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It was in evening in the Hazbin Hotel, and all was well. All, except for one room in particular on the first floor.
Angel's room, no less. Currently outside of it were Angel himself, and Cherri Bomb who was visible sitting on the end of Angel's bed.
Husk, who had been walking down the hallway eyed them curiously. Even as Husk approached, the bartender could see the problem very clearly; Angel Dust's room was in tatters. Husk sighed, surveying the damage of the room as he came to a halt outside of it. Neither Angel or Cherri had noticed him yet, so he spoke up, smiling at the chaos.
"Need some help there?" He laughed, watching as Angel Dust turned his head, beaming at his saviour.
"I think I'd havta' marry you if ya' helped me out here, Husk." The spider exclaimed eagerly.
Husker tilted his head, his gaze fixed upon a very sheepish Cherri as his smile fell by a few degrees. She blinked nervously, and Husk raised an eyebrow. "And would you have any idea what happened to Angel's room?" He questioned Cherri.
"Fat Nuggets!" Cherri Bomb responded. She had adopted quite a mournful expression, perched on the end of Angel's bed like a very desolate figurehead.
Faced with Husk's rather pointed silence, Cherri rephrased, her eye widening.
"I came in here a while ago to look for Angie and try some makeup on him, and Fat Nuggets was already in the room when I came in. Well, you know how he gets. He went straight for the eyeshadow. Obviously I defended it, but he hung on and he started flailing around. Because of that, a lot of things got knocked over and I'm pretty sure a bit of the wall came loose somehow... Its happened before!" She added, fiddling with her ripped tights anxiously.
Husk folded his arms. "If this has happened before, why would you try the same thing again? What did you think would happen?" He narrowed his eyes.
Cherri blinked again, not looking at him.
"Well-" She began, but Husk cut her off incredulously.
He was warming up to his theme now, and ignoring Angel's defensive stare pointed in his direction. "And you didn't try to clean this mess up? Not even an attempt before you escaped into the streets to watch the news? What was your plan?" He said, undeterred.
The woman seemed lost for words."Um..."
"And you were gonna leave it for Angie to do?" Challenged Husker.
He was aware he was being rather accusatory, so he softened his tone slightly, but this only seemed to confuse Cherri more.
Angel Dust, who had been collecting shards of his mirror into little piles, while glaring daggers at Husk, now stood up and held out a placating hand towards the bristling bartender. "Hey, lay off her, Whiskers." He said warningly.
Husker turned to Angel with an air of incredulity. "Angel, I'm not trying to be dramatic or nothing, but she trashed your room!"
"She didn't mean to. It's not your room, it's mine. And if I forgive her, that should be enough for both of us." He stated firmly.
Husk knew when to hold his tongue, and he simply nodded. "...Alright, alright. Still want my help?"
The Porn Star surged forwards, grasping Husk's hands tightly. "Please!"
Cherri laughed nervously, eyeing Husk as though she was worried he would round on her again. But the cat seemed only to have eyes for Angel. The Australian smirked at that, and spoke in slightly sly tones. "You, uh, want my help?" She asked.
"No, no." Husk said, his eyes flicking to Cherri briefly. "I got it."
Cherri laughed silently as she stood up, walking past the pair and ruffling the top of Husker's head as she passed. "Alright, 'Whiskers'." The woman remarked, shutting the door with a snap as she exited the room.
The Bartender wheeled around as the door closed behind Cherri, his fur appearing to physically bristle. "Hey!" He snarled, making to move towards the closed door, but Angel Dust's hands were still closed around his, and no amount of tugging caused his grip to loosen.
Turning to Angel, he saw the spider blinking rather rapidly. "Uh... I'll talk ta' her later." Angie supplied, letting go of Husker's hands.
The cat found himself missing the physical contact, but he gave no outward sign of it. Apart from maybe staring at Angel a few seconds too long, causing the demon to cock his head to the side. "You still sane, kitty?" Angel Dust waved a hand infront of Husk's face, causing the former to blink rather rapidly.
"Never better." Grumbled Husk.
Angel Dust nodded, then turned to his picturesquely broken bedroom. He groaned dramatically. "I guess we gotta start on this, huh?"
Husk bumped Angel's hip (he still couldn't reach his shoulder), his sharp teeth pulled into a grin. "You guessed right, Spiderman."
"Do ya' even know who Spiderman is, Whiskers?" Questioned the spider, placing one hand on his hip.
The bartender huffed in annoyance as he shuffled Angel's mirror shard pile into a bin he had just picked up. "Christ, Angie, of course I do - I'm not that old."
Angel Dust laughed, crawling onto the floor and beginning to shovel beauty products back into their drawers. "Coulda' fooled me, old man.- Ow!"
He winced, rubbing his head. Husk had just launched a dusty old hair clip at him in retaliation, and the metal had struck the back of his head.
He retorted snappily, "Watch it!" But he was smiling as he turned away from Husk.
"Ahh, I saw that grin." Husker laughed knowingly, and his chuckle was so infectious that Angel had to join in.
"Ha! Nah, you don't know what ya' talkin' about... Whiskers." Snickered Angel, shutting one of his drawers after scanning its contents to make sure nothing was missing.
"Whatever you say, Spiderman." Husk shot back, putting his weight behind Angel Dust's overturned vanity and trying his best to push it back up, his black-patterned, red wings flexing with the effort.
The Porn Star caught sight of this and - shutting the last of the trinkets he had in his hand into a drawer - rushed over to help.
"Need a hand?"
"Now that you mention it..." Husk grunted, "Could really use one!"
"Howzabout four?" Angel supplied, flexing his extra arms that had just extended from his torso and placing all four hands on the vanity.
Together, from the same side of the furniture, the two were able to lift the vanity up. It wobbled precariously, and Husk's hands instinctively shot out to meet it, but it held steady. Letting out a breath, Angel Dust cracked his knuckles and retreated his extra set of limbs.
Husk shuddered marginally as he watched Angel's arms disappear into his torso. "That creeps me out, y'know. Where do they even go?" The bartender questioned, eyeing Angel with a mix of concern and curiosity.
"A true magician neva' reveals his tricks." Angel remonstrated, with a reproving tone.
"Now, cmon, we are nowhere near done here."
Sighing, Husk nodded. "You can say that again."
"We are nowhere near done here." Angel repeated sarcastically.
Husk sighed, throwing his hands up. "I was joking!"
The pair had been working on Angel's bedroom for hours now, carefully reconstructing the tattered room piece by piece. Through it all, Fat Nuggets had slept like a rock on Angel's bed, which thankfully had been spared by the apocalypse caused by Cherri's makeup.
At one point, Charlie had poked her head through the door and, when her continual offers of help had been refused, she had been forced to compromise with offering them snacks.
Husk and Angel had thoroughly regretted accepting the snacks when Charlie had delivered to Angel's door what looked like half the hotels food, almost cried when they tried to wave away the treats, and in the end had to be carried off by a very sleepy Vaggi, as it was now, in Vaggi's words,
"Way past your bedtime, missy."
Vaggi wasn't wrong. It was now well into the hours of night, and Husk and Angel found themselves stopping for brief breaks more frequently than before.
Despite all this, Husker and in particular Angel Dust, had managed to snack their way through a sizeable amount of the mountainous piles of sweets, sandwiches, cakes, muffins, and to Husk's visible delight, liquors and a selection of alcohols, that Charlie had provided them with.
Angel's bedroom was all but restored to its former glory, with the exception of a couple of wooden planks stored behind the wardrobe. Neither of them could find any breaks or tears in the walls or floor and as such had no idea where the planks had come from.
Angel was just yawning sleepily - painfully aware that the restoration had taken them a lot longer than he had expected - when a thought struck him and he suddenly looked pensive. Husk, who was sitting on his bed stroking Fat Nuggets, noticed immediately.
He watched the spider's gaze fall upon a makeup pallette, and he immediately understood.
"You're upset you didn't get to do that makeup look?" Husk asked, but it wasn't really a question.
Angel nodded sullenly. Husk thought for a moment, then slid off the bed to walk nearer to Angel Dust. Fat Nuggets snorted as the blankets shifted beneath him but otherwise made no protest.
Placing a hand on the demon's shoulder, Husker attempted a tired smile. "Hey, I could get Cherri to do your makeup tomorrow?"
Shaking his head, Angel Dust's frown deepened slightly. "Nah, she probably won't come in here for a while causa' Fat Nuggets, remember?"
The spider reminded Husk, jerking his head in the direction of Fat Nuggets as he spoke.
Husk considered this for a short moment, searching for a solution. Seeing Angel upset was nagging him, for reasons he couldn't quite discern. "Well, you don't have to do the makeup in your room. Could do it in Cherri's room. Or mine. You don't even have to do it in the hotel."
Husk rubbed his thumb on Angel's shoulder soothingly, and the spider let out a yawn.
"Yeah that does sound nice." Agreed Angel Dust, "but we outta' get to bed."
"We?" Questioned Husk, raising an eyebrow.
"I don't mind if ya' wanna sleep here, Whiskers." Said Angel hazily.
The bartender regarded the Porn Star warily.
"I won't be offended if you tell me to leave." Stated Husk slowly, but Angel scoffed.
"Why would I tell ya' to leave?" He questioned, picking up Fat Nuggets so he could sprawl out on his bed.
"Do you want me to leave?" Husk asked again for good measure.
"No! From the way ya' keep askin',it sounds like you wanna leave." Angel accused, sounding slightly impatient.
"I don't want to leave, Angie."
"Then get on the bed, Whiskers."
All of this was said in rushed, half-whispers, as both were mindful that it was very late. The pair stared at eachother for what seemed like a long time, then Angel Dust spoke.
"If ya' don't wanna leave and I want ya' to stay, what's the problem?"
Sighing, Husk relented. "There's not a problem, Spiderman."
Finally, Angel cracked a sleepy smile and held out his arms. Husker grinned right back and moved hastily over to the bed. Maneuvering around Fat Nuggets, who was already fast asleep and snoring obnoxiously, Husk let himself be folded into Angel Dust's arms contentedly, exhaling softly.
After a moment, Husker spoke, and his voice was even more gravelly than usual, worn down by sleep.
"Angie?" He asked, his voice a rasp. Angel gave a non-committal hum as confirmation he was still awake.
"You know that time we kissed, in the foyer." He trailed off, hearing Angel's breath sharpen momentarily.
There was a pause.
Then, "I do." The Porn Star mumbled.
"Well...um." Husker had been planning to ask this question ever since their kiss had happened, but now that he was actually asking, he found the words sticking in the back of his throat.
He pressed on anyway, determined to get this out. "Angel, what are we...?" He breathed, grasping Angel's hand as the spider demon lay next to him.
Angel Dust lay silent for so long that Husk thought he hadn't heard. In fact, Husker almost missed the words that the demon muttered into the night air.
"We're in love, Whiskers."
Husk shifted restlessly. "I know, Angie, but what if I want more than that?"
He had not planned those words. They tumbled from his mouth quicker than he could stop them, and the bartender stiffened the moment they left him. "M' sorry... I should just let you sleep, Angel, I-"
"I think I want that too." Muttered Angel Dust.
Husk blinked, staring at Angel. His muscles unclenched slowly, and he exhaled audibly. "Okay...okay."
Angel Dust sounded amused, "Okay?"
"Okay." Repeated the cat, nuzzling Angel's cheek. The latter laughed quietly and sat up.
"Going somewhere?" Husk wanted to know. Angel shook his head and picked up a book from his nightstand. Taking aim, he flung it straight at the light switch. The book found its mark. The room was plunged into darkness with a little 'click'.
Settling back down, Angel Dust was immediately waylaid by the arms of Husker. They encircled him and drew him close. "Why'd you attack the light switch?" Yawned Husk, feeling Fat Nuggets settle on the pillow next to his head.
"It was bothering me... are ya' purrin'?" Laughed Angel. The low rumbling sound stopped suddenly.
"I'm asking the questions around here, Spiderman." Huffed Husker. He sounded distinctly peeved.
Angel poked him on the head, "I didn't say I wanted ya' to stop purrin', y'know?"
Husker didn't respond, so the two lapsed into comfortable silence. Angel stared into the darkness, reflecting on what had happened in the past few days. Because - of course - a lot had happened. From the Vees' continual broadcasts hinting that they knew something everyone didn't, to Lucifer and Alastor's speech declaring their love to the world before the Vees could get the chance. It had been an eventful time.
And then, of course, there had been the kiss.
And, oh, that had been wonderful. Angel smiled to himself in the darkness. And tomorrow, he'd let Cherri do his makeup... Husk would have to come too, of course. He needed to learn how to do the makeup so he could help Angel with it in the future.
With a start, Angel Dust realised he was already envisioning that future. A future with Husker at his side.
Did he want that?
Was that the future he truly needed?
The answer came so readily in his mind that he surprised himself with it.
Of course.
And with that comforting knowledge, Angel's smiled bloomed, fast and sure of his future. He heard Fat Nuggets shift on the pillow.
It was some time before he realised the slow, rumbling sound of Husk's purrs had started up again. He was asleep.
"Goodnight." Angel whispered to the dark, slipping into the respite of sleep.
A resounding knock echoed throughout Angel's room, accompanied by a familiar cheery voice.
"Rise and shine!" It called from behind the door. Angel Dust groaned and sat up sleepily. As he moved to flick on a lamp beside his bed, a pair of arms slid off of his midriff, and looking down, Angel saw Husker mumbling in his sleep as his arms fell back against the pillow. Snorting, the spider demon nudged the other awake.
Husk woke with an ungraceful jolt. "Whatisit..." He slurred, blinking rapidly.
"Time to wake up, Whiskers." Angel murmured.
The knocking started up again, and Husker groaned. "Is that Charlie?" The cat lamented, rolling over on his side and almost squishing Fat Nuggets.
The pig honked indignantly and jumped off the bed. Angel's eyes followed Fat Nuggets as he plonked himself down in a corner of the room he favoured.
Outside the room, a voice called.
"Angel! If you don't show me you're awake I'm coming in." Charlie warned, and Angel heard a pattering of footsteps coming from the hallway.
"What is she...?" Husk questioned dreamily. Angel Dust realised a second too late.
"Wait!" He squawked, fruitlessly holding out his arms to cover Husk, but Charlie was already in motion. With a thud, the Princess collided with the door. It burst open and Fat Nuggets squealed as he dove under Angel's bed.
Charlie winced, rubbing her shoulder as she stumbled into the room. "Ouch... sorry, Angel, but you weren't responding!"
"What, didya' think I died in here or something?" The Porn Star raised an eyebrow sarcastically, but Charlie didn't reply.
She was gazing, open mouthed, at a spot near Angel in the bed. The spot where Husker was currently rubbing his eyes. The spider stiffened, his own eyes locking onto Charlie. "Princess-" He began.
"Is that-" Charlie interrupted him, but Angel sprang to his feet, interrupting her.
"No!" Declared Angel Dust, walking Charlie backwards and out of the room. She kept trying to crane her neck over Angel's shoulder to catch a glimpse of Husk, but Angel wouldn't let her. As the demon made to close the door on her, she held out a hand.
Fervently shaking his head, Angel waylaid her. "No, Charlie. We're not talking about this right now."
Charlie shot him a sly look, and the corners of her mouth quirked upwards in a grin.
"I only wanted to say; please try and be on time for breakfast." She mused, blinking innocently up at him.
Angel felt his jaw drop as Charlie turned and skipped away down the corridor, humming a tune that sounded suspiciously like 'More Than Anything.'
As the spider shut the door, he turned to see Husk sitting up on the bed. "What was that about?" The bartender asked, having shrugged off the majority of his sleepiness.
Angel decided that was a conversation for another day, and simply said, "Nothin'."
Husker raised an eyebrow, but didn't press, and instead focused on wrestling a still terrified Fat Nuggets from under the bed.
Another knock resounded on the door, and Angel Dust turned towards it in confusion.
Mumbling to himself in confusion, "She can't be back already...?", he strode towards the door and opened it.
It wasn't Charlie.
She was holding an impressive array of makeup pallettes, almost twenty lipsticks, what looked like a couple of perfumes and the broadest smile Angel Dust had ever seen.
"You wanna hit the city?" She questioned, cocking her head to one side.
It was Cherri Bomb. Angel beamed back, then turned around to make sure Husk was keeping a tight hold on Fat Nuggets.
"To do the makeup?" He turned eagerly back to Cherri, who nodded her assent.
"Yeah. I've thought about a lot of different looks I can try on you. Oh, and some for your little lover back there." Cherri motioned towards Husk, and was gratified to see his fur stand on end.
Angel Dust, who had also seen this, flashed Cherri a mischievous look.
Oh, this was going to be fun alright. Angel Dust looked Husk in the eye as he said,
"Oh, I'm sure he'd love that."