Oh, Sinner (A Vox Hazbin Hotel AU)

The hours before doomsday, before I lose you

When Vox awoke again, Velvette was gone. He almost thought he had dreamed of her presence and their soft moments beneath the delicate light, but that disappointment was shot and buried by the faint outline of her body traced against his sheets. He rose slowly, careful not to disturb the impressions as though they were precious keepsakes. He called himself ridiculous before breathing the sudden beginnings of a laugh. After months of nightmares, how odd and refreshing was it to awake thinking of Velvette snoring in his sheets rather than to awake quivering and imagining her in his undug grave?

That woman's done something to me, he scoffed to himself. Though they'd always been close, the Extermination had brought them bounds closer. Under any other circumstance, Vox would have suspected her of slipping love potions into his morning coffees, but this felt different. It felt natural, even. He recalled the past twelve months, and all the little moments tucked in between Velvette using his body as a pillow during movie nights, the random dinner dates that slowly transformed into jabs at flirting, and phone calls between meetings for the hell of it. Even during his nights with Valentino, Vox's mind would often drift to Velvette. It wasn't until Valentino called his name that Vox was yanked back to the present, remembering whose bed he was in.

She reminds you of Tabitha.

She's nothing like Tabitha.

Don't fuck this one up.

Fuck off.

A text from Velvette.

My lounge. Noon. We'll leave then.

We'll be there, Vox responded. He flexed his hand beneath the pillow, and his fingers grazed the floral-hilted dagger he had tucked away from Valentino the night before. As he sat up to get dressed, he slipped the blade into his waistband.

Intel's arms were stacked with papers when Vox finally entered the hallway, fixing his suit as though the overlord were making his debut. His scrunched face brightened once he saw Vox. "Good morning, Mr. Vox. We've got a busy day! I've prepared a fruit parfait breakfast for you with your usual coffee, and directly after breakfast, you have a meeting with Mammon's representatives to discuss brand deals and commercials. Then you have a video conference with–"

"How quickly can you pack a bag?" Vox asked eagerly.

Intel's shoulders slumped. "Well, I dunno. Maybe ten minutes?"

"Good," Vox said with a wide smile. "Go pack a bag. Bring anything you want, anything you need."

"What's going on, sir?" Intel asked, hesitant. There was no telling what the boy was thinking.

"We're going away for a long, long time," Vox replied.

Intel tilted his head. "Oh, where to?"

Vox grinned softly, admiring the boy's naivety. Oh, to be that young again. "I'll tell you when we're on the way. Cancel all my meetings, and meet me in Velvette's lounge at noon with your things. Have the limo driver park out front to wait for us."

"Yes, sir," Intel responded with a salute that almost made Vox chuckle, and the boy nearly dropped all of his papers.

Vox was already imagining the perfect future: a little house on the hillside, away from the bigger cities. Vox and Velvette would work odd jobs for shady characters, or perhaps strive to keep their businesses alive in secret, while Intel could attend college. The boy could pass for a hybrid hellborn from Envy if he wanted to, but he'd just have to be careful. Deadly Sin Asmodeus ruled over Lust, and something told Vox the royal demon wouldn't appreciate his walls being infiltrated by filthy sinners. Being hunted was always a possibility.