The Hazbin Hotel Project

The Laws of Probability (Baxter x Fem!Reader) I

Here we are, another segment of the Hazbin Hotel Project! This chapter will include a crossover with Bendy and the Ink Machine, a well known indie horror video game. I hope everyone will enjoy it as I have writing it! :)

Sanctuary. It is a word which here means "a small, safe haven from the cruelties of the world". Unfortunately for the denizens who had been sent to Hell after they die, be it by natural causes or some form of murder, cruelty is everywhere. And the Happy Hotel would not exactly be defined as a sanctuary as it is a facility to rehabilitate some poor souls. Regardless, making sure that the Happy Hotel was safe for its guests came with the job description as a security guard. Who has an unsteady schedule, patrols the hallowed halls and scares off any trespassers, you ask yourselves? That would be [Name] [Surname], the residential ink demon. Yes dear reader, you are reading this paragraph correctly as it had been documented.

An ink demon.

It goes without saying that Hell has many different demon ecologies; spider demons, fox demons, fish demons, to name a few generic ones. There were demons even created from slime and sheets of paper. An ink demon wasn't all that impressive, much less unusual to find in Hell but she still managed to terrify others when she really doesn't mean to be. Charlie, the hotel's owner, had gotten several complaints about her newest employee (these complaints were actually testaments of fear, is it 'really' save to keep an ink demon on the payroll, etc.); she has tried to assure them that [Name] is really a good person, but they didn't believe her.

And the complaints didn't stop coming to Charlie's office either, right to the point were [Name] asked the blonde woman if there was any other occupation inside the Happy Hotel, where she could perform menial tasks behind the scenes and not out in the open. Her boss felt bad, saying that she wished people would get to know her without jumping to conclusions. But Charlie knew too well it would not be the case. This was one of the many cruelties which resided in Hell.

[Name] did not make the choice to be seen as a hostile demon nor to be whisked down to this place after unintentionally ingesting ink.

Ink poisoning was a clever method to murder someone discreetly yet an unpleasant way to die, at least in [Name]'s humble opinion. She honestly didn't know what she did to deserve such a punishment except that the culprit had most certainly been Susie Campbell. Who was Susie Campbell? She had been an aspiring voice actress at Joey Drew Studios, performing small roles from dancing chairs to talking chickens in cartoons during the early 1940s. When she was given the role of a new addition to the Dancing Demon's troupe of characters, Alice Angel, the woman finally found a part that she felt a connection with. Susie Campbell and Alice Angel. They would definitely be going places.

At least, until Joey decided to hire [Name] as the new voice actress when the aforementioned person came to the studios to be an aspiring animator. Susie Campbell did not like the idea, saying that Alice Angel's role belonged to 'her'. However, avarice ran rampant in Joey's mind, believing that [Name] would boost not only morale with the rest of the workers due to her soft-spoken nature, but the public would be begging for more Alice Angel cartoons from his studio. The decision only enraged Susie to the point where she, ultimately, killed the aspiring animator by slipping several drops of ink in [Name]'s coffee for six days.

[Name] would never know if Susie had caught or even still worked at the studio anymore, due to the fact she hasn't seen the temperatmental woman around Hell and there was no way of seeing what's happening in the mortal realm. A general rule of no-interfering-with-another-dimensional-plane, so to speak.

[Name] didn't regret what happened, she just wished she was able to settle things between her and Susie to where she wouldn't have ended up in Hell to be look like she did: a horrid monster who trailed puddles of godforsaken ink behind her, and a face that scared even the oldest heathens here at the Happy Hotel.

But unbeknownst to the melancholy demon, there was someone who did not fear [Name]. His name is Baxter. Residential shut-in scientist with no social skills, currently stalking...studying the ink demon for the purity of his interest.

And since he had...heard about her unfortunate experience in the Happy Hotel so far, the odd scientist wanted to make things right for her. So he did, by offering her a position as a lab worker. Baxter promised to pay and make sure she had anything she would need if she did accept the position, and since [Name] wasn't doing so hot with her current job as security guard, it wouldn't hurt her to accept his offer. Right?

[Name] admitted that the prospect of being a lab worker would definitely provide relief to the guests, but is hesitant to do so because she didn't like leaving a job after being on the payroll for less than six months. That was when Charlie offered a solution: [Name] could still be a guard, though her shift can start late at night, when most of the guests were asleep. She would work with Baxter during the day, but be given adequate time to rest. Furthermore, the manager would be assured that Baxter would also remember to eat and sleep as well, not skip them in pursuit of science. And just like that, [Name] found a sanctuary within Baxter's laboratory.

Three months later, however, the angular fish demon found himself in a conundrum at the lobby bar, a phrase which means "a confusing and difficult problem or question".

How could he properly court a woman in the modern age? That was Baxter's conundrum, and Angel Dust was staring him like he had grown a second head.

"Wait...let me get this straight. You, of all demons, want to court a lady? Who is she? Is she hot? Is she someone you wanna use as a test subject?"

"Originally...yes she was," Baxter answer as he took a sip from his drink. "However, I've grown rather close to her and don't want any harm to come here way. I figured that maybe taking her out would be nice but I decided against that." If Angel's face didn't say it, then when he asked why was enough for the scientist to continue talking.

"Well, you see, she doesn't have the...friendliest appearance there is."

Angel Dust raised an eyebrow, threw his head to swallow down a shot of whiskey, before he spoke up. "Far as 'courting' is concerned, it's called 'dating' nowadays, and I can't help ya. Wish I could but...y'know," He shrugged. "I'm more interested in hanging than I am for a committed relationship. Don't even bother Husk 'cause he's in the same boat."

"Fuck you, asshole." The barkeep snarled.

"Gladly. Name a time and place."

Husk rolled his eyes and ignored the spider demon, going back to work while Angel turned back to Baxter. "Anyways, I don't know how to help you out. So either find someone who is reliable enough or just go for it." The entertainment star finished his second drink and stood up, stretching and fixing his clothes. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a customer waiting for me."

"Charlie is going to be pissed Angel," the feline bartender stated, being ignored as the demon walked out of the bar without another word. Sighing, Husk turned his attention to the scientist who played with his drink and remained lost in his own thoughts till the gambler spoke.

"Listen Baxter, in all honesty, being yourself around her is probably the best thing you can do, since you're being you and not someone or something else. There is the possible chance she may reject you, but there is always the chance she'll accept your feelings. I know I don't have much experience myself, but at least heed my words. We all know Angel isn't much fuckin' help, so don't bother with him."

Baxter looked at Husk with a mixture of annoyance and hopelessness. The angular fish demon polished up his own drink before leaving the bar, though not till he left a tip for Husk. The scientist had been once been a doctor and died on the Titanic without having any opportunity to find romance. Yet here in Hell, he found it with (Name).