Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"I DON'T THINK SO, BITCH!!!"

Everyone turned to where the sound came from, and guess who it was? None other than Blitzo himself, with Loona, Moxxie, and Millie right next to him.

"Blitzo?!" Stolas said in shock.

"WHAT?! YOU ARE IN THE FOOTAGE!!!" Stella screamed as she showed them the supposed security camera.

"Oh, you can thank Moxxie for the decoy," Blitzo began, "We heard what you were going to do to Stolas last night, and we will NOT let that happen!"

"Sir is right!" Moxxie agreed, "Release Prince Stolas at once or else you and your hellhounds will pay!"

"OH HELL NO! I WILL NOT GO DOWN THAT EASILY! STOP THEM!" Stella commanded. The three hellhounds went to charge at them, but Blitzo, Moxxie, and Millie successfully gunned down the Shar Pei and chihuahua instantly. The watchdog hellhound dodged the bullets and was able to tackle Blitzo, but Loona quickly pulled him away before killing him by chew off a big portion of his neck.

"HOLY SHIT, LOONY! THAT'S MY GIRL!" Blitzo cheered. Stella screamed and proceeded to kick Stolas down out of pettiness, causing the owl to yelp on impact.

"YOU BITCH!!!" Millie screamed in rage before tackling Stella and stabbing her on the shoulders. From there, the remaining I.M.P. members brutally assaulted Stella as she screamed, powerless to stop them, before they all stopped. Stella was injured in so many places, and struggled to keep her breath. Blitzo found a key and unlocked Stolas. He went up to his now ex-wife and made her look at him.

"Let this be a lesson..." Stolas coldly said, "Don't... fuck... with me..." Stolas then snapped her neck, killing her.

"WE DID IT!!! THE BITCH IS DEAD!!!" Blitzo cheered. All of I.M.P. cheered and high-fived each other. However, Stolas couldn't help but look down at the corpses of pity. Blitzo took note.

"Stolas, what's wrong?" Blitzo asked.

"I just don't understand... why did she hate me so much?" Stolas asked, "I tried to make it work. I put up with her bullshit for YEARS just so Via can have a normal life. And now this? Even after trying to assassinate me, she wanted to have me tortured all in some sick, twisted game to see how far I would go in my love towards you. Who knows what they would've done had you all not intervened..."

By now, poor Stolas was crying. Blitzo was the first to hug Stolas, followed by the remaining three.

"I'm so sorry, Stolas," Blitzo apologetically said, "But she's gone now. You don't have to worry about her. Besides, it's not like we're in some alternative universe where they followed through with this shit and no one would've known until you're been severely beaten or Satan forbid raped by them, right?"

"But what am I going to tell Via? Her mother is now dead," Stolas asked.

"We tell her the truth," Loona expressed, "It's only fair that we tell her what a fucking nutjob her piss poor excuse of a mom is."

"I guess you're right," Stolas agreed, "I should've never hid her abuse for that long..."

And as they continued to hug, Stolas felt glad that he finally got out of the gilded cage that was this marriage.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can sta-”

Stella was suddenly interrupted when she was punched in the face. Everyone gasped in shock when they saw who did it.

"WHAT THE FUCK, MOM?!" Octavia screamed.

"V- Via?!" Stella said in shock, her head hurting from the impact of the punch, "H- How did you..."

"I heard everything from across the room!" Octavia began, "I snuck in to see my dad, but then next thing I know, I hear that you wanted to beat and torture him with these mutts just so you can get off?! You sadistic cunt! I should've known you swans and mutts were all up to no good! That is why my race is superior to yours!"

Stolas was shocked to hear this. Until now, Octavia had never expressed any racial tendencies, but now she was calling out the swan and hellhound race.

"Octavia, please!" Stolas cried out, "Their race has nothing to do with it! This wouldn't have been any different if-"

"SHUT UP, COWARD!" Octavia screamed, "HOW DARE YOU ALLOW THEM TO TREAT YOU LIKE THIS!!! YOU SHOULD'VE KICKED HER OUT WHEN YOU HAD THE FUCKING CHANCE!!!" Octavia couldn't take it anymore. She lunged at the chihuahua and proceeded to assault him. The other two hellhounds tried to stop her, but she ended up going into feral mode and shredded them.

"OCTAVIA, STOP!!!" Stella screamed, "OH MY SATAN!!! THIS IS A DISASTER!!! THAT'S IT!!! STOLAS, YOUR 'BLITZY' IS DEAD!!!" Stella then attempted to signal the snipers to kill Blitzo, but then Octavia snatched the phone and broke it to pieces.

"Let him go now..." Octavia glared.

"But... but..."

"DO IT RIGHT FUCKING NOW OR ELSE I WILL GIVE YOU THE SAME FATE AS THESE MUTTS!!!" Octavia screamed. Stella had no choice but to comply as she released Stolas. Octavia then pulled out a restraining order.

"The only reason why I restrained killing you as well is because you are my biological mother," Octavia coldly said, "Instead, we are filing this restraining order, meaning you cannot be near me or dad for the remainder of your pathetic life. The moment this is broken, you will be killed on sight. Now sign it..." Stella signed the paper, then sighed.

"I hope you're proud of yourself, Stolas. Having to rely on your own daughter to escape your own problems!" Stella spat out.

"JUST GET THE FUCK OUT, WOMAN!!!" Stolas screamed, and Stella left. Stolas turned back to see Octavia crying.

"Oh, my poor owlet..." Stolas said as he embraced his daughter and she cried on his shoulders.

"h- how long has she been hurting you...?" Octavia asked.

"Since we married," Stolas sighed, "I endured it all just to ensure you had a normal childhood that I never had. I'm sorry you had to witness that, but I'm glad you stood up to her and protected me. From this point on, I promise you that I won't allow anyone else to bully and abuse me like this."

"But what about Blitzo?" Octavia asked.

"Well, I was planning on giving him an Asmodean crystal to break off the deal," Stolas explained, "After what happened, I think it's time I confess my love towards him."

"I think you should," Octavia said, "I mean, I still prefer my own kind, but honestly, I take a red dickhead over that pathetic swan any day."

"Another thing, Via, where did you get that racism?" Stolas asked.

"I met some other owl groups from outside of Hell in a land called Tyto*. They sure do care about their owl kind there," Octavia explained. 

"Via, you cannot think like that," Stolas firmly said, "I get what they tried to do was unacceptable, but not all swans are like this. Just like how Loona isn't like this."

"I'm sorry, it just got the better of me," Octavia apologized. After they stopped hugged, the two decided to spend the rest of the day chilling. They watched movies while having snacks, and then both decided to head to bed. Octavia asked if she could sleep next to him, and he reluctantly said.

"Don't worry, dad, I just want to make sure you have someone with you," Octavia explained. As they both lied down in bed, Stolas couldn't help but feel grateful for the bravery of his daughter. Who knows what would've happened to him had she not stepped in.

"Thank you for being my special little Starfire..." Stolas whispered as he kissed the forehead of the new sleeping owl teen.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"HOW ABOUT YOU START THESE NUTS?!"

Everyone turned around and gasped when they saw the infamous lust king Asmodeus, glaring heavily at the swan princess.

"Oh, hi Lord Asmodeus," Stella greeted, trying to play it cool, "You see, Stolas had willingly agreed to try out a new BDSM played where he is dominated by me and hellhounds! Isn't that right, Stolas?"

Before Stolas could answer, Asmodeus screamed at them. "DON'T PLAY STUPID, BITCH!!! I HEARD EVERYTHING FROM HIS PHONE!!! I WIRETAPPED IT, AND I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU TRIED TO TORTURE HIM LIKE THIS!!! WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM?!?!"

"Look, man, we don't want any trouble!" The watchdog yelled, "Just leave us alone! It's none of your business!" That was the worst thing he could've said, as with a snap of a finger, the watchdog was impaled to death with a dildo.

"HOLY SHIT!!! DESS, NO!!!" The Shar Pei screamed for his loss friend.

"SIR, WE'RE SO SORRY!!! PLEASE DON'T KILL US!!!" The chihuahua begged. But Asmodeus was having none of it, and the remaining two were also impaled to death with a dildo.

"FUCK YOU, OZZIE!!" Stella flipped the bird at Asmodeus, "I'M HAVING BLITZO KILLED NOW BECAUSE OF YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS!!!" But before Stella could do such thing, the phone was seized, and Stella was placed in lust handcuffs.

"Stella, as punishment for attempted torture and hate crimes against a gay man, you will spend the remainder of your pathetic life as a sex slave in the Lust ring. You can kiss your honor and nobility goodbye, because all of that shit is out the window the moment you have sex there!" Asmodeus explained.

"NO!!! I'M A GOETIAN!!! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME!!! I'M SORRY, OKAY?!?! I'LL NEVER DO THIS AGAIN!!! LET ME GO!!! PLEASE!!!" Stella begged, now crying.

"Uh uh uh! Us deadly sins are more powerful than Goetians! Have fun, slave!" Asmodeus concluded before Stella screamed as she was sent to the Lust ring to perform her sex slave duties. Asmodeus then freed Stolas from the cuffs. "You alright, Stolas?"

"Sort of..," Stolas answered honestly, "I don't understand, though... why?"

"Consider this me returning the favor for helping me save froggy from that mafia don and his cowboy, my dark lord," Asmodeus smirked, "By the way, I'm sorry for what I said back at Ozzie's."

"No worries, Asmodeus," Stolas assured, "I forgave you for that one. And besides, I have no idea how I can repay you for this."

"No need for that, Stolas. You deserve everything. By the way, you gave that imp the crystal yet?" Asmodeus asked.

"Not yet, but I'll give it to him on the next full moon," Stolas said, "I sure hope he'll accept it."

"Me too," Asmodeus replied.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Before the torture can begin, however, everyone heard some music begin to play.

He's galloping over the dusty planes
Even the cacti know his name
If you don't want to die don't cross his path
The best assassin in the ring of Wrath

He's Striker! He's Striker!
Sure shootin', darn tootin', his name is Striker

Before everyone knew it, Striker comes crashing down the bedroom with Bombproof.

"STRIKER?!" Stella exclaimed, "WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"

"Oh, don't mind me, madam, just came to enjoy the show!" Striker smirked.

"Oh, you wanted to see what we were going to do to that asshole?" Stella smirked, "That's awesome! You can even join in if you want!"

By now, Stolas was panicking even more. Was Striker seriously going to beat him too?! But then Striker walked up to the Shar Pei hellhound and slit his throat, killing him.

"WOAH!" the chihuahua yelped, "WHY DID YOU DO THAT?!"

"Because only I can hurt Stolas!" Striker barked. The chihuahua and watchdog tried to stop Striker, but he was able to dodge their attacks, and eventually kill him.

"WHAT THE FUCK, STRIKER?!" Stella screamed, "IF YOU WANTED TO CONTINUE THESE ONE ON ONE SESSIONS, THEN YOU COULD'VE JUST TOLD ME!!!" However, Stella was taken back when Striker restrained her with angelic rope. "HEY! LET ME GO!"

"Actually, I think I can have some fun with ya, madam," Striker smirked with lust, "I've always wanted to try on a Goetia, but there's no way I'm doing Stolas. Now you... I think you should see why Stolas looooooves imps..."

Before Stella knew it, Striker sliced off the bottom part of her dress and panties, exposing herself.

"STRIKER NO!!! THIS IS RAPE!!! SOMEBODY!!! HELP ME!!!" Stella screamed and cried, but it was no use. Striker then turned to Stolas.

"You better watch this shit, birdie!" Striker commanded, "If you're good, I'll release you."

Stolas nodded, and then watched as Striker pulled down his pants. Stella screamed and cried as he began to insert his penis in her pussy, but he ignored her. He even used his hypnotic eyes to calm Stella and force her to enjoy. He loved how soft, wet, and warm Stella's pussy felt on his cock. He's forced himself in several women over the years, but none were as fuckable as Stella. It made him wonder why they never had sex for so long. Meanwhile, Stolas couldn't help but aroused by the sight, but not because of Stella (hell no!). It was because Striker's cock was about as big as Blitzo, and he knew how to fuck just as roughly as Blitzo. As much as he hated Striker for what he did to him, deep down, he wanted a taste of that dick.

Eventually, Striker came inside Stella, and it was at that point that she sobbed like a baby, feeling violated like none other.

"Well, madam, thank you for the nice time!" Striker confidently said, "Next time, I hope you learn not to leave me out like this!"

"Fuck you..." Stella sneered, but nonetheless grabbed the shreds of her clothing and ran away crying, feeling ashamed and embarassed for what happened. Striker then freed Stolas.

"Thank you for watching without issue, birdie," Striker thanked, "But if you want to give me a try, here's my phone number. I promise not to hurt you like last time. Not unless you wanna..." Striker then left. Stolas didn't hear from Stella for the rest of the day, and when Octavia came to visit, she was confused with how relieved and nice Stolas was. But once she went to bed, Stolas called the phone number.

"Striker? I want you to enter the palace through the bedroom window. There, you have an owl twink awaiting you..."

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can staaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa............”

Everyone froze when Stella suddenly stopped and couldn't finish the word "start". It was most certainly a confusing development, and none of the hellhounds knew what to do.

"Um... Princess Stella? Is everything alright?" The Shar Pei asked. But when he went to touch Stella, her body suddenly fell and shook violently, her words getting louder.

"Oh no! She's glitching!" the chihuahua pointed out, "I don't know why, but now Stella is frozen and shaking violently."

"DID YOU HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH THIS?!" the watchdog screamed at Stolas accusingly.

"What? No! I swear, I didn't caused Stella to glitch!" Stolas begged for his innocence.

"LIES!!! YOU WILL PAY!!!" the watchdog screamed as he went up to charge Stolas. However, he froze, and was stuck in the charging position.

"Oh, not Dess too!" the chihuahua whined.

"Come on, Shay, let's bust out of this bitch!" the Shar Pei exclaimed. However, both hellhounds froze as half of their bodies sunk on the floor before stopping. The scene was chaotic. Stella was still frozen while trying to finish the word "start", the watchdog (named Dess) was frozen in place, and the remaining two are stuck on the ground. And in the mist of all of this, Stolas was standing there, still handcuffed.

"This is ridiculous!" Stolas yelled, "If this is a prank, it is not funny! Now release me right now!"

Stolas, however, felt the cuffs start to sparkle. Stolas was worried what this meant, but then it suddenly went out of bounds and disappeared, freeing him.

"You know what? Fuck it! I'm out of here!" Stolas declared before leaving.

Unfortunately for Stella and the hellhounds, they never got out of their glitched state. They eventually had to be taken out of the palace and into the hospital in an attempt to cure them. When no cure worked, their final destination was at the Glitch Museum, where glitched people and objects were placed. Octavia and I.M.P. went to visit them, and Octavia teared up seeing her mother in her glitched state.

"I can't believe mom glitched out like this," Octavia wept, "I know she tried to hurt my dad, but she didn't had to go out like this. I can't imagine what her mind is thinking, trapped in this eternal state."

"I know, V, and I'm sorry it had to be this way," Loona consoled the owl teen as she hugged her.

"Honestly, Stella was always trouble, so I couldn't give a shit what happened to her," Blitzo coldly said. Once the five left, Stella still continued to stand there, still trying to finish the word "start". But deep inside her mind...

"SOMEONE GET ME OUT OF HERE!!! I'M STILL NOT DONE WITH STOLASS!!!"

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"OH NO YOU DON'T BITCH!!!"

Everyone turned around and gasped at what they saw. It was Stella, but this one was different. The different Stella was wearing more casual clothing and not the usual formal attire proper for the Ars Goetia. And she looked furious.

"What is the meaning of this?" Stella asked, confused of seeing another version of herself.

"I cannot believe what I am seeing!" The AU Stella screamed, "I have been monitoring the show Helluva Boss, and your actions are deplorable! The way you treat your husband, beat him, try to kill him, and now this?! YOU ARE THE REAL DISGRACE TO THE ARS GOETIA! NOT HIM! I WILL NEVER TREAT HIM LIKE THIS!"

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!" Stella yelled, "What is a Helluva Boss anyway? Get out now, and mind your damn business, or else I will add you in the torture pile too!"

The Shar Pei hellhound then grabbed a spare blessed cuff to use, but the AU Stella roundhouse kicked him, knocking him out. The other two hellhounds tried to stop her, but she also quickly knocked her out.

"YOU WANNA GO?! WE'LL FUCKING GO!!!" Stella screeched as she went into a fighting position.

"BRING IT ON, BITCH!!!" AU Stella yelled back. Both swans then proceeded to get into a pretty tense fist fight, with both having some serious strength.

"GIRLS, PLEASE STOP! STELLA, JUST LET ME GO! IT'S NOT WORTH IT!" Stolas pleaded, but it was no use. AU Stella got the upperhand, and successfully subdued Stella.

"Fuck you..." Stella growled, but AU Stella slapper her back.

"NO! FUCK YOU!" AU Stella screamed back, "You ever lay a finger on him again, and I WILL kill you!" Stella had no choice but to release Stolas as she left pouting. AU Stella then gave Stolas a hug as he cried.

"No one had ever stood up to her like that..." Stolas wept.

"I know, but she's not going to hurt you again. I promise..." AU Stella assured as they both hug. Eventually, they broke out.

"Stolas, please come with me," AU Stella asked, "Me and my husband will assure you're cared for, and that you aren't abused again."

"Thank you for the offer, but I must stay and give Blitzo the Asmodean crystal," Stolas politely rejected. AU Stella sighed, but respected his decision. She waved him goodbye before leaving.

"Why couldn't I have that Stella here?" Stolas thought to himself.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

The Shar Pei hellhound then went to give the first punch, only for a force shield to suddenly spawn surrounding Stolas, causing the hellhound to crash into the shield and fall.

"Goddamnit, he shielded himself!" the hellhound groaned.

"What the fuck, Stolas?! You have blessed cuffs on you! Your demonic power should've been limited!" Stella complained.

"Stella, I swear to Lucifer that I didn't do this!" Stolas pleaded, but Stella was having none of it.

"You have five seconds to remove the shield, or else you can kiss your imp goodbye!" Stella then went to pull out her phone, only to find that it couldn't turn on no matter what, "FOR FUCK'S SAKE!!! WHAT IS GOING ON?!"

Suddenly, everyone froze when they heard a deep growl. It was a growl they all knew too well.

"Stella... what's this I hear about you hurting my son..." Paimon growled.

"Uh, I wasn't, sir! Why would you think that?" Stella tried to deny, but it was no use. Paimon suddenly appeared and screamed in her face.

"OF ALL MY YEARS OF KNOWING YOU, I NEVER KNEW YOU WOULD GO THIS FAR!!!" Paimon screamed.

"Oh, but what him?!" Stella retorted, "He cheated on me with an imp, and is a pathetic fucking man who is trying to divorce me! Now remove the shield and let me have this!"

"No," Paimon sternly glared, "I do not agree with his actions, but you took it too damn far. Now you and your little pups must pay..." Paimon then snapped his fingers and eviscerated the three hellhounds.

"MARCOS, SHAY, DESS! NO!" Stella screamed and then tried to attack Paimon, but he stopped her with a straight punch to the face.

"JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!!! AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO GIVES A SHIT ABOUT DIGNITY AROUND HERE?!" Stella yelled as she felt her face go numb from the punch. Paimon then grabbed her and she was forced to look at him.

"Stella, you have not cared about dignity in years," Paimon retorted, "So fuck off and leave my son alone. And if I catch you hurting him again, you will regret it..." Paimon released Stella and she ran away in fear. Paimon removed the shield and unlocked the blessed cuff.

"Thank you, father," Stolas began, but Paimon shut him up.

"What the frick's your problem, boy?" Paimon accused, "Why would you allow her to treat you like this? Why do you have to be so weak and passive?!"

Stolas couldn't believe it. Was his own father seriously victim blaming him?

"Father," Stolas began, "I didn't want to hurt her because she is Via's mother, whether we like it or not. Not to mention that if I tried to escape or argue, then I risk having my true lover killed, and I cannot allow that to happen."

"But still, the idea of you being beaten by lower class like that cowboy imp and later these hellhounds is so embarrassing to our name!" Paimon exclaimed, "But, I'm not about to argue on this. I'll testify against her in court, but after this, I never want to see you again. You are a goddamn embarrassment to this family, and I hope you're happy sacrificing your name just to be with that imp lover of yours..."

With that, Paimon left the palace. Stolas sighed. It was certainly a twist of events, and felt disappointed that his father would victim blame him like he brought it on himself. Despite this, he still appreciate him for stepping in and ensuring Stella won't hurt him again.

"I'm going to bed," Stolas proclaimed, "It's been a long day anyway..."

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can-”

"STOP RIGHT THERE, HOE!"

Everyone turned around to see none other than the infamous mafia don Crimson, followed by his shark goons.

"Excuse me, but we're right in the middle of something, so can you please get out and leave us be?" the Shar Pei hellhound asked.

"Yeah! Did Stolas sent you jerks here?!" Stella pointed accusingly.

"You better shut your trap, bitch!" Crimson exclaimed, "We have a right to be here because we were given an order by the Ars Goetia to take over the Selfless fanfic!" Crimson then handed Stella a copy of the notice that required Crimson to take over the Selfless fanfic.

"Wait, we're in a fanfic?!" Stella shockingly asked.

"Hell yeah!" Crimson confirmed, "Apparently, people didn't like seeing you abuse and torture Stolas, and for some reason wanted us to be the new antagonists instead. Now buzz off you four, not unless you want us to 'assist' you..."

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!" Stella screamed at his face, "WE GOT TO HIM FIRST!!! NOW GET OUT!!!" Stella shoved Crimson down on the ground, and one of the goons successfully subdued Stella with a taser.

"STELLA NO!!!" Stolas screamed. Despite what she just tried to do with him, he still didn't want to see Via's mother hurt.

"HOW DARE YOU DO THAT!!!" the chihuahua screamed and charged at the goons, but he snapped his neck, killing him.

"LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!!!" the watchdog screamed, not wanting to die. However, they were both knocked out. Crimson got up and then released Stolas from the blessed cuffs.

"Follow me," Crimson ordered. Stolas obeyed his commands as he followed the gang back to Greed and eventually down a large lake.

"Sir, what do you want me to do?" Stolas asked.

"We're gonna dump their bodies," Crimson said as he dumped the chihuahua first. Stolas had no choice but to dump the Shar Pei and watchdog too. But then he stopped when he heard Stella wake up and scream.

"LET ME OUT!!! I DON'T WANT TO DIE!!!" Stella screamed, but Crimson slapped her.

"Take her out," Crimson ordered.

"No... please..." Stolas cried, but Crimson grabbed him.

"You better not fucking cross me..." Crimson glared. Stolas sighed, and went up to Stella.

"I'm sorry it had to end like this..." Stolas said before dumping Stella in the lake. He watched the bubbled come up, until they eventually stop.

"Now, since you're still in danger, you and your daughter will be living with me in the meantime," Crimson began, "How this is going to go is that we will take over as the real antagonists in Selfless. We'll pretend we kidnapped you, but as bait so I can get Moxxie back. That boy has crossed me too many times, and it's about time him and that brood of his get what was coming, alright?"

"Yes sir," Stolas responded. Stolas had no idea that is how things would go. He wasn't even sure what this Selfless fanfic is or why Crimson was so adamant on taking it over, but regardless, he was going to have to follow his rules, not unless he had to go sleeping with the fishes like Stella and her goons. Stolas then went to call his daughter.

"Via, darling, please open up a portal to the Greed ring. There's a new change in our lives..."

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Just then, however, the door busted open, and there came another Stolas.

"AND JUST WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING, YOUNG LADY?!" the other Stolas screamed.

"ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS?!" Stella screamed, "WHY THE FUCK IS THERE ANOTHER YOU?!"

"Oh, trust me, dear, there's so much more of us!" the other Stolas said. Soon, more clones of Stolas arrived.

"I'm Pilot Stolas, and you know what happens when I get lonely, Blitzy?" Pilot Stolas said.

"Birthday time!" Young Stolas greeted.

"YOU KNOW WHAT I DID TO GET THESE SCARS, BITCH?!" Soldier Stolas yelled.

"お寿司はいかがですか？" Japanese dub Stolas asked.

"Duuuuuuuuu, me no like Stella!" stupid Stolas proclaimed.

Stella and the hellhounds couldn't believe what they were seeing. So many versions of Stolas popping in at once?

"Man, I did not sign up for this!" the Shar Pei hellhound said.

"Yeah, what kind of Looney Tunes shit is this?!" the watchdog hellhound exclaimed.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?! I HAVE HAD ENOUGH! STOLAS, YOU CAN KISS YOUR BLITZY GOODBYE, BECAUSE HE IS DEAD!" Stella then went to signal the snipers, but it never came. "Wait, why isn't it working?"

"Duuuuuuuuuuuuuu, I brokes the connectionz!" stupid Stolas said as he pulled out bitten wires.

"YOU HAVE GOT TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME!!! STOP THEM!!!" Stella commanded. The three hellhounds, however, were not ready for what was to come. the other Stolas, Soldier Stolas, and Japanese Stolas all beat them up pretty badly, while Pilot Stolas started to flirt with a framed photo of Blitzo. Stupid Stolas also danced around like a fool, while the Young Stolas annoyed Stella.

"This is my book on the difference between frogs and toads, there's a lot of differences! And this is my book on plants and herbs! Did you know plants can hear you?" Stolas rambled, causing Stella to scream.

"THIS IS WHTY I HATE YOU, STOLAS!!! YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN A NERD AND A PATHETIC FUCKING LOSER!!!" Stella screamed as she roundhouse kicked the young Stolas, causing him to cry in pain.

"YOU HAVE NO HONOR!!!" Soldier Stolas enraged as he tackled Stella and assaulted her.

"OH SHIT I'M SORRY!!!" Stella cried, but it was no use. All the Stolas clones jumped Stella.

"YOU GUYS STOP!!! DON'T KILL HER!!!" The actual Stolas, still cuffed, begged.

"We'll stop once she gets a taste of Blitzy!" Pilot Stolas said. The other Stolas then came up and released Stolas.

"Come on, Stolas, call Blitzo and tell him to get over here," the other Stolas said as he handed Stolas his phone back.

Blitzo wasn't sure why Stolas wanted him to come tonight, considering the full moon wasn't in a few days. But when he went to the room, he was shocked to see Stolas, or rather many forms of him in the room. And on the bed was Stella, tied up on the bedpost.

"Wow, Blitzo, you look so cool all grown up!" young Stolas said.

"わあ、ブリッツ、このアメリカ版の君が本当に好きです。" Japanese Stolas said.

"Wait, Stolas, why is there so many different versions of you here? Why are there three dead hellhounds in the corner? And why is Stella tied up in the bed?" Blitzo had so many questions about this bizarre scenario, but can you really blame him?

"It's a long story, Blitzo..." Stolas said.

"Blitzo, since you're pansexual, we want you to show Stella why we love imps so much," the other Stolas said.

"Yes, Blitzy, please do her like you do to me..." Pilot Stolas seductively said as he got uncomfortably close to Blitzo.

"Alright, fine! She might be a bitch, but goddamn is she hot!" Blitzo exclaimed as he took off his clothes. Stella looked shocked, realizing that this night was going to be a long one...

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

"Actually," an unknown voice came, "you should understand what's going to happen if you threaten him one more time!"

When everyone turned, they were shocked to see it was Alastor, the infamous radio deer demon.

"Alastor?!" Stella said in shock, "What in the world are you doing here?"

"Stella, please cut the shit," Alastor said as he walked closer to Stella, "I have been examining your relationship since Stolas began to cheat on you, and it's clear you have an extreme case of obsessive personality disorder, especially with how much you want to control him!"

"Control? Me? Of course not!" Stella tried to deny.

"But what about when you said 'you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once', or even 'If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way'?"

Stella was in shock. He heard all of that?

"Now, doggies," Alastor turned to the now shaking hellhounds, "What were you all planning to do with Prince Stolas?"

"None of your fucking business, asshole!" the watchdog hellhound yelled, but he immediately regretted that decision when Alastor made a crazed look before chaining them with green chains.

"HEY! LEAVE THEM ALONE!" Stella tried to stop Alastor, but Stolas found the courage to hold her back. He also took her phone and smashed it so that she couldn't signal the snipers to kill Blitzo. "WHAT THE FUCK, STOLAS?!"

"Shut up, woman!" Alastor yelled at Stella before turning back to the hellhounds, "Now I'm going to ask you doggies again, or else you're all dead: What were you all planning to do with Prince Stolas?"

"W- We were going to torture Stolas for Stella's amusment..." the Shar Pei hellhound confessed.

"DUDE! WHY WOULD YOU TELL HIM?! NOW HE'S GONNA FLIP OUT!!!" the chihuahua hellhound yelled.

"Well, I'm sorry, but some of us don't want to die at the hands of Alastor!" the Shar Pei hellhound retorted.

"Thank you," Alastor thanked before releasing them, "Now I expect you three to run off now, for you are all banned from all Ars Goetia properties, and you will be shot on sight if you go near any of them." The hellhounds didn't need to be told twice, and left soon after.

"Alastor, please..." Stella shook, "Just leave us alone..." However, Stella had blessed handcuffs placed on her.

"Alastor, what are you doing?" Stolas asked.

"Stolas, I want you to beat her," Alastor commanded.

"What?! No! I don't want to hurt my wife!" Stolas tried to argue, but Alastor grabbed him.

"Stolas..." Alastor said as he got more crazy, "That thing stopped being your wife the minute she started attacking you... now beat her, or else I will restrain you and beat both of you..."

Stolas was in a rough spot. He didn't want to hurt Octavia's mother, but at the same time, he didn't want to get beaten either. He walked up to the swan, who was now crying and begging Stolas not to hurt her.

"I'm sorry..." Stolas whimpered before he punched her, knocking her body down on the floor. Stolas turned back, and saw Alastor recording the ordeal.

"Now, Stolas, get her back up and continue to punch and beat her until I say stop," Alastor commanded. And punch and beat Stolas did. He continued to assault her in several places, including breaking her right arm and both of her ribs. His own wife cried hysterically and screamed at him to stop, but it was no use. Alastor handed him a knife, and Stolas proceeded to cut and stab Stella in several places while Stella screamed in agony. Stolas also cried, feeling so wrong doing this. Yes, Stella tried to have him tortured, but he would never inflict such pain towards her. And by the time Alastor finally told Stolas to stop, Stella was in so much pain. From broken bones to blood-covered feathers and makeup running down her face, Stella, the once noble princess, was tortured and abused beyond belief.

"Wow, Stolas, it was high time you finally gave her a taste of her own medicine!" Alastor exclaimed as he uncuffed Stella, "I'll be keeping this footage for safekeeping. I trust that you keep what happened between us, or else I will leak it and people will see Stella be embarrassed to high heavens! Have a safe night, you two!" And with that, Alastor finally left.

Stolas couldn't help. He ran up to the bleeding, injured swan and gave her a big hug. They both cried together as Stella regretted everything.

"I'm sorry, Stolas... I'm so, so sorry..." Stella whimpered and yelped, still feeling so badly hurt.

"I know, Stella..." Stolas cried, "It's okay... we're gonna get through this..."

This was the first time Stella showed true terror. She was always the one who'd hurt and abuse others. But with this, Stella now knew how it felt to be hurt and tortured, and she hated that feeling. Loathed it. Fortunately for her, Stolas was compassionate. Despite what she tried to inflict on him, he was still allowing her to feel some mercy and compassion. He carried her to the potion room where he used several healing spells to fix the bruising, stab wounds, and broken bones throughout her body. Once she was fully healed, Stolas carried her to the bath tub to clean her bloodied feathers. While cleaning, Stolas decided to talk to her.

"Stella... why did you want me tortured?" Stolas asked.

"I... I don't know..." Stella sighed, "I was just... so angry that I wasn't getting what I want, and I thought that by having them hurt you, that I'd be satisfied. But now... I don't know anymore. Alastor now has this blackmail on us, and I worry if I try something else, then he'll do it again!"

"Maybe he was trying to teach you a lesson," Stolas said, "He was trying to give you karma, and have you understand what I felt when you hurt me. I didn't want to do that either, but I had no choice. Stella, believe me when I say that this torture session he made us do hurt me just as much, if not more. That's because I always see the good in people. Even after what you tried to do, I didn't want to see you hurt. Whether people like it or not, you are Octavia's mother, and you have done everything you can to be her mother figure, despite your feelings towards me. I hope this is a tough lesson learned for you."

Both were silent as Stella still remained in the bath. She spoke up.

"I'll let you have full custody of Via," Stella simply said, "And I won't bother you ever again. Once again, I'm so sorry of everything..."

Stolas didn't say anything, but simply nodded. Once Stella finished washing, she dried herself and changed into her spare dress, with the old one having been discarded from all the blood and ripping. Stolas watched as Stella left his palace without word.

"I hope she can change for the better," Stolas thought as he went back inside.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"HEY! If you're gonna start, at least let us in too!"

Everyone turned around and gasped at who was standing. There was Verosika Mayday, with her bodyguard Vortex next to her.

"HOLY SHIT IT'S VEROSIKA!!!" The Shar Pei hellhound screeched, "I'M YOUR BIGGEST FAN!!! CAN I HAVE YOUR AUTOGRAPH?!" The Shar Pei ran up to Verosika, but Vortex knocked him out clean with one punch in the face.

"HEY! He just wanted an autograph!" the chihuahua hellhound protested.

"Sorry, but Verosika will not sign no autographs to idiots who want to hurt royalty for the hell of it!" Vortex yelled.

"Yeah, Stella! We heard your plan down the hall, and how you gaslighted Stolas to join your sick games! How dare you treat him like this!" Verosika yelled.

"Oh, as if I'd listen to a low-life sex whore like you!" Stella growled, "Now fuck off, and you better not tell anyone what happened here, or else-"

"OR ELSE WHAT?!" Vortex got up in Stella's face, and she slapped him.

"HOW DARE YOU TOUCH MY BODYGUARD, BITCH!!!" Verosika screamed and tackled Stella, and the two got into a bitch fight. Meanwhile, Vortex fought off the remaining two hellhounds. The chihuahua was easy to take down, but the watchdog was far more powerful. Thankfully, Vortex saw a knife from the chihuahua., and used it to stab the watchdog to death.

"HOW DARE YOUR MUTT KILL MY MUTTS!" Stella screamed as she pulled Verosika's hair, "YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS, BITCH!!!" Stella then went to grab the phone to signal the snipers to kill Blitzo, but Vortex took her phone and smashed it. "OH FUCK YOU!!!"

"Can it, bitch!" Vortex sneered, and Verosika shoved Stella down on the ground.

"You better release him right now, or else we will tell everybody what you did!" Verosika glared. Stella released Stolas from the cuffs, albeit reluctantly.

"You may have won this battle, Stolass, but this war is FAR from over!" Stella exclaimed as she left. Stolas was still in shock at what just happened. Verosika and her bodyguard of all people had came to his rescue?

"You okay, prince?" Vortex asked, concerned of Stolas's worry.

"Sort of," Stolas answered honestly, "I'm just still at shocked of what just happened. Verosika, how did you came here to begin with?"

"I wanted to talk to you, but then I overheard what your crazy ex Stella said, and me and Vortex weren't about to let that happen," Verosika explained, "Even though you probably shouldn't have cheated with that dickhead behind her back, she had no right to treat you like this."

Stolas felt relieved that Verosika had came right on time, or else he would've been badly injured.

"Verosika, I heard that you had a history with Blitzo," Stolas said, "Was he bad with you, considering you referred to him as a dickhead?"

"Oh, bad doesn't BEGIN to describe his wickedness!" Verosika spat, "I mean, we're talking about an imp who stole my car to go on a joyride, used my credit card to max it out for some stupid horse riding lessons, and made me pay for the hotel bill to top it all off! He's a fucking asshole, and I regret dating him!"

"Oh dear," Stolas said in shock, "I'm terribly sorry for what happened to you, but that was in the past. Believe me when I say that he has changed since."

"Really? In what way?" Verosika rhetorically asked, "I mean, no offense Stolas, but there's nothing good about Blitzo. He's burned off the bridges of his family and friends, and he continues to be a pain while refusing to hold accountability. I mean, when you were hospitalized, did he visit you?"

"No..." Stolas sighed, "But he was very busy during my recovery! He didn't have time!"

"Don't bother making excuses for him," Verosika said, "Just consider what I just said. Also, if Stella tries to give you shit again, give us a call, and me and Tex will take care of her." Verosika then gave Stolas her business card before both left. Stolas was in shock. On one hand, he was thankful for the both for stopping Stella and her goons. But on the other hand, was it true about Blitzo ruining relationships and not owning up to his mistakes? It would certainly hurt to hear that he can try and ruin their relationship. But... despite what he heard, he was still optimistic. The full moon was still in the next few days, and Stolas was confident that the deal breaker and Asmodean crystal will work. It's just a matter of if things can more or less stay nice or if things will go down south, but only time will tell.

"I think I'm gonna relax," Stolas said, "This was quite a day, that's for sure..."

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

However, before they could go anywhere, Lucifer of all people suddenly barged in.

"STOLAS! You gotta che-" Lucifer said, but stopped when he saw he five staring at him awkwardly, "Um... what's going on here?"

"Oh, hello Lucifer!" Stolas proclaimed, trying to play it cool, "My wife was just showing me new candidates for bodyguard replacements, and we were going to interview them, isn't that right Stella?" Stolas knew deep down that was a lie, but it was better than the alternative, where he told the almighty Lucifer that his wife and her goons were going to torture him for fun.

"Yeah, that's true," Stella awkwardly said, "Now please go, Lucifer. We have some business to attend."

"No way!" Lucifer exclaimed, "I gotta show Stolas my duck collection!"

"Alright, dude, you gotta go!" the watchdog hellhound annoyingly said, "Like Stolas said, we got an interview to do, and I'm not about to blow it because of you!"

"Excuse me?!" Lucifer gasped, "Do you know who you are speaking too?!"

"Dess, knock it off..." the Shar Pei hellhound warned.

"NAH FUCK THAT!!!" Dess yelled, "NO ONE SHALL STOP US!!!" Dess tried to charge at Lucifer, only for the latter to eviscerate him in an instant.

"God, he was annoying," Lucifer said before he grabbed Stolas's phone, "Here, Stolas, you dropped this. Now let me see that interview of yours. I guess that watchdog won't be a good bodyguard anyway."

"Yeah, sure..." Stella reluctantly said as they led Lucifer to the bedroom. Stella was growing more and more anxious. Her plan was being foiled by Lucifer of all people! But she had to remain calm. Once he left, they can continue and ensure that Stolas will be hurt like none other.

"Alright, start with the Shar Pei guy," Lucifer asked.

"Uh, sure," Stolas said, "What's your names again?"

"Marcos," the Shar Pei replied, "And that's Shay."

"Oh, good," Stolas smiled, "Now, Marcos, tell me why you want this position."

"Well, uh... I like to help people, and uh... I have a..." Marcos was stumbling, and Stella was growing more and more impatient.

"Will you just spit it out already?!" Stella yelled in annoyance.

"I'M IN LOVE WITH STELLA, OKAY?!" Marcos confessed, causing everyone to gasp.

"W- What do you mean you're in love with her?" Stolas asked.

"I just love her, okay? I think she's really pretty, and deserves a man much better than you, okay?! Do you have a cuckold fetish, Stolas? Cause I can-" Marcos stopped when Stella shut his mouth.

"Lucifer, just go, okay?! This is so embarrassing!" Stella pleaded.

"After Marcos dropped that bombshell? No way!" Lucifer insisted, "Shay, do you love Stella too?"

"Hell no!" Shay insisted, but then Stella got a call.

"Stella, do we shoot Blitzo or not?" one of the snipers said.

"SHIT! NOW'S NOT THE GOOD TIME!" Stella screamed as she shut off the phone. However, Lucifer grew suspecious.

"Shoot Blitzo? What is going on?" Lucifer asked, concerned at this.

"Nothing, nothing at all!" Stella tried to deny, but then Lucifer snatched her phone and saw the feed.

"What is this?!" Lucifer exclaimed, "Stella, why do you have snipers stalking an imp?"

"Well, uh..." Stella stuttered, but then Stolas snapped and couldn't take it anymore.

"SHE WAS GOING TO HAVE HER HELLHOUNDS TORTURE ME AND THREATEN TO KILL BLITZO IF I DIDN'T COMPLY!!!" Stolas screamed, "BUT YOU KNOW WHAT?! I WILL NOT COMPLY WITH THIS SHIT ANYMORE!!! COME HERE!!!" Stolas then tackled his wife to the ground and attacked her. The other two hellhounds tried to stop him, but Lucifer quickly had them eviscerated as well.

"GOD DAMN YOU, STOLASS!!!" Stella screamed, "HOW DARE YOU RUIN MY PLANS!!! I FUCKING HATE YOU LUCIFER!!! GO KILL YOURSELF!!!" That was a big mistake, as Lucifer kicked her really hard. "OW!!!"

"I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS!!!" Lucifer screamed, "I JUST WANTED TO SHOW STOLAS MY DUCKS, AND YOU WANT TO TORTURE YOUR OWN HUSBAND?!?! THAT'S IT!!! IT'S TIME I DO SOMETHING STOLAS SHOULD'VE DONE YEARS AGO!!!"

Lucifer then shoved Stolas away and proceeded to stab Stella. She screamed as Lucifer continued to stab her in various places before concluding with a stab directly on her forehead, killing her for good. Lucifer pulled the knife out before using her white dress to clean the blood off of it.

"God that bitch was annoying," Lucifer said before turning to the shocked owl, "You alright, Stolas?"

However, Stolas began to cry. Lucifer, feeling pity, went up to hug Stolas.

"T- Thank you, Lucifer..." Stolas wept, "you have no idea how long I had to put up with her abuse..."

"I know, Stolas..." Lucifer whispered as continued to console the weeping owl, "I'm sorry you had to go through that. But just know that people love you, man. I don't want you to ever feel as though no one loves you..."

The tow continued to hug before Stolas broke it off.

"Say, Lucifer, you wanna show me those ducks?" Stolas asked.

"Of course! Let me get them!" Lucifer said as he went to get his ducks. As Stolas followed him, he couldn't help but feel satisfied that his life was going to change for the better.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE, STELLA!!!"

Everyone turned around to find three cherubs standing there. One a human cherub, and the other two a purple and yellow sheep. They were all glaring at Stella.

"Ugh, what do you three want?" Stella asked, annoyed that C.H.E.R.U.B interrupted the session.

"Stella, we cannot believe what we are witnessing!" Cletus yelled, "We let you borrowed those blessed cuffs for some kink play, not so you can have your husband tortured by these fierce beasts!"

"Cletus is right!" Keenie agreed, "Whatever Stolas did, he did not deserve any of this!"

"Now let him go!" Collin demanded.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW?!?!" Stella screamed, "DO YOU KNOW WHAT HE DID?!?! HE CHEATED ON ME WITH AN IMP, IS DIVORCING ME, AND IS ACTING SO FUCKING PATHETIC AND LAME!!! HE DESERVES TO BE TREATED LIKE THIS!!! NOW FUCK OFF OR ELSE YOU CAN JOIN IN ON THE FUN!!!"

The watchdog hellhound then approached the cherubs, only for the three to pull out angelic bows.

"ENOUGH!!!" Cletus screamed, "WE ARE FREEING STOLAS WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!!!"

Collin then shot a bow directly at the heart of the chihuahua, killing him.

"SHAY NO!!!" The Shar Pei hellhound screamed for his fallen friend.

"YOU JERKS WILL PAY FOR THIS SHIT!!!" the watchdog raged as he charged at Collin and tackled him.

"LEAVE COLLIN ALONE!!!" Kennie yelled as she shot the watchdog in the butt, causing him to yelp in pain. Cletus then finished him off with a throat slit via an angelic knife.

"YOU STUPID CHERUBS!!! I SHOULD'VE NEVER TRUSTED YOU!!!" Stella cried out, only for the three flip the bird at her and the Shar Pei hellhound.

"You brought all of this on yourself, bitch!" Cletus exclaimed as he released Stolas from the cuffs, "Now I suggest you and that other guy leave, and if you try to attack me or Stolas, then you both are DEAD!"

Stella and the Shar Pei hellhound sighed before leaving in defeat.

"Never in my life would I imagine some cherubs save me from Stella's madness..." Stolas commented, "How did you three know Stella?"

"She approached us asking for one of our blessed restraints because she claimed you were into some kinky stuff," Keenie explained, "We snuck in to see what you two were doing, but we never expected her to do any of this!"

"Stolas, we are so sorry about this," Collin explained, "If we knew she was going to try and hurt you, we would've never gave it to her to begin with! Please forgive us..."

"I forgive you," Stolas assured, "You three had no knowledge of her plan, so you are not at fault. But why are you three in hell anyway?"

"Well, there was this group named I.M.P. that tried to stop us from saving an old man, and it led to us getting him killed! Deerie said we were at fault, and now we can't enter heaven! It sucks here!" Cletus exclaimed. Stolas knew that his own lover Blitzo had caused this, but he was not about to share that information to them.

"I'm so sorry what you've been through," Stolas shared his condolence, "How about you three stay here in the meantime? The palace is more than enough to keep you three, and I think it'll be useful until you three can somehow reenter heaven. After all, I gotta repay you from saving me somehow."

"Of course, Stolas!" Keenie exclaimed as the three went to hug him, "It'll be a lot better than that shitty apartment we have to share!"

After the hug, Stolas showed them their rooms right when Octavia came to visit. Stolas explained their situation and that the three would be living with them in the meantime. Octavia was a bit hesitant, but ultimately welcomed them to the palace. When it was time to go to bed, Stolas felt a bit heavy. One second, he was about to be beaten by a bunch of hellhounds, and the next, he was allowing cherubs to live at his palace as a repay for saving him. The evening was certainly an interesting one, but Stolas was glad things didn't go too badly.

"I just hope they don't fight at the full moon," Stolas yawned as he went to sleep.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

"NO STOLAS!!! YOU SHOULD BE THANKING ME FOR ALL OF THIS WEALTH!!!"

Everyone turned around and gasped when they saw Mammon standing there.

"Lord Mammon?!" Stella exclaimed, "What in the world are you doing here?"

"Oy, cunt!" Mammon approached Stella, "What's this I hear about you tryna hurt Stolas?!"

"Me? Hurt Stolas?" Stella said in denial, "Why, I'd never! Stolas wanted to engage in some unusual BDSM, and being the loving and caring wife that I am, I wanted to help him indulge in his sexual fantasies! Isn't that right, Stolas?"

"Y- Yeah, of course!" Stolas agreed, despite his body language saying otherwise, "Now please leave, Mammon. We have some plans tonight."

"Hell nah!" Mammon exclaimed as he ripped off the blessed cuffs off Stolas, "I came because I wanted to talk to you about your imp and his friend and how they nearly ruined my pageant, and then I hear Stella wanna harm ya, and you let them do it?!"

"Well, I, uh..." Stolas was in shock. Why would Mammon of all people come and rescue him? He has his run in with the Greed deadly sin before, and he was easily the worst with his rude attitude and greed.

"BRO, JUST LEAVE!!!" The Shar Pei hellhound screamed.

"How about this, doggies?" Mammon said as he pulled out big bags of cash, "You three take this money, and you leave and not speak a word of this shit. Deal?" The hellhounds didn't need to think for a second. They each grabbed a bag and promptly left.

"ARE YOU SERIOUS RIGHT NOW?!" Stella yelled in Mammon's face, "HOW DARE YOU MAKE MY ASSOCIATES LEAVE!!! THAT'S IT!!! STOLAS, YOUR IMP PLAYTHING OF YOURS IS DEAD!!!" However, when Stella reached for her phone, Mammon snatched it and destroyed it. "WHAT THE FUCK, MAMMON?!?!"

"You wanna die, cunt?! Then FUCK OFF!!!" Mammon growled in her face. Stella sighed and left in defeat. Stolas just stood in shock. He couldn't believe Mammon had actually stood up to her like that.

"Stolas," Mammon began, "I'm sorry if I came off as a little weird and rude in previous meetups, but after hearing what your wife was about to make you go through, I couldn't just sit by and let that happen! I mean, why couldn't you divorce her sooner?"

"It's a long story..." Stolas sighed, "But I cannot express enough how much I appreciated you standing up to her like that. I guess I owe you."

"No need to own me anything, mate!" Mammon chuckled, "Have a nice night!"

With that, Mammon left. Stolas felt thankful that Mammon came right on time before Stella's goons began their assault. He hoped that Stella would take it as a sign to leave him alone for once.

"I better get going," Stolas said before he prepared for Via's visit.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Before the first punch can be thrown, however, tubes started coming through the roofs and forcibly plugged themselves in the mouths of the three hellhounds.

"HEY! WHAT GIVES?!" Stella yelled. Soon, yellow honey fluid then came pouring down the tubes and directly into the throats of the hellhounds. All Stella and Stolas could do was watch in horror as the three hellhounds quickly inflated from the excess honey. They screamed and tried to pull the tubes away, but with no success. Soon, their bellies grew so big, that it seemed like they were going to burst. And burst they did. The chihuahua was the first to explode, followed by the Shar Pei and the watchdog. By the time all three exploded, the entire room was covered in a mix of blood, guts, and honey, and both Stolas and Stella were drenched in that filth.

"HOLY FUCKING SHIT!!!" Stella screamed hysterically, "MY WHOLE BODY IS DRENCHED IN SHIT!!!"

"Stella, calm down! It can be washed off!" Stolas tried to assure her, but to no use.

"YOU STUPID IDIOT!!! YOU DID ALL OF THIS DIDN'T YOU?!?!" Stella accused, "YOU'RE LUCKY MY PHONE GOT BUSTED FROM THE EXPLOSION, OR ELSE YOUR IMP WOULD'VE DIED!!!"

"How about you shut up?!" a woman exclaimed. Both turned around to find none other than the Gluttony deadly sin Beelzebub.

"Beelzebub?! What in the world are you doing here?" Stolas asked. But Beelzebub had no time to explain, as he she quickly removed the blessed handcuffs off Stolas.

"Stolas, get out of here while I deal with your crazy wife!" Stolas nod and left, "How dare you try to have him tortured! I heard everything from last night when I visited your brother, and I'm here to teach you a lesson!"

"What are you gonna do? Stuff me to death?!" Stella teased as she crossed her arms. However, Beelzebub instead placed a gluttony shock collar on her and used a finger snap to replace her drenched white dress into a workers uniform.

"As punishment for attempted torture of Prince Stolas, you will spend the rest of the year in the honey factory! And if you slack off or try and escape, then you will be working there for FAR longer! Now get going!" Beelzebub said as she forced Stella into a portal to begin her punishment. Once Stella was gone, Beelzebub went to look for Stolas, who was sobbing on the couch. Feeling pity for the owl, she went to hug him, which he accepted.

"I can't believe she tried to do that to me..." Stolas sobbed, "Who knows what they would've done had you not stepped in..."

"I know, Stolas..." Beelzebub soothed, "She's not going to hurt you again. I promise. She's currently serving her punishment at the honey factory," They sat there for a minute before Stolas spoke.

"You're gonna have to clean up that mess in the room," Stolas firmly said, "You couldn't have picked a better method besides having them explode?"

"I'm sorry, Stolas, but I just love stuffing people to death, alright?" Beelzebub defended, "But I will have it cleaned up ASAP. You go shower in the meantime."

With that, Stolas went to clean in the guest bathroom. Once he finished, the bedroom was thankfully finished cleaned, almost as though nothing happened. It was also around this time that Octavia arrived.

"Hey dad," Octavia greeted, "What is Beelzebub doing here?"

"Hello, my owlet," Stolas greeted back, "To make a long story short, Beelzebub caught your mother trying to hurt me, and she's currently in the Gluttony ring to serve her punishment," He purposefully left the attempted torture detail because he didn't want his daughter to worry anymore about him.

"That figures..." Octavia sighed, "I just wished mom would be nice for once."

"Don't worry, V, I think you'll mother will learn to be nicer next time once her punishment's served," Beelzebub assured. She then left, and both Stolas and Octavia decided to spend the rest of the day hanging out.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Suddenly, the door busted opened as an imp busted through. That imp was none other than the infamous Wally Wackford.

"Hello there, everybody!" Wally introduced, "My name is Wally Wackford, and may I introduce you to a thing called, 'Leave Stolas Alone?'"

"Oh god, not this idiot again..." the Shar Pei hellhound groaned. He knew Wally before, and he was not in the mood for another one of his schemes.

"Wally, this is not the time and CERTAINLY not the place to start your fucking antics!" Stella sternly said, "Leave now or else Blitzo will suffer the consequences from your actions!"

"Oh, Blitzo-roo?" Wally said in a goofy tone, "Why, he might be the craziest imp in all of Hell! Think about it: He's a circus performer turned assassin, and has a very funny relationship with Stolas, whom you want to hurt for whatever reason! Tell me, Stella, because I'm a psychologist in training: Why do you want to hurt Stolas?"

"I CAN'T STAND THIS!!! LEAVE RIGHT NOW!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he charged at Wally, but he dodged it.

"Gotta try harder than that, fool!" Wally teased. All three hellhounds tried to catch Wally, but he dodged them all, eventually leadsing to the three hellhounds crashing into each other.

"GODDAMNIT, I HATE WALLY!!!" the chihuahua hellhound frustratingly said.

"I AGREE!!! STELLA, KILL BLITZO ALREADY!!!" The Shar Pei hellhound demanded. However, before Stella could do anything, Wally used his cane to smash her phone.

"YOU FUCKING DICK!!!" Stella yelled as she slapped Wally in the face. This caused Wally to use angelic rope tie her up.

"YO, YOU CAN'T DO THAT!!!" the watchdog hellhound protested, but soon, all three hellhounds were also tied. Once Stella and her goons were restrained, Wally freed Stolas.

"T- Thank you, Wally..." Stolas thanked, still shocked from what he just witnessed, "Please don't hurt Stella or any of them..."

"Don't worry, Stolas," Wally assured, "They'll just have to amend for their sins by being forced to work with me!" With that, Wally sent them to his house, forced to stay there until Wally can figure out what to do with them.

"My goodness, this was certainly a twist of events," Stolas commented, "Where did you get angelic rope anyway?"

"The angels, duh!" Wally exclaimed before leaving. Stolas would've never imagined that Wally Wackford of all people would save him, but he was thankful for his rescue.

"Well, I suppose I can look more into him. Maybe I can force Stella and her hellhounds to work for me as slaves..." Stolas thought as he went to look up more on Wally.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

"Actually, you're not as generous as you think, bitch!"

Everyone turned to look at who made that comment, and were shocked to see it was the infamous Fizzarolli.

"Oh, fuck off, Fizz! You are the worst jester in the world!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed.

"Excuse me?" Fizzarolli retorted, "I'll have you know that my net worth is far more than all three of you mutts combined, and I do not appreciate you idiots trying to hurt Stolas in some weird experiment to see how much he loves Blitzo! Yes Blitzo has made some mistakes in his life, but that doesn't mean you have to have him killed! We both made up anyway! Release Stolas and call off your snipers!"

"Oh really?" Stella sarcastically said, "You actually think you stand a chance against us, robo-fuck? NO! Get him!" The hellhounds charged at Fizz, but little did they know that Fizz's robotic arms were stronger than them. He dodged their attacks and then got them dizzy with his extensions.

"Stop spinning me!" the chihuahua complained.

"THIS IS RIDICULOUS!!! THIS IS WHY I HATE THE DISABLED!!! THEY THINK THEY'RE HOT SHIT!!!" the watchdog hellhound exclaimed.

"JUST FOR BEING ABLEIST, IMMA KNOCK YOU DOGGIES OUT!!!" Fizzarolli angrily yelled as he slammed all three on the ground, injuring them. By now, both Stolas and Stella were at a loss for words at what they were witnessing. How could a disabled imp hold such power?

"YOU KNOW WHAT?! I'M DONE PLAYING GAMES!!!" Stella screamed as she went to send the signal to have Blitzo killed, but Fizzarolli used his extended arms to snatch the phone and crush it. He then grabbed her and slammed her to the ground also injuring her.

"TAKE THAT, BITCH!!!" Fizzarolli yelled as he grabbed the keys and used them to free Stolas. The first thing Stolas did was run to Stella, worried for her health after being slammed.

"STELLA! Are you okay?!" Stolas asked worringly.

"Okay?! I just got slammed by a fucking imp, and I'm pretty sure my bones are broken! I just wanted to control you! I just wanted to finally have my way for once! And then this stupid fucking imp came and ruined everything!" Stella screamed and whined.

"You only have yourself to blame, bitch!" Fizzarolli coldly said as he grabbed her and the hellhounds and threw them in a portal to a jail cell, "Have fun in the Lust ring prisons! And don't worry, I contacted Ozzie to make sure the prisoners give you jerks a hard time!"

"NO!!! WE'RE SORRY!!! DON'T!!!" they begged, but it was no use, as the portal closed.

"Um, Fizz..." Stolas began, "I think that's a bit harsh to have them imprisoned and potentially assaulted."

"Stolas, come on!" Fizzarolli argued, "Those jerks tried to have you tortured for fun! They deserved what they got!"

"I supposed so..." Stolas reluctantly said, "But how am I going to explain this to Via?"

"Dude, from what I've heard, Stella was barely in her life, so I doubt the kid will miss her much," Fizzarolli said, "Now as a way to show gratitude, you have free tickets to all of my concerts for the rest of your life. And I'll make sure Blitzo knows how much you love him. I heard you're gonna end the deal soon, and I want to make sure it goes as smoothly as possible."

"Thank you for your generosity. I greatly appreciate it," Stolas thanked. Soon, Fizzarolli parted ways. Stolas felt glad that Fizzarolli came to the rescue, as otherwise, he might be in a lot of pain by now.

"I better get going. Via should be coming very soon," Stolas thought as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can sta-”

Stella was suddenly interrupted when a fireball crashed through the window. Everyone gasped at the sudden impact of the fireball, but then two figures came busting through the window, and it was none other than Charlie and her girlfriend Vaggie.

"WHAT MAKES YOU THINK YOU CAN TREAT HIM LIKE THAT?!?!" a feral Charlie screamed.

"YEAH!!! WE HEARD YOUR PLAN LAST NIGHT!!! HOW DARE YOU TRY TO HAVE STOLAS TORTURED!!!" Vaggie added.

"Oh, you think I'm intimidated by Lucifer's pathetic daughter?!" Stella scoffed, "You two better fuck off, or else Blitzo will die!" However, Vaggie used her spear to penetrate the phone, breaking it.

"STOP IT, JERKS!!! YOU'RE RUINING EVERYTHING!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he charged towards Vaggie. However, Charlie knocked him out with a clean punch.

"DESS NO!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed.

"LET'S GET OUT OF HERE BEFORE SHE KNOCKS US OUT TOO!!!" the chihuahua commanded as they tried to run, but were stopped when Charlie restrained them with chains.

"HEY!!! LET US GO!!!" Stella screamed, but Charlie slapped her in the face.

"Stella, and you three, for trying to torture a Goetian official, you are all going to be sent to the Hazbin Hotel for mandated behavior corrections! And Stella, you will be permanently suspended from the Ars Goetia!" Charlie said as she pulled up a document before having it burnt to ashes, destroying her title as a Goetian princess.

"NO!!! YOU CAN'T DO THAT!!! WE'RE SORRY, OKAY?!?! WE'RE SORRY FOR EVERYTHING!!! I WON'T HURT STOLAS AGAIN, I PROMISE!!! PLEASE LET US GO, AND RESTORE MY TITLE IN AN INSTANT!!!" Stella begged as she began to cry.

"It's too late for apologies, bitch..." Vaggie growled. Soon, all four were sent to a portal to the Hazbin Hotel where they will stay until further notice. Once the portal closed, Vaggie released Stolas from his handcuffs.

"Thank you so much for your bravery and courage," Stolas thanked, "But are you sure the Hazbin Hotel will work?"

"Of course it will!" Charlie assured, "Sir Pentious was able to redeem himself and reach heaven, so it's possible. Maybe we can restore Stella's title if she's extra good."

"I guess we'll see," Stolas observed, "But can me and my daughter visit them at least?"

"No. Not yet at least," Vaggie said, "You're still too much of a risk. Maybe if they show signs of improvement, then you can see them." Stolas respected that, and after Charlie promised to have the damages in the palace repaired, they left. Granted that Stolas was aware of the Hazbin Hotel and all the drama surrounding it, he hoped that the hotel can somehow help his wife Stella get the help he need.

"It looks like I have a lot of explaining to do to Octavia..." Stolas thought as he tried to come up with a plan to break the news to her.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"MOMMY, STOP!!! DON'T HURT DADDY!!!"

Everyone turned around and were in complete shock of what they were seeing. There stood Octavia, albeit a five year old version of her. And she was crying.

"Mommy please don't hurt daddy... it is not very nice..." little Octavia wept.

"What the hell is this? Octavia, why did you turn back into a wimpy baby?" Stella asked.

"DON'T QUESTION ME, MOMMY!!! LET DADDY GO RIGHT NOW!!!" little Via demanded. By now, Stolas wasn't sure what to think of this unusual turn of events. Did Octavia somehow regressed back to her younger years? Or did she happen to make a clone of her younger self?

"ALRIGHT, I HAVE HAD IT, YOU STUPID BRAT!!!" the watchdog hellhound exclaimed as the three hellhounds went to charge at baby Octavia. However, she pulled out a dog whistle and blew it, causing the three hellhounds to stop what they were doing.

"WHAT THE- HOW DID YOU GET THAT?!" Stella screamed, angry that a five-year-old was taking over the situation.

"It looks like my little Starfire kept daddy's special whistle!" Stolas chuckled.

"Now, will you doggies please release daddy?" Octavia asked. The hellhounds obeyed her command and released Stolas from the blessed cuffs.

"I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU WOULD DISOBEY YOUR MOTHER!!!" Stella screamed, "THAT'S IT!!! DADDY'S IMP LOVER IS NOW GOING TO DIE BECAUSE OF YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS!!!" However, before Stella could even pull up her phone, the Shar Pei hellhound snatched it and broke it.

"There, now you can leave daddy and his boyfriend alone!" Octavia glared as she crossed her arms. Stella had no choice but to accept defeat.

"Fine, but Stolas, if you think this is over, then you are dead wrong!" Stella said before leaving with the still brainwashed hellhounds. Once they left, Stolas picked up his daughter and gave her a hug.

"Via, that was very strong and brave of you to rescue me!" Stolas exclaimed, "But how did you know what was going on?"

"That would be me," a voice said, and it came from the present 17-year-old Octavia, "I heard what mom was planning to do last night, and I couldn't just let that happen. So, I used a spell to make a younger clone of myself to try and stop her, since I feared that she was going to hurt me. I didn't expect her to do such an exceptional job."

"You're welcome, Via!" little Octavia said.

"Oh, well, that's interesting..." Stolas said, "But what about that video camera you're holding?"

"I was able to record everything before," Octavia explained, "I'll use it as blackmail to get mom to leave us alone for once, lest I leak it to the public and expose her for who she really is."

"Wow, Via, that's pretty smart!" Stolas praised, "I'm sure your mother is going to want to mess with us now after that."

"Daddy, can we please go see the stars? Or even go to Loo Loo Land?" little Octavia asked.

"Unfortunately, you have to go," Octavia apologetically said to her younger self, "But I appreciate your help."

"You're welcome!" little Octavia said as the older Octavia used a spell to have her disappear.

"Come on, dad, let's have a movie night together, just me and you," Octavia offered.

"Of course, my owlet! You can even pick the movie," Stolas agreed, and both father and daughter headed to the living room to have a movie night and forget about the almost torture.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"LOOK EVERYONE!!! STELLA IS GOING TO HAVE A GAMER MOMENT!!!"

Everyone turned around and gasped at what they saw. There stood what looked to be a circus ringleader, but his face was just eyeballs and teeth.

"Excuse me, but who the hell are you, and what are you doing here?" Stella asked.

"I'm Caine, and I am the ringmaster of the Amazing Digital Circus!" Caine exclaimed, "We saw what you were going to do to poor Stolas, and I think my personnel should come and stop you guys from having a gamer moment! Come on out, and have fun!"

Caine then disappeared, and in his place were various characters. This included a jester, a purple bunny, a doll, a chess piece, a sad mask, and an abstract character.

"What the fuck is going on?!" The Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed, feeling so confused with all of these new characters spawning.

"Yeah, fuck off! We're trying to do something here!" The watchdog hellhound growled.

"Um, excuse me, you four, but I think it might be for the best that you all release Stolas and leave..." Ragatha tried to negotiate.

"Yes, please do, because I would like to not fight with you all!" Pomni exclaimed, feeling intimidated by being next to demons.

"Nah, I want my share with the owl," Jax shrugged.

"Can you all please leave? I have been through far worse, and I think I can handle a bit of punches from some mutts," Stolas tried to assure them, but it was clear that he was shaking.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A MUTT?!?!" the chihuahua hellhound screamed as he charged at Stolas with a knife. However, Kinger tackled him and disarmed him.

"DON'T HURT HIM!" Kinger yelled.

"ALRIGHT, THAT'S IT! I'VE HAD IT! STOLAS, YOUR BLITZY IS GOING TO DIE RIGHT NOW!" Stella screamed as she went to signal the snipers. However, the screen had been hacked to one of Caine.

"Sorry, Stella, but you cannot kill Blitzo right now. You have to deal with them first," Caine explained. Stella screamed and smashed her phone out of anger.

"YOU ARE ALL DEAD!!!" Stella screamed as she tackled Pomni and began to punch her. Jax retaliated by pushing Stella away and using a gag tool to restrain her. "HEY! RELEASE ME AT ONCE!"

"Sorry, m'am, but you're gonna have to watch us kick their butts!" Jax said while Ragatha examined Pomni's injuries.

"I HATE YOU ALL SO MUCH!!! STOLAS IS GETTING HURT WHETHER YOU JERKS LIKE IT OR NOT!!!" The Shar Pei hellhound yelled and went to punch Stolas. However, Zooble blocked the attack and slammed him on the ground.

"How about you screw off?" Zooble chastised. The watchdog hellhound yelled out a primal roar before punching her, leading to her abstract bits to fly everywhere.

"DON'T HURT ZOOBLE!!!" Gangle screamed as she tied up the watchdog and punched him in the face. Jax also distracted the chihuahua with more gags and pranks.

"STOP THROWING PIES AT ME!!!" the chihuahua hellhound begged to no avail. While all of this madness was going on, Ragatha unlocked the blessed cuffs, freeing Stolas.

"Are you okay, Stolas?" Ragatha asked.

"Yeah, I suppose..." Stolas replied.

"STOP!!! PLEASE!!! I JUST WANTED TO CONTROL STOLAS FOR ONCE!!! AND THEN YOU FUCKERS HAD TO COME AND RUIN EVERYTHING!!!" Stella screamed out of frustration and anger. However, Stella and the three hellhounds then began to feel something wrong with them. Before they know it, their bodies morphed into abstract beasts.

"Oh no! They've abstracted!" Pomni exclaimed.

"Quick! Take them to the Cellar!" Kinger commanded. They all worked together to take the four abstracted creatures the Cellar where they would remain for the foreseeable future.

"A- Are they going to be okay?" Stolas asked.

"Well, they abstracted, and there's no way to unabstract them, so they'll have to stay down there for the remainder of their time," Ragatha explained. Stolas couldn't help but feel bad for them. Not much for the hellhounds, but despite her flaws, Stella didn't deserve to go out like that.

"Stolas, I know you wished that didn't happen, and I guess your compassion is very admirable," Pomni began, "But remember: they wanted to hurt you. If she loved you, she wouldn't have you restrained and forced to endure pain just to save Blitzo. I've been in the digital circus for days now, and I'm... getting used to it. I think you all might be safer there. Hell is just too dangerous for you all."

"I suppose I could go there, but could you please get Blitzo and Octavia here too?" Stolas requested. Jax nodded and used a teleporter to get Blitzo and Octavia in.

"HEY! I was too busy watching My Demonic Pony!" Blitzo complained.

"And I was right in the middle of listening to Fuck You Dad's new album!" Octavia also added.

"There's no time for that! You all are going to live in the digital circus until further notice!" Pomni explained. Before all three knew it, they all transported into the Amazing Digital Circus.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Blitzy!”

"CUT!"

Everyone turned around to find that behind them was a set, where it looked as though a film crew was recording the whole ordeal. At the center was Neyane, who was directing the whole thing.

"What the hell?! Where did you all come from?" Stella asked.

"I'm Neyane, the director of this fanfic," Neyane explained, "Stolas was supposed to say 'Thank You Stella' as in the script. However, he instead said 'Thank You Blitzy' like a weirdo!"

"I'm sorry, I just love, Blitzo, okay?!" Stolas tried to defend.

"Since you wanna be an idiot, take this!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed as he went to punch Stolas. However, a force was used to stop him.

"No, Marcos, none of you hellhounds can begin the assault unless the script is properly done," Neyane explained, "Now, we're going to try this again. Stella, start from the line 'Come on Stolas,' One, two, ACTION!"

Stella was absolutely confused by this new development. No one had told her that this was all a script to be done in some random fanfic in AO3. However, she didn't care. She wanted to see Stolas get hurt first hand and didn't directly involve her. She needed to see the owl prince hurt.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: "SUCK MY DICK, BITCH!!!"

"CUT!"

Everyone turned back, and this time, Neyane looked more frustrated than last time.

"Stolas, last time I checked, you had a cloaca, not a penis," Neyane corrected.

"No! I know exactly what you are trying to do! You want me to say the right lines so they can hurt me! But I will not let that happen!" Stolas defiantly said.

"Stolas, you need to say your parts right. Stella got to do her parts with no issues," Neyane explained.

"Because she's not the one cuffed and about to be tortured!" Stolas clapped back.

"Stolas, bottom line is, you need to say the correct part. Now we're going to try again. Third time's a charm, am I right? One, two, ACTION!"

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“BURYING SWORDS! INTO EMACIATED RIBS! TIRED NAKED SOULS COULD NO LONGER WALK! EXOTIC FILTHY MONGREL DOGS FETTERED TO FAILURE BY A FLAWED GENOME!”

"CUT!"

By this point, Neyane was getting angry. The more these bloopers went on, the worse she was feeling.

"Stolas, why did you quote lyrics to 'Flogging the Cargo' by Arghoslent? How do you even know Arghoslent to begin with?!" Neyane interrogated.

"Well... my daughter introduced me to the band's music, and I find their style of melodic death metal to be quite fascinating..." Stolas explained.

"Shit, I didn't knew Stolas listened to those guys!" the watchdog hellhound said in surprised, "What's your favorite Arghoslent album? Mine's Hornets of the Pogorm."

"ENOUGH!" Stella screamed, "STOLAS, JUST SAY YOUR LINES PROPER FOR ONCE!!! WE ARE GOING THROUGH THIS WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!!! YOU EVEN WILLINGLY AGREED TO IT!!!"

"After you threatened to have Blitzo killed, bitch!" Stolas retorted.

"Enough you two! Stolas, last time I'm telling you this: Say. Your. Lines. Properly!" Neyane sternly said, "Alright, one, two, ACTION!"

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

However, before the first punch can be thrown, Stolas jumped and landed on the ceiling.

"WHAT NOW?!" Stella screamed.

"If you want to beat me, then you're gonna have to get me off the ceiling!" Stolas mocked as he shook his butt.

"BRO, GET OFF THE DAMN CEILING AND STOP MOONING US LIKE AN IMMATURE BRAT!!!" the chihuahua hellhound yelled as Marcos and the watchdog hellhound tried to get Stolas off the ceiling, but to no avail.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?! I AM DONE WITH THIS SHIT, STOLASS! YOUR IMP IS NOW DEAD!" Stella yelled as she went to signal the snipers. However, this was halted unexpectantly when Stolas peed on her phone causing it to short circuit and ceased to function. "EEEEEEEEEWWW!!! HOW DARE YOU PEE ON MY PHONE!!!"

"Take this!" Stolas said as he then proceeded to pee on Stella more. All three hellhounds watched in disgust as Stella tried to avoid the falling pee, but to no avail.

"CUT CUT CUT CUT CUUUUUUUUUUUT!!!" Neyane screamed before slamming the camera, breaking it, "WE ARE DONE FILMING FOR TODAY!!! STOLAS, YOU ARE THE WORST ACTOR EVER!!! GET OFF THE CEILING SO WE CAN REMOVE THESE HANDCUFFS, BECAUSE YOU WILL NO LONGER BE FILMING WITH US, JERK!!!"

Stolas obeyed and got off the ceiling, and a crew member came and removed the cuffs. Stolas was soon escorted out of the filming premises and told he couldn't come back, but he didn't care. He was not about to be tortured for some freaks to get off to his misery on that site.

"Now, I gotta find Blitzo, cause he definitely needs to know just how crazy these AO3 users are!" Stolas said as he went back to his actual palace.

"Okay, so fortunately, we were able to not only get a new, better camera, but we were also able to find a replacement Stolas," Neyane explained, "This one's... a bit different compared to the last one, but hopefully, we can finish this scene in a timely manner. Okay, one, two, ACTION!"

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took stupid Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Doooooooooooy, me says thankz.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Tanks to Stellaz!!!! Does Stolas getz de treatz?”

“Why, of course you get the treats!" Stella said as she clapped her hands happily, "Marcos, will you be so kind to give Stolas your treats?”

Marcos nodded, and before stupid Stolas knew it, a powerful punch hit him on the side of his torso, sending him rolling on the ground in the middle of the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Just then, however, the windows were shattered as a bee came crashing down the floor. The bee in this case being Barry B. Benson.

"Hold it there, Stella!" Barry yelled as he pointed at the swan princess, "Don't let those dogs hurt your husband!"

"Excuse me?!" Stella said, taken aback by Barry's sudden appearance, "What I'm doing with my husband is none of your concern. And how did you break through so easily anyway?"

"Well, According to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly. Its wings are too small to get its fat little body off the ground. The bee, of course, flies anyway, because bees don't care what humans think is impossible," Barry explained.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me!" The Shar Pei hellhound whined, "There is no way we're gonna be stopped by a little bee!"

"YEAH! BUZZ OFF!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he went to charge at Barry. However, he dodged the attack in time before using a pink to stab him in the butt, causing him to scream.

"HEY, LEAVE DESS ALONE!!!" the chihuahua hellhound screamed as he slapped Barry, but Barry got the upperhand and slapped him harder.

"VANESSA! I COULD SURE USE SOME BACKUP AT THE MOMENT!" Barry called out. Soon, a female human entered, carrying a flower gun.

"Any last words?" Vanessa said as she pointed the guns at them.

"Don't need to say anything, cause Blitzo is going to die because of your reckless actions!" Stella warned as she went to get her phone, only to find it was bricked by Barry when Stella wasn't looking. "OH FUCK YOU!"

Vanessa didn't wait for anymore comment, as she used the flower gun to restrain all four with the flowers. Barry also took the key from one of the hellhounds and used it to release Stolas.

"Thank you so much for your help," Stolas thanked before turning to Stella, "And as for you and your little goons, I think you all need to be humbled by Barry's bee race. Barry, what punishment do you have in mind for them?"

"I think being a restroom attendant in our hive sounds good. What do you say, Vanessa?" Barry asked.

"Sounds like a good plan," Vanessa agreed.

"Alrighty then, have fun spending the remainder of your life as restroom attendants in the bee hive!" Stella smirked as he opened up a portal to the hive.

"NO!!! STOP!!! WE'RE SORRY!!!" Stella begged, but it was no use, as they were all thrown in the portal before it closed.

"Well, our work here is done!" Barry exclaimed as he and Vanessa high fived before leaving, leaving Stolas no time to ask questions such as how they discovered him or how the flower gun worked. But it didn't matter. With Stella and her mischief now out the way, Stolas needed to focus on meeting Octavia later, and eventually preparing for the next full moon.

"I sure hope Octavia doesn't get too mad when she's learned what happened to her mother..." Stolas thought as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"More like we can stop!"

Everyone turned around and was confused at what they saw. There stood an orange Australian dog, who was glaring at them.

"Stella, you didn't tell us you were gonna invite another hellhound," the Shar Pei hellhound commented, "Who is this bitch anyway?"

"Excuse me?!" Chili barked as she got up to the three hellhounds, "How dare you address me as the b word! My name is Chili, and how dare you work with Stella to hurt Stolas! That is very rude and disrespectful of you lads to do that!"

"Oh yeah? And what are you gonna do about it?" the watchdog hellhound dared. That's when Chili pulled out her phone and showed them a video feed of their parents.

"MARCOS, SHAY, AND DESS!!!" one of the parents yelled, "WE CANNOT BELIEVE THAT YOU THREE WOULD WORK WITH A GOETIAN TO HURT ANOTHER GOETIAN!!! HOW RETARDED IS THAT?! THAT'S IT!!! YOU THREE ARE TO RETURN HOME, BECAUSE YOU THREE ARE GROUNDED!!!"

Suddenly, all three hellhounds were in fear. They had no idea how their parents found out, but now they feel disappointed that they were willing to work with a Goetian to hurt another. How ironic is that?

"That's right, mates, you disappointed your parents by working with her! Now I suggest you run off now!" Chili warned, and all three hellhounds ran out of the room.

"ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS RIGHT NOW?!" Stella screamed, "HOW DARE YOU HAVE MY HELLHOUNDS GROUNDED!!! THAT'S IT!!! BECAUSE OF YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS, STOLAS'S IMP WILL NOW HAVE TO FACE THE CONSEQUENCES!!!"

But before Stella can even grab her phone, Chili used magic to freeze her.

"HEY! LET ME GO!"

"No!" Chili denied, "I command you to turn off the feed and release Stolas!"

Stella didn't even had control of her body, but she was forced to shut off the feed before walking up to Stolas and releasing him from the handcuffs.

"Now, Stolas, you must slap her in the face," Chili commanded. Stolas didn't want to, so Chili had to use a bit of magic on him to get him to slap Stella in the face.

"OW!" Stella yelped in pain, "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU MADE STOLAS SLAP ME! I OUGHT TO HAVE THE POLICE ARREST YOU TWO!"

"No, Stella!" Stolas clapped back, finding his voice, "If anything, the police should arrest you for trying to have me tortured and threatening Blitzy! Now get out now before Chili forces me to slap you some more!"

Stella had no other choice but to sigh in defeat and leave the room. Stolas turned back to the Australian dog, feeling confused.

"Chili, how did you get in? And why did you want to help me?" Stolas asked.

"Because, mate, I was watching the show Helluva Boss that my husband Bandit recommended to me, and when I saw what she was planning to do, I just couldn't take it anymore. I already saw the scenes where she abused you and even tried to get you killed, and I cannot allow that to happen. I can even relate to how you're feeling to an extent. When I had my first child, we ended up having a miscarriage, and I felt so depressed. Even today, I still think about it. It's why I'm so grateful to have Bluey and Bingo in our lives. I cannot express enough how much I love my children..."

Chili then began to cry, feeling so bad for her past in the miscarriage. Stolas, being the caring person that he is, came up to her and hugged her.

"I'm so sorry for your lost," Stolas gave his condolence, "I know some will believe that I am a coward or a wimp, but I don't see myself as such. I was willing to allow them to torture me just so Blitzo can stay safe. And I also had to endure her abuse for years too just so Via can have a normal life. I am a lot stronger than what people think, and I hope that I can finally move on with my one and true lover Blitzo."

"That's good, Stolas!" Chili said, "You deserve him after everything you've been through. Just remain honest and caring, and I think you'll finally be able to move on from this madness and start a new chapter in your life."

Stolas thanked Chili for her help before she went to go back to her family home. Stolas never thought an Australian dog from a kids show would stop Stella and her goons, but he was glad she was there. And he hoped to follow her words and be with Blitzo.

"Now, I gotta look more into this Bluey show. Maybe me and Via would enjoy it!" Stolas said as he grabbed his phone and went to look up the show.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

However, before anyone can move, they heard a child laugh.

"What was that?" the chihuahua hellhound asked.

"That's probably nothing," Stella shrugged off, "Now come on, I don't have time for-"

Stella was suddenly interrupted when all the lights went out, leaving all five in the dark, with only the eyes of Stolas and Stella emitting a little bit of light.

"WHAT THE HELL?! I'M SCARED OF THE DARK!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed in terror, and the Shar Pei hellhound had to slap him.

"SHUT UP! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE THE STRONGEST ONE OF THE GROUP!" the Shar Pei hellhound yelled at him, causing the watchdog hellhound to whimper.

"Will you knuckleheads knock it off?!" Stella lashed out, "Stolas, did you had something to do with this?!"

"No, I swear!" Stolas denied as he turned on a flashlight, only to see that all five have teleported to some kind of pizzeria.

"Okay, NOW I know he did this! How did we go from a palace to this shit?!" the chihuahua hellhound barked. By now, Stella was convinced that Stolas was responsible for this mess, and went to get her phone to kill Blitzo. However, she couldn't find her phone.

"OH FUCK YOU, STOLAS!" Stella screamed at his face, "YOU BETTER GET US OUT OF HERE, OR ELSE YOUR IMP IS GONE FOR GOOD!"

Stolas gulped, realizing that they needed to escape of else Blitzo will be killed. The five proceeded to try and find a way out, but all of the doors were blocked. They eventually went to the stage area where it looked like some animatronics were onstage.

"Those robots look creepy!" the watchdog hellhound shivered.

"Seriously?" Stella scoffed, "Why did I had to go with poor excuses of hellhounds?"

"It;s not us, it's Dess being the weirdo!" the chihuahua hellhound argued. Just then, however, they heard footsteps coming.

"Who's there?!" Stolas yelled. When the figure came at their vision, they were shocked to find a yellow rabbit standing, though he looked to be badly damaged.

"WHO ARE YOU, AND WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM US?!" Stella screamed. By now, all three hellhounds and especially Dess were in fear of their lives, "STOP THAT WEIRDO!!!"

All three hellhounds went to charge at the animatronic. However, the yellow bunny was far more powerful than he seemed. He held off the tackle attacks and proceeded to choke out both the Shar Pei and chihuahua hellhounds. As Dess tried to fight him off, his neck was snapped, killing him instantly.

"COME ON, STOLASS!!! BE USEFUL FOR ONCE AND STOP THAT ASSHOLE!!!" Stella cried out, and both Stolas and Stella tried to get the bunny off of them, but to no avail. It didn't help that their demonic powers were limited for some reason, and thus they couldn't go feral and rip him to shreds. By the time he let go, both the Shar Pei and chihuahua were dead.

"YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!!! HOW DARE YOU TAKE US HERE JUST TO KILL MY HELLHOUNDS!!! WHAT THE FUCK IS YOUR PROBLEM?!?!" Stella screamed. Suddenly, children's music began to play, and both the owl and swan were now terrified.

"Um, Stella...? Who is playing that?" Stolas asked.

"Fuck should I know?" Stella responded. However, just then, a golden bear spawned out of nowhere and jumpscared them.

"HOLY SHIT!!!" both Stolas and Stella screamed. Then, the golden bear grabbed Stella and pushed her closer. Stella screamed and cried and tried to get out of his grip, but to no avail. He moved her head in his mouth before crushing it, killing Stella.

"STELLA, NO!!!" Stolas cried and tried to get her out of the mouth. When the bear finally released her, her head was crushed into many pieces. Stolas couldn't help but cry. Yes, Stella just tried to have him tortured, but she was still Octavia's mother. And now she was dead.

"w- why? why would you kill them?" Stolas wept. The mask of the yellow bunny came off, and it was revealed to be William Afton.

"I may be a child serial killer, but abusing Stolas is where I draw the line," William simply said, "Now, I don't want you to be there anymore. You are going to help me kill all of these children."

"No! I don't want to!" Stolas resisted, "What about Blitzy? And Via?"

"You need not to worry about them," William assured, "Now you either work with me, or else you'll die just like that bitch and her mutts."

Stolas sighed, having no choice but to accept his new life in the pizzeria, working with William Afton to kill children.

"Good," William nodded in approval, "Now, your first task will be to dispose of their bodies..."

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

However, before the torture can begin, all five were suddenly sucked into a tube and sucked out of the room. Everyone screamed as they were being sucked in fast, not knowing what was happening. During this time, Stella's phone was sucked out of her hands, and Stolas's handcuffs were broken from the excessive pressure. Eventually, all five got out and fell on a cushion. When they got up, they found that they were in some set for a game show.

"WHAT THE FUCK?! WHERE ARE WE, AND WHY ARE WE HERE?!" Stella screamed, angry and confused by this sudden interruption. Soon, the group was approached by a man with a CRT TV on his head.

"Hello, everyone!" the TV man greeted, "My name is Mr. Puzzles, and welcome to my game show, which by the way, I would greatly appreciate it if you all gave it five stars."

"Okay, then 'Mr. Puzzles'..." Stella mocked, "Take us back to hell, put those cuffs back on him, and give me back my phone! We were right in the middle of something!"

"I'm afraid I cannot do that at the moment, Stella," Mr. Puzzles denied, "Instead, how about a wager? We'll play Wheel of Fortune!"

Soon, the set pieces for Wheel of Fortune pop up.

"Stolas and Stella will play on teams, and if Stella wins, then the torture will resume, but if Stolas wins, then the torture must end!"

"Oh hell no! WE'RE NOT DOING THAT SHIT!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he went to charge Stolas. However, he was halted when Mario stopped him.

"HEY STINKY! YOU JUST GOT PRANKED!" Mario exclaimed, and the hellhound got embarrassed when he realized that he just got stinky'd.

"Don't mind Mario, he's just here to ensure that you all do not prematurely hurt Stolas during the game," Mr. Puzzles said, "Now while we wait for the ratings to come in, Stella, you may spin first."

Stella nodded and spun the wheel. However, it landed on "Lose a Turn."

"OH FUCK OFF!" Stella yelled and kicked a chair out of anger. Stolas was next, and it landed on a $800 piece.

"Alright, Stolas, choose a letter, or if you feel confident enough, guess the sentence!" Mr. Puzzles said.

"Are there any Z's?" Stolas asked, but none popped up.

"Seriously? A fucking Z?" the Shar Pei hellhound asked out of annoyance. Mr. Puzzles grew worried when he saw the ratings start to go down.

"Okay, Stella, go again!" Mr. Puzzles nervously laughed. She spun again, but landed on "Lose a Turn" again.

"COME ON! I JUST WANT A TURN FOR ONCE!" Stella grew more frustrated and kicked another chair, this time hitting the chihuahua hellhound.

"HEY! WATCH WHERE YOU'RE KICKING CHAIRS, BITCH!" he yelled as he slapped Stella.

"DON'T YOU EVER PUT YOUR HANDS ON ME, MUTT!" Stella raged as she slapped the chihuahua in the face, leading to a brawl between Stella and the three hellhounds.

"BOYS, STELLA, KNOCK IT OFF!!!" Stolas screamed as he tried to stop them, but to no avail. "You know what? Fuck it! I'm guessing the sentence!"

"Wonderful!" Mr. Puzzles exclaimed, 'Please pick a good answer because the ratings are going lower than ever because your wife and her goons are fighting like psychos and I would like for them to stop before-"

"The sentence is 'When I'm lonely, I become hungry. And when I become hungry, I want to choke on that red **** of yours... **** your ***** and lick all of your *****, before taking out your *****, and **** with more teeth until you're screaming ********** like a FUCKING baby--!'" Stolas replied. And believe it or not, that was the correct answer.

"WHAT?! HOW THE FUCK DID HE GET THAT AS THE SENTENCE?! THAT'S NOT FAIR!" Stella complained.

"Well, maybe if you hadn't spent all of that time fighting, then maybe you could've gotten it right," Mr. Puzzles commented, "Now due to your recklessness, you four will have to live in SMG4's RV for a week."

Mr. Puzzles then opened up a portal for the four to live in the RV. They begged for him to stop, but to no avail. Once the portal closed, Mr. Puzzles turned to Stolas.

"Well, Stolas, since you won the game, you can return home and not be tortured. Thanks for playing!" Mr. Puzzles said as he placed Stolas in a tube and sucked him back to hell. Once Stolas returned back to the palace, he felt like he was about to go dizzy. One minute, he was about to be tortured for Stella's own amusement. And the next, he was sucked into a game show in the SMG4 universe. He was glad that the torture session was halted before things got too bad, but he hoped that Stella and her goons won't have too much of a rough time in SMG4's RV.

"It's gonna be awkward having to explain all of this to Via..." Stolas thought as he started to prepare for Octavia's visit.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Just then, however, a Los Santos Police patrol car suddenly crashed into the room, and two officers got out and pointed guns at the five. It was also around this time the C.R.A.S.H Theme began to play.

"YOU THREE! GET ON YOUR KNEES WITH YOUR HANDS UP!" the speakers in the car demanded. All three hellhounds immediately complied, fearing what would happen if they fail. As the officers went to handcuff the hellhounds, another grabbed Stella.

"You release Stolas right this instant!" he said as he confiscated Stella's phone. Stella wanted resist, but with the cop holding her at gunpoint, she had no choice but to comply and release Stolas from the blessed cuffs. She was soon cuffed as well.

"Hey, that's my paper, man, that's money!" the Shar Pei hellhound complained as the officer confiscated some money in his wallet.

"This is drug money..." the leader of the police, Officer Tenpenny, proclaimed.

"Who the fuck are you jerks? And why are you arresting us?!" Stella demanded.

"We'll explain once you get in the car," Officer Tenpenny said as the other officers squeezed all four in the patrol car, "Now Stolas, take care of yourself, alright?"

Stolas simply nodded, thankful for this unusual, yet helpful rescue. Once everyone was in the car, the patrol car drove in a portal back to Los Santos.

"So, Stella, you thought you could pull a fast one on Stolas to get him hurt for your own amusement?" Officer Tenpenny asked.

"How do you puny humans know about it? And why is it any of your business?" the watchdog hellhound complained.

"Yeah, and you had no right to take my money!" The Shar Pei hellhound added, still pissed about losing his money in the wallet.

"Well, what do we got here?" one of the officers said as he pulled out a gun.

"This is a weapon, Officer Pulaski, that was used to gun down a police officer not ten minutes ago," Officer Tenpenny explained, "Officer Pendelbury. A fine man, I might add. You work fast, niggas!"

"Seriously? You're gonna frame us for the murder of one of your filthy pigs?!" Stella exclaimed.

"Percisely!" Officer Tenpenny confirmed, "Now, when we want you, we'll find you. In the meantime, try not to gun down any more officers of the law."

"You can't leave us here! This is Ballas' Country!" the chihuahua hellhound complained, scared of the things he's heard in that area.

"I thought you said you all didn't gang bang, though?!" Officer Tenpenny concluded before all four were thrown out of the car while it was moving, left to reside in Los Santos until they can be rescued and return to hell.

"Ah shit... here we go again..." Stella thought to herself.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Suddenly, the door opened, and everyone gasped at who came in. There was a yellow man with grey hair and a blue suit. He was none other than Superintendent Chalmers.

"Wow! What do we got here? A BDSM session?" Chalmers asked.

"Uh, yes, this is a BDSM session!" Stella nervously said, "Can you please leave? We're right in the middle of something."

"Oh really?" Chalmers said, feeling like there was more than meets the eye, "Who are you three?"

"None of your business, leave!" the watchdog hellhound barked.

"Yeah, go home, dude!" The chihuahua added.

"Good lord, you three sure have terrible manners!" Chalmers commented, "Are you all in character or something?"

"Yes," The Shar Pei hellhound confirmed, "Now unless you wanna join him, I suggest you get out now!"

"What do you plan on doing with this owl anyway?" Chalmers asked Stella.

"Well, uh... a gangrape! Yeah, that's right! Stolas is into gangrape, and he wanted a bunch of hellhounds to restrain him and gangrape him!" Stella explained.

"Stolas, is that your name?" Chalmers turned to Stolas.

"Yes," Stolas answered.

"Are you really into gangrape?" Chalmers asked.

"Yes, Stella is telling the truth," Stolas quickly said, wanting Chalmers to go away already, "Now please leave."

"Wait, Stella, what is that on your phone?" Chalmers questioned, seeing that Stella had a live feel going on.

"It's nothing!" Stella quickly shut off her phone, "Now GET OUT! NOW!"

"Well, if I wasn't mistaken, it looked like a sniper was pointing a gun on an imp!" Chalmers exclaimed.

"I was playing a game on my phone! It's called 'Aurora Borealis'." Stella tried to explain.

"Aurora Borealis?!" Chalmers questioned, "At this time of year, at this time of day, in this part of hell, localized entirely within your phone?!"

"YES!!!" Stella screamed, at this point losing her patience with Chalmers.

"Stolas, tell me what's going on right now, or else I am taking away funding from the Ars Goetia!" Chalmers demanded. Stolas sighed, deciding that he had no choice but to tell the truth.

"Stella was going to torture me with her hellhound goons. And I had to comply or else she would have my lover Blitzo killed," Stolas explained. Chalmers looked shocked before turning angrily to Stella.

"REALLY?! I thought I was going to take part of a BDSM gangrape scenario!" Chalmers confronted. Stella couldn't believe it. This man really broke into the room and interrogated them all until he discovered the truth with his obsessive investigation?!

"HOW DARE YOU TELL HIM WHAT'S GOING ON, STOLASS!!!" Stella screamed at his face, "YOU THREE ESCORT THAT MUSTARD MAN OUT OF HERE!!!"

The three hellhounds tried to get Chalmers, but he was a lot stronger than they all thought. He was able to dodge their attacks and distract them with steamed ham that he threw outside the window, in which all three hellhounds were stupid enough to jump in the window to get the steamed ham, leading to their deaths.

"MARCOS, SHAY, DESS, NO!!!" Stella cried out, "THAT'S IT!!! I'VE HAD ENOUGH!!! SAY GOODBYE TO YOUR IMP PLAYTHING STOLASS!!!" But before Stella could even turn on her phone, an aurora borealis came and wiped her out in an instant. Stolas couldn't believe the events that inspired just now. How is it that a Simpsons character came out of nowhere and successfully defeated Stella and her goons with steamed ham and an aurora borealis? Chalmers came up to the owl prince and freed him.

"Thank you for your help, sir," Stolas thanked, "What is your name again?"

"Gary Chalmers, but most people call me Superintendent Chalmers," Chalmers said, "Now I know there are a couple of BDSM bars that you can attend to to get your BDSM fix if you're interested."

"No thank you, but I appreciate the offer," Stolas declined.

"Alright then, I'll see you later," Chalmers concluded before leaving. It was also around this time that his daughter Octavia showed up.

"Hey dad, I saw some yellow man in a suit walk out of here. Who was he, and why did it look like some bright lights came in?" Octavia asked.

"It's a long story, my owlet..." Stolas sighed, realizing he now had to explain how her mother and her goons died.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can-”

Stella was suddenly interrupted when the door came crashing down. There came in a man, who pulled out a gun and immediately shot the Shar Pei and chihuahua hellhounds, killing them instantly.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!?!" Stella screamed in shock, not expecting Bryan Mills of Taken to come in and start shooting up the place.

"HOW DARE YOU KILL MY FRIENDS!!!" the watchdog hellhound growled as he ran up to Bryan and disarmed him. However, Bryan pulled out a knife from his back, and used it to slit his throat, killing him.

"I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU DID ALL OF THAT JUST NOW!!!" Stella screamed at Bryan, "NOW THANKS TO YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS, BLITZO IS GOING TO DIE!!!" But before Stella could even grab her phone, Bryan knocked her out.

"Focus..."

Stella could barely focus, however, as he vision was blurry, and could barely make out the figure standing in front of her. Suddenly, she felt two pangs stick in her legs, and she screamed in agony.

"Are you focused yet?!" Bryan called out.

"YES I'M FOCUSED!!! NOW WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!" Stella screamed. Bryan put clamps on the metal bars on her legs before pulling out a photo of Stolas.

"What were you trying to do with Stolas?" Bryan asked. Stella said nothing and spat at his face. Bryan said nothing, but wiped the spit with a tissue before stuffing it in her mouth before turning on electricity with a switch. The electricity went through her legs and spread throughout her body, and Stolas screamed through the muzzle while shaking uncontrollably, feeling so much pain. Once Bryan turned off the electricity, Stella was exhausted.

"You know, we used to outsource this kind of thing," Bryan began, "But what we found was the countries we outsourced to had unreliable power grids. Very Third World. You'd turn on a switch - power wouldn't come on, and then tempers would get short. People would resort to pulling fingernails. Acid drips on bare skin. The whole exercise would become counterproductive. But here, the power's stable. Here, there's a nice even flow. Here, you can flip a switch and the power stays on all day."

Bryan then pulled out the gag and showed Stella the same photo. "What were you trying to do with Stolas?"

"GO KILL YOURSELF, CUNT!!!" Stella screamed as she spat at him again. When Bryan placed the tissue gag back in, Stella looked terrified and begged Bryan to stop, but he flipped the switch again. The electricity was somehow even more powerful, and Stella screamed even louder, beginning to cry from the extreme pain.

"I don't have anymore time to waste!" Bryan exclaimed as he shut off the power again, "You either explain yourself or this switch will stay on until they turn the power off for lack of payment on the bill." Bryan removed the gag, and this time, Stella began to explain.

"I... I was tired of my husband cheating on me and ruining my name... so I hired some snipers and hellhounds to torture them to fulfill my sadism fetish and to finally keep him under control... and it was going to work until you fucking showed up..." Stella said, still exhausted from the electric torture.

"And it looks like torture isn't so fun when you're on the other hand, huh?" Bryan said, "I've been monitoring you for quite some time now, princess. You get off of hurting others for your selfish needs because deep down, you're just a shallow bitch who will never amount to anything. You don't have the intelligence and care that Stolas has, and you rely on others to do your dirty work. Even your own brother hates you..."

"HE DOES NOT HATE ME!!!" Stella screamed, but Bryan slapped her.

"Yes he does," he sternly said, "And after this, I think it's time you got a taste of your own medicine..."

Bryan walked up to the switch, ready to turn it on yet again, and Stella knew what it meant.

"NO!!! DON'T!!!" Stella screamed hysterically, "I'M SORRY, OKAY?!?! I'M SORRY FOR EVERYTHING!!! I'M SORRY FOR HURTING STOLAS, I'M SORRY FOR BEING A BURDEN ON MY OWN FAMILY, AND I'M SORRY FOR BEING A FUCKING SHITTY PERSON TO EVERYONE I'VE MET!!! PLEASE BELIEVE ME!!! PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE!!!!"

Stella then broke down crying. In that moment, she regretted ever being terrible. She wished she could reverse all the pain and suffering she caused on Stolas and others. She wished she could be a better wife, a better mother, and a better person. She didn't deserve this. She didn't deserve any of this.

"I believe you..." Bryan said. Stella smiled. Perhaps he was going to show some mercy?

"But it won't save you..."

Her smiled crashed down in a frown.

And she screamed when the electricity shot back into her body.

And she continued to scream when Bryan left the room, leaving Stella to die alone in the most painful electric torture session ever.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"STELLA, STOP! WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU DOING, MATE?!"

Everyone turned around and were in shock to find an Australian Shepard glaring at them.

"Excuse me, but who the fuck are you? And how did you get in here?!" Stella interrogated.

"None of your business where I came from!" Calypso yelled, "My name is Calypso, and I got word from Australian leakers that you were going to have your husband tortured! I mean, why do you hate him so much?!"

"IT'S BECAUSE STOLAS IS A CHEATER, A WEAK LOSER, AND A PATHETIC EXCUSE OF A MAN ALL AROUND!!!" Stella screamed, frustrated that this Australian dog was trying to take control of the situation, "NOW I SUGGEST YOU LEAVE AND LET US CONTINUE OR ELSE STOLAS'S IMP PLAYTHING WILL DIE BECAUSE OF YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS!!!"

"NEVER!!!" Calypso screamed as she charged at the swan princess and tackled her to the ground.

"HOLY SHIT!!! GET OFF OF HER!!!" The watchdog hellhound yelled as he tried to get Calypso off of her, but to no avail. They both fought each other while everyone else watching in horror, not knowing what will happen.

"GIRLS, STOP IT NOW!!! STELLA, JUST LET ME GO!!! IT'S NOT WORTH IT!!!" Stolas tried to plead, but it was no use. Stella soon got the upperhand and started to punch Calypso.

"OW! STOP!" Calypso yelped as she continued to get beat up by Stella.

"NO! FUCK YOU, BITCH!" Stella yelled as she threw one huge punch at Calypso. Soon, the three hellhounds restrained her and placed another blessed cuff on her before placing her on the wall.

"Let me go!" Calypso demanded as she tried to fight off her cuffs.

"No! Since you wanted to try and stop me, you now have to watch us continue this torture session, you stupid old Australian! And if you continue to resist, then we will throw you in there as well! Do I make myself clear?"

Calypso sighed in defeat. She thought that she could save Stolas, but it turned out she was no match for a swan demoness. Stella then turned and glared at Stolas.

"Stolas, I am done playing these fucking games..." Stella coldly said, "I will not kill your imp, but anymore mistakes, and I won't hesitate to give the signal. Now are you going to take this torture for once?"

"y... yes, mistress..." Stolas whispered, which caused Stella to laugh.

"Wow, you called me mistress! How cute and submissive of you!" Stella cooed, "Now let's not waste anymore time and get this show on the road."

It always seems more quiet in the dark
It always feels so stark
How silence grows under the moon
Constellations gone so soon

Everyone stopped at what was going on. Calypso, in a last ditch effort to save Stolas, began to sung the lullaby "You Will Be Okay", the very song Stolas used to sing to Octavia when she was little and had trouble going to bed.

I used to think that I was bold
I used to think love would be fun
Now all my stories have been told except for one

By that point, the three hellhounds went to sleep, letting Calypso's soothing singing voice calm their nerves.

"NO! STOP SINGING! YOU PUT MY DOGS TO SLEEP!" Stella complained, but it was no use.

As the stars start to align
I hope you take it as a sign
That you'll be okay
Everything will be okay

Unfortunately for Stella, the song was getting to her, as she was starting to get tired.

"No... please stop..." Stella tried to demand, but she ended that sentenced with a yawn.

And if the Seven Rings collapse
Although the day could be my last
You will be okay
When I'm gone you'll be okay

The song was somehow powerful enough to cause Stella to involuntary shut off her phone and then proceed to release Stolas from the handcuffs.

"Here... you need to let this song relax you, Stolass..." Stella tiredly said with a smirk.

And when Creation goes to die
You can find me in the sky
Upon the last day
And you will be okay

By the time Calypso finished singing, Stella had went to sleep. Stolas took this time to release Calypso as well.

"Thank you so much for saving me, Calypso," Stolas thanked, "How did you know my lullaby by memory, if I might ask?"

"Because I also use that lullaby to sing to my students when they need to calm down," Calypso explained, "Your lullaby is really popular in Australia as well as the US, Canada, and the UK."

"That's wonderful to hear," Stolas said, "I'm glad that the song I used to help my daughter go to sleep is popular in your world."

"Yeah, but Stolas, why did you call Stella 'mistress' right before you were about to get tortured?

Stolas stopped and looked ashamed, remembering how he called her such. But he decided to be open and tell Calypso about it.

"Because, Calypso, Stella used to make me call her as such in the few moments where we had to have sex," Stolas explained, "I didn't want to, but I had no choice. And at that moment, I said it out of instinct because she was controlling me the same way she would force me whenever we had sex."

"My goodness... I'm so sorry about that, mate," Calypso shared her condolences as she placed a hand on his shoulder, "You should flee to Australia with me. It's far safer, and I can assure you that you will be loved there."

"Thank you for the offer, but I think I'd rather stay here," Stolas said, "Besides, my true lover Blitzo and my daughter Octavia still need me. With that said, though, I will have Stella and her goons teleported to jail for what they tried to do to me."

Stolas then opened up a portal to a jail cell, where the still sleeping four were sucked in and then it closed.

"Okay, Stolas, here's my phone number if you want to contact me in the future," Calypso said as she handed Stolas her business card before leaving. Stolas felt glad that Calypso was a big part in his rescue. Though she initially lost the battle, she ultimately made a comeback with her singing.

"Now I need to focus on preparing for the full moon," Stolas thought to himself as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"START WHAT?! YOUR MOM?!"

Everyone turned around and gasped at who was standing there. There was the infamous moth pimp Valentino, and he looked pissed.

"Val, uh... what are you do-" Stella was interrupted when Valentino slapped her across the face so hard, she fell. He then grabbed the phone and smashed it.

"HEY!!! DON'T YOU DARE HURT PRINCESS STELLA!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he charged at the moth. However, the moth dodged the charge, and he proceeded to use pink chains to restrain them.

"LET US GO!!!" The Shar Pei hellhound demanded, but Valentino used the chains to hang them up on the ceiling. He, plus Stolas and Stella watched in horror as all three hellhounds slowly chocked to death via hanging by chains, powerless to stop it.

"LET THEM GO!!! PLEASE!!!" Stella begged, but the moth pimp held her down and forced her to watched the hellhounds die from asphyxiation. Once the last hellhound died, Valentino freed Stolas from the cuffs.

"Get out of here while I deal with your crazy wife!" Valentino demanded.

"Okay, but please don't kill her!" Stolas begged before leaving. Once Stolas was out of the room, Valentino forced Stella onto the bed and had her chained up on all fours on the bedpost.

"Val, w- why are you doing this...?" Stella asked, shaking and terrified.

"Of all my years of knowing you, Stella, I never thought you would stoop as low as to have your husband be tortured at the hands of those pathetic excuses of hellhounds..." Valentino sneered as he got uncomfortably close to Stella.

"I'll do whatever you want... please don't hurt me..." Stella cried as tears started coming out. Valentino then used his claws to shred off her dress and eventually her panties and bra. "NO!!! DON'T DO WHAT I THINK YOU'RE ABOUT TO DO!!!"

"No... you wanna hurt others... I think it's time you learn how it feels to be hurt..." Valentino glared as he whipped out his cock. Without warning, Valentino forced his penis right into Stella, causing her pussy to bleed.

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!! IT FUCKING HUUUUUUUUUUURTS!!! PULL OUT, PLEASE, FUCKING PULL OUT!!!" Stella screamed, but it was no use. Valentino then violently thrusted in and out of Stella while occasionally slapping her.

"You like this, bitch?! You like it rough?!" Valentino asked as he continue to violently thrust into her.

"NO!!! YOU'RE GONNA FUCKING DESTROY MY PUSSY!!! PLEASE STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!!!" Stella bawled like a baby powerless to stop this violent rape.

"You better hold on, bitch, cause I'm cumming!" Valentino warned. Before Stella knew it, so much cum began to spray in her pussy. She screamed as she felt her womb be violently filled by Val's throbbing cock and cum. After almost a minute of cumming inside, Valentino stopped and violently thrusted out of her. Stella was a mess. The once noble swan princess was now injured and raped.

"Let this be a lesson... don't fuck with my associates, or else you will pay..." Valentino coldly sneered with absolute hate before releasing her from the chains and then leaving. When Stolas returned, he gasped and covered his hand at such a sight.

"Stella..." Stolas said before he went up to her and gave her a hug. Stella hugged him back and sobbed on his shoulders. Stolas just simply held her while he shushed her and tried to calm her down. Though Stella had tried to had Stolas hurt just now, she did not deserved to be violated to this extent. After all, everyone should've known by now that Valentino was not the type to be all gentle and loving when it came to sex.

"i- i'm sorry, stolas..." Stella wept, "i- i'm s- sorry for trying to have you tortured..."

"I know, Stella... I know..." Stolas whispered into her ear as he continued to hug her, not caring if his clothes were getting messy from the blood and cum. They stayed like that for a few minutes before they finally broke out of the hug.

"Stella, I need to take you to the bath tub to clean you up and heal your injuries. Can you please try and get up?" Stolas asked. Try as she might, she couldn't get up no matter how hard she tried, so Stolas decided to carry her to the bath tub to carefully clean her. While cleaning, Stolas used various healing spells to remove the bruising on her face and the tear in her vagina. By the time she was done cleaning herself, Stella's physical appearance was fully healed. But her mental state was a whole different story.

"I just don't understand... why would Valentino do that..." Stella said as she began to softly cry.

"Stella, I am so, so sorry that you had to go through that," Stolas began, "What you tried to do to me was wrong, but in no way did you deserve to be treated like this. You are Octavia's mother, and though you aren't into her life as much as I am, I can still tell that you are trying despite what you think of me. I hope you take this as a lesson that when you try and hurt others, you will be hurt back just as hard. That is called karma, and your actions can determine how you are treated as well. Though it could take a while before I can fully forgive you for this, I do wish you improve yourself going forward."

Stella didn't say anything, but got out of the bath tub and dried herself. She then put on a spare dress before leaving the palace without word. Stolas sighed, wishing that none of this had ever happened. He didn't want to victim blame Stella for the rape she had endured, but even he couldn't deny that things would've been very different had she not went through this plan to begin with. He had no idea how Valentino found out about Stella's plan either, and that is something he would have to ask Val later. For now, he needed to get rid of the hellhounds still hanging on the ceiling.

"Pringles!" Stolas called his favorite butler, "Please call some cleaners to dispose of the hellhounds hanging on the ceiling." Pringles looked shocked to see the hellhounds, but didn't question how they got there.

"Yes, your highness," Pringles bowed before going to call up the cleaners.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"YOU AIN'T STARTIN' SHIT, BITCH!!!"

Everyone turned to the direction at who spoke, and they were in shock at who it was. There stood the adult star Angel Dust, and next to him was the avian cat demon Husk.

"WE OVERHEARD YA THREATEN STOLAS AND MAKE HIM GO THROUGH THIS TORTURE BULLSHIT!!! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU BITCH?!" Angel Dust screamed.

"You four need to release Stolas right now! This will not happen!" Husk demanded. However, Stella and the hellhounds simply laughed at them.

"Seriously?" Stella laughed, "You think a porn star and some cat freak will stop me? As if! You three take them away so we can continue this!"

However, when the three hellhounds approached them, Husk hissed at them before tackling the chihuahua hellhound and attacking him.

"GET OFF OF SHAY!!!" The Shar Pei screamed as he and the watchdog hellhound tried to get Husk off of him, but then Angel used his multiple hands to grab them and slam them very hard, breaking some of their bones.

"OW!!! MY BACK!!!" The Shar Pai hellhound yelped in pain.

"I CANNOT BELIEVE A GAY SPIDER SLAMMED ME!!!" the watchdog hellhound yelled. Stella, in shock, grabbed her phone.

"FOR HURTING MY HELLHOUNDS, BLITZO WILL NOW BE KILLED!!!" Stella declared. But just then, a feral owl demon grabbed the phone and destroyed it. As it turned out, while Stella was distracted, Angel Dust released Stolas from his handcuffs, and at this point, he was so done.

"I HAVE HAD IT WITH YOUR SHENANIGANS!!!" the feral Stolas screamed, "YOU'VE BEEN DOING THIS SHIT TO ME FOR YEARS, AND AT THIS POINT, I AM SO FUCKING DONE BEING YOUR PLAY TOY!!! LEAVE NOW, AND TAKE THOSE DISGUSTING MUTTS WITH YOU!!! NOT UNLESS I SHRED YOUR PATHETIC ASS, WHICH I SHOULD'VE DONE YEARS AGO!!!"

Stella was in complete shock of what Stolas said, but knowing who he was with his feral form, she was not about to try and argue. She quickly grabbed all three of the injured hellhounds and ran off. Once Stella and her goons were gone, Stolas returned to his normal form and looked at the two.

"Thank you so much for your help," Stolas thanked, "I still cannot believe Stella tried to have me tortured like that..."

"Yeah, we saw an alternative fanfic where no one helped you and they tortured you several times, and seeing that rape tag in the story as well, we couldn't take it anymore!" Angel Dust explained.

"Yeah, why you didn't kick her ass on the curb beforehand is beyond us!" Husk added.

"Well, I didn't want to hurt her because whether I like it or not, she is still Via's mother, and I didn't want her to hate me because she found out I killed her or something," Stolas explained.

"That's no excuse!" Husk exclaimed, "As someone who's been controlled and dealt with shitty abuse at the hands of that prick Alastor, I cannot just stand back and watch powerful people allow themselves to be hurt to that extent! Stella deserves all the pain in the world, and I-"

"Husk, stop! You're getting yourself too worked up!" Angel Dust halted, "Stolas, it makes sense as to why you allowed them to do that, even if it would hurt you. You were trying to protect Blitzo, and if anything, what you did was selfless, and that is far more powerful than anything. We will ensure that Stella will never see you again, and we hope that things work well with Blitzo."

With that, they all parted away. Stolas was grateful for what Angel Dust and Husk did to save him. Though he was confused about the fanfic part, he hoped there actually didn't exist an alternative universe where he was hurt.

"Now I'm gonna need to work on sending Stella and her goons a restraining order," Stolas said as he went on the computer to work on it.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

"You, are an idiot! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha, ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

Stella looked back on her phone, and looked in confusion to see the "You are an idiot!" video play.

"What the hell? What happened to the feed?" Stella said as she tried to get to where she was looking for, but to no avail.

"Really? That's the best you got? You installed a virus on your own phone?" Stolas said as he raised an eyebrow.

"No! I was supposed to show... God damn it, will you help me?" Stella said as she handed the phone to one of the hellhounds.

"Stella, it cannot be shut off unless you factory reset your phone," the Shar Pei hellhound explained.

"NO FAIR!!! IT'S RUINING EVERYTHING!!!" Stella whined as she kicked a table, causing Stolas to glare.

"Stella, I have no time for your games. Leave now, or else I will 'assist' you all in leaving!" Stolas demanded.

"Can I help out too?"

Everyone turned around to see Vox standing.

"Vox? What in the world are you doing here?" Stolas asked.

"Oh, I heard what Stella was going to do, and no way is she going to win this one!" Vox explained, "So I installed the trojan in your phone to render it useless unless you have it factory resetted, and I also sent a fake signal to call off the snipers and relieve them of their duties with no pay. They were pretty pissed at that, but thankfully they left."

"WHAT?! ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS RIGHT NOW?!" Stella screamed at Vox's face, "YOU KNOW WHAT?! CHANGE OF PLANS!!! WE'RE TORTURING VOX FOR RUINING THIS MOMENT!!!"

All three hellhounds went to charge at Vox, but that turned out to be a terrible idea, as Vox used his electricity to shock them to death.

"VOX, WATCH OUT FOR THE LIGHTS!!!" Stolas yelled, concerned about the lights flickering from the electric shocks.

"YOU'RE MORE CONCERNED ABOUT SOME FUCKING LIGHTS THAN MY FRIENDS?!?! HOW DARE YOU!!!" Stella screamed as she went to slap Stolas in the face. However, she was stopped when Vox shocked her too.

"VOX, NO!!! DON'T KILL HER!!!" Stolas screamed in terror as he tried to stop Vox, but to no avail. By the time Vox finally stopped shocking them, all four were dead.

"There! Is that better?" Vox asked. However, Stolas slapped him in the face.

"NO IT'S NOT BETTER YOU FOOL!!!" Stolas screamed, "YES STELLA WANTED TO HAVE ME TORTURED IN A RATHER STUPID WAY, BUT IN NO WAY DID YOU NEEDED TO KILL HER!!! WHAT IS OCTAVIA GOING TO THINK?!?! HUH?!?! WHAT IS SHE GOING TO THINK WHEN SHE FINDS OUT THAT YOU SHOCKED HER TO DEATH YOU FUCKING TVHEAD?!?!"

By now, Stolas was crying. This isn't how he wanted this night to go. He wished that Vox hadn't went too far with his treatment towards her. Maybe not so much for the hellhounds, but still...

"Sorry, not sorry," Vox unapologetically said, "Have a nice night, prince!"

Vox then left, leaving Stolas to wept on Stella's body.

"I'm sorry, Stella..." Stolas cried, "I wished things didn't end like this..."

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"Wow! Get a look at these idiots, everyone!"

Everyone turned around and gasped at what they saw. There stood Velvette, the backbones of the vees, and she was livestreaming the whole ordeal on her phone.

"As you can see, Stella the Swan Whore right here decided it would be a genius idea to have her husband tortured while threatening to kill his imp lover. I mean, why the fuck do you care who he loves? You're divorcing, no?"

"I- IT'S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!" Stella said as she covered her face, embarrassed from being livestreamed and exposed.

"And you three!" Velvette turned to the hellhounds, "Your clothes are so tacky and ridiculous! Like, why do you have to look like ghetto thugs? And your tank top looks so stupid!"

"DON'T YOU TALK ABOUT MY TANK TOP!!! I LIKE TANK TOPS!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he then proceeded to charge at Velvette. But he regretted it immediately when she changed his clothing to a pink tutu. Stolas and even Stella and her other two goons couldn't help but laugh at such a sight.

"DON'T LAUGH AT ME!!! SHE JUST EMASCULATED ME!!!" the watchdog hellhound whimpered. Soon, the other two hellhounds got their clothes changed in other embarrassing girly clothing.

"HEY!!! I DON'T WANNA WEAR THIS STUPID UNICORN SHIRT!!!" The Shar Pei hellhound whined.

"AND I DON'T WANNA WEAR THIS GAY DRESS!!! I LOOK LIKE STOLAS IF HE WAS EVEN MORE OF A FEMBOY!!!" the chihuahua complained.

"I don't care! You doggies run along now!" Velvette pointed to the door, and recorded the hellhounds running away, being completely embarrassed on the stream.

"As funny as that was, I'll admit, you had no business embarrassing them like this!" Stella called out as she grabbed her phone, "Now because of your reckless actions, Stolas's imp will pay the price!"

Haha. You've got it twisted
I'm not the one who needs a new attitude

Maybe you missed it, but I'm that #Bitch and I will do
Nothin' less than what I please (Woo!)
I'm the backbone of the Vees

As Velvette sang, Stella's phone was taken and then destroyed by the power of her singing. The singing also freed Stolas from the blessed cuffs.

"You're kidding me, YOU'RE ACTUALLY FUCKING KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW!!!" Stella screamed.

Oops! Did I strike a nerve?
'Cause when I brought out the angel's head
Couldn't help but observe
That your wrinkled face was turning red

And why are you avoidin' war?
That's what the guns you sell are for
Thanks to my bein' respectless
One thing I'm startin' to suspect is
You know why this angel's headless
Do you have a disclosure?

By that point, both Velvette and Stolas were dancing, pissing off Stella with their boldness and abrasive attitude. Though Stolas was a gay man, he couldn't help but feel confident and empowered to be dancing alongside her. And of course, all of this was captured on the live stream.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?! I'M DONE WITH THIS SHIT!!! YOU'VE EMBARRASSED MY NAME ONLINE, AND NOW I'LL NEVER RECOVER!!! GOODBYE, CRUEL WORLD!!!" Stella screamed as she pulled out a gun and shot herself in the head, killing herself.

"STELLA, NO!!!" Stolas cried out as he ran to her body, completely shocked that Stella would take her own life from being embarrassed and ridiculed online.

"Well, that's what she gets for being a bitch!" Velvette shrugged, "Anyway, that's all for now, everyone! Thanks for coming to watch this stream, and I hope some of your screen recorded it! This needs to be preserved at all costs!"

With that, Velvette ended the live stream and left the room, not even acknowledging Stolas. Stolas couldn't help but cry. Yes, Stella tried to torture him just now with her goons, and they deserve to be confronted and stopped. However, he didn't wanted Stella to take her own life out of shame. Just then, Octavia came barging in the room and gasped at the sight of her mother's body.

"MOM!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Octavia screamed and cried as she rushed towards her mother's corpse and hugged her tightly, crying hysterically. Stolas couldn't do anything to stop the now weeping owlet. All he could was rub her back as she continued to sob on her mother's shoulders, not caring if the blood was getting on her.

"I'm sorry, my owlet... I'm so sorry that you had to watch it..." Stolas wept as he continued to console his daughter. And as they continued to cry, Stolas was unsure how they were going to recover from such trauma.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Just then, however, a portal was opened, and two agents came in and held everyone at gun point.

"STOP RIGHT THERE!!! YOU ALL ARE COMING WITH US!!!" one of the agents said, and soon, everyone was placed in a restraint and taken into the portal.

"HEY!!! LET US GO!!!" Stella screamed.

"YEAH, WE WERE IN THE MIDDLE OF SOMETHING!!!" the watchdog hellhound added, but both agents ignored their complained and placed them in an interrogation room.

"Feeling comfy?" one agent asked, and the Shar Pei hellhound spat at her.

"HOW DARE YOU TAKE US TO THIS FUCKING ROOM!!!" Stella screamed, "DID STOLAS GET YOU GUYS TO STOP US?! CAUSE IF HE DID..."

"Stella, this is literally the first time I've met those people!" Stolas denied.

"Lie! Stolas, remember when you spooked us and took those imps away from us?" one of the agents asked the owl, in which he shook in fear.

"Wait, YOU ACTUALLY DID MET THEM?!" the chihuahua exclaimed.

"WOW, STOLASS!!! YOU REALLY WERE TRYING TO EXPOSE ALL OF HELL, WEREN'T YOU?!?!" Stella screamed at her husband.

"Okay, to be fair, most don't believe the word of the demon-obsessed lunatics. They are seen as 'kooks'. Ha! Kooks! Such a silly word!" Stolas joked, but then he stopped with one of the agents slapped him.

"DON'T CALL US KOOKS JERK!!!" the agent yelled before turning to Stella, "AND WHY DID YOU HAD THOSE HELLHOUNDS SURROUNDING HIM WHILE IN HANDCUFFS?!"

"None of your goddamn business!" Stella yelled, and then was shocked. "HEY! DON'T SHOCK ME!"

"SHOCK HER AGAIN, AND WE'RE KILLING EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU MOTHERFUCKERS!!!" the watchdog hellhound growled.

"ENOUGH!!! E-FUCKING-NOUGH!!!" the agent screamed out of pure insanity, "STELLA, YOU BETTER TELL US RIGHT NOW OR ELSE WE WILL SHOCK ALL OF YOU!!!"

Stella sighed before revealing the truth.

"I was going to have Stolas tortured by the hellhounds for my own amusement, as well as keeping him in check by threatening his imp. And it was going SO WELL before you two came in and ruined everything!" Stella explained. Both agents smirked.

"Wow, Stella! You really are a petty bitch, huh?" one of the agents asked, "I'm sure there are plenty of simps out there who will love you regardless and defend your every action, even though you're clearly in the wrong! In fact, we should call you 'The Baddest Bitch in All of Hell'! You ought to be in the Bad Girls Club!"

"Bad Girls Club, eh?" the Shar Pei hellhound asked, "Man, it's really hot watching all of these women fight."

"I'M RIGHT HERE, IDIOT!!!" Stella screamed.

"Whatever," one of the agents shrugged, "Stolas, since you've been through a lot today, we're letting you go, but we will be keeping your wife and her goons here for experimentation. You better not try and stop us, or else we will expose your secret for good!"

They then played footage of their previous encounter to show that they weren't messing around. Stolas was concerned. He didn't want Stella to be held hostage, but had no choice. If they wanted to keep Hell unexposed, then he had to let them keep them.

"Alright, you can keep her," Stolas reluctantly agreed, "But please ensure that they are taken care of. And allow me and my daughter to occasionally visit her."

"Absolutely, we'll work it out in due time," one of the agents assured, "Bye, Stolas!"

With that, Stolas was transported back to hell. He couldn't believe what had happened. One minute, he was about to be tortured, and the next, they had another run-in with D.H.O.R.K.S. He hoped they follow their word in taking care of Stella and the hellhounds, because despite everything, he still didn't want her to be hurt.

"I better get going. Hopefully I can work out a deal to get them out as soon as possible," Stolas thought to himself as he began to come up with a plan to keep Stella safe.

Chapter Text

It was a beautiful day at Go!Animate City, and the Johnson family were heading to a new restaurant to eat dinner there.

"Alright, gang, we're going to David's Shaky Shack for dinner," Catherine explained.

"Wow! I heard they had good burgers!" Brian said.

"Yeah, and I can't wait to have some milkshakes!" Emma added.

"Now Dave, I ask that you behave while we're here, or else you'll be in trouble," Catherine warned.

"Okay, Catherine. I promise to be on my best behavior," Dave assured. They enter and are then seated.

"Welcome to David's Shaky Shack. I'm Walter, and I am your waiter. What drinks are we starting with?"

"I'll go with water," Catherine said.

"I'll have a strawberry banana milkshake," Brian said.

"I'll go with a tropical milkshake," Emma said.

"I'll go with a Coke," Dave said.

"Alright, I'll get your drinks while you decide on what to eat," Walter said as he went to get the drinks. Once the drinks were passed out, the family was ready to order.

"I'll go with a steak with rice and broccoli," Catherine said.

"I'll have a bacon cheeseburger with fries," Brian said.

"I'll have some salmon with rice," Emma said.

"And I'll have chicken nuggets," Dave said.

"I'm sorry, sir, but chicken nuggets are on the kids menu, and only those 12 and under can order from it," Walter apologetically said, "Please order something else.

"What?! Are you kidding me?!" Dave said in denial, "Why can't I have the chicken nuggets?!"

"Dave, the waiter just said that it's on the kids menu, and anyone 13 and older can't order anything from the kids menu," Catherine explained, "You can order other stuff on the adult menu. There's plenty of options."

"NO!!! THAT'S NOT FAIR!!!" Dave screamed, "THIS IS AMERICA, AND MY GRANDPARENTS DIDN'T SERVE MY COUNTRY AND FOUGHT IN WORLD WAR 2 FOR ME TO NOT BE ABLE TO EAT CHICKEN NUGGETS AT DAVID'S SHAKY SHACK!!! NOW ORDER ME SOME CHICKEN NUGGETS RIGHT NOW!!!"

"Sir, please!" Walter begged, "Just order something else from the adult menu!"

However, Brian and Emma knew what was about to happen. And next thing they knew, Dave began crying while flexing his muscles.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! I WANT CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! LET ME HAVE CHICKEN NUGGETS, YOU ENTITLED KAREN!!!" Dave screamed and cried.

"Dave, stop it!" Catherine chastised, "You are not getting chicken nuggets and that's final! Now stop throwing a tantrum and pick something from the adult menu!"

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! SIR, JUST ORDER ME CHICKEN NUGGETS!!!" Dave demanded.

"Sir, if I do that, then I'll get fired!" Walter tried to reason, "You see, my son got into a bad accident while playing soccer, and has a broken leg. Because of the medical bills, I had to take this job to earn extra money to help pay for those bills, and if I lose it, then he'll never heal!"

"FUCK YOU, AND FUCK YOUR SON!!!" Dave screamed, showing no consideration for the waiter and his son, "GIVE ME CHICKEN NUGGETS RIGHT NOW OR I WILL NEVER STOP THROWING A TEMPER TANTRUM!!!"

"David William Johnson! That was not very nice!" Catherine berated, "Now apologize to the waiter right now!"

"YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! I'M SO FUCKING DONE!!!" Dave screamed before running out of the restaurant crying.

"Ugh, where is he going now?" Catherine grunted, not know where the heck Dave was going.

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Just then, however, the door was busted down as Dave barged in, screaming and crying.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!! WAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!" Dave screamed and cried in his annoying tantrum-throwing voice, leaving all five confused at such an act.

"Um, why is there a muscular man throwing a tantrum like a five-year-old?" the Shar Pei hellhound asked.

"Yeah! He should be ashamed of himself!" the chihuahua added.

"Sir, stop throwing a tantrum like a fucking baby and get out of here right now!" Stella demanded, "We're right in the middle of something!"

"NO!!! I WILL NOT STOP BECAUSE ALL OF THESE ENTITLED KARENS AT DAVID'S SHAKY SHACK WILL NOT LET ME ORDER CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! SO THEREFORE, I WILL THROW THIS TEMPER TANTRUM TO SHOW EVERYONE THAT I AM NOT PLAYING!!!"

Dave then cried hysterically and screamed like a madman, destroying everything in the room in the process. All three hellhounds tried to stop him, but they were no match for Dave's excessive muscle flexing and strength. He eventually knocked them all out before continuing to scream.

"HELP!!! HELP!!! THESE ENTITLED MALE DOG KARENS TRIED TO ASSAULT ME, AND THIS SWAN KAREN IS NOT LETTING ME HAVE CHICKEN NUGGETS!!! YOU'RE WORSE THAN CATHERINE!!!" Dave screamed.

"THIS HAS GONE WAY TOO FAR!!!" Stella exclaimed, "BECAUSE OF YOUR CHILDISH ANTICS, BLITZO WILL NOW DIE!!!"

However, before Stella can even get her phone, Dave punches her in the face before smashing her phone.

"FUCK YOU, YOU ENTITLED KAREN!!!" Dave screamed as he choked Stella. By now, Stolas was in absolute shock at what he was seeing. This grown man was not only throwing a tantrum over something as petty as chicken nuggets, but he knocked out the hellhounds and was now going to choke Stella to death.

"SIR, PLEASE STOP!!!" Stolas begged, "LET MY WIFE GO AND RELEASE ME FROM THOSE CUFFS, AND I'LL GET YOU AS MANY CHICKEN NUGGETS AS YOU WANT!!! I PROMISE!!!"

Thankfully, it worked, as Dave stopped choking Stella and released Stolas from the handcuffs. Stolas then spawned a plate of chicken nuggets.

"Thank you so much, sir!" Dave said as he ate a piece of chicken nuggets, "What's your name, anyway? I'm Dave."

"I'm Prince Stolas," Stolas greeted.

"YOU!!!" Stella yelled as she got up, still shook from being choked, "THAT IS NO WAY TO TREAT A GOETIAN PRINCESS!!! AND AS FOR YOU, STOLASS, I'M NOT LEAVING UNTIL I HURT YOU SOMEWHAT!!!"

Stella then went to slap Stolas, but was stopped when Dave punched her in the stomach, causing her to throw up.

"LEAVE MY NEW FRIEND ALONE, YOU ENTITLED KAREN!!!" Dave yelled, and Stella ran out of the room in fear. Once Stella was gone, Stolas opened up portals to return the hellhounds back to their respective homes.

"Well, Dave, your childish tantrums certainly helped me get out of the torture my wife was about to inflict on me," Stolas commented.

"Yeah, I was mad at Catherine and the entitled male waiter Karen for not letting me get chicken nuggets at David's Shaky Shack, and I ended up taking my frustrations on them," Dave explained, "Well, until Catherine inevitably finds me, can we please watch Barney and Friends to kill time?"

"Of course, Dave!" Stolas agreed, "I figured it would be a nice way to say thanks for saving me."

Stolas then led Dave to the living room and put on Barney and Friends for him to watch while he ate his chicken nuggets. Dave was glad that he got his way for once, while Stolas was just thankful he was spared from a pretty brutal torture session.

"I sure hope we can do more meet ups like this," Dave thought to himself.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"MOM, STOP!!! WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU DOING?!"

Everyone turned around, and Stella gasped at who she saw. There stood a 13 year old swan boy by the name of Adrian. Yeah, that's right. Stella's own son somehow came out of nowhere and stood in shock and anger at what he was seeing. Stolas was also surprised, because as far as he knew, he didn't had a son.

"Adrian, my little dove..." Stella said, not sure what to feel at this moment, "How did you get in here?"

"DON'T CALL ME YOUR LITTLE DOVE!!!" Adrian screamed, "I OVERHEARD YOU TALKING ABOUT HURTING STOLAS, AND I CAN'T LET YOU DO THAT!!! THIS IS SO NOT LIKE YOU!!! WHY WOULD YOU EVEN DO THIS?!?!"

Stella was in absolute shock at what Adrian said. Apparently, he heard everything from before, and was adamant on stopping her. By now, though, the hellhounds were getting impatient, but Stella signaled them to stop while she dealt with her son.

"Adrian, listen to me very carefully," Stella began, "This man has been hurting me for years. He has cheated on me with an imp, embarrassed my name, and is a disgrace to this family! Because of this, I need to serve him some karma for his recklessness. Now please, leave. You don't need to be a witness to this."

"NO, MOM!!! EVEN IF STOLAS HURT YOU, HE DOES NOT DESERVE TO GET BEAT UP!!!" Adrian argued, "I WILL NOT LEAVE UNTIL YOU LET HIM GO!!!"

"Alright, I've had enough of you, brat!" the watchdog hellhound yelled as he grabbed Adrian by the hand and tried to escort him out. When Adrian used his talons to scratch his arm, the watchdog hellhound punched him in return.

"OW!!!" Adrian screamed. That's when Stella snapped and went into feral mode. No one was allowed to hurt her son.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE PUNCH MY SON!!!" Stella growled as she tore the watchdog hellhound to pieces. The other two hellhounds and Stolas stood in horror at what they were witnessing. Stella may not go into feral mode as much, but when she did, it was a disturbing site. By the time she returned to her normal self, the watchdog hellhound was shredded beyond recognition.

"Um... Stella... a- are you okay...?" the Shar Pei hellhound nervously asked.

"YOU TWO GET THE FUCK OUT RIGHT NOW!!!" Stella screamed, and both hellhounds ran out of fear of being killed too. Stella then went up to Stolas and freed him from the handcuffs.

"You're lucky my son spared you from this torture," Stella sternly said, "Now I suggest you fuck off as well!"

Stolas nodded before quickly leaving too. Stella then turned back to her son, and her heart broke at what she saw. Adrian was crying, and he had a black eye on his face from the punch.

"Oh, my poor baby..." Stella sympathetically said as she hugged her son, which he accepted. Both cried in tears from what just transpired. Adrian felt hurt, and Stella was beginning to regret trying to do this.

"i- i'm sorry, mom..." Adrian wept.

"No, Adrian, you have nothing to be sorry for..." Stella said as she cried, "He had no right to punch you..."

They both continued to hug each other before Stella got up and carried Adrian to the spell room to use healing spells to heal his black eye. Once Adrian was fully healed, they sat in silence.

"I'm sorry, Adrian," Stella began, "I'm sorry that you had to bear witness to all of that. I was just so mad at Stolas for what he did, and I thought that by having some hellhounds beat him up, then I can finally control him. But now... I just don't want that anymore. It was not the right way to do it, and my reputation would've gone down so bad if I were exposed. You don't have to forgive me Adrian, but I just wanted to let you know that I regret doing this at all."

"Mom, is that man Stolas my dad?" Adrian asked.

"No, Adrian," Stella denied, "He is not your dad. I wanted a son, and I decided to link up with another male swan donor to help me make one. I never told Stolas about this because it was clear he cared more about your half older sister Octavia more, and he didn't want anymore kids. That's why I am so happy whenever I'm with you compared to anything else. In a way, Adrian, you were the only thing that kept me going in this failure of a marriage, and I thank you for that."

Adrian felt glad to hear about how much of an impact he had on his mother's life, especially in helping her during her marriage with Stolas. Stella then helped Adrian up and into the car.

"Say, it's getting late," Stella said, "How about we head back to uncle Andy's palace and have a movie night? That should clear our minds from what happened."

"Yeah, mom, we should put on an action movie! Those are my favorite!" Adrian exclaimed as the car drove off the property.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Suddenly, the door was broken down, and in came a obese balding man by the name of Andrew Ditch, who was carrying his tablet and his teddy bear.

"Stella, I am feeling very depressed because you want to hurt and abuse Stella through your own gain," Andrew used the ACR downloaded on his tablet to speak to Stella, "What you are doing is psychological abuse and you need to be arrested and sued and reported on by Stolas."

"Ugh, seriously?" Stella said in disgust, "I heard about you, and I hate your diaper fetish and pretending to have autism! Now please leave, because we're right in the middle of something, and I don't think you want Blitzo to die because of your own reckless actions, do you?"

"Can you let me express my feelings? I am feeling very depressed because of what you are doing," Andrew explained.

"No one gives a shit, fatass!" the watchdog hellhound exclaimed, "Now get out before we make you get out!"

"I DON'T WANT TO BE ABUSED ANYMORE BY YOU CUNTS!!!" Andrew screamed as he handbanged on the wall. By now, everyone was confused on how to get Andy out of here.

"Hold on, let me try something," the chihuahua said as he got a guitar and started to play on it.

"OW, STOP!!! YOU'RE HURTING MY EARS!!!" Andrew cried and screamed as he grabbed a pole and started to smash things in the room with it.

"SIR, STOP!!!" Stolas yelled, "YOU'RE MAKING THINGS WORSE!!!"

But Andrew won't stop. He used the pole to smash Stella's phone, causing the Shar Pei hellhound to shove him away.

"OW, YOU'VE ABUSED ME!!!" Andrew cried and screamed as he grabbed his very used diaper and threw it on Stella's face. Unfortunately, her face landed on the very dirty inside of the diaper, and she screamed in terror.

"OH MY FUCKING GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!! YOU GOT YOUR SHIT ALL OVER MY FACE!!!" Stella screamed in absolute terror and agony. The three hellhounds wretched and the chihuahua even vomited from the smell. While they were distracted from the disgusting display, Andrew freed Stolas from the cuffs.

"Thank you, sir, even though what you did was pretty disgusting," Stella said in embarrassment.

"OH NO!!! HOW DARE YOU FREE STOLAS!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he punched Andrew in the face.

"OW!!! I DON'T WANT TO BE ABUSED ANYMORE!!!" Andrew cried as he headbanged some more. Stolas at this point was done, and he turned into his feral mode and eviscerated all three hellhounds. By this point, Stella finally got the dirty diaper off of her, but her face was still covered in filth.

"I AM SO DONE WITH YOU, STOLASS!!!" Stella screamed, "AND FUCK YOU ANDY FOR THROWING YOUR SHITTY DIAPER IN MY FACE!!!"

"HOW ABOUT I GO GET HIT BY A CAR, ABUSER?!?!" Andrew threatened, and he then ran out the palace and onto the road.

"I WANNA GET HIT!!! HIT ME!!!" Andrew demanded as a car came passing by, but Stolas stopped them.

"Sir, please don't!" Stolas cautioned, "I get that what Stella did was wrong, but you don't need to hurt yourself anymore."

"BUT THEY CALLED ME A FAKE!!!" Andrew whined, "THEY'RE EVEN WORSE THAN MY DAD AND JOE!!!"

"Shhhhhhhhh, it's okay, darling..." Stolas comforted the crying manbaby, "They're not going to hurt me or you anymore. I promise."

Andrew eventually calmed down and hugged Stolas. Stolas then took Andrew in to change into new clothes and help clean up the mess in the room.

"Hey Andrew, if you don't mind me asking, how did you get here exactly?" Stolas asked.

"Well, I saw the Helluva Boss show, and I thought it was really cool," Andrew explained, "But I was able to get recordings of Stella planning her abuse towards you, and being an abuse victim myself, I cannot let that happen. It didn't help that she even sided with Officer Bentley on him arresting me and abusing me because I wanted to use my oil diffusor for coping and relaxing."

Stolas listened with interest. He didn't knew their lives were being recording for humans to watch for entertainment. He also wasn't sure about the oil diffusor incident, but decided not to question it, as Andrew already was a strange man.

"Well, I appreciate your help," Stolas thanked, "But I think that you need to return back to Earth. Hell is too terrible of a place for a man like you. But don't worry, Andrew, as I'll use my connections to help you get the proper help you need."

Stolas then opened a portal and Andrew went in and went back to his home. Once the portal closed, Stolas sighed from all the intense events that happened this evening. But despite the hardships, he was glad that he got out in one piece.

"Now I gotta prepare for Octavia's visit and try to clear my mind from all of the insanity," Stolas thought to himself as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"Hey Dhar Mann fans!"

Everyone turned around and were surprised to see Dhar Mann standing.

"No way! It's Dhar Mann!" The Shar Pei hellhound recognized.

"OH FUCK NO!!! THIS GUY DOESN'T PAY HIS ACTORS SHIT, AND HIS VIDEOS SUCK!!! NOT TO MENTION HE'S A FRAUD!!!" the watchdog hellhound chastised.

"Excuse me, m'am, but I don't think you should follow through with hurting Stolas. After all, you don't know what somebody's going through," Dhar Mann explained.

"I don't care about your stupid life lessons!" Stella pouted as she crossed her arms, "Now I suggest you leave or else Stolas's imp is dead!"

"Stella, you three, please listen. You see..."

Stolas has been through enough as it is. He grew up much of his life being neglected by his father and not knowing much of his parents. Because of this, he had to be raised by imp butlers. And when he married to you, he was treated horribly and even abused by your own actions. Because of this, the only thing that kept him going was his daughter Octavia and later his true lover Blitzo. But sadly, Stella, you don't see eye to eye with your husband on these issues. If anything, you continue to want to abuse Stolas and even try and have him killed. Because of this, this has all taken a toll on his mental health. Stolas has suffered through depression, anxiety, PTSD, and fear of swans because of your recklessness. I have seen the wat he has interacted with the swan community, and whenever he sees one, he thinks he's seeing you. How crazy is that?

"So you see, Stella, you need to stop, because by hurting Stolas, you are also hurting yourself.

Stella stood in shock, she couldn't believe what Dhar Mann said. Normally, she would laugh and have him eviscerated. But there was something about the way Dhar Mann used his emotional manipulative tactics to sway Stella and her goons.

"Wow, Dhar Mann, I never thought of it like that..." Stella said. She then ordered the hellhounds to release Stolas, which they did.

"Stolas, I am so sorry for treating you so horribly for the past 17 years. Like a wise man once told me, you don't know what somebody's going through."

"Thank you, Stella," Stolas thanked, "but I don't forgive you."

"It's okay if you can't forgive immediately-" Stella was interrupted.

"NO, STELLA!!! THIS IS NOT A BLACK AND WHITE SOLUTION!!!" Stolas yelled, "THE THINGS YOU HAVE DONE TO ME ARE BEYOND UNFORGIVABLE, AND NO CHEAP LESSON FROM DHAR MANN NOR SOME HALF-BAKED EXCUSE OF AN APOLOGY WILL CHANGE THAT!!! NOW I SUGGEST YOU ALL GET THE FUCK OUT RIGHT NOW!!!"

Stella sighed and left alongside the hellhounds. Dhar Mann looked disappointed.

"Stolas, you need to learn to be more forgiving," Dhar Mann tried to reason, "Everyone can change when-"

Dhar Mann was suddenly interrupted when Stolas snapped his fingers and sent Dhar Mann back to Earth, not wanting to hear anymore of Dhar Mann's terrible and lame life lessons.

"I need to take a shower and clear my head..." Stolas sighed as he left the room and went to the bathroom.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"I'M GONNA KILL YOU FUCKING JERKS RIGHT NOW!!!"

Everyone turned around and were in surprise and shock at who it was. There stood Daniel Larson, the most infamous lolcow in recent years.

"NO WAY!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed, "It's Daniel Larson!"

"THAT'S RIGHT YOU FUCKING COCSUCKER!!!" Daniel screamed, "YOU'RE GONNA KILL STOLAS, AND I DEMAND YOU STOP AND LET HIM GO RIGHT NOW!!!"

Stella, however, simply rolled her eyes.

"As if we'd listen to a mentally ill human who likes to bang his head and cause trouble!" Stella pointed, "Now I suggest you leave right now! We're right in the middle of something."

"MAKE ME, BITCH!!! MAKE ME, BITCH!!!" Daniel screamed hysterically as he hit his head several times.

"Alright, that's it, you gotta go!" the watchdog hellhound said as he grabbed Daniel, but he sucker punched him in the nose and knocked him out.

"NO DESS!!!" the chihuahua hellhound screamed before he and the Shar Pei hellhound ran up to Daniel. However, Daniel dodged their attack and proceeded to beat them up.

"WHAT THE HELL?!?! GET OFF OF MY HELLHOUNDS!!!" Stella yelled as she tried to pull Daniel off of them. However, Daniel proceeded to grab the chihuahua's knife and stab Stella. "OW!!! DON'T DO THAT!!!"

"THE MOTEL THREATENED TO KILL ME!!! THE MOTEL THREATENED TO KILL ME!!! THE MOTEL THREATENED TO KILL ME!!!" Daniel continued yelling as he continued to stab Stella, with the hellhound trying and failing to get him off of Stella.

"DANIEL, STOP!!! DON'T KILL HER!!!" Stolas begged as he began to cry. Despite what Stella did, he did not want to see her die at the hands of Daniel Larson.

"FUCK YOU, STELLA!!! FUCK YOU!!!" Daniel screamed hysterically as he finished her off with a stab right through her head, killing her.

"STELLA NO!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!?!" the chihuahua screamed.

"YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD, ASSHOLE!!!" the watchdog hellhound raged as he tackled Daniel to the ground.

"STOLAS, TAKE THIS!!!" Daniel exclaimed as he threw the knife at his handcuffs, which were somehow able to unlock them and release Stolas.

"ALRIGHT, THAT'S IT!!! TIME TO PAY!!!" Stolas screamed as he went to feral mode and shredded all three hellhounds. Once all three were dead, Stolas retuned to his normal phone and gasped when he saw Daniel peeing on the corpse of Stella. "DANIEL! Why are you doing this?!"

"Because Stella deserves to die!" Daniel argued, "She tried to hurt you, and I hate that! I've been abused and falsely arrested by so many people, and I've had enough of it all! It's time I take back my life for once!"

"But still, you didn't had to kill her!" Stolas argued back, "Now what is Via going to think when she finds out she no longer has a mother?!"

"SHE HAS BLITZO!!! SHE CAN HAVE BLITZO AS HER MOTHER!!! DON'T MAKE ME FUCKING HURT YOU, STOLAS!!! YOU DESERVE SO MUCH BETTER THAN THAT!!!" Daniel was going crazy once again, and at this point, Stolas was losing his patience. He used his magic to carry Daniel out of the palace.

"Daniel, I have had enough of your insanity!" Stolas sternly said, "Now get out! You're no longer welcome here!"

Stolas then sent Daniel to a portal back to Earth. Once it closed, he couldn't help but release his emotions as he cried. He didn't expect Daniel Larson to come in and kill Stella, but he deal. While part of him was glad he stopped the torture from happening, at the same time, he didn't had to go that far.

"I don't know how to explain all of this to Via..." Stolas continued to weep, wondering what's going to happen now.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can-”

Stella was suddenly interrupted when she let out a loud fart. All three hellhounds and Stolas were disgusted at such a nasty sound.

"Ew, princess!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed.

"Yeah, what the fuck did you ate?!" the chihuahua hellhound added as he plugged his nose.

"Ugh, sorry guys..." Stella apologetically said, "Now, as I was saying, now we can-"

However, Stella not only let out another loud fart, but this time, she let out a bit more. Stella's facial expressions turned to that of embarrassment and shame as she felt her bowel movement quickly fill up her panties.

"OH MY GOD, STELLA!!!" Stolas screamed as he can smell the shit all the way from here, "IS THIS YOUR IDEA OF TORTURE?!?! SHITTING YOURSELF IN FRONT OF ME?!?!"

"No, Stolass! I swear to Lucifer that I did not expect this!" Stella insisted as by now, plops of shit were falling from the floor. By this point, the chihuahua hellhound vomited from such a disgusting sight.

"I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!!! STOLAS, WE'RE HURTING YOU NO MATTER WHAT!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed as he went to punch Stolas. However, he stopped when he felt himself beginning to soil his pants.

"OH, NOT YOU TOO, MARCOS!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed. Soon, however, the chihuahua and watchdog felt themselves shit too. And by that point, Stella and the three hellhounds were shitting like crazy.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU ALL?!?!" Stolas screamed, "WHY ARE YOU ALL SOILING YOURSELF LIKE BABIES?!?! THIS IS SO GROSS AND INAPPRORPATE!!! AND YOU ARE ALL EXPECTED TO CLEAN ALL OF THIS SHIT UP!!!"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP, STOLASS!!!! YOU DID THIS TO US, DID YOU?!?!" Stella accused, "THAT'S IT!!! WE'RE KILLING BLITZO!!!"

However, when Stella picked up her phone, she found that the snipers weren't pointing at Blitzo, but instead looked to be constipated.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU ALL DOING NOW?!?!" Stella demanded.

"Sorry, m'am, but we shat ourselves, and we can't focus on our work!" the sniper said before he shut off the feed. By now, all four thankfully stopped shitting themselves. However, their bottom clothes were all soiled beyond belief, and the room stank very badly.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! WE'RE DONE!!! WE'RE SO FUCKING DONE WITH THIS SHIT!!! RELEASE HIM NOW!!! WE'RE NEVER DOING THIS AGAIN!!!" Stella screamed, by now struggling not to cry from embarrassment. One of the hellhounds released Stolas and all ran out the room, with shit still pouring out of their clothes and onto the floor.

"GOOD GOD, I'M OPENING THE WINDOW!!!" Stolas yelled in disgust as he opened up windows and turned on the fan to air out the room. He also spawned a gas mask to breathe in the air. While he thankfully wasn't physically hurt, he still had to breathe in the shitty air, with no way to block it.

"Oh my goodness..." Stolas whined when he saw the shit trail the four left behind, "I'm gonna have to try and get all of this cleaned up before Via gets here..."

Fortunately, the janitors of the palace were fast, and the whole area and room were sparkling clean by the time Octavia got here. Problem is, she somehow found out, and was laughing like crazy.

"DAD, YOU WON'T BELIEVE THIS, BUT MOM SHAT HERSELF SO MUCH, SHE RUINED HER PANTIES!!!" Octavia laughed hysterically.

"Via, please don't make fun of her," Stolas gently warned, "While it was certainly humorous, it was clearly an embarrassing thing, and she didn't deserve to have that happen to her."

"Well, why did she had to poop herself, anyway?" Octavia asked.

"Via... it's... it's a long story..." Stolas sighed.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"YOU AIN'T STARTING NOTHING, JERK!!!"

Everyone turned to see who called, and couldn't believe what they were seeing. There stood Chris-chan, the original lolcow and Internet legend.

"Chris-chan?! Is that you?!" Stolas said in surprise. He's heard about Chris-chan before, but had no idea she would show up.

"That's right! I'm Christine Weston Chandler, the creator of Sonichu!" Chris-chan said, "And I got word that Stella and her goons are trying to hurt you, and I cannot allow that to happen!"

"Fuck off, you stupid tranny!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed, "I've found out about you. You are a creep who fucked your mom and is an absolute psychopath!"

"I agree with him!" Stella added, "Now get out of here or else we will have Stolas's imp killed because of your reck-"

However, Stella couldn't finish her sentence as Chris-chan pulled out a pepper spray and sprayed all four. They screamed and cried as they felt the burning sensation of the pepper spray.

"OH MY GOD!!! I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU FUCKING PEPPER SPRAYED US!!!" Stella cried as she desperately tried to rub the pepper spray off.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU, BRO?!?!" the chihuahua screamed as he ran to the bathroom to wash his eyes out.

"Now do you all promise to release Stolas?" Chris-chan asked.

"NEVER!!!" Stella screamed as she tackled Chris-chan and attacked her. Chris-chan, however, was able to overpower her and began to punch her back.

"YOU FUCKING IDIOT!!! I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU'VE NOT ONLY PEPPER SPRAYED US, BUT YOU ALSO BEAT STELLA UP!!! THIS IS WHY NO ONE LIKES YOU!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed before he tackled Chris-chan hard and was about to beat her to no end. But then his arm was grabbed. When he turned, he gasped at who he saw.

"Sorry, Dess, but you will not hurt Christine today!" Sonichu said before knocking Dess out with one punch to the face. Chris-chan got up and proceeded to knock out the remaining three before releasing Stolas.

"My goodness, it feels so honored to have Chris-chan and Sonichu rescue me!" Stolas said excitingly, "I cannot express my gratitude for your bravery."

"Of course, Stolas! You deserve to be happy!" Chris-chan said as she bowed.

"Hope you and Blitzo are happy!" Sonichu added before they both left. Stolas decided to open a portal to take them all back to their respective homes, but he also added in restraining orders to ensure they won't return to the palace. Stolas didn't think Chris-chan would be huge help in rescuing him from this madness, but in a way, he felt glad that the Internet's most infamous lolcow did something good.

"Now that all of this insanity surrounding Stella is out of the way, let me go back to planning the full moon," Stolas said as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can-”

*BANG!*

Stella was suddenly interrupted when she was shot at point-blank in the back of the head, killing her instantly. Who did it was someone no one expected. There stood the infamous Revolver Ocelot.

"HOLY SHIT!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed, "WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?!?!"

"Sorry, gang, but I cannot allow you all to continue with this torture," Revolver said in his unusual tone.

"BRO, THAT WAS NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!!!" the chihuahua screamed as Stolas began to cry, feeling bad for Stella despite what she tried to do to him, "HOW DID YOU EVEN GET IN?!?! WE LOCKED THE DOOR AND EVERYTHING!!!"

"That is none of your business either, 'bro'," Revolver mocked, "Now I suggest you all leave as I take Stolas in."

"MAKE US, YOU STUPID RUSSIAN!!!" the watchdog hellhound raged as he charged at Revolver. However, Revolver pulled out his gun and shot him in the head, killing him. He then swiftly shot the other two dead. Once all three hellhounds were killed, Revolver calmly walked up to Stolas and freed him from the handcuffs.

"W- Why did you had to kill her?!" Stolas cried, "I get what she did was wrong, but she was a mother. Now how is Octavia going to feel when she finds out she has no mother?"

"You need not to worry about her," Revolver assured, "You need to be with me so we can aid Naked Snake."

"Naked Snake? What's that?" Stolas asked.

"I'll explain it to you later. Now take this gun," Revolver said as he handed Stolas a spare gun.

"Sir, you do realize I am a Goetian demon, right?" Stolas rhetorically said, "I don't need no puny gun!"

"Well, Stolas, you need better defenses, or else you will end up being cuffed again," Revolver retorted as he opened a portal to the Metal Gear Solid world, "Now come in. We have a lot to learn."

"Okay, but let's try to get this over with soon. I need to meet my daughter," Stolas said as he entered the portal.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"DON'T YOU DARE LAY A FINGER ON HIM!!!"

Everyone turned around and were shocked at who it was. There stood Leon Kennedy, who was holding the four at gun point.

"Excuse me, but put the gun down and get out! We're right in the middle of something!" Stella demanded.

"I'M NOT PUTTING DOWN SHIT!!!" Leon barked, "I was told that you were planning on having your husband Stolas tortured, and I cannot let that happen! I already got enough on my plate to fight zombies and shit, and I will not handle anymore of this shit!"

"Why would you want to save him?" the watchdog hellhound asked, "This guy is a jackass who cheats on his wife with an imp, acts like an entitled Karen-"

"STELLA'S THE KAREN, NOT ME!!!" Stolas yelled, leading to the watchdog hellhound to punch him in the face.

"YOU MOTHERFUCKER!!!" Leon screamed as he shot the watchdog hellhound in the shoulder, causing him to yelp and fall down.

"DESS, NO!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound yelled.

"OW!!! HE JUST SHOT ME!!! SOMEONE PLEASE HELP!!!" Dess whined and cried while struggling to stop the bleeding.

"What about me?! You almost knocked me out you stupid mutt!" Stolas retorted.

"ENOUGH!!!" Stella screamed, "YOU BETTER GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE RIGHT NOW OR ELSE STOLAS'S IMP WILL DIE BECAUSE YOU WANTED TO BE A HERO!!!"

Leon wasn't having it. He shot Stella's phone, rendering it useless. When the other two hellhounds charged at Leon, he proceeded to fight them off before shooting them.

"OW!!! MY LEG!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed.

"NO, DON'T SHOOT ME IN THE DICK!!! NOW HOW WILL I GET LAID?!?!" the chihuahua whined.

"I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU DID THAT!!! THAT'S IT!!! YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD, YOU PUNY HUMAN!!!" Stella screamed as she charged at Leon, but he shot her in the breasts before punching her down. "OW!!! YOU DON'T EVER SHOOT ME IN THE BOOBS!!!"

"Stella, shut it!" Leon warned, "Leave now or else I will finish you off! And I better not catch you all near Stolas again, you hear?!"

All four desperately got up and limped out of the room, shamed and embarrassed from being destroyed by a human. Leon then released Stolas from the cuffs and helped him up.

"Here, let's fix that head of yours. It's bruising from where that watchdog punched you," Leon said as he got Stolas some special ointment to reduce the swelling.

"Thank you sir for your bravery and courage," Stolas thanked, "But how did you get here anyway?"

"You can thank the Umbrella Corporation," Leon stated, "Not only were they responsible for unleashing the T-virus that turns people into zombies, but they also experimented with a portal to enter the Hell realm. I used it to get in."

"Well, that's interesting..." Stolas said. Once his face was healed for the most part, Stolas sent Leon back to his world, but not before giving him a special cure that can be used to return zombies back to their previous form as a way to say thanks. Once Leon was gone, he sighed from what an insane turn of events thing were. Though all four were wounded, they were flesh wounds, and can easily heal, though they certainly won't try and mess with Stolas now after what had happened.

"I better get going now. Today's been a long day," Stolas said as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Right when Stella said that, however, something unexpected happened. Stella jumped from the couch and began to shake her buttocks, essentially twerking in front of Stolas.

"Ew, Stella! Is that your idea of torture? Make me watch you shake your ass?!" Stolas exclaimed.

"What?! No! Stolas, I swear I am not doing this voluntarily! Something's making me shake my butt!" Stella insisted. However, none of the hellhounds could even focus on Stolas, as they were too busy staring at her shaking behind.

"YOU THREE PERVERTS STOP STARING AT ME!!!" Stella screamed as she tried, but failed to stop twerking, "BEAT UP STOLASS WHILE I TRY AND FIGURE OUT HOW TO STOP!!!"

"Damn, Stella, I didn't knew you could throw it back!" the Shar Pei hellhound said as he slapped her butt.

"HEY!!! I PAY YOU GUYS TO SLAP HIM, NOT ME!!!" Stella exclaimed, but the three ignored her and got closer to touch her butt, "NO!!! DON'T TOUCH ME!!! I DO NOT CONSENT TO ANY OF THIS SHIT!!!"

"Nah, fuck that! You're asking for it!" the chihuahua said as he used his knife to cut off the bottom part of her white dress.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE SLICE MY DRESS UP!!! IT COSTS MORE THAN YOUR ENTIRE NET WORTH!!!" Stella warned, but it was no use. Once the bottom part of the dress was completely ripped, Stella's fatass was twerking in its full glory, complete with the Hello Kitty panties she was wearing.

"Holy shit, Stella! Are you seriously wearing Hello Kitty panties right now?!" Stolas laughed and giggled. He had no knowledge that Stella had any Hello Kitty panties at all.

"IT'S NOT FUNNY, STOLASS!!! LEAVE ME ALONE, ALL OF YOU!!!" Stella cried, tears beginning to fall from the embarrassment.

"Sorry, princess, but I can't hold back anymore!" the watchdog hellhound apologized when he pulled out his dick and placed it in between her butt cheeks, effectively having him involuntarily hot dog her butt.

"EW!!! GET YOUR FILTHY DOGGY COCK OFF OF MY ASS!!!" Stella begged, but it was no use. The other two pulled out their cocks and placed them on her shaking butt. Meanwhile, Stolas was staring in shock at what was going on. Was this seriously their idea of torture? To make him watch heterosexual sex? If so, then it was working!

"You know, if you were going to make me watch sex, at least include some gay sex in here," Stolas suggested. But it didn't matter. By that point, Stella's panties were ripped off and all three inserted their dicks in her vagina and anus, all while she was still twerking her ass off.

"NO!!! STOP!!! YOU WERE SUPPOSE TO HURT HIM!!! NOT ME!!!" Stella screamed and cried as she felt the sensation of all of their cocks violating her. Stolas couldn't help but continue to watch in fascination as they all had some intense sex. The chihuahua ended up cumming prematurely, and then walked up to Stolas and released him from his cuffs.

"Come on, bro, you gotta join us in pounding that swan ass!" the chihuahua hellhound tried to lure Stolas in.

"Sure. Let me get a sex toy to make this more interesting," Stolas said. But when he walked out of the room, he vomited on the floor. As a gay man, heterosexual sex repulsed him, and seeing all of that made him sick.

"Fucking hell... and she wonders why I'm divorcing her crazy ass!" Stolas thought to himself. He was hoping that they would stop soon, but by the time Octavia arrived, they were still going strong.

"Hello, Via!" Stolas greeted, "Please don't go in our bedroom."

"Why not, dad? Are you hiding a gift from me?" Octavia teased.

"No, darling, it's just that-" Stolas was interrupted when Octavia ran past him and opened the door. However, she gasped at what she saw. All three hellhounds were ramming Stella like crazy, all while she still twerked.

"OCTAVIA, HELP ME!!!" Stella screamed, "I CAN'T STOP TWERKING, AND THESE IDIOTS WON'T GET OFF OF ME!!!"

"JESUS FUCKING CHRIST, MOM!!! I DON'T KNOW WHO'S THE BIGGER PERVERT!!! YOU OR DAD!!!" Octavia screamed as she ran out the room crying. All Stolas could do was sigh, wondering what he did to deserve such a ridiculous life.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"Start cleaning?! Sure thing, princess!"

Everyone turned around and were shocked at what they were watching. There was Nifty, the maid of the Hazbin Hotel, and she was cleaning the room, albeit in a crazed way.

"Excuse me!" Stella said, "We're right in the middle of something here, so can you please leave?"

When Nifty turned around, however, she gasped when she saw the three hellhounds, as well as Stolas cuffed to his back.

"HOLY MOLY!!! YOU DOGGIES ARE SO DIRTY!!!" Nifty exclaimed, "And those handcuffs do not look sanitized!"

"I'll have you know I took a shower this morning!" the Shar Pei hellhound defended.

"Yeah, and those cuffs aren't dirty, you fucking weirdo! They're blessed!" the chihuahua hellhound added.

"Okay, pipsqueak, you gotta go," the watchdog said as he walked up to Nifty with the intent to escort her out of the room. However, Nifty screamed before she began to greatly assault the watchdog.

"DESS, NO!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed as he and the chihuahua tried to stop Nifty, but they got assaulted too.

"YOU IDIOTS MAN UP!!! YOU'RE FAR STRONGER THAN HER!!!" Stella yelled at them, but Nifty was far more powerful because of her fast-paced and crazy method of attack. By the time she was done with them, all three hellhounds were injured, yet also clean at the same time.

"LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!!! THIS BITCH IS CRAZY!!!" the chihuahua exclaimed as all three ran out of the room.

"I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU HURT MY HELLHOUNDS AND MADE THEM PATHETIC AND WEAK!!!" Stella screamed at Nifty's face, "THAT'S IT!!! STOLAS'S IMP WILL NOW DIE BECAUSE OF YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS!!!"

However, when Stella grabbed her phone, Nifty took it.

"Sorry, princess, but I'm gonna have to do some deep cleaning of your phone before you can continue," Nifty said. Stella tried to snatch it back, but to no avail. Nifty then dumped the phone in a pool of chlorine, short-circuiting it and ruining it.

"HOW DARE YOU!!!" Stella yelled as she slapped Nifty in the face. That was the worst thing she could've done, as Nifty screamed before pulling out a knife the chihuahua hellhound dropped.

"P- Put the knife down... I'm sorry for slapping you, okay? It was a slip in the-" Stella was interrupted when Nifty tackled her and proceeded to stab her repeatedly while screaming "STAB, STAB, STAB!" over and over. Stolas was speechless throughout the whole ordeal, but after this, he couldn't take it anymore.

"NIFTY!!! STOP STABBING MY WIFE!!! GOOD GOD, YOU'RE MAKING A MESS!!!" Stolas begged. Nifty stopped and realized that there was so much blood everywhere. She cleaned up the blood before disposing Stella's now dead body. Once the mess was cleaned, Nifty went up to Stolas to release him from the cuffs.

"Oh my goodness... I never would've imagined a small creature like you would be a big help to stop my torture," Stolas said.

"Well you know what they say: Size doesn't matter!" Nifty joked, causing Stolas to chuckle.

"Say, Nifty, you seem to be an excellent cleaner. How about you start working for me instead? I can assure you the pay here will be far greater than your old job," Stolas offered.

"No thanks. I only came because Charlie wanted me to check up on this place as a favor," Nifty declined. They both exchanged numbers before Nifty left. Stolas was in shock from everything that went down, from the attempted torture to Nifty's intense reign in terror. But in a way, he was glad Nifty got involved before things got out of hand.

"I sure hope Via won't flip out when she realizes that the maid of the Hazbin Hotel killed her mother..." Stolas sighed as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"STELLA, MARCOS, SHAY, AND DESS!!! YOU ALL STOP RIGHT THIS INSTANT!!!"

Everyone turned around and could not believe at who stood there. There was Neyane, the AO3 who had a profile picture of Ai Haibara from the 1996 movie Detective Conan. And she was pissed.

"Who are you, and how the fuck do you know our names?!" Marcos asked.

"I am Neyane, the creator of this Helluva Boss fanfic Selfless," Neyane explained, "I made this series as an attempt to write out some simple hurt/comfort as well as some angst. But I did not expect you to go this far, Stella! How could you make Stolas go through this?! Why do you have to be such a bitch?!"

"How I treat Stolass is none of your concern, you French retard!" Stella exclaimed, "Now get out of here and mind your business! Not unless you want Stolas's imp to pay the price for your recklessness!"

"ET SI TU ME FAISAIS?!?!" Neyane screamed in French as she snatched Stella's phone and smashed it.

"HOW DARE YOU SMASH MY PHONE YOU WEEABOO FUCK!!!" Stella screamed at her face, "YOU THREE STOP HER RIGHT NOW!!!"

All three hellhounds charged at Neyane with the attempt to stop her. However, Neyane, being the writer of this fanfic, was not about to let her own creation stop her. She took out a pen and pointed at the three, forcing them to stop.

"Hey! Unpause us right this instant!" Shay demanded.

"YEAH!!! I WANNA HIT SOMEBODY FOR ONCE!!!" Dess added.

However, Neyane ignored them all, and instead wrote them out of the story. This led to Marcos, Shay, and Dess to all disappear and never to be seen again.

"HOLY SHIT!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU MADE THEM DISAPPEAR!!! THAT'S IT!!! GIVE ME THAT!!!" Stella screamed as she took the pen and wrote for her phone to be repaired, which it did. Stella then grabbed the phone and turned the feed back on.

"SAY GOODBYE TO BLITZY, STOLASS!!!" Stella yelled as she got ready to send the signal. However, Neyane not only wrote the phone out of existence before she got the chance to do so, but she also wrote in a Stolitz scene where Stolas and Blitzo were having BDSM sex. This scene caused Stella to look repulsed, and she ended up throwing up.

"JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!!! CAN'T I JUST GET MY WAY FOR ONCE?!?!" Stella screamed and cried as she ran out of the room, embarrassed and ashamed that she was humiliated by the creator of the fanfic. While Blitzo and Stolas were still fucking, the other Stolas was still cuffed, feeling flattered upon seeing the sex scene unfold.

"Um, Neyane? Can you please let me out of these restraints?" Stolas asked.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Neyane said as she wrote the cuffs out of the story, freeing Stolas.

"Thank you. Now if you'll excuse us, I need to join this sexy scene of passionate love..." Stolas said in a flirty manner as he kicked Neyane out of the room. Neyane sighed, as she didn't think the scene would turn Stolas that hard. But then she remembered he was gay, and a pretty sex-craved one at that.

"Dad, I'm home!" Octavia called in, but was surprised to see Neyane standing there, "Wait, who are you? And what's going on in the room?"

"I'm Neyane, Octavia, and as for the room... it's best that you don't find out..." Neyane said nervously.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

But before the first punch can be thrown, Stolas did the unthinkable. He opened his mouth and let out an extremely loud, high-pitched scream. One so loud, that even those in the neighboring rings can hear it. But in the room, the loud scream was powerful enough to shake the whole palace, and all four covered their ears in an attempt to block out the sound. By the time Stolas stopped screaming, all of their ears were bleeding.

"HOLY FUCKING SHIT!!! I CAN'T HEAR ANYTHING!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE HE DID THAT!!! NOW MY EARS ARE BLEEDING!!!" the chihuahua hellhound screamed in pain.

"STELLA, KILL HIS IMP FOR NEARLY MAKING US DEAF!!!" the watchdog hellhound begged.

"I'm sorry, guys, but that scream ended up bricking my phone..." Stella sadly said before she glared at Stolas, "AND YOU!!! WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU THINKING SCREAMING LIKE THAT?!?! NOT EVEN I SCREAM THAT LOUD!!!"

"I- I'm sorry, Stella, I- I don't know what got ahold of me..." Stolas said in panic. He literally had no idea how he was able to scream like that. Though he had his powerful moments, none of them included such high-pitched screams. He didn't even felt like screaming anyway, so it was anybody's guess how he could scream like that.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! I'VE HAD ENOUGH!!! YOU THREE!!! GIVE HIM HELL!!!" Stella demanded. But before they could even get ready, Stolas screamed yet again. But this time, it was so much worse. Not only was it somehow even more high-pitched, but the vibrations were even more powerful and extreme in its reverb. With the exception of Stolas, everyone in the room immediately went deaf, and they all felt their organs rupture and bleed from the intense vibrations from the scream. Stolas saw that they were all in pain, and tried to stop his scream, but to no avail. Eventually, all four went limped and proceeded to die from the excessive noise and vibrations. It was also around this time that the blessed handcuffs broke from the sound, freeing him. By the time Stolas finally stopped screaming, the entire room was in shambles from the shaking, and Stella and her hellhounds were dead.

"STELLA, NO!!!" Stolas screamed as he ran to her lifeless body and hugged it, crying on her shoulders. Though she tried to have him tortured, at the same time, he felt as though she didn't deserve a fate as painful as fatal loud exposure. Stolas continued to hug her dead body for another minute before finally letting go. He looked at the damage again before he sighed. Stolas decided to go to the balcony to get some fresh air. But when he went outside, he saw that the entire city was in disarray from the powerful scream.

"Oh shit... how am I going to explain this to the public...?" Stolas thought to himself as he watched a skyscraper collapse.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

She had barely finished her sentence that a powerful pu

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence. But not only that, but something seemed... different....

“Wait, didn't you say that exact word before?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “And besides, you don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted, but also was a bit confused from his comment.

“Stolas, this is literally the first time I'm telling you this, so I don't know what you're talking about," Stella denied, "Besides, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“Oh no! I've seen this before! You're going to threaten to kill Blitzo if I don't do every stupid you say! Isn't that right?!” Stolas confirmed.

“Wow, Stolas, it's like you read my mind! Also, don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her. But something else was also bothering him. Was this already said? He could've sworn he had been told this before.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas didn't need to be told twice, and he put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic. Stolas also found out that he reacted a lot quicker from that compared to last time. Wait, last time?

“Good job on following orders without needing to be told twice. Now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fea- Okay, now THIS! This, he remembered. Why did this all seem so familiar to him? It felt so new, but at the same time, his body was telling him that he had experienced this before, and warned him that if he continued to follow her every word, then something terrible was going to happen. "Kill her!" his brain demanded, "Don't let them do this to you!"

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

"Stella, I know exactly what's going to happen after this. You are going to say that with these cuffs, I won't make any wanted mistakes. Then, you're going to ask if you are too generous, and I will say thank you," Stolas repeated as though he knew what would happen next. Stella looked at him confusingly.

“Stolas, I don't know why you're acting like this is the second time this has happened, because to be honest with you, I should've done this years ago! Am I right?!”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. He had been through this before. He just knew it. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

Stolas didn't want to say it, but he ended up saying it. “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

She had barely finished her sentence that a powerful pu

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bo-

"STOP!!!"

This was familiar. He remembered now. He was about to be punched by a Shar Pei hellhound. But then things went black, and then he woke up back to where he started. Why were these events continuing to repeat? Was he placed in a coma after the first punch? And therefore, he was stuck in some loop where these events kept on repeating? He didn't want to believe that. He wanted to believe that there was a way to get out of this weird loop.

"Oh, Satan, what should I do..." Stolas thought to himself.

"Kill her."

"No! She's Via's mother!"

"She doesn't deserve to be anyone's mother."

"But what about Andrealphus, huh? What will he think?"

"Fuck him and his arrogance..."

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“NO!!! NO!!! NO!!!” Stolas screamed his ass off, his tone cold and angry. “YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE THESE FUCKERS TORTURE ME!!! YOU HAVE A LIVE FEED OF SNIPERS POINTING ANGELIC RIFLES AT HIM, AND SHOULD I MAKE MISTAKES OR REFUSE TO FOLLOW YOUR EVERY WORD, THEN YOU WILL SIGNAL THEM TO KILL HIM!!! AND THEN YOU WILL FORCE ME TO PUT AWAY MY PHONE AS YOU LEAD ME TO THE BEDROOM WHERE YOU HANDCUFF ME TO ANGELIC RESTRAINTS AND FORCE ME TO THANK YOUR PATHETIC ASS AND THEN THE SHAR PEI WILL PUNCH ME!!! WHY, STELLA?!?! WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?!?! DO THE WORLD A FAVOR, AND KILL YOURSELF!!!”

By that point, Stolas collapsed on his knees and cried. He didn't want this to happen a third time. He wanted out of this repeating time of events. He just wanted her to stop her cruelty for once. Stella, on the other hand, was taken aback of Stolas perfectly describing the plan and what was going to happen. How the hell did Stolas found out? And why was he crying and acting so pathetic? But then those thoughts stopped, and then Stella continued, almost as though Stolas didn't blew up on her just now.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witne-”

Stella was suddenly interrupted when Stolas punched her straight in the face, causing her to fall back and hit her head hard on the floor.

"OUCH!!! WHAT THE FUCK, STOLASS?!?!" Stella screamed as her head began to bled.

"FUCK YOU AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALL!!!" Stolas screamed in insanity as he went feral mode and proceeded to shred all three hellhounds with zero mercy. It was by far the angriest he had ever been. He was done with the hellhounds, he was done with Stella's abusive nature, and he was done being the bitch of Hell.

He was Stolas.

Stolas of the Ars Goetia.

And he was showing them all why he should not be messed with.

Stolas finally returned to his normal form, his body completely covered in the blood and torn flesh of hellhounds. When he turned around, however, he was in shock. There, Stella stood glaring at him. She held the phone that showed the feed.

"I hope it was worth it, Stolass..."

Then she pressed a button, and immediately, the sniper shot Blitzo in the head, killing him instantly.

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

Stolas didn't say anything. In fact, all he did was stare at them, menacingly. However, none of them caught the sheer terror he emitted from his glare.

“Ah, here you ar-”

*BANG!*

Stella was suddenly interrupted when Stolas pulled out a shotgun and blasted Stella directly in the face, killing her instantly and causing her head to explode from the shotgun blast. All three hellhounds gasped in shock with how fast and swift Stolas pulled out that shotgun. Why would he do such a thing?

"Hey, hey hey hey! Put the gun down and let's talk!" the Shar Pei hellhound nervously said as Stolas turned the gun towards them.

"Yeah, man, we were just here for money, nothing el-"

*BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!*

No explanation would save the three hellhounds from the fatal shotgun blasts. Stolas showed no emotions nor said anything during the entire ordeal. He simply just glared at them with a deadly frown. After the last hellhound was killed, Stolas just stood there, observing the damage. He looked... satisfied? But he also remembered what they tried to do to him, what Stella wanted to add in her collection of moments of abuse and terror, and a reminder that he wasn't weak, but a powerful Goetian not to be messed with. He slowly put the gun down, and walked up to Stella's body and knelt down. He gently picked up her body and faced what was left of her bleeding pile of flesh that used to be the face of a beautiful swan.

It always seems more quiet in the dark
It always feels so stark
How silence grows under the moon
Constellations gone so soon

I used to think that I was bold
I used to think love would be fun
Now all my stories have been told except for one

As the stars start to align
I hope you take it as a sign
That you'll be okay
Everything will be okay

And if the Seven Rings collapse
Although the day could be my last
You will be okay
When I'm gone you'll be okay

And when Creation goes to die
You can find me in the sky
Upon the last day
And you will be okay

Stolas then kissed Stella on the chest before he got up and walked away, almost as though nothing happened.

Chapter Text

LADIES AND FRICKS! Today, we're going to check out a new Helluva Boss fanfic that viewers wanted me to check out. I'm not familiar with the Helluva Boss franchise, so I'm not sure what to expect from this one, but regardless, we're gonna check it out and see what happens.

.

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

.

Okay, so far, this is interesting. I guess what's happening is that Stolas is expecting his daughter to come in, but it's gonna be someone else, is it? Let's see where we go from here.

.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

.

Oh frick! Looks like Stolas's ex wife has arrived! This is going to be juicy! Greg! Fetch me some popcorn! This is going to be crazy!

.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

.

Wait, what?! So... just so we can all understand, Stella wants Stolas to be tortured at the hands of hellhounds? And should he refuse or not listen, then his lover will die?! Oh crap, this is not looking good...

.

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

.

You know what? Hold on, I gotta do something real quick...

.

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"STOP RIGHT THERE!!!"

Everyone turned around and were surprised to see who was standing there. There stood a man with blonde hair, glasses, and a blue shirt. That man was none other than the Youtuber Chadtronic.

"Excuse me, but who are you? And how the hell did you get in?" Stella asked.

"I'm Chadtronic," he greeted, "and I am absolutely appalled at what you fricks are doing! Stella, why would you subject Stolas to this type of torture. And why are these three numbnuts just going along with this crap?! And this dude looks like a peanut!"

"I KNOW DAMN WELL HE DID NOT CALL ME A PEANUT JUST NOW!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound said, offended by Chadtronic's statement, "MY PARENTS DIED FROM A PEANUT OVERDOSE!!!"

"Wait, you can actually die from that?" Stolas asked, "Well it's a good thing I haven't died from imp dick overdose!"

"SHUT UP, STOLASS!!! NO ONE ASKED!!!" Stella screamed at her husband before turning to Chadtronic, "Now please leave, and don't you DARE speak word of this to anyone! Not unless you wanna get tortured as well!"

"Alright, jerks, you asked for it!" Chadtronic warned as he pulled out his NES pillow and proceeded to attack the hellhounds with it.

"HEY! STOP THAT!" the chihuahua hellhound pleaded as he got assaulted from the NES pillow.

"LEAVE MY FRIENDS ALONE!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he tried to tackle Chadtronic, but was knocked out from the NES pillow.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE WHAT I'M SEEING!!! YOU DOGGIES ARE SERIOUSLY GOING TO LET YOURSELF GET FUCKED UP BY A GODDAMN PILLOW?!?!" Stella screamed out of anger and frustration of the three hellhounds being easily assaulted.

"It's not just a regular pillow, it's an NES pillow!" Chadtronic exclaimed.

"THAT DOES IT!!! STOLAS, BECAUSE THIS CHADTRONIC GUY WANTED TO BE A HERO, BLITZO WILL HAVE TO PAY THE PRICE!!!" Stella commanded. Just then, however, Greg took Stella's phone and crushed it, breaking it. "NO!!! NOT MY PHONE!!!"

"That's what you get, you stupid swan!" Chadtronic pointed, "Now I suggest you get out before I assault you with the pillow too!"

Stella simply huffed before leaving, disappointed and angry that the torture session was halted by Chadtronic and his lobster. The three hellhounds also limped out of here, the beating clearly taking a toll on their physical health. Once everyone was gone, Chadtronic released Stolas from the handcuffs.

"Thank you sir for your help," Stolas thanked, "But how did you know I was in danger?"

"Well, I am a Youtuber, and my viewers wanted me to read a fanfic and see my reaction," Chadtronic explained, "But when I saw what Stella was doing, I knew I had to stop those fricks, hence why I teleported here to stop them! And no one has ever stopped a man with a NES pillow!"

Stolas found Chadtronic's explanation to be intriguing. He hadn't heard of his YouTube channel before, but he was now curious.

"That's interesting..." Stolas commented, "When my daughter gets home, I think we should watch some of your YouTube videos. Are they appropriate?"

"Of course!" Chadtronic assured, "I think you guys are going to love the videos, especially if you're into watching some cheesy, cringy stuff from decades ago."

Chadtronic and Greg then said their goodbyes before leaving the world and went back to the mortal world. Stolas was surprised to hear about how Chadtronic was able to read fanfics that perfectly described their issues and moments. But at the same time, he was glad their timing and powerful pillow was able to save him from getting assaulted. Stolas then left the room and went to the living room to turn on YouTube.

"Time to binge some Chadtronic!" Stolas said as he searched up his channel.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

However, before Stolas can put away his phone, they heard someone come barging in the palace. They turned around and were in shock at who arrived. There stood Josuke Higashikata, the illegitimate son of Joseph Joestar and Tomoko Higashikata.

"What's this I hear about you trying to torture Stolas and threatening his imp?!" Josuke confronted. However, Stella and her three hellhounds ended up laughing their ass off.

"Seriously?! You think you're gonna threaten me with that bad hairdo?! You look like you got a purple steak on top of your head!" Stella giggled.

"Um, Stella...? I don't think you should be laughing at him..." Stolas said worryingly, seeing that Josuke was getting angry.

"It's not my fault this dude thought placing a purple tongue on top of his head was good fashion!" the Shar Pei hellhound commented, causing the group to laugh even louder.

"NO ONE EVER MAKES FUN OF MY HAIR!!! DORARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARA!!!" In an instant, Josuke snapped and proceeded to brutally assault and beat up Stella. She screamed and cried as she tried to block the attacks, but to no avail. Josuke concluded the assault with a clean punch to the stomach, sending Stella flying out of the window and eventually out of the ring.

"HOLY SHIT!!! HE JUST BEAT THE FUCK OUT OF STELLA!!!" the chihuahua hellhound screamed in terror. Even Stolas was scared with what Josuke did. Josuke then glared at the three hellhounds, causing them to nearly shit their pants.

"Woah woah, man! We're sorry for insulting you, alright? Just pl-"

"GRADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADADAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!"

With zero mercy, Josuke proceeded to obliterate all three hellhounds with a powerful laser through his arm, causing all three hellhounds to be completely eviscerated from the blast of the laser. When it finally turned off, all that remained of the hellhounds were ashes, and a giant hole was at the wall from where the laser was shot.

"Seriously, Josuke? Next time, please don't put any holes on the wall!" Stolas scolded, only for Josuke to shrug.

"Next time, they shouldn't have made fun of my hair," Josuke defended before leaving. Stolas just simply sighed. He wasn't really that concerned of Stella, providing Goetians have a surprisingly high survival rate of being blasted out of the ring. However, there was a good chance she won't mess with him anymore now, provided Josuke's threatening presence. Stolas took out his phone and made a call to the wall repairmen.

"Excuse me, but I need one of your workers to come to the palace and repair a wall pronto!" Stolas said before hanging up. While he waited, he decided watching some soap operas on TV would clear his mind from the events prior.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Just then, however, a portal opens on the ceiling, and two teen boys fall out of it. Those teen boys would be Beavis and Butt-head, the infamous juvenile delinquents from Texas. When they got up, they both were in shock at who they were.

"Woah! Check it out, Beavis! We're in hell!" Butt-head stated.

"Yeah! I was hoping there'd be fire and other cool stuff, but this is alright," Beavis said. All five were confused at how in the world some teens in Texas got in, but Stella was getting annoyed.

"Excuse me, you two, but we're right in the middle of something here," Stella told them, "Can you please leave? I don't care if you two want to explore this place, but I'd greatly appreciate it if you gave us a little bit of privacy."

However, Beavis and Butt-head looked at Stella in awe. They were taken by her beautiful appearance, and they paid no mind to Stolas and the three hellhounds that were standing there, all confused at the events happening right now.

"Hey baby," Butt-head tried to flirt, "You wanna score?"

"Yeah! Maybe it's time we finally scored!" Beavis exclaimed.

"OH HELL NO!" Stella yelled, "I AM NOT HAVING SEX WITH YOU UGLY BRATS! NOW GET OUT BEFORE MY HELLHOUNDS ESCORT YOU OUT!"

Butt-head didn't get the message, and still tried to flirt with Stella. Meanwhile, the chihuahua hellhound went up to Beavis.

"Hey, before you two head out, wanna try this pill?" the chihuahua asked as he handed Beavis some pills, "These will make you feel good!"

"Shay, don't give him that!" the Shar Pei hellhound warned, but it was too late, as Beavis consumed the pills. Meanwhile, Stella was at her wits end with Butt-head and his creepy flirting.

"ALRIGHT, I'VE HAD IT WITH YOUR BRATS!" Stella screamed, "YOU THREE GET THEM OUT NOW!!!"

The watchdog hellhound then went up to Butt-head and grabbed his arm.

"Hey! Get off of me, you butthole! I'm trying to score here!" Butt-head said as he tried to resist the watchdog's grip.

"No! You both already outstayed your welcome!" the watchdog hellhound said as he tried to move Butt-head out of here. Just then, however, Beavis let out a scream before pulling his shirt to his head.

"I AM CORNHOLIO! I NEED TP FOR MY BUNGHOLE!" Cornholio exclaimed.

"Oh my goodness, this just keeps getting worse..." Stolas said to himself as he watched Cornholio try to intimidate the four.

"YOU LET ME FRIEND GO RIGHT THIS INSTANT!" Cornholio demanded.

"HOW ABOUT YOU BACK YOUR ASS OFF OR ELSE WE'LL BEAT YOU UP!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound confronted before turning to Shay, "WHY THE FUCK DID YOU GAVE HIM THESE PILLS?!?!"

"I just wanted to help a homie out!" Shay defended. Just then, however, Cornholio proceeded to tackle all three hellhounds with one swift move, causing all three to fall. Cornholio and Butt-head then teamed up to beat up all three hellhounds.

"HEY!!! DON'T BEAT MY DOGS LIKE THAT!!!" Stella yelled as she tried to get them off, but to no avail.

"ARE YOU THREATENING ME?! I NEED TP FOR MY BUNGHOLE!" Cornholio yelled at Stella.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! WE'RE FUCKING DONE HERE!!! BECAUSE YOU TWO WANT TO RUIN EVERYTHING, STOLAS'S IMP WILL NOW HAVE TO PAY THE PRICE!!!" Stella screamed as she got her phone. However, Butt-head threw a nacho chip at the phone, causing it to fall off Stella's grip and break from the impact.

"No, m'am! We're not leaving until you let us score!" Butt-head demanded.

"YOU'RE NOT HAVING SEX WITH ME!!! AND YOU OWE ME A NEW PHONE!!! NOW COME ON!!! LET'S GO!!!" Stella exclaimed as she and the now injured hellhounds ran out of the room. By the time they left, Beavis returned to his normal self, and Butt-head would release Stolas from the handcuffs.

"Well, uh... thanks for freeing me from those cuffs," Stolas thanked.

"No problem, but why were they surrounding you anyway? Were you, like, trying to score or something?" Butt-head asked.

"No, not exactly," Stolas sighed, "My wife was going to have me tortured by those three hellhounds while threatening my true lover Blitzo with death should I refuse to comply or make mistakes. I did not expect any humans to come here of all places. How did you three gain access to the Hell realm anyway?"

"Van Driessen taught us about portals that can take people to other worlds, and me and Butt-head got ahold of one to try and see if we can score for once. You know where we can score some hot chicks?" Beavis asked.

"I think you're referring to the Lust ring," Stolas said, "I think you two will have a better chance at 'scoring' there, but please be careful, as people are known to be scammed there, though it's not as bad as the Greed ring."

Stolas then opened up a portal to the Lust ring.

"Yes! We're finally going to score!" Beavis exclaimed.

"This is gonna be cool..." Butt-head said as he and Beavis entered the portal. Once they were in, Stolas closed the portal and sighed heavily. He didn't expect Stella to try and have him hurt to that extent during the divorce, nor did he expect some teenagers from Texas would rescue him. But regardless, he was thankful for their help, even if they seemed stupid.

"Now I need to go back to preparing for Via's visit like I originally planned..." Stolas said as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Just then, however, a man suddenly popped up from the window. That man was none other than Sam Catania, a famous painter in Erie, Pennsylvania, who is also known for his unusual commercials.

"Looks like someone needs a makeover!" Sam said before he began to paint on the hellhounds, halting them from hurting Stolas.

"HEY! DON'T PAINT ON MY CLOTHES!" the Shar Pei hellhound cried.

"YEAH! I'M ALLERGIC TO PAINTING!" the chihuahua hellhound claimed as he coughed.

"STELLA HELP!!! WE'RE BEING PAINTED ON!!!" the watchdog hellhound cried out. By the time Sam stopped, all three hellhounds were drenched in various paints, giving them a colorful mess.

"OH MY GOODNESS!!! HOW DARE YOU PAINT MY HELLHOUNDS!!!" Stella screamed, "THAT'S IT!!! BECAUSE OF YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS, BLITZO WILL NOW DIE!!!"

However, as Stella pulled out her phone, Sam used a paint gun to drench the phone in paint, ruining it. The paint gun was also used to splatter Stella.

"NO!!! STOP!!! MY DRESS!!!" Stella cried out as her white dress was painted on, ruining its elegant beauty.

"Now you four are ready to continue the torture!" Sam exclaimed.

"NO!!! FUCK THAT!!! WE'RE OUT OF HERE!!!" the Shar Pei hellhould exclaimed as all four ran out of the room, leaving a trail of paint as they ran. Sam then released Stolas from the blessed cuffs.

"My goodness... I didn't think paint can be used as a useful weapon," Stolas commented.

"Well at Sam Catania Painting, we're always here to help!" Sam said, concluding this bizarre, yet fascinating ad of Sam Catania Painting.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

However, before the first punch can be thrown, the door was busted down by a Ford Excursion. The driver then quickly got out, and everyone gasped at who it was. There stood Kevin, a man in his 50s, and besides him were his three sons Nicky, Sammy, and X. And they were all glaring at Stella and the hellhounds.

"Stella, Marcos, Shay, and Dess!" Kevin commanded in a strict tone, "You four better not lay a finger on Prince Stolas or else you all will have hell to pay!"

"I agree with daddy!" Nicky added, "We won't hesitate to bust your balls and beat you up if you don't stop!"

However, Stella and the three hellhounds ended up laughing.

"Seriously? You think we're gonna let some old man and some pipsqueaks stop us?!" Stella giggled.

"Yeah, there's no way we're gonna let some babies control us!" the watchdog hellhound mocked before he kicked Sammy in the butt, causing him to fall over. Sammy cried upon impact, and Nicky immediately went to hug his little brother. Pissed, Keven ran up to the watchdog and kicked him hard in the nuts, causing him to yelp.

"NO ONE HURTS MY SON!" Kevin yelled. The other two hellhounds tried to stop Kevin, but it turns out that despite his old age, Kevin could still kick ass when necessary. Both Stolas and Stella watched as Kevin beated the ever living hell out of the three hellhounds. X also took the opportunity to taunt them by calling them names.

"Yeah, that's right you mongrel fuckers! Get your ass whooped by daddy Kevin!" X taunted. By the time Kevin was done with the three hellhounds, they were all injured.

"I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU ASSAULTED MY HELLHOUNDS!!! WHAT THE FUCK IS YOUR PROBLEM?!?!" Stella screamed in Kevin's face, "THAT'S IT!!! BECAUSE YOU AND YOUR BABIES WANTED TO PLAY HERO, BLITZO WILL NOW HAVE TO DIE!!!"

But before Stella could even get to her phone, Kevin tackled her to the ground and held her as the boys released Stolas from the handcuffs and placed them on Stella instead. Kevin then took her phone and broke it.

"NO!!! STOP!!! RELEASE ME RIGHT THIS INSTANT!!!" Stella demanded.

"No," Kevin coldly said, "Here's what's going to happen: We are all going to go to the living room, where we will discuss your actions and discuss your punishment. Anymore funny business from you or the hellhounds, and we will shoot you. My boys have some pretty powerful guns, which can easily kill someone with a couple of rounds to their torso."

As Kevin said this, all three boys pulled out some AK-47s which were locked and loaded.

"Now, are you all going to be compliant and walk to the living room without issue?" Kevin asked.

"Yes," all three hellhounds said, but Stella didn't say anything.

"Stella, just say yes!" Stolas encouraged.

"NO!!! YOU BETTER MAKE ME, OLD MAN!!!" Stella spat at his face. Kevin practically had to drag Stella to the living room while everyone else walked to the living room, though the hellhounds had a bit more trouble due to their injuries. Once everyone sat down, Kevin began to speak.

"Stella, Marcos, Shay, and Dess, words cannot begin to explain how disappointed I am in you all," Kevin began, "Stella, we have been monitoring you and your family for the past few years, and I am in absolute shock at what you have done to your husband. You have subjected him to abuse and torment, and when he began to move on with an imp that he genuinely loves, you continued to worsen your abused as you tried to have him killed, and now you want to have him tortured by the hands of hellhounds? You are not a lovable person. No one who loves someone would do the things you did. And even after all of this, you are still in an angry state where you want everything to go your way and want the world to revolve around you. If my boys had even just half of your attitude, they would all get the spanking of their lives to say the least..."

"And as for you Marcos, Shay, and Dess, you three are just as bad. You have all willingly agreed to abuse and torture Prince Stolas for Stella's pleasure, and that is wrong. You three had the opportunity to try and talk Stella out of it, but you didn't. Your minds went blank the minute she brought up money, and you threw away whatever morals you had. Do you realize that if you were caught by the Ars Goetia Police, then you three would've been in so much trouble? Stella was using you all as pawns, and the minute things didn't go as plan, she would throw you all under the bus and she would get to go scot free while you three suffered in jail."

When Kevin explained all of this, all three hellhounds looked very shocked and disturbed. Stella promised that she would take good care of them all under the condition that they helped her hurt Stolas during the divorce proceedings. But then to hear that Stella was going to betray them should things go south? Kevin noticed that Shay was particularly looking scared, and decided to mess with him.

"So Shay, you look like you are daydreaming. Are you thinking about how it will feel to have stronger men rape you over and over and make you suck their cocks clean after they are done fucking your ass? Are you looking forward to being their sex slave? Maybe the guards will even fuck you with their huge cocks and make your ass bleed from how hard they pound you. Maybe you will be raped so much that you lose control of your bowels and need to wear diapers because you won't be able to hold in your poop. Is that what you are daydreaming about and getting excited over?"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!!! DON'T YOU DARE SPEAK TO THEM LIKE THAT!!!" Stella screamed, but shut up once a gun was pointed at her. At that point, Shay peed himself out of fear.

"Wow, look who just peed his shorts. Maybe you should be in a diaper like my little boy is. He needs them because of the car crash he was in. His dad was killed in it. He survived, but a piece of steel damaged his bladder and his nerves, so he can't tell when he has to pee. Maybe you should've thought about all of that before you kicked my boy in the ass, Dess. You only go after those who are weak and defenseless, because in the end, a man in his 50s was able to beat your ass easily. And the fact that you all are being forced to give in to the demands of little boys only makes this even funnier. Stella, you are the real pathetic one. Not your husband. And you three, how you act and if you agree to the punishment I suggest will determine if I have you all killed. Do you understand me?"

Marcos and Dess verbally said yes, but Shay only shook his head.

"BOY, do you understand?" Kevin raised his voice and was right in front of Shay's face. At that point, Stella had enough. She slipped out of her cuffs and sucker punched Kevin in the face.

"I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO FUCK OFF!!" Stella screamed, but then yelled in pain when Nicky fired a shot at Stella.

"NICKY, NO!!! DON'T KILL MY WIFE!!!" Stolas panicked as he tried to run to Stella, but Kevin stopped him.

"Stolas, we are not killing Stella yet," Kevin assured, "This is only a flesh wound. But if Stella slaps me again, then my boys won't hesitate to kill her. Now, X, please cover up her wound, please."

X then used a patch to cover Stella's gash before replacing the blessed handcuffs on her and then Kevin can continue.

"As I was saying, me and my boys are followers of the Stolitz Doctrine. We believe in the shipping between Stolas and Blitzo, and we want them to be together. However, Stella, you are a major obstacle in that shipping, considering all the things you have done to Stolas and those he has loved. Some followers have even expressed wanting you dead, and you should thank your lucky stars we have not done that, even after everything you've done. Do you have anything to say before we discuss your punishment?"

Stella thought for a moment before she spoke.

"I am sorry for trying to have you tortured, Stolas," Stella began, "I have been bossy to him and others and I always want my way or that high way. And yes, I will also admit this now, but I have raped Stolas in our honeymoon. And I am sorry for that... I am sorry for all of it... I am not used to having many friends.  Andrealphus has only been my best friend. I guess I felt like I had to act to impress him and others so they would still want to be friends, not unless they find out I am nothing special.  Deep down, I feel that I am kind of a wimp, and a poor wife. I’m a failure at being a good wife and a good mother. I failed everyone for my reckless actions and cruel behavior. Kevin, you are right that I the real pathetic one. I just want... I just want to be loved..."

Stella started crying at that point. Stolas leaned in to give Stella a hug, and soon, the three hellhounds hugged Stella too. However, Kevin nor his boys hugged her, and if anything, looked pissed. Once the hugs were broke, Kevin decided now would be a good time to call her out on her shit.

"Stella, thank you. However, you are not the victim here. What you just did was take your bad actions and turn it around so that we feel sorry for you, like you are the one hurt and deserves pity and it’s not your fault that you did the bad acts. It’s called taking the victim stance. You made your choices, and you acted how you acted because you wanted to. No one made you do it. I don’t think you really believe that trying to be abusive or a bitch would impress Andrealphus or any of your fake friends, and considering you all live in Hell, that type of personality is nothing new when it comes to wives here. I am disappointed in how you wanted us to feel sorry for you, instead of you just doing the right thing, and admitting what you did, and accepting you screwed up, without the bullshit excuses. They don’t matter and seem like an after thought to justify why you did it. I honestly think you enjoyed being in charge and the powerful feeling it gave you, especially when you casually admitted to raping your husband at the honeymoon like it was nothing. It is absolutely shameful that you are still doing this, even after everything. If my boys tried pulling this card on me, their punishment would've been so much worse... But enough about all of this. It's time to lay out the punishment."

"Stella, for your years of abuse and hatred towards Stolas, I think you need to be in diapers and be treated as a little girl for at least a year, but it can be extended if you choose to act up. During this time, you will be in diapers 24/7. The toilet is off-limits without permission. You can use it once a day when your diaper is changed, and with permission. However, if you act up or misbehave you can lose potty privileges because babies use their diapers to pee and poop. They also don't ask to be changed unless your diaper is starting to leak or is about to leak. At home, you will only wear your diapers, nothing to hide them. As it gets cold you can were sweat pants, part of the time, or else get into your 1 piece pajamas when at home. Toddlers often spend the cold months in 1 piece pjs all the time. Even when they go out to the movies and stuff. I would suggest that the first weekend you get home, you be forced to poop your diapers for a few days, so you understand how yucky it feels and that will remind you why it's better to be a big girl in a diaper instead of a baby or tantruming toddler. You will also get other items toddlers have, like pacifiers and sippy cups. Bottles if Stolas and Andrealphus thinks it is proper or if you want one, ask for one. If you act up, many companies make twin-size beds that are also a crib for big kids that are like a toddler, and Stolas and Andrealphus might get that to help you behave. I know some parents have converted Bunk Beds into a crib on the bottom bunk for their children. I have seen one that was a crib on both bunks, when needed. Also during this time, you will not be allowed to host any parties, and you will have to attend anger management and learn how to be a better wife and a better mother. You will also have to give up some expensive things and have to be humbled by using cheaper things. I would also suggest working in a part-time job at a fast food restaurant later on in your punishment so you can earn money and learn to appreciate it instead of spending it on stupid shit. Lastly, Octavia will no longer be your daughter, but your big sister, and you will have to do whatever she says and let her take care of you just like Stolas and Andrealphus will take care of you. If she wants to listen to Fuck You Dad, and you want to listen to something else, then I suggest you start enjoying Fuck You Dad, not unless you want her to spank you, as Octavia will also have the authority to punish you if needed."

"As for you Marcos, Shay, and Dess, you all will have a similar punishment to Stella, but different. Instead of it lasting a year, it will go on for at least six months, but it can be extended if you three act up. Like with Stella, you all will wear diapers and be forced to use them, and will all be treated like little pups by your new caregiver Stolas. That's right, Stolas is now going to be your new daddy. Because you three wanted to try and hurt him, instead, he is going to love you like no other and you will be forced to call him 'daddy' and whatnot. Blitzo will also be your daddy, and Octavia will also be your big sister, and you three are also expected to listen to them and behave when they're around. During your punishment, you three will also need to attend anger management along with Stella and also take classes into respecting everyone, royalty included. Charlie has a program in the Hazbin Hotel that you all will need to attend to. And lastly, me and my boys will come in weekly to check your progress on all four of you to ensure the punishment is working and you all are behaving. If I discover that you four are resisting the punishment or are acting up, then I will personally give you all spankings. Note that they will be hard smacks to your bare bottoms, and they hurt me more than it hurts the person I am spanking. This is because I feel as though I have failed you all very much if I have to resort to such measures. Please don't make me spank you, but at the same time, please follow the rules and behave."

"Stella, Marcos, Shay, and Dess, does this punishment sound fair to you all? To anyone in the room, if there are any modifications you want in the punishment, let me know and we can try and work it out."

Everyone was in absolute shock at what Kevin was suggesting. He basically wanted all four of them to go back to being treated like babies and wear diapers that they would be forced to use whenever they need to go. However, this was the final straw for Stella, and she was so done with his ramblings.

"Absolutely FUCKING NOT!!!" Stella protested, "What kind of punishment is this? You want me to regress back to being a baby? And make Stolas and Andrealphus take care of me? Absolutely not! Over my dead fucking body! I'm not accepting this punishment whatsoever, you fucking pedo! Go take your baby boys out of here and LEAVE US THE FUCK ALONE!!!"

Just then, all three boys pointed their guns at Stella. Stolas tried to stop them, but Kevin made Stolas sit back down and warned him not to get up again. He then glared at Stella.

"Stella, listen to me very carefully. You have two options right now: One, you accept your punishment and allow us to treat you like a baby and a little girl so you can learn to be empathetic and compassionate. Or, your second option will be that my boys will execute you right here, right now. Like I said earlier, after everything you've done, you should be amazed we haven't killed you already. But if you refuse to accept your punishment one more fucking time, then we will finally do what Stolas should've done years ago and rid you off the face of Hell. The choice is yours."

"YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! JUST KILL ME!!! JUST FUCKING KILL ME ALREADY!!! I'M TIRED OF LIVING LIKE THIS!!! I'M TIRED OF DEALING WITH HIM!!! AND I'M SO FUCKING DONE WITH YOU ALL!!! DO EVERYONE A FAVOR AND KILL MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!"

And with that, all three boys shot Stella numerous times, killing her instantly.

"STELLA!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Stolas screamed and cried as he ran towards Stella's now lifeless body and hugged it tightly as he sobbed heavily. He didn't care if Stella deserved it or not. Stella did not had to go out like this. Despite everything she did to him, deep down, he wished that Stella could've been redeemed and moved on with a better life, and one without any pain or trauma. Everyone was silent, and allowed Stolas to mourn over Stella's dead body. After five minutes of this, Kevin gently told Stolas he needed to let go, and he finally did. Cleaners then arrived to dispose of Stella's body. Once Stella's body was gone, Marcos decided to speak.

"Kevin, while Stolas was mourning for the loss of Princess Stella, we talked for a bit, and we figured that the punishment you offered to us sounded fair. You are right in a sense that we are too aggressive and need to learn to control it, as well as respect Stolas and everyone else. Stolas, me, Shay, and Dess all deeply apologize for working with Stella and trying to hurt you. We had no good reason to do it. Can we... can we get a hug from you?"

Stolas nodded and hugged all three hellhounds, who cried.

"I forgive you all," Stolas said, "I'm glad you three are starting to own up to your mistakes and are willing to do this unusual, yet fitting punishment. Now, are you three little pups ready to spend the next six months with me?"

"Yes daddy..." they all said. With the help of Kevin and his boys, all three hellhounds changed into nothing but diapers as they all got pacifiers. Stolas showed them their new rooms, which included their own cribs to sleep in. Since it was night-time, Kevin suggested that they all go to bed, which they did without argument. It was around this time that Octavia arrived, and Kevin explained to her everything that happened, including the death of her mother. Octavia cried as she hugged her father. She felt so sad and depressed that she had to die, but after hearing Kevin's explanation, she understood why it had to be done. Stolas then introduced her to her new little brothers. She was weirded out with the idea, but ultimately decided to go along with it just for the sake of their punishment. Once Octavia headed to her room, Stolas and Kevin spoke by themselves.

"Well, Kevin, you and your sons have certainly been much help," Stolas thanked, "I wished Stella didn't had to go out like that, but I'm glad her hellhounds agreed to the punishment. I sure hope they can learn their lesson from all of this. Would you be alright to exchange phone numbers?"

"Of course, Stolas," Kevin agreed, "We would need to come back weekly anyway to monitor their punishment. You can also have my email as a backup."

Stolas and Kevin exchanged their phone numbers and emails before Kevin and his boys took off in the Excursion, which was amazingly still working after crashing into the room. Stolas was still in shock with everything that just happened. He didn't knew there were followers of a supposed doctrine with him and Blitzo, but he was glad these followers were able to save him from torture and give all four the punishments they deserved, no matter how weird it was.

"Tomorrow, I'm going to need to plan on having the little pups meet Blitzo and his employees..." Stolas thought to himself as he headed for bed.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Just then, however, a comet breaks in through the window and impacts on the floor, causing everyone to collapse on the floor. When they all got up, they were wide-eyed at who was standing. It was none other than Neil Degrasse Tyson, the famous astrophysicist.

"Sorry for the break in, but I heard someone mentioning we can start, and I figured now would be a good time to introduce myself," Neil said.

"No way! It's my favorite astrophysicist from the mortal world!" Stolas exclaimed, "I'm so glad I get to see you, even though I wish it was in better circumstances..."

"OH HELL NO!!! THERE'S NO WAY I'M LETTING THAT DEI HIRE INTERRUPT US!!!" Stella exclaimed, "YOU ARE TO LEAVE IMMEDIATELY!!! WE ARE RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF SOMETHING, IF YOU COULDN'T TELL!!!"

"I'll leave, but first, let me ask this guy a question," Nei said as he went up to the Shar Pei hellhound, "Let's say theoretically, you threw a punch at Stolas, who's currently handcuffed. What do you think will happen?"

"Uuuuh... he'll fall down?" the Shar Pei hellhound asked.

"Incorrect," Neil said before he pulled up Stolas's shirt to reveal some black vest he was wearing, "This right here is a Punch Resistor 3000. It is used by us astrophysicists to resist any alternative changes whenever we study space and its many wonders. To demonstrate how it works, I would like for you to try and punch Stolas."

"A- Are you sure about that?" Stolas worryingly said.

"Trust me, Stolas, you'll see the wonders it can do," Neil assured.

"Well, I was going to punch him right before you came in, so I might as well," the Shar Pei hellhound shrugged before he went to punch Stolas. However, when he did so, his fist stopped upon impact of the vest, and instead turned towards him. Then, with all the force, the fist went straight to hit the Shar Pei hellhound very hard in the face, causing him to be knocked out in an instant.

"WOAH! IT LITERALLY MADE HIM KNOCK HIMSELF OUT!" the chihuahua exclaimed.

"That's right! The Punch Resistor 3000 used the electrons in his fist to be relocated from the initial attack onto himself, and needless to say, it was one mighty punch. In our work, the vest can redirect the charges to other directions. Now, are there any other volunteers?"

"Actually, uh... me and Shay just realized that we had a doctor's appointment to go to, and we gotta be there, so see ya!" the watchdog hellhound nervously said before he and Shay ran out of the room, not wanting to get knocked out by the vest.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU USED THAT VEST TO KNOCK OUT ONE OF MY HELLHOUNDS AND CAUSE THE OTHER TWO TO RUN AWAY!!!" Stella screamed at Neil's face, "THAT'S IT!!! BECAUSE OF YOUR STUPID EXPERIMENTS, BLITZO WILL NOW HAVE TO DIE!!!"

Just then, however, Neil picked up Stolas and used the vest to touch Stella. Upon doing so, Stella involuntarily felt her arms point at her face and punch her, knocking herself out.

"OH MY GOODNESS!!! I DIDN'T THINK THAT WOULD HAPPEN!!!" Stolas exclaimed. Neil then turned off her phone and released Stolas from the handcuffs.

"I will say, Stolas, your wife has been quite a pain in the mortal world, and she has recently tried to interrupt out experiments as of late," Neil explained, "After I got word that she was trying to kill you, I decided to try and get my revenge by slipping the vest on you while you were sleeping and modify it so that it will cause her and her goons to knock themselves out when they touch it."

"Well, that's interesting..." Stolas said, not wanting to question why he didn't felt the vest until Neil showed it, "But nonetheless, I greatly appreciate your help."

"No problem, Mr. Stolas. Now if you don't mind me, I gotta transport your wife and the Shar Pei hellhound back to their respective homes," Neil said as he used a teleporter to take Stella and the Shar Pei hellhound back to their respective homes. Afterwards, both Stolas and Neil exchanged numbers before Neil few out of hell with the comet. Stolas was surprised that his favorite astrophysicists from Earth would come in and rescue him, but he was glad he stepped in and used his knowledge of charges and force to stop them in a bizarre, yet creative way before things got out of hand.

"I sure can't wait to tell Via about my run in with Neil!" Stolas exclaimed as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"Start what?! Your butt?!"

Everyone turned to who said that, and lo and behold, it was Gregory from the video game Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach. Behind him were the animatronics Glamrock Freddy, Glamrock Chica, Roxanne Wolf, Montgomery Gator, and the Daycare Attandent.

"Stella, Gregory just told us that you and your hellhounds were planning to have Stolas tortured while threatening to kill his imp lover Blitzo! Is this true?" Freddy interrogated.

"Yeah, and why does that concern you all?!" Stella confirmed, annoyed that the moment was interrupted, "Now please leave. We're right in the middle of something."

"I don't think so!" Chica retorted, "Back at the Mega Pizzaplex, we do not tolerate any kind of violence. We want everyone to be treated with respect."

"Shove that preachy shit up your ass, bitch!" the watchdog hellhound exclaimed before turning to Roxanne, "Come on, Roxanne, we know you. Why not join us in beating this gay owl up and assert your canine supremacy?"

"OH NO! I WILL NOT JOIN YOU LOSERS IN BEATING HIM UP!" Roxanne exclaimed, "As a canine myself, you do not represent our species! I never had a problem with any of my friends being different species. If anything, that makes you all hypocrites because you're willing to work for a swan to beat up an owl! How stupid is that?"

"It doesn't matter, jerk!" the chihuahua argued, "Stolas has been horrible to Stella, and has embarrassed her name and ruined her honor! She doesn't deserve to have her name tarnished! Me and my buddies feel bad for her, and we want her to succeed for once and show Stolas he can't always have his way!"

"THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO DO IT!!!" Montgomery screamed, pissed that they couldn't see the hypocrisy in what they were doing. By now, Stella was losing her patience, and pulled out her phone.

"I HAVE HAD IT WITH YOU FUCKERS!!!" Stella screamed, "YOU ALL HAVE FIVE SECONDS TO LEAVE AND LET US DO WHAT WE NEED TO DO, OR ELSE STOLAS'S IMP PLAYTHING WILL DIE!!!"

Stella had barely finished her sentence when the Daycare Attendant snatched her phone and picked her up. "HEY! PUT ME DOWN!"

"No, m'am! You're going in timeout until you learn to behave!" the Daycare Attendant said as he placed Stella in a timeout cage so she couldn't get out.

"Hey! Let Stella go!" the Shar Pei hellhound demanded.

"MAKE US!!!" Montgomery screamed as everyone got ready to battle.

"Oh no, this is not going to be good..." Stolas worryingly said as the fight began. The hellhounds pranced on Chica first and tackled her down. Roxanne and Montgomery swooped in the get all three off and punched them. During this time, Gregory snuck up on Stolas and released him from the handcuffs.

"NO!!! DON'T RELEASE HIM!!! OH SATAN, THIS IS NOT GOING AS PLANNED!!!" Stella whined. Freddy then roundhouse kicked the chihuahua before the Daycare Attendant ripped off his shirt.

"HEY!!! STOP FUCKING ME UP!!!" the chihuahua begged as Chica slapped him.

"Maybe you all should've thought of that before jumping me!" Chica retorted. Just then, Stolas turned to his feral mode and proceeded to tear the chihuahua hellhound to shreds, killing him.

"HOLY SHIT!!! HE JUST GOT SHREDDED!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed in terror.

"LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!!!" the watchdog hellhound yelled as he and the Shar Pei hellhound ran to the door. However, they were stopped by a night guard named Vanessa, who stopped the two hellhounds before cuffing them.

"You two are under arrest for working with Stella to try and hurt Stolas," Vanessa said as she threw them in a portal to jail.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU ALL BARGED IN AND RUINED EVERYTHING!!!" Stella screamed, "I HAVE A SADISM FETISH, AND I LOVE SEEING STOLAS HURT!!! I JUST WANT HIM TO KNOW THAT HE IS A PATHETIC FUCKING MAN WHO DOESN'T DESERVE SHIT!!!"

However, they all shook their heads in disapproval as Stolas walked up to the cage and released Stella from it. But Stella barely had a chance to celebrate before Stolas slapped her in the face.

"Fuck you, Stella! The fact that you are still doing this shit after you tried to have me assassinated shows that YOU are the real pathetic one here, not me!" Stolas confronted, "Going forward, if you try and pull anything like this again, I will kill you. And I don't care if Via ends up going without a mother for the remainder of her life, because even she won't want anything to do with you once I tell her all the shit you did. Now go home, Stella, and let this be the last time you try and fuck with me..."

Stella knew she was outnumbered with Stolas and the entire Security Breach crew ready to pounce on her. All she could do was sigh in defeat and leave the palace, most likely never going to return again. Once Stella was gone, Stolas turned to the crew.

"Thank you all for your help in freeing me from their torture," Stolas thanked, "As a way to show my gratitude, I will grant you all a special grant to improve the Mega Pizzaplex and assure it continues running for the foreseeable future. I've heard about your recent troubles, and I want to try and help out whenever I can."

"Why, Stolas, that would be great!" Freddy agreed. With the help of Vanessa, they worked out a plan for the grant Stolas gave, and everyone said their goodbyes before leaving. It was also around this time that Octavia arrived.

"Hey dad, mom warned me about some animatronics before coming here. Don't tell me those creepy robots from Loo Loo Land somehow climbed their way in..." Octavia groaned.

"No, Via, they didn't get in!" Stolas assured, "But to make a long story short, the people who work at the Mega Pizzaplex wanted me to help them since business was on a decline, and I figured I'd help them out. We were able to work out a special grant that can help improve the facility."

"That sounds great," Octavia nodded, "Can we go there? I want to see it."

"First thing tomorrow morning, Via," Stolas said. Even though the full moon was close, visiting the Mega Pizzaplex and having Octavia go there for the first time would certainly be a nice change of pace. And if the next full moon goes well, then perhaps Blitzo and his employees can also visit.

"I sure hope things go upward from here..." Stolas thought to himself as he followed his daughter to the living room for movie night.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Just then, however, a huge portal spawned in the room and sucked everyone in. All five screamed as they were all being transformed into a different world. During this time, Stella's phone was lost, and Stolas's handcuffs were broken off from the pressure. Eventually, all five fell out of the portal and into five different podiums. When they all got up, they were in shock to see a man named Boris standing at the center of the stage.

"Hello everyone, and welcome back to another episode of Get Ungrounded Trivia!" Boris announced, "Today, for the first time, we have five new contestants. Stolas, a prince of the Ars Goetia. Then Stella, the former wife of Stolas who just tried to torture him just now. And finally, the three hellhounds working for Stella: Marcos, Shay, and Dess."

"WHAT THE HELL?! WHY ARE YOU MAKING US GO THROUGH THIS STUPID GAME SHOW?! AND HOW DID YOU FIND OUT ABOUT MY PLAN?!" Stella demanded.

"Stella, we're gonna have a wager, okay?" Boris began, "You will get questions, and you have to get them correct. If you guessed right, then you will be ungrounded. But if you guessed wrong, then you will be grounded. If Stolas is the most ungrounded, then the torture must stop. But if Stella or any of the three hellhounds are the most ungrounded, then you can resume the torture."

Everyone nodded their heads, understanding what's at stake here. Stella and her goons were more than ready to win so they can continue where they left off. Stolas, on the other hand, just wanted to win so he can kick them out of their lives for good and move on from Stella and her abusive nature.

"Alright, here's the first question!"

What is the name of Stolas's imp lover?

Right away, Stella buzzed in.

"Is his name Bob?"

"No, Stella, the imp's name is not Bob. You are grounded grounded grounded for 5 years," Boris said, and Stella lost 5 points.

"No fair! I could've sworn that was his name!" Stella humped.

"Stella, it is not his name. Now please don't argue me on this," Boris warned. Stolas then buzzed in.

"His name is Blitzo," Stolas said.

"Yes, Stolas! That is correct! You are ungrounded for 5 years," Boris said, and 5 points were added to Stolas's score.

"Alright, here's the next question."

How old were Stolas and Stella when they married?

Marcos buzzed in.

"Were they 69 years old?" Marcos's answer caused both Shay and Dess to laugh.

"No, Marcos, they were not 69 years old. You are grounded grounded grounded for 10 years," Boris said, and Marcos lost 10 points. Shay then buzzed in.

"I know! They were 420 years old!" Shay exclaimed, causing Marcos and Dess to laugh even louder.

"No, Shay, they were not 420 years old. You are grounded grounded grounded for 10 years," Boris said, and Shay lost 10 points. Stolas then buzzed in.

"Me and Stella were 18 years old when we first married," Stolas answered.

"Correct, Stolas! You and Stella were barely 18 when you first married! You will be ungrounded for 10 years," Boris said, and 10 points were added to Stolas's score.

"THIS IS BULLSHIT! MARCOS, SHAY, WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU MAKE UP SUCH RETARDED ANSWERS?!" Stella screamed at the hellhounds.

"I'm sorry, but me and Shay couldn't resist!" Marcos defended.

"Alright, here's the next question."

Is Dess in love with Stella?

Dess buzzed in.

"No, I'm not in love with Stella! What kind of stupid question is that?!" Dess exclaimed.

"No, Dess, that answer is incorrect. You are grounded grounded grounded for 50 years," Boris said, and Dess lost 50 points.

"OH YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!!" Dess screamed as he pounded his fist on the podium.

"Dess, do not slam your fists on the podium! That's it! You are grounded grounded grounded for an additional 100 years," Boris said, and Dess lost 100 points. Stella then buzzed in.

"Well, I guess the answer is he is in love with me?" Stella confusingly stated.

"Correct, Stella! Dess is in love with you! You will be ungrounded for 50 years," Boris said, and 50 points were added to Stella's score.

"Dess, why are you in love with a woman who raped me, abused me, tried to kill me, and is now adamant in having me tortured?" Stolas asked Dess.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! FINE!!! I AM IN LOVE WITH STELLA!!! THAT'S WHY I WORKED WITH HER, BECAUSE I WANT TO RIZZ HER UP AND BE MY MOMMY!!! I WANT TO SUCK HER MOMMY MILKERS AND EAT HER ASS LIKE IT'S FUCKING BACON!!!" Dess confessed. Everyone gasped at Dess's shocking confession, and Stella looked like she was about to pass out.

"Oh my Lucifer..." Stella shockingly said as she covered her mouth with her hand, "I can't believe Dess is that much of a simp for me!"

"MOMMY, PLEASE!!! I DON'T CARE IF WE WIN OR NOT!!! LET'S FUCK AFTER THIS SHITSHOW'S OVER!!! PLEASE!!!" Dess begged as he got on his knees.

"Bro, she's not going to fuck you!" Shay said in disgust.

"ENOUGH!" Boris yelled, "Dess, for being creepy, you are grounded grounded grounded for 500 years!" Boris said, and Dess lost 500 points, "Okay, now let's just move on to the next question already!"

What is the overall percent of gay male owls in the owl community?

Stolas buzzed in.

"Of all the owls in the owl community, around 8.9% of them identify as gay," Stolas answered.

"That is correct, Stolas! You even got down to the exact percentage! You will be ungrounded for 100 years," Boris said, and 100 points were added to Stolas's score.

"I HATE THIS FUCKING SHOW!!! YOU KNOW WHAT, STOLASS?!?! TAKE THIS!!!" Stella yelled, and she threw a banana at Stolas's head.

"STELLA!!! DO NOT THROW BANANAS AT ME!!!" Stolas screamed, causing the hellhounds to laugh.

"Stella, we do not throw bananas at other contestants! And Marcos, Shay, and Dess, you three do not laugh at Stolas's misery! Stella, you will be grounded grounded grounded for 1,000 years. And Marcos, Shay, and Dess, you will be grounded grounded grounded for 500 years," Boris said, and all four contestants lost points.

"COME ON, MAN!!! HE DESERVED IT FOR BEING A WEAK PATHETIC ASSHOLE!!! I AM SO MUCH BETTER THAN HIM!!!" Dess protested.

"Of course Stella's #1 simp would say that!" Marcos joked.

"SAY THAT TO MY FACE, BOY!!!" Dess growled as he tackled Marcos, and the two proceeded to fight off stage.

"MARCOS, DESS, YOU TWO GET BACK HERE RIGHT NOW!!!" Stella screamed, but it was too late. Both Marcos and Dess left the studio to continue fighting.

"Well, I guess Marcos and Dess are now disqualified for fighting," Boris said, "Now let's move on to the final question, which is worth 1,000,000 points. If you get it right, then you will be ungrounded for 1,000,000 years. But if you get it wrong, then you will be grounded for 1,000,000 years. Now here is the question.

Beat up Stella and Shay to get this question right!

"Wait, WHAT?!?!" Stella shockingly said.

"Oh, uh... hey, Stolas! Remember that thing we tried to do to you just now? Well we're so sorry about that, so how about we make amends now and go our own ways?" Shay nervously said, hoping to try and convince Stolas to not beat them up.

"HELL NO!!! I DO NOT TRUST YOU ALL!!! SINCE YOU ALL WANT TO HURT ME, I'LL HURT YOU TOO!!!" Stolas screamed before he went into feral mode and proceeded to brutally assault Stella and Shay. Both the swan and chihuahua screamed and cried as they tried, but failed to stop Stolas. By the time he stopped, both were severely injured.

"Congratulations, Stolas! You got the question right! This means you will be ungrounded for 1,000,000 years!" Boris congratulated, and 1,000,000 points were awarded to Stolas, "This concludes this episode of Get Ungrounded Trivia. Stolas won the game, and therefore, he won't be tortured anymore. Stella and Shay, meanwhile, now have to go to the hospital for the assault, and who the fuck knows where Marcos and Dess are at right now. Stay tuned for the next episode!"

Once the episode finished airing, Stolas opened up a portal back to hell as paramedics arrived to treat the injuries of Stella and Shay. He sighed, completely shocked at the turn of events, where a trivia show of all things stopped him from being tortured. But in a way, he was glad he won the game, and he hoped Stella and the hellhounds learned not to fuck with him anymore.

"I gotta go prepare for Via's visit. I sure hope she won't watch the episode and see Dess confess to his love for Stella in such an embarrassing way..." Stolas thought to himself.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

However, when the Shar Pei hellhound went to punch Stolas, something weird happen. Every time he tried to punch him, his arm kept swinging away from him.

"Come on, you imbecile! Hit him!" Stella demanded.

"I'm trying, but everytime I do, my arm keeps moving away!" the Shar Pei complained. The chihuahua and watchdog hellhounds decided to give it a go to, but their arms kept moving away from Stolas.

"GODDAMNIT!!! WHY THE HELL DID I INVITE YOU FUCKING IDIOTS?!?!" Stella screamed, frustrated at their incompetence.

"Seriously, Stella? You just had to hire hellhounds who don't know how to properly punch? That only proves I was right about you being stupid and dense," Stolas stated, annoyed that the hellhounds still couldn't land a punch.

"YOU BETTER SHUT UP RIGHT NOW OR ELSE YOUR IMP PLAYTHING IS DEAD!!!" Stella yelled as she tried to grab her phone, only to realize that she didn't have it, "FOR FUCK'S SAKE!!! WHERE'S MY PHONE?!?!"

"Over here in pieces!"

Everyone turned to who said that, and there stood four magicians known as the Four Horsemen. One of them was using magic to stop the hellhounds from punching Stolas, and another had Stella's phone, but it was sliced in half.

"Who are you people, and what the fuck did you do to my phone?!? Stella demanded.

"We're the Four Horsemen, and we just got word that you and your pups were trying to hurt Stolas, and we can't allow that," Dylan, the leader of the group, said.

"Are you all serious right now?! You're making us look like fucking jokes! Get out of here and let us be! Not unless you wanna get hurt as well!" the watchdog hellhound growled.

"I don't think so!" Henley exclaimed, "Watch this!"

With some magic, Henley was able to help Stolas escape his blessed cuffs, and then Henley would placed said cuffs on Stella.

"HEY! GET ME OUT OF THOSE HANDCUFFS RIGHT THIS INSTANT!" Stella demanded.

"No can do, missy!" Merritt said as he got a little watch clock and waved it at the three hellhounds, which hypnotized them almost immediately, "Now, listen carefully, you three are idiots who don't know anything about the world. When I snap my fingers, you are all going to waddle away and act foolishly, and the spell cannot be broken unless someone recites the entirely of Hamlet three times with no breaks."

And with a snap of a finger, all of the hellhounds acted stupidly.

"Duuuuuuuuuuh, letz getz out of herez!" the chihuahua said in a simpleton tone.

"Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeez, me no likez dis!" the Shar Pei added as all three waddled out of the room.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU JERKS DID THAT!!!" Stella exclaimed, "THINGS WERE GOING SO WELL UNTIL YOU SHOWED UP!!!"

However, Stella was forced to stop screaming when Stolas slapped her in the face.

"SHUT UP, BITCH!!!" Stolas yelled, "I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU AND YOUR BULLSHIT!!! THE SECOND THE CUFFS ARE OFF, YOU ARE TO LEAVE MY PALACE AND NEVER RETURN!!! AND IF YOU TRY TO PULL ANOTHER STUNT LIKE THIS AGAIN, THEN I WILL KILL YOU ON THE FUCKING SPOT!!! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!?!"

All Stella could do was nod silently. When Stolas released her from the cuffs, she just left without saying a word.

"Thank you all for your bravery and courage to stop them," Stolas thanked, "How did you all get in hell to begin with?"

"Jack was able to use his illusion skills to open up a portal here, and we were hoping to gain a bit of a following in hell," Dylan said, "Since you're a Goetian demon, do you think you can give us a bit of a boost?"

"Certainly!" Stolas agreed, "After all, it's the least I can do to repay you four for your hard work. Are you also open to preform later tonight? My daughter should be arriving home soon, and I think she'll love to see your tricks!"

"That sounds like a plan," Henley nodded.

"Yeah, this will be great!" Daniel exclaimed.

The Four Horsemen then left the room to get prepared for the show they'll perform in the palace later on. Stolas then decided to call up Octavia to let her know in advance about the magic show.

"Via, I hope you're in the mood for magic, because there's some magicians who would love to perform for us!" Stolas excitingly said on the phone.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"EXCUSE ME! JUST WHAT DO YOU ALL THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"

Everyone turned around to see who said there, and they were surprised at who it was. There looked to be another Goetian with a similar appearance to Stella. However, she had some green and red patterns and wore a green dress.

"Who the fuck are you? Can't you see we're all busy doing something?" Stella annoyingly asked.

"I am Princess Stella, and this is my quarters!" Pilot Stella stated, "You all are to leave, but leave Stolas here. I need to have a word with him."

"YOU DON'T RUN SHIT, LADY!!!" Stella yelled at Pilot Stella's face, "NOW LEAVE OR ELSE I WILL GET MY HELLHOUNDS TO ESCORT YOU OUT OF HERE!!!"

"Oh, these mongrel beasts?" Pilot Stella said with disgust, "You should be ashamed letting them do everything! As a Goetian princess, I can fend for myself, and I don't need to rely on low-life creatures to assist me."

"HOW DARE YOU CALL US MONGRELS! THAT'S IT! WE'RE TAKING YOU OUT OF HERE!" the watchdog hellhound growled as the three hellhounds got up to Pilot Stella. However, Pilot Stella wasn't messing around. When the chihuahua hellhound tried to grab her, she used her talons to slit his throat, killing him instantly.

"SHAY, NO!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound cried.

"HOW DARE YOU KILL HIM!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he proceeded to tackle Pilot Stella. This lead to her to used a magic blast directly to his face, decapitating him.

"OH FUCK, OH FUCK! I'M SORRY! DON'T KILL ME!" the Shar Pei hellhound begged as he cried, but it was no use. Pilot Stella snapped his neck and killed him. In the mist of all of this, Stolas and especially Stella stood and watched in shocked.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU KILLED MY HELLHOUNDS!!!" Stella screamed, "THAT'S IT!!! BECAUSE OF YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS, BLITZO WILL NOW DIE!!!"

However, before Stella could grab her phone, Pilot Stella punched her in the face before stomping her phone until it broke.

"NO! NOT MY PHONE!" Stella cried out.

"I don't care! I have had enough of your weak, pathetic self! Leave right now or else I will kill you just like your mongrel friends!" Pilot Stella threatened. Stella had no choice but to run out of fear, not wanting to die. Pilot Stella then released Stolas from his handcuffs.

"Well, um... thank you, Stella..." Stolas nervously said, not sure what to think of Pilot Stella.

"Stolas, you need to be more careful," Pilot Stolas warned, "I don't know who this other Stella is, but she's an imposter. You should've asserted your dominance next time. Remember who you are..."

Stolas simply nodded. The more he thought of it, the more he realized it would've been easier if he had simply destroyed the phone and kicked their asses on the curbs. He facepalmed himself when he realized how easy it could've been to avoid that situation.

"Hey, don't beat yourself over this," Pilot Stella assured as she placed her hand on his shoulder, "We will get through this. Octavia is coming soon, remember? How about you introduce me to her? I'd love to see how my daughter is doing."

"Sure, that I can manage," Stolas agreed as Pilot Stella went to get ready. Stolas was surprised at this version of Stella, who seemed to be nicer and more chill. Why couldn't he have been married to her instead? But it didn't matter, as the actual Stella was still running away in terror.

"Well, I better get ready for Via's visit to get my mind off Stella's twisted games..." Stolas thought to himself as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"STELLA!!! WHAT IN THE WORLD DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"

Everyone turned around and gasped at who was standing there. There was Andrealphus, the older brother of Stella. And he was fuming.

"Andrealphus?! What the hell are you doing here?!" Stella asked, completely shocked at Andrealphus's sudden appearance.

"Stella, when I told you that we had other options we can use to hurt Stolas, this isn't what I fucking meant!" Andrealphus scolded, "Do you seriously think having him tortured at the hands of hellhounds is going to accomplish anything?!"

"Oh come on, Andrealphus! You and I both know he deserves it!" Stella argued, "Besides, I think it's high time I take back control of this relationship!"

"Princess Stella is right! Get out of here right now!" the watchdog hellhound tried to intimidate.

"I don't think so!" Andrealphus retorted before he pulled out his phone and played footage of what Stella said to Stolas beforehand.

"Wait, YOU FUCKING RECORDED THAT?!" Stella exclaimed.

"Damn right I did!" Andrealphus confirmed, "Now, you all either release Stolas and leave, or else I'll tip you all off to the Ars Goetia Police so they can finally deal with your crazy asses! And you doggies will especially will have a rough time with them! The police does not like your kind especially!"

"OH HELL NO!!! WE'VE ALREADY GONE THIS FAR!!! WE ARE NOT GOING TO RELEASE HIM!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed.

"YEAH!!! COME ON GUYS!!! LET'S TAKE HIS PHONE AND DELETE THE FOOTAGE!!!" the chihuahua hellhound yelled, and all three began to charge Andrealphus. However, they did not took in account of his ice powers, which they learned the hard way when Andrealphus froze them all in blocks before causing them to shatter, causing all three hellhounds to die from being shattered in the ice.

"ANDREALPHUS, NO!!! DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG IT TOOK FOR ME TO FIND GOOD HELLHOUNDS?!?!" Stella cried, but Andrealphus simply went up to her and slapped her across the face.

"You're so lucky that you're attractive..." Andrealphus coldly said, "Now call off those snipers, release him from those disgusting cuffs, and leave... or else I'm leaking the footage right now..."

All Stella could do was sigh and call off the snipers before releasing Stolas from the handcuffs and leave the room, disappointed that her plan was foiled by her own brother. Stolas, meanwhile, couldn't believe what just happened. His brother-in-law that he hated was suddenly willing to defend him? He wasn't sure how to process this.

"Andrealphus, um... I would like to say... thanks?" Stolas said in an unsure way.

"No need to thank me, Stolas, I just didn't want Stella to try and physically harm you anymore," Andrealphus said, "But that doesn't mean we will be going easy on you in court. We'll still fight to ensure Stella gets a fair deal, but without hurting you anymore. You've been hurt for a thousand lifetimes."

"Well, at least you still have some of that arrogant attitude of yours, Andy..." Stolas glared, causing Andrealphus to scoff. He always hated that nickname.

"Whatever. See you in court," Andrealphus simply stated before leaving. Stolas just covered his face for a moment, still processing everything that just went down. At least the torture was stopped. And even though Andrealphus still hated him, at least he cared enough to stop his younger sister from enacting this atrocious plan.

"Hopefully, the rest of the night can go smoothly once Via shows up," Stolas thought to himself as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can-”

Stella was suddenly interrupted when a stick was thrown at her head, causing her to scream out of pain.

"OW!!! WHO THE FUCK THREW THAT?!" Stella demanded.

"That would be me!"

Everyone turned around and couldn't believe who it was. There stood Pringles, the main family butler. And he was pissed.

"What the FUCK, Pringles?! How dare you throw a stick at me! And how did you get in?!" Stella asked.

"No, Stella! I have just about had it with you and your abuse!" Pringles confronted, "Prince Stolas has always been kind and respectful to us butlers, and meanwhile, you treat us like shit and even sometimes chuck me at him! And now you want to hurt him for your own sadism fetish?!"

"Why the fuck do you care what I do with that pathetic fucking man?! He's always been a wimp, and I just want to see him hurt because I LOVE seeing Stolas hurt, okay?!" Stella defended, "Now get out of here! Not unless you want his imp to be killed because you wanted to be a hero!"

"NEVER!!!" Pringles yelled before he threw more sticks at Stella.

"LEAVE HER THE FUCK ALONE, ASSHOLE!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he tackled Pringles. However, Pringles got the upperhand by using a taser he carried in his pocket and used it to stun the watchdog, knocking him out.

"DESS, NO!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed.

"NO ONE KNOCKS OUT OUR FRIENDS!!!" the chihuahua yelled as they both charged at the imp butler, only to be stopped by more sticks and other objects thrown at them.

"Time for some cleaning!" Pringles exclaimed as he grabbed both of their bodies and used them to sweep the floor.

"HEY! STOP THAT!" the Shar Pei hellhound demanded.

"YEAH! THIS IS SO DISGUSTING!" the chihuahua added. Pringles stopped, but not before he threw them at Stella, causing all three to tumble. While they struggled to get up, Pringles released Stolas from his handcuffs.

"Come on, your majesty! Kick their asses!" Pringles demanded. Stolas agreed, and finished the job by going in feral mode and shredding the remaining two hellhounds, killing them.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS!!! HOW COULD ONE OF OUR BUTLERS DO THIS?!?!" Stella screamed, "YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! I'VE HAD IT!!! STOLAS, KISS YOUR IMP GOODBYE, BECAUSE HE'S DEAD!!!"

However, when Stella pulled out her phone, she noticed that it was damaged from sticks being thrown at her, as well as being crushed by the weight of the hellhounds thrown at her. Unfortunately for her, it was damaged to a point where it broke. "GODDAMNIT!!!"

"Stella, you have five seconds to leave right now or else you will die like your disgraceful mutts..." Stolas coldly said. Stella panicked and left the room, not wanting to be killed. Stolas then turned to Pringles, "Thank you so much for your bravery, Pringles. As a way to show gratitude, I will give you and all the other butlers a big raise."

"Thank you, your majesty. We would all certainly appreciate more money," Pringles said as he bowed to the prince before leaving. Stolas was glad that his kindness to the butlers had paid off. With Pringles single-handedly stopping Stella and her goons from hurting him, he was glad to have him on the main team in the family's butlers.

"I sure can't wait to tell Via how amazing Pringles was!" Stolas thought to himself as he left the room, excited to recount this bizarre, yet funny tale to his daughter.

Chapter Text

Emily was in a good mood today. In the wake of Sir Pentious being redeemed enough to go to Heaven, Emily decided that she was going to pay a visit to Charlie at the Hazbin Hotel to see their secret in getting the sinners redeemed, as well as maybe help her out in getting the hotel improved after having to practically rebuild again from the destruction of the last Extermination. Sera was a bit hesitant at first, but ultimately allowed Emily to go under some conditions.

"Alright, Emily, do you have everything you need? Sera asked.

"Of course, Sera! I even made sure to bring that locator of yours that I can push in case things get bad. But as a seraph, I doubt something bad's gonna happen," Emily assured.

"Well, Emily, you never know what can happen," Sera said with a bit of worry, but eased herself, "Now do you know where the Hazbin Hotel is?"

"Yeah, I got the location programmed to take them straight there!" Emily said as she showed Sera the GPS.

"That's great to hear," Sera said as Emily got in her car, "Stay safe, and be sure to call me every once in a while!"

"Of course, Sera! I love you!" Emily exclaimed as she drove off.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

However, before the hellhounds could do anything, a car suddenly crashed through the window and stopped when it hit the bed, wrecking the car.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!?! WATCH WHERE YOU'RE DRIVING, ASSHOLE!!!" Stella screamed. Emily got out of the car, thankfully uninjured, but was in absolute shock and guilt from the crash.

"Oh, no! Stupid GPS confusing a window for a door!" Emily exclaimed, "I am so sorry, every-"

Emily stopped when she saw all five standing there. Everyone looked at each other in shock. None of the demons, hellhounds especially, had ever met a seraph in real life, and no one was sure what to think.

"Um... what's going on here?" Emily asked.

"Uh... none of your business!" Stella exclaimed, not wanting her secret to be exposed, "Get out of here! As a seraph, I'm sure you have some business to attend to."

Suddenly, Emily gasped when she took a closer look at Stolas.

"Wait, ARE THOSE BLESSED HANDCUFFS?!" Emily exclaimed as she ran up to Stolas.

"No, m'am, those are glowing handcuffs! There's a difference!" the Shar Pei hellhound tried to assure, but Emily wasn't buying it.

"No! Those are blessed handcuffs because I see the serial number! I'm taking these off!" Emily said as she released Stolas from the handcuffs. All demons were shocked and didn't want that to happen, but at the same time, they knew the consequences for trying to fight a seraph. "Now, where did you all get these from?"

"NONE OF YOUR FUCKING BUSINESS!!!" Stella screeched.

"Well, uh... don't get too mad when I tell you this..." the chihuahua hellhound said with caution, "But long story short, we were going to have Prince Stolas tortured for Stella's own amusement."

"WHAT THE FUCK, SHAY?!?! WHY WOULD YOU TELL HER?!?!" the watchdog hellhound screamed at Shay.

"Dude, she's a seraph! I'm not about to get killed by them! I heard they are ruthless!" Shay defended.

"I cannot believe what I heard!" Emily yelled, "Why would you three work with a Goetian to hurt another Goetian? That is very rude and disrespectful! Think about how Stolas felt when he was going to be hurt because his own wife hates him! You three could be pawns in her twisted schemes and you don't even know it!"

Suddenly, all three hellhounds started to fell guilty as they let her words sink in. Until now, they thought that Stella was going to help them out and ensure they made lots of money so long as they assist in the torture sessions. But to hear that she would discard them once they were done? That hurt.

"Wow... we never thought of it like that..." the Shar Pei hellhound said as all three hellhounds looked down in shame, "We are so sorry for all of this."

"Don't apologize to me! Apologize to him!" Emily said as she pointed at Stolas, who at this point was struggling not to go into feral mode and shred every living thing in the room.

"Stolas, we're so, so sorry for working with Stella to hurt you," Shay said.

"Yeah, please forgive us! We didn't know she would use us as pawns!" the watchdog hellhound added.

"I'll forgive you all, since it's clear you didn't know any better," Stolas reluctantly said before turning to Emily, "What's your name again?"

"Emily," she responded.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE WHAT I AM WITNESSING RIGHT NOW!!!" Stella suddenly butt in, "HOW DARE YOU BRAINWASH MY HELLHOUNDS TO TURN AGAINST ME!!! YOU ARE A FUCKING IDIOT FOR RUINING EVERYTHING, AND I HATE YOU!!!"

Stella lost it, and proceeded to slap Emily in the face so hard, she fell on the floor. When the three hellhounds saw that, they gasped before glaring heavily at Stella.

"HOW DARE YOU HURT EMILY!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed.

"THAT'S IT!!! PREPARE TO DIE!!!" the watchdog hellhound yelled before all three hellhounds pulled out guns and proceeded to magdump Stella, killing her.

"NO!!! STOP!!! OH MY SATAN!!! WHY DID YOU ALL DO THAT?!?!" Stolas screamed and cried as he ran towards his wife's now lifeless body and cried on her shoulders. As much as he hated Stella and her abusive antics, at the same time, she didn't deserve to die in such a fate. Even Emily was shocked with how intense the killing was.

"Um... I think you three should head out... at least before Stolas snaps..." Emily warned. Realizing that they screwed up killing Via's mother, they all scrambled to leave the room. Once the hellhounds were gone, Emily went up to Stolas and consoled him.

"I'm so sorry for your loss..." Emily whispered to Stolas as he continued to cry. This went on for another minute before Stolas stopped crying and looked up at Emily. "I apologize in advance if this question is a tad bit inappropriate given the current situation, but do you know the direction to the Hazbin Hotel? Cause this is clearly not the hotel."

"Oh, certainly!" Stolas said as he gave Emily the proper directions to the hotel. Once she got them down, they both exchanged numbers before Emily left. Stolas sighed as he looked at the dead body of Stella.

"What am I going to tell Via?" Stolas thought to himself.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

Just then, however, the door busted open and a GoAnimate figure came in the room dancing and crying. That person was none other than the infamous Uolliac, the alter-ego of Caillou who is stupid and nonsensical.

"I'm the Uolliac I'm the Uolliac I'm the Uolliac I'm the Uolliac I'm the Uolliac I'm the Uolliac I'm the Uolliac I'm the Uolliac WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Uolliac said.

"Um, excuse me, but we're right in the middle of something here, so can you please act stupid elsewhere?" Stella asked.

"Oh my god it's a swan butthole and hellhound poop what is going on can I sniff it why is Stolas standing there like a strayberry strayberry strayberry strayberry sh*tcake aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa," As the Uolliac continued to speak illogical and stupid shit, objects in the room began to float around and stretch.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?!?!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed.

"YEAH!!! WHY IS HE SO FUCKING ANNOYING?!?!" the watchdog hellhound screamed, on his last nerves.

"LISTEN UP, UOLLIAC!!! YOU HAVE FIVE SECONDS TO GET OUT OF HERE OR ELSE BLITZO WILL DIE BECAUSE OF YOUR RETARDED ACTIONS!!!" Stella threatened as she pulled out her phone. However, Uolliac used GoAnimate Logic to stretch the phone and thicken it, covering half the room.

"JESUS CHRIST, SOMEBODY STOP THAT NUTJOB!!!" the chihuahua hellhound demanded, and all three hellhounds charged at the Uolliac. However, the Uolliac froze them, and instead stretched them and made them dance and cry like him.

"Go poop on Eric and go home into space where crying is illegal WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Uolliac cried as he flung the hellhounds out of the room.

"Oh my goodness... I feel like I'm losing my brain cells..." Stolas complained as all of this stupidity was starting to get to him. Stella, on the other hand, was at her wits end.

"I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!!!" Stella screamed before she pulled out a gun and shot herself in the head, killing herself.

"STELLA!!! NO!!!" Stolas cried as he was forced to watch his wife go limp from killing herself. By this point, Uolliac came up to Stolas and released him from his handcuffs.

"Go home and go take her swan butthole out of here like a strayberry strayberry strayberry strayberry sh*tcake aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa," Uolliac said before he flew out of the palace. Stolas looked around the room, which was now a mess from all the carnage, and half of it was still covered by Stella's stretched phone.

"Oh no... how am I going to clean all of this up?" Stolas thought to himself as he tried to think of a way to clean all of this up before Octavia arrived.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"DỪNG LẠI ĐÓ!"

Everyone turned around to see who said it, and they couldn't believe who was standing there. There was Kenny Vu, a.k.a. Lord Vô Thần Nebulah of the infamous black metal band Vothana. And he was welding his signature machete, knife, and of course his Der Stürmer hoodie that was featured in the covers of Action Now, Assured Future and Pestilence.

"What is this I hear about you trying to hurt Stolas for your personal gain? Do you have any dignity left that you want mongrel hellhounds to beat him because you tried to control him, only to realize that without it, you are just another sad whore who is a disgrace to her swanenese race," Kenny called out.

"Oh fuck off, you stupid Jap!" Stella exclaimed, "Why do you care about what I do to Stolass? And besides, I've heard your music, and it's shit!"

"Excuse me?!" Kenny said in shocked, "For one, I am not Japanese, but I am Vietnamese. And second, how dare you insult my music! You all better release Stolas and leave or else I will take drastic measures! You all should be ashamed of yourselves!"

"NO! YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF, YOU STUPID NAZI LARPER!" the watchdog hellhound yelled. The chihuahua then pulled out his phone and showed Ken an authentic rip of one of his privates demos, which was "Cầu Nguyện Cho Cuộc Sống Của Người..."

'You know what? I've just about had it with this munchkin!" the chihuahua exclaimed, "Ken, if you do not leave and let us do what we need to do, then I'm leaking your demo to the public so OOTD can rush in to make a shitty vinyl reissue of it just so the hypebeasts at Reddit and Instagram can flex it like it's fucking FUNKO Pops!"

"Ồ KHÔNG BẠN KHÔNG!" Kenny screamed as he used his machete to stab the chihuahua's phone, ruining it.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! I'VE HAD IT WITH YOUR FUCKING GAMES!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he charged at Ken. However, Ken stabbed him in the heart with his machete, killing him.

"DESS NO!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed.

"HOW DARE YOU KILL DESS!!! THAT'S IT!!! STOLAS, BECAUSE KEN WANTS TO BE A PAIN IN THE ASS, YOUR IMP WILL NOW HAVE TO PAY THE PRICE!!!" Stella said, but when she took out her phone, the live feed was replaced with music of Ātesh.

"Enjoy having that Italian-Persian freak permanently on your phone!" Ken mocked before he pulled out a guitar and proceeded to play the song "Fatherland. Honour. Duty." on it, causing Stella and her remaining goons to fly out of the room.

"THIS ISN'T OVER YOU STUPID JAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP!!!" Stella screamed as she and the other two hellhounds were flying out of the room and into the sky. Once they were gone, Ken used his knife to cut the handcuffs, releasing him.

"Thank you, sir..." Stolas nervously said, "But I don't understand. Why do you care so much about me?"

"Stolas, I've been getting into the show Helluva Boss for the past few days thanks to my girlfriend, and seeing Stella and everyone else treat you horribly is unacceptable," Ken explained, "Because of this, I decided to come here to help you and stop that swan whore from hurting you anymore. And besides, I kind of owned one of your friends a favor for helping me get these musical powers to keep the underground black metal scene alive and thriving."

Stolas was surprised to hear that his life was supposedly being recorded and shown to the world in this show named Helluva Boss. He wasn't sure what to think of it, but he at least felt in peace knowing that other people sympathized with him.

"Say, Mr. Ken, you would mind staying here for a bit? That song you played was really good, and since Via is also into metal, I think she would like your music," Stolas offered.

"Certainly. I think she would enjoy my music as well," Ken agreed as he left the room to prepare. Stolas, after making sure Ken was out of the room for good, was able to take the chihuahua's phone and recovered it enough so he can import the mp3 of Cầu Nguyện onto his phone.

"Let's see what this demo has to offer," Stolas said as he left the room and began to play the first song.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"WHAT THE FRICK IS WRONG WITH YOU ALL!!!"

Everyone turned around and gasped at who was standing there. There was SammyClassicSonicFan, one of the most infamous Sonic fanboys out there.

"OKAY!!! THAT IS IT!!! THIS IS THE FINAL STRAAAAAAAAAAW!" Sammy screamed, "I’VE HAD IT WITH ALL YOU FRICKIN’ ABUSERS AND ALL YOU FRICKIN’ HATERS AND ALL YOU FRICKIN STOLAS HATING FRICKS. YOU GUYS ARE THE ONES THAT RUINED STOLITZ FOR EVERYONE! CAN'T YOU SEE THAT? WHAT THE FRICK ARE YOU GUYS DOING!"

Stella and her hellhounds were in absolute shock at Sammy going off at them in his crazed screaming voice. Stella in particular was at a loss of words at what to say to this kid. Stolas, on the other hand, didn't care, just as long as Sammy somehow found a way to free him.

"Jesus Christ, kid, would you SHUT UP?!" the watchdog hellhound exclaimed, "What Stella is doing to her husband is none of your concern! Now get out of here and let us be!"

"WHEN WILL YOU LEARN.. WHEN WILL YOU LEARN THAT YOUR ACTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES!?" Sammy screamed as he proceeded to roundhouse kick the chihuahua dog, knocking him down on the ground.

"WHAT THE HELL, BRO?!?!" the chihuahua cried out in pain.

"YOU FRICKIN’ FRICKS! YOU GUYS HAD TO RUIN IT! YOU GUYS HAD TO RUIN IT! WHY!? WHY, WHY!? WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE LIKE THIS!? WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE LIKE THIS? WHY? WHY? WHY WHY WHY WHY?" As Sammy continue to scream like a banshee, he continued to beat and assault the three hellhounds. Stella got up from the couch and tried to stop Sammy, but to no avail. By the time Sammy was done with them, all three hellhounds were in pain.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU, KID?!" Stella yelled as she slapped Sammy in the face, "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU ASSAULTED MY HELLHOUNDS!!! THAT'S IT!!! BECAUSE OF YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS, BLITZO WILL NOW HAVE TO DIE!!!"

"YOU ASKED FOR IT!!!"

"Uh oh..."

"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Sammy screamed so loudly, it caused Stella and all three hellhounds to fly out of the room and into the sky, never to be seen again. Stolas was in absolute shock at what he had just witnessed, and he thanked his lucky stars that he hadn't gone deaf from Sammy's intense screaming. Sammy then went up to Stolas and released him from the blessed handcuffs.

"Thank you so much for your bravery, young man," Stolas thanked, "But it looks like Stella scratched you when she slapped you. Let me heal that up for you."

"Yeah, thanks Stolas, it hurts like frick!" Sammy exclaimed. Stolas then used a simply healing power to quickly heal up Sammy before he left without word. Stolas sighed, realizing just how intense and embarrassing the whole situation was for a kid like Sammy to use his crazed screaming powers to stop a Goetian demon and her henchmen. But despite the unusual events that just transpired, he was nonetheless thankful for Sammy's work in stopping the torture session.

"I sure hope Via didn't hear all of that from her uncle's palace..." Stolas thought to himself as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

But before Stolas can answer that question, something unexpected happened. The door busted down and in came Sanic, a poorly drawn version of Sonic the Hedgehog. At this time, the Sanic theme song blasted at excessively loud volumes.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!?! WHO ARE YOU, AND WHY ARE YOU RAPING OUR EARS WITH THAT AWFUL MUSIC?!?!" Stella screamed as she and the hellhounds covered their ears. Stolas, on the other hand, didn't seem affected by the music for some reason.

"DUDE, SHUT THAT FUCKING THING DOWN!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed as he tried to attack Sanic, but his attack was ineffective due to him still covering his ears. Sanic didn't say anything, but instead proceeded to devour the Shar Pei hellhound.

"MARCOS, NO!!! WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?!?!" the chihuahua hellhound screamed. By this point, Stella was at her wits end.

"ALRIGHT, YOU IDIOT, SINCE YOU WANT TO EAT MY HELLHOUNDS, STOLAS'S IMP PLAYTHING WILL NOW HAVE TO DIE BECAUSE OF YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS!!!" Stella screamed as she pulled out her phone. However, the feed didn't show the snipers pointing their rifles at Blitzo, but instead showed another Sanic beating them up. "WHAT THE HELL?!?!"

"M'am, help! This blue hedgehog found out and is beating us up while playing that awful music!" one of the snipers yelled, but then Sanic crushed his phone, ending the feed early.

"OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!! I CAN'T FUCKING STAND THIS SHIT!!! LET'S GET OUT OF HERE BEFORE HE KILLS US!!!" Stella screamed as she and the other two hellhounds ran out of the room in fear. Once all three were gone, Sanic released Stolas from the handcuffs before leaving the room, not saying a single thing throughout the whole ordeal. Stolas was in absolute shock at what happened. One minute, Stella was ready to command the hellhounds to beat him up for the introductory torture session. And the next, some poorly drawn blue hedgehog came in and scared them all away with loud music before eating one of the hellhounds.

"...I think I'm gonna call it a night..." Stolas softly whispered as he crawled into bed. However, around this time, Octavia arrived in the room.

"Hey dad, I'm home!" Octavia announced, but saw her father lying in bed, "Dad, why are you in bed?"

"...You don't wanna fucking know..." Stolas said as he covered his head with a pillow, not wanting to tell his owlet the insanity that was the invasion of Sanic.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

But before the torture can begin, however, the door was busted down, and in came Diddy, the infamous rapper who is recently being disgraced for allegations of domestic abuse and sexual assault.

"WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU, BITCH?! WHY YOU WANNA HURT YOUR OWN HUSBAND?!?!" Diddy confronted.

"Oh no! I am not doing this with you!" Stella pouted as she crossed her arms, "I saw that footage of you beating Cassie at the hotel, and I am absolute appalled that you would beat your own girlfriend like that! And besides, why do you care what I do to Stolass anyway? Get out of here right now, and mind your damn business!"

However, that was the worst thing Stella could've said, as Diddly ran up to her and punched her in the face, knocking her down on the ground. He then began to assault her in a similar manner to the infamous hotel video.

"DIDDY, NO!!! DON'T HURT HER!!!" Stolas pleaded, not wanting Diddy to hurt Via's mother.

"FUCK NO!!! ALL WOMEN ARE VIPERS!!! SHE DESERVES IT AFTER ALL THE SHIT SHE'S DONE TO YOU!!!" Diddy screamed as he continued to beat up Stella, the latter now crying.

"LEAVE STELLA ALONE!!!" the watchdog hellhound cried out as he shoved Diddy away from Stella. This led to Diddy pulling out a gun and shooting the watchdog directly on the head, killing him instantly.

"HOLY SHIT!!! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU, BRO?!?!" the chihuahua cried out.

"NO!!! WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU ALL WORKING FOR THAT SWAN WHORE?!?!" Diddy yelled as he pistol whipped the chihuahua hellhound.

"Fuck you, Diddy..." Stella growled as she got up from the ground, "Since you wanted to play hero, Stolas's imp will now pay the price!"

But before Stella could even reach for her phone, Diddy shot her in the arm, causing her to cry out in pain. With Stella distracted, Diddy snatched her phone and shot it with the gun, destroying it for good.

"NAH, FUCK THIS, WE'RE OUT OF HERE!!! DIDDY, WE HOPE YOU LOSE THE KEY TO THE CITY OF NEW YORK!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed before carrying his chihuahua friend out of the room. Diddy then went up to Stolas and released him from his cuffs.

"Now come on, Stolas! Hit her!" Diddy commanded.

"But I can't!" Stolas tried to argue.

"HIT HER RIGHT NOW OR ELSE I WILL KILL BOTH OF YOU!!!" Diddy threatened as he pointed a gun to Stolas's head. Stolas sighed before he went up to Stella and punched her in the face, knocking her out.

"That's the spirit!" Diddy applauded, "Now Imma head out. You take good care of yourself, birdie!"

With that, Diddy left the room. Stolas couldn't believe what had happened. How did someone like Diddy enter into hell just so he can free him from the torture? Especially in such an intense, mysogynistic way? He also felt really bad for being forced to knock Stella out. Even in spite of what she tried to do to him, he didn't want to see Octavia's mother hurt. After disposing the watchdog hellhound's body, he carried the unconscious Stella to the bathtub to clean her up and heal her wounds from the beating before sending her back to Andrealphus's palace. But not before wiping her memories to ensure she'll forgot about the whole ordeal.

"Now I gotta call up Eric Adams and see if I can push him to revoke his key to the city," Stolas said as he left the room to call Eric Adams.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can-”

Stella was suddenly interrupted when the door came crashing down, and in came Dr. Somna, a goat demon who works as a doctor in the Sloth ring.

"Marcos, Shay, and Dess! You three are long overdue of getting your Hellbies shots!" Dr. Somna said as he pulled out a big ass vaccine. This caused all three hellhounds to whimper.

"NO, NOT HELLBIES SHOTS!!! ANYTHING BUT THOSE!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound cried out.

"MOMMY, PLEASE SAVE US!!!" the watchdog hellhound cried out as he and the other two hellhounds hid behind Stella.

"Seriously?! I am not your mother!" Stella exclaimed before turning to the goat doctor, "Sir, we're right in the middle of something, if you couldn't tell. Can't you wait until after we're done for you to administer the vaccines?"

"I'm afraid those shots can't wait," Dr. Somna sadly said, "Now, Prince Stolas, I need your help in getting them steady, since they have a terrible history when it comes to vaccinations!"

"WAIT, DON'T!!!" Stella cried out, but it was too late. Dr. Somna released Stolas from his handcuffs.

"Stolas, please, we're sorry! Don't do this!" the chihuahua hellhound begged for forgiveness.

"After what you all tried to do to me just now?! HELL NO!!!" Stolas screamed as he used his powers to restrain all three hellhounds.

"STOLAS, NO!!! RELEASE THEM RIGHT NOW OR ELSE YOUR IMP PLAYTHING IS DEAD!!!" Stella threatened, but then Stolas snatched her phone and eviscerated it.

"Doctor, do your thing!" Stolas smirked as Stella was left with no choice but to watch the hellhounds be forced Hellbies shots. Both the Shar Pei and chihuahua hellhounds screamed and cried when they got vaccinated. But when the watchdog hellhound was vaccinated, he screamed so loudly, the loudness of the scream caused the windows to shatter.

"FUCK YOU, STOLAS, FUCK YOU!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed and cried. Once Stolas released them from their restraints, all three hellhounds collapsed on the floor and crawled into a fetal position as they cried hysterically.

"God, what a bunch of fucking babies!" Stella commented, showing no consideration of their misery.

"Thanks for your help, prince," Dr. Somna bowed before leaving.

"Well, Stella, are you going to say sorry?" Stolas asked.

"NEVER!" Stella screamed at his face before turning to the weeping hellhounds, "You three, let's go! This was a fucking disaster!"

However, none of the hellhounds wanted to move, still traumatized from the vaccination. After Stolas threatened to have them killed, Stella had to practically carry all three of them out of the room, cursing under her breath. Once all four were out of the room, Stolas simply sighed. He couldn't believe a doctor from Sloth of all places would rescue him with some Hellbies shots. He did, however, recall seeing Dr. Somna when he was hospitalized after the assassination attempt, so in a way, this could be the doctor looking out for him?

"Perhaps the two of us should have a more proper meet up..." Stolas thought to himself as he left the room, remembering that he should prepare for his daughter's visit.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

But before the torture can begin, however, something extraordinary happened. A portal formed in the room and sucked Stella and her hellhounds in. They all screamed as they were being teleported to a new world, during which Stella's phone was thrown out of her hands. Eventually, they all landed on chairs. When they adjusted their seats, they found out that they were in Applebee's.

"What the hell?! Why are we at a restaurant?!" Stella exclaimed, demanding answers for this bizarre twist of events.

"Stella, Marcos, Shay, and Dess. This is the admin speaking," the admin said in a voicebox, "You four got Stolas to comply in this weird and flat out disgusting torture session a little too easy. Therefore, you four will be forced to halt the torture in exchange for eating at the Applebee's in the SML Universe. If you all are good, then you may resume the torture session. Otherwise, I will have to end it early and you all would have to leave Stolas alone."

"THAT'S NOT FAIR! I WAS JUST ABOUT TO HIT THAT STUPID OWL!" Marcos pouted, disappointed that he couldn't hurt Stolas.

"YEAH! LET US OUT OF THIS SHITHOLE AND TAKE US BACK TO THE PALACE!" Shay demanded.

"I'm afraid that cannot happen. Now good luck!" The admin said. Soon, the waitress, Clarissa Fitzpatrick, arrived.

"Hello, and welcome to Applebee's! My name is Clarissa, and I will be taking your orders tonight," Clarissa introduced, "Can I get you folks started with some drinks?"

"Damn, girl, you got some nice cans!" Dess flirted, "Can I have some of that breast milk of yours?!"

"No, Dess! You cannot have the waitress's breast milk, you fucking creep!" Marcos scolded.

"Can I at least drink Stella's breast milk?" Dess asked.

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!" Stella screeched.

"Sir, just get some regular milk!" Clarissa tried to persuade.

"Fine, I'll stick with some regular, non-breast milk," Dess pouted, disappointed he couldn't get any breast milk.

"Me and Marcos will have some Coke," Shay said.

"Is Pepsi okay?" Clarissa asked. However, that was a terrible thing to ask, as Shay took out his knife and stabbed the table.

"DON'T EVERY SUGGEST PEPSI AGAIN!!!" Shay screamed.

"Shay, stop it!" Marcos tried to calm Shay down, "Actually, me and Shay will have the Mountain Dew Dark Berry Bash."

"Sure..." Clarissa said, still shocked by Shay's outburst, "What would like to drink, m'am?"

"Do you have champagne?" Stella asked.

"No, m'am, we do not have champagne," Clarissa apologetically said.

"WHAT THE FUCK KIND OF RESTAURANT DOESN'T HAVE CHAMPAGNE?!" Stella screamed, "I BET STOLASS TOOK IT OFF THE MENU TO PISS US OFF!!!"

"Stella, stop! At this rate, we won't be able to continue the torture!" Marcos pleaded.

"You know what? Get me some fucking water," Stella exclaimed, "Now fuck off while we pick what to order!"

Clarissa ran away, scared by Stella's threat.

"What the fuck is wrong with you all?!" Marcos confronted, "Dess, you were acting like a fucking creep. Shay, there was no need to stab the table. And Stella, not every restaurant is going to have the alcoholic drinks you have. Now please behave going forward, because at this rate, we won't be able to finish off where we started!"

Everyone decided to take what Marcos said to heart and made a promise to behave. Once Clarissa returned with the drinks, everyone was ready to order.

"I'll have a kids cheese pizza," Dess said.

"I'm sorry sir, the kids cheese pizza is only for those 12 and under," Clarissa said.

"NO! I WANT A FUCKING KIDS CHEESE PIZZA RIGHT NOW!!!" Dess screamed.

"Dess, knock it off!" Stella warned. Too late, as Dess proceeded to cry and flex his muscles like he's Childish Dad.

"I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! I WANT A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!! LET ME HAVE A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA, YOU ENTITLED KAREN!!!" Dess screamed and cried.

"JESUS FUCKING CHRIST, BRO, YOU'RE ACTING LIKE A FUCKING BABY!!! STOP!!!" Shay screamed.

"NO!!! I WILL NOT STOP UNTIL SHE GETS ME A KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!!" Dess cried.

"JUST GET HIM THE FUCKING KIDS CHEESE PIZZA!!!" Stella demanded, and Clarissa had no other choice but to take Dess's order.

"Anything else? And do not order anything else off the kids menu!" Clarissa exclaimed.

"I'll have a Whiskey Bacon Burger," Dess said.

"I just want 100 mozzarella sticks," Shay said.

"Sir, you cannot have 100 mozzarella sticks. I doubt we even have that many!" Clarissa tried to warn.

"I don't care! I love mozzarella sticks, okay?! If there's even 99 mozzarella sticks, then Imma kill you!" Shay threatened as he made a stab motion.

"God, I don't know who has the worse order! Dess or Shay!" Stella commented.

"Yeah! Didn't you fuckers say you would behave going forward?!" Marcos asked.

"Fuck off, Marcos! It's either 100 mozzarella sticks or death, bitch!" Shay threatened again. Clarissa had no choice but to take Shay's order.

"As for me, I want the head of Stolass!" Stella demanded.

"M'am, we don't serve the head of Stolas!" Clarissa tried to explain.

"I DON'T GIVE A FUCK!!! I HATE STOLAS SO MUCH, I WANT TO EAT HIS HEAD LIKE IN THAT ONE SCENE IN FACES OF DEATH WHERE PEOPLE ATE THE BRAINS OF MONKIES!!!" Stella screamed.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP, STELLA!!! HOW ARE YOU GOING TO COMPLAIN ABOUT DESS AND SHAY'S ORDER WHEN YOU'RE TRYING TO ORDER THE HEAD OF STOLAS?!?!" Marcos screamed, by now done with all of these shenanigans, "Waitress, she's going for a Three-Cheese Chicken Penne. Now take it and go before she complains!"

Clarissa quickly took the order and left. By now, all four were in a bad mood, and refused to even make simple conversation. At this point, they all just wanted to return to hell to continue with the torture session. Soon, Clarissa returned with all of the food, including the kids cheese pizza, Whiskey Bacon Burger, 100 mozzarella sticks, and the Three-Cheese Chicken Penne.

"Is there anything else you all want before you eat?" Clarissa asks.

"Lay your cute ass butt naked on my plate!" Dess tried to flirt, but Stella hit him in the head with a napkin.

"WE ARE GOOD!!! GET OUTTA HERE!!!" Stella yelled and made Clarissa run off, "EVERYBODY JUST SHUT UP AND EAT!!! WE ALL NEED TO HAVE FULL BELLIES ANYWAY TO PREPARE FOR THE TORTURE OF STOLASS!!!"

"Hey, when we're all done and head back to hell, let's take turns shitting on Stolas's face with this food!" Shay suggested as he ate his mozzarella sticks. This was met with all of them retching in disgust at such a thought, with Marcos in particular nearly throwing up his burger.

"No! I hate Stolass, but not even I would go that low!" Stella groaned as she ate her food, trying to clear her mind at such a disgusting image. However, even eating was difficult. Dess complained his pizza was too small, and Shay complained he got too much mozzarella sticks. Stella even wished she had just gotten the head of Stolas to eat instead. Marcos didn't had it in him to snap at them for such stupidity, so he bit his tongue and ate his burger in silence. Once everyone finished eating, Clarissa returned.

"So, how are you guys paying?" Clarissa asked.

"Stella's got the bill," Dess pointed.

"No! I am not paying for your fucking meals!" Stella refused.

"Stella, you are a Goetian. You are loaded! This is literally just pocket change!" Marcos tried to persuade.

"I'M NOT PAYING FOR SHIT!!!" Stella screamed as she flipped the table.

"M'AM STOP!!!" Clarissa begged, but then Stella grabbed Shay's knife and slit her throat, killing her.

"STELLA!!! WHY DID YOU DO THAT?!?!" Marcos yelled.

"BECAUSE I HATE THIS FUCKING PLACE!!! I WANT TO GO BACK TO HELL AND CONTINUE BEATING THE EVER LIVING SHIT OUT OF STOLAS!!! PLEASE!!! TAKE US BACK TO HELL!!!" Stella screamed and pleaded with the admin.

"Stella, Marcos, Shay, and Dess, because you all misbehaved at Applebee's, the torture session will end early, and you will all be forced to return to hell and never hurt Stolas again," the admin said. All four were soon sucked in separate portals that took them to their respective homes. When Stella returned back to the portal, she was in the living room, and Stolas and Octavia were seen watching a movie.

"Oh, hi mom! I didn't expect to see you!" Octavia said, "Where were you?"

"Via, it's... it's a long story..." Stella sighed, not even sure what to say to her daughter about her terrible experience with Applebee's.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

She had barely finished her sentence that a powerful punch hit Stolas on the side of his torso, sending him rolling on the ground in the middle of the room.

"Woah! Marcos just hit Stolas!"

Everyone suddenly turned on who said that, and were in absolute shock at what they were seeing. There stood Kai Lan, a Chinese girl who looked shocked at seeing Stolas get punched and knocked down. Behind her was Rintoo, Tolee, Hoho, and Lulu, all of whom were shocked.

"Hey! How did you all get in?!" Stella interrogated. However, before they can answer, Kai Lan's grandfather Yeye came and removed the blessed handcuffs off Stolas before helping him get up.

"Stolas, are you okay?" Yeye asked.

"Me?! Okay?! Are you kidding me?!" Stolas exclaimed, "One of these mutts just punched me, and they're most likely going to continue this shit! Please leave, all of you! I don't want you all to get involved!"

But beg as Stolas might, Yeye and everyone else won't let go. They couldn't just leave Stolas to continue to get tortured at the hands of Stella and her goons.

"Stolas, why did Marcos hit you?" Tolee asked, concerned about the punch Marcos gave him.

"It's none of your fucking business!" Marcos barked, "Stolas is right! Get out of here and mind your goddamn business!"

"Kai Lan, why do you think Marcos hit Stolas?" Rintoo asked Kai Lan.

"I'm not sure Rintoo, but..." Kai Lan then looked at the audience and said, "Let's find... out why! Marcos hit Stolas!"

"NO! LET'S NOT FIND OUT WHY!!!" Stella screamed and tried to escort Kai Lan and her friends out the room, but an unspeakable force stopped her and any of the other hellhounds from getting rid of them.

"Remember what happened before Marcos hit Stolas?" Kai Lan asked as a thought bubble popped up and played scenes from before the torture.

"It looks like Stella wanted Stolas tortured!" Hoho commented.

"And she even threatened to have Blitzo killed if Stolas didn't follow her every word!" Lulu added.

"And then Stolas was placed in blessed cuffs!" Tolee said.

"And then Marcos hit Stolas!" Rintoo concluded.

"We think we know why Marcos hit Stolas, because Stella was going to have Stolas tortured at the hands of hellhounds! Do you think that's why?" Kai Lan asked as they all paused for the audience to answer.

"Who the fuck are you schizophrenic assholes talking to?!" the watchdog hellhound rudely said, not sure why they were facing that way.

"Yeah! Please, just leave! You have all outstayed your welcome!" the chihuahua hellhound pleaded, but to no avail. Yeye then walked up to Stella and the hellhounds.

"Marcos, we never ever hit," Yeye said, "Hitting hurts. You can be mad, but you can't hit."

"I wasn't mad, I was just doing my job!" Marcos defended.

"You all need a time out for what you did to Stolas," Yeye said as he led the four to a corner, "Sit here until I tell you to get up."

"OH FUCK NO!!! WE'RE ADULTS!!! WE'RE TOO OLD TO GO TO FUCKING TIMEOUT!!!" Stella screeched.

"Stella, please! When you're calm, we can talk about what you could've done instead of having Stolas tortured," Yeye doubled down. Stella and the hellhounds had no choice but to sit in timeout.

"Wow, Stella and her hellhounds have to calm down because they tried to hurt Stolas, so they can't play with us right now," Kai Lan observed.

"STOP TALKING DOWN TO THE AUDIENCE!!! THEY'RE NOT BABIES!!!" Stella screamed, but everyone ignored it as they turned to Stolas's bruising from where Stolas hit him.

"Stolas, do you have anything that can help heal that bruising?" Hoho asked.

"There's some oilments in the cabinet in the bathroom. Yeye, will you please get that for me?" Stolas asked. Yeye got the oilment, and helped Stolas rub it on his torso, which helped heal the bruising.

"Thank you all so much for your help," Stolas thanked, "But I don't understand. Why would you all want to help me of all people? I'm a Goetian demon."

"Because, Stolas, everyone deserves to be treated with respect," Kai Lan said.

"WHY SHOULD I RESPECT A PATHETIC FUCKING MAN WHO CHEATED ON ME WITH AN IMP?! HE DESERVED TO GET PUNCHED BY MARCOS!!!" Stella exclaimed, but once again, she was ignored.

"Come on, everyone! As a way to say thanks, I will allow you all to meet my daughter Octavia!" Stolas offered.

"Of course, Stolas! We would love to be friends with your daughter!" Lulu accepted.

As so everyone left the room to get prepared for Octavia's visit, while Stella and her goons still had to stay in timeout.

"Um, guys, I have a confession..." Marcos began, "I was the one that ruined Yeye's thank you party."

"What are you talking about?" Stella asked.

"Well, I happened to break into the wind control in the Sloth ring, and I thought it would be funny to unleash winds at the party and ruin it. It was so hilarious to see Kai Lan cry after I wrecked the whole place! But after what happened, I have a feeling that Kai Lan knew what I did, and stopped this torture session to get back at me," Marcos explained.

"YOU FUCKING DUMBASS!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he bopped Marcos in the head, "THANKS TO YOUR TOMFOOLERY, A LITTLE CHINESE BRAT IS THE REASON WHY WE'RE ALL IN THIS MESS!!!"

"YEAH, BRO, WHY DID YOU HAVE TO RUIN YEYE'S THANK YOU PARTY?!?!" the chihuahua hellhound added.

"I'm sorry, okay?! I didn't know any better!" Marcos defended, but Stella at this point was at her wits end.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! I HAVE HAD IT WITH YOU ALL!!!" Stella screamed, "WHEN WE GET OUT OF TIMEOUT, I AM FIRING YOU ALL!!! AND YOU WILL NOT GET PAID EITHER!!!"

"Are you serious?! I even got one good punch in him before Kai Lan stepped in!" Marcos tried to convince.

"I DON'T CARE!!! DON'T TALK TO ME, ANY OF YOU!!!" Stella pouted as turned away and crossed her arms, not in the mood to talk.

"This is going to be a long night, isn't it?" the watchdog hellhound said.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

But before the torture can start however, something unexpected happened. A ship suddenly came crashing through the room and crushed Stella and the hellhounds, killing them instantly. Stolas, on the other hand, was blown from the impact and hit the wall, causing the blessed cuffs to break on impact.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" Stolas yelled as he groaned from the pain from the impact. He got up and stood in awe when he saw two people get out of the ship. That would be the scientist Rick Sanchez and his grandson Morty Smith.

"Yo, check this out, Morty! We crashed in a Goetian palace!" Rick exclaimed.

"Oh, I sure hope nobody was in the room.." Morty nervously said.

"Excuse me! What in the world were you two thinking?! You crushed my wife and her hellhound friends!" Stolas exclaimed. While he was glad that Stella and the hellhounds were stopped, at the same time, he wished they didn't had to go out in such an abrasive way.

"Well, I'm SORRY!" Rick sarcastically said, "We're all going to die one way or another, so what better way than to go out by being crushed by the Space Cruiser?!"

"Um, Rick, I don't this guy appreciates us for doing that..." Morty said, "What's your name again, sir?"

"Stolas," Stolas said, "And I've been going through a lot lately, and this only just adds to the insanity!"

"Wait, Stolas, what's going on with you?" Morty asked.

"Why do you care what an owl twink's going through?" Rick rudely asked.

"Will you just shut up with your nihilism?!" Stolas barked at Rick, causing the latter to back off. Stolas then turned to Morty, "Me and my actual lover Blitzo have been distant for the past few months since our disastrous date at Ozzie's. After I want almost killed at the hands of Striker, I decided to get an Asmodean crystal with the help of Lord Asmodeus to end the deal he has with me once every full moon. But tonight, Stella and her hellhounds were planning on having me tortured for her pleasure, and they would've succedded had you both not come crashing down."

Morty couldn't help but feel bad for Stolas for what he had been going through. Even Rick couldn't help but sympathize with him.

"Damn... I'm sorry for that, man..." Rick said, "Well, I guess killing that bitch and her mutts was a good thing, right?"

"I suppose so..." Stolas sighed, "Now will you all please leave? My daughter is coming very soon, and I don't want to have to explain to her why there's a giant ship in my quarters. I already have to explain to her why her mother is dead."

"Shit! We better get going before his daughter goes O'Block on us!" Rick exclaimed as he and Morty ran back to the ship and drove away. Stolas didn't have the heart to explain to them that his daughter would do no such thing. Not unless she wanted to be barred from getting anything from Stylish Occult for the next few weeks.

"Well, I suppose I can try and clean this up before Via gets here," Stolas thought to himself as he made calls to the cleaners.

Chapter Text

In the kitchen, Bandit is seen dancing while Chilli is seen doing the dishes. While both parents did their own thing, Bluey and Bingo came with the tablet.

"Mum! Can we do Faceytime with a special friend of ours? Please?" Bluey asked.

"Yeah, that's fine," Chilli responded, causing both girls to get excited, "But no hogging the little facey face thing okay?"

Bluey and Bingo nodded, and they both head to the dining room and Chilli helped get the app ready for them.

"So, who's this special friend of yours?" Chilli asked.

"It's a woman from Pride ring," Bingo responded, "We won a giveaway where we got to video call her, and she's really cool!"

"Well... okay then..." Chilli said as she left to try and stop Bandit from dancing, but to no avail.

"Let's see what Stella is up to!" Bluey said as they went to call Stella.

It took some time for Stolas to realize he had hinted Blitz that this wasn’t his first panic attack, but the imp hadn’t brought it up, so… Either he didn’t notice, or he didn’t care. Both were fine with the owl. He was still afraid Blitz’s help has been motivated mainly by practical aspects, but it had truly felt nice, to have someone beside him in those moments, despite the added rush of stress it first caused him.

Now, barely two days later, it was time to prepare for their second self-defense lesson! Even better, Octavia was still there until the start of next week because of her mother’s schedule, which was all better in Stolas’ eyes, and not just because it kept Stella away. Maybe he would be able to not see her at all this week? It went well until now, and he hadn’t even particularly tried hard to avoid her.

At least, the gear Blitz had suggested him to defend or train during the lessons had arrived, a bit later than expected but still in time, so Stolas wasn’t complaining.

It would be an evening without his daughter, but he wouldn’t be alone anyway thanks to the imp, so he didn’t mind too much. Plus, Via was going to some festival to see a concert with Loona, and it felt nice to see these two were getting along even more now. Stolas had even heard Via speak about Loona’s friends, saying they were nice and she’d see them again today.

To Stolas’ dismay, Via wasn’t mastering the portals without the grimoire yet enough to be able to take herself and Loona there, but the owl still made sure the both of them had a safe transportation there, since Blitz would be using the van to come to the palace later, after work. He could have used the crystal, but he seemed to prefer leaving it at the office and not use it for other purposes, and he refused Stolas’ offer to portal him. As for the girls, they had feared loosing the gem not so long ago and therefore didn’t want to risk it in a place full of people.

The prince had made sure to renew the spell on his daughter, and even placed one on Loona and the imp couple from IMP, just in case. With everything happening, it felt safer that way, until he could start his moves, but that would have to wait for next week.

But right now, he had some catch up to do on his work. Not that he could avoid all his tasks even with Via here, but he hadn’t been too busy these past few weeks and hoped it would remain that way, for he had a lot on his mind. Yet, there was still a bare minimum to be done, so he settled on it, asking for refreshments to his staff soon after he got started, to make sure he wouldn’t wander off if he was to go to the kitchen by himself. He… May have been a bit too easygoing this week, and it wasn’t a habit he should take, not when the next one was threateningly close by.

Still, once said bare minimum was done, he was quick to abandon his study to go to the room he had dedicated to their self-defense lessons. His staff was told to put the gear received there, but he hadn’t unpacked yet, and he had to admit, he wanted to do so before Blitz’s arrival, because as much as he loved to chat with his imp, he also knew he probably wouldn’t be as well physically for their next training, so better take some advance on the hiding blades in clothes part so they could focus on the other aspects Blitz had been interested about last time.

That was what he was planning anyway, smiling in light excitement, before he froze in the door frame, blinking as his eyes narrowed on an imp rummaging through the newly arrived boxes, an imp who definitely wasn’t from his staff nor was Blitz, but an imp he still immediately recognized nonetheless.

A tall snake hybrid, still with his cowboy hat and clothes, not even bothering to blend in.

“Finally Stolas, I was on the verge of asking him to fetch you!”

Stolas’ head quickly turned to spot Stella, sitting on a chair against the wall in a corner out of sight for newcomers. Well, that explained why Striker was here, not that he was very surprised since she was the one to hire him too last time they met.

But the fact that they were here, in this room of all places, put dread in Stolas’ stomach. Striker stopped his search to turn an evil grin to him, tail lashing as he stood up.

“Well well, we meet again feathers! What were ya hopin’ to achieve with these, uh?” He asked holding a thin blade, almost like a needle.

“That is what I was wondering indeed”, Stella snickered, standing up too to approach Stolas.

The owl had to use every trick he knew of to compose himself and not outright panic, because it didn’t take a genius to understand what was going on, and it was bad. He wasn’t sure how to interpret the imp’s presence instead of the three hellhounds, but he could only hope it was related to the unplanned aspect of Stella’s visit and not something else.

There was also a part of him actively muzzling his fighting instinct, that had been reinforced by his first self-defense lesson with Blitz and the closeness of the second. Stella was probably suspecting it, as she got her phone out to wave in his face as she stopped before him, showing once again Blitz in the meeting room, probably freshly returned from Earth given the blood on his and his employees’ clothes.

“You don’t want anything to happen to him, right? Not even that little warning shot we discussed? Then you’ll be obedient and honest, and if you’re convincing enough, you’ll be the only one to suffer the consequences, alright?”

There was a twitch in Stolas’ hands but he forced himself not to clench his fists as he nodded, trying to go for a blank expression again rather than a scared or pissed one despite the unexpectedness of the situation.

“You’ll need to do better than that”, the swan warned him with a threatening smile.

“Will do”, was all he could answer, trying to sound neutral here too.

She gauged him for a while with disdain before smiling slowly.

“A bit better! Now, answer the question: what is all this?”

“Defensive weapons”, he answered, not willing to explain everything with too much details.

“Against who?”

“Attackers. These aren’t meant for you or your lackeys if that is your worry, I have other ways if I wanted to dispose of nefarious intruders in my own house. I don’t need any weapon against hellhounds or imps and you’ll notice none of those are blessed.”

She hummed for a moment, thinking.

“That’s right, but it doesn’t mean it’s okay. One could easily get the wrong idea.”

“Gotta agree, looks like you want stuff to free yourself should you find yourself bound in blessed rope again”, Striker snickered.

“Well, that is indeed the idea”, Stolas forced himself to confirm, since it seemed like the spy app on his phone could probably read his texts with Blitz too, maybe even listen to what happened around it. If he wasn’t such a fool, he’d have been more careful knowing the risks brought by this app. Now was a bit late, but it was still good to know. He could only be glad he hadn’t said or texted anything more dangerous that his ex wife could have heard or read.

“And still, you’re telling me this isn’t to mess with my fun with you?” Stella insisted.

“It isn’t. Again, you’re predictable, if I didn’t want to comply, I would do so before being restrained. Plus, messing with your fun, as you say, would endanger Blitz, and the whole point of this is to keep him safe, isn’t it?”

It was the only moment he allowed a hint of threat in his own voice, a reminder that his pushover facade wouldn’t last if she ever did anything to said imp.

She shrugged, still smiling at him.

“I won’t find them on you then, next time I come by? That wouldn’t sent a very good message, understood?”

“Ma’am, you don’t want to throw these?” Striker asked, confused.

“No need, he’d be able to order others through the staff. Though, feel free to keep anything you’d like, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind, right? But I’m not here for that! Since it seems the imp was the one to initiate this, let’s just say the punishment falls fully on you for not refusing. Now, let’s go, shall we?”

If that was all the questions she had, then it wasn’t as bad as Stolas had feared, especially if she didn’t intend to hurt Blitz. He worried she would make use of said warning shot, and he wasn’t sure he would have been able to stay put if she had, but she probably knew as much. Which meant, either she wouldn’t, or she would once he was powerless. He shouldn’t forget she probably had planned something special for him as a retaliation.

Whatever it was though, it was obvious Striker’s presence was one of last minute. Either that, or he really didn’t like working directly under a royal’s orders that way, with his employer present and being able to dictate his every move. He also didn’t seem to know how she usually operated, but was doing a decent job of following the flow.

Still, Stolas filled that in his mind. He couldn’t act up now, and wouldn’t, but the hybrid was an unknown factor, there was no telling what he would do or how he would react. The Goetia hadn’t forgotten what the tall imp did to him last time, which was a bad omen for what was about to come, but he couldn’t fight back yet again. He simply hoped Striker wouldn’t have another idea of more… Permanent injuries. He had done a good job at putting up a good facade for Octavia, he didn’t want for all of this to have been in vain, though at least she didn’t worry for as long as it lasted.

The changes were indeed quick to happen, for Striker didn’t lock the door behind him and barely waited for the owl to put his phone away before putting forcefully his arms behind his back to tie him up with blessed rope.

“Not a fan of handcuffs?” Stolas couldn’t help but ask, managing not to sound too snarky.

“Why, it would have suited your fancy tastes better? Sorry, I trust these more”, Striker smiled as he deliberately tied the knot as tight as he could, before patting the owl down to make sure he had no blades already hidden on him.

Stolas moved his fingers a bit, and internally winced at the numb feeling already spreading. By the time they were done, he was sure as hell not to be able to feel his hands at all.

His body harshly hit the floor before he could understand what had happened, and he was kicked to roll in the direction Stella has taken a sit.

“This view good enough for you ma’am?” Striker asked, seemingly too happy to have another occasion to torture the owl to ponder much about who was paying him.

“Perfect”, Stella purred. “Now, you have what I asked for I hope?”

“Of course. Wan’ me to start with that?”

“Oh yes!” She answered with a wide sick smile, but Stolas’ attention was instantly drawn somewhere else as Striker pulled out a blessed knife, which also seemed coated with something, but with a slightly different texture, though it also appeared to be some transparent gel or sticky liquid.

“You remember that, right?” Striker asked, playing with the knife as he knelt. “Don’t move.”

But before Striker can stab Stolas with the knife, Stella got a phone call.

"Wait! Don't hurt him! I'm getting an urgent phone call!" Stella said as she picked up her phone.

"Ma'am, it can wait! I wanna get started already!" Striker impatiently said, but then Stella grabbed the knife from him.

"No! You're not gonna hurt him while I take this call! And Stolas, don't get any funny ideas..." Stella warned as she answered the call, and it was Bluey and Bingo.

"Hi, Princess Stella!" Bluey and Bingo greeted.

"Oh, hello, Bluey and Bingo!" Stella greeted as she saw Bluey draw on their screen, "Unfortunately, I'm a bit busy at the moment, so I would appreciate it if you would call me back in an hour."

But before Bluey and Bingo can do so, another caller came in, and it was Muffin.

"HI BLUEY AND BINGO!!!" Muffin exclaimed and began to draw a cowboy hat.

"What the- who are you?!" Stella exclaimed.

"That's Muffin, our cousin," Bingo said.

"Who is this swan?! And why is she so pretty?!" Muffin said.

"Kids, please, I cannot screw around on Faceytime at the moment. I have some business to attend to," Stella tried to reason. The torture sessions she had been doing to Stolas have been working so well, and she didn't want them to abruptly end because Bluey and her family wanted to call in out of the blue.

"Ma'am, who the hell is calling you anyway?" Striker said as he peeked in. Stella tried to stop him, but it was too late.

"Wow, a cowboy! Let's be partners together!" Muffin exclaimed.

"No kid, your cowboy hat looks stupid!" Striker insulted.

"HEY! Her cowboy hat looks cool! Apologize to her right now!" Bluey demanded.

"No, because I was about to stab Prince Stolas, and then you jerks wanted to come in and ruin it!" Striker exlaimed.

"STRIKER!!! WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU TELL THEM THAT?!?!" Stella screeched.

"What's a 'fuck'?" Bingo asked, causing Bluey to look shocked.

"TO WHOEVER IS CALLING STELLA, HELP ME!!! SHE AND HER GOONS HAVE BEEN TORTURING ME FOR WEEKS NOW, AND I CAN'T FUCKING STAND THEM!!!" Stolas screamed. At this point, he was done with the torture sessions, and needed whatever help he can get to rescue him.

"STOLASS!!! YOU WANT YOUR BLITZY TO DIE?!?!" Stella threatened.

"Stella, what is going on?" Bluey asked.

"It looks like Stolas needs my help! Yee haw!" Muffin said as she proceeded to do the unthinkable. She opened up an app that allowed her to go into the hell world, and she went inside and went into the very room where the attempted torture session was being halted.

"WOAH! Muffin is in hell!" Bluey and Bingo exclaimed.

"HEY!!! GO BACK IN YOUR WORLD RIGHT NOW!!!" Stella demanded.

"No! I'm going to save the prince!" Muffin said as she ran towards Stolas, but Striker stopped her as he pointed the blessed knife at her, giving off a crazed look.

"You have five seconds to fuck off... or else I will stab you... and it will hurt..." Striker menacingly said, not caring about the fact he was threatening a child. However, Muffin didn't looked phased in the slightest.

"Make me!" Muffin screeched so loudly, it caused Striker and Stella to cover their ears. While distracted, she quickly freed Stolas from the angelic rope.

"Oh no! Muffin is messing with demons!" Bluey commented.

"COME ON, PRINCE! LET'S FIGHT THIS COWBOY!" Muffin screamed, and Stolas nodded as he went into feral mode and tackled Striker.

"STOLAS NO!!! GET OFF OF HIM!!!" Stella exclaimed as she tried to get Stolas off of Striker, but to no avail. Muffin giggled as she watched the feral owl tear the cowboy imp to shreds. All while this was going on, Bluey and Bingo were watching in horror.

"I can't fucking believe he's doing that!" Bingo said.

"Bingo! Don't say the f word!" Bandit scolded, but then froze when he saw what was happening on the tablet, "Um... what's going on with Muffin?"

"He's saving Prince Stolas from being hurt!" Bluey said. By the time Stolas finally returned to his normal form, Striker was long gone.

"That was for nearly killing me and trying to hurt me, you fucking asshole!" Stolas yelled as he spat on Striker's corpse.

"HOW DARE YOU KILL STRIKER!!! AND HOW DARE YOU RELEASE HIM!!!" Stella screamed at both Stolas and Muffin, "THAT'S IT!!! STOLAS, YOU CAN KISS THAT BLITZY OF YOURS GOODBYE, BECAUSE HE IS-"

But then Stella was interrupted when Muffin took Stella's phone and ran with it.

"HEY!!! GIVE THAT BACK!!!" Stella screamed as she chased Muffin. She giggled as she went up to the balcony and threw it over it. The phone then fell on the water fountain and short circuited, breaking.

"Ha ha! Stolas and Blitzy are saved!" Muffin exclaimed as she did a victory dance. Stolas also couldn't help but giggle at the thought of the torture sessions ending at the hands of a little kid.

"YOU STUPID BRAT!!! I HATE YOU!!!" Stella screamed as she roundhouse kicked Muffin, causing her to fall and cry.

"MUFFIN, NO!" Bluey screamed. However, Stolas saw it, and at this point, was done with Stella. He snatched her body and threw her off the balcony, and Stella fell and landed on the ground with a splat, killing her for good. Stolas then went up to Muffin, who was crying.

"Are you okay, little one?" Stolas asked. Muffin only shook her head and embraced Stolas, longing for comfort in her injury. Stolas then went up to Muffin's phone and looked at the screen. Bluey, Bingo, and Bandit were all shocked at what they had just witnessed.

"I'm sorry, everyone, but I'm gonna have to end the call here," Stolas simply said before turning off the feed. He then went to the bathroom and used the same oilment he used to heal his injuries to heal the bruise on Muffin's face.

"Thank you..." Muffin said, still whimpering, "Why would they try and hurt you?"

"I wish I had the answer to that, little one..." Stolas said, "But in hell, some people are simply bad because they are, and many of these people end up winning. But I greatly admire your bravery and courage to stand up against them and rescue me. I will forever be grateful for your hard work."

Muffin felt proud of herself, realizing that she had stopped a systematic cycle of Stolas's torture. Just then, however, Blitzo arrived at the palace.

"Hey, Stolas, Striker's dead body is in your room," Blitzo commented, "What the hell happened? And why is there a dog here?"

"Blitzo... it's a long story..." Stolas sighed, realizing that he was going to have to explain all of this to Blitzo.

"Hey everyone, who want to go out to-"

Chilli stopped when she realized that Bluey, Bingo, and Bandit all still stood at the tablet, still shell shocked at everything they just witnessed.

"Um... mates... are you alright...?" Chilli cautiously asked.

"STELLA AND STRIKER ARE MONSTERS!!!" all three screamed.

Chapter Text

His head hurt like hell.

Stolas tried to open his eyes, but the light was enough to make him give up almost instantly. No, he didn’t want to wake up, he wanted to stay in this state. He didn’t remember what he was fleeing, but he knew he was fleeing something. Someone. Whatever. Better stay here, in the nothingness. He had enough of trying and failing, enough of seeing his hopes being crushed relentlessly.

Pathetic.

Stella’s voice rang in his mind, making him flinch. He didn’t want her to be right, but he didn’t fully care.

After what felt like a long moment, his mind cleared enough to muster the energy to try and pry his eyes open again. It took some time, but he succeeded.

Then, he remembered yesterday, and wished he could go back to the blissful unconsciousness.

But he couldn’t. He still had duties, outside of his grimoire, things to do, plants to take care of. They didn’t deserve to suffer because of him.

So, slowly, he got up. His headache was still pounding in his brain, and some injuries from yesterday’s torture still felt sore, but several had disappeared, at last.

But then he tried to get up, and the world started spinning until his body met the floor.

Ouch.

He stayed there for a couple of minutes, then he tried to sit up. That alone was enough to see the world spinning again, but this time his back fell on the side of the bed rather than on the floor.

Ok, he could do this. Step by step. He didn’t need to think about yesterday. Blitz was long gone and he probably deserved it, but Via would come back eventually and he couldn’t let himself spiral down too much. His plants still needed him, and even if he was afraid to see Stella again soon, he definitely didn’t want her to find him in such a state. She would probably be glad tho, but he wouldn’t.

He didn’t know how long it took him to put himself on tracks, but one thing was for certain: it took way longer than usual. He didn’t bother to check his injuries, bath or change his clothes, simply doing what he had to do. He didn’t have anyone to meet anytime soon, so he couldn’t bring himself to care.

No new text on his phone, not even from Via. He decided to wait a bit before he sent anything, in order not to let his current state of mind show in his message. If Blitz had noticed more than what he intended to, he was worried his daughter may have too, especially since she had way more occasions than the imp to notice anything unusual. Since she did show more concern than usual toward him, he feared he had already failed that. Which meant he would need to put extra care and energy into appearing normal when she was here.

By the time he was done taking care of his plants, he wasn’t… Fine, exactly, but he was well enough to shot a picture of one of his plants who beautifully blossomed, managing to grow back a small amount of positive feelings in his chest as he sent the picture to his daughter with a small message.

That was pretty much all the socialization he would be able to do today. He was half tempted to just get more absinthe but he couldn’t simply spend his days doing nothing and getting wasted. Plus, focusing on tasks could distract him from his darker thoughts.

That is, until he met with a familiar group of four on his way to his study to resume his training on healing magic.

“Ah, Stolas, how nice of you to come to us again! Did you miss me already?” Stella couldn’t help but giggle at his sight.

Suddenly he wished he had started drinking, and maybe taken some more pills too, to be able to simply go through what was coming yet again, especially since he still wasn’t fully healed. But then his mind reminded him being drunk would probably endanger Blitz, and as hurt as his heart was, he didn’t want anything to happen to the imp, maybe now even more than before with how guilty he felt.

So he complied, listening to what his ex wife demanded of him but without answering or reacting if he didn’t need to. He was too exhausted to care, even as she commented how awful he looked.

Quickly, they were back in his bedroom with the usual set up, and he was almost surprised Stella wasn’t changing it. Maybe when she’d grew bored of it, but perhaps it wasn’t a bad thing she didn’t yet.

“Now, on your knees. You don’t have any outing nor meeting in the next few days, right? It’s time to let them take care of that ugly face of yours”, she cooed darkly.

But before Stolas could kneel, something unexpected happened. The door busted down and in came Phoenix Ikki,  the bronze saint of Phoenix.

"What the fuck is this I hear about you all torturing Stolas?! And now you want to fucking punch him?!" Ikki confronted.

"What?! No, of course not! You see, Stolas is currently training on his healing magic, and he wants us to do a little bit of damage to him so he can do the potions! And being the loving and caring wife that I am, I am always here to help him out whenever I can!" Stella tried to lie. However, it was clear that Phoenix Ikki knew that she was bullshitting.

"Oh yeah? Then how do you explain this?" Ikki said as he pulled out video of the previous torture, which caused everyone to stand in shock, "I think that's a little excessive for help on healing magic training, don't you think?"

"FUCK YOU, MAN!!! WE'VE ALREADY GONE THIS FAR!!! YOU ARE NOT GOING TO FUCKING STOP US!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he charged at Ikki. However, Ikki dodged the attack and proceeded to snap his neck, killing him instantly.

"DESS, NO!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound cried out.

"GET OUT!!! NOW!!! NOT UNLESS YOU WANT STELLA SEND THE SIGNAL TO KILL BLITZO BECAUSE YOU WANTED TO BE A HERO!!!" the chihuahua hellhound added.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!!! ALL OF YOU!!!" Ikki screamed as he proceeded to use various punches and blasts to brutally assault the remaining hellhounds before finishing them off with a clean decapitation.

"OH MY SATAN!!! I CAN'T FUCKING BELIEVE YOU DID ALL OF THAT!!!" Stella screamed and tried to pull out her phone to send the signal. However, Ikki snatched the phone just in time and crushed it with his bare hands. He then shoved Stella down on the ground before forcing her to look at him.

"You don’t have any outing nor meeting in the next few days, right? It’s time I take care of that ugly face of yours..." Ikki sneered, a call-back to what Stella said to Stolas before he showed up. In one clean punch, he shouted "Phoenix Specter Punch!" before he did said punch, knocking her out.

"Hey! Don't kill her!" Stolas begged.

"Stolas, I did not kill her," Ikki assured, "I did a Phoenix specter punch, which traps her in a nightmare that will most likely drive her mad, though there are cases where it can be fatal. I personally hope for the latter..."

Ikki then went to release Stolas from the blessed cuffs before beginning to use proper, more stronger healing magic on him, as it was clear that Stolas still hurt from the last torture session.

"Stolas, you looked like you got drunk last night. What happened?" Ikki asked. Stolas looked to be hesitant, but decided to tell the truth.

"Me and Blitzo got into a bad argument," Stolas explained, "He was concerned about my state, but I didn't want to tell the truth because I feared Stella would kill him when she found out. And after he left, I got drunk because I thought it would take away all the stress surrounding everything..."

Stolas began to tear up, feeling ashamed about everything. Ikki leaned in and gave Stolas a hug, which he accepted.

"None of this is your fault, Stolas," Ikki whispered, "You were just trying to protect him. But now that she and her goons are gone, you two can finally be together now without any issue."

Stolas simply nodded, glad that someone finally came and rescued him, even though it wasn't Blitzo that did it, which hurt him to an extent. After they broke off from the hug, Ikki gave him his business card before leaving. Stolas decided that now that the threat of Stella and her goons were gone, he decided to do what was right. He got his phone and made a voicemail to Blitzo.

"Blitzo, it's me, Stolas. I hope you get this. I'm sorry for not being honest yesterday, but the the reason why I couldn't tell you was because Stella was going to have you killed by snipers if I didn't do her every word. And unfortunately, that meant I had to allow her hellhounds to abuse and torture me while she watched. And today... I just snapped... I killed them off before I knocked out my wife so hard, I'm pretty sure I put her in a fatal coma. I just want to say that I'm sorry for allowing myself to be hurt to that extent, but I put up with it all because I love you, and I didn't want anything bad to happen to you. I would greatly appreciate it if you returned this. Thank you."

Stolas wasn't exactly telling the truth in the voicemail, but he didn't want to have to explain Ikki's involvement of the situation. After leaving the voicemail, he went to check up on Stella, who wasn't breathing. He checked her pulse, and there was none. Stella had died.

"I'm sorry it had to end like this..." Stolas apologetically said before he went to find the nearest butler to start the body disposing process.

Chapter Text

After drinking coffee as breakfast, Stolas tended to his plants before going to his study, where he was planning to spend the rest of the morning. After all, he had managed to find healing spells he could use, but he knew he would need more practice if he wanted to be able to cast them on himself once hurt. Sadly, working on it must have acted as a kind of bad luck, because he had barely begun that one of Stella’s hellhounds came from the door.

“Here you are. She’s asking for you in your bedroom”, the hound, the chihuahua like, told him with a neutral tone.

Stolas tensed upon seeing him, and for a second he couldn’t help but imagine knocking the hellhound out since he was alone, before turning that idea away and closing the book he was working on.

It would only delay the inevitable and put Blitz at risk. It wasn’t worth it.

So he stood up to follow the henchman. As he approached him to get out of his study, the hellhound cast him a smirk.

“You wanted to avoid me, huh? Better warn you: don’t try to hide or harm us when we’re wandering alone to get you, she monitors us and that wouldn’t end very well for your little friend, got it? Same goes if you try to hurt her directly, but you probably already knows that.”

Stolas simply nodded, but winced internally. He was definitely glad he had stopped his impulse quickly, but the fact it showed enough for the hellhound to realize what he was thinking was definitely not a good thing. He tried to put his mindset in one that would fit what was going to happen, that was the best thing he could do since he couldn’t dissociate. Sure, this was useful information he had just been given, but if Stella had heard that, then she was definitely going to make the start a harsh one.

He led the way back to his room and was greeted there with the rest of the group, which meant Stella had probably told the other two to come back as soon as the one with the owl had found his target.

“Hey, Stolas, it’s been way too long!” She mocked him as the door was closed and locked behind him. “I heard you weren’t too keen on seeing me? I hope you’re not having stupid ideas, unless you want someone dead, right?”

She shot a glance to the wrinkled hellhound who extended his arm toward Stolas.

“Give me your phone”, he commanded.

The Goetia obliged, only then realizing he hadn’t left it in his study as he should have, and immediately hoped it wasn’t going to be a problem. Since he was usually reminded about it by Stella, he forgot this time, and he had to refrain from starting to freak out at the possible outcome.

But the hellhound immediately started typing on it, which made the owl frown before a finger on his cheek forced him to turn his face to Stella.

“You should focus on me, stupid”, the swan smiled threateningly. “He’s not going to sent anything to anyone, calm down, just installing a small tracking app so I don’t risk coming here when you’re elsewhere, and they don’t have to search for you in the whole place like today. Don’t pry into it, and of course don’t remove it, understood?”

“Yes.”

“Good! Now, you!” She added for the hellhound who bought Stolas in. “Do whatever you like to him to punish him for ever thinking he could escape this. Then we’ll be able to get started.”

“How hard should I go on him?”

“It wouldn’t be fun to go too hard so soon, but I don’t want this to become a habit and for him to think it’s ok to search for a way out, so… Find something… Striking, perhaps?”

But before anyone can do anything else, two people barged in. Those two people were Silly Simon and his wife, both the parents of Horrid Henry. And they were fuming.

"YOU ALL STOP THIS RIGHT NOW!" Silly Simon commanded, causing everyone to turn around and gasp.

"WHAT THE- HOW DID YOU ALL GET IN?! I LOCKED THE DOOR!" Stella exclaimed.

"You shut up!" the mum barked at Stella, "Our terrible, no good son Henry revealed to us that he's been taking savings from our bank accounts and commissioned you to torture your husband while you record them and send them to him!"

To prove this, she showed the group screenshots of the Telegram chat between Horrid Henry and Stella, in which Henry had paid $40,000 so far for the torture sessions.

"Wait, is that why you always have a camcorder with you during these sessions?!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed, "I didn't say anything about it because I assumed you were keeping the footage just to get off!"

"Well, actually, that's part of the reason..." Stella admitted, "But Henry hates Stolas just as much as me, and he loves watching the videos! Plus, I needed to control Stolas one way or another, and this arrangement so far has been working out!"

"Yeah, so get out, both of you! Not unless you wanna get hurt too!" the watchdog hellhound threatened as he balled his fists.

"NO WAY!!! IT'S TIME THIS MADNESS STOPPED!!!" Silly Simon said as he kicked down the chihuahua hellhound.

"DON'T YOU DON'T HURT MY FRIENDS!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed as he and the watchdog hellhound charged at the couple. That's when the mum pulled out gardening tools and used it on the two hellhounds, injuring them.

"OW! STOP IT!" the Shar Pei hellhound cried out.

"YEAH!!! THAT SHIT HURTS, GODDAMN!!!" the watchdog hellhound added.

"Stolas, don't just stand there! Do something, for bloody sake!" Silly Simon told Stolas.

"But... but..." Stolas tried to argue.

"STOLAS, IF YOU GET INVOLVED IN THIS SHIT, THEN YOU CAN KISS YOUR IMP GOODBYE!!!" Stella threatened, but then Silly Simon took the phone and smashed it. "HEY!!!"

"YOU WILL KILL NO ONE!!!" Silly Simon yelled as he tackled Stella and began to punch her.

"STOLAS HELP ME!!!" Stella cried out.

"Oh, NOW you want my help?!" Stolas exclaimed, "Hell no! Matter of fact, I think it's time I finally get vengeance on what you all did to me!"

Before anyone knew it, Stolas went into feral mode and began to shred the three hellhounds. Silly Simon and his wife stood in horror as they watched the feral owl demon tear apart all three hellhounds at ease. By the time Stolas returned to his normal form, the room was covered in nothing but blood and hellhound flesh.

"JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE MY PLAN'S BEEN FOILED AT THE HANDS OF ABUSIVE BRITISH PARENTS!!! YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! FUCK YOU ALL!!! I'M LEAVING!!!" Stella cried as she ran out the room, ashamed and embarrassed by her arrangement being ruined. After she left, Horrid Henry entered the room and gasped at the carnage.

"What the hell, mum and dad?!" Henry exclaimed, "I was going to come by and watch this torture, but when I saw Stella running out crying, that's when I knew something was wrong! What did you all do?!"

Stolas, seeing the very kid that was the reason why he was being abused and tortured, couldn't control his anger. He ran up to Henry and shoved him against a wall.

"YOU MOTHERFUCKER!!! YOU'RE THE REASON WHY STELLA AND HER MUTTS OF TERROR HAVE BEEN ABUSING ME FOR THE PAST FEW WEEKS!!! I FUCKING HATE YOU!!! I HOPE YOUR PARENTS RESTRAIN YOU AND SUBJECT YOU TO THE SAME FUCKING SHIT THAT I WENT THROUGH, BUT TEN TIMES WORSE!!!" Stolas screamed and raged as Henry cried.

"NO!!! SIR, I'M SORRY!!! DON'T KILL ME!!!" Henry cried. Silly Simon pulled Stolas away and confronted Henry.

"Henry, we do not condone Stolas yelling at you in that manner, but he has a point. Using our savings to pay someone to torture another for your own amusement is BEYOND unacceptable! This is easily the worst thing you have ever done!" Silly Simon exclaimed as Henry's mum picked up the phone Stella dropped on her way out. Despite the glass being shattered, it still worked.

"Young man, you are to return all of the money you stole from us NOW!" mum demanded. Henry had no choice but to follow their orders and refund the $40,000, especially with Stolas looming over him and ready to pounce the moment he disobeyed.

"Now when we get home, you are grounded big time, young man!" Silly Simon said. All Henry could do was as he ran out of the room crying.

"Stolas, we are so sorry for what you've been through," mum apologetically said, "We saw the videos of your torture, and we cannot believe they would do all of that."

"Yeah, those bloody bullocks ought to be lucky they're not in the UK like us. The police would make them pay!" Silly Simon added.

"No worries. Though it certainly sucked, it's all in the past now. And I don't want you too to feel as though you are responsible for this. You clearly didn't had any idea of what was going on until you saw the Telegram messages. Are you okay with sharing contacts so we can chat in the future?"

Both parents agreed, and they exchanged numbers before the parents left the room, intending to return to the UK to punish Henry. Stolas felt relieved that the infamous torture sessions were finally over. Though he didn't expect them to end at the hands of Horrid Henry's parents, he was glad that it was over for good. Stolas decided to find the tracking app that was forcibly installed on his phone and deleted it before he went to the nearest available butler and asked for the mess in the room to be cleaned. After that was taken care of, he returned to his studies, resuming his healing training as though nothing had happened.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"Start what? The best day ever?!"

Everyone turned to who said that, and couldn't believe who was standing there. There was Spongebob Squarepants, the yellow sponge from Bikini Bottom.

"NO WAY! IT'S SPONGEBOB! I LOVE YOUR SHOW!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed.

"Nah, that show sucks! Especially in Seasons 6 and 7 where it has some of the worst episodes of the series!" the watchdog hellhound argued.

"Okay, can we talk about the show later?!" Stella groaned before turning to Spongebob, "What are you doing here, anyway? We're right in the middle of something here."

"Oh I figured I'd stop by and see what you all are doing," Spongebob responded.

"Well, what do you think?" the chihuahua hellhound said with a raised eyebrow, "We're trying to get paid here!"

"By whooping my ass while I'm defenseless?" Stolas rhetorically asked.

"NO ONE ASKED FOR YOUR COMMENT, STOLASS!!!" Stella screeched, "Seriously, Spongebob, what do you want? We'll do anything if that means you'll leave."

"Stop the torture session!" Spongebob exclaimed.

"Anything but that!" Stella denied.

"Stop the torture session!" Spongebob exclaimed again.

"Anything but that!" Stella denied again.

"Stop the torture session!" Spongebob exclaimed once again.

"Anything but that!" Stella denied once again.

"Stop the torture session!" Spongebob exclaimed, clearly not going to change his answer.

"You know, I'm starting to get an Earth Girls Are Easy vibe from ya'," the Shar Pei hellhound commented.

"Stop the torture session!" Spongebob exclaimed.

"HOW ABOUT YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed in Spongebob's face, causing Spongebob to punch Dess so hard, he rolled on the ground in the middle of the floor.

"DAMN, BOY!!!" Stolas exclaimed.

"Stop the torture session!" Spongebob exclaimed, acting as though he didn't just knock down a much stronger and heavier hellhound just now.

"NEVER!!! NOW FUCK OFF BEFORE STOLAS'S IMP DIES BECAUSE OF YOUR RECKLESS ACTIONS!!!" Stella threatened.

"Then you leave me no choice!" Spongebob said before he transformed into his anime self. His anime self is a much stronger, more masculine version of his regular self.

"君が止まらないから、僕が君の代わりに止まるよ！" anime Spongebob said as he began to attack the three hellhounds. They all screamed and cried as they were getting brutally assaulted by anime Spongebob.

"HOLY SHIT!!! STOP ATTACKING MY HELLHOUNDS!!!" Stella exclaimed as she tried to get anime Spongebob off of them, but to no use. Anime Spongebob then turned on Stella and began to beat her up.

"これは全世界で最悪の妻であるためです!" anime Spongebob screamed as he continued to assault Stella.

"STOP!!! PLEASE!!! WE'RE SORRY, OKAY?!?! LEAVE US ALONE!!!" Stella cried out. Anime Spongebob stopped, but then he took Stella's phone and broke it for good measure.

"私の視界から消えろ、野郎ども！" anime Spongebob commanded, and Stella and her goons quickly ran off, limping from the excessive beating they just got. Once all four were gone, Spongebob returned to his normal self and released Stolas from the handcuffs.

"Well, having Spongebob rescue me from being tortured at the hands of Stella was not on my bingo card for this year," Stolas joked, causing Spongebob to laugh.

"Well, Stolas, someone had to save you from all of this madness, and I figured I'd help you out after watching the Western Energy episode!" Spongebob said. Stolas and Spongebob then exchanged phone numbers before Spongebob left to return to Bikini Botton. Stolas couldn't lie, seeing Spongebob in his anime form was very impressive, and he was glad the little sponge rescued him from Stella's diabolical plan.

"Now I need to go back to prepare for Via's visit. I can't wait to tell her about this hilarious story!" Stolas thought to himself as he left the room.

Chapter Text

It took some time for Stolas to realize he had hinted Blitz that this wasn’t his first panic attack, but the imp hadn’t brought it up, so… Either he didn’t notice, or he didn’t care. Both were fine with the owl. He was still afraid Blitz’s help has been motivated mainly by practical aspects, but it had truly felt nice, to have someone beside him in those moments, despite the added rush of stress it first caused him.

Now, barely two days later, it was time to prepare for their second self-defense lesson! Even better, Octavia was still there until the start of next week because of her mother’s schedule, which was all better in Stolas’ eyes, and not just because it kept Stella away. Maybe he would be able to not see her at all this week? It went well until now, and he hadn’t even particularly tried hard to avoid her.

At least, the gear Blitz had suggested him to defend or train during the lessons had arrived, a bit later than expected but still in time, so Stolas wasn’t complaining.

It would be an evening without his daughter, but he wouldn’t be alone anyway thanks to the imp, so he didn’t mind too much. Plus, Via was going to some festival to see a concert with Loona, and it felt nice to see these two were getting along even more now. Stolas had even heard Via speak about Loona’s friends, saying they were nice and she’d see them again today.

To Stolas’ dismay, Via wasn’t mastering the portals without the grimoire yet enough to be able to take herself and Loona there, but the owl still made sure the both of them had a safe transportation there, since Blitz would be using the van to come to the palace later, after work. He could have used the crystal, but he seemed to prefer leaving it at the office and not use it for other purposes, and he refused Stolas’ offer to portal him. As for the girls, they had feared loosing the gem not so long ago and therefore didn’t want to risk it in a place full of people.

The prince had made sure to renew the spell on his daughter, and even placed one on Loona and the imp couple from IMP, just in case. With everything happening, it felt safer that way, until he could start his moves, but that would have to wait for next week.

But right now, he had some catch up to do on his work. Not that he could avoid all his tasks even with Via here, but he hadn’t been too busy these past few weeks and hoped it would remain that way, for he had a lot on his mind. Yet, there was still a bare minimum to be done, so he settled on it, asking for refreshments to his staff soon after he got started, to make sure he wouldn’t wander off if he was to go to the kitchen by himself. He… May have been a bit too easygoing this week, and it wasn’t a habit he should take, not when the next one was threateningly close by.

Still, once said bare minimum was done, he was quick to abandon his study to go to the room he had dedicated to their self-defense lessons. His staff was told to put the gear received there, but he hadn’t unpacked yet, and he had to admit, he wanted to do so before Blitz’s arrival, because as much as he loved to chat with his imp, he also knew he probably wouldn’t be as well physically for their next training, so better take some advance on the hiding blades in clothes part so they could focus on the other aspects Blitz had been interested about last time.

That was what he was planning anyway, smiling in light excitement, before he froze in the door frame, blinking as his eyes narrowed on an imp rummaging through the newly arrived boxes, an imp who definitely wasn’t from his staff nor was Blitz, but an imp he still immediately recognized nonetheless.

A tall snake hybrid, still with his cowboy hat and clothes, not even bothering to blend in.

“Finally Stolas, I was on the verge of asking him to fetch you!”

Stolas’ head quickly turned to spot Stella, sitting on a chair against the wall in a corner out of sight for newcomers. Well, that explained why Striker was here, not that he was very surprised since she was the one to hire him too last time they met.

But the fact that they were here, in this room of all places, put dread in Stolas’ stomach. Striker stopped his search to turn an evil grin to him, tail lashing as he stood up.

“Well well, we meet again feathers! What were ya hopin’ to achieve with these, uh?” He asked holding a thin blade, almost like a needle.

“That is what I was wondering indeed”, Stella snickered, standing up too to approach Stolas.

The owl had to use every trick he knew of to compose himself and not outright panic, because it didn’t take a genius to understand what was going on, and it was bad. He wasn’t sure how to interpret the imp’s presence instead of the three hellhounds, but he could only hope it was related to the unplanned aspect of Stella’s visit and not something else.

There was also a part of him actively muzzling his fighting instinct, that had been reinforced by his first self-defense lesson with Blitz and the closeness of the second. Stella was probably suspecting it, as she got her phone out to wave in his face as she stopped before him, showing once again Blitz in the meeting room, probably freshly returned from Earth given the blood on his and his employees’ clothes.

“You don’t want anything to happen to him, right? Not even that little warning shot we discussed? Then you’ll be obedient and honest, and if you’re convincing enough, you’ll be the only one to suffer the consequences, alright?”

There was a twitch in Stolas’ hands but he forced himself not to clench his fists as he nodded, trying to go for a blank expression again rather than a scared or pissed one despite the unexpectedness of the situation.

“You’ll need to do better than that”, the swan warned him with a threatening smile.

“Will do”, was all he could answer, trying to sound neutral here too.

She gauged him for a while with disdain before smiling slowly.

“A bit better! Now, answer the question: what is all this?”

“Defensive weapons”, he answered, not willing to explain everything with too much details.

“Against who?”

“Attackers. These aren’t meant for you or your lackeys if that is your worry, I have other ways if I wanted to dispose of nefarious intruders in my own house. I don’t need any weapon against hellhounds or imps and you’ll notice none of those are blessed.”

She hummed for a moment, thinking.

“That’s right, but it doesn’t mean it’s okay. One could easily get the wrong idea.”

“Gotta agree, looks like you want stuff to free yourself should you find yourself bound in blessed rope again”, Striker snickered.

“Well, that is indeed the idea”, Stolas forced himself to confirm, since it seemed like the spy app on his phone could probably read his texts with Blitz too, maybe even listen to what happened around it. If he wasn’t such a fool, he’d have been more careful knowing the risks brought by this app. Now was a bit late, but it was still good to know. He could only be glad he hadn’t said or texted anything more dangerous that his ex wife could have heard or read.

“And still, you’re telling me this isn’t to mess with my fun with you?” Stella insisted.

“It isn’t. Again, you’re predictable, if I didn’t want to comply, I would do so before being restrained. Plus, messing with your fun, as you say, would endanger Blitz, and the whole point of this is to keep him safe, isn’t it?”

It was the only moment he allowed a hint of threat in his own voice, a reminder that his pushover facade wouldn’t last if she ever did anything to said imp.

She shrugged, still smiling at him.

“I won’t find them on you then, next time I come by? That wouldn’t sent a very good message, understood?”

“Ma’am, you don’t want to throw these?” Striker asked, confused.

“No need, he’d be able to order others through the staff. Though, feel free to keep anything you’d like, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind, right? But I’m not here for that! Since it seems the imp was the one to initiate this, let’s just say the punishment falls fully on you for not refusing. Now, let’s go, shall we?”

If that was all the questions she had, then it wasn’t as bad as Stolas had feared, especially if she didn’t intend to hurt Blitz. He worried she would make use of said warning shot, and he wasn’t sure he would have been able to stay put if she had, but she probably knew as much. Which meant, either she wouldn’t, or she would once he was powerless. He shouldn’t forget she probably had planned something special for him as a retaliation.

Whatever it was though, it was obvious Striker’s presence was one of last minute. Either that, or he really didn’t like working directly under a royal’s orders that way, with his employer present and being able to dictate his every move. He also didn’t seem to know how she usually operated, but was doing a decent job of following the flow.

Still, Stolas filled that in his mind. He couldn’t act up now, and wouldn’t, but the hybrid was an unknown factor, there was no telling what he would do or how he would react. The Goetia hadn’t forgotten what the tall imp did to him last time, which was a bad omen for what was about to come, but he couldn’t fight back yet again. He simply hoped Striker wouldn’t have another idea of more… Permanent injuries. He had done a good job at putting up a good facade for Octavia, he didn’t want for all of this to have been in vain, though at least she didn’t worry for as long as it lasted.

The changes were indeed quick to happen, for Striker didn’t lock the door behind him and barely waited for the owl to put his phone away before putting forcefully his arms behind his back to tie him up with blessed rope.

“Not a fan of handcuffs?” Stolas couldn’t help but ask, managing not to sound too snarky.

“Why, it would have suited your fancy tastes better? Sorry, I trust these more”, Striker smiled as he deliberately tied the knot as tight as he could, before patting the owl down to make sure he had no blades already hidden on him.

Stolas moved his fingers a bit, and internally winced at the numb feeling already spreading. By the time they were done, he was sure as hell not to be able to feel his hands at all.

His body harshly hit the floor before he could understand what had happened, and he was kicked to roll in the direction Stella has taken a sit.

“This view good enough for you ma’am?” Striker asked, seemingly too happy to have another occasion to torture the owl to ponder much about who was paying him.

“Perfect”, Stella purred. “Now, you have what I asked for I hope?”

“Of course. Wan’ me to start with that?”

“Oh yes!” She answered with a wide sick smile, but Stolas’ attention was instantly drawn somewhere else as Striker pulled out a blessed knife, which also seemed coated with something, but with a slightly different texture, though it also appeared to be some transparent gel or sticky liquid.

“You remember that, right?” Striker asked, playing with the knife as he knelt. “Don’t move.”

"NO WAY!!! MOVE IT TO THE BEAT!!!"

Everyone turned to who yelled that, and they couldn't believe who it was standing there. It was none other than Brandon Rogers, a popular entertainer online.

"Oh, you gotta be kidding me!" Stella groaned, "Why is there a human in here?!"

"Better question is, why does he sound awfully familiar to Blitzo?" Stolas wondered.

"I'm Brandon Rogers, and I'm the voice actor of Blitzo from Helluva Boss," Brandon explained, "One good friend of mine showed me the Selfless fanfic, and after what I read, I am so FUCKING APPALLED! Stella, this birdie has been through enough shit as it is in the canon show. Why are you subjecting him to this?!"

Everyone was at loss of words of what Brandon just said. There were voice actors voicing them? And they were all part of some fanfiction?

"Wait, if Blitzo is being voiced by you, then who's voicing us?!" Striker asked.

"Well, Stolas, you're voiced by Bryce Pinkham. Stella, you're voiced by Georgina Leahy, who is ironically enough a very kind and respectful woman. And Striker, you got two voice actors. You were originally voiced by Norman Reedus in the Harvest Moon Festival episode, but now you are voiced by Edward Bosco."

"What the hell?! Why am I being voiced by Georgina?! I heard she's terrible!" Stella tried to claim, but in truth, she didn't knew who this woman is.

"Um, Brandon, can you please untie me from these ropes? I can't feel shit because Mr. I Hate Royalty Yet I Work For Them tied them too tightly!" Stolas exclaimed.

"Oh, boo hoo, prince!" Striker mocked before glaring at Brandon, "And you better not try and free him or else Blitzo is dead!"

"YEAH! TAKE THIS!" Stella yelled as she threw something at Brandon, causing him to turn to his grandpa character.

"Try me bitch!" Grandpa Brandon threatened as he threw the candy back at Stella.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?! I'VE HAD IT!!! WE'RE GONNA DESTORY HELLUVA BOSS AND MAKE THIS FANFIC CANON TO THE SERIES TO TRIGGER THE FANGIRLS OF STOLAS AND BLITZO!!!" Striker proclaimed as he began to try and find a way to stop the show. But Brandon was one step ahead of him. He turned into his Karen character and started to attack Striker with his purse.

"Don't you dare ruin the show! I'll sue you!" Karen Brandon yelled as he continued to attack Striker.

"BACK THE FUCK OFF!!!" Striker screamed as he tried to stab Brandon, but Brandon grabbed his arm and twisted it to a point where it broke, causing him to scream.

"HOW DARE YOU BROKE HIS ARM!!!" Stella screamed, "THAT'S IT!!! YOU CAN KISS YOUR CHARACTER GOODBYE!!!"

But before Stella could even grab her phone, Brandon knocked her down on the ground and held her down as he untied Stolas and restrained Stella with the very angelic rope.

"NO!!! GET OFF OF ME!!!" Stella screamed, but Brandon ignored her.

"Now, let's see what this gel in the knife can do..." Brandon menacingly said.

"NO!!! DON'T!!!" Striker yelled as he charged at Brandon, but Stolas held him. Brandon then sank in one go in her thigh until the weapon’s guard blocked it’s plunge, earning a scream from Stella.

“That’s the sound I want to hear!” Brandon’s voice pleasantly cooed, but Stolas looked worried.

"Um, Brandon... I don't think you should-" Stolas was suddenly interrupted when Brandon removed the blade with a twist, and the high pitched shriek escaped Stella before she could process what was happening.

“Aaah, such nice sounds...” Brandon couldn’t help but tease.

"NO!!! STOP!!! I WAS SUPPOSE TO DO THAT TO STOLAS!!! YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSE TO HURT STELLA!!! LEAVE HER ALONE!!! PLEASE!!! SHE DOESN'T DESERVE ANY OF THIS!!!" Striker begged as he cried, not wanting the swan princess to be hurt. But it was no use. All Striker could do was watch as Brandon continued to assault Stella with the blessed knife while tearing off her dress. Whatever product was on that blade, it was way too efficient. Stella’s poor mind was quickly put in a haze of pain as Brandon kept going, trying to get as much screams and sounds of pain as he could from the swan, slicing her right side, stabbing her right shoulder next, then her arm below, before applying pressure on each of the fresh wounds. He even went as far as breaking the bone beneath her thigh wound, surpassing all other pains before with the added feeling of the bone breaking and the tissues from the already present stab wound tearing up even more. Once his victim was too exhausted to yell, he kept going with a beating, until Stolas stopped him.

"Brandon, please! You've done enough! Stella's going to die from too much pain!" Stolas pleaded. Brandon thankfully stopped, but then forced Stella to open her mouth and spat in her mouth, making her swallow it.

"Torture's not so fun when you're on the other hand, huh bitch?" Brandon mocked, "Let this be the last time you try and hurt him. Not unless I'll do worse. Now fuck off. Both of you."

Striker still wept as he gently and carefully carried the swan princess out of the room, both crying from the pain and hatred Brandon inflicted upon them. Despite his usual goofiness, when pissed, Brandon was a force not to be messed with. Once Stella and Striker were out of the room, Stolas let out a sigh.

"Brandon, I understand that Stella and her goons were doing to me was completely terrible and unacceptable, and I agree that it needed to be stopped," Stolas began, "But... what you did to her was just as wrong. You aren't any better than her or her goons doing this. I get you wanted to try an 'eye for an eye' type punishment, but I don't think that was right. These blessed knifes are enough to leave a demon in serious damage if they're not fatally killed. Worse of all, how will Octavia react to finding out her mother was assaulted and tortured in such a terrible way? She was already distressed enough to find out I was almost killed, and to find that her mother was subjected to similar torture?"

"Stolas, I understand what you are saying, but what I did to her, she did five times worst to you at best," Brandon reasoned, "I may be a fun and goofy guy, but I hate seeing those I love and care for be hurt, especially to this extent. You've been hurt for many lifetimes even without this torture nonsense. I'm sorry for hurting Stella like that, Stolas, but she needs to understand the pain she inflicts on others, and that it is not okay to do what she is doing. I hope this is the last time she tries to hurt you like this."

Stolas couldn't help but agree with what Brandon said. He presumed that something happened in his personal life that led to him doing what he did. Brandon then held Stolas's hand.

"Say, birdie, want me to fuck your brains out to get your mind off today's madness from earlier?" Brandon offered.

"Depends. Are you as good in bed as your character?" Stolas flirted.

"How about we fuck around and find out?" Brandon flirted back. And as Stolas lifted Brandon up to kiss him, he realized that Blitzo's voice actor was actually pretty cool.

Chapter Text

Once his breakfast was over, Stolas did try to get a few hours of sleep, but his brain just kept circling whenever he tried to rest, so he quickly gave up and choose to continue his preparations. He wouldn’t really be able to drown his sorrow in alcohol in the up-coming days if he was rejected since Octavia was there, but well, in theory he could with all the work he was doing. It’s almost as if he truly had many things do to, when in reality he just needed to keep his mind busy. Which was a bit unusual, he liked to take his time and think, but he already did too much of it and it was just going on repeat now.

He still managed to do what he could to keep an eye on Octavia while she was gone and talked to Loona to reassure himself, then they were both gone, after Stolas hugged his daughter, and he waved at her, wishing them a good evening, while the hellhound was driving away.

The van was bound to come back, since Blitz was using it too to visit the palace, but the girls were going to stay at Loona’s place for a bit, and if they were still up for the party, Blitz would drop them off before joining Stolas.

The Goetia still had a few hours ahead of him, but he had absolutely no idea how to spent them. A bath would be nice, but even if he preened in the most extensive way, it wouldn’t take that long.

Instead, he wandered in the gardens around the palace. The greenhouse was great, but he had already visited his plants today, and the outside would do him some good too.

And it worked… Until he was almost back to his starting point, and he noticed a group or four near the entrance and froze.

“Oh, Stolas, perfect, you’re already here!” Stella smirked at him. “You sure do know when to show up at least!”

“Already?!” He couldn’t help but sigh as they walked toward him.

“What, you’re not happy to see me?” Stella teased. “I know you’re alone, so let’s have a bit of fun, shall we? You’re lucky, I wasn’t planning on it so it will be short, but it’s not like if you had much of a choice, right?”

She showed him her phone again, and on the screen, he could see Octavia chatting with Loona in the back of IMP’s meeting room in some angles from the cameras pointed at Blitz, and he mentally swore. Of course, that was how she knew his daughter wasn’t here, because there was no way she’d have texted her mother about this.

“It is not a great idea to let our heir spend her time with such people, don’t you think? I know you have weird ideas about how to educate a young Goetia, but still! Oh well, you won’t listen to my views on the subject, let’s just skip to the next and funny part! I’ll let you show the way. Don’t forget your phone.”

"Sure thing!"

No one knew who said that, but what they do know was that what happened next was unexpected. Stella's phone suddenly started to get very hot a point where Stella had to drop it. Then, out of nowhere, the battery imploded, and the phone caught on fire.

"HOLY SHIT, MY PHONE!" Stella cried out. The Shar Pei hellhound got a cup of water and tried to put it out, but it didn't work.

"You can't use water to put out a lithium battery, dumbass!" the watchdog hellhound scolded as he bopped the Shar Pei hellhound on the head. Stolas then got out the proper fire extinguisher to put out the fire. Though it was quickly contained, Stella's phone was now broken beyond repair.

"DID YOU HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH THIS, STOLASS?!" Stella accused the owl prince.

"How the FUCK would have I have been able to do that?! You all saw I didn't use any kind of magic!" Stolas defended.

"Wait, didn't someone say 'Sure thing' before Stella's phone caught on fire? Maybe that person was responsible for it?" the chihuahua hellhound deduced.

"Yeah! Whoever did that, show yourself!" the watchdog hellhound threatened as he put his dukes up. The person then revealed himself to be none other than Jotaro Kujo, who's best known for being a rough delinquent with a noble heart.

"What's this I hear about you all trying to torture Stolas?" Jotaro confronted.

"Us? Torture the great noble prince Stolas? Of course not! Where would you get that idea from?" Stella nervously said. Jotaro then pulled out video from the last torture session, which shocked everyone. Stolas in particular grew afraid from recounting the infamous session.

"Uh... that's not us..." Stella denied, but Jotaro was not having it.

"SHUT UP WITH YOUR LIES!!!" Jotaro screamed as he threw a clean punch towards Stella, knocking her down.

"HOW DARE YOU PUNCH HER!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he charged at Jotaro, only for him to dodge the attack and grab the watchdog's forearm before kneeing it so hard it snapped. The watchdog hellhound cried in pain from the broken forearm, and Jotaro punched him down on the ground, sweeping the other two hellhounds with him.

"NO, PLEASE!!! WE'RE SORRY!!! DON'T KILL US!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound cried out as they all embraced each other.

"No apology will get you all out of this..." Jotaro glared, "Stolas, would you like to assist me?"

"Sure thing!" Stolas nodded as he and Jotaro got ready for the ultimate attack.

"Oh shit..." Stella gulped.

"DAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMU!!!"

Jotaro did a rapid punch move against Stella while Stolas went into feral mode and did a similar move towards the three hellhounds. All four screamed and cried as they tried, but failed to block the rapid punches that were quickly degrading their bodies. This assault went on for over a minute before both finally stopped. In the aftermath, Both the Shar Pei and chihuahua hellhounds were dead, and Stella and the watchdog were barely clinging on to life.

"Any last words, you stupid scumbags?!" Jotaro coldy said.

"Fuck you..." the watchdog hellhound spat out.

"I don't regret shit..." Stella sneered. Jotaro then curb stomped the watchdog hellhound, killing him. He was about to do the same with Stella before he was stopped by Stolas.

"Wait! Don't kill her!" Stolas pleaded, "I don't care about the hellhounds, but whether people like it or not, she is still the mother of Octavia. I don't want my little owlet to worry about her own mother dying because of your actions!"

Jotaro was hesitant, but ultimately conceded and spared Stella, but only because Stolas was that adamant on ensuring that Octavia still had a mother figure.

"Don't make me come back here, Stella. Otherwise, not even Stolas's pleads will save you..." Jotaro warned before he left. Stella tried to stop herself from crying, but it was no use. She sobbed like a baby as Stolas couldn't help but fear bad for her, despite what she had done. She had already tortured him once, and was going to do it again, but deep down, she didn't deserve an assault this bad. While she still sobbed, Stolas gently carried her to the study room to heal her injuries, while also making sure that Stella didn't try and harm him, which she thankfully try to do. Apparently, Jotaru's beating made her think twice now. Once Stella was fully healed and cleaned up, Stolas helped Stella get up before he told her this:

"Stella, let this be the last time you try and hurt me. I could've easily let Jotaru finish you off the same way he did with one of your goons, but I didn't because despite everything you tried to do to me, I will never be as hateful and heartless as you. But... if you so much as to threaten me or my loved ones again, then I won't hesitate to have you killed... Go home, Stella... and don't come back here..."

Stella simply nodded, and slowly walked out of the palace, regretting everything. Once Stella was out, Stolas just simply sighed. While he was glad these torture sessions were finally over, at the same time, he felt as though Jotaru could've handled it a bit better than to nearly kill Stella. Nonetheless, he was thankful for his help, and hoped to meet him again.

"I'm gonna need their bodies disposed, and then I'll get to work preparing for the full moon," Stolas planned as he went to call the cleaners.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

But before the first punch can be thrown, however, something unexpected happened. The door came crashing down, and in came Horrid Henry, the infamous troublemaker of Britain.

"IT'S NOT EASY BEING ME!!! I'M HORRID HENRY!!!" Henry screamed the lyrics to his theme song.

"Oh no, not that fucking brat!" the watchdog hellhound groaned.

"Horrid Henry, you are to leave immediately!" Stella commanded, knowing Henry's infamous history, "We are right in the middle of something, and you are not to interrupt us with your horrid behavior!"

"No! I want to join!" Henry whined.

"No way, kid! You ain't got the power like we have!" the Shar Pei hellhound disagreed.

"Wait, aren't you that kid who's being abused by your parents?" Stolas asked.

"What do you mean? He's not being abused!" Stella retorted.

"Stella, I've watched the Horrid Henry show before, and his parents are awful!" Stolas exclaimed, "His parents treat him like an absolute demon, even in moments where Henry wasn't acting horrid, and meanwhile, they treat their other son Peter as the golden child and spoil him rotten. There was a scene where Peter flat out admits to spraying Henry with the hose, and the father still thought it was Henry's fault for getting in the way! If anything, 'horrid' Henry is actually the nicest member of the family, as everyone else is terrible and unlikeable to him!"

Suddenly, Henry grew sad before he broke down crying. For the first time, someone finally stood up and called out the true nature of his family, who was ironically the very reason he acted the way he did.

"T- Thank you, Stolas... you have no idea what my parents did to me..." Henry wept.

"ALRIGHT, ENOUGH OF THIS PITY PARTY!!! YOU EITHER LEAVE NOW OR ELSE BLITZO WILL DIE BECAUSE YOU WANTED TO BUTT IN AND ACT HORRID!!!" Stella threatened.

"HOW ABOUT YOU SHUT YPOUR BLOODY ASS UP?!?!" Henry screamed as he punched Stella, then took her phone and broke it.

"DON'T YOU DARE ASSAULT STELLA YOU STUPID KID!!!" the chihuahua hellhound screamed as he charged at Henry, but he pulled out a knife and stabbed the chihuahua with it. "OW!!! HE STABBED ME!!!"

"HENRY YOU NAUGHTY LITTLE BOY!!!" the watchdog hellhound growled as he and the Shar Pei hellhound charged at Henry. But Henry had another plan. He dodged the charge and stabbed the Shar Pei hellhound in the back. When the watchdog hellhound lunged at him, he used his foot to kick him in the face before slashing his chest, letting out a scream.

"HOW DARE YOU STAB MY HELLHOUNDS!!!" Stella screeched and slapped Henry in the face. Henry then let out a massive scream before tackling Stella and proceeding to punch and kick her. Stella tried, but failed to stop the assault.

"Henry, please stop! She's had enough!" Stolas pleaded, and Henry stopped, though all four were now injured.

"You all get out right now! And Stella, no more of your torturing antics!" Henry demanded. Stella and the hellhounds groaned and cried in pain as they got up and left. Once all four were out of the room, Henry freed Stolas from the handcuffs and gave him a hug.

"Thank you so much for your bravery, young man," Stolas thanked, "See? You're not so horrid after all. There is a kind, loving kid inside of you, and you deserve far better than those poor excuses of parents."

"Oh, that just reminds me!" Henry pulled out a paper that would forfeit custody of Henry to Silly Simon and his wife, and instead give full custody to Stolas, "How about you be my dad?"

"Um, sure, but... why did your parents signed it?" Stolas asked.

"They didn't. I just had them sign it unwillingly while they were asleep!" Henry giggled. Stolas thought that was wrong, but then he remembered that this was hell, and anything went there. So he signed the paper, giving him full custody of Horrid Henry.

"Thank you so much, dad!" Henry exclaimed, "Now come on! Let's have some fun and forget about what that horrible swan and her mutts tried to do to you earlier!"

"Sure thing, Henry," Stolas agreed as he and Henry went out of the room to have some father/son bonding.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"THE BLOOD CIRCLE IS FUCKING READY!!!"

Everyone turned to who said that, and were in complete shock at who was there. There stood the infamous USBM act Profanatica, and right off the bat, they began to play one of their songs "Condemned to Unholy Death."

"NO WAY! IT'S PROFANATICA!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed.

"FUCK YEAH!!! THIS IS AWESOME!!!" the chihuahua added. All three hellhounds forgot what they were supposed to be doing, and instead began to headbang and mosh to the song.

"HEY IDIOTS!!! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE HITTING HIM!!! NOT MOSHING TO THIS TERRIBLE BAND!!!" Stella exclaimed, but it was no use.

"COME ON, STOLAS, YOU GOTTA JOIN IN!!!" the watchdog hellhound said as he released Stolas, in which Stolas decided to headbang as well.

"Wow, this band sure knows how to play!" Stolas exclaimed as he danced with the hellhounds.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE WHAT I'M WITNESSING RIGHT NOW!!! THAT'S IT!!! I'M ENDING THIS SHIT!!!" Stella screeched as she tried to stop the band members. But that was a mistake, as the guitarist Adam Besserer hit her in the head with his guitar.

"OUCH! STOP PLAYING AND GET THE FUCK OUT!" Stella screamed as she snatched the bass and smashed it. That's when bassist Malcolm Tent grabbed her arm and karate chopped it, breaking it. "OW!!! FUCK YOU, YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!!!"

"DON'T YOU DARE RUIN THIS PERFORMANCE!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed as he shoved Stella away.

"I HAVE HAD IT WITH YOU ALL!!! BECAUSE YOU JERKS WANTED TO RUIN EVERYTHING, I'M KILLING BLITZO RIGHT NOW!!!" But before Stella could get her phone, Stolas kicked her privates, causing her to cry as she fell on her knees. Stolas then took the phone and snapped it in half.

"GET THE FUCK OUT, WOMAN!!! AND DON'T EVER COME BACK TO THIS PALACE AGAIN!!!" Stolas screamed in Stella's face. Stella had no choice but to leave, crying from the pain from her pussy. By this point, the band stopped playing.

"You alright, Stolas?" drummer Paul Ledney asked.

"I guess so, but I can't believe she tried to do that to me just now. Also, how come you three stopped what you were doing?" Stolas asked.

"Well, Stolas, we love Profanatica, and when we saw them play, we decided to stop what we were doing and watch them play," the chihuahua explained.

"Yeah, Stolas, we're sorry for working against you for a moment. Stella was going to pay us a lot, but I think you'll pay us even more!" the Shar Pei hellhound hoped.

"How about you three get out?! You've all outstayed your welcome!" Stolas glared. All three hellhounds gulped before leaving the room. Stolas then turned to Malcolm, "Also, why did you have to break my wife's arm? Was that really necessary?"

"Stolas, she broke my bass!" Malcolm defended, "She can't always get her way."

"I agree with him," Adam added, "In fact, that's why we came here, because we wanted to stop Stella from hurting you anymore. You don't deserve any of this."

"Well, I guess so..." Stolas reluctantly agreed.

"Say, Stolas, before we head out, want a free signed copy of our latest LP?" Paul offered.

"Sure! Evne though I'm not much of a metalhead, the music was pretty good, and I'm sure Via would love it!" Stolas agreed. The band members handed Stolas the signed vinyl of Crux Simplex before heading out. Stolas decided to wrap it as a gift to Octavia for when she came home.

"Despite what happened earlier, I'm sure Via would appreciate this band," Stolas thought to himself as he left the room, intending to give Via the gift when she arrived.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

But before the torture can begin, however, something unexpected happened. A portal was opened up, and Stella and the three hellhounds were sucked in the portal. All four screamed as they felt themselves being sucked into a void, with Stella's phone being lost in her grip. Eventually, all four fell into a black screen.

"Ugh, WHAT THE HELL?! WHY DID WE ALL GET SENT HERE?!" Stella exclaimed.

"Don't ask us, we don't know either!" the Shar Pei hellhound said.

"Wait, what's that?!" the chihuahua hellhound pointed. What happened next would haunt the four for days to come. The WGBH Boston began to play, which consisted of the WGBH logo zipping in formation while some alien-like synths played in the background. When the logo finished forming, it shined before showing the word "Boston" before fading away.

"JEEPERS!!! THAT WAS SCARY!!!" the watchdog hellhound whined.

"Oh that was nothing," Stella scoffed, "What's next? They're gonna play another scary logo?"

Another scary logo played, indeed, but this time, it was the infamous BND of Doom. It started by playing the infamous "A Viacom Presentation" logo with the V zooming in while some weird synths and drumming played in the background. But then, out of nowhere, the BND face jumpscared the four as the haunting tone of the BND logo blasted. This sudden jumpscared caused all four to scream before breaking down crying.

"OH MY GOD!!! THAT LOGO WAS SO SCARY!!!" Stella cried.

"WHO THE FUCK MADE US GO THROUGH THAT HELLHOLE?!?!" the Shar Pei hellhound screamed and cried.

"That would be me!" Boris appeared.

"WHAT THE HELL, BORIS?!?! WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU SEND US TO THE WGBH BOSTON AND BND OF DOOM LOGOS?!?!" the watchdog hellhound yelled.

"Because I saw what you all were going to do to Stolas, and I will not allow that!" Boris explained, "By the way, you four are grounded grounded grounded for 893709789y2897258947438978978974973495489756489289524748951789057480975689743690843179 years! Go to bed right now!"

All four screamed and cried as they ran to their rooms, still traumatized from the scary logos. Once all four were gone, Boris returned back to the bedroom, where Stolas still stayed, but now was freed from handcuffs.

"Um, Boris, where is my wife and her goons?" Stolas asked.

"I sent them to the WGBH Boston and BND of Doom logos before grounding them," Boris explained, "The next time they try to torture you, I will give them a punishment day."

"I guess so..." Stolas said. Boris then gave Stolas his phone number for any future meetups before leaving. While Stolas was concerned about Stella getting PTSD from the scary logos, at the same time, he hoped this was a tough lesson learned for the swan princess on why you should never hurt others for the hell of it.

"Oh, I almost forgot about Via's visit!" Stolas thought as he left the room to continue his preparations for Octavia's visit.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

However, what happened next would shock everyone. A TV spawned in the middle of the room where everyone can see. Then, the TV turned on, and it began to play a video of Stella pegging the Shar Pei hellhound.

"How badly do you want to hurt Stolass?" Stella teased.

"Soooo badly, mistress!" the Shar Pei hellhound moaned as Stella slapped his butt.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS?!?! DID YOU SERIOUSLY HAD SEX WITH THEM JUST SO THEY WOULD AGREE TO TORTURE ME?!?!" Stolas exclaimed, disturbed by the contents of the video.

"What?! No, of course not!" Stella tried to deny, but it was clear that was embarrassed from the video. It then cut to another video of Stella pegging the chihuahua next.

"Oh goddess! I love it when you pound my bussy like this! I promise I'll do anything!" the chihuahua hellhound moaned.

"Would you hurt my pathetic ex for me?" Stella asked.

"Yes, goddess! I will stab him if I have to! Oh fuck!" the chihuahua hellhound moaned louder when she hit his m spot. By now, both the Shar Pei and chihuahua hellhounds were blushing like crazy. They didn't knew they were being recorded, and now they felt ashamed for letting themselves be humiliated like this. The watchdog hellhound, on the other hand, was laughing hysterically.

"HOLY FUCKING SHIT!!! YOU TWO ARE SO FUCKING PATHETIC THAT YOU ALLOWED YOURSELVES TO GET PEGGED LIKE THIS!!!" the watchdog hellhound giggled.

"BRO, IT'S NOT FUNNY!!! I JUST LIKE IT IN THE BUTT, OKAY?!" the chihuahua hellhound retorted. Suddenly, the video changed again to something even more embarrassing. This time, Stella was pampering the watchdog hellhound, who was wearing girly baby clothes and acting like a baby.

"Mommy... I love it when you comfort me and treat me like a wittle baby..." the watchdog hellhound said in a baby voice.

"That's excellent, darling..." Stella cooed, "Do you want to hurt a mean owl for mommy?"

"Yes, mommy... I would do anything for you!" the watchdog hellhound giggled as Stella tickled him in the stomach. The watchdog, who was once laughing at his friends, was now silent when he realized his secret was exposed.

"TURN THIS OFF RIGHT NOW!!! STOLAS, YOU WERE NOT SUPPOSE TO WATCH ANY OF THIS SHIT!!!" Stella screamed as she tried to turn off the TV, but with no luck. The video then changed for the last time, which was Stella having rough sex with one of the snipers.

"SAY IT AGAIN!!!" Stella screamed.

"I AM THE QUEEN'S WHORE!!!" the sniper yelled.

"SAY IT!!!" Stella screamed again.

"I AM THE QUEEN'S WHORE!!! OH FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!!!" the sniper moaned as he came.

"HOW DARE YOU CUM WITHOUT MY PERMISSION!!! THAT'S IT!!! I'M LOCKING THAT POOR EXCUSE OF A DICK OF YOURS!!!" Stella sternly yelled as she got out a chastity cage.

"YOU KNOW WHAT?!?! WE'RE FUCKING DONE!!! STELLA, WE DON'T CARE ABOUT THE MONEY ANYMORE!!! STOLAS NOW KNOWS WE'RE ALL DEGENERATES, AND NOTHING IS WORTH HURTING HIM!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed as the chihuahua hellhound released Stolas from his handcuffs. All three hellhounds then ran out of the room crying.

"NO!!! STOP!!! COME BACK!!!" Stella begged, but to no avail. The TV then shut off and went away.

"Stella... in all my years of knowing you... I never would've imagined you would engage in such nastiness..." Stolas sighed.

"SAYS YOU! You and that imp of yours get into disgusting BDSM play! I've seen some of the toys and restraints you leave!" Stella retorted.

"Well at least me and Blitzy don't record these sessions and share it with others to a point where they're all comfortable!" Stolas argued before snatching Stella's phone and calling off the snipers, "Now get out! And if you try and pull anything like this again, then I will FUCKING kill you! And I don't care if you're a mother either! You don't deserve to be one with how much you neglected Via in her childhood!"

Stella was pissed, but she had no other choice but to sigh and leave the room. Once she was out, Stolas tried to figure out where that TV came from, and how it was able to play such videos right before he was about to be tortured. He wasn't even sure who was responsible for it. But regardless of the circumstances surrounding the TV, he was glad it embarrassed everyone enough to stop what they were doing and halt the torture session.

"I need to clear my head from all of this madness..." Stolas softly said as he headed to the balcony for some fresh air.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

The more we get together

Together, together

The more we get together

The happier we'll be!

Cause your friends are my friends

And my friends are your friends

The more we get together

The happier we'll be!

Everyone turned to who was singing, and gasped at who it was. There stood Barney, the infamous purple dinosaur, and he was singing "The More We Get Together."

"Oh boy, it's so fun to see everyone come together!" Barney cheered.

"OH FUCK OFF, BARNEY!!! OCTAVIA USED TO MAKE ME AND STOLASS WATCH YOUR SHOW, AND IT WAS SO FUCKING ANNOYING!!!" Stella screamed, recalling being forced to watch Barney by her daughter.

"Yeah, screw off, you stupid purple dinosaur! We're trying to do something here!" the Shar Pei hellhound added.

"What's that? You want me to sing another song?" Barney asked, not getting the fact that no one wants him here, "Sure thing!"

Roll out the dough!

Pour on the sauce!

Sprinkle the cheese!

Now cover the top with anything you please!

Pizza, pizza, nothing beats a pizza

It's my tummy's favorite

Pizza, pizza, we love to make a pizza

With yummy toppings over it

By now, it was quite obvious that Barney was going to stay in the room and continue to annoy everyone with singing his cheesy and feel-good songs for kids. Even Stolas, who was more tolerant of such shows, was starting to get annoyed.

"You know what?! We're fucking done here! Get him!" the chihuahua hellhound commanded. The Shar Pei and watchdog hellhounds restrained Barney as the chihuahua hellhound released Stolas from the cuffs and placed them on Barney.

"HEY! What are you all doing?!" Stella asked, confused of Stolas being released.

"Change of plans, princess. We're going to torture Barney instead. Now sit down next to Stella, Stolas," the watchdog hellhound pointed to Stolas.

"But... but..." Stolas wanted to argue, as he didn't want to see Barney hurt.

"SIT DOWN NEXT TO HER NOW OR ELSE I WILL TAKE STELLA'S PHONE AND SIGNAL THE SNIPERS TO KILL HIM!!!" the watchdog hellhound threatened, leading to Stolas to have no other choice but to sit next to Stella.

"Wow, let's see what these dogs have in store for me!" Barney giggled.

"Oh, you'll see..." the Shar Pei hellhound smirked before he unleased a powerful punch on the side of Barney's torso, sending him rolling on the ground in the middle of the room. However, instead of being in pain, Barney only laughed.

"Wow, that was awesome! Do that again!" Barney demanded. The Shar Pei then went to kick Barney, getting more laughs from him.

"OH COME ON!!! YOU WERE ALL SUPPOSE TO DO THAT TO STOLASS, NOT THAT PURPLE DINO FUCK!!! HE'S NOT EVEN FEELING ANY PAIN!!!" Stella complained.

"Let me try something," the chihuahua said as he forced Barney up and stabbed him. However, Barney only laughed some more.

"Oh wow! That tickles!" Barney laughed.

"Slow down, so that he really feels it," the Shar Pei hellhound commanded. The chihuahua went slower with the slicing, but Barney continued to laugh.

"Um, guys... I don't think it's working..." Stolas said, "Perhaps you should end it now?"

"NO!!! I WANT A TURN!!!" the watchdog hellhound screamed before he tackled Barney and punched him hardly in numerous areas, including the fresh wounds. If this was done on Stolas, he would've been in so much pain, but for Barney, it was probably the most fun he's ever had.

"This is great! These dogs sure know how to take care of me!" Barney giggled while the watchdog continued to pounce on him.

"ENOUGH!!!" Stella screamed as she shoved the watchdog hellhound away from Barney, "WE'RE DONE HERE!!! BARNEY, I HOPE YOU'RE SATISFIED, YOU PIECE OF DINO SHIT!!! AND AS FOR YOU THREE, FOR DOING ALL OF THIS WITHOUT MY PERMISSION, YOU'RE NOT GETTING PAID!!! NOW LET'S GO HOME RIGHT NOW!!!"

The three hellhounds were pissed at that, but had no other choice but to accept the fact that they weren't getting paid. Stella released Barney from the handcuffs before the four left the room. Before she left, however, Stella glared at Stolas.

"You may have won this battle, Stolass, but you most certainly haven't won this war!" Stella coldly spat out before leaving the room. Stolas then went to check up on Barney.

"Barney! Are you okay?" Stolas asked.

"Of course I'm okay! I can't feel any pain or sadness at all, and I purposefully annoyed them so that they would take it out on me instead!" Barney explained.

"Wow... that was incredibly brave of you to do," Stolas commented, "But let me fix you up. It's clear that the torture they did on you were quite much."

Stolas then took Barney to the bathroom to clean him up and use healing spells on his wounds to heal them. Once Barney was fully healed, Stolas opened up a portal and sent him back to his own world. Once the portal was closed, Stolas let out a sigh. He never thought Barney of all people would save him from the torture session, but he was glad that he showed up in time. He also hoped that Stella won't try and pull something like that again.

"Should I tell Via about what happened earlier?" Stolas contemplated as he left the room.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can-”

"STOP!!!"

Everyone turned to who screamed that, and were in shock at who was standing there. There's what looked to be a soyjak, but he was wearing a police uniform.

"This is the Canon Police! What you are all doing is breaking the canon timeline of Helluva Boss!" the Canon Police exclaimed.

"Wait, Canon Police? What the hell are you talking about?" Stella asked, annoyed that he barged in and stopped the torture from happening.

"Stella, you all are in an illegal fanfiction that is unauthorized to take over the series," the Canon Police explained, "The Full Moon episode is coming out in a few days, and from the trailers and all, it is not looking like it's gonna be like this. I mean, you are breaking all of the rules in the Helluva Boss universe!"

The Canon Police then snatched Stella's phone. "Stella, why do you have a smartphone? You're only supposed to be using a rotary phone!"

"Ugh, I have to upgrade because Via wanted to text me," Stella groaned, "And besides, what else am I going to use to threaten Stolass? A laptop?"

"You will no longer threaten Blitzo, because these snipers are all not suppose to exist!" the Canon Police said before pressing the call button, "You all get out of here! You are not canon!"

"Wait, you're not Ste-" the sniper was interrupted when the Canon Police pressed a button that caused all the snipers to explode. This got the attention of all the I.M.P. employees, who were all shocked seeing their exploding bodies fall down the room.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!?! WHY IS THERE EXPLODING SNIPERS IN THIS ROOM?!?!" Blitzo screamed, but then the Canon Police turned off the feed before handing the phone back to Stella, who was now pissed.

"WHY THE FUCK DID YOU DO THAT?!?!" Stella yelled.

"Because they weren't suppose to exist!" the Canon Police exclaimed before turning to the three hellhounds, "Now I suggest you doggies release Stolas and leave or else you will explode as well!"

The three hellhounds had no choice but to release Stolas from the handcuffs and ran out of the room, not wanting to explode. Stella, on the other hand, was so pissed off that the torture session couldn't even get started before the Canon Police showed up, that she collapsed on the floor and began to throw a tantrum like a little kid.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! I WANTED TO TORTURE THAT ASSHOLE FOR BEING A PATHETIC FUCKING MAN!!! HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO ME?!?!" Stella screamed and cried.

"Stella, stop crying! You weren't supposed to do all of that!" the Canon Police scolded, "Now get out of here and don't come back until the script authorizes you to do so."

Stella continued to cry as she ran out the room. Once Stella was gone, the Canon Police went up to Stolas.

"Don't worry, Stolas, we will continue to ensure that no other non-canon events happen in the Helluva Boss universe, especially concerning your safety," the Canon Police assured, "We'll see you all on the Full Moon."

And with that, the Canon Police disappeared. Stolas couldn't believe what happened. Was Stella going to break the Helluva Boss canon events in exchange for hurting him? That's ridiculous! Furthermore, he didn't know what was actually canon. Whatever it was, though, he hoped the next full moon would be better.

"I need to go clear my head. If that's canon, of course," Stolas said to himself as he went to the balcony for some fresh air.

Chapter Text

After drinking coffee as breakfast, Stolas tended to his plants before going to his study, where he was planning to spend the rest of the morning. After all, he had managed to find healing spells he could use, but he knew he would need more practice if he wanted to be able to cast them on himself once hurt. Sadly, working on it must have acted as a kind of bad luck, because he had barely begun that one of Stella’s hellhounds came from the door.

“Here you are. She’s asking for you in your bedroom”, the hound, the chihuahua like, told him with a neutral tone.

Stolas tensed upon seeing him, and for a second he couldn’t help but imagine knocking the hellhound out since he was alone, before turning that idea away and closing the book he was working on.

It would only delay the inevitable and put Blitz at risk. It wasn’t worth it.

So he stood up to follow the henchman. As he approached him to get out of his study, the hellhound cast him a smirk.

“You wanted to avoid me, huh? Better warn you: don’t try to hide or harm us when we’re wandering alone to get you, she monitors us and that wouldn’t end very well for your little friend, got it? Same goes if you try to hurt her directly, but you probably already knows that.”

Stolas simply nodded, but winced internally. He was definitely glad he had stopped his impulse quickly, but the fact it showed enough for the hellhound to realize what he was thinking was definitely not a good thing. He tried to put his mindset in one that would fit what was going to happen, that was the best thing he could do since he couldn’t dissociate. Sure, this was useful information he had just been given, but if Stella had heard that, then she was definitely going to make the start a harsh one.

But when they got to the door, something... weird was present. The chihuahua hellhound tried to open it, but the door won't budge.

"Hey, idiots! Open up! I got Stolas!" the chihuahua called out. However, no one can be heard inside the room. "You, open the door."

Stolas then went to open the door, but he couldn't get any use of it opened either. Not even force magic would work.

"Um, I don't think it's gonna open," Stolas observed.

"Oh, you gotta be fucking kidding me!" the chihuahua yelled, "You had something to do with this?!"

"What? No, of course not! I didn't even knew you and your band of misfits arrived until you came in my study room!" Stolas defended.

"Fuck you, dude. Once this door's open, we're giving you hell!" the chihuahua hellhound yelled as he charged at the door. But that's when things went from strange to worse. As his body made contact with the door, he felt his body suddenly jag up as he was forcibly sucked into the door. The chihuahua screamed as he fell, and just as quickly as he began to fall, he landed on the floor. When he got up, he was in shock at where he was at.

He was in what looked to be an empty "room." Room was in quotations because there were several walls and hallways that led to an infinite amount of directions. There was no start, no end, hell, he didn't even know if this was the beginning.

"You have got to be FUCKING KIDDING ME!" the chihuahua screamed in a mix of anger and frustration, "STOLAS, I KNOW YOU DID THIS SHIT!!! COME OUT RIGHT NOW!!!"

However, no one came out.

"Okay, then. You wanna play this game? We'll play this game!" he said as he began to explore the backrooms. However, as he was walking through the rooms and hallways, it became more clear of how... empty and desolate things are. He didn't knew how long he had been walking, but he didn't knew how to get back either. As he continued to walk through them, he started to get worried.

"Stolas...? Stella...? Marcos...? Dess...? Anybody...?" the chihuahua called out, but there was no one.

"PLEASE!!! I DON'T WANT TO BE HERE ANYMORE!!!" he cried out as he ran through the hallways, still adamant in finding an exit that never came. Just then, however, he stopped. There was what looked to be blood. He crept up closer, and gasped at what he saw. It was Princess Stella, but she was dead. It looked as though whoever killed her had ripped out her guts from her stomach before leaving her to die alone and in pain.

"OH MY GOD!!! STELLA!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" the chihuahua cried as he knelt down Stella's corpse, crying on her shoulders. Not only did it confirmed that they also got sucked into the backrooms, but at least one of them was now dead. He was now terrified. Something else was in the backrooms and killing those in its presence. The question was, who?

"SHAY, HELP!"

"HELP, BRO, WE NEED TO GET OUT!"

"Marcos? Dess? Stay where you are! I'll get you!" Shay exclaimed as he followed where the voice was headed. But as he turned the corner, he gasped at what he saw. It was the Howler, a tall, thin black entity that looked jagged and scary. They both stared at each other before the Howler screeched.

"OH HELL NO!!!" Shay cried out as he took out his knife and tried to stab the Howler. However, the Howler dodged the knife attack and took the knife before snapping it in half. Now defenseless, Shay screamed as he ran away from the Howler, which was now beginning to chase him while screaming.

"LEAVE ME ALONE, MAN!!!" Shay cried as he passed by Marcos and Dess, both also dead presumably from the Howler. Shay continued to run until he found a hole. He was hesitant to jump at first, but when he saw the Howler prance close, he had no choice but to jump in it. When he landed, he was in a new level in the backrooms.

"I just wanna go home... this isn't what I signed up for..." Shay cried as he slowly walked through the new level of the backrooms. This level included stairs and what looked to be apartments. Essentially, he was at the Windows.

"I don't think this is all Stolas's doing. I mean, how in the hell would he be able to put in all of this effort?" Shay pondered. While he initially thought Stolas was behind the backrooms, now, it seems like the backrooms were all one big never ending maze of rooms and monsters. Shay continued to walk until he went through a fire exit that brought him back to the upper floor. This time, he was so paranoid, that he walked with caution, always staying alert.

"HELP!!! HELP!!! HELP!!!"

"Stolas?!" Shay exclaimed as he followed the voice of Stolas. However, as "Stolas" continued to scream help, his voice got more lower pitched and deeper, eventually turning into a very scary, demonic voice. Shay stopped when he realized that the Howler was at his tail again, and ran into the opposite direction. But that's when he came across another Howler.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!?! WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?!?!" Shay screamed as he turned around again, and found that he was cornered by two Howlers. "NO!!! PLEASE!!! I'M SORRY FOR TRYING TO STAB YOU!!! LET ME GO!!!"

But there was nothing he could do to stop this.

All he could was scream as the Howlers lunged at him.

"Alright, you stupid mutt! I'm gonna give you five seconds to come out of that door! And if you and your cronies are not out by the time I count to 5, then I am leaving! And I don't care what you all do! 1... 2... 3... 4... 4 and a half... 4 and three quarters... 5!"

When Stolas counted to 5, no one came out of the door. While Shay was going through torture in the backrooms, Stolas still stayed put, awaiting for their return, but it never came.

"Okay, that's it! I'm leaving! Have fun in there!" Stolas exclaimed as he left the room. He took caution in case one of them tried to sneak up and attack him, but it never came. For all he knew, they disappeared, and for the better. Stolas had to endure two of these terrible torture sessions already, and a third one would probably be worse than the previous ones. Stolas, deciding enough was enough, issued out a no-contact order with Stella, her goons, the snipers, and Striker for good measure. It was also made so that should they break this order, they would be killed on the spot. Once the order was officialized, Stolas decided to take a day for himself in his study.

"Let's see if we can learn some more healing spells in case that bitch tries to hurt me some more," Stolas thought to himself as he went back to his healing training.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can-”

"STELLA!!! JUST WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!?!"

Everyone turned to who said that, and were surprised to see it was Barbie Wire, the sister of Blitzo. When Stella saw who it was, she groaned.

"What the hell, Barbie? Can't you see I'm trying to do something here?" Stella complained.

"I don't give a fuck what you're doing!" Barbie exclaimed, "You told me that if I accepted your grant, then I can infiltrate the drug shipping zone in Sloth to increase the drug supply in the Ars Goetia in exchange for my shit. And guess what? I did it, and you STILL haven't paid me back! And I'm not leaving until you get me what I owe!"

Stella couldn't believe what was happening. Why did Barbie had to show up now right when the funny part was going to happen?

"Look, girl, we don't have time for this," the watchdog hellhound began, "Whatever issue you have with Stella, you can save it for later. Now get out before we make you get out."

"HOW ABOUT YOU MAKE ME, YOU STUPID MUTT?!?!" Barbie glared.

"Alright, you asked for it!" the watchdog hellhound exclaimed as he charged at Barbie. However, after her run in with Blitzo at the camp, she wasn't going to have a repeat like last time. She used her seductive tone to turn around and present her butt towards the watchdog, causing him to stop.

"Oh, doggy, will you please fuck off for me?" Barbie seductively said.

"Y- Yes, ma'am!" the watchdog hellhound flirted as he slapped her butt. However, Barbie used this opportunity to stab the watchdog in the abdomen, causing him to screech in pain.

"YO, YOU CAN'T DO THAT!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound cried out.

"YEAH, YOU WERE ASKING FOR IT WHEN YOU SHOWED YOUR ASS OUT!!!" the chihuahua hellhound added.

"How about you doggies come get this ass?!" Barbie teased. Both the Shar Pei and chihuahua hellhound then went to charge at Barbie, only for her to dodge their attacks and stab them as well, causing them to scream in pain.

"HOW DARE YOU STAB MY HELLHOUNDS!!! THAT'S IT!!! BLITZO IS NOW GOING TO DIE BECAUSE YOU WANTED TO BE RECKLESS!!!" Stella screeched as she grabbed her phone.

"Really? You're gonna kill Blitzo? YES, PLEASE DO! IT'S ABOUT TIME THAT ASSHOLE GOT OUT OF MY LIFE!!!" Barbie cheered.

"NO!!! STOP!!!" Stolas cried out, but it was too late. Stella sent the signal for the snipers to shoot Blitzo, killing him immediately. Stolas screamed and cried as he watched I.M.P. go in chaos upon Blitzo's death. However, instead of the worry and fear Barbie should've gotten, she went up to Stella to give her a high five.

"THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! SEND THE FOOTAGE TO ME!!! THAT WAS SO AWESOME!!!" Barbie exclaimed. Stella was taken aback by Barbie's excitement, but didn't question it. She then went up to Stolas and released him from his handcuffs.

"Well, Stolas, you certainly got out of the torture, but with a fatal price because of Barbie's actions," Stella said, "Hopefully, you won't gawk at anymore imps going forward. Now come on, you three! Get up and let's bust out of this shithole!"

However, none of the three hellhounds could get up, as they were still in pain from the stabbing. Stella had no choice but to carry all three out of the room. Once all four were out of the room, Stolas let Barbie have it.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!?! WHY COULDN'T YOU STOP HER FROM KILLING BLITZO?!?!" Stolas demanded, furious and depressed that Barbie allowed Blitzo to die.

"Look, birdie, Blitzo is nothing but trouble!" Barbie retorted, "He killed our mom in that fucking fire, left Fizzarolli disabled, and to this day, I still have drug problems! He deserved to die, especially after killing a supplier of mine in the camp! I don't know what anyone sees in him, anyway!"

Before Stolas could clap back, Barbie turned around and went her own way. Now alone, Stolas collapsed to his knees and wept for his fallen friend turned lover. Sure, he was spared from a pretty bad beatdown from Stella's goons, but he'd rather get beaten to near death than have Blitzo die. And especially not for all of I.M.P. to witness his untimely demise.

"I'm sorry, Blitzo... I'm so, fucking sorry..." Stolas cried, not sure where he'll go from this point forward.

Chapter Text

Once his breakfast was over, Stolas did try to get a few hours of sleep, but his brain just kept circling whenever he tried to rest, so he quickly gave up and choose to continue his preparations. He wouldn’t really be able to drown his sorrow in alcohol in the up-coming days if he was rejected since Octavia was there, but well, in theory he could with all the work he was doing. It’s almost as if he truly had many things do to, when in reality he just needed to keep his mind busy. Which was a bit unusual, he liked to take his time and think, but he already did too much of it and it was just going on repeat now.

He still managed to do what he could to keep an eye on Octavia while she was gone and talked to Loona to reassure himself, then they were both gone, after Stolas hugged his daughter, and he waved at her, wishing them a good evening, while the hellhound was driving away.

The van was bound to come back, since Blitz was using it too to visit the palace, but the girls were going to stay at Loona’s place for a bit, and if they were still up for the party, Blitz would drop them off before joining Stolas.

The Goetia still had a few hours ahead of him, but he had absolutely no idea how to spent them. A bath would be nice, but even if he preened in the most extensive way, it wouldn’t take that long.

Instead, he wandered in the gardens around the palace. The greenhouse was great, but he had already visited his plants today, and the outside would do him some good too.

And it worked… Until he was almost back to his starting point, and he noticed a group or four near the entrance and froze.

“Oh, Stolas, perfect, you’re already here!” Stella smirked at him. “You sure do know when to show up at least!”

“Already?!” He couldn’t help but sigh as they walked toward him.

“What, you’re not happy to see me?” Stella teased. “I know you’re alone, so let’s have a bit of fun, shall we? You’re lucky, I wasn’t planning on it so it will be short, but it’s not like if you had much of a choice, right?”

She showed him her phone again, and on the screen, he could see Octavia chatting with Loona in the back of IMP’s meeting room in some angles from the cameras pointed at Blitz, and he mentally swore. Of course, that was how she knew his daughter wasn’t here, because there was no way she’d have texted her mother about this.

“It is not a great idea to let our heir spend her time with such people, don’t you think? I know you have weird ideas about how to educate a young Goetia, but still! Oh well, you won’t listen to my views on the subject, let’s just skip to the next and funny part! I’ll let you show the way. Don’t forget your phone.”

Just as Stella said that, however, her phone was suddenly snatched up from an unknown force.

"HEY! WHO STOLE MY PHONE?!" Stella demanded.

"Before any of you ask, it was not me," Stolas defended right away.

"MY ASS!!! YOU BETTER PRAY I DON'T FIND IT, OR ELSE YOUR IMP PLAYTHING WILL DIE THE MOMENT I GET THE FEED BACK!!!" Stella screamed at her face.

"You will do no such thing!"

Everyone turned around and were shocked at who was standing there. There stood Glitz and Glam, twin kraken demons and performers.

"Wait a minute, aren't you those performers at one of Mammon's clown pageant contest?" the Shar Pei hellhound asked.

"Yeah, I think that was the one where Fizz and Asmodeus showed Mammon out! That one was crazy!" the chihuahua added.

"Yeah it's us, and we're here for some vengeance!" Glitz exclaimed.

"Vengeance? What do you mean? Shouldn't you be coming at Fizzarolli and Lord Asmodeus?" Stella asked.

"No!" Glam denied, "We were trying to look for leaks concerning any sex tapes between the two, but then we got access to a secret server you owned that included a video of Stolas getting tortured! It was so fucked up of you to do that, and now we're here to stop Stolas from being hurt anymore by you fucking bozos!"

"Oh really? And what makes you two think you can stop us? We're far more stronger than you!" the watchdog hellhound smirked as he crossed his arms, confident that Glitz and Glam won't be able to stop them. Too bad he underestimated them...

Get ready for a new look
New rhythm and a new hook
Not here to cuddle, more like leave you in a puddle
Little double trouble got ya boy shook (Ha-ha, here's the sitch)

Feed sin with ya taxes
Greedy greed wins where the cash is
Wanna sell my funny, slutty body to the masses

As Glitz and Glam sung and danced, Stella and her hellhounds felt themselves being forced to dance in cringy and flat out embarrassing dance moves, including some infamous Fortnite dance.

"Hey, stop this! This is so ridiculous!" the Shar Pei hellhound cried out.

"YEAH!!! AND STOP MAKING ME SHAKE MY ASS!!!" Stella complained as she tried to stop twerking, but to no avail. Meanwhile, Stolas couldn't help but laugh at their misery.

I'm a klown, bitch!
Fix up your frown, bitch!
Gimme the crown, bitch!
You hear that sound
You're goin' down
'Cuz I'm a klown, bitch!

When the chorus was sung, Stella and the hellhounds found themselves having their outfits changed to ridiculous clown costumes, all while still doing those stupid dance moves.

"NO!!! STOP!!! GIVE ME BACK MY CLOTHES!!!" the chihuahua hellhound cried.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU TURNED ME INTO BOZO THE CLOWN!!! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU TWO?!?!" the watchdog hellhound screamed as he did the Orange Justice dance.

"Oh my goodness! This is the funniest shit I've seen in a long while!" Stolas giggled as he recorded the whole ordeal on his phone.

"DON'T YOU DARE RECORD US, STOLASS!!! MY GOD, THIS IS THE WORST THING EVER!!!" Stella cried out.

"Now fuck off, all of you!" Glitz and Glam declared as they both did a powerstruck move, causing Stella and the hellhounds to fly out of the palace.

"Wow, Glitz and Glam, you two did a splendid job putting them in their place!" Stolas congratulated, "I just wished you two did that in the last session..."

"We know, Stolas, and we're so sorry you had to go through that shit," Glitz said.

"If you want, we can exchange numbers so you can contact us," Glam offered, "Otherwise, have a safe full moon night!"

Stolas decided to accept their offer and exchange phone numbers before leaving. After the kraken sisters left, Stolas sighed out of relief. He knew that whatever plan they had in store for him, it was going to more or less incapacitate him for when he it was time to give Blitzo the Asmodean crystal. But now, he didn't had to worry about Stella and her goons trying to hurt him anymore, especially since he had video of their embarrassing dance moves he can use as blackmail should they try anything else.

"Now, time to return to planning as well as having a little bit of me time," Stolas said as he returned back to doing what he was doing.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

"Start what? Getting owned?!"

Everyone turned to who said that, and were surprised at who was standing there. It was none other than Jojo Siwa, former dancer from the Abby Lee Dance Company turned pop star.

"No way! It's Jojo Siwa!" the Shar Pei hellhound exclaimed.

"Why, yes, it is me!" Jojo confirmed, "How did you know about me, though?"

"Bruh, I've seen Dance Moms before because that's all my mom would put on, and Abby Lee is insane! It's a miracle she's not rotting in jail for all of that bankruptcy fraud she did," the chihuahua said.

"Look, Jojo, we're trying to do something here, so can you please go away?!" Stella demanded.

"No way, Jose!" Jojo clapped back, "I found out about your plans on wanting to torture Stolas for fun, and I ain't about to let that happen!"

"Oh yeah? You and what army?" the watchdog hellhound asked. That's when Jojo turned into her KISS-inspired look from the red carpet*. However, this got everyone, including Stolas, laughing at her.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?! YOU LOOK SO FUCKING RIDICULOUS!!!" Stella giggled. However, this laughter stopped when Jojo began to sing her song "Karma."

I was a bad girl, I did some bad things
I swear I did it all for fun and it meant nothing
It never happened, it was a secret
Like when a tree falls in the forest, no one hears it
Another late night, another crazy mood
And I didn't think twice what it would do to you
I was a wild child, you always knew it
It was a matter of time before I blew it

As Jojo sang the lyrics, Stella and the hellhounds felt themselves forced to dance to the song, with Stella in particular making forced movements that slammed her phone on the ground breaking it. One of the hellhounds was also forced to release Stolas from the handcuffs.

"HEY, STOP THIS! YOU'RE MAKING US DANCE TO THIS STUPID FUCKING SONG!" Stella cried out, but it was no use.

Karma's a bitch, you should've known better
If you had a wish, you would've never effed around
When I saw the pics of you and them, I fеlt the knife twist
Karma's a bitch, and she's with you right now

When the chorus was sung, Stella and the hellhounds were forcibly slammed on the floor numerous times, injuring them in the process. By the time Jojo was finally done singing, Stella and the hellhounds were injured.

"WHAT THE FUCK, BRO?!?! WHY WOULD YOU WOULD DO THAT?!?!" the chihuahua groaned in pain.

"YEAH, THAT WAS COMPLETELY UNCALLED FOR!!!" the Shar Pei hellhound added, also groaning in pain.

"I DON'T CARE!!! YOU ALL GET OUT RIGHT NOW OR ELSE I WILL HAVE YOU ALL KILLED, STELLA INCLUDED!!!" Stolas threatened. All four limped and yelped in pain as they got out of the room as fast as they could. Once Stella and her goons were out, Stolas turned to Jojo, "Thank you for your bravery and courage to stop them. But why would you want to help me of all people?"

"Because as part of my rebranding, I want to sponsor you and I.M.P. for the hard work you all do in hell," Jojo explained as she pulled out a contract, "By signing it, we can all work together and collab on some really cool stuff."

Stolas took the contract and read it carefully to ensure there was nothing sketchy in it. Once the contract was cleared, he signed it.

"I sure hope this sponsorship works out," Stolas said as he handed the contract to Jojo.

"Thank you, Stolas!" Jojo thanked, "I look forward to working with you."

With that, Jojo left the room. Stolas was surprised that one of the former dancers of Dance Moms would rescue him, but he was glad Jojo's singing stopped Stella and her goons from hurting him. He was also curious of what kind of collabs were planned for him and I.M.P.

"Now I gotta tell Via all of this when she gets back," Stolas said as he left the room, intending to remind her of the recent sponsorship with Jojo Siwa.

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

However, what Stolas proceeded to do next would shock everyone. He snatched Stella's phone, then pressed the signal. This caused the snipers to shoot Blitzo in the head and torso, killing him instantly. Loona, Moxxie, and Millie all screamed and cried as they watched their boss go limp from the sniping. Stolas showed no emotion from all of this, and handed the phone back to Stella, who's beak dropped down to the floor.

"w- what...? why...?" Stella quietly asked, still shell shocked from it all.

"You know what I realized, Stella? I was chasing the wrong person," Stolas began, "Even from when we first met as children, he took advantage of my kind personality and stole all of my father's belongings. And even when we met again, he took advantage of me yet again just for my grimiore. He made that explicitly clear after that terrible date at Ozzie's, and then he proceeded to ghost me. And of course, when I got hospitalized because of YOU and STRIKER'S FUCKING ACTIONS, he never showed up once! I was going to give him an Asmodean crystal, but now, I'm done. And after this pathetic threat of yours, I'm no longer going to be the bitch of hell."

Everyone was in complete stun of Stolas's cold and unloving tone towards who he once saw as his lover. But it was clear that something in Stolas snapped, and he deliberately killed Blitzo, not Stella.

"YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!!!" Stella screamed, "I COULDN'T EVEN GET TO THE FUNNY PART BECAUSE OF THIS SHIT?!?! IF YOU WANTED HIM DEAD, YOU SHOULD'VE TOLD ME YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!!!"

"So... does this mean we're no longer needed?" the Shar Pei hellhound asked.

"NO FAIR! I WANTED TO BEAT HIS ASS FOR EVERYTHING!" the watchdog hellhound groaned.

"You mutts will do no such thing..." Stolas growled as he went semi-feral, "You all leave the premises at once. And Stella... I want a fucking word with you..."

All three hellhounds ran out of the palace, not wanting to mess with a feral Goetian. Stolas then glared at Stella as he pulled out a no-contact document.

"Going forward, you are no longer allowed to be near me or Octavia from a mile. Should this be broken, you will die a slow, agonizing death on the spot. Now sign it..."

Stella had no choice but to sign it, as Stolas still threatened her with his semi-feral form. Once the no-contact order was signed Stolas immediately teleported her back to her brother's palace. Now alone, Stolas had some time to think for himself. This death was a long time coming as far as he was aware of, considering Blitzo showed no appreciation for a broken relationship that he tried to keep. Perhaps he was always destined to have no love life. Stolas then made a quick trip back to Lust to return the Asmodean crystal before returning back right when Octavia came, who was sad.

"Dad, I just got word that Blitzo was suddenly sniped at his office and is now dead," Octavia sadly said, "Loona, Moxxie, and Millie are all heartbroken from what they saw, and even though he is kind of a dickhead, he didn't deserve such a fate. Are you doing alright?"

"Yeah, Via, I'm doing alright," Stolas said as he hugged his daughter, "I know things seem scary now, but I promise you this: Everything will be okay..."

Chapter Text

The full moon was close, its light already bright in the night sky. Usually, it was something the owl demon awaited with joyful impatience, but this time was different. Because everything was bound to change after that fateful night, and it could change either for the better… Or the worst. With hardly any in-between.

Still two nights left before everything was settled, and Stolas could hardly think about anything else. During the day, he could focus on tasks here and there, but once the hellsun was gone, it was hard not to ponder what he could say to put all the chances on his side…

But if Blitz didn’t return his feelings, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t want to force the imp into a relationship, even something as simple as dates in the hope that it would convince his heart. He thought about it a lot, changing his mind at least once a day, but right now he felt like it was a bad idea. Though, if he had to be honest, it was true he didn’t have many opportunities to show Blitz what he really wanted. He did try, but as their evening at Ozzie showed, the assassin didn’t get the message, and they didn’t see each other much since. If the imp ever felt anything for the Goetia, was it still there after all this time?

Thoughts kept circling in his mind as night crept in. After tonight, there would be only one night left before the full moon.

At least, Octavia was coming back soon! He felt a bit guilty to see her that way, but his daughter would be a great distraction til it was time. She knew what happened on full moons and wasn’t too keen about it, so the least he could do was to make up for it beforehand, because after dinner he knew she’d stay in her room the whole night.

With that idea in mind, he left his study to prepare for his owlette’s return, when he heard the front door open. A quick time check told him she was back early, not that he wanted to complain, as her presence stopped his thinking more effectively.

Beaming, he made his way to the entrance, surprised not to have heard her announcing her presence yet. She probably thought he was too far away to hear. But as he got close, he heard footsteps, too many for a simple person, and he frowned.

Suddenly the front door came into view, and with it the small group gathered in front of it, three hellhounds led by none other than his despicable ex wife, who wasted no more time before she screamed “STOLAS!” in a commanding tone.

“What in hell are you doing here?!” He asked as he approached, his tone cold and angry. “You know you’re not welcome here anymore…”

“Ah, here you are!” She cut him, smiling like if she was glad to see him, but he knew the light in her eyes, and he didn’t like it.

“Get out, now”, he ordered with a low threatening tone, not even acknowledging the hellhounds. If she thought he’d be intimidated by them, she was so wrong. It was his first time seeing her in person since Striker almost killed him by her orders, and with Octavia out of sight, he was certainly not going to pretend he didn’t know.

“Oh no, I don’t think so!” She grinned. “See, I can’t have you killed yet, but it doesn’t mean I’ll just let you live! I’ve seen the pictures of your arrival at the hospital, and I thought, what a shame I couldn’t be here to witness this! It’s a bit late to ask for pictures and videos of you being tortured, but it would be ever better to see it myself, don’t you think?”

Stolas raised a brow, still serious but a bit taken aback by her confidence.

“Is that why they are here?” He asked, pointing at the hellhounds. “You don’t think I’m going to let them torture me for your pleasure, don’t you? Even you aren’t that stupid.”

She snorted.

“Indeed, you’re behaving more and more silly since you cheated, but I think I have the perfect way to make you do as you’re told for once!”

Before Stolas could sent her back the way she came with a few wisely chosen insults, she shoved her phone to his face, and he froze.

There were several cameras on the screen, showing different views of the same thing, or rather the same person: Blitz, in the meeting room at IMP’s headquarters, talking to his employees.

“What does it mean?” Stolas asked, his tone between threatening and worried.

“Come on Stolas, even you know what it means! Don’t you see the rifles’ tips? If you don’t listen to me, that little bastard you cheated me on with will die in a very quick and sudden way! Don’t think the ones I have hired don’t know how to aim, because if needed, they will shoot right through his head and torso. If you behave nicely and only makes one small mistake, I may be generous and grant you a warning shot that will only put him in the hospital, but right know, any misplay on your part will mean death for him, am I clear enough?”

The owl was still too stunned to answer, let even move, fear keeping in him place more surely than if he was being tied up, before his brain suddenly woke up from the shock and frantically tried to think of a solution.

“Oh, you already want him dead, do you?” Stella asked with a vicious smirk.

“No! Please, don’t! I heard you!”

She snorted again, disdain clear in her look as she watched her ex husband’s reaction.

“You could at least have the decency to not look so worried about such garbage!” She added, eyeing him with a judgmental stare.

But Stolas didn’t care if he was being ridiculous to his wife, because he knew the moment he did or said anything wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to apply her threat. It was too late to pretend not to care, and if he did, she would have probably killed him anyway to punish Stolas for trying to lie to her.

“Great, now you understand the position you are in! Let your phone here, and let’s head to the bedroom.”

Stolas blinked. “My phone…?”

She sighed, looking annoyed.

“I’m not sure I’ll even get to the funny part if you keep being that dense.”

She waved the phone before his face, a threatening smile on her lips.

“You do understand what’s going to happen if you keep being this slow to obey, right?”

Stolas flinched and put out his phone as quickly as possible on the nearest surface, trying to calm the part of him that was angry and wanted to fight, ever since it awoke when he finally had the guts to ask for a divorce, and the one who simply wanted to understand. The later was easy to deal with, the former not so much, but he had to. There was no positive outcome if he ever let that part act, at least he couldn’t see any right now. He couldn’t attack Stella because of Via and she knew it well, and he couldn’t do anything fast enough to protect Blitz without putting him in danger, especially now that he didn’t have his phone on him, and there were more than enough eyes on him to notice if he ever tried any magic.

“Better, now let’s go, you first. But be careful with sudden movements, it could be badly interpreted.”

He turned back from when he came on autopilot, his body remembering where she wanted to go before his brain could find it in his memory, but he was glad for it. If he could keep that up, everything should be fine… At least, as fine as they could be in his current predicament.

But as he was making his way to his bedroom, thoughts and emotions kept spiraling in his mind. Worry, guilt, even fear. He didn’t know if she truly didn’t want him dead anymore, she just said she couldn’t right now. He could guess why, it was probably Andrealphus’ doing. So, she was probably not going to try to off him, and oddly enough, he kind of trusted her on her word. It didn’t mean he wasn’t in trouble tho, and the memories of the torture he endured in the hands of Striker were still fresh and not exactly happy and painless ones.

But… There was nothing he could do about this. He was already putting his beloved in danger because of Stella. It didn’t matter if the imp loved him back or not, he couldn’t let anything happen to him because of his own mistakes. So… He had to do this.

He could already feel a kind of dissociation as he walked, his body remembering the abuse and how to deal with it, but he knew that this would be different, oh so much different from what she usually did.

He had questions too, sure, but didn’t dare ask any of them. So he could only guess. Why go in the bedroom? Probably because it was where he met with Blitz, where they would spent most of their time together. Where he was the most intimate and vulnerable.

They arrived in the bedroom both so slowly and yet quickly at the same time. Once everyone was inside, one of the hellhounds closed the door, and even locked it. Not that Stolas could flee anyway, and if he did, he still had plenty of other ways… If only he could use them!

Stella nodded to another hellhound, and he took out handcuffs. No…

Blessed handcuffs.

Stolas couldn’t help but stiffen at their sight, and Stella’s smirk widened.

“Bringing back memories huh? Blessed ropes could have been interesting too, but these are more handy! Now, hands back.”

He barely had the time to put his hands behind his back that the hellhound with the blessed object took his wrists to put them how he wanted before cuffing him. Stolas flinched, but didn’t say anything, didn’t move more, and tried with all his might to keep his face blank.

“Good, we’re ready to go!” Stella was smiling, joyful like if she was about to watch her favorite show. “That way, you won’t be able to make any unwanted mistake. I’m too generous, aren’t I?”

He was trying hard not to glare and keep his face straight, but he could feel he was failing a little at that. She frowned at this, still smiling, but letting a mischievous expression come back on her features.

“Come on Stolas, I know you don’t deserve the title of royalty, but even you have some manners! What one should said when granted a favor?”

It took Stolas a few seconds to be able to open his beak and utter: “Thanks.”

She raised a brow. “Who are you saying thank you to?”

“Thank you Stella.”

She didn’t comment on the delay and clapped her hands happily.

“There, perfect! Now, we can start.”

But before they could start, however, something insane happened. A Halifax Transit bus suddenly crashed into the room through the window.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!?! WHY DID A HALIFAX TRANSIT BUS CRASH INTO THIS ROOM?!?!" the watchdog hellhound screamed.

"No way! Change of plans! I'm taking Stolas and stealing the Halifax Transit bus!" Stella exclaimed before she carried Stolas in the bus, "I AM TAKING OVER THIS BUS!!! GET OUT OF THE SEAT RIGHT NOW!!!"

Stella then proceeded to beat up the bus driver before getting in his seat and driving away. leaving Stolas in the passenger seat alongside the other passengers.

"Stella! Release me from these cuffs and get me out of here! You're driving too crazy!" Stolas begged while the other passengers tried to release Stolas from the blessed cuffs.