Hazbin Hotel: Singed Wings

Charlie didn't expect it to be so...

Simple. So easy.

Just a wave, something to say, a suggestion, and then Charlie was separated from William, walking to the nearest door and watching the dark-clothed figure disappear into the distance of the dark blue corridors of the Embassy.

Charlie hoped he'd succeed, filling her head with those thoughts as she crumpled before the monolithic door.

While she crumpled in front of a monolithic, light gold-colored door. The door had carvings of wings, a style that was prevalent everywhere, not only in the Embassy, but also in Paradise, if William was to be believed, and...

Charlie sighed, catching a shiver. She put a smile on her face, taking a step forward, watching the doors in front of her go sideways...

"Hello, thank you for..." - even though they'd already met, Charlie still wanted to extend at least a modicum of courtesy...

"Hey." - Adam saluted her, holding his head on his fists, smiling pleasantly at her. - "I won't say anything about being late for your own appointment, but I will say..."

Adam stretched out, lightly adjusting his folded golden wings, moving them with a loud sound across the dark blue table with the golden ornamentation of his wings... Ribs?

Charlie shifted her gaze to Lute, whose face she had seen only in William's "memories," now hidden by the Slayer's helmet. She didn't react to Adam's words, standing with a straight back, her arms folded behind her and her wings folded. The golden saber was nowhere to be seen.

"You want some?" - smirked Adam, whose golden eyes looked directly at her, making her somewhat uncomfortable. - Straight out of Heaven, just the way I like it. - Adam's finger tapped the perfectly clean silver plate on which the appetizing-looking ribs of... something, covered with sauce, were spread, adding an even more enticing flavor to the barely perceptible steam.

"...Thank you." - Charlie nodded reluctantly, stepping closer, holding the hem of her dress in the doorway for fear that they might get chewed up as she closed the door, whose doors slammed shut as soon as she stepped into the hall.

Charlie had already seen the style of Paradise's "meeting halls" from William's pictures, but to be there herself... Not in Paradise itself yet, but in the Paradise Embassy. Already more than anything Charlie had achieved before.

Princess Ada, with all her regalia, elegantly approached the table where Adam sat, with Lute standing beside him... Charlie sat down at the chair closest to the First with a grateful nod, reaching out for one of the smallest ribs....

Her fingers didn't get dirty, just passed through the appetizingly smelling food all the way through. The meaty ribs continued to smell, Adam even chewed one of them, but Charlie just couldn't touch those, as if they were an illusion, a projection...

"Ha, and FUCK you!" - Adam poked his finger at her with a smirk, pushing the plate closer to him. - "That's hilarious, eh Luthy?" - Adam turned to his lieutenant, poking his elbow at her, playing with his eyebrows.

Charlie's smile twitched, and the outstretched palm clenched tightly.

"No, William said Adam, the First Man, had a peculiar humor, but this... It's more like what Mama said than what William said..." Charlie breathed slowly, trying not to snap, trying not to screw up like last time. Trying not to take offense at Adam's laughter and Lut's indifferent look.

" Ha-ha-ha-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o... Okay, that was good!" - Adam nodded, wiping away the golden tears of the mask, his eyes looking up at her. Adam's smile became smaller and his voice became more serious. - "Okay sorry, just a little joke to break the ice... Melt the ice...? Lut, how was it?" - Tapped Adam's chin thoughtfully, turning his head toward Lut.

 She didn't react in any way, looking more like a statue.

"Melt the ice?" - Charlie suggested cautiously, not entirely sure of the correctness of the Earth phrase herself, but she really wanted to... start a more normal conversation, not listen to insults or jokes about herself.

"Right." - Adam shot a finger in Charlie's direction, smiling. - "Anyway, you probably already know me, if not in absentia then in person last time, BUT..." - Adam's voice pressed, drawing Charlie's attention, catching the edge of her eye as Lute's shoulders twitched.

"Call me Buddha of Nodia." - Buddha... Adam's smile grew more serious and his posture straighter. Charlie didn't answer right away, distracted by the shaking of Lute's body as she slowly lowered her head and exhaled a long breath.

" No." - Charlie answered as firmly as she could, remembering all of William's advice on how to deal with... when interacting with an Adam subject who "could easily rob you of your sanity," as her best friend used to say.

"Okay." - Adam replied in an even voice, nodding, folding his palms in a lock, placing them on the table, looking at Charlie with a faint smile. - "Just Adam then, and now...let's get this fucking thing started." - The First's smile faded and his eyes grew serious.

Lut similarly cleaned herself up, returning to her original 'statue of herself' state.

"Okay, that worked, now for the hard part...", Charlie was glad that her body didn't produce much sweat, or rather she could consciously control its secretion... if she tried.

" Okay, as you know..." - Charlie began, but was interrupted by Adam's more serious and collected voice. Charlie covered her barely open mouth, looking intently at Perovgo.

" Let me get a few important details straight, little one. " - Adam began calmly, with no hint of jest in his voice anymore. Charlie picked herself up, nodding. The ribs were gone, probably disappeared somewhere between Adam's jokes.

"One. I put on this whole show in the first place because you had someone stand up for you, put in a good word, just said kind words, count it any way you want." - Adam dropped his head lazily on his fist, looking at Charlie almost indifferently. - "Whatever you said, whatever you had to offer, I wouldn't give a shit if it wasn't for our mutual acquaintance Zephyrka, who praised you so much it was sickening." - The face on Adam's mask creased, and Charlie's eyes flashed with interest.

"Zephyr told the Chief Exorcist about me?" - Charlie blurted out, immediately shrugging herself off. Adam nodded as if he hadn't noticed.

"Not without kissing my ass, by God." - Adam shook his head, supported by the same gesture from Lut. - " What are you like, gray, kind, honest, and the most. Boo." - Adam stuck his tongue out naively, covering his mouth with his left palm. There was a slight irritation on Lut's mask, directed not at William, but at....

Charlie herself, as she realized with some resentment.

"...I'm glad you're willing to listen to me. Sir Adam!" - Charlie nodded gratefully, straightening up, her smile becoming less forced.

" Just 'Adam'." - dismissed the First Man," "No, Snowflake, you don't seem to realize the situation fully." - Adam's words didn't sit well with Charlie, who immediately recognized the familiar tone of the man's voice. - "Just because you've been stood up for, I'm willing to listen to you without sending you the fuck away, and also to try and believe what you're saying." - Adam blinked slowly, tapping his finger on the table. Charlie tensed, clenching her palms on her dress.

"You think I'd lie to you?" - Charlie asked tensely, frowning. - "But I haven't done anything to you, have I?" - Charlie asked with genuine interest, trying to keep the images of the First Man out of her head.

" I don't believe anything that comes from your parents, little girl." - Adam said flatly, looking Charlie straight in the eye, still holding the mask with the palm of his hand. - "Everything fucked up in this Creation, all the Evil, all fucked up because of them, and here you'd come to me, daughter of the King of Cunt and the First Apostate, and start mashing things up." - Adam shrugged, covering his eyes. Charlie tried to remain calm, but Adam really was just filigree enough to get under anyone's skin. Charlie snapped, flaring up.

"But it was your son Cain who let Cruelty into Creation!" - Charlie exhaled, shrinking back in her chair, catching two sharp glances. Charlie held back a sharp sigh, holding on, enduring Adam's stare.

" ...And he got punished for it. All my descendants who chose to do that kind of fucked up shit got what they deserved, and those fuckers continued their sabotage." - Adam spoke slowly, with menace in his voice. The first man straightened, leaning back in his high chair.

"As for you, Charlotte." - Adam said coldly, making Charlie's face crinkle. - "Tho, if you had somehow arranged such a meeting by coming to me yourself, I wouldn't believe a word you said." - Adam waved his hand dismissively and leaned forward, resting his hands on his palms.

"Because, you see, because I'm the 'Villain in Chief' around here," Adam began in a deceptively cheerful voice, shaking his head, scaring Charlie slightly. - "I've suffered your parents' dickishness for most of my life, both in Eden and on Earth, I've been wiping up after them for practically all of eternity, having learned one simple rule." - Adam's eyes grew narrower and his smile disappeared. Adam stared unwaveringly into Charlie's eyes, holding eye contact, trying not to let slack slip.

"Everything that came from the Serpent, everything he created gets fucked up one way or another, and then it's up to me or Sky to clean up after it." - Adam shrugged, nodding. Lute repeated after the Commander, frowning at the Princess of Hell.

- "His attempt to 'free' Eve, his attempt to rub God's nose in it by creating his parody of humans, his attempt to send all humans to Paradise at once, his lies and everything else that somehow goes wrong, causing pain and suffering." - Adam kept pushing, making Charlie's face crinkle, making her distracted and weak.

It seemed to Charlie that even the nice clear light of the hall where they were sitting had become darker, that it had narrowed to a small circle around them.

"So, forgive me if I wouldn't have believed you, thinking you wanted to send demons to Heaven, even though Heaven has repeatedly repelled Hell's direct attempts to do so with violence."

 - Adam shrugged, shifting to a softer tone.

"Thousands upon thousands of souls have died, washing with their blood the new statutes of Paradise that was no longer willing to make sacrifices for those who do not value Virtue." - Lut said dryly, drawing Charlie's crimson eyes. - "Our kindness was answered with evil, our..." - Lut's voice grew angrier with each word, with each word, it was as if she were sputtering the flames of an old feud, threatening to...

" So it's a good thing Snowflake turned out better than we thought!" - Adam raised his voice, clapping his hands together loudly, smiling. Lut was abruptly silent, looking apologetically at the Commander. - "Uh-oh, well, here goes. Everything I wanted to say, I guess." - Adam smiled broadly as if nothing had happened.

Charlie exhaled, relaxing her stiff back as she continued to force out a smile.

" I'm glad we're past this... I mean, thank you for being willing to listen to me." - Charlie muttered nervously, nodding, to which Adam simply waved his hand. - "Now, if you'll excuse me..." - Charlie huffed, about to summon the entire paper to visualize....

"Yes, yes, your desire to give the Atonement to one and all and that no one goes away offended." - Adam grumbled, looking at a frozen Charlie. - "If you have something new to say, then say it, if not, let's start with me fucking you up." - Adam smiled softly at Charlie as he slowly sat back down.

Charlie... Charlie found it hard to concentrate. On the one hand, the new information about her parents, which even William must have known, but not her, and now this pressure....

No, Charlie believed it wasn't as simple as Adam said, that he, a simple man, albeit from Eden, had an overly subjective view of everything that had happened, but her parents... Charlie knew that the Pope had created demons, Goetia certainly did, but the other thing... Her parents didn't talk about their past much, more about the events of the last few centuries, but...

Charlie knew that her parents weren't saints or angels... figuratively speaking. Charlie knew that her father didn't get all the titles he was called for a reason, knew that her mother wasn't called all those words for a reason....

But she was sure there was an explanation for all of this. That her mom and dad really, just like her, just wanted what was best, but...they didn't have their William?

Guys, I've decided to make a Discord channel for discussions and polls. 

And by the way, I decided to find an editor. 

If anyone wants to become an editor, you can come to the Discord server and we'll discuss everything there. 

But the plus side is that you will get chapters faster than everyone else. but I'll tell you right away I don't make money on transfers (I have 50 dollars in patreon but I can't withdraw it because I need 110 dollars according to patreon rules lol) and I can't pay it's volunteer work.

(https://discord.gg/3yav4m5e)