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It was night time in the Hotel; only silence filled the usually busy and noisy halls as every resident was in their own rooms to get some deserved rest after another busy day.
But it wasn't a pleasant night for everybody: in her room, Cherri was tossing and turning in her bed with a pained scowl.
She wasn't inside the Hotel, right now: her mind had sent her outside, right in the middle of Pentagram City, tall skyscrapers as red as blood were circling her as she tried studying her surroundings; a cherry tinted mist made that attempt harder, but after a few seconds she was able to make out a silhouette.
Someone was slowly walking towards her. And as they got closer, Cherri could recognize their outfit: a white fedora with a matching jacket, black trousers that barely hid a long rifle that they carried on their side. Under their single eye a frozen, malevolent glare.
The sight of that demon made Cherri's blood boil with rage.
“You…” her voice filled with venom, as she held one of her bombs. “How many times I have to tell you, shitface?! We are through . You don't own me anymore!”
The demon did not flinch at that threat: his grin still plastered on his face, he slowly drew the gun, taking aim right to her heart.
Cherri was quick: she moved right before the bullets could get her, and quickly threw her explosive at him; its smoke quickly dissolved, with the hunter no longer in sight. Cherri still stayed on her guard, for she was sure he was still near.
Then, a haunting laugh, right behind her; she quickly attacked with another bomb, but as soon as she was done, she heard another right next to her. She promptly attacked, only to hear that cackle above her.
And she kept attacking. Yet no matter where she turned, she could still hear his sneer, see that rotten grin. Taunting her, humiliating her.
But she wasn't that naive fool anymore.
Time to blow the joint once and for all. Her last bomb. She had to aim right, to finally destroy him.
“GO FUCK YOURSELF!” she shouted, as the bomb flew, hit the ground…
…and she woke up.
The scenery completely changed. She wasn’t surrounded by blood tinted buildings anymore, nor could she sense the cherry-scented smoke of her bombs. She looked around to find familiarity with her surroundings, breathing heavily.
Just a nightmare… just a nightmare…
Not that it made her feel much better: all those years, and that motherfucker’s face could still find a way to ruin her.
“Fucking damnit…” she muttered to herself in anger, trying in vain to wipe that jackass’ malicious grin out of her mind. The more she tried, the more furious she felt, making her wish to find the next thing near her to throw against the wall, just to fool herself into a fantasy where she was able to at least knock a few teeth from that taunting grin.
And that’s what she almost did, grabbing a hairbrush to fling, when suddenly a familiar voice was heard.
“MISSSSS BOMB!! WHAT HAPPENED?!”
The door flung open, revealing her archenemy of a boyfriend, Sir Pentious, donning a light blue, old timey sleeping outfit matched with a sleeping hat of the same color. He looked frazzled, but for some reason not as groggy as you’d expect someone who just woke up.
“Whaaa…?” she barely had the time to react before the snake started talking again.
“Miss Bomb, I heard you scream and-” his eyes inadvertently went to her bare chest, making him blush profusely. “OH GOOD LORD!!!” and he slammed the door in a panic, leaving Cherri utterly confused, and admittedly, a tad irritated.
“Are you for real, mate?! Are ya still afraid of my tits?!”
“N-no, never! Your bosom is lovely!” she could hear the awkwardness from his voice, muffled by the door. “I jussst… realized that a gentleman sssuch as myself cannot barge into a lady’s room without her consssent, is all! Yesss, that’s it!” he clumsily tried to explain himself.
Cherri rolled her eye with a smirk: her boyfriend was such a virgin, which only was a bonus to his pathetic charm. So she decided to throw him a bone.
“Would your dicks calm down if I wore a shirt?”
“...perhaps.”
She stifled a laugh at his sincerity, and she dug through the covers of the bed to find her acid green and blood red shirt, one of her favorites. “Ok, soggy noodles: the coast is clear.”
Pentious slowly opened the door again, partly hiding his flushed face with his hood just to be sure not to glance over her body in such a scandalous way again.
“Ya know you’re bein’ ridiculous, yeh?” she commented with an amused smile as he made his way through her room.
He sighed. “I-I know, my apologies. I didn’t want to be such a ssscoundrel…”
Cherri snorted. “Nah, don’t sell yourself short like that. Maybe a buffoon perhaps, but not a scoundrel. You’re not the first to oogle at my goods.”
“But it’s not what you deserve, Cherri. You’re an amazing woman with a brilliant mind and admirable courage. No one should ever disrespect you like this. Not even me…” he added with shame in his voice, looking down.
Cherri glanced at the snake, sighing at how earnest he was being. “I mean it, Pen: ya good. You’re allowed to love my body: you’re not a jackass for that.”
Pentious looked timidly at her. “You mean it?”
Cherri nodded. “I’ve met tons of them, both in life and death. Ya can’t compare, not even closely…” She felt the need to hug herself, the picture of that monster still fresh in her mind.
Pentious noticed her uneasiness. “Cherri, darling, what’s the matter?” he asked as he gently put his hand on her shoulder. He started stroking her back in a loving gesture. “Is it about your early scream?
Cherri hugged herself tighter. “...I'd rather not talk about it. Just a nightmare, that’s all.”, she whispered.
“But, maybe it could help? As the Princessss says, if you open up to what bothers you, you’re sure to feel better!” the snake held one of his index fingers in a declarative manner, in that endearingly pretentious way that always made Cherri’s heart flutter.
“Pfft. Teacher’s pet…”
“Hey, it has worked for me!” he retorted back defensively.
“No shit: you’ve always been-”; before she could finish her sentence, Cherri saw Pentious looking at her with apprehension, afraid of what she might say.
Weak? Pathetic? Inept?
…no. Cherri knew Pentious was none of that. Truth to be told, he was unlike a lot of the Sinners she’s met over the years. The cyclops was sure that, even at his worst, the snake always held dear to an integrity that she wasn’t sure to have.
“...yourself.” she finally concluded. “It’s easier for you to open up: you’ve never been afraid to show how much of a marshmallow of a man you are.” She snorted. “That’s… not my style. And that’s fine by me: I’ll get by with that.”
Pentious looked at her in silence, a pained expression on his face, appalled that his darling could talk down to herself like that.
“You’re wrong.”
“Hm?”
“You’re wrong, my dear. I need to confess to you, Cherri.” His face got extremely serious. “All that bravado I’ve shown during our battles? That… was a front.”
Cherri stared at him in disbelief: was this guy for real?
Did he really think… it wasn’t obvious at all?!
“Get off! You’re messing with me!” she humored him.
“I’m not, it’s all true!” he insisted, meaning every word of it. “I wanted everyone to see me as a genius, I wanted you to see me as a great inventor! I was so sure that, if I showed no weakness, finally everyone could respect me!” he concluded with that cocky smile he’d always use whenever he and Cherri had a turf war, only to immediately soften as he continued.
“But ever since the Princesss gave me a sssecond chance, here at the Hotel, I’ve come to understand that I don’t need to hide, that I can be who I am, and now… I have friendsss! And…” he started to blush. “I’m your partner… I couldn’t be happier, my ssssweetheart…” he was now looking at her with utter adoration in his now glistening eyes.
Such a scene jolted Cherri’s heart, that was now churning with emotions ready to burst out. She glanced away, overwhelmed, but could still hear Pentious talking to her.
“And if opening up helped a scum like me, it will most ssscertainly help you too.”
She scoffed at that notion. “You’re delusional. You’re not scum, and you don’t know that.”
He shrugged. “Well, you’ve never been afraid of a challenge, my dear.”
That affirmation, admittedly, got her by surprise: for an awkward reptile, Pen really knew her how to get to her. No wonder she felt the most alive whenever he was present in her explosive sprees.
“Fine. Fuck it, I’ll try.” she finally conceded smiling, grabbing Pentious by the collar. “But blather to anyone else about it and you’ll find a bomb in your hat, capiche ?”
Sir Pentious gulped, a bit scared and just a little turned on. “Cryssstal…”
“Good!” she let go, and settled to face the snake completely. “Anyway, it was a nightmare about my ex. I don’t wanna go into details about the beef between us. Let’s just say he…” she sighed. “...was a bloody bastard.”
Sir Pentious was listening attentively, getting extremely upset the moment she mentioned her ex.
“Where isss he now?” he asked with pure hatred in his eyes, more than ready to bring war to the monster who dared hurting the most amazing lady he’s ever met.
“Pen, it’s fine, really. I made his house explode when I was done with him” Cherri reassured him with a bittersweet smile, touched at her boyfriend’s devotion (and kinda aroused: fuck, his moments of confidence really ARE kinda hot!). “I made sure he wouldn’t follow me anymore, and I’m doing my best to not think about him.” She shifted her head despondently. “But it seems that fucker decided to keep screwin’ my life in my dreams…”
She could feel tears forming in her eye, and fought as much as she could to avoid crying: she was through with him, with all of this… She was happier now, she had Angel, and Pentious, and the Hotel…
Why did it still hurt, then?
“Ya know, sometimes I wonder if I’ll ever feel better-” she stopped as she felt a pair of arms circling her waist in an embrace, warm, safe and sound. Pentious was hugging her tightly, yet gently, the way only he could.
“I’m ssssorry…”
Cherri rolled her eye with a half smile. “Pen, ya need to stop apologizin’ for everything, ya edgel-”
“I’m sssorry that he hurt you.”
Cherri fell into an astonished silence.
“...what?”
Pentious hugged her harder. “I’m sssorry… he didn’t treat you like the wonderful, smart, talented, extraordinary lady you are, Cherri. You didn’t deserve any of that…”
Cherri still couldn’t believe that Pentious was really getting so worked up on her behalf, as if he could’ve done something to prevent all the pain she had endured. “Pen, it’s fine, really. I’ve had other fuckers treating me like shit before him, I’ll get over it-.”
“THAT DOESN’T MAKE IT ACCEPTABLE!” Pentious suddenly shouted in indignation; it almost made Cherri flinch.
“Pen, calm your tits. I told you it’s fine-”
“It’s not! And it will never be!” the snake shouted, not angry at her, never at her; but at the scar in her soul, that was left to bleed all this time, and worse, she felt like she needed to keep it that way. He grabbed Cherri, both of his hands on her shoulders, and looked at her with a scowl.
“Miss Cherri Bomb! It’s about time you learn to love yourself. What you’re feeling is real, and you deserve to heal from that!”
“...”
“And I promise you, my darling, right here and now.” Pentious kneeled (as much as his snake body allowed him to, anyway) and held her hand in his.
“As long as you’ll be with me, I’ll help you through that. I want you to be happy. Not for me, Cherri dear, but for you.” and he kissed her hand. He was now looking at her with pure love, his eyes glimmering like stars in a night sky.
Cherri’s eye shone bright with that declaration. It was downright corny, but somehow, it was the most sincere and sweet thing she’d ever heard. Just like the snake who proclaimed that promise.
“Pentious…”
“And until you learn that,” the snake affirmed with a confident smile. “I’ll love you for the both of us! Ssstarting now!”
And so he went, slithering around the room as if he were on some kind of stage and he was performing in front of a crowd. “I love you for your fiery passion…”
Cherri started to laugh at his silliness. “No, ya dork. You don’t need to.”
“I love you for your tenacity…” Pentious kept on with dramatic flair, that still was completely genuine.
“Pen, I mean it. You’re being ridiculous!” she really didn’t put that much of an effort to stop him.
“I love you for your creativity in battle…” no sign he was going to stop.
That snake really wanted to play with fire, and that made Cherri grin with a challenging attitude.
“‘Right. If that's how ya wanna play, you motherfucker, ya leave me with no choice.” she sprinted towards the snake, who was too caught up in his Romeo spiel to fully realize what was going to happen.
“I love you for your-hmph!” finally he stopped talking, with the one way Cherri knew always worked.
She pressed her lips against his mouth, aggressive enough to completely stun him, but with the gentleness that could make him understand just how much she loved him.
The taste of fire and cherry overwhelmed the snake, who quickly melted in her kiss, trying and failing to match her passion. The moment their mouths parted ways, he was left with a dopey, lovesick expression on his face that made Cherri’s heart jump in endearment.
“Figured it’d shut ya trap, ya sap.” she commented with a smirk. Pen, still on cloud 9, could only gaze at her with utter adoration.
“Now listen here, overcooked noodle. No one can tell me what to do, not even you.” Cherri laid it down with a serious tone. “I’ll decide when and how I’ll heal from all of that, got it?”. He nodded, still dazed.
She then flashed a genuine, soft smile. “But don’t you ever give up on me, yeah?”
He nodded once again, gazing at her with loving eyes. “Never, my darling.”
Cherri snorted as she pinched the snake’s face with both her hands. “You are the sappiest, most dramatic, obnoxious dork I’ve ever seen, just so you know.”
As she let go of his head, Pentious affectionately nuzzled it against her cheek. “But I’m your sappiest, dramatic, obnoxious dork!” he paused. “Am I?” he asked with genuine hope.
Cherri rolled her eye as she kissed his forehead. “Ye, you are.” That made him blush profusely. She laughed: months they’ve been together and he still blushed so easily…
“But.. you’re feeling better now, are you?” Pentious asked, still a bit worried.
“Don’t ya worry, mate: I’m better now.” she sent him a thankful smile. “Gotta give it to ya, old man: ya really know how to handle a lady. Ain't ya full of surprises?”
He puffed his chest with a proud smile, but still a bit red around his cheeks. “Only for you, my darling!”
Cherri laughed at his goofiness, then yawned. Pentious noticed, and got closer.
“Tired, Cherri dear?”
“No shit: it's still too bloody early.” She stretched her back and arms. “We better go back to sleep.”
Sir Pentious’ hood flared in surprise.
“Oh! Yes, sssleep! Of course.. “ he muttered as he started wringing his hands nervously. Cherri noticed it immediately: she could tell something was on his mind, and she had a pretty good hunch of what that could be.
“Riddle me this, Einstein: how were you so fast in reaching my room?” She leaned on him, with a teasing smile. “Were you spyin’ on me, you pervert?”
Sir Pentious fell on his back as his eyes grew big on his flushed face. “No! No no no no! Nothing of the sort!!” he stuttered. “I was jussst… uuuuuh…”
“Yeees~?”
The snake gulped. “Ssssometimes I… I watch others sleep…”
A pause.
“And by sometimes, I mean often…”
Cherri stared at him for a few seconds, before bursting into a loud chortle.
“WHAT?! That's messed up as shit! You're more of a lonely loser than I thought!”
“I'll have you know, missy, that what I do is of the utmost importance!” he huffed. “If I don't, how can I make sure they're sssafe while they sleep?!”
“Pfft, yeah right. Admit it, you're just lonely as fuck!”
“Ok, maybe I am… only a little …” he coughed awkwardly, sounding really unconvincing. “But it's still true. The worst could happen when you least expect it: a surprise attack, a stab in the back, or a nightmare-”
At that Cherri’s smile faltered a bit, now understanding more how serious it was for him. And only now noticing the dark circles around his eyes.
“-and that's why I need to stay alert, and make sure everyone is safe.” Pentious noticed Cherri staring at him. “What?”
“Pen… lemme tell ya: you're the sweetest, dumbest braniac I've ever met.”
“I beg your pardon?!”
“First”, she held her index finger up. “You expect to protect the princess and king of Hell, a fallen angel, a mobster, an Overlord, an ex Overlord, a pyromaniac and a tiny menace of a gremlin. All of which won against fucking Heaven. Don't ya think your worry is unnecessary?”
He faltered. “Uuuh, well, ssstill-”
“And second” another finger went up. “What about you?”
“Mh? What do you mean?” He was utterly confused.
“You know bloody well what I'm talking about, old man: your health. When's the last time you actually slept decently?”
Pentious darted his eyes left and right in panic, unable to look directly at her.
“W-well, I… did sleep 3 hours yesterday… and then… 2 the other day, to finish a project… but then again I slept 4 hours right before, so that compensates-”
Cherri nodded unamused.
“Ye, as expected.” she grabbed Pentious by the arm and started dragging him towards her bed. “Ya’ll sleep here tonight.”
“WHAT?!” Pentious tried to free himself from her grasp, to no avail. “Miss Bomb, I can't do this!”
“Oh, stop bein’ a pussy: it's just sleeping with a woman, we're not gonna ‘do a sex ’' she smirked, swaying her hips flirtatiously. “Unless ya want to~...”
Sir Pentious gulped, red as a tomato, but still firm in his mind. “N-no, Cherri dear, it's not that. I don't want to… to be… sssuch a bother to you…”
“Pen, look at me”. She told him seriously. “I said you can sleep with me. If I didn't want you here, ya know I would tell you so. We both need rest and company, don't we? Besides, we've been together for almost 6 months now, we might damn well sleep together for once. It's a win-win situation, don't ya agree?”
Pentious thought it over, his forked tongue hissing out of his mouth as he concentrated. “Yesss, that's a good point. I have to hand it to you my dear: you're an excellent negotiator!”
She shrugged impishly. “Of course I am: that's why I'm your arch nemesis!”
That comment made Pentious smile broadly: Satan, how much did he love that woman!
“Well? Are ya plannin’ to stay there an’ catch flies?” Cherri called out, already covered in blankets (her shirt still on, for his awkward sake), so Pentious quickly hurried and got comfortable in her bed.
Just as he did, however…
“Boss! Boss! Are you here?”
A tiny group of Egg Boiz suddenly appeared in Cherri's room, all donning an outfit similar to Pentious' own. They looked frantic.
“Wha-?! What are you ovules doing here?!” Pentious shouted at his minions, more than a little ticked off that the intimate moment was ruined.
“Son of a bitch…” Cherri commented, amused by his reaction and the hilarity of what was happening in front of her.
“You didn't come back, Boss! We were worried!” an Egg Boi said in a worried tone. The snake grimaced at that: he really should've thought about that.
“Right… Should've told you eggies I was staying here-”
“Oh Boss! You're sleeping with Bomb Lady?” “Can we stay too?” “I like her room, Boss!” “Her bed is so fluffy!” The Egg Bois’ chatting mixed all together pretty much carried the same message, which didn't please Pentious that much.
“Absolutely not! The lady said-”
“Actually,” Cherri interrupted him. “they can stay here, if they want. The more the merrier, yeah?” she nudged Pentious. In truth, she mostly wanted to tick Pentious a bit, not maliciously, but seeing him flustered by his minions was just what she needed to completely feel better after the awful night she went through.
And so Pentious relented, and with a pout he gestured the Eggs to come closer and get comfortable.
“Ugh… Come forward, my minions…”
The Egg Bois whooped and laughed as they all nuzzled to their boss or around the covers, and quickly fell asleep as soon as they felt comfortable enough. That left Sir Pentious still in a huff, and Cherri laughed at that.
“Aw, grumpy nude pants is grumpy~?”
He huffed again.
“Ah, I see. So you really wanted to get frisky…~”
“N-no!” Pentious quickly dropped his huff as he stuttered. “I wasn't thinking about that! These boiled eggs just ruined-”
“Pfft, I'm just messin’ with ya! Ya really take yourself too seriously, edgelord!”
“Humph, I do not, missy!” he huffed again, puffing his blushing cheeks and turning his nose upwards.
Cherri laughed, and shifted in her blankets.
“It's a good thing they're here, though. That you are here, Penny. The last thing I wanted tonight was to be lonely with that bastard tormenting me.” As she said that, she hugged him. “Thank you for being in my life.”
Her gesture, her kind words, her smile… All of that made Pentious' heart flutter in his chest. His eyes grew bigger with love, as he returned the embrace.
“Oh, Cherri, my sweet. That's the least I could do. Just tell me if that heartless monster ever bothers you again, and I'll bring war to his sorry arse. Why, if anything happened to you, I don't know what-”.
He was quickly silenced with Cherri kissing him, long and passionately. The kiss lasted a few seconds, before she backed away and lovingly gazed at his stunned expression.
“You talk too much, ya know?”
Love. Joy. Adoration, Amazement. Pentious felt this and so much more for the love of his life as he engulfed Cherri once again with both his arms and his tail, his eyes threatening to spill tears of happiness, as did hers.
Nothing could be more perfect than that.