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The studio was dark. There was barely enough light to make out any details, but Angel still knew where he was. The scent of Valentino’s thick, cloying perfume wound around everything in the room, clinging to anything that showed even a single sign of life. He could faintly hear the crackle of Vox’s screens, the many chunks of electricity connected to the overlord’s very being plugged in all around them, practically locking eyes onto every inch of him as he sat there. He recognised Velvette’s laugh, most importantly, the haughty, high pitched sound bouncing off the walls far down from where he was sitting, getting closer with each passing moment.
He’d been out of it for a while now, he could tell. It had been day time when he’d been grabbed in the alley outside the hotel, pulled into the backseat of a dingy car before a rag soaked in something sickly sweet was shoved in his mouth. The scent reminded him of Valentino, of the aphrodisiac he’d watched him help Velvette make. The memory made him sick. The thought that others in Hell might be dealing with the same things he was near every day kept him up at night. He’d felt so helpless. He’d wanted to help them, to destroy the stock held in the warehouse, to do something.
But that didn’t matter now. The drug had gone on the market anyway and he’d eventually gotten out, fleeing the job he’d grown to hate so much.
Angel let out a shaky breath, pulling at the binds keeping his arms strapped down to the chair he was planted in. It would be OK. He didn’t need to panic. He could keep it all together. It had to be OK. It would be OK.
Another pair of footsteps had joined Velvette’s outside. They were getting closer now. Closer and closer by the second. Angel couldn’t keep it together now. His heart was racing in his chest, thundering like the clipped hooves of a startled horse. He pressed back, into the chair, struggling against his restraints, looking for any possible way out. He didn’t know what they had planned for him, but it couldn’t be good. It was never good, and it most definitely wouldn’t be after he’d left. He’d fled, running away and leaving his duties here, ignoring the responsibilities they’d foisted onto him. It had seemed like a great idea at the time, to leave the place that had hurt him for so long, going to settle down with the one who had always loved him in a way the three Vees never could.
The door swung open and Angel froze in place, trying his hardest to contain the shakes beginning to spread all over his body. Memories of everything he’d been through, everything they’d put him through, spun through his mind like a sickly web and he could barely repress the urge to vomit.
The light flickered on, casting all the demons in the room in an almost sickly pinkish-purple glow. The light glimmered off the shining, framed posters on the wall, and Angel winced away from the various images of himself, posing and pinned up in various stages of undress. He’d tried his hardest to forget that those were still there. That no matter how hard he tried to run, he’d never be able to get that time back, to get back that part of him that had been coaxed out and then plastered all over Hell, for all strangers to see and use for themselves.
Valentino and Velvette were standing in the doorway, Velvette staring at her phone and Valentino grinning at him as he took a long draw from his cigarette.
“Hey, baby. I hope you missed us.” the moth overlord purred, moving into the room, Velvette trailing along beside him. He shut the door behind him, the lock clicking over as he did so. The final sound made Angel’s heart rate spike even further, digging his fingers into his palms in a desperate attempt to calm the fierce terror coursing through all of his veins. That lock had a key that only the three Vees had access to. If he was getting out, there was no way he was getting out through that door.
“You royally fucked up trying to run away, you know that babe?” Velvette said, tucking her phone under her arm as she crossed them in disapproval.
Angel said nothing. He wouldn’t let them know that he was scared. He wouldn’t let them have that satisfaction. Even if they were going to kill him, he wouldn’t let them know they had enough power to scare him. Never again. Instead, he just lifted his chin, offering nothing more than a defiant glare.
“Come on, don’t be nasty, Angie. We’ve just missed you, is all.” Valentino chimed in, moving closer, close enough that Angel’s senses were overwhelmed by the sickly sweet scent of the perfume that sunk into every part of the moth demon’s body. It made his limbs feel less stiff, whispered desires of relaxation trickling through his mind.
He wouldn’t let that work on him. He’d leaned into its effects before, letting the controlling aspect of the perfume take hold so that the overlord could do whatever he wanted. It made it better, in a way. He would barely notice anything that happened if he did that. He could curl up in the feelings, and feel like he was relaxing for just a moment. It almost helped to dull the pain.
“I’ve been so worried about you. You know how it is out there. Anything could have happened to you. In here, you’re protected and I can keep an eye on you. Out there…Well, anything could happen.” he continued, his features falling into a mask of concern. Angel knew it wasn’t sincere. It couldn’t be. If he worried about him as much as that, he wouldn’t have done all the things he did to him.
Angel looked away, dropping his gaze to the floor. He couldn’t keep this up. Valentino’s words, his sickeningly sweet tone, the odd concern playing across his face, it was all too much. It was chipping away at him, gaining purchase with the part of him that had fallen for that act the first time. If he stayed too long…He might not want to leave again.
“Besides, you’re really nothing without us. We made you into a star and without that, who are you really? Just some second rate sinner who lived and died without much consequence. Do you really want that to be your eternity?” Velvette added, rolling her eyes and smirking.
“Don’t be mean, babydoll. He’s been through a lot. Imagine what he’s been through, running away like that. He must be so scared.” Valentino said, his tone trying so hard to be soothing and gentle, but failing miserably each time.
It wasn’t true. He knew it wasn’t true. There was someone, someone out there who had never done what they had to him. He’d loved him for him, not for the Angel Dust he was now, but for the one he could be, the real him. He’d never even pushed for things like sex or anything like that. He wanted him for him and only that. He wanted to be with him, him as a person, as someone he could laugh with, talk with and love, love for all his flaws and little quirks.
“Now, come on. We’ll untie you, get you changed into something more comfortable and then you and I can go and get some rest. I’m sure you’re tired after everything that’s happened.” Valentino continued, leaning much closer, lightly running his hand along Angel’s arm. The contact made him sick.
Gritting his teeth, Angel responded by slamming his head into Valentino’s as hard as he possibly could, holding in a little yelp from the pain of the sudden strike. The overlord reeled back, letting out a loud roar of pain. He clapped a hand over his mouth, but Angel was still lucky enough to glimpse the steady stream of blood gushing from his split lip.
“Fuck. You.” he sneered, grimacing in satisfaction as Velvette jumped to attention, coming to examine the wound.
“You OK? Is your face too messed up?” she asked, frantically prodding at the possible career ending wound.
“It’s fine, it’s fine, I don’t care. Just…Alright, you know what? Go and get the things Vox gave us.”
“Are you sure? I thought you said-”
”I don’t care what I said. I’ve changed my mind. I need them now.”
Velvette, still looking unsure, rolled her eyes again and hurried off, opening the door a sliver, so she could reach around and pull a dark blue suitcase into the room with them.
“You always have to make everything so difficult, don’t you slut?” Valentino growled, gritting his teeth, wiping at the blood on his face with the back of his sleeve. “You couldn’t just stay here and do your job, you had to run away and try and act like you’re something special, like you’re just any piece of shit demon that can run around wherever they want!”
“I can! The only reason I couldn’t before was because of you!” he shot back, letting some of his anger and fear bubble to the surface.
“Not for long. You make me too much money to be running around with just any worthless little soul.” the overlord snarled, popping open the suitcase. Angel strained trying to catch sight of the contents, before stopping dead when he noticed the pair of glinting metal pliers in Valentino’s hand.
He’d seen things like that before. It was how he’d ended up with his own gold tooth, a sign that he was owned by the overlord of the porn industry. It had hurt, but at the time he’d endured it, in an attempt to prove himself, to show how dedicated he was to his work and to the man he thought he loved.
“What-What are you doing with that?” he struggled out, trying to keep his mouth even and calm.
“I’m teaching you a lesson, baby. I’m making sure you won’t forget who owns your ass.” he said, his voice dropping, low and dangerous now, as he slunk forward, coming to stand in front of Angel, looming over him with the pliers pressed against Angel’s cheek. The cold steel dug into his flesh and he could feel his eyes beginning to prickle with tears.
“No. No, you won’t-you can’t!” he cried, pulling at his restraints, whipping his head away from the metal.
“Hold still, you little bitch, before I take them out the hard way.”
“Do your fucking worst! Kill me for all I care! I’m not ever letting you have the hold you did over me. Never again!”
Valentino snarled, gritting his teeth, before flinging the pliers to the ground, grabbing Angel by the back of the head, painfully wrenching at his hair, before slamming his head down, smashing the side of his face into his knee. Before he could even comprehend what had just happened, he did it again and again, and then once more. He flung the spider demon back, rocking the chair he was tied to, stumbling away with a high pitched laugh.
Angel struggled to catch his breath, coughing and choking as blood spurted into every corner of his mouth. He could feel it running down his chin and dripping onto his lap, as pain skyrocketed through his entire body, throbbing violently in his gums on that side, spreading out through his head and down his back. He opened his mouth to cough and several small, hard things slid along his tongue, dropping into his lap. Blinking away bleary tears, springing forth due to the sheer amount of pain he was in, he noticed what they were.
They were his teeth. At least three of them. The sight was enough to knock the wind out of him. He could barely draw in a breath. The only thing that managed to bring him out of it, bring him back to his senses, was the sound of Valentino and Velvette laughing. He cringed away from the sound. He felt so humiliated, much like he had before, in his time working for them. He couldn’t stand it. He’d gotten out. He’d been safe. He’d been away from them.
But now he was back there. He had no way to escape, no way he could figure out how to get away from them. Was he going to be forced back into working for them? He couldn’t. He couldn’t do it again. The thought, mixed with the metallic tingle of blood in his mouth, made him nauseous.
He watched Valentino pull a handful of gold teeth out of the suitcase, grinning as he looked at the missing ones in Angel’s lap.
Angel met his gaze with steely defiance. He didn’t care how much pain he was in. He didn’t care that he could barely think around the agony shuddering through his body. He wouldn’t let him know how scared he was and how much pain he was in. He wouldn’t give him even a moment of that satisfaction.
Before Valentino could take another step towards him, there was an insane cacophony of sound, smashing and electricity crackling, followed by a roar so demonic that it rumbled through the floor and rocketed through his chest, like an ancient threat so dangerous it set off every nerve in his body, like a subconscious alarm system.
Valentino and Velvette stiffened, snapping to attention, but didn’t get a chance to even cry out in fear, before a dark shape slammed through the locked doors. It seeped through the remnants of the door and the wall, tendrils of shadow leaching across the floor and popping out of the walls, wrapping around the lights, shutting them off with a handful of small bursts and pops. It spun around itself, like a small tornado, before bursting into a soft waterfall of dark, crow-like feathers, falling into a cape billowing behind a very familiar figure.
It was Lucifer. Lord of Pride, the first fallen angel and King of all Hell.
And Angel Dust’s boyfriend of at least a year.
His eyes were almost black, screwed into an expression of hatred so strong Angel could only describe it as biblical. His auburn hair was loose, billowing around him like a fierce mane, a steely gold crown adoring the top of his head, each piece of it sticking out in deadly points.
“Y-Your Highness-”
“Don’t bow and scrape to him! He’s destroyed our fucking studio! We need to kick the bastards fucking ass!” Velvette shouted over the other overlord, stomping her foot and shooting Lucifer a dangerous glare.
That seemed to be the wrong thing to say, since Lucifer lunged forward, bowling over the smaller overlord, pinning her to the floor with the steel tip of his tall, apple topped cane.
“I don’t care about your precious studio. I care about taking back what’s mine.” he hissed, voice so low they almost didn’t hear it.
“I-What? Are you talking about Angel?” Velvette scoffed and he almost cringed away at the mocking tone in her voice. But Lucifer didn’t falter. His expression didn’t shift. Which seemed to be more than enough confirmation for her.
“You can’t have him, idiot! He makes our numbers go up way too high for just me to ever let him go anywhere but back to the studio.” she laughed, seeming to relax, taking the situation much less seriously than she probably should.
Lucifer titled his head to the side, a faint glint entering his dark eyes. His hair started to slowly shift around him, fiery strands curling and flicking at his face. A pale gold snake appeared, its head winding out of his cape, slinking along his shoulder and down his arm. Velvette’s eyes widened, unable to do anything but watch as it reared back and lunged for her. In seconds, it had latched onto her face, mouth fitting perfectly over one eye. Her reaction was near instant, jerking upright and kicking out all her limbs, letting out a shrill scream. Lucifer withdrew his cane and turned his back on her, whistling softly under his breath. The snake withdrew, quickly winding its way back up his body, disappearing into the midnight feathers of his cloak.
“Velvette, oh my God! What did you do to her?” Valentino shrieked, nearly falling over as he rushed to his fellow overlord’s side.
Lucifer didn’t answer. His eyes were fixed on Angel, and, more specifically, on the bloody teeth sitting in his lap. He felt almost embarrassed, the man he loved seeing him in such a pathetic state. All of their meetings had been perfectly orchestrated by Angel, always making sure that he was as polished as possible each time they saw each other. It felt almost wrong to be in front of the King of Hell like this.
Behind the king, Velvette was still twitching and howling, flipped over onto her stomach, frantically crawling across the floor so she could clutch at the bottom of Valentino’s coat. Her words died in her throat as she struggled, a dark mottling spreading quickly across her skin. As it crawled up and along her legs, growing darker the more skin it overtook, her body simply turned to dust, falling away into greyish particles all over the floor. All they could do was watch as it continued to overtake her, so fast that she could barely even scream, as it crept up her neck, eradicating anything it touched, reaching her wide, terrified eyes last.
They could all only stand there in horror after the last of her had rotted into dust. Valentino was silent, completely silent, for one of the first times Angel had ever seen. It made him oddly happy, despite everything.
Lucifer didn’t seem to be done yet though. He strode forward, kicking whatever was left of Velvette to the wayside, reaching to grab Valentino by the throat. The moth overlord seemed too shocked to struggle much, clawing ever so slightly at his arm.
“Are you the one they call Valentino?” Lucifer said, his tone even and yet bubbling with venomous rage of all kinds.
“Y-Yes?” he managed to choke out, wincing as the grip on his throat tightened.
“Perfect.” Lucifer turned to face Angel now, giving him his full attention for the first time since he’d arrived. “What do you say, my darling?”
“...Wh-What?” Angel could barely register what he’d asked. His brain still felt like it was trying to move underwater.
“He lives and dies by your say so now. His life is in your hands. If you say so, I will tear his head from his shoulders this instant. Or whatever you request I do to end his miserable life. And if you request I keep him alive, I will do that as well.” he explained, offering him a small bow of his head, as if he was talking to another royal.
“Angel, baby, come on now-”
“Quiet, worm. Your words are of no importance, now or ever.” he snarled, tightening his grip again, cutting off his airway, leaving him choking and struggling fiercely.
Angel could barely process that. He felt like he needed to come up with something smart, something profound. These moments were impactful forever, they were the main event of an entire chunk of his life, potentially the end of a pretty big chapter of it. He needed to make the right choice. But he felt so impossibly stuck in place. All he had in his mind was one thing, one thing he wanted to do, no matter what he decided. Maybe he could decide as he went through with it.
“Can I just…get up, please?” He asked, and Lucifer nodded, waving his hand, the restraints around his ankles and wrists dissolving the minute he did so. Angel struggled to his feet, the throbbing agony in his face intensifying ever so slightly, his missing teeth tinkling as they hit the floor.
He crossed the floor, doing everything in his power to keep his strides confident and steady. As he approached, Lucifer let Valentino go, allowing him to hunch in on himself, coughing and struggling to draw in air. Despite his freedom, he was still clearly backed into a corner, the furious power of Lucifer still bearing down on him with full force.
“I’ve wanted to say so many things to you, for so, so long. I’ve planned this moment out so many times in my head. But now…I don’t even want to bother. You’re not fucking worth it. You’d get off on it anyway, on managing to have that much of my time. You’d see it as having some kind of sick, pervy ownership over me. And I’m not giving you that. You’ve already had enough of that from me. So. I’m going to kill you myself, and then my boyfriend and I are going to destroy everything you’ve built here. And then we’re going to go home and we’re not going to have crazy sex, because I’m tired, and I’m in pain, and he loves me more than enough to not want that 24-fucking-7.” he spat out, once he started talking the words spilling out in a perfect waterfall.
Valentino spouted out a bunch of half hearted pleas, but Angel didn’t hear any of them. He could already feel himself changing, feel his body giving in to his own anger and pain, a feeling that he’d repressed for so many years, in that very tower, that it felt perfect to let it fall out again.
The world around him sharpened, a thousand details coming into better focus as extra eyes opened all over his face. Extra arms pulled out of his sides, tearing through the sides of his shirt, and an extra pair of pincer-like fangs sprouted out of his face, venom dripping down and hissing as it hit the floor.
He didn’t wait for another justification from his former boss. He just lunged, quick and sharp and ferocious, immediately tearing into his arm.
*
Fire licked at the skyline, soft sparks dancing into the deep reds painting their night sky.
Angel sighed, pressing his head into the soft, comforting material of Lucifer’s cloak. They were making their way down the street, putting what was left of the Vee’s tower behind them. Lucifer had his arms around him, one under his legs and the other around his shoulders, keeping him cradled close to his chest. Angel didn’t know where they were going, but he didn’t care. He was tired, he was in pain, and he just wanted to lie down and rest for the next ten years.
“There’s a car around the corner. I’ll have my driver take us back to my castle as quickly as possible.” Lucifer said softly, all previous rage faded from his voice by now.
Angel nodded, burying his face further in the comforting feathers, soaking in the familiar scent of his boyfriend. He couldn’t describe it. It was something so clearly him that it was hard to define.
He’d killed Valentino, and yet it had not made him feel any better. He hadn’t really expected it to. The damage had already been done. He couldn’t undo it by hurting him. It had felt good, to have him at his mercy and to tear into his throat, letting acidic venom burn through the tendons and muscles of his filthy body.
Lucifer had been there for him once he was done with him, pulling his shuddering, blood soaked body into his arms, holding him there, rocking him from side to side, softly whispering words of comfort to him.
They’d made their escape shortly after that. Lucifer had wanted to erase the entire building in an instant, protecting the two of them so they could get out. Angel had stopped him, leading him through the tower so he could warn the other demons working there to get out. They didn’t deserve to die. They were just like him: trapped in a life that did nothing but exploit them. Summer and Dia had been particularly grateful, tugging him into a brief hug before fleeing into the night. He hoped they’d stay in contact. The three of them had always been able to comfort each other when they needed it most.
Once everyone had a chance to clear out, Lucifer had brought the fire, quickly spreading flames eating away at every piece of evidence of Angel’s exploitation. They’d headed home after that.
Angel looked forward to it. He could huddle up with Lucifer, he could clean his mouth out and then he could get something to eat, before getting some rest, finally. He could sleep knowing that no one was out there looking for him, that no one was out there hungry to use and abuse him.
“I’m just…so glad you’re alive. I thought they would have killed you.” Lucifer breathed, pulling him in closer.
“They’d never do that. They can’t use me if I’m dead.” he sighed, bitterness creeping into his tone.
“They can’t use you ever again now.”
“I know…Thank you for that.”
“You don’t need to thank me. It’s what I should have done from the beginning.”
“I told you not to.”
“I know. And I wouldn’t take it back. You need someone who listens to what you tell them to do, instead of pushing you to go along with whatever they choose.”
“And that’s why I love you.”
“I love you too. You have my heart entirely.”
Angel smiled to himself. He loved when he talked like that. It made him warm all over, in a gentle, soft way, a way he’d repressed for far too long. Even when he’d been alive, he’d never been able to embrace those feelings. He’d been expected to feel that way towards women, and sure, he loved and adored his sister, his mother, his few friends, but he’d never felt that same romantic twinge in his heart when he looked at them. He’d tried it for so many years. At least now, he didn’t need to worry about what his father thought of him and who he chose to take as his partner.
“And I’m going to make sure you know it. You’ll be staying at my palace from now on and you’ll be getting the treatment you deserve.” Lucifer said, his tone firm, already decided.
“What? Are you sure?”
“Of course. I would not have offered it if I wasn’t being serious.”
“I know, I know, but…really? You wanna settle down with me?”
“Who else would there be, other than you?”
“I don’t know…Any other, better demon?”
“To me, there are no better demons. You are the closest I have come to feeling Heaven’s light since I fell. You are my happiness.”
“You think that?”
“Of course. I adore you. Completely and entirely.”
Angel let out a long breath, relaxing back into the comfort of his boyfriend’s embrace. Maybe he could think about the finer details of the things he’d said later. He could muse on it all when he had a clearer head, when his jaw wasn’t subtly pulsing with pain still. For now, he’d just focus on the near future, on the peace he would soon be able to steep himself in once he got back inside the safe walls of Lucifer’s palace.