Diana's life was hell before Hell became Diana's afterlife. Her sole, solitary wish was to live peacefully alone.
Unexpected circumstances, however, bring her to the Hazbin Hotel. She must learn to adapt to her new dynamic surroundings and her new c...
"Sometimes, we are like stars. We fall to make someone's wish come true."
- Unknown
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He knew the exact moment when she fell into the pits of Hell.
He was enjoying a lazy usual afternoon, savouring his drink and waiting for news about the next week's Extermination when he felt her ripping the red-dark sky in two. Although he couldn't have seen it, as hundreds of sinners find their way here each day, the moment she struck the ground sent invisible waves through the Pride Ring, and he was the only one who sensed them. He was specifically equipped to notice them.
He didn't bother to start searching for her. Hell was forever, and time was on his advantage. He knew one day he'd find her. Even if she spent the rest of eternity hiding, he would find a way to identify her through the thousands of disfigured sinners' faces and take control of his destiny.
Smiling, he sat his cup on the coffee table. Toying with his cane, he began to imagine what the beautiful future would hold for him.
☽
I've always fantasised about dying young. Everyone does, I imagine. Pure curiosity and lack of knowledge regarding one's future. What if I have no future? What if this is it: what I've lived until this moment?
One thing for sure is that I've never actually believed I would die young.
One moment I was in the woods, hunting as always, and the next thing I remember was falling. I know there are gaps in the way I died. Did I stumble? Did I fall off something? But the only thing I remember is falling.
The fact that I can think right now about how I died confuses me. If I can think, does this mean I truly died? I must have a brain to think. Brain means body. Body means alive.
But I know ... I died. I feel it in my gut.
The first thing I note is that I am flat on the grass, eyes closed. I feel it around me, tickling me. Then, I notice the smell - a combination of pseudo-fresh and city air.
The two-coins-sitting pressure on my eyes compels me to open them wide. My dizzy vision is so unclear, that I only understand one thing: red.
The sky is red.
I look at a star-shaped symbol to let my eyes adjust. It's not a sunrise or sunset red sky. It's a red sky the same as the blue sky was in the world I left.
How can I remember the blue sky?
How do I remember anything at all?
Isn't this reincarnation?
Apparently, not.
My palm closes around some blades of grass before snatching it. I bring them in front of my eyes to check my vision. Am I blind?
No. But I might be colourblind. The grass in my hands is a dark blue. Turning my head slowly, I see blue trees. All around me.
I am in a glade. With no trace of humankind whatsoever. Or any living kind.
Expecting pain, I try standing up. After all, I fell. I should feel some broken bones or a limp body.
The moment I stand straight, something pulls me from within my body, at the end of my vertebral column. I glance around and see ... a bushy, long, heavy tail. The exact second I shook it off as a party costume, the tail moved in time with my hysterical gulps of air.
Freaking out, I accidentally scratch myself. Instead of my small and eaten nails, I have long black claws that look as if made of iron. It seems my skin, which seconds ago was a light brown, is now light grey. No, some light blueish-grey. The kind corpses have.
See! Proof that I am indeed dead.
Weirdly enough, I am not naked. I wear the same outfit I had the day I died: my usual hunting gear. Only, it seems, ripped some places, especially where my tail has grown.
My tail! I have a tail!
It's still hard to comprehend.
Dreadfully, I feel my face. The second I touch my nose, I know it's not normal. It has a weird shade like an Ionic column capital. I don't have a mirror to look at it but I've guessed as much that it's something resembling a dog's nose. Then, I scent blood like I've never done before. It's not only a metallic smell. It's also salty, and ... I lack words to describe it.
I search for the source of blood, but one drip from my chin tells me is from my mouth. Somehow, I bit my bottom lip and didn't notice. With my sharp teeth. When I was young, my dentist told me my canines were unusually pointed, but now it seems all of my teeth are razor-sharp.
The new overwhelming scents overwhelm me. Before I know it, I am on my knees feeling as if I can't breathe enough. My tail pulls painfully. My head starts pumping achingly. I might pass out.
No! Get up!
I don't listen.
Get the fuck up!
My knees are weak, but I manage to pull myself together. This time, I force myself to stay straight.
Good. Now, where am I?
Nothing but trees surround me. I don't get why the trees are blue and the sky is red. It's like a child painted this landscape. With no clue of where I should go.
Suddenly, something moves above my head. I shriek, almost pissing myself. I pat my hair. If there's a bird on my head, I swear ...
But there's not. Instead, I scratch my... two fluffy extensions? Soon enough, I gather that these are my ears. And they picked on some subtle noise to my right. Somehow, I know it's far away. Farther than I should have heard. Then my nose registered a smell from the same direction. An awful smell like trash.
Of course. Where's that kind of smell should be humans as well.
I start walking in that direction, still touching my new-found fluffy bat ears. It seems death gave me animal superpowers.
But, if I have these superpowers, what does the rest of the world have?
I hesitate upon entering the forest. There's only dark in front of me. The glade looks peaceful. Sure, no food or water, no way of knowing if I'm safe, and no shelter, but I've grown weary. I don't even have my bow and arrows! The only things I have as a weapon are my claws and teeth. With no proper knowledge of how to use them.
The unknown grows around me.
But, hey, I am Diana Thorn. I've never been afraid of the dark. Why should I be now?
