're up, I should really bring in the others."

His screen changed to a WiFi symbol. "GET IN HERE YOU TWO! HE'S AWAKE!"

The screen changed back to Vox's face who looked like he was waiting for a response from Danny.

"Where... Am I?" the adult halfa finally asked.

"Oh? You haven't figured it out? Where are my manners? Welcome to Hell!"

Instead of being shocked or afraid, Danny let out a groan of annoyance and let his head hang.

"I thought I was done with this nonsense..."

A door on Danny's left opened and in walked what Danny could only guess were demons of some kind.

One was a humanized month dressed like a pimp and the other was a short, dark skinned woman with red hair in large pigtails.

The woman grabbed him by the chin and inspected his face critically.

"This is your ghost man you won't stop going on about? His face is so... Normal! So regular! Ugh! I can't even look at it!"

She let his chin drop while the moth man inspected his torso.

"Now Velvette, don't be too quick to judge. I could find some use for this muscle toned body, even though his outfit screams for action movie instead of porno."

"The outfit, Valentino?" scoffed the woman. "Don't get me STARTED on the outfit! It's in taters! It's rubbish isn't it?"

"Children..." Vox called in a warning tone. "I'm afraid our new friend has been roughed up a bit too much actually. We have to fill him in on what's going on!"

"Right." Velvette leaned on Danny's shoulder, much to his pained displeasure, to get in close to paint a picture for him. "You remember about a month or so ago when a hotel was dropped into the middle of your town along with the war surrounding it?"

"... I've been trying to put it behind me, but yes."

Valentino, who was so tall he had to bend down to look Danny in the face, leaned in to take over. "Well all the residents went back to where they came from, but some of the equipment stuck around 'up top'."

Danny groaned again.

"This included surveillance equipment... Like cameras? So after we sent someone to retrieve them we learned what happened... By seeing the whole thing!"

Vox started to pelvic thrust. "Including that EPIC BEAT DOWN you gave Alastor and what's his name! I've never gotten a better gift in my LIFE! Seriously, I have it on loop when I-"

"I don't want to know!" Danny interrupted. "So you liked that I beat up the biggest Fruitloops on each side; what's that got to do with turning me into a pinata?!"

Vox grinned a type of smile he used to see Vlad wear way too often.

"Well that's the thing. Your power beat Alastor's. We liked that. We liked that a lot!"

"Allow me to further divulge," began Velvette. "When both factions disappeared, nobody in Hell knew what to make of it. Even less so when it comes back! All that was clear was that the hotel and its sinners were back and no angels were to be found. Sooooo... As the Vee's, that's us, we were front and center to take the credit for the lack of extermination!"

"Even though those hotel hillbillies stressed to everyone that we had nothing to do with it." added Valentino.

"So in other words, you didn't know what happened but when it was over you tried to take credit but the people actually involved in it wouldn't let you?"

It was a big run on sentence for Danny but it helped him cope.

"Yeah. That's pretty much it. He's a quick one!" complimented Valentino.

"You see, I'm launching a smeer campaign against Alastor!" Vox began.

"And the hotel!" Velvette quickly added.

If Vox could, he would have stuck his lower lip out at the interruption.

"And the hotel... but mostly Alastor! You remember that jerk, you destroyed his staff after all, but he's launching a counter campaign with his radio show!"

"Trying to get the real truth out there..." Valentino bitterly mused.

"Saying that we're full of shit!" added Velvette.

"And basically denying every grab at this game possible. That's where YOU come in..." Vox enthusiastically pointed at Danny.

Danny already hadn't liked how the situation looked, and he liked where it was headed even less.

"You and that spooky shout of yours have proven to be more effective against Alastor's power than anything! Using it, we can blow every single radio he broadcasts on!"

They wanted his Ghostly Wail. Made sense given the animosity towards the Fruitloop with antlers. What didn't add up was the power scaling.

If Danny was greater than Alastor, and Alastor was greater than these stooges...

"Wait... If you need MY help to deal with someone like Alastor... Then... How were you able to capture me?" asked Danny.

Danny tried his best to remember but his killer headache was making it difficult. It didn't make sense that they would be able to put him through the ringer this bad!

Vox grinned. "I had some help." His screen blipped out for a second and an image of Technus appeared.

"Surprise Welp!"

Like Danny himself, Technus had also grown stronger over the years. Not as much as Danny himself of course but enough to keep Danny on his toes when the ghost seemed to show his face. Last time he checked, he believed Technus was on model version 9.9 of himself.

The screen got a divider line running down the middle so now both Technus and Vox's face were visible. It was a split screen!

"Technus has had a lot of experience with your powers and their limitations from his constant battles with you."

"So when this fine fellow sent his people to learn about you, I had to make myself known!"

"And... After learning about him, his relationship with you, and what he could do for us... We decided to make a deal."

"I get to have you removed from my path of conquest of both the Earth and Ghost Zone..." started Technus.

"While I get the ultimate weapon against Alastor and can start MY conquest of Hell."

A sharp pain ran through Danny's head as he remembered something.

"Wait! I... Remember something! It... It wasn't just the two of you!"

"That's right, Spooky. Even together we couldn't take you down." admitted Vox.

"But when the Guys In White showed up to help with what they thought were a ghost related disaster cleanup..." started Technus.

"They suddenly found all the safety measures and firewalls in their weapons and vehicles to stop ghostly takeovers to be mysteriously turned off!" finished Vox.

Vox motioned to himself, implying it was his doing.

Danny hated to admit it but it made sense. The Guys In White had settled down a bit since Danny reached adulthood. More interested in serving the public trust then hunting Danny himself. They even helped a couple times against ghosts like Vortex.

Their weaponry had gotten more powerful too. And while it did have defenses in them to stop any ecto-based attack from taking over, Danny doubted that was how Vox's powers worked.

"I have finally spelt your DOOM, Phantom! True, it is a living doom, but it will be a life where you aren't in my way! Vox, when we're done with our conquests we should meet up to talk about fair trades between our kingdoms!"

"Do you like brisket? We could talk about it over brisket."

Danny had just about enough and started to glow his body green in powering up.

"Whoops! There he goes! Just like I told you he would!"

"Right..." Vox took out a device that reminded Danny a little bit of the Plasmius Maximus. It had more of a Guys In White look to it though.

He poked Danny in the throat with it but instead of shorting out his powers, it forced the energy he was trying to build into his throat where he unwillingly let out a small Ghostly Wail.

It was barely anything, only just more than a yelp, but it was enough to send Vox flying to the opposite end of the room.

More importantly though, it happened against Danny's will.

Danny wanted to break his chains, not... whatever that was!

Vox got to his feet, not even the slightest bit mad, if anything he looked pleased.

"Well I'll be... It actually worked!" he gushed.

"Of course it worked!" Technus cheered triumphantly. "A product of our keen intellects working together has no choice but to work!"

"What is that thing?!" Danny shouted.

"After work shopping many names we finally settled on the simple name of Ecto Diverter. Any time you want to use your powers to say... Try and escape, or recover from your injuries..."

"ZAPPO! The Ecto Diverter will force that energy to make you release a small but useful Ghostly Wail!"

Vox grin got even bigger.

"One that's easily transmittable. Thanks for your help Technus, been great working with you but..."

"Say no more! I got a realm to conquer and you've got torturing to do! Technus OUT!"

Technus blipped out and the screen returned to being just Vox's face.

"Not often I meet a kindred spirit. I do hope to see him again one day. After all... Thanks to him we're very sure we can keep you here!"

Vox grinned evilly as he got up in Danny's face.

"Maybe forever, if need be."

This was a nightmare to Danny. He was literally trapped to be used like some kind of weapon. And the worst part was that his ghost powers, his default tool to getting out of hairy situations, was part of the problem.

"HA!" Velvette cried out. "Look at his pathetic face! So much shock and despair! I got to get a selfie!"

Velvette made a duck face as she took a picture next to Danny's face.

"Aaaaaaaand... Posted!"

"Can we move on now?" asked Valentino. "We still got some equipment to setup if we want to broadcast this sonic at-"

"SHUT UP FOR A SECOND!" Vox shouted. "I'm trying to figure out where Alastor left off!"

With his cohorts silenced, Vox muttered to himself trying to remember Alastor's part of their song.

"Let's see, first he went 'Let's begin' and then there was the thing about wishing that he stayed gone and after that it was something about 'my race being done'? Or something stupid like that. Then he said that this would be fun and I screamed 'Fuck'! Yeah, that sounds right. I got it!"

The TV man took a moment to clear his throat before beginning.

"Ahem! You've been outdone! You're still going to wish that you stayed gone! My show will never be out runned! Now my vengeance has begun!"

Danny, despite his situation, stared dumbfounded for a moment.

"What was that?!" asked Danny.

"Oh Vox just wanted to pick up their musical where Alastor left off."

"Musical? What the fuck?!"

"Yeah, there's musicals in Hell. Go figure." shrugged Velvette.

"... I really am doomed."

"That's Hell for you." grinned Valentino.

______________________________________________________________

Unfortunately, time passes and Danny never found a way to free himself. How long was he in there? He honestly couldn't tell. Days? Weeks? Months for all he knew.

Sadly, a routine had already been set up for him. One of the Vee's would could come down and poke him with the Ecto Diverter to broadcast his Wail into their machine.

Danny tried to change back to his human form multiple times but they were keeping a close eye on him. Anytime he tried he would get prodded and the energy to transform became another Wail for them to use.

He never really stopped being defiant though. He struggled, he flailed, he resisted in every way he could possibly think of.

That was why they broke his foot.

To teach him a lesson. He had no doubt that in his condition it wasn't going to heal properly, if at all. He didn't care though, if he lost a foot maybe it could help him get out of these chains. Even death looked like a better option than helping these monsters.

The door to the room opened and the Vee's walked in, must've been time for his daily torture. Vox had a strange machine with him this time, and Danny didn't like the looks of it since it had the Ecto Diverter attached to it.

Velvette covered her nose. "UGH! YOU REEK!"

"Let me go and I promise I'll take a shower!" quipped Danny.

"Why still so defiant, Muchacho? If you could break out on your own you would have already. Just accept the fact that your purpose in life is to be used by your superiors, the Vee's."

"Yeah!" Danny scoffed. "Like I'm really going to take that from the pimp son of Mothra!"

"What did you just call me, you pathetic little weasel?!" Valentino stormed over to look at Danny in the face. "I don't need to harm your throat to leave you something to remember me by! Something to forever remind you about how above we are to you!"

"Oh yeah, biiiiiiiig man!" Danny's criticism overflowed with sarcasm. "Smack me around while I'm chained up. You're certainly dressed like that's the only way you could be a tough guy!"

"I DON'T NEED THESE CHAINS TO TEACH YOU A LESSON!"

He started to mess with the chains but just as Danny started to smile, Velvette stopped him.

"Don't be a Piss Baby! Look at him! He's literally chained up! And this is the worst thing he can do, throw insults." soothed Velvette.

Valentino calmed down but Danny didn't lose his smile.

"Exactly the kind of thing someone would say if that someone didn't know all of her followers were actually bots from Vox."

Now it was Valentino stopping Velvette from attacking Danny.

"I'LL KILL YOU!"

Valentino was just barely able to hold her back but for the first time in a long while Danny laughed.

"Maybe I'm wrong though." This suggestion grabbed Velvette's curiosity. "There is a really easy way to check for sure. I could show you if my hands were free."

"IDIOTS!" snapped Vox. "Can't you see what he's doing? He's trying to play you into releasing him! Not an uncommon tactic among hero types..."

Valentino grabbed Danny by the chin.

"You little BITCH! I'm going to..."

"Forget him!" ordered Valentino. "Help me set up this machine! We do this right and his wailing broadcasts will become automated."

Thankfully, Danny would never learn how the device worked as the lights suddenly went out without warning. There was also a distant sound of machines whirling to a stop.

"Right after we fix whatever THE FUCK just happened!" Vox shouted. "Velvette, what the fuck is going on?!"

The light from Velvette's phone illuminated her face as she furiously tapped her thumbs on the machine.

"We just lost power for the entire building. Something to do with the generators." she explained.

"Oh what the fuck?"

Vox dropped the machine, nearly throwing it, and looked to his cohorts.

"Alright change in plans! Velvette, you're with me! Together we're going to figure out exactly what the fuck happened and get the building up and running again!"

Velvette's eyes never left her phone but she gave a thumbs up and headed out the door.

"Valentino, guard the hallway! The only people who are to come down this way are Velvette and myself! SHOOT anybody else!"

Valentino took out his two guns and licked his teeth.

"I'm pretty sure there's a kink for this too!"

To Danny's surprise they actually left the room without a mean note for him to chew on. So far, that was the best part of his incarceration.

He was still left alone in the dark. His latest ploys almost worked but Vox had been no doubt tipped off of Danny's usual tricks by Technus. Perhaps, if he could just talk to one of the other two alone...

Danny didn't get to ponder this train of thought any further as a ceiling tile above him suddenly dropped in front of him.

This was followed by a figure dressed in all black dropping down from the same spot. There was something familiar about him but Danny couldn't quite place it.

"Who are you?"

The figure took off his face mask to reveal himself as Angel Dust.

"Remember me, Casper?"

"... The sinner guy who tried to rape Mr. Lancer?"

"It was NOT rape! He was just a little spooked by how much he was into me, he was about to take control and turn the tables on me! I swear!"

Danny decided to shelve the debate as his first chance of freedom had finally presented itself.

"... I don't think I even caught your name."

"It's Angel Dust."

Angel Dust didn't even bother looking at Danny while he talked; he was too busy fussing with the chains.

"Really? Your parents must have had some messed up expectations for you!"

"Watch it with the attitude or you don't get rescued!"

"Just call me quip-less then!"

Frustrated with the chains, Angel Dust sprouted two more arms from his body. Arms that were holding machine guns.

"Brace yourself! This is going to get loud!"

Angel Dust fired away at the cuffs holding his wrists and ankles. To Danny's surprise they actually broke! He fell to the metal table below but Angel Dust was quick to his side.

"Ya alright? Does it hurt anywhere?"

"It hurts everywhere but my foot is definitely broken."

"Okay," Angel Dust threw Danny's arm over his shoulder. "Just lean on me then!"

"Valentino is going to be guarding the hallway." Danny warned.

"Shit!" Angel Dust put his mask back on. "Thanks for the warning. Valentino is the bozo who owns my soul! He figures out that I'm the one helping ya..."

"Actually..." Danny started. "I think I might have a work around for him..."

______________________________________________________________

The hallway...

Danny and Angel Dust weren't subtle in their escape so it was no surprise that Valentino was ready for them.

Both guns pointed at them and a predatory smile on his face.

"The ghost is getting help from a ninja? There's a kink for... Okay, there has never been a kink for that, but I'll steal the idea for my productions anyways!"

Danny held up a glowing green finger and fired. It was weak, and probably held the last of his strength, but it worked.

He had shattered Valentino's glasses.

After getting over the shock of the action, Valentino squinted his eyes looking for them.

"Let me guess. Prescription glasses?" asked Danny.

"... Maybe! Shut up!"

*BANG!* * BANG!*

Both shots completely missed while Danny and Valentino scurried right past him.

Danny saw a light at the end of the hallway. A fire exit was being propped open. He could hear the sounds of a car engine coming from outside it.

Suddenly, Danny started to feel lightheaded. The hallway started spinning and a sense of nausea over took him.

"You alright, bud?" asked Angel Dust.

"That last attack must have taken more out of me than I thought! Feeling woozy..."

"Just hang on, buddy! We're almost there! We're almost out! Just stay with me!"

"HRK! I'll...try!"

The hallway was already a spiraling tunnel to Danny, but getting out into the light? It was like his entire brain had been hit with a kaleidoscope.

He was tossed into the back of a car and heard Angel Dust shout "DRIVE! DRIVE! DRIVE!"

The trunk must have been for some kind of family car because Danny was comfortably laid out.

He heard some familiar voices crying out with concern. And then... He let unconsciousness take him.

______________________________________________________________

Danny's head swam as he slowly but painfully regained consciousness. He opened his eyes. That hurt too.

He saw ... three blobs. A red blob, a white blob, and a yellow blob. All stacked on top of each other.

"Oh look! I think he's finally starting to come around!"

Danny closed his eyes. Still pain, this was going to get old fast.

"Oops! Might have spoken too soon!"

He opened them again and saw the blobs were actually Charlie. She gave him a big smile as she started to come in to focus.

"Nope! Right the first time! Heeeey Danny! Welcome baaaaaaack! You gave us a bit of a scare back there!"

"Ch-Charlie?"

"He's alive!" announced Angel Dust. "You owe me ten bucks, Husk!"

"SIGH! Alright, let's see... Five, six, seven..."

Husk started piling bills into Angel Dust's hand.

"Yeah, that's it Daddy! Make it rain!"

Husk threw the remaining bills into the air where they rained down on Angel Dust.

Danny took a look around. He was outside...but it clearly wasn't Amity Park, the ground was red.

He was also in a wheelchair and his broken foot was elevated. His wounds were bandages and his foot was in a cast.

Memories of the Vee's and what they did to him came back at a surprisingly peaceful pace. He remembered everything including that Angel Dust had come to his rescue.

"We made it?" Was the only question Danny could bring himself to ask.

"You passed out on us just as we were getting in the car but as it turns out that was just your body's way of forcing you to transform back so you can start to recover." explained Angel Dust. "Gave us a scare though. Didn't know 'transforming' was even a thing for you."

Danny ignored the backstory explanation urge and instead took a harder look around. They were in front of the hotel, rebuilt and remodeled to be bigger than ever. A family sized car sat a few feet away with the trunk opened and the back seats down.

They were also on a hill that overlooked the city. The reality of that just hit Danny. A city... In Hell. He was literally in Hell right now.

"This is Hell?" Danny asked. "It looks more like Chicago!"

Charlie playfully rolled her eyes. "Yeah well..."

"Well thanks for the rescue. How did you know that the Vee's kidnapped me?"

"We recognized you from the photo Velvette posted. Then when radios started popping during Alastor's broadcasts with that weird power of yours, it was clear what was going on." Husk explained.

"Just took us a little longer to get to you than we thought it would. Sorry about that." apologized Angel Dust.

"Apology accepted. Thanks for patching me up but if you guys could return me to Amity Park, there's a windbag ghost that needs to be stopped!"

Charlie gritted her teeth in the most forced uneasy smile that Danny had ever seen.

"Sooo..." Charlie began in her friendliest 'I'm about to tell you some bad news' voice possible. "Here's the bad news, the Vee's have tortured you so badly that your body can't actually handle going through a portal back to Earth!"

"What?!" Danny almost shouted but the pain in his throat nipped that option in the bud.

"Yeah!" Charlie seethed with sympathy. "We looked into it. If you were fine, a portal back to Earth wouldn't effect you at all... But the Vee's banged you up so bad that your body needs to recover first or else you'll die trying!"

Danny's jaw dropped.

"Dear God, what's the good news?!"

Charlie instantly perked up.

"You can stay in our newly rebuilt hotel until you're better! I insist! You'll be healing up in our penthouse sweet!"

Danny gave her a scrupulous look. Maybe he didn't hate her or her group but calling them 'friends' would be a pretty big stretch too. In fact, he was certain that he would never see them again for the rest of his life after they disappeared.

"Charlie, why are you doing this for me? I wasn't exactly your ally in Amity Park."

Charlie was certainly generous with the sympathetic smiles.

"I know we painted a pretty bad first impression with you up top, but if you take the time to get to know us I think you'll find we're pretty okay."

Husk silently tipped his hat to Danny.

"Good people can come from anywhere. Even the bowels of Hell."

Danny was pretty sure that was some kind of oxymoron but he didn't have the energy to debate.

"What about Amity Park?! I can't just leave it in the hands of Technus!"

Vaggie came out of the hotel with a man and woman that Danny didn't recognize.

"Yeah, we looked into that." Vaggie began. "It looked pretty bad at first but then somebody showed up that looked like a girl version of you? Anyways, she handled it with some help from an old couple with weaponized RV."

"Danielle!" Danny exclaimed.

"Who's Danielle?" asked Charlie.

"Long story. Looks like she helped me out though... Look, thanks again for everything but I can't put my town on her shoulders. If a portal won't work then I'll try some other..."

Vaggie held up her hand in Danny's face. "Let me just stop you right there. The only way in and out of Hell is by portal... And, you know, being a sinner and dying... Anyways, your choice has been pretty much made for you. You try to go home And. You. Will. Die!"

Vaggie sounded sincere but Danny was never one to let something like this stop him in the past. He tried to phase out of his wheelchair but as soon as he did, pain shot through his entire body.

It finally stopped when he stopped trying.

Charlie winced but had another sympathetic smile ready for him.

"Yeah, your body is kinda putting your foot down about this recovery thing."

"Just let him go!" The man Danny didn't recognize finally spoke up. "The asshole wants to die, I say let him!"

He sounded familiar but Danny couldn't place the face. He was obviously dressed like a bellhop but it didn't do much to hide his big gut. He was playing on his phone, not even looking at Danny.

"WHO are you and WHY are you so mad at me?!" demanded Danny.

This shocked the man enough to give Danny his undivided attention.

"What the...?! You don't recognize me?! It's me, Adam!"

That was why he sounded so familiar! Danny only saw a bit of Adam's face after a duplicate broke that mask thing of his.

"Adam?! But why are you dressed like a bellhop?"

Adam glowed red in the face with anger.

"Because I AM a bellhop! God said that the only way he'd let me have my full status again is if I learned some humility and EARNED my way back into Heaven!"

Danny silently stared at him for a moment and then burst out laughing.

"IT'S NOT FUNNY!"

Some of the others there, Angel Dust and Husk, joined Danny in his laughter at Adam's expense.

"It's pretty funny!" argued Husk with a smile.

"Like objectively funny!" added Angel Dust.

"Oh it hurts to laugh." Danny sighed. His expression turned serious again. "So I really am stuck down here until I'm better?"

One more sympathetic smile from Charlie. "Well yes, and while I understand why you would think being stuck in Hell is a bad thing..."

"It is literally Hell..." Danny dryly spat.

"I think you'll find there to be upsides in your stay here! For example..."

Adam looked like he was ready to gag.

"Allow me to introduce..." Charlie waved her hand over to the woman Danny didn't recognize; who he just realized was wearing a little nurse's hat. "Your self appointed, volunteer nurse, Emily!"

Emily bashfully smiled and twiddled her fingers a hello to him.

"Well at least the nurse is cute."

A strong blush covered Emily's face but that didn't stop her smile from growing ear to ear.

She moved to Danny at a speed he would have thought her dress would've made impossible and started to shake his hand.

"Danny Fenton, I am just SO excited to finally meet you! And I am also SO sorry about everything with Adam, you were completely in the right to beat him up!"

"Hey!" whined Adam.

Emily ignored Adam's protest and just kept going with her fangirl gushing.

"I swear, most of us in Heaven didn't even know about his exterminations until..."

"Wait!" Danny interrupted. "Heaven? Then does that mean that you're..."

Emily playfully rolled her eyes. "Oh where are my manners? I'm a seraphim from Heaven, Emily, but you can just call me Em... Or Emmy... E... I go by whatever! I was originally sent down here by God to keep track of Adam's progress but I've been watching YOU for years!"

"Watching? You've been watching me?!" asked Danny.

Emily was instantly alarmed by Danny's reaction.

"Oh no no no! Not like a stalker kind of thing! In a 'watching you do good deeds' type of way! I've been watching your adventures from the first innocent life you saved! To me you're a total rockstar at doing good!"

Danny lightly blushed at the flattery but realization of the gravity of her own words suddenly filled Emily with nervous energy.

"Andeventhoughyouradultyearsdon'thavemuchghostfightsIstillwatchedbecauseI'veseenhowfaryou'vecomeandIthinkyou'rereallygreathowyou'rerighteousandwillingtoprotectothersandIeventhinkthatyou'rethickerinmusclesthanyourevilalternatetimelineself. Am I babbling? I think I'm babbling!"

"Okay," Vaggie gently started pushing Emily away from Danny. "Coming in a liiiiiiiiiittle too hot."

Charlie worked her way to the back of Danny's wheelchair and started to push him.

"Hey!" objected Adam. "What about me?! You said there was a job for me to do out here! Remember?!"

Vaggie ran back to him and handed him some car keys.

"Park the car some place covert. And when you're done with that..." She handed him a dirty plunger. "Niffty clogged the toilet. The whole area is a mess."

"Clogged the toilet? In which room?!"

"All of them. Looking pretty gross, honestly."

Adam snatched the plunger out of her hand.

"You bitch! You're enjoying this aren't you?!"

"Like a cat enjoys a ball of yarn."

"What's that?"

"Nothing Husk, go back in side."

"I'm a bellhop, not a custodian!"

"Except you're here to learn humility and build character! So your job is whatever I say it is! Emily said so; now get moving!"

______________________________________________________________

Hazbin Hotel... Interior...

Being wheeled inside, Danny had to admit that the place did look like it had underwent a very considerable upgrade. Champagne fountains, caviar mountains, and that was just to start.

"Oh! A new guest!"

Danny's mind immediately went into Run For Your Life mode with the sudden appearance of the little cyclops maid. In his default condition she wouldn't be anything more than a nuisance to Danny, but in his injured condition she was an immediate threat.

"AAAAAGH!" Danny started to desperately climb out of his wheelchair in fear but Charlie stopped him.

"DANNY! DANNY! IT'S OKAY! NIFFTY ISN'T GOING TO HURT YOU!" Charlie insisted.

"Yeah, we're about eighty percent sure she's harmless." assured Vaggie.

Danny actually sent a glare to the eye patched woman.

"... Okay. Point taken."

"Niffty look!" Angel Dust shouted. "A stain!"

"WHAT?! WHERE?!"

"Over on the rug by the bar! Quick, go get it girl!"

Niffty ran off shouting about things being "Icky" and needing to "Cleeeaaan".

"I think my entire life flashed before my eyes the moment she crossed my path... It actually WAS very exciting." Danny confessed.

"We'll keep her away from you. I p-"

"Vaggie!" Danny's warning tone had cut right through the fear he once had. "You guys really want to trust you then don't you dare 'promise'! Not after last time."

"... Fair enough." Vaggie admitted.

Calming down, Danny tried to return the atmosphere to that of a friendly one.

"So where's Old Lemon Teeth?"

"Alastor? Since you destroyed his staff, he usually stays up in his broadcasting booth. Just working on his radio show until he can get a new staff." Charlie explained.

"Good!" was the only thing Danny had to say about it.

The hotel had one of those glass elevators and Danny had to admit, he was impressed.

They all got in with Danny at the front to ride it straight to the penthouse.

Emily seemed almost frozen with her face so Angel Dust leaned down to her and whispered "You okay there, Sunshine? Looking a little stiff."

Emily's face didn't budge but she whispered back to him "I can't believe what a fool I made out of myself in front of Danny! He probably thinks I'm a total weirdo!"

"Naaaah! Not you! You're a cavity waiting to happen, you're so sweet!"

"... Thanks?"

"Just give it a little more time and he'll see the real you. He'll be wrapped around your little finger before you can say Karma Sutra."

Emily didn't respond. She didn't move. She didn't even blink. Angel Dust knew she could hear him though, something like a high pitched whine was coming from her.

Vaggie leaned over and whispered something to Emily as well. "Just ignore him! Be yourself and he has to fall for you! You've got the full support of everyone here!"

"That's exactly what I said!" Angel Dust whispered harshly.

"No it is not!" Vaggie harshly whispered back. "What you said was..."

Danny couldn't quite make out what all the whispering was about, but he was certain of one thing.

"Sure are a bunch of lively friends you got."

"They're family." Charlie shrugged.

*PING!*

The elevator opened and they all walked out into a hallway. It lead to a set of double doors but the hallway itself was rather spacious and lush.

There were some potted plants, a dresser and even a layout couch.

Opening the double doors they finally entered the penthouse itself. It really was luxurious, a giant heart shaped bed, glass walls revealing a beautiful outlook on Pentagram City, and a rather impressive looking balcony. To the left was a singular door labeled 'stairs' showing that there was more than one way into the room.

"Do you like it? It's the best room in the hotel... Well second best compared to the room I share with Vaggie. We're just above you too, so if you need anything we're just a elevator ride away!"

"Hey! Why can't me or Snakey have this room?" asked Angel Dust.

"Because," started Vaggie. "Sir Pentious is likely to clutter the whole room up with his inventions and your pet Fat Nuggets would make a mess out of it!"

"... Point taken."

Speaking of Sir Pentious, the snake man himself slithered in from some deeper part of the room. He wasn't alone either, with him were these... Well there was no other way to describe them, Little Egg Men.

"Alright men," he addressed the eggs as if they were soldiers. "It looks like we actually did a good job sprucing up the room!"

A quick clearing of the throat from Charlie alerted the Would Be General to his new company.

"Oh! Daniel, how good to see you again!"

"Sir... Pentious, right? I made good use of your screwdriver. Who are these little guys?"

"Thessssse are my Egg Boisss!" announced Sir Pentious. "They are here to cater to your every need!"

The little egg men saluted Danny to the best of their abilities but one accidentally karate chopped himself in the face.

"Huh?" Danny turned his head to the side in confusion.

"Well, he's right." Charlie began. "Even though Emily volunteered to be your nurse, she's still technically here to keep an eye on Adam. So anytime Emily is too busy to be with you, just think of these guys as your personal gophers."

Danny looked at the others with an odd sort of look on his face.

"I need a moment with Charlie... Alone."

Husk steeled his gaze at Danny.

"Whatever you got to say to her, you can say in front of us. Right Charlie?"

Charlie turned to her friends with a reassuring smile.

"Actually, I think I know what Danny wants to talk about. This won't take long but don't worry either."

Everyone begrudgingly accepted Charlie's answer and turned to leave.

Once gone, Charlie planted her hands on her hips and gave Danny her best confident smile.

"Alright, Dan-O! What do you want to talk about?"

"Why are you really doing this? Saving me, risking your friend's neck to save me, giving me this penthouse to heal up in, ALONG with a cute nurse?"

"Oh well the nurse thing was actually her idea. If you saw how excited she was at the idea then you'd have trouble saying no to her too."

"The Point is... This is an awful lot to go through just to keep a promise. We weren't exactly friends, shoot, I even beat up your heavyweight Alastor! You obviously want to win me over on something. So what is it?"

"... My hotel, about redeeming sinners into Heaven... isn't exactly popular. Especially since I'm not even sure if it can work! Things were supposed to change when we got back from Amity Park but the Vee's made sure to get in the way of that."

"And you rescuing me was a way of getting back at them?"

"NO! FUCK NO! We rescued you and did all of this for you because what I said when we left is true! It STARTS with sorry, but even I know that by itself isn't enough!"

Danny relaxed a little. "So you're trying to make amends? I suppose I could swallow that a little easier... I know that you still want something from me though."

"... Hero types like yourself aren't as uncommon as you might think. Don't get me wrong, as far as I know you're the only one that's ghost themed. Well you and that... Girl... You... POINT is, when a hero type falls from their grace and dies they end up here like any other sinner."

"Go on."

"So I always figured that they would be prime customers for the hotel! Instead, they act like I'm mocking them. I know these are people who didn't just fail the people they were supposed to save but also failed to uphold their own values and beliefs. I thought that if anyone would want a second chance it would be them. Maybe if someone like you talked to them, they can see the value in being redeemed."

"... And you think I could change their minds?"

"Turns out, you're kinda famous with them. I don't think they'll listen to me anymore than they already have."

"Redemption, at least in my opinion, has to be more than earned. They have to want it too, sounds to me more like they're trying to cope with their loss rather than refute it."

"Danny..."

"I'll tell you what though. Hell is famous for deals, right? How about we make one of our own?"

"... What did you have in mind?"

______________________________________________________________

Hazbin Hotel... Lobby...

Emily approached the bar as Husk cleaned glasses.

"A lot going on today, huh?"

"What can I do for you, Sunshine?"

"... What... Uh... What do you think Danny and Charlie are talking about?"

"Can't rightly say... Whatever they're talking about though..." Husk smiled. "I'm sure she's putting in a good word for you!"

Emily sat down at the bar and visibly relaxed. "Oh my goodness, do you think so?! Because I certainly hope so! I mean, I knew Danny grew up to be muscly but he's even better in person than I was expecting!"

"I'm sure of it. You got the entire Hotel's support for your pursuit. Charlie even made you that little nurse's hat."

"I did have to flip it so the cross was right side up, but yes!"

The *PING!* of an elevator signaled that someone from the penthouse had arrived. Charlie ran out of the doors with a smile on her face, her eyes darting about looking for something.

"Charlie? What's going on?" asked Husk.

"Danny isn't quite sold on the idea of the Hotel itself buuuuuuut he's willing to be debated into supporting it IF we can do so during a board game."

Emily turned her head to the side in confusion. "Board game?"

"He says he wants to keep it friendly! And we both got a lot to say so it's probably a good idea to use one that takes a while! We're probably going to revisit matters a few times so this isn't going to be a one time thing! Now, does anyone know where I put Monopoly?"

"... Last I saw it was in the parlor."

"Of course! Thank you, Husk!"

Charlie ran off and Emily pouted a little.

"I'd like to play a board game with Danny."

"Sugar, you know Charlie is still going to put a good word in for you!"

"You know something, Husk? You're right! If anything this should be a reason to celebrate! Give me a bottle of wine!"

"Angels drink?" Husk asked as he brought up a bottle of wine.

"Yeah. Usually wine though. We're all about that wine. Don't really have much interest in anything else."

Husk started to pour her a glass. "What about champagne?"

"That's what we call Fancy Wine!"

"HA HA! You're alright, kid!"

Charlie ran past them to the elevator holding something over her head.

"I FOUND MONOPOLY!"

______________________________________________________________

A couple of days later...

Danny was starting to develop something of a routine here at the hotel.

He would rest until ten and then Emily (who for some reason got real quiet around him... Didn't stop smiling though) would bring him breakfast. Then he would stretch it out until noon where he would join the others for lunch. Afterwards he would explore the hotel with one of Charlie's friends. Sometimes it was Angel Dust, sometimes it was Vaggie, sometimes it was Sir Pentious, today it was Husk. Then he would rejoin everyone for dinner followed by him being escorted back up to his room. And after an hour or two of taking it easy to heal, Charlie would bring Monopoly to his room so they could debate ethics on the hotel... In a friendly manner of course.

"So how're you liking the place so far?" asked Husk.

"Honestly? I think this all too good for me. The penthouse, the medical treatment, you guys offering to pal around with me... I don't deserve it. I mean, I did destroy the first version of it."

"Maybe you did completely wreck this place..." Husk began. "But all that did was give us an excuse to build it up again stronger than ever... by doing it together."

"That's the kind of attitude I like!"

"Well stick around, Hero! That's what keeps this place running! And I gotta admit, something about your spirit makes the place livelier!"

"I suppose I could use some more friends in my life."

"Then when you're better, first round is on me."

"Fine by me. I'm not much of a drinker though."

"We'll work it out. Tell me something though, what're your thoughts on your own personal nurse?"

"Emily? She's cute. Kinda quiet though. Why?"

"She might have left you a surprise in your room, but you didn't hear it from me."

"... Alright, let's see it."

______________________________________________________________

Penthouse Sweet... AKA Danny's room...

Danny couldn't believe what he was seeing. A lot of his workshop had been moved into the room. Of course it was on the far side of the room opposite to the bed but everything was set up.

His tools laid out at the ready, a workbench had even been set up AND it looked retrofitted for him to use from his wheelchair.

"What... How did she... This is all my inventory stuff from home! When did she find time to do this?"

"Your walks through the hotel can take a while. Gave her more time than you'd think."

"... This is a lot of work for just a fan!" Danny observed.

"She's an angel, Danny. And she knows your first impression with Heaven was with Adam and his exorcist angels."

"Where is that jerk, anyways?"

"Who cares?"

______________________________________________________________

Meanwhile on the ground floor...

"You've got to be fucking kidding me!" swore Adam.

He was in the employee bathroom with Vaggie and Niffty holding a plunger.

"I'm serious!" insisted Niffty. "The mother of all roaches flushed herself down the toilet, I can't get at her, and now the toilet is clogged."

"And as your boss, Adam, I hereby order you to unclog this toilet so Niffty can kill the giant roach!" commanded Vaggie.

"This is Hell. This is my own personal Hell." sighed Adam.

Vaggie let loose a smug grin. "And don't forget, Adam. Hell is forever whether you like it or not!"

Adam started to plunge away, getting dirty toilet water soaked on his uniform sleeves.

Vaggie was enjoying the show when she spotted Emily walking past pushing a cart towards the elevator.

"I gotta go! Adam, keep at it! Niffty, you're in charge!"

"Oh come ON, I... Hey! I got it!"

Vaggie left just as Adam held up his plunger victoriously. On the end of the plunger was a giant cockroach, about the size of Adam's face.

Without warning, the roach leapt off the plunger and attached itself to Adam's face.

"AAAAAGH! AAAAAGH! GET IT OFF!"

"Hold still!" Niffty held up a dagger. "I'll kill it and get it off!"

"Oh FUCK NO! SOMEBODY ELSE HELP ME!"

______________________________________________________________

Back with Danny and Husk...

"Well if she's doing this to change my mind, it's working."

"Really?" Husk gave Danny an impressed smile.

"Yeah. No offense, you guys are great and everything but I have been feeling a little restless lately. This kind of thing is exactly what I need. In fact, I think I want to talk to her! I should at least thank her, right?"

"Well good! You're about due to have her change your bandages anyways! I'll go get her for you!"

"Great!"

Husk didn't have to venture far in his search. In the hallway was Emily, Charlie, Vaggie, and for some reason Angel Dust.

"Oh Emily? Danny's seen what you did for him." Husk called out in an unusually playful manner.

"He did?" Emily's voice was surprisingly quiet. Husk still had her full attention though.

"Yes. And he loves it. In fact he loves it so much that he wants to thank you in person!"

"This is GREAT!" Charlie cheered. "You're going to get your shot with him right now! Go get him girl!"

Emily let Charlie's words sink in as Husk walked past her to the elevator.

"Emmy? He's waiting!" Charlie prodded.

Emily had a cart of replacement bandages in front of her but wasn't moving.

"Too nervous! Can't move!"

Charlie winced.

"Oh, looks like you need a little push."

Angel Dust stretched out as he laid down in a nearby couch.

"Don't know why, you already touched his body when you put on his casts. Just think of this as the next step, baby! Time to get FRISKY! When in Hell do as they Hellions after all!"

Emily didn't move but her face was completely red.

Charlie sent a pouting glare at the pornstar.

"Angel Dust, that kind of talk is NOT helping!"

Emily's eyes were as large as saucers.

Angel Dust grinned. "I'm preeeeeeeetty sure I'm helping."

Vaggie grabbed Angel Dust by the arm and started to drag him away.

"Okay, that's enough out of you! Back to the lobby with you!"

Sounds of Angel Dust being dragged to the elevator snapped Emily back to her senses!

"Okay! I can do this! Wish me luck!"

"Gooooood luck!" Charlie cheered giving two thumbs up.

"Lipstick is in the top drawer of the dresser, we bought it just for you!" called Vaggie.

"CONDOMS ARE IN THE BOTTOM DRAWER!" shouted Angel Dust.

"Meep!"

Emily stood frozen once again until Charlie raced back from the elevator and gave her a little push forward.

Through the double doors she entered the penthouse. Danny looked happy to see her and this did nothing to calm Emily's nerves. If anything it filled her to the brim with nervous energy and made her want to run away and hide.

"hI dAnNy!" Emily's nerves were worse than she thought because the voice that came out of her mouth was high and squeaky.

She took a moment to clear her throat. "Ahem! I mean... I was told you wanted to see me?"

"Yeah! Husk told me about how you moved my work bench up here! I had to thank you!"

She rolled her eyes modestly. "Weeeeell it's the least I could do after everything you've done for everyone else! All those lives you've saved on Earth, you should get a parade at the very least! You deserve some kind of thanks!"

Danny shrugged. "Don't do what I do for thanks. Look, I might be a kick butt ghost fighter but I'm afraid I'm kind of a lousy celebrity. An incident where somebody asked to shave my initials into his chest hair might have something to do with that..."

Danny took a moment to shudder in revulsion while Emily stuck out her tongue in disgust.

"Anyways, you're supposed to be a fan right? Well like I just said, I don't really know how to thank fans so I'll leave it in your hands. Everything is on the table! If I can do it then you just have to name it! As long as it's within my power, I'll do it!"

Danny's offer came as something of a surprise to Emily. It was an option she didn't think would be offered to her.

"I... Uh... I don't know..."

Danny thought she would ask for an autograph or a picture but instead she was indecisive.

'Is this how fans are supposed to act? Isn't this what fans want? She... Is... Just a fan... Right?' thought Danny.

His eyes drifted down to the cart and he spotted the bandages.

"Of course! You're my nurse too and here I am making things awkward while you just want to do your job!"

Emily had been avoiding his gaze since his offer but him blaming himself for anything was one thing she couldn't let slide.

"No! Danny this is all on me! I just..." Emily's alarm finally wore off and she became aware of what a spectacle she was being. She avoided his gaze again. "I... I just never wanted anything from you other than for you to be happy and to keep doing the good you've already chosen to do..."

'... Maybe I really am wrong about the angels in Heaven. Maybe those exorcist angels were the oddity and not the norm...' thought Danny.

"Alright!" Danny spoke a little louder to get Emily's eyes back on him. "I'll give you a pass... For now! I still want to repay you but you can have time to think on it!"

Emily let out a dainty smile and uttered a very quiet "Thank you!"

"At the moment, the least I can do is stop getting in your way. Let's change these bandages!"

Emily's smile instantly got bigger and her whole face blushed.

______________________________________________________________

A little later... Lobby... Bar...

"YOU WHAT?!" was the unified response from Husk, Angel Dust, Vaggie, and Charlie.

"He offered me anything I wanted that he could give and I said I didn't want anything!" Emily whined as she sat on a bar stool.

It was her honest response but in retrospect she saw it was a wasted chance. She could have gotten a kiss, a date, ANYTHING and he wouldn't have thought any less of her.

"Missed opportunity." Vaggie shook her head in disapproval.

"Seriously Sunshine," stressed Angel Dust. "You could've gone ALL the way with him with no strings attached!"

"Do you want to end up with him or not?" asked Husk.

Emily let out a small whimper and let her head fall on the counter.

*THUD!*

"Okay, okay! That's enough! Ease off all of you!" Charlie ordered.

The princess of Hell gently pulled Emily's head up in a friendly supportive way.

"Emily, you wouldn't be the angel you are if you took advantage of such an offer, but try to think! How did Danny react when you said this? Was he upset?"

Emily's frown shrunk a little. "Well... No. In fact he said that he was going to give me time to think about what I wanted."

"Well then there really isn't a problem, is there?!" Charlie chirped excitedly.

Emily started to smile a little. "Yeah! I guess so... You have a point though, I wouldn't be myself if I took advantage of such an offer."

Angel Dust facepalmed. "WORK with us here, Sweet Thing!"

"Oh no, you ARE going to ask for something from him but you're not going to have to sacrifice anything of what you are for it!" corrected Charlie.

"How's that?" asked Emily.

"By asking for, drumroll please..." Charlie banged her fingers against the counter to simulate a drumroll. "A TALK!"

"... What?" was the only word that could come out of Emily's mouth.

"Do you think Vaggie and I fell in love over night?! No! We got to know each other first! And the best way for you to get to know Danny..."

"Is by talking with him! Of course!" finished Emily.

Vaggie put a loving arm around Charlie.

"Yep! My babe usually knows what she's talking about."

"And I actually DO have questions I could ask him about! I only know about his adventures on Earth, his adventures inside the Ghost Zone I just sort of guessed at." Emily smiled as new hope started to fill her. However, it didn't take long for a dark cloud to appear in her mind. "Of course none of this means anything, there's still a chance we won't actually click at all."

"Maybe..." nodded Husk.

"I wouldn't worry though." shrugged Angel Dust.

"Really, why?" Emily asked.

"Your relationship with your favorite patient HAS to evolve because of one thing! Two words Sugar Wings: Sponge Bath!" Angel Dust gushed.

Emily stared off into the distance as her mind tried to process the mental image.

Husk waved his hand in front of her face but got no reaction.

"You killed the poor sweetheart." accused Husk.

"She's not dead!" snapped Angel Dust. "She's an angel, she probably just never had thoughts this... Lewd before!"

"I..." Emily startled both of them, her tone lost all emotion. "Will be professional about it and even get a garbage bag for Danny's cast."

She walked off staring out into space.

"Okay, that was almost scary!" Angel Dust confessed.

"Let's not press her on it again." suggested Husk.

______________________________________________________________

Alastor's Recording Booth Floor...

Adam finally managed to punch a hole through the bug on his face's body but it had taken him forever to do so... And at the price of hurting his own face.

Thankfully he had run into something hard enough to do the job at the speed he had been running.

Adam sat up on the carpeted floor and tossed the dead bug off of his face.

"About time! Didn't think I would ever get that thing off! Where am I anyways?"

Looking up at what he had ran into, Adam saw a statue of Alastor looking back at him. The statue had its hand stretched out holding a model of Alastor's cane. The first was covered in big guts.

"I spazzed out all the way to up here?! This is near the top! And nobody helped me?! What part of 'First Man' do these losers not get?!"

Danny's penthouse was supposed to be the next floor up.

The door next to him lead to Alastor's Recording Booth, the sign next to it read 'On Air' and was not lit up. This meant that Alastor currently wasn't recording.

Now Adam didn't like Alastor. In fact, he hated him! He hated everyone in the hotel. Shoot! He hated everyone in Hell!

But...

If Adam had to pick, he would choose socializing with Alastor over being bossed around by Vaggie. Not ideal, just... The lesser of two evils.

Adam walked in to find Alastor stirring a cup of coffee behind his desk. The microphone was off but he didn't look like he appreciated Adam's presence. He appreciated it even less when Adam just plopped into the chair sitting on the other side of the desk.

"Sup, Prancer? How's the flame war going with the flat screen?"

Alastor stared at him with glowing red eyes for a moment but when it failed to get a reaction he stopped.

"... Better than ever. What do you want?"

"Just needed a little break from the losers down below. The way they treat me is a fucking joke!"

"Don't be ridiculous! You yourself are the joke... Now if you don't mind, I have a radio show to return to so you'll have to find your 'break' somewhere else! I have very little tolerance for you!"

"Still better than how Patchy treats me! Since the Ghost Fucker settled in, they've all been united and crap!"

For a second, Alastor's face turned demonic.

"I'm sorry... What was that?"

"Danny! That superhero ghost freak that beat us both up? He's staying here in the hotel. You knew that, right?"

Alastor dug his fingers into his desk in the same way Vox did after learning of Alastor's return.

An audible screech shrieked through the room.

"I knew we pulled a rescue mission to keep his power from blowing up my radios, but nobody told me that I was sharing a ROOF with the upstart!"

"Must've slipped their minds. Slimer is totally powerless too."

Alastor's attitude instantly did a 180.

"Is that a fact? Please, do go on, my good man."

"The wee-wees..."

"Vee's." Alastor corrected.

"Whatever. Turns out they wrecked him so hard that he can't use any of his powers until he gets better. Fucker can't even go through a portal to back home without it killing him. We're stuck with him until he heals up."

Adam either didn't notice or didn't care, but Alastor's shadow had stretched across the floor with a feral look.

"The poor lamb!" Alastor stood up with his back slightly enlarged. He wasn't powerless without his staff, just lacking. Still, he had more than enough mojo to put down a defenseless Danny Fenton. "I should see him right away! I'm sure my smiling face would give him the correct perspective!"

"If you're talking about revenge you might want to think again. Chuck has made it clear that Spooky is her personal guest here at the hotel. End him and she might toss you out."

Alastor's back shrunk down to normal and he sat back in his chair.

"I see... Well perhaps the waiting game is a better option then. Doesn't sound like he's going anywhere."

"If you want to kill the punk and make it look like an accident then you can count me in. I'm already sick of that dweeb and how well everyone is getting along with him."

"An alliance? Perhaps we should make it a deal... What're you doing now?" Alastor asked.

"Playing DOOMED on my phone. It's a coping mechanism for my time in this Hellhole!"

"Ah you are the epitome of man as always." Alastor's sarcasm oozed as always but it only got a middle finger from the bellhop this time.

______________________________________________________________

One month later...

If you had told Danny during the invasion that he would come to think of the hoteliers as family than he would have suspected you of being overshadowed by a ghost.

It was true though. Danny found himself earnestly enjoying his time with them. Sharing their pain and picking up the pieces of each other with a smile on their face. Just getting to know them was a good time.

He and Angel Dust would talk about movies together, not the porn though for obvious reasons, but action movies and what plots they wished they could see.

Sometimes he would play games of dice with Husk. Not for any wagers but just for fun. The winged cat man did find some non-alcoholic drinks to serve him though.

Sir Pentious, Danny found, was actually intellectually stimulating. They would talk about inventions together, scratch each other's brains about walls they had gone up against, and basically talked shop. Sometimes he would even bring in a broken invention for them to work on together at Danny's workbench.

The eggs were surprisingly useful for fetching Danny anything he needed. And their upbeat can do attitude really helped with his morale.

Niffty was a person that Danny had to work at trusting. It was definitely a gradual process but when she agreed to let the eggs search her before coming in, it became easier. Turns out Niffty wasn't all bad. Her dead roach puppet shows, while gross, were actually pretty entertaining.

Charlie met with him daily for their Monopoly debates. It was a big ethical thing for both of them but they were slowly but surely headed to a middle ground for both of them. Sinners were in Hell because of their own choices but without knowing the whole situation the circumstances for those choices were complete guess work. Danny still owed her two hundred for the railroad.

And then there was Emily.

Danny was surprised by how much he was enjoying his time with her. She was always willing to listen to just about anything he had to say and even wanted to know more about his adventures from when he was fourteen. Turns out this was the repayment she wanted from him for transporting his workbench.

He had been informed though that she was an Angel of Joy and was supposed to spread happiness. It made sense but it was also a little bit of a bummer to Danny. Sam had been his only real steady girlfriend in his life and they broke up so she could spread her freedom fighting spirit to places that actually needed it. He thought he felt a real connection like that with Emily but maybe he was just feeling like this because of what she was rather than who they could be together?

It was probably for the best. There was probably a rule somewhere that said angels and humans couldn't get together for some reason.

Still...

He couldn't deny that they did have some similar outlooks on right and wrong. No! He couldn't let himself have false hope like that! She was his nurse! Any way you sliced it, a Florence Nightingale effect was NOT something he should be basing a relationship on!

On the other hand...

She had come to him about things that had nothing to do with his recovery. And she wasn't an "official" nurse, just a self appointed one, Charlie said so herself! He also liked her shiny optimism outlook on everything, but to be fair Danny kind of needed that after what he went through.

He wanted to see her outside the hotel. He wanted to know if she would like certain Earth foods, or what type of movies she would like! He even wanted to see if she would enjoy bowling!

These were all thoughts for a date and even if Emily was a normal human, he couldn't be letting himself have these thoughts. He was literally restrained to a wheelchair! He couldn't have her push him everywhere, not in a romantical sense anyways, it wouldn't be fair!

No. It was probably better for him not to make a move at all. Keep things how they are but not progress anything.

It was probably a good idea to move his thoughts away from Emily anyways. Last time he let the thoughts run wild about her, he ended up wasting half the day just thinking about her.

Moving on...

The only one... well one of two... he hadn't seen a lot of was Vaggie. She was like the official guardian of the hotel and a lot of her choices in defense were ones that Danny himself would have thought of.

One thing he had mixed feelings about with her was her treatment of Adam, ironically. Oh sure, he deserved everything that came his way but Danny couldn't help but feel like maybe she was enjoying it a little too much. Not that Adam deserved any pity... It was only a small thing to Danny at best anyways.

The less Danny and Adam saw of each other, the better. If Danny wasn't injured than he would have knocked Adam out at least five times by now. Adam clearly wanted to kill him but knew that he couldn't. So the one thing they agreed on was to do their best at avoiding one another.

Alastor... Danny hadn't seen once. Not at the dinner table, not in the lounge, not at the bar, and not even in the lobby. Still... Danny had a feeling that the Fruitloop was watching him, but until there was something he could actually do about it Danny decided to let it go.

Danny himself was recovering just fine but he still couldn't use any of his ghost powers yet. Well... Except for a small little one. He could focus some ecto energy into his finger but couldn't really do anything with it.

He was currently in the lounge with everybody save for Adam, Alastor, and oddly Angel Dust. They were all playing Scrabble together but because there was so many of them they needed two boxes equivalent of pieces.

Danny was in the middle of figuring out a triple word score when Angel Dust suddenly ran into the room in a panic.

"We got a problem! A big one! Look at what I found in the grocery store!"

Angel Dust slammed a piece of paper down on the table. It was a wanted poster with the picture of Danny that Velvette took. That wasn't the worst of it though...

"They put a BOUNTY on me?!" Danny exclaimed.

Danny was wanted alive only but for $500,000.

"They're acting a little cheap right now but they longer those Vee jerks wait you know the higher the bounty will get!"

Charlie grabbed the bounty, looking at it as if it were some sort of tragedy retained strictly to a piece of paper.

"How many of these were there?" Charlie asked.

"A lot! And I think the grocery store was only the starting point! Wouldn't surprise me if they put these up throughout the whole city!"

Charlie's face turned serious. "Okay, we have to handle this immediately! Vaggie, go get Adam and Alastor! Emily, take Danny back up to his room and I don't want him even leaving his BED until he's healed!"

"What?!" Danny started to object but got cut off when Emily started wheeling him out of the room.

"Everyone else, you're with me! We're going to take down as many of these wanted posters as we possibly can!" ordered Charlie.

"Hold on a second!" Vaggie objected. "Babe, if the Vee's or any of their agents are US taking down the posters than they're going to figure out that WE'RE the ones harboring their fugitive!"

Charlie seriously thought on Vaggie's words.

"... You're right! They want us to make a mistake! We have to be smart about this!"

"Still, new safety measures and rules are a good idea! We should... Wow, Emily really did rush Danny up to his room in a hurry."

"Sigh. Can't blame her. Let's go catch up."

______________________________________________________________

Danny's room...

Taking the elevator was an impatient ride to say the least but Charlie and Vaggie rode it just the same. The door to Danny's room was already opened but entering it they found a sight they weren't expecting to see.

Danny was indeed in the bed but he was also tucked in up to his neck and his head was surrounded with pillows. Despite looking kind of adorable, Danny had a scowl on his face and it didn't look like he was very happy about it.

"Danny? What happened?" asked Charlie.

"Emily, as per YOUR orders, rushed me up here and tucked me in so fast my head spun."

"Oh. Well at least she's being attentive."

"Charlie, I can't move! I'm tucked in TOO tight! I might even be swaddled! I think you spooked her with all that wanted poster crap!"

"Well... it's not entirely unfounded and..."

"Listen here, Princess of Hell! Either you stop spooking the angels or you and me are going to have a problem!"

"I'm more surprised you let her do this to you." confessed Vaggie.

"When I started to say 'No' she started to tear up! I'd like to see either of YOU say 'No' to her when she's like that!"

"Even so..." scoffed Vaggie.

"Oh really?" shot Danny. "You could shoot down a cute girl if she started getting teary eyed at you?"

Vaggie took a moment to look at Charlie. "... Fair enough."

Emily bustled by closing the drapes on every single window that lead to the balcony.

"Emily!" Charlie called.

Emily nearly tripped when she heard Charlie's voice. She turned to them and looked back and forth between Charlie, Vaggie, and the comfy yet disgruntled Danny.

"... I panicked." Emily confessed.

Charlie and Vaggie started to un-tuck Danny but his face didn't brighten at all.

"I'm getting the sense you're upset..."

"I barely have any ghost powers left while I'm recovering! The Vee's are out looking for me! And the only thing I can do about it is sit in bed!"

"Okay, I admit, I might have jumped the gun a little bit. You can obviously move out of bed..." Charlie started.

"But some extra precautions might be a good idea! Emily actually made a good start by closing the balcony curtains." finished Vaggie.

Emily shrunk her head between her shoulders and smiled bashfully.

"No more outside strolls though!"

"Oh come on, Vaggie!" Danny protested. "Fresh air is good for recovery!"

"You can just open a window! We have to be more careful from here on out!"

"... Gals? I'd like to talk to Vaggie alone for a moment but do you think you could help me to my wheelchair first?"

Charlie was hesitant at first, unlike Emily who helped him without a second thought, but after a look of it being fine from Vaggie she complied.

Once everyone else left, Vaggie gave him her full attention with a hand on her hip.

"Alright, what do you want to talk about?"

"Honestly," Danny looked at Vaggie. "Out of everyone in this hotel, you're the one that I relate to the most."

This actually caught Vaggie off guard. She was expecting a protest or maybe some angry accusations but certainly not this.

"Oh! Uh..."

"No. Really. I don't interact with you that much but I see the decisions you make here everyday! How you're always keeping everyone's safety in mind, how quick you are to defend. It honestly reminds me of myself! Angel Dust told me though that you hate all men?"

"... OH! I see where your trying to get to know! I know I say that but I used to work for Adam before he kicked me out for refusing to kill a sinner child and..."

"Whoa!" Danny cut her off. "You had me at 'used to work for Adam'! That being said... Does that hatred extend to the people of the hotel? You know, like Angel Dust and Husk? Alastor I could understand but..."

Vaggie shifted uncomfortably for a moment. "Alastor I wouldn't trust for a million dollars but... The others don't bother me as much as they used to. Adam can burn though!"

"I can understand that! In my opinion, Adam doesn't even deserve the attention you're giving him now! Oh don't get me wrong, I have NO love for the guy but negative attention is still attention! And he's just the type of creep who would find a way to capitalize on it somehow! He's still an egomaniac after all! Enough about him though, the thing I want to know is..."

Danny wheeled himself closer to read her face.

"Say the hotel caught on fire, would you risk your life for the men here, even if Charlie gave you a pass not to? I'm not talking about Adam or Alastor! But Sir Pentious, Angel Dust, Husk... Would you risk your life to save theirs?"

"I..." Vaggie shifted again, like some secret of her's got exposed. "Yes! Okay?! I would do it! They may be men but they're still a part of what I've been building with Charlie! Men or not, they're family!"

Danny smiled. "I was hoping I was right about you."

"What?"

"Stay right there, I have something for you!"

Danny wheeled himself over to his workbench and opened a drawer. He pulled something out and tossed it to her.

"What is this?"

"A gift that Sir Pentious and I cooked up! It's an eye patch that can shoot a laser!"

"What?"

"Yeah, see the hidden button? You have to press it three times in a row for it to fire... For safety reasons, obviously."

"I ... Why would you make this for me?"

"Like I said, you remind me of myself. And it didn't seem fair for you to be down an eye when you're trying to save people. So I figured why not turn a weakness into a strength?"

"But... I broke my promise to you about Niffty!"

"Yeah, I'm starting to get the impression that maybe nobody can control Niffty! That being said, I knew that my sanctuary here couldn't have just been Charlie's decision. You had to consent to it on some level too! So as long as you use that eye patch to protect the people here... Then you and I are square."

"I... Well, thank you!"

"This is also why I'm willing to follow your lead on safety but if I could make a compromise? The backyard, with the tree behind the hotel? I could just get my fresh air there. No one would see me."

"Alright, fine! But only when you have somebody with you too!"

"Deal!"

______________________________________________________________

Two weeks later...

Time passes by and a sense of normalcy starts to resettle in. It was basically more of the same but with more restrictions.

The only time Danny was allowed outside of the hotel was for fresh air in the backyard. He also had to avoid uncovered windows to the best of his ability.

His and Charlie's Monopoly debates, while still friendly, were getting a little heated. She argued that all sinners deserved redemption but Danny shot back about pedophiles being present in Hell. At the moment, Charlie had no rebuttal to that but that was okay. She had time to think about it before their next game.

Danny and Sir Pentious suspected that it was only a matter of time before Vox tried to find them through electrical means somehow so they put their heads together and invented something. It was kind of like a firewall to keep prying eyes out of their devices.

The good news was that it worked! As far as they knew anyways... Proof was in the pudding after all.

The bad news was that it was slightly buggy. It had to have one of its kind placed in each electrical outlet and when it did, it would let out a large shock.

So naturally, Adam was charged with placing all of them. Last time Danny checked, the First Man had his eyebrows singed off.

The person he was looking for at the moment was Emily. He hadn't seen her at all today and from the sounds of it, nobody else had either. Well, nobody else he had bumped into anyways.

He was starting to grow concerned.

Just as he was about to suspect foul play, he bumped into Charlie.

"Charlie! Do you know where Emily is? I've been looking for her all day and I'm starting to get worried."

Instead of answering Danny right away, for some reason she looked up at the wall clock first.

"I guess I can tell you now. She's been working on another surprise for you!"

Charlie danced her feet in place out of excitement.

"Another surprise? She's too good to me! Why does she keep doing things like this for me?"

"Well she knows you've been feeling a little stressed what with you having to lay lower than usual. So she went back to Earth to get you something to feel more comfortable! Plus, maybe a thing or two from Heaven to make it even sweeter! She swore all of us to secrecy to have time to set it up!"

Charlie looked almost as excited as Danny felt.

"Is it ready? Where is she?"

"She knew you'd be out looking for her so she's been in the one place you haven't looked! Your room!"

Danny had to admit, he was impressed. It was the one place he hadn't thought of to look for her in, probably because it was his starting point for his search.

"That's pretty smart!"

"Your surprise should be all set up by now! She's most likely waiting for you!"

"I need to see her right now then! Thanks Charlie!"

Danny wheeled himself to the elevator and Charlie let out a quiet girly scream.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

______________________________________________________________

Hallway between the penthouse and the elevator...

Danny pushed himself down the hallway to his double doors, his thoughts consumed with Emily.

'I know that she's supposed to be the super angel of joy or whatever, but exactly how happy can she make one man?! She really is amazing!'

If Danny hadn't been injured, he would have kicked down his own doors from sheer anticipation. None the less, he still opened them fast enough to make Emily on the other side jump in surprise.

"Oh! Danny, you startled me."

As excited as Danny was, he suddenly found himself speechless. How was he supposed to ask for his surprise without sounding like a greedy kid?

"I..." Danny struggled to find the right words but a smile from Emily calmed his nerves. "Charlie said that you've been cooking up something for me again."

Emily's smile changed into that of a humble one.

"Yes. I understand that maybe you've been feeling a little stressed with the Vee's search for you, so I got you another thing from your house."

If it was anyone else, Danny would have called them out on it, but Emily only ever seemed to have his best interests at heart.

"... It's your entire movie collection!" she all but blurted out.

On a table against the wall was Danny's entire DVD library.

"Wow Emily! You didn't have to-"

A clearing of her throat interrupted Danny.

"There's... More." she shyly confessed.

"More?"

"Okay, so I figured movies could be a good way for you to kill some time, but what good are DVDs without something to play them on? So, I took a little trip up to Heaven and got a player to watch them on along with a projector and... I got a little carried away with what I brought down. The room is also basically a home theater now."

In front of Danny's bed was a silver and gold projector hooked up to a DVD player. Across from it, sitting in front of Danny's workbench was a large screen, certainly larger than any TV screen. It looked like maybe it took her a couple of times to assemble it correctly but overall figured it out.

"And you did all of this just because you're my fan?"

"Well, hero types like yourself are like rockstars to us angels. The heroes who end up fallen are like the equivalent to rockstars that end up dying from ODing on drugs. Nothing short of tragic! You didn't do that, I saw you promise your family. And..." Emily nervously swallowed a lump in her throat. "You're my favorite. I know that there's more good for you to do in the future but I can't seem to stop myself. I've grown to like you even more, if all of this was just me being a fan, I would've already stopped with the special treatment by now... I like you, Danny. As more than just a fan."

Emily must have spoken without thinking, because it took Danny's surprised expression for it to sink in that Emily had basically just confessed her feelings.

Her cheeks blushed a red brighter than the circles on Charlie's face. She stood absolutely frozen as nervous energy started to fill up her body.

"I'm sorry!" she blurted out. "You don't have to worry about any of that! I-I-I should go-"

Emily started to make a run for the door but was stopped when Danny grabbed her hand. She looked back at him like a frightened rabbit, as if one word from him could absolutely destroy her.

"Please don't go! I... think I like you back! I'm not great at this sort of stuff but I'm willing to give us a try... If you'll let me?"

Emily watched Danny, silently urging him to continue.

"I mean, I want to take things slow. Date for a while and see if we work?"

A new smile appeared on Emily's face, one accompanied by tears of joy.

"I... Yes! What else can I say but 'yes'?"

Emily threw her arms around Danny's neck and nearly bowled him over.

"Whoa! Easy there! I'm still injured, remember?"

She let out a noise that sounded like a mix of a sob and a chuckle. She let go of him and wiped some tears out of her eyes. She now stood before him patiently waiting for whatever he thought the next step should be.

"Again, I don't have much experience with this kind of stuff. I've only ever had the one girlfriend; but if you don't mind a cheap first date... Maybe we could sit on my bed and watch some of my movies together?"

"I don't think that's cheap at all!" Emily corrected without a moment's hesitation.

She wheeled Danny over to the far side of the bed so fast he nearly yelped. She helped him in to the one side of the bed, put in a DVD of Danny's choice and then daintily dashed to the other side of the bed.

Danny gave her a flirty smirk. "Might want to be more careful there, Miss. Only the first date and I've already convinced you to climb into bed with me."

Emily was halfway into the bed when he said that, she froze where she was to stare at him. When she saw that he was joking she laughed.

"Daniel please, with your injuries? If anything, you should be weary of what I might do to you!"

Now it was Danny's turn to laugh.

"Yeah right! You're nice but you're not THAT nice!"

Now they both laughed together. Once they calmed down, Danny took a closer look at the DVD he picked out. It was rated R.

"You know, some of my stuff can be a little violent. Are you sure that you're going to be..."

"Danny please! I'm not a child! I can handle some adult level action, and Gore is just an excuse to see the craftsmanship that the human souls of Hollywood have cooked up."

______________________________________________________________

The next morning...

Emily awoke to find herself holding Danny's body with both of them in his bed atop the covers. She'd been using his chest as a pillow.

Everything from yesterday came flooding back to her and she let out a squeak of happiness.

She couldn't believe her luck. She got the one thing she wanted more than anything! She looked at the alarm clock, it was almost time for breakfast. She had spent the whole night basically snuggling him in her sleep and best of all... Danny was probably okay with it!

There was a dark cloud of thought present, however, that made her wonder if some human soul deserved to be with Danny more.

These thoughts never got fully explored, however, as a noise from the stairwell door caught her attention.

She quietly got out of bed, made sure her nurse's hat was on, and then moved to the door as silently as she could.

She cautiously opened the door, ready for anything that was on the other side. What she had found was Alastor and Adam.

It looked like they were in the middle of a quiet conversation and hadn't expected Emily to catch them.

"What do you two want?"

Adam immediately flinched. "Oh shit! Emily!"

Alastor didn't share his concerns. He looked to her like she was any normal person out on the streets.

"Adam and I have been talking, and while we don't agree on much there is one thing we see eye to eye on. Daniel must pay for his crimes of humiliating us, and the iron will never be hotter than when he's injured." He placed a hand on her shoulder. "So just step aside if you don't want to get hurt!"

Emily looked at the hand Alastor had on her shoulder, then at the man himself. Her smile disappeared and an eye appeared on her halo.

Adam had already seen as much as he needed to. He had already turned tail and started running down the stairs shouting "SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!"

Down to the floor for Alastor's Recording Booth, Adam's worst fear was confirmed as Alastor came flying out of the staircase entrance for the penthouse flailing like a ragdoll.

"SHIIIIIIIIIT!"

Alastor crashed into Adam and together they went tumbling down the stairs, somehow hitting each and every one. The carpeted floor between the stairwells for the floors doing absolutely nothing to slow them down.

Emily tipped her little nurse's hat forward.

"Not on THIS nurse's watch!"

Adam and Alastor went down each and every flight of stairs, the propelling motion being too powerful for either of them to stop.

Their journey of bumps and bruises finally came to end when they landed on the bottom of the stairs.

"That little Sunbeam did this to us?"Alastor asked with a groan.

"Yeah..." wheezed Adam. "She's supposed to be happy and spread joy but if you force her to get serious... Look out!"

Adam was the first to pick himself up but just as Alastor was working up the strength to do so himself, he noticed that Charlie had appeared.

She was slowly tapping her foot and giving Alastor a look of disapproval.

Alastor changed his position so his head was resting in his hands.

"Chaaaaaaarlieeeee, hiiiiiiiiii. You won't believe what just happened!"

Back up in Danny's room...

Emily fixed her dress muttering something about "first thing in the morning...".

"Wow!" The sound of Danny's voice made her jump in surprise. He was awake and looking right at her. "I didn't think you had it in you. I'm impressed!"

Her humble smile returned but there was something more in it now. A silent request to continue praise perhaps?

"I...am nice, but even I have to draw the line somewhere."

"Maybe want to help me into my chair so we can go get breakfast?"

"Of course!"

Emily eventually started doing just that but when Danny was halfway into the chair he stopped. Emily was about to ask what he was doing when he suddenly planted his lips on top of her's.

"MMMM! MMM?! MM!" was the muffled surprised sound that came out of Emily. There was no tongue, just lips; like a really long peck. Her wings flapped all over the place in surprise.

He finally broke the kiss and let the rest of him fall into place in the chair. "Sorry, I... just had to do that. I couldn't stop thinking about it! And since we've agreed to start dating I figured..."

"You just kissed me..." Emily's voice sounded like she was just starting to come out of a daze.

"Was that too soon? I guess I should've..."

"Danny Fenton just kissed me!"

"Well yeah, I thought it would be okay and..."

"I have just been kissed by Danny Fenton!"

"Okay, I like that you're focusing on Fenton instead of Phantom but are you okay?"

Her hand delicately touched her lip and a grin slowly started to develop.

"YEEEEEEEEEEES!" Emily shouted with joy. "He kissed me! He kissed ME!"

Emily suddenly ran off with a spring in her step, chanting the same thing over and over again.

"Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme! Hekissedme!"

Right out the stairway door and down the steps, not likely to stop until she hit the ground floor.

She may come across as innocent but after Danny had gotten to know her better, he knew the more accurate term was Joyful. Because that was exactly what she was experiencing right now, joy.

Danny had no doubt she was running through all the floors right now chanting that repeatedly. He couldn't help but love it. The thing he liked best of all was that she said 'Fenton' and not 'Phantom', gave him a good idea of exactly what she was a fan of.

About 45 minutes later, Emily walked back into the room with her eyes closed and her head held high in dignity. She opened her eyes and shot a couple of finger guns at Danny.

"I mean... That's cool, Dan-O! No complaints here!" Her attempt at being 'smooth' was so awkward it was adorable.

They stared at each other for a moment and then burst out loud laughing. They eventually settled down, shared a smile, and agreed to head on down for breakfast.

______________________________________________________________

Dining room...

Everyone had sat down at the long dining table to eat breakfast together as was the tradition in the Hazbin Hotel.

Danny and Emily had received whooping holler of celebration when they entered together. There was no way how the two of them could have been kept secret. Not after Emily's sprint or Adam and Alastor getting busted.

Speaking of whom...

Charlie had devised a rather unique punishment for them. They were both forced to share wearing a giant T-shirt together that read "This is our we won't try to kill residents shirt".

Neither were happy about it but neither could do a lot about it either. Adam couldn't object because he literally had to do what he was told to do here, and Alastor was on thin ice with Charlie. Backing the hotel or not, one more dirty trick of assassination like that and he was out!

So everybody sat down and started to enjoy the hearty spread across the table that was the breakfast buffet. Things like sausages were cooked in the toaster oven that used to be Adam's helmet. Small talk started to take off as sausages and pancakes were consumed. Alastor and Adam were faced with the unique challenge of cooperation since each of them could only have one arm out a sleeve. Naturally, it was a disaster since they kept intercepting food to the other's mouth, Alastor even going as far as to poke a sausage in Adam's eye.

"So E, couldn't help but hear the good news." started Angel Dust.

Emily blushed. "O-Oh?"

"A little hard not to when she's shouting it on every floor." jabbed Husk.

"Let me save us all some time." Danny offered. "Yes. Emily and I are official now, but we're taking it slow!"

"Heh." Angel Dust shrugged. "Guess you don't need my suggestion of getting 50K after all!"

"50K?" echoed Danny.

"Don't ask!" retorted Charlie as she put some more sausages on her plate.

"Emily might not need 50K but you do owe ME some money!" Vaggie accused as she held out her hand to Angel Dust.

"Alright fine!" Angel Dust stood up and took out his wallet. He started putting bills into Vaggie's hand, counting them out. "Twenty, forty, sixty..."

"Make it rain!" ordered Vaggie.

Angel Dust threw the rest of the dollars into the air. "Woot. There. I hope you like syrup with your victory money."

"Makes it all the sweeter! Told you she had this!"

The rest of breakfast was pretty lively. Emily chewed out Adam for his assassination team up and assured him it was going to go into her report. Alastor tried to claim that it was all Adam's idea, which got him a smack in the face from Adam's free arm.

Vaggie and Angel Dust bickered like siblings, Sir Pentious and Charlie talked about future activities for redemption, Niffty was trying to clean Husk's chair while he was still in it, and Danny was actually finding himself loving it. A part of him knew that he was going to end up missing all of this, maybe even soon.

However, as breakfast went on... Danny failed to notice Emily lost her smile a little bit.

______________________________________________________________

Hazbin Hotel... Parlor...

Danny and Charlie had agreed to change things up in their game by moving the location to the ground floor.

"Aha! Another two hundred dollars!" Danny triumphantly cheered as he held out his hand.

Charlie delivered the play money without a second chance.

"With chemical castration the pedophiles won't have to worry about what they're attracted to so it would be fine for them to seek redemption!"

Charlie confidently smirked and crossed her arms triumphantly. This had been a bit of a wall for her in their debate but she was confident she finally had an answer.

"Hm... Maybe that could work, IF you're lucky! Just for argument's sake let's say it does though. What are you going to do about someone from Cannibal Town? What's your strategy there? Didn't sound like they had a lot of interest in eating things that weren't flesh."

Charlie pulled on her hair in frustration.

"The cannibals?! Seriously?! That's kind of a low blow, don't you think?"

She rolled the dice and went six paces.

"If you really want me to help you then I can't pull my punches. If you don't have an answer for what to do with them then it's probably a good idea to start thinking of a solution now rather than later."

"Aaargh! You've got a point! You're turn."

Danny rolled and fortune favored Charlie for a change.

"HA! Go directly to jail!"

"Hey! No fair! The dice are rigged to favor you because you're the Princess of Hell!"

"Are not."

Before the childish debate could be taken any farther, Angel Dust ran into the room looking more frightened than Danny had ever seen him.

"Angel? What's..."

"Turn on the TV! It's the Vee's, they're going nuts!"

Doing so took them immediately to an emergency News bulletin.

"So if you're just joining us," the reporter started. "The Vee's have gone completely bat shit crazy in their manhunt! They're tearing up the town looking for this Danny loser, and ripping apart anyone who crosses their paths!"

"Whoa! Charlie, you gotta get your police down there to handle this situation!" exclaimed Danny.

Charlie awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck and Angel Dust could already see the direction the conversation was going to head in.

"Yeeeaaah... About that..." Charlie began.

Angel Dust pretended to look at a watch on his wrist. "Well would you look at the invisible time! It's a quarter past a freckle! I gotta go!"

Angel Dust ran out of the parlor and after a moment there was a huge shout from Danny.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT IT ISN'T EXACTLY 'ILLEGAL'?!"

Danny's shout attracted the attention of the other hoteliers and cautiously watched the scene play out peering around the archway into the room.

"Yeah. Things like this aren't really uncommon down here in Hell. Even Sir Pentious used to be a Overlord before coming here! Things like murder sprees are about as unavoidable down here as rain is on Earth!"

Danny facepalmed. "Well no WONDER nobody is giving you and your hotel a fair shot! It's complete chaos down here!"

"Well I don't think that's entirely fair! I..."

Charlie got cut off as another loud scream from the TV caught their attention.

"Gimme that microphone, fucker!" Vox roared as he threw the reporter away and stole the camera.

"Daniel 🎶... I know that you're watching! It's in a hero types nature to save people in distress!"

Danny steeled his expression while Charlie winced.

"These people are dying! And they are going to KEEP dying until you reveal yourself to us! How many lives are worth your cowardice?! We're waiting!"

Charlie turned off the TV and gave Danny an uneasy grin. "The News always catastrophizes everything anyways!"

Danny started to wheel himself away.

"Danny? Wait! What do you think you're doing?!"

"What do you think I'm doing?! I'm getting my hero butt down there to stop the killings! I'll probably get kidnapped again so I'm going to have to be smarter about..."

"Danny, no! This is obviously a trap!"

"I don't care, Charlie! You said that you couldn't keep watching sinners being killed, well as it turns out I can't either!"

Charlie grabbed the back of his wheelchair and put the breaks on.

"You're not going anywhere!"

"That's what you think! I'm Going Gho-"

"OH NO YOU'RE NOT!" shouted a voice.

Before Danny could react, he was dog piled by Husk, Angel Dust, Niffty, Vaggie, Sir Pentious, and all of the egg bois.

"AAAAAGH! GET OFF OF ME!"

Angel Dust brought out a napkin and Husk doused it with something.

"Danny, buddy! Do me a favor! Tell me, does this smell like chloroform to you?!"

Angel Dust shoved the napkin into Danny's face and he lost consciousness.

______________________________________________________________

Danny's room... Much later...

Danny awoke in a daze. He was back in his bed.

It didn't take a scientist of any kind to figure out what happened to him, the only real questions he had to ask were: 'How long was he out for?' and 'How many lives were lost because of it?'

"Well Sleeping Beauty finally awakens!" someone announced.

The voice was new. It sounded like the kind of snark that he would expect from Adam but there was a playful undertone that reminded him of Charlie.

"Who...?"

The owner of the voice was somebody Danny had never seen before. He was dressed in all white, pretty short by anyone's standards, and had a white top hat with a snake and apple on it.

"My name is Lucifer, and I..."

"Charlie's dad? As in..."

"Yes! That Lucifer! Before you go getting any ideas about me, I just want to throw it out there that both Satan and the Devil are separate entities from myself."

"... Weird."

The man obviously didn't appreciate Danny's outlook on his explanation but wore a flimsy mask to hide it.

"AHAHA! You know what else is weird? A living human soul finding favor with my daughter to the point where she puts him in her best hotel room to heal and recover!"

"What can I say? Charlie is a class act."

"She really IS! In fact, you could say that she's TOO classy for the sinners of Hell! The same sinners you were willing to risk your life for and nearly gave her a heart attack over!"

There was a dangerous undertone in Lucifer's voice that promised a threat.

"Is that what this little 'visit' is about? I scared Charlie so now you're going to kill me? Because if that's really so than I have to say... It would be a creative way to screw over the Vee's."

This response honestly caught Lucifer off guard.

"What?"

"Well if I'm dead then the Vee's can't use my power anymore. And if my death sends me up to Heaven, maybe I can try to change things up there; I've been told that a lot of locals up there didn't know about the exterminations. And if I'm condemned to have a sinner form, than maybe my foot won't be broken anymore and I can help out at the hotel."

Lucifer squinted his eyes at Danny in confusion.

"What the...?"

Now Lucifer was never able to see the good that came from humanity, only the cruel and the wicked. Danny, however, wasn't all human. He was half ghost, so some of his heroic nature was actually coming in through to Lucifer.

"Of course Charlie had to have brought you up to speed on this or we wouldn't be talking."

Lucifer shook his head quickly for a moment, shaking away whatever cobwebs were trying to form.

"Of course. Of course! Thing is though, that Charlie told me about how the two of you aren't exactly seeing eye to eye on sinners... I for one actually find myself agreeing with you on them! They've gotten what they deserved!"

"We're all responsible for our own actions."

"Exactly! Which is why I find it so strange that you were willing to risk your life for them!"

"Because maybe your daughter had more of a point than I originally thought! If mass murder can just be done by Hell's OWN citizens at any time then maybe some things do need to change! The punishments aren't fitting the crimes! They're already in Hell; maybe it's better to drop the bat and leave the dead horse alone?!"

Lucifer squinted his eyes in confusion again. Danny's words finally sunk in and Lucifer threw his hands up into the air in frustration.

"Whatever! I actually didn't come here for you anyways!"

Now Danny was the one confused. "Really? Even with the Vee's on the war path?"

"'Overlords' are just some slightly larger yapping bitches in my dog pound! They get too big for their britches and I'll take them to the back room to be euthanized like any other bad dog! No. I came here as a surprise visit for Charlie."

"That's... Actually pretty sweet." Danny admitted.

"Thanks. All she and her friends could talk about were YOU though and how concerned they were for you! YOU put a frown on my daughter's face!"

Danny shrugged.

"Well you could kill me, especially since I'm still injured, just like I already said buuuuuuut..."

"But Charlie." Lucifer finished. "She wouldn't approve and we both know it. Nor would her little friends... Except for that radio asshole who..."

"Hate that guy." Danny flatly declared. "Hate everything about him. Last thing I did to him when he was on Earth was knock him out with a punch to the face."

Lucifer smirked impressed. "Heh. Maybe you're not so bad after all."

"Thanks."

"I was actually hoping she would give me her thoughts on a little invention of mine."

"You invented something? I'm trying to make a living off of inventing, myself. Can I see it?"

"It probably sucks but fine. See for yourself." He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out something small and yellow. "Introducing the Amazing Backflipping Rubber Duck!" The yellow thing ended up being a walking rubber duck of some kind. "That Breathes Fire!"

The rubber duck took a couple of steps on Lucifer's hand, did a backflip, and then released a stream of fire into the air.

"Pretty terrible huh?"

"Actually, I think it would be a good Father's Day gift for my dad!"

"What?"

"Yeah! It's actually kinda perfect, honestly!"

"Oh you're just saying that!"

"No really! He needs a new thing to get interested in that doesn't involve ghost hunting and this could be exactly what he needs!"

"And he wouldn't mind the fact that it breathes fire?"

"Knowing my dad, he wouldn't be interested in it unless it did!"

Lucifer's attitude changed to almost bashfulness. "Well..." He bit his bottom lip and looked away happily. "I suppose I could part with ONE of my little ducklings!"

Charlie almost stumbled into the room from the stairwell door and gave her dad a small glare.

"Dad! You can't just break the elevator anytime you want to speak with a friend of mine alone!"

"Not to worry, Charlie! We're done here."

"I... Really?"

"This one's a keeper! I can see why you were so protective of him! If you weren't already spoken for with Vaggie than I would suggest something more intimate than friendship with him!"

Charlie and Danny grimaced in unison. "EEEEEEWWWW!"

"NO thank you!"

"Dad, I have a girlfriend! You know that! Closed! Relationship!"

"Oh, you kids... Throuples are a thing now a days."

"Danny and I are NOT like that at all!" stressed Charlie.

"Yeah! Charlie is more like a... cousin to me more than anything! Besides I'm already in a relationship with Emily!"

"He's right! The two of them are actually clicking pretty well!" complimented Charlie. "You're a lucky man, Danny!" She playfully elbowed him in the ribs while wearing a smug grin. "Everyone likes her so much! Even I look at her like a sister!"

Lucifer was already on his way out, going to take an exit by flying off the balcony, but this little bit of information stopped him right in his tracks.

"Emily? The Seraphim Angel of Joy? She's down here; AND you managed to snag a relationship with her?"

It was Danny's turn to be confused again. "Uh yeah. Why? Does that mean something to you?"

"... Of course not, Dan-O! It may mean that I might swing by for another visit again though! I'll just leave the rubber duck out here on the balcony for you to find! You all be good to each other now!"

Lucifer left through the balcony and Charlie and Danny just sort of watched him leave. After a moment they looked at each other and both shuddered in revulsion.

"He's not going to... Like, use Emily and I's relationship for his own personal gain or something... Is he?" asked Danny.

"... Naaaah! No! You two are fine! Would like to know what you two were talking about since he sabotaged the elevator! Had to run up here from the ground floor, ya know?"

"Sinners, what they deserve, and finally you. Speaking of sinners, how bad was the slaughter?"

"Nothing too out of the normal for Pentagram City. Death tolls might not even change this year. They really were just trying to draw you out. Even said so in their BS press conference about their attack."

"... I need to focus on getting better a little more seriously... Which brings me to another thing I need to talk to you about. Charlie, on the debate about helping sinners... I hereby yield!"

Charlie's eyes glassed over and she dropped her jaw in amazement, the same amazement she once had when her father sang of his 'Angelic Power'.

"But NOT entirely!" stressed Danny. "I'm still not convinced I should talk to these fallen heros you have, but you are right in that we can't just do nothing! Change really is only going to happen if we make it!"

"For now, I'll take it! You do realize what it means that you've yielded a point to me in our friendly little debate though? You owe ME... Two hundred dollars in Monopoly money!"

Danny playfully rolled his eyes.

"Fine. Go get Monopoly and I'll pay you right away. I'll even make it rain for you."

"Right away! ... Right after I fix the elevator."

______________________________________________________________

Hazbin Hotel... Lobby...

Lucifer said that he was leaving but that wasn't exactly true, there was still one of Charlie's friends he needed to talk to. Truth was he just flew down to the ground entrance. Inside he found the high ranking angel almost immediately.

Emily stood in front of the elevator as she impatiently waited for the elevator to start working again. She had another cart of fresh bandages in front of her, it was time to change Danny's bandages again.

"Come on, come on! You can't expect me to lug this thing up the stairs, can you?"

"Well, well, well... Look who decided to descend from on high to slum it with the sinners."

This voice ran a chill down Emily's back. She turned around to see the man himself.

"L-Lucifer..."

"Feels good doesn't it?" asked Lucifer. "Being with someone you know you probably shouldn't."

"I..."

"Looks like you're going down the same path I did. Falling for someone that your better instincts tell you that you should leave for somebody else! History repeats itself! You remind me of Charlie though, if you end up falling because of this then I'll allow you to stay in Hell."

"I..."

"Charlie likes you, so I'll make sure you're treated well. Just remember, now you understand where I came from!"

Lucifer deployed his wings and flew out the hotel just as a *PING!* indicated the elevator's arrival. Charlie walked out of the elevator, cleaning grease off her hands.

"Well that was a chore! Oh! Hey Emmy! Time to change Danny's bandages again?"

Emily didn't even seem to hear Charlie at first, too busy staring out at the doors Lucifer left through. She jumped slightly when Charlie put a hand on her shoulder.

"Oh! Charlie! Um..." Emily rubbed some tears out of her eyes. "Actually, I think I might need the day off today."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah! I just... I just need to think about a few things. H-Have Sir Pentious' eggs fill in for me okay?"

Charlie didn't know what the situation was but she could easily read that Emily needed this.

"Sure! Whatever you need! Just be sure to come back to us!"

Emily gave her a sad smile. "Of course Charlie, thank you!"

As Emily left, Charlie stared at the spot where Lucifer was standing with suspicion. The carpeting was new so sometimes imprints lingered, and the footprints that were just starting to disappear were her father's size exactly.

"Dad, I swear... If you had anything to actually with those tears..."

To Be Continued...

#danny phantom #hazbin hotel #danny x emily #angel dust #charlie morningstar #husk #lucifer morningstar #vaggie #sir pentious #hazbin hotel adam #alastor #niffty #vox #valentino #Velvette #emily hazbin hotel

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