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When Husk agreed to meet Alastor before the quarterly Overlord meeting, he had assumed (foolishly) that Alastor was going to meet him outside of Carmilla Carmine’s building promptly ten minutes before the meeting started. After all, even Overlords felt the burning discomfort of walking into a room alone, only to have every other set of eyes in the room turn to stare while they made their way to the only available seat left in the room (he would rather pour his coffee over his head than go through another round of that). In a gesture of good will, Husk had even stopped and picked up three cups of coffee – he knew full well that even though Vox was very much not invited to the meeting itself, the scheming little demon was going to try to figure out a way to stay as close to Alastor as possible, for as long as possible.
They had already been all but attached at the hip (and frequently other places as well, as Husk was sadly very aware), but ever since the Café Incident, Vox was especially clingy with the Radio Demon. Husk, too – he’d always had a problem with keeping his hands to himself (not that Husk minded), but lately Vox seemed to always have a hand (or an arm, a leg, a shoulder, etc.) on one of them and didn’t seem particularly picky about which one. Alastor was taking it in his stride, frequently catching Vox’s hand before the younger Sinner sought him out, but always loosely like it wasn’t any big fucking thing at all. Husk, well…
It was hard to stop himself from pulling Vox flush against him any time they left the penthouse or Alastor’s creepfest cabin in the fucking woods, but he was managing it well if he did say so himself. So, what if he had yanked Vox back once or twice (no, three times now, holy fucking shit) when someone he didn’t know got too close to them on the street? He’d get over it eventually – when the memory of Vox’s cooling blood on his palms wasn’t quite so fresh.
Otherwise, Vox seemed… okay? He didn’t seem interested in their usual extracurriculars, but that was fine. Husk didn’t need sex to enjoy Vox’s company – it was a big fucking perk, don’t get him wrong, but he could go without for as long as Vox seemed uninterested (he’d crawled into bed with Husk once or twice since The Incident and had only cuddled against Husk and talked until he fell asleep). In the meantime, Vox was spending more time on his laptop whenever he was at Husk’s or buried in one of Alastor’s books at the Funhouse ™.
It wasn’t terrible. At all. Husk really fucking liked it when Vox plopped himself onto the couch with a book, curled up tight to Husk’s side, and fucking read it. Quietly and contentedly, the comforting warmth of his body against Husk and Husk found himself purring (even with fucking Alastor in the room) at the cozy domesticity of it. So, there was no reason to be concerned that Vox was fixating his attention elsewhere instead of plopping into Husk’s lap and grinding down until Husk was so fed up he just tore Vox’s clothes off and fucked him in Alastor’s living room. In the middle of the fucking afternoon, with Niffty creeping around somewhere, propriety be damned.
Besides, Husk understood a thing or two about trauma. If Vox’s new hyper fixation was calming some of the anxiety left in the wake of his first Hellish death, then who was Husk to stand in his way? Well, except that Vox’s newest fixation was just a touch on the worrisome side, especially for such a new Sinner.
See, Vox had questions about the Overlord meetings now.
About Overlords in general, really, and how one would go about becoming an Overlord if one were so inclined to do so. Mostly, he seemed to direct his questions at Alastor who, Husk felt, probably wasn’t the best Overlord to ask – putting aside Alastor’s mysterious and meteoritic rise to power, Alastor had abilities that other Sinners, simply put, did not. In Husk’s humble opinion, the television demon would be better off asking someone who had actually put in the work to become an Overlord and hadn’t just devoured his way to the top of the heap.
Probably not the best way to consider growing one’s power, all things considered, but, hey, what did Husk know?
Well.
He knew that he hadn’t agreed to meet Alastor prior to the meeting for this.
The sound of softly speaking voices drew Husk’s attention and, in line with his admittedly poor judgment, he found himself peeking into the alleyway beside Carmilla’s building. Only to find exactly what he knew he would find but was kind of hoping he wouldn’t.
Vox leaned with his back against Carmilla’s building, palms splayed flat on the pristine brick wall and head tilted up. Alastor stood in front of him, no doubt pontificating on something old-fashioned and ridiculous, if his show of enthusiasm was any indication. Those silly little hearts flashed in Vox’s eyes as Husk watched, and the smaller demon’s screen started to take on that tell-tale rosy hue before Alastor looked down, really seeming to notice him. The Radio Demon’s smile softened, and he bent down to steal a kiss, much to Vox’s obvious delight, before straightening back up. Alastor braced one hand against the wall and leaned slightly over the top of Vox, boxing him in.
Husk debated calling out for them to knock it the fuck off (he bought fucking coffee, for fuck’s sake, and even went the fuck out of his way to get it at the place that he knew Vox fucking liked) but decided instead to sigh his very most put-upon sigh. Still pressed against the wall, Vox smirked when Alastor flicked one of his antennae playfully before leaning down to whisper something scandalous against the television demon’s head (maybe he asked to see an ankle or some shit, Husk never could tell exactly what turned Alastor on and he was never going to ask). Of course, Vox’s screen turned just a little bit pinker, and he glanced around the alleyway to see if anyone else was around.
He locked eyes with Husk and smiled in greeting, raising his hand to give Husk a small wave. Alastor caught his hand instantly and pressed it back against the wall, next to the side of Vox’s head, and the smaller demon’s attention was completely focused back on the Radio Demon. With a chuckle, Alastor pressed another kiss to Vox’s lips, this time pressing him against the wall until Vox’s free hand swung up to loop lazily around the back of Alastor’s neck.
Well, Husk, supposed this fucking tracked.
He took his cup of coffee from the travel tray and took an unnecessarily aggressive sip before letting his eyes dart around, just to make sure that nobody caught the Radio Demon sticking his tongue down his regular-Sinner boyfriend’s throat in a dirty back alley. Not that he gave a shit whether anyone saw them, on the sheer principle of the thing (if Alastor was still trying to keep up his five-hundred-year-old virgin schtick, that was his business), but he didn’t especially feel like getting gore on his clean clothes if the asshole decided to tear any other onlooker to shreds for watching them.
Lucky Husk. He had a free pass to watch the two of them making out like horny teenagers. Lucky him.
Finally, Husk raised his hand to his mouth and blew a sharp whistle through his fingers. Vox jumped, glancing towards the Gambling Overlord with a startled expression and Alastor… well, he just calmly looked over at Husk with a raised eyebrow. Shithead. Husk raised the tray of coffee.
“If you assholes are done sucking face, I have your fucking coffee.”
Alastor’s face brightened and Vox disappeared in a flash of lightning, reappearing in front of Husk to snatch his cup from the tray.
“Oh, and it’s from that place I like,” he said appreciatively and took a sip. A funny expression crossed his face. “You remembered how I take my coffee?”
Husk frowned. This felt like a trap of some sort, but he nodded anyways. “Yeah, two creams, four extra shots of espresso.”
“An abomination of a beverage,” Alastor huffed, taking his own coffee (black, like his fucking cold dead heart). Fuck, how it boiled Husk’s blood to agree with Alastor, but yeah. It was an abomination. “Vox, if you weren’t already dead, I’d warn you against drinking it like that. A heart attack in a cup, so says the most recent medical literature.”
“Oh, fuck off,” Husk snapped irritably, tossing the coffee tray towards a nearby dumpster. He was more annoyed with the fact that he agreed with Alastor’s assessment of Vox’s morning coffee than he was with Alastor himself, but he wasn’t going to pass up the chance to tell Alastor to fuck right the fuck off. “Who gives a shit if he drinks enough caffeine to kill an elephant? You drink people’s fluids, you fucking monstrosity.”
Vox laughed into his coffee. “Gross.”
“Really, Husk. Such phrasing.” Alastor tapped his cane against the ground, eyes dancing over the rim of his coffee cup. “You’re better than that.”
“Maybe I’m fucking not,” Husk grumbled. Vox reached out and caught his free hand, wordlessly squeezing his fingers. Oh. Husk’s bad mood ground to a standstill. He was able to stop the purr from rumbling in his chest at the television demon’s small gesture, but he couldn’t stop his gaze from softening like a fucking sap. He cleared his throat roughly and took a sip of coffee to cover his expression before gesturing towards Carmilla’s building. “Listen, are we going to this meeting or are we going to continue discussing how everyone takes their coffee?”
“And how you remember how they take their coffee,” Vox pointed out and grinned back at Husk’s scowl. His hand was so warm in Husk’s – he wasn’t completely sure he wanted to let go. Maybe he could skip this one meeting, take Vox back home, and curl up on the couch to watch old movies all day until they moved to the bed to watch late-night talk shows until they fell asleep. If Husk got a chance to do a little more, that would be fantastic, but it wasn’t a deal-breaker if Vox only wanted to cuddle and be close.
“Darling, are you going to head back home while we’re in the meeting?” Alastor asked, breaking through Husk’s wandering train of thought. Husk focused his attention on the television demon, curious himself.
Vox blinked then shook his head slowly. Husk raised an eyebrow. “No, I was going to wait out here.”
“You’re sure?” Husk asked before he could stop himself. Alastor made a soft noise of displeasure and Vox’s eyes widened with clear uncertainty.
“If he wants to wait out here while we’re in the meeting, he’s perfectly welcome to,” Alastor said with cool crispness. A series of shadow poppets burst from the darkness in the alleyway, crowding around Vox. The small demon glanced around, expression easing. “Who in their right mind – or the wrong one, ha! – would dare to bother him?”
Husk squeezed Vox’s fingers before releasing his hand. “Just checking.” He jerked his head at the building, pretending not to be concerned. “I’m going up.”
“I’ll be there in a minute,” Alastor replied quietly, attention focused entirely on Vox. “Don’t wait for me.”
Whatever. It wasn’t like he was planning to anyways.
Husk had to give credit where credit was due – Carmilla Carmine’s building was always a bastion of order and cleanliness in a sea of chaos and filth. One of these days, he was going to sit down and make her tell him exactly who she had doing her cleaning and maintenance. The sheer level of perfection of it made him suspect that she had either chained an entire team to do the work or she employed the City’s best kept secret cleaning crew – and Husk wanted that number. Yesterday.
He strolled into the boardroom, only mildly surprised to find Valentino already seated at the long table. It was high time he crawled back out of his den of iniquity and showed his face at an Overlord meeting – it wasn’t even like they met on a weekly or even monthly basis. Once a fucking quarter was plenty of time for Valentino to get over being publicly cannibalized by the Radio Demon. Shit, it wasn’t even like Alastor had drawn it out, either – all things considered, it had been a fast (albeit messy) death and Valentino really should calm the fuck down like he had been genuinely humiliated or something.
Except…
Husk glanced away from where Valentino sat with his arms on the table, shoulders hunched as he watched Zeezi with an embarrassed expression. With a raised eyebrow, Husk focused on the phone Zeezi had in her hands, giggling to herself while Valentino (the big dumb skyscraper of shit) steadily looked increasingly uncomfortable.
Well, now – this had to be interesting.
“Hahaha, look!” Zeezi cackled, dragging her finger over her phone about a quarter of an inch to the left. “Head. No head. Head. No head.”
At the conference table, Valentino groaned and set his forehead against the smooth wooden surface. “Fucking stop, Zeezi.”
“Not until everyone gets a chance to see this.” Zeezi’s eyes brightened when she noticed Husk standing near the door and waved him over. “I know you had front row seats to the slaughter, but come fucking see this, Husk.”
He glanced at the moth demon curiously (fuck Husk if he knew why he was smushing his oversized hat down over the top of his head like he was dying of embarrassment) before following Zeezi’s instructions. Val groaned again as Husk looked down at her phone, his mouth sharpening into a grin.
On Zeezi’s phone, a video of their trip to Loo-Loo Land was playing a very specific event in the day’s happenings. Fuck, yes. Husk joined in Zeezi’s laughter as Valentino loomed over Vox one moment, stared up in horror at an even loomier Radio Demon the next, then was unceremoniously ripped in two with a cinematic spray of blood and viscera. Zeezi flicked her claw over the screen again, replaying this undeniably humiliating death of Valentino’s (in a series of what was undoubtedly going to be a series of increasingly humiliating deaths if he didn’t leave Vox the fuck alone). Husk glanced over as Valentino raised one hand from the table, middle finger up.
“Why did you have to fucking get it on video?” he whined against the table. “That wasn’t part of the deal.”
“Deal?” Husk asked then laughed as Valentino was once more ripped apart by Alastor’s gaping maw.
“Yes, deal, Husk.” Valentino jerked back into a sitting position, a petulant scowl on his face. “Why else do you think I would’ve put a move on your fuckbuddy?”
“Probably because you’re a horny idiot who mostly thinks with his dick.”
“Well…” Valentino considered that. “You’re not wrong. But I have enough self-preservation to not think with just my dick when it involves the Radio Demon.” He looked Husk up and down pointedly. “Unlike some other people whose names I won’t mention.”
Zeezi glanced up from her phone with a questioning look. Husk shrugged. “I don’t fuck Alastor.”
“But…?”
“Ew, no. He absolutely does not fuck me.” Husk shivered. “Could you fucking imagine?”
“I can,” Valentino supplied, less than helpfully. “I bet he’s a biter.”
Husk snatched Zeezi’s phone away, who squawked but didn’t otherwise protest, and pointed the screen in Valentino’s direction. “Look: you have a head and upper body here and now, oops, head’s gone.” Valentino scowled and sank back in his seat. Zeezi grabbed her phone back again. “What deal?”
Valentino’s gaze landed reluctantly on Zeezi and she laughed again as she replayed the video. “Dumbass over there owed me a favor and, because I’m a petty bitch, I figured he could repay me by getting his stupid fucking head chomped off.” Valentino screamed from her phone again. “I mean, that had to fucking hurt, right? Even if you bled out almost immediately, you had to at least feel some of it.”
“I did,” Valentino answered sulkily.
Husk frowned. “So… you weren’t preying on the Sinners Alastor and I were with?”
“Nah, baby. Nobody’s cute enough to get bitten in half for.” He winked at Husk. “Not even that little twink you’re fucking.”
“Don’t call him that,” Husk snapped, distracted by the fact that Valentino had been roped into grabbing Vox and kissing him like that at Loo-Loo Land for the sake of a little petty revenge. That didn’t exactly change anything but at least it was a relief to know Valentino didn’t have any specific interest in Vox. “You’re not trying to fuck him?”
Valentino shrugged. “If he wants me to fuck him, I’d be happy to take him for a test drive, but I’m not really interested in being in Alastor’s gut again.” He glared at Zeezi. “Because I do fucking remember landing in his fucking putrid stomach acid before I died, you fucking bitch.”
“Hey, don’t piss me off when you already owe me a favor,” she replied, unbothered. “Natural fucking consequences.”
“There is nothing natural about being eaten alive,” he snarled back, slamming a fist down on the table. “He’s a fucking unnatural abomination.”
Husk could agree with that.
“Are my ears ringing?” Alastor asked, strolling into the conference room with an air of unbothered superiority, coffee cup firmly in hand. Husk rolled his eyes. “I thought I heard someone talking about unnatural abominations.” With a crackle of static, his eyes fixed on Valentino. “Oh. You’ve regenerated.”
Valentino bristled. “Yeah, and you can’t do fuck all to me while we’re here.”
“Well, meetings don’t last forever – they only feel like they do.” A studio audience laughed through crackling static and Husk sank down in his usual seat, across from Alastor so he could keep his eye on the motherfucker. He took a sip of coffee and watched the wheels turn in the Radio Demon’s head. “I did promise Vox I would let him kill you this time, so I’d have hold off from grievous violence anyways.”
Valentino gestured wordlessly towards Zeezi for a moment but when she didn’t acknowledge him, glanced at Husk for help. Yeah, right, okay. Husk raised his eyebrows and innocently looked away.
“Zeezi put me up to it,” the Overlord of Depravity and Pornography and General Fuckery (Husk guessed, he wasn’t exactly sure what all Valentino had declared himself Overlord of) said, and Alastor tilted his head ever so slightly to the side. Husk snickered, gleefully unhelpful. “I swear to Lucifer himself. Fuck, Zeezi. Show him the fucking video.”
“Like I wasn’t going to anyways.”
Husk occupied himself with his phone while Alastor patiently watched the video of Valentino being torn in half. He had found a fun little app recently that was a stupid waste of time, but so was the lead up to every Overlord meeting. Might as well enjoy himself while he waited for Carmilla and Zestial to show up already (and, by the fucking way, they had some kind of thing going on, didn’t they? Everyone was just fucking everyone else around here like there wasn’t an entire Hellish realm for them to branch out into).
The meeting proceeded as these things usually did. Alastor told a handful of cheesy jokes, Valentino oozed generally smarminess, Husk snapped at them both in turn, and Carmilla reminded them all that she would easily and happily hand them their asses if they didn’t shut the fuck up. Rosie and Zestial looked amused while Zeezi used every opportunity possible to tap her phone with one sharp claw, earning the occasional wince from Valentino.
Husk was eager to get out of there when Carmilla finally dismissed everyone and got up from the table. He was going to go downstairs as quickly as possible and make sure everything was all right with Vox (though he supposed Alastor would’ve already flown out of the room, all rage and fury, if it wasn’t).
“Listen, Husk.” He looked up at Valentino who was looming over him, letting his pink smoke swirl down towards the Gambling Overlord. Husk flapped his wings once, sending the smoke immediately back where it came from. Valentino grinned. “Let’s make a deal, you and me.”
Husk frowned, instantly suspicious. “Elaborate.”
“I want you to keep your boy off my ass.”
“I – no, wait. What the fuck?” It took a minute for Husk to catch up and he scoffed. “You’re not afraid of him, are you?”
“Of him? No. Of having my insides charcoaled?” Valentino nodded slightly. “Yeah, it’s not something I think about when I’m trying to fall asleep at night – it’s not exactly fluffy sheep, is it?”
Fair.
“What do you expect me to do about it?” Husk asked, genuinely confused. If Vox wanted Valentino’s ass (ugh, yes, he heard it himself the second he thought it, thanks), there wasn’t much he could do to stop him. “I can’t force him to do anything he doesn’t want to do.”
“Well, you could…” Husk’s fur bristled on the back of his neck, and he allowed the hiss that ripped up from his throat out. Valentino didn’t look impressed. “But I don’t expect you to. That’s not your scene, right?”
“You better get to a fucking point very fucking quickly.”
“Talk to him. Convince him not to turn into me into Kentucky Fried Moth and I’ll owe you one.”
Husk considered that, looking for a loophole. He could see Alastor studying them from across the room, head cocked slightly. “I’ll do my best to convince him not to try to kill you and you’ll owe me a favor.”
“Only if he doesn’t try to kill me.”
“For how long?” Husk asked and Valentino blinked. “There’s no way I’m going to be able to convince him not to try to kill you for all eternity, and let’s be very fucking honest, there’s no way I would want to give you a pass like that. So, how long will this deal hold? The next three weeks?”
“Six months,” Valentino said after a pause. “Get him to agree not to try to kill me for the next six months.”
“Three months,” Husk countered. Valentino sighed then nodded slowly. “You’re going to owe him, too. If he agrees not to try to kill you and shakes on it, you owe him a favor, too.”
“Just… anything?”
“That’s right. Two favors in exchange for me trying to talk him down and getting him to agree not to try to murder you for the next three months. Seems pretty fucking reasonable to me, considering.” Husk held out his hand. “Deal?”
Valentino scoffed. “I fucking hate Zeezi.” Husk gave his hand a little shake, growing impatient. “Fine. It’s a deal.”
They shook and Husk sighed as he felt a rush of cold air at his side. He glanced over to find Alastor staring pointedly at their joined hands. “Making a deal, gentlemen? Without inviting me? Something tells me I ought to be offended.”
“No,” Husk replied, yanking his hand free. Valentino took a lazy drag of his cigarette, crossing his lower set of arms over his torso. “Don’t be offended – or, you know what? Do. I don’t care. But this isn’t some clandestine deal we’re making behind your back.”
“Then what does it pertain to?” Alastor’s voice was sharp as broken glass. Right. So, the best course of action would be complete upfront honesty, even if the Radio Demon flew into a tantrum – it wasn’t like he could do anything to hurt either of them here and Husk was reasonably confident he could explain things before he had to deal with the bastard outside of Carmilla’s neutral zone.
“Vox.” Husk waited impatiently while Alastor’s microphone let out an angry burst of static and the Radio Demon’s eyes threatened to bleed over into complete darkness (Over. Dramatic. Bitch.). When he saw that it wasn’t getting a rise out of Husk, he inclined his head slightly. “We agreed that I would try and talk him out of murdering this jerk-off–”
“Hey!” Valentino interjected. “I mean, warranted, but still.”
“And he’d give me a favor.” Husk cocked his head slightly as Alastor raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “And if Vox doesn’t try to murder him for the next three months, he gets one, too.”
“Well, isn’t that interesting,” Alastor said slowly. “Hmm, I suppose Vox couldn’t possibly find some terribly sadistic way to use his favor.”
Valentino’s antennae drooped a little and Husk looked away to stop himself from laughing. This asshole couldn’t deal his way out of a fucking paper bag.
“But he can’t try to kill me.”
“Plenty of ways to torture someone without trying to kill them.” Alastor barked out a laugh. “If he doesn’t know that yet, I’m an excellent teacher.” The Radio Demon turned his attention fully to Husk. “A moment of your time?”
Husk followed Alastor wordlessly as they began to make their way downstairs and back out to Vox. Alastor tapped his cane against the elevator floor and shot the Gambling Overlord a sidelong glance. Husk returned it. “I wouldn’t have made a deal with that clown if it didn’t benefit him in some way.”
“I trust that you wouldn’t,” Alastor said softly. Oh. Wow. Trust? That was a new one. Husk crossed his arms over his chest, not sure how to feel about that. “I suppose I ought to break the news to Vox.”
“No, you’ll just get him all riled up,” Husk said. “You lack absolutely any conflict resolution skills whatsoever.”
“Oh, I’m very skilled at solving conflicts.”
“Bullshit.”
Alastor shrugged. “I’ve never had any complaints about it before. I daresay your opinion is tainted by your personal feelings towards me, Husk.”
“Because you – you fucking eat everyone who pisses you off,” Husk snapped. “Or rip their souls apart. That’s not conflict resolution!”
“Says you and yet, here you stand before me, Husk. Uneaten. Soul intact.”
A tiny blood vessel throbbed behind Husk’s eye. He huffed impatiently. “Listen, I’ll talk to him and tell him what’s going on. You can stand guard or whatever the fuck it is you do.” Alastor rolled his eyes. “Let me handle it.”
The Radio Demon flicked his wrist dismissively. “Oh, go on then. Just remember – I’ve made no deals with that outsized insect.”
Husk smirked. “I’m aware.”
The moment they made it outside again, the knot in Husk’s stomach loosened. Vox was sitting calmly on a bench that Alastor must’ve summoned for him near the front door, shadow poppets running and playing around him while the television demon scrolled on his phone. He looked up, face brightening a little as a smile crossed his face and started to slip his phone into his pocket. Before he could get up, Husk held up a hand and hurried over to the younger Sinner.
“We need to talk,” he said quickly. Vox’s face fell and Husk tsked. “Not like that. Nothing like that, I promise. Just… get up and come talk with me for a minute, okay?”
He reached out for Vox’s hand, knowing he probably shouldn’t be so vague, but eager to get this done before–
“This motherfucker,” Vox snarled, electricity crackling around him. He jumped to his feet as Valentino strolled out of the building, smirk firmly in place. Oh, shit. Husk held up a hand, summoning his magic and Vox halted in his tracks, confusion in his eyes. “Husk?”
“Let’s talk, okay?” he asked, letting his magic swirl around him unthreateningly but clearly visible for everyone to see. Just because he didn’t want use it, didn’t mean he wouldn’t. Though he was a little worried about how exactly he would be able to stop Vox without just pinning him down on the ground and he really didn’t want to have to do that. Vox’s eyes darted back to Valentino (fucking idiot was fucking smirking like he had a death wish and Husk was a hair’s breadth away from making his dream come true) before settling on Husk questioningly. “I just need you to listen to me for a minute.”
“Yeah,” Valentino called mockingly. “Listen to Papi Husk.”
“Shut the fuck up, dumbass!” Husk shouted, pointing accusingly at the ten-foot-tall flying fuckface. “I agreed to try and talk him down, so fucking let me try.”
Vox flinched. “You what?”
Husk strode forward, catching Vox by the elbow and turning him back towards the alley. Ignored the scorching electrical shock that seared up his own arm and marched Vox far enough away that he could talk to him without worrying about Valentino overhearing. He spun the television demon around to face him, holding tight to the tops of his arms. Vox’s mouth settled into a grim frown, his brows furrowed.
“You made a deal with him?” he asked, and Husk sighed. “About me?”
“I’m going to explain everything, but you have to listen to me before you fly off the handle.” Vox raised his hands and squeezed his fingers tightly around Husk’s forearms. Somehow, he managed to convey both his willingness to hear what Husk had to say as well as the implicit threat of violence if he didn’t like what he heard with one gesture. Husk could appreciate the simplicity. “I made a deal with him to try to talk you out of trying to murder him and in exchange, he gave me a favor.” Vox started to shake his head, and Husk gave him a squeeze. “And I got a favor thrown in for you, too.”
“What?” the younger Sinner asked, surprised. “What does that mean?”
“He’ll owe you a favor, any favor you need or want. No strings attached.”
Vox glanced over Husk’s shoulder. “Anything I want?”
“Anything.”
“Okay.”
“Okay?”
“I’ll listen.”
Fuck. Good.
So, Husk talked. He told Vox about the video and Zeezi and how Valentino was still an untrustworthy asshole, but this very specific instance of assholery wasn’t his idea. When he was done, Vox dropped his hands down to his sides, expression unreadable.
“What are you thinking?” Husk asked gently, rubbing his hands subtly against Vox’s arms, only enough for him to feel it. Not enough for anyone watching to notice what he was doing. Not enough to give that overgrown asshat any additional ammunition. Vox glanced away for a moment. “Vox?”
“Did he apologize?”
“No, and he won’t. He’s not sorry.”
Vox hummed thoughtfully, returning his gaze to Husk. “You said you’d talk me into not trying to murder him?"
“That’s right.”
“Okay. You talked me into it. Or out of it. Whatever.” Vox took a step back and Husk instantly let him go. “I won’t try to murder him.”
“You have to shake on it.” Vox nodded. Curt. Precise. Unreadable. Husk sighed. “Okay, then. Let’s finish the deal.”
They walked back to Valentino, Vox’s hands shoved firmly in his pockets. Not even a little chance of Husk holding one to comfort him and that was probably just as well. It would be a massive fucking mistake to show any sign of weakness in front of Valentino (or any other Overlord, himself included, if Husk was being really fucking honest about it). As evidenced by the filthy little smirk the moth demon gave them as they approached. Husk could just barely make out a faint fizzle of electricity around Vox’s antennae – not even enough to call it a spark and only just visible because Husk knew what to look for.
“What do you say, Voxy?” Valentino purred. “Can you find it in your heart to forgive and forget?”
Vox blinked, head tilting curiously. His expression was otherwise blank, and Husk really hoped that he wasn’t about to go and do something exceptionally stupid. Reluctantly, Husk moved to stand by Alastor’s side, giving Vox the space to handle this on his own.
Husk cast a look around, pleased that this little interaction hadn’t attracted the attention of any other demons. If it went sideways, he was pretty sure it would be a bitch to stamp out any evidence of Vox getting his ass handed to him by Creepy McTallface. Though, he supposed between Alastor and himself, the other Overlord wouldn’t get very far in the first place.
Vox’s hypnotic eye began to swirl, and Husk sighed.
He’d figured out by now that Vox’s hypnosis was a fickle thing. The small demon could manage a frightening level of control over a person for an even more terrifying amount of time but only if they were agreeable to it – if someone resisted or didn’t want to be controlled, he had figured out that Vox could only manage it in short bursts until his control slipped. Which worked out when he wanted to talk someone into immediate self-termination, but not so great if he wanted to exercise any real control over someone not amenable. They’d tried it out a few times (because Husk was high and Vox was pretty and why fucking not) and quickly realized that Vox could only manage a second or two of control over Husk if it was something Husk did not want to do (like surrender a thousand souls to Vox).
“Get on your knees,” he told Valentino.
Well, that was great. This was working out so well. Husk prepared himself for the inevitable violence this situation was clearly devolving into. Just fucking once, he’d like to have an interaction with the Overlord of Depravity and Pornography and General Skeeziness where nothing fucking happened. Imagine that – just nothing, good or bad. Entirely fucking neutral and–
“Oo, yes please, papito.”
Valentino sank to his knees, eyes swirling under Vox’s influence and Husk made a soft noise of disgust. Of course, this asshole would be entirely on-board with getting on his knees for someone who clearly wanted to fuck his shit up (and not in a sexy way, either, though Husk supposed any way would be a sexy way in Valentino’s book). He rubbed his finger on the bridge of his nose, between his eyes, and sighed again.
Alastor was right – everyone was a massive fucking deviant pervert. Full stop.
“I know you were put up to kissing me like that, but it was pretty fucked up, huh?” Vox asked calmly. Valentino’s smile grew just a little dopier and he nodded. Vox smiled magnanimously. “Yeah, it was. But I guess it’s kind of understandable – you’re so stupid and I’m so hot.”
“Very hot,” Valentino agreed. He stretched his hand towards the television demon and Vox took it. A quick glance at Alastor didn’t exactly assuage his concern – the fucker just smiled a little wider, expression amused. Valentino moved in a little closer. “Hottest little piece of ass this side of the Pentagram.”
Vox hummed noncommittally. “Oh?”
“Oh, yeah, baby boy. Why don’t you and I go someplace private? You’re wasted on these geezers.” Vox’s eyebrows furrowed, a tiny pop of electricity arcing from the top of his antennae, but he didn’t stop Valentino from resting another hand on his waist. The Overlord leaned in, face close enough to Vox’s that Husk could see the glow of his screen on the moth’s face. “Forget about them, gorgeous. I could really take care of you.”
“Is that so?” Vox looked over at Alastor for a moment. “Do you think you’re taking better care of me than Valentino could?”
“Mm, perhaps not.” Alastor flicked his wrist dismissively. “Husk?”
Husk’s eyes narrowed. “What? Yes, of course! What the fuck kind of question is that?”
“Huh. Mixed consensus.” Valentino pulled the younger Sinner flush against him and Husk noticed that Vox’s hypnosis no longer seemed to be working… or Vox had stopped using it – either way, it sent a thrill of horror up his spine to see the Vox in Valentino’s clutches like that without his defenses up. And, shit, if Husk thought Vox looked slight next to Alastor, it was absolutely nothing compared to this shit stain. Even on his knees, Valentino towered over Vox.
“So, how about it?” Valentino slowly dropped his hand from Vox’s waist to his ass, and Husk was only stopped from marching straight over to them and putting a bullet in his head by Alastor’s cane. It dropped in front of him and Alastor’s eyebrow rose so sharply that Husk scoffed. “Give Daddy a kiss and let’s see if I can change that pretty little mind of yours.”
A trail of pink venom leaked down Valentino’s chin and Vox smiled charmingly. He pumped their joined hands up and down once, magic swirling as the deal sealed itself. “All right – but just one.”
“I only need one,” Valentino promised, eyes suddenly sharp and predatory. Husk clenched his hands into fists, barely managing to hold himself back as Valentino pressed his mouth to Vox’s. His tongue was inside Vox’s mouth in an instant, his hands bending Vox back and off-balance. Fuck. No. He was not going to fucking watch this fucking shit. Absolutely no fucking way.
Then he realized why Alastor was so seemingly nonchalant and immediately after realized he should’ve seen this coming (honestly, it was a little embarrassing that he hadn’t).
Vox reached up and caught one of Valentino’s very fluffy antennae in his hand, wrapping his fingers around it with a gentle grasp. It could almost be mistaken for romantic… except that blue-white electricity suddenly swept around Vox’s body before shooting from his fingertips and straight into the bigger demon’s body. It took Husk a second before he realized that Vox had used the kiss to create a circuit to loop his electricity through the tall motherfucker until thin plumes of smoke poured from the edges of Valentino’s wings and his fingertips.
Yeah, should have seen that coming.
With a soft hum, Vox stepped back, releasing the other man’s antennae and cocking his head with an amused smile.
“Oops,” he chuckled, clasping his hands in front of him. Bug McStuffins gaped at Vox in shock, smoke curling out of his mouth and, ugh, Husk knew that feeling. “Now that… that’s my bad.”
Valentino collapsed to the ground, to Alastor’s delight and Husk’s exasperation. Tiny residual sparks crackled along Valentino’s clothing and Husk’s nose crinkled in disgust – he hated the smell of burnt insect.
The television demon waited quietly until Valentino coughed and blinked up at him. “I promised I wouldn’t try to kill you. I didn’t say I wouldn’t fuck your shit up.” Vox lowered his voice slightly, his hypnotic eye spinning slowly. From this distance, Husk could make out the faint pink tint to Vox’s screen – the signature of Valentino’s venom in Vox’s blood. “Touch me again without my permission and you can keep your fucking favor – I’ll make you dissolve yourself in a bucket of acid, starting with your dick." He hummed and tapped the bottom of his screen where his chin ought to be thoughtfully. "Let's see... should I make you chop yourself up or just have you dip body parts in, one by one? Eh, I suppose it doesn’t matter either way, so long as the job gets done, right? Oh! And when you regenerate, I’ll keep making you do it until you’ve learned your lesson. Understand?”
Vox glanced at Husk and Husk gave him a reluctant thumbs up. His threat was much more graphic this time, if significantly more disturbing (although, at least he was branching out beyond electrocution). Husk was pretty sure Vox wouldn’t be able to follow through on his threat – at least, not yet… who knew what the television demon would be capable of doing as he continued to gather more souls under his power? Still, he had to give Vox credit where it was due.
Valentino nodded, eyes wide. “Yeah, baby. I got it.”
After a second, Vox dropped down into a squat. “Well, then. Good. This was fun. You’re a decent enough kisser but use entirely too much tongue. Not my thing, personally, but I guess there’s someone for everyone, right?”
“Yeah,” Valentino breathed, and Husk nodded in agreement. There sure was.
Vox slapped his palms against his knees and smiled brightly. “But, hey, you’re playing the numbers game, aren’t ya? Statistically someone’s gotta be into this whole thing you’ve got going on, right?” Valentino stared up at Vox with wide eyes. “So. Glad we had the chance to clear the air. I feel good about this. Do you feel good about this?” Valentino nodded wordlessly. “Excellent! Well, it’s been a real fucking pleasure doing business with you, Valentino.”
Husk watched Vox bounce back to his feet and make his way over to Alastor. The media demons clearly began to exchange some silent broadcasting conversation as Alastor wrapped his arm around Vox’s shoulder. With a smug look in Valentino’s direction, he began to lead the younger man away. On the ground, Valentino groaned a little and Husk reached into his jacket pocket. Pulled out a couple of cigars and a lighter. He lit one cigar, careful to blow the smoke in Valentino’s direction mockingly – his internal organs were comfortably in place and not crispy around the edges. He held out the second cigar with a smirk.
“Smoke?”
Valentino laughed, a painful, grating sound, and forced himself up onto his elbows. “Holy shit, Husk. I get what you see in him,” Valentino coughed out after a few false starts. “I think I might be in love with that little asshole.”
Husk rolled his eyes. “Good luck with that.”
Valentino ran a hand over his face and laughed again. “You ever get tired of him, send him my way.”
Absolutely zero chance of that happening. Husk shrugged. “You couldn’t handle him, man.” He eyed Valentino carefully. “We cool?”
“Yeah, papi. We’re cool.”
“Fantastic.” Husk flicked a bit of ash towards Valentino. “See you in a few months, fuckface.”
Husk walked away feeling pretty fucking good about that, all things considered. He had another Overlord favor tucked away for a rainy day, and so did Vox. Hopefully, the younger demon decided to use it intelligently instead of forcing Valentino to taunt Alastor into cannibalizing him, but hey. Husk would get on board with that, too, if Vox decided to use it for something like that. He noticed Vox glance over his shoulder before slowing to a stop, pulling at Alastor’s waist. After what was clearly another silent conversation, Alastor squeezed Vox’s shoulder before dropping his arm to let the younger Sinner go.
Vox broke away from Alastor and turned to trot back to Husk, grabbing his hands once he closed the gap. “Thanks, Husk. For getting me that deal. I’m going to make that dude’s afterlife miserable.”
Husk laughed. “Happy to be of assistance.”
Leaning up, Vox pressed a kiss to his lips. Before Husk could say anything one way or another, Vox’s hands dropped from his own and he caught Husk by the waist. Deepened their kiss until Husk had to open his mouth in surrender. When he finally pulled back, Vox offered Husk a frankly devilish grin that sent a shiver down his spine.
“Let me fuck you?” the television demon asked.
Yep. That went straight the fuck to Husk’s dick. He shifted, a little embarrassed to be half-hard already, and caught Vox’s head between his hands. Scanning the smaller demon’s face, he was relieved to see no hint of hectic pink, Valentino’s venom already inert – this was all Vox.
“Shoot, honey,” Husk purred, finding himself pleased as punch at Vox’s enthusiasm (and pleased as punch that he would not have to turn Vox away because Valentino’s venom was influencing him). “Let’s get off the street and I’ll let you do whatever the fuck you want.”
“Awesome.” With great fucking reluctance, Husk let Vox slip from his arms. Keeping his hand firmly clasped together with Husk, Vox gave the Overlord a little tug. “Well, hurry up already, Husk. I haven’t got all day.”
Husk scowled for effect, though he felt precisely the opposite inside. Shit, Vox made it so fucking easy to fall –
“Vox?” he asked, tugging on the younger man’s hand. Vox let himself be pulled back into Husk’s arms easily enough, smile bright on his face. With his free hand, he caught the bottom of his screen and tilted his face up, watching for a few seconds while Vox stared up at him expectantly. “You did good.”
“Yeah?” The television demon’s eyes crinkled at the sides while his smile widened in delight. “You really think so?”
“Mmhmm. Really good.” He kissed the smaller demon chastely. “I’m proud of you.”
“Golly.” Vox’s smile softened. “Thanks, Husk.”
Fuck it. Husk was tired of pushing it aside, at least in his own head. Vox was easy to fall in love with – and Husk had gone and done just that.
“You’re welcome.” He kissed Vox one more time. “Now let’s go – I think you promised to fuck me.”
Vox blushed just a little (even though it was his fucking idea in the first place) and nodded. “Hell yeah, baby. Gonna rock your entire world.”
Husk smiled fondly as Vox began to walk with purpose, clearly eager to get to their destination as quickly as possible. Fuck it. Now that he had admitted it to himself, it was hard to stop repeating it in his head – especially when the small demon glanced back to grin at him enthusiastically.
He was in love. He was in love with Vox.