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It had been hard, going back to normal life without Angel. Although Vaggi never admitted it, she enjoyed the twink’s company. He could be so annoying at times but also the best big brother in the world.
The two used to have a sibling-like relationship. They’d spend hours just trying to annoy the other, but when things were serious, they were at each other’s side, helping them get through whatever was bothering them.
Vaggi really started to miss Angel after about a week. At first, it felt like he was just at work. But then as time went on, her body knew he wasn’t coming back.
She hadn’t told anyone about the grief she was feeling. After all, business was booming, sinners constantly checking in and out of the hotel. Vaggi didn’t have time to process and cry about it. She had work to do. Besides, everyone was feeling some sort of loss. She needed to be the strong one that was there for the others.
But it wasn’t long before her repressed emotions started coming back. More than 4 times a day, she’d start feeling an overwhelming bout of sadness when reminded of Angel. Sometimes, she’d just be reminded out of nowhere, which made her productivity worse. Since these small depression episodes started coming, she began to lose a lot of motivation for work and found things to be way more stressful than they usually were.
One night, after the hotel had shut down for the night and everyone was getting ready for bed, Vaggi was just finishing up the last of her work. She was trying to make sure everything was prepared for the morning. Usually, it didn’t take her until 10pm, but because things were feeling extremely hard that day, she had to work longer.
Just as she was finishing up, she spotted Husk cleaning some glasses over at the bar. Already feeling sad and like shit, Vaggi decided to go and have a drink. She normally only drank to celebrate things, but right now, she needed something to numb out the pain.
“Hey, Husk,” Vaggi greeted, sitting down at a bar stool.
“Vags, hey. Don’t you and the princess usually spend late evenings together?” Husk questioned.
“Yeah, but we both have a couple of things to work on for tomorrow. Can you get me something strong?” She asked.
Husk raised his eyebrow in confusion. He was aware that she wasn’t a drinker, so it felt wrong to give her something strong.
“You sure? You ain’t much of a drinker,” He said.
“I’m sure,” Vaggi confirmed. However, she didn’t meet his eyes. She just stared down at the counter as she leaned her head on her hand. Husk could tell she was feeling depressed and debated on what he should do.
Suddenly, he got an idea. He grabbed a glass and filled it halfway with hard cider before adding in plain old apple juice. He usually kept some of this stuff for when Charlie or the littles wanted to drink something from the bar.
He handed the beverage to Vaggi who immediately started chugging.
“Easy there, kid. You’re gonna make yourself sick,” He warned.
“Damn it, Husk, I asked for something strong,” The fallen angel said.
“I ain’t serving you anything stronger than that. Now care to tell what’s gotten you all in a funk?” He asked.
Vaggi sat in silence. It had been a while since someone really asked how she was feeling. Charlie was usually very busy with all the new residents and Vaggi hadn’t really had the chance to talk to Carmilla. So she didn’t really have much of a support system.
She really didn’t want to have to keep all this in, so she decided to say something. However, it was really quiet and fast and Husk couldn’t hear her.
“Can you repeat that for me?”
“I miss Angie…” Vaggi mumbled a little louder. Hearing this was a bit of a shock. He knew they were friends and kind of showed a sibling bond but didn’t realize it was this deep. Vaggi was never the type to admit this stuff so it must have really meant a lot to her.
“Aw kid…” Husk gently moved the glass out of her reach, sensing a slip coming up any second.
“Why’d he have to leave?” Vaggi whined, sniffling a little. Husk had asked that same question.
It was hard for him to admit, but Husk really started enjoying Angel’s company and just being around him. Sure, he often got on his nerves, but it felt less offensive, and more playful. But now that Angel was gone, Husk felt empty, like he had lost a gamble. He missed the twink and his strange antics.
“I don’t know, kid. I think he felt guilty. But we need to respect and accept his decision,” he told her.
Vaggi had full on slipped and regressed now. She felt frustrated. She didn’t want to accept that he was gone. He was her big brother! She wanted him to come back! Frustrated tears started to form in her eye as she stared down at the counter. There would be no more piggy back rides from him or sneaking treats. There would be no more getting into trouble and causing chaos. She would have to live without him now and the change that came with that felt extremely overwhelming.
“Hey, it’s gonna be alright, kid,” Husk tried to reassure her.
“It’s not! He’s gone!” Vaggi cried. The bartender walked around the bar to give her a hug. He wrapped his wings around her the best he could to provide extra comfort.
He tried to give the fallen angel as much comfort as he could. He wasn’t used to providing it and it felt so new and awkward, but he tried his best. Then he got an idea. Something that he had been working on might help Vaggi feel better.
“Hey, kiddo, wanna see something i’ve been working on? It might help?” He offered. Hesitantly, Vaggi nodded.
Together, they walked up the stairs to Husk’s room. The winged cat demon found his key and opened it up. He did his best to clean up a little as they walked in, pushing empty beer bottles to the side. Eventually, he came upon his bedside table. He opened the bottom drawer and rummaged through it before finding what he was looking for. He slowly took out what seemed to be a crocheted spider.
“I’ve been, uh, experimenting with stress relieving hobbies and this is something I made. I figured it could help with your grief,” He suggested, handing the stuffed animal to her. Carefully, Vaggi took it and felt the crochet material. It was soft and plush, and very comforting. She gave it a big hug, remembering how Angel’s hugs felt.
“Thanks, Husk…” She mumbled
“No problem, kiddo. Now how about we go find the princess and she can get you ready for bed, alright?” He offered. She nodded, still holding the stuffed spider in her arms.
Together, they walked upstairs to the top of the hotel where the penthouse was located. Vaggi stood next to Husk as the cat knocked on the door. They waited a couple of seconds until Charlie eventually opened the door. Husk explained to Charlie what had happened and how Vaggi seemed to have slipped. The princess thanked Husk for looking out for her and giving her the spider plushy (and she was also proud of him for finding a new hobby other than gambling and drinking).
The rest of the night, Vaggi had not let go of the spider stuffed animal. She kept it close with her at all times, not letting it go once, even when Charlie had to get her changed into pajamas. She missed her big brother but the little plushy made her feel a little better.