Eryn of the Heaven-born took a deep breath through her nose and let out a sharp cough.
The smell of brimstone burned in her nostrils, bringing tears to the corners of her eyes as she took in the sight before her: the Hazbin Hotel.
As Emily had predicted, a whole month went by before Sera announced that the hotel had finally been completed and was ready for Eryn to carry out her assignment.
Lute accompanied Eryn to the portal, looking exceptionally cheerful and eager for her to leave.
They exchanged a few terse words, with Eryn reminding Lute that she was on a mission to assess the validity of the Hotel and that she would return to Heaven once her mission was complete.
She made it clear that they would have a conversation when she returned.
Lute, however, didn’t seem at all fazed by Eryn’s thinly veiled threat.
She insisted that Eryn go ahead, but surprisingly added that she could take a minute to prepare in private.
Eryn watched as Lute stepped back behind the pearly gates and disappeared from view.
It was.
Odd.
Eryn had too many worries to concern herself with Lute’s eccentricities.
Taking a deep breath, she stepped through the entrance and, in seconds, found herself in front of the Hazbin Hotel’s main doors.
Sera’s orders echoed in her mind: threaten her way into the hotel and determine whether it was worthy of Heaven’s consideration.
With Sera’s magic enabling her to lie, Eryn felt more uncertain than ever.
The situation was no longer black and white; now it was filled with shades of gray.
And she hated uncertainty.
Even with the knowledge Emily had given her, Eryn had to suppress her feelings and play a role she didn’t enjoy.
Steeling herself, she approached the large front doors of the hotel and took a moment to survey them.
They were a pair of imposing double doors made of metal, framed with tempered opaque glass windows.
Their thickness and design meant she couldn’t see inside and wondered if those inside could see out.
Knowing Kevin, she suspected he had designed the hotel with this feature in mind.
Eryn was about to find out.
With her fist clenched, she knocked on the metal frame above the half-moon door handles.
She didn’t want to enter; instead, she preferred to make them come out to greet her.
When no one responded after a moment, she knocked again with more force.
This time, it produced results.
Eryn watched as the doors swung open, revealing the Morningstar, dressed in the same outfit she had worn to the court hearing just over a month ago.
Her smile was bright and infectious, but it was overshadowed by the weight of what Eryn knew she had to do next.
“Welcome to the Hazbin Hot—” Charlie Morningstar started to announce, but it was cut off by the man behind her.
A man Eryn knew very well, and her heart skipped a beat.
“Eryn?!” Kevin gasped in shock.
Oh, how she longed to run to him, to embrace him and express her sorrow for having to judge him.
But Eryn understood that Lute was observing, and it was time to adopt her stance.
With a resolute tone, Eryn declared, “Kevin Angelus Collins.
Charlotte Morningstar.
I am Eryn, the highest of angels and the judge of the fallen.
I have come here by the command of the great Seraphim, entrusted with a mission.”
“What mission?” Kevin asked, tensing up.
Eryn was well aware that he knew her speeches and what they meant.
“Kevin?” Charlie looked back from Eryn to Kevin.
“What’s going on?”
I’m sorry, you two.
Eryn thought as she answered, “To investigate this hotel and its residents and see if it’s truly worthy of being the halfway point for sinners to pass from hell and be granted entrance into heaven.” She paused, her eyes narrowing.
“Or…”
“Or what?” Charlie blinked in confusion.
But it was Kevin who finished the sentence.
“…or to pass judgment and send Heaven’s wrath down upon this hotel, destroying it and everyone living here.”
“Correct.” Eryn’s voice was void of any emotion.
But her heart was full of it.
Charlie gasped.
“No!”
With a deliberate movement, Kevin drew his glowing halo sword from behind his back, the blade shimmering with an ethereal light.
He stepped protectively in front of Charlie, gently pushing her to the side.
Fixing his intense gaze on Eryn, he leveled the sword with resolve, his voice thick with emotion as he declared, “Then, great Eryn of the Heaven-born, we have a problem.”
With every ounce of willpower, she fought back the urge to cry out, the sheer shock of Kevin raising his weapon against her cutting deep into her soul.
She gathered her emotions like a storm and transformed her disbelief into a fierce, appalled facade.
“How dare you point that weapon at me, Angel?
The very weapon I gifted to you, which I can just as swiftly reclaim.”
To prove her point, Eryn reluctantly lifted her fingers and flicked them, her eyes turning a brilliant gold as her Heavenly powers surged.
She noticed Kevin’s expression shift from firm determination to shock as his sword transformed into a halo.
However, it had changed once again; now it was merely a polished silver ring made of angelic steel.
Losing his grip, all three of them watched the ring fall with a solid, resounding clang onto the lobby’s wooden floor.
Kevin’s eyes misted over as he looked back up at Eryn.
She interrupted him before he could say anything.
“Be thankful that this is all I am taking from you.” Turning to a stunned Charlie, she continued, “By the decree of Heaven, I will be staying here to observe your efforts.
Through my eyes, Sera will gain all the knowledge she needs to determine whether the executions will be stopped or if they will continue.”
Charlie glanced at Kevin, who stood there in shock.
His face showed a look of betrayal and loss she had never seen before.
Quickly, she stepped over, wrapped her arms around him, then turned her gaze toward Eryn.
Her usually cheerful smile at new people had vanished, replaced by a serious expression.
“I think you should leave, Eryn.
You won’t be welcomed here.”
“The choice isn’t mine or yours to make.
Ask your father about the rules of the agreement.
In the meantime, prepare a room for me.”
“Sera can see and hear everything you do?” Charlie scowled.
“Yes.
It should expedite her decision, and my time here will be short.” Eryn said as she stepped through the doors.
When she did, however, there was a subtle change in her senses, and she blinked.
“What?”
Kevin understood precisely what had transpired, and a cold, distant smile returned to his face, stabbing Eryn deeply.
“Alastor has placed a spell on the hotel to prevent spies.”
“He put it up because of Vox.” Charlie added.
“So your little mission’s over.
Sera can’t see or hear anything now.”
Eryn blinked, stunned, and had to reconfirm, “Are you serious?
They can’t see me or hear me once I’m past the threshold?” She turned and saw that she was five steps inside.
The doors behind her were softly closing now.
“Correct.” Charlie’s voice was tinged with anger.
The transformation they witnessed in Eryn was astounding.
The cold, aloof presence threatening their existence seemed to vanish, revealing a completely different being.
This version of Eryn’s eyes welled up, and the corners of her mouth quivered as she bent down to pick up the broken halo from the ground.
They watched silently as she closed her eyes, and her body began to glow.
When Eryn finally opened her eyes, she licked her lips and extended her hand, offering the halo to him.
Kevin gently tapped Charlie on the shoulder to let him go, and she complied without hesitation.
Stepping cautiously forward, he narrowed his eyes, a look of concern crossing his face, his voice tinged with suspicion.
“Eryn?
What’s going on?”
“Please?” Eryn’s voice trembled as she nudged the halo toward him.
She felt a wave of relief when he accepted it, and watched him carefully as he turned the halo in his hands, inspecting it.
“I am so confused,” Kevin said, but he rewarded her by placing the halo back on his head, where it silently clicked into place.
With his hands now free from the halo, Eryn could no longer contain herself.
She took five quick steps and fell into his embrace, wrapping her arms around him.
“Angel!
I’m sorry!
I didn’t have a choice!
As long as Sera could see me, I had to lie and play the role she expected of me.”
She felt Kevin’s hands on her back, showing he was giving her the benefit of the doubt.
The relief that washed over her was immense.
He spoke low.
“You told a lie?
How?
You can’t tell lies, Eryn.”
Pulling away from his warm embrace, she felt a wave of unfamiliarity wash over her; moments like this were rare for her, and she wasn’t quite sure how to navigate them.
Lowering her gaze, she became acutely aware of Charlie’s penetrating stare, filled with a mix of concern and understanding.
As Charlie settled back into Kevin’s comforting arms, Eryn’s voice was tinged with vulnerability.
“Sera gave me the ability to lie—she thought it would empower me to carry out my job just the way she wanted.
But there’s a catch: I can’t discern when others are being dishonest.
When you told me the hotel was off-limits to them, the weight of that truth made it impossible for me to keep up the facade any longer.”
“So, you are here on Sera’s orders?” Charlie spoke up, her voice less accusatory; instead, it was tinged with sadness.
“And you still have to judge us?”
“I do.” Eryn sadly nodded.
“And she’s going to want a report very soon as to why she can’t see me inside the hotel.”
“You can tell her to fuck off.” Kevin’s words turned the heads of the women to him.
“If she wants to judge, she can bring her Heaven-born ass down here and do it herself!”
“She won’t get her hands dirty.” Eryn sighed.
“And to be fair, this wasn’t her idea originally.
It’s Lute’s.”
“Lute!” Kevin cursed the name.
“I should have known.
But why?”
“Lute wanted to prepare another attack, specifically to hunt you down and bring you back to Heaven for trial.
But Sera intervened and had me judge you myself, declaring your exile as punishment enough.”
“I felt it when you did.” Kevin licked his lips as he looked at Charlie.
He knew she was angry with Eryn for her actions, as it wasn’t the first time Eryn had been responsible for banishing someone she loved to Hell.
Eryn looked chastened by the admission.
“She told Lute it wouldn’t happen if the hotel’s redemption could be proven.
So, I still have to carry out my mission.”
“So we need to keep up appearances.” Kevin tapped his halo.
“To start with, to explain why I have this back, you can simply say you were sending me a message—one I got very well.”
“And we’ll tell everyone to follow your lead when outside the hotel,” Charlie said thoughtfully.
“No.” Kevin shook his head.
“I think it will be better if we don’t clue anyone else in on the truth.
Their reactions to Eryn will be more genuine.”
“We need to tell Vaggie, at least.” Charlie countered.
“So she can help us keep up that appearance.”
“I agree.” Kevin accepted the suggestion.
“But no one else.
If Eryn is seen as an outsider, they’ll stay back some, and it will allow Eryn to keep up her pretense much easier.”
“I will inform them not to challenge her, to respond to her questions as if the hotel’s survival depends on it,” Charlie said.
“In the meantime, we carry on as normal,” Kevin added.
“Alastor could be a problem, though.
He already doesn’t like you being here.” Charlie looked worried.
“Right.” Kevin nodded.
“But Eryn carries more power than I do.
Maybe enough to temper Alastor’s behavior.”
“Maybe.” Charlie shrugged softly.
“And…”
Seemingly forgotten as the couple discussed the situation, Eryn watched them seamlessly strategize, and she was in awe of it.
No doubt in her mind that Angel and Charlie were meant to be together.
They played off each other’s strengths with such ease that she felt a tinge of envy for the first time in her life, along with now being able to lie.
She quelled it as Kevin turned back to her.
“What do you think, Eryn?” Kevin asked.
“I’m in.” Eryn nodded and then added with trepidation, “I’m truly sorry for my deception.
I’ve never been able to lie in my entire existence.
It tastes terrible.”
Charlie took a breath, blowing air upwards, which tickled her hair.
She stepped forward and took Eryn’s hand into hers.
With a soft smile, Charlie shook her head.
“It starts with sorry, Eryn, and we accept your apology.
We’re going to make this work.”
“Thank you.” Eryn nodded and added, “I am sorry, Princess Morningstar.”
“It’s Charlie.” Charlie smiled.
“And I know you’ve always addressed me as Angel.” Kevin came up, and Charlie let go of Eryn’s hand so Eryn could turn towards him.
“But please, from now on, call me Kevin, okay?”
Eryn nodded somberly, and the two good friends shared another hug.
Eryn closed her eyes and softly sniffed.
“I hate the mission I’ve been assigned, Kevin, but it is so good to see you again.”
“You too, my dear friend.”
Kevin tried to pull back, but Eryn gripped him harder.
“I promised Emily I’d give you a hug for her.
She says she misses you and sends you her love.”
Kevin looked over Eryn’s head at Charlie, and she saw the pain on his face.
She knew he’d lost a great deal by leaving Heaven, and Emily and Eryn had been the two special people in his life.
Charlie smiled softly but coughed to let Eryn know she was glomping her boyfriend longer than necessary.
Eryn stepped back with a blush.
“Sorry.
I have always been so stoic and reserved.
This isn’t me, honestly.”
“Hell has a way of unlocking emotions and feelings, Eryn.” Kevin assured her.
“And it seems that it takes effect rather quickly, even for angels.” He touched his face and scratched his five-o’clock shadow.
“In Heaven, this is just a part of me, but down here, it itches occasionally.”
“I know I have a soul gifted to me at the time of my creation.
I have a heart and so much capacity for feelings, but they have never been of use to me.
But they have been affecting me this past month, and when I saw you, I almost lost it and ran into your arms because, in all my existence, you were the closest thing I had to a brother.
I died inside when I was forced to judge you, but they messed up by not specifying the terms, so I didn’t strip you of any of your powers.”
“To which I am extremely grateful.” Kevin nodded appreciatively.
“And as it’s official, Sera can’t force me to add punishment on top of the judgment, and only God himself could undo your fate.
I’m sorry.”
“I’m not.” Kevin’s voice was firm and absolute.
“I’m exactly where I’m meant to be.”
Charlie stepped up, put an arm around Kevin, and nuzzled against his shoulder.
“I’d be lying if I agreed with Kevin completely.
I don’t blame you, but I do blame Heaven for judging him.
Thank you for looking out for him.”
“You’re welcome, I—” Eryn was interrupted by a startled voice from the hallway.
“Eryn?” Vaggie’s eye was wide in surprise as she walked up, her spear still in her hand from sparring outside with Angel earlier.
“Is that you?”
Eryn glanced at the fallen angel before her eyes widened.
“Vaggie?” She gasped.
“It’s pronounced Vaggie, now.” The fallen angel shook her head, frowning, having to emphasize the hard G sound for Eryn.
“Oh!” Eryn blushed again.
She’d never blushed in her life, and now she’s done it multiple times.
Kevin’s explanation about Hell did nothing to lessen her embarrassment.
“Forgive me.
It’s been many years.
Adam told me you retired?”
Vaggie absentmindedly reached up to touch the scar over where her left eye used to be.
“That would be one way of looking at it.”
“He wasn’t very clear with—” She gasped.
“It was you at the hearing, wasn’t it?
Sitting with Charlie!?”
“Yes.” Vaggie nodded.
“I didn’t see you at the hearing, though?”
“Kevin and I were in the corner, guarding the doors, out of sight.”
“I guess that makes sen—”
Vaggie was interrupted by Charlie, who spun on Kevin, eyes wide.
“You were at the hearing?”
“I was.” Kevin acknowledged and realized that he’d never told Charlie about that day.
“You saw me!” Charlie’s eyes were wide.
“But I didn’t see you!
If I had—”
“Then you may have recognized me a lot earlier, love.” Kevin nodded.
“But I have no idea if the amulet would have triggered.”
“We were in the same room.
In Heaven.” Charlie’s voice was distant.
She touched Kevin intimately on the chest.
“We were so close, even then.”
Kevin smiled softly and pulled Charlie into a quick, soft kiss.
“I supported your dream that day from the very beginning.”
Vaggie smiled at them, then turned back to Eryn, and the smile faded.
“What are you doing here, Eryn?”
“Well,” Eryn began.
Charlie interrupted.
“Kevin and I will explain later.
Right now, I need you to get everyone and have them meet us at the bar.”
Vaggie stepped over to Kevin and Charlie, leaned in to kiss Charlie softly on her lips, then turned and kissed Kevin on the cheek.
“I’m on it,” and walked off to the kitchen.
Eryn watched the exchange with keen interest and a bit of confusion.
When Vaggie was out of the room, she spoke up.
“Uh.
I’m confused.
I saw the kiss on the TV news broadcast between you two.
I thought you were together.
But that kiss with Vaggie?
Charlie?”
Charlie smirked.
“Kevin’s my boyfriend, and Vaggie’s my girlfriend.”
“Wha—?” Eryn blinked.
Kevin softly dismissed her query.
“I promise we’ll explain it later.
These past few days have been filled with much storytelling about our pasts.
It’s taken a lot out of us.”
Charlie spoke up, leaning even more into Kevin: “Cassie taught me to focus in the moment, not be stuck in the past or think too far ahead.
We need to find our centers so we can solve the problems we have now.”
Eryn nodded.
“It’s not important to me, anyway.
It appears you are happy, Kevin.” The corner of her lips turned up.
“But it didn’t take a fallen angel long to sin, did it?”
Kevin smirked, took Charlie’s hand, and began leading them towards the bar.
“No comment.”
Eryn followed them, her mind foggy and her emotions a jumbled mess.
In Heaven, she had been assigned one duty: to judge false prophets and seek out the liars in Heaven.
She didn’t need love or emotion to do that job.
She only let them surface when she was with friends, but even then, she only lightly expressed them.
Yet Kevin’s words to her on the day of the hearing had stuck with her.
“You have a soul,” Kevin had said.
“You have the capacity to feel, to love, to care.”
He was right; she had the capacity, but she kept them locked away to keep her job simple.
Now, down here, her control over them was slipping.
She did not like that.
At all.