Hazbin and Helluva Shorts II

Fight to be Happy Part 1

All Stolas had done all his life was live according to his father's will. Since childhood, it had always been about what Paimon wanted. Stolas hardly had a single happy memory. His whole life had been laid out before him. And he had been forced to walk it. Every little thing was set in stone. From where he could go to whom he could befriend, nothing was up to him. But the final nail in the coffin was when Paimon had decided to have his son marry his friend's daughter. Her name was Stella. Naturally, Stolas was shocked. He had only been a child, but he knew what marriage was. It was unbelievable. But the Goetia elites had approved of the arrangement. They set everything in motion despite Stolas and Stella being merely children. The end goal of their interference was to ensure that a powerful heir of the Goetia race was born.

And here Stolas was a year after his marriage. His relationship with Stella wasn't bad, but it was strained. He had wanted to marry another woman. He had even promised to come back for her when he was older. There was a man she had loved since her teenage years. She had sworn to wear his ring one day. But both had been forced to throw away their lives in tragedy for their demonic avian race. Neither of them could keep their promises. Neither of them were happy. But they never had a choice. It was stressful, especially with the elites asking Stella when she would have a child twice every month. She finally broke down one night. When Stolas heard about this, he was furious. The elites had crossed the line. Despite not wanting to spend his life with her, she was his wife now. And as her husband, he wasn't going to stand for this blatant harassment. Stolas comforted her as she wept and shook. He knew the elites had never cared about those of lesser ranking. But this was too much. And it wasn't just Stella. Her female friends had faced similar invasive questioning. But it ended now. Stolas held his mortified wife in his dark, feathery arms. He promised her.

A note from the author: After watching Sing 2 by Illumination and Universal Pictures, I realized that Porsha Crystal (voiced by Halsey) and Stolas have one thing in common, an overbearing father who only cares about his power and reputation. Her song "Could Have Been Me" also relates to Stolas. But unlike him, Porsha has the strength to rebel and pursue her own happiness. This led me to rewrite this short.