#me watching charlie smirk and smile and grin as she looks at vaggie impaling angels during the start of the hotel battle

[a-dauntless-daffodil]

Charlie: "I have to put my hoof down on this, I've got one hard rule- I am NOT going to date an active murderer."

Vaggie: "...."

Vaggie: "What if the stab wound doesn't kill them."

Charlie: "Depends."

Vaggie: "On?"

Charlie: "Did they attack first were they very rude are they an Overlord you need to distract so you can run was it an accident am I around to help or is this a potential life and death situation how nicely does the blood spatter accent your beautiful jawline did you say sorry afterwards-"

Vaggie: "Wait go back, what blood splatter thing."

Charlie: "I mean this is HELL so it's not that big a deal? We're pretty used to getting gore and bloodstains out of clothes- there's even a special washer setting for-"

Vaggie: "My jawline."

Charlie: "Mmm no I think kisses are better for that? Or licking."

Vaggie: "Licking?"

Charlie: "It works for cleaning too! Honestly Razzle and Dazzle might be onto something there, because- "

Vaggie: "Even when I'm spattered with blood?"

Charlie: "...."

Charlie: "maaaaybe"

Vaggie: "...that's not a huge incentive to avoid violence, babe."

Charlie: "Murder. I specifically said, try not to do MURDER. Murder isn't sexy."

Vaggie: "But if it's just a little blood dripping down my face-"

Charlie: "-THis topic! Is no longer safe for work!"

Vaggie: "Oh my girlfriend-"

Charlie: "T-TAKING MY TITLE IN VAIN ISN'T HELPING EITHER!!!!!!"

[damnedrainbows]

Motives

Hey guys, so my friend wrote a cute short but she’s too nervous to post it herself so I volunteered to post it for her! Give feedback on what you think of it!

A frustrated shout of “I’M OUTTA HERE!” rang throughout the Happy Hotel, punctuated by a demon slamming open the doors and storming out. The demon was short and lanky. His arms were decorated with clock-hand tattoos that pointed in all directions, and below his ghoulish head sat an absurdly big clock pendant.

          The Clock Demon whirled around to look at the Hotel’s unhappy inhabitants. "You said you'd be patient, and then your bitch comes in and threatens me with a spear after only five minutes!? Fuck you and your Fake-Ass Hotel!”

          The clock demon stomped away. Inside of the hotel, there was Angel Dust relaxing on a couch, although his face held an unusual expression of vexation as he stared down at his boots. Charlie was sitting at the bar, not drinking, but simply tracing her finger along the table. Between them was a guilty looking Vaggie. She was in a fighting stance, a spear clenched in her hands, but her posture was deflated as she watched the consequences of her hasty actions. She turned around to look at her girlfriend. "Charlie?"

           “It’s okay, Vaggie.” Charlie didn’t turn around or stop tracing the table, but her words were sincerely forgiving.

           Angel, on the other hand... “Wow, NICE goin’, ya fuckin’ idiot.”

          Vaggie whipped her head around to glare at him for a moment, but then stopped. “I just... got worried.” She turned back to Charlie. “You were in that room talking with him, and then I didn’t hear anything for a straight five minutes! I thought for sure he’d done something to you.”

          “No, it wasn’t that,” Charlie explained glumly, “I was trying to help him and his anger issues, and I thought that maybe meditating would work. That’s all.”

          “That guy’s got a worse temper than YOU, and THAT’S sayin’ somethin’!” Angel remarked to Vaggie, then paused. “Actually, on second thought, not that much.” Vaggie didn’t even bother to listen to him. Instead she went to a bar seat next to Charlie, setting her spear against the bar table.

          Suddenly, a monstrous-looking shadow appeared against the wall and nearly reached the ceiling. It was hunched over and grinning maliciously, and with it the atmosphere turned even darker inside the building. Charlie miserably buried her face in her arms on the table. It was only when Alastor materialized from the shadow that the darkness disappeared along with it.

           Instantly Vaggie grabbed her spear. “Not. Now.” She glared daggers at him, but he was absolutely unfazed. He simply had his hands folded behind his back and, of course, he was still bearing that perpetual smile. The smile that she really, really, really wanted to rip off of his face one day.

          Alastor glanced at the doors, which had now swung back closed after the demon flung them open. “Ah, good old Clockwork. It was good to see him again, even though he can’t see me!” He chuckled, his voice filtered, as if he were talking into a radio microphone. “Oh, how I would’ve loved to loom in his shadow as a little reminder that I’m around! But we can’t have that now, can we?” He smirked. Alastor knew full and well that he was not supposed to come out and terrorize any of the patrons in the hotel, and while he did concede, it didn’t mean he didn’t love trouble despite Charlie’s efforts to ward him off from evil and onto the good line.

           Angel quirked a brow, “You know that bastard?”

          “Oh, he and I go way back!” Alastor said with a wave of his hand. “He came down here not long after me, and it was simply FANTASTIC to torment him! Playing with time always plays with his mind~!”

          Alastor looked over to a miserable Charlie, and his smile twitched a little. “Oh, come now, Charlie! No need to be so down! We’re still starting out, aren’t we? It’s best that we got Clockwork out of here now than later because I can tell you, his annoying presence just isn’t worth the time!” He cackled, but not exactly evilly. It was a strange laugh nobody had heard from him before.

          There was a long period of silence before Angel finally spoke. “... Was that... was that some kinda joke, or somethin’?”

           “You win!” Alastor replied throwing his hands up in the air for added sarcasm.

          Vaggie just groaned and covered her eye with a hand. She turned to Charlie... and saw that she was shaking in an odd fashion. Like she was sobbing.

          “You see what you do?!” She growled at Alastor, then turned back to her girlfriend. “It’s gonna be okay, love. I promise—huh?”

          The Princess of Hell was still hiding her face and shaking, but now making odd noises at an alarmingly frequent rate.

          Vaggie gasped, dropping her spear and grabbing Charlie’s shoulder, shaking it. “Charlie? Are you alright? What’s wrong!?” Her voice was growing more and more panicked until, finally, Charlie lifted her head.

           “Isn’t worth the time!” She just managed to say it before cracking up laughing. Vaggie sat there; she did not see that coming.

          Nobody had, not even Alastor. He turned a little more towards her, his eyes lighting up. “You—you thought that was funny?” He asked, for once not hiding a feeling like disbelief.

          Charlie managed to just get her giggles under control and nodded at him, and the deer-demon’s normally devious grin widened with eagerness. “Well, I have hundreds more!” He practically cheered.

           And so it began...

           “Alright now Charlie, I want to ask you: how many apples come from trees?”

           “Um...”

           “ALL OF THEM!”

          Charlie almost doubled over. She tried and failed to muffle her laugher with her hand. Next to her, Vaggie couldn’t help but smile. “Of course...”

           “What do you get from a pampered cow?”

           “What?”

           “SPOILED MILK!”

          Charlie slammed her fist against the table, laughing so hard tears formed in her eyes. A thrilled-looking Alastor gave her a few moments to calm down—or at least calm down enough so they could get to one of his favorites.

           “Ooh, this is a good one! So Charlie, can February March?”

           Charlie barely suppressed her mirth. “I-I don’t know, can it?”

           “No, but APRIL MAY!” He cackled again and Charlie dissolved into silent laughter and wheezing.

          Vaggie rubbed her girlfriend’s heaving back, slightly amused at the situation (though she’d never admit it) but also highly shocked at it. She wasn’t surprised that her Charlie found these stupid jokes funny, but why was Alastor doing this? She had always been suspicious of his every move, and this was something entirely new.

          Vaggie shot a glance at Angel Dust and saw that he looked as baffled as her. And Alastor... well, incredibly, Charlie’s infectious laughter had gotten to him as well, and he was slightly bending forward, resting one hand on the bar table and holding the other to his twig-thin stomach as he laughed.

           She couldn’t believe it. Alastor was genuinely laughing after having cheered up Charlie.

          Alastor was a clever and manipulating demon who loved to get reactions out of others. That was established within five minutes after he entered the Hotel for the first time to offer backup. There always something behind what he said, there was always sadistic glee upon causing disarray. Any sort of offer for the slightest positive feeling was always twisted into what Alastor always wanted—agony and terror.

          That was always what Vaggie believed ever since she’d heard about him. But when she looked at him ecstatically laughing and joking with Charlie, all she could think of was: nobody would be able to fake this.

          After another minute or so the two finally managed to calm down. Charlie still burst into giggles here and there, but soon she was able to speak. “Oh, that—that was amazing.”

           Sure was... Vaggie thought, watching as Alastor firmly cleared his throat and straightened up.

          “So, what’s next, may I ask?” The radio filter in his voice was prominent again after having faded during his comedy routine—something everyone realized after the fact.

          “I... um...” Charlie looked away, her smile vanishing. For the next moment everyone was silent, not really having any idea on how to answer.

          “Well, that’s alright!” Alastor shrugged. “Just let me know when you get your next idea~.” He was about to saunter back into his growing shadow and vanish, but stopped when Charlie called out to him. “Wait!”

           She jumped off of her seat and hurried over to him, at which he tilted his head and quirked his smile questioningly.

           Charlie’s smile was back, but it was softer. “Thank you. I really needed that.”

          There was a brief change in Alastor’s face that Vaggie had seen before. It was right when he’d first come to the Hotel, and she almost impaled him with her spear. During that moment, with the tip of the spear pressing into his neck, his eyes had widened for a brief second before he recomposed himself without having to move a muscle. She had surprised him in that brief moment, and now Charlie had done the same thing.

           Albeit this time the cause of the surprise was entirely different than before.

          After a second, Alastor shrugged again. “Well, we can’t have the leader of this place falling apart, now can we?” With a casual wave goodbye, he vanished into the darkness.

           So, that was what he was doing. Vaggie thought. He’d cheered Charlie up so she could keep everything up and running. He still had an ulterior motive. Of course.

           But, even so, Vaggie couldn’t shake the belief that the joy and the laughter had been completely real.

          Charlie came back to her seat next to Vaggie and hugged her. Despite her confusion, Vaggie couldn’t help smiling and returning it. At least her princess was happy again.

           “... So, anybody have any idea what the fuck just happened?” Angel Dust asked, quirking a brow.

          “I need a damn drink.” Husk muttered, having been behind the bar this whole time and watching this strange occurrence unfold.