Chapter Text
The Warmest Christmas In Hell
Chapter 1.
Charlie had never entertained the idea of "Christmas" at the hotel before.
This was mainly because the hotel hadn't been officially open for business long enough for the Earth-inspired holiday to come around just yet.
Once the Exterminations had been officially canceled, the idea of celebrating Christmas at the hotel had briefly crossed her mind as the winter season would have been approaching on Earth, although of course the landscape and weather of Pride didn't really alter or drop even a degree colder than usual.
Charlie knows that a vast majority of sinners down in Hell entertained the concept of Christmas back when they were alive, because many shops and establishments here sold decorations and presents reminiscent of the holiday that so many humans observed back on Earth. Around that time of year, even Hell would more often than not seem to be a little kinder - or at the very least, a little less chaotic and murderous than usual.
And Charlie would have loved nothing more than to celebrate one of Earth's most renowned holidays with her friends, even if just for a day. In fact, she'd even discussed it with Vaggi in privacy in recent weeks, believing that having everyone gather together, exchange gifts, enjoy warm food, and simply relax would be a healthy activity that could nudge their souls that much closer toward the concept of redemption. Especially since they had received such awe-inspiring results in the defeat of Vox, and made a massive leap forward in their stride towards peace with Heaven.
After all of that, on top of the influx of new guests checking into the hotel, it surely would have proven to be a wonderful little celebration.
However, in light of Angel Dust's absence, her plans of potentially throwing a victorious Christmas party for the staff and residents of the hotel had been severely dampened. Her hopes of sitting around a warm fire at the hearth with all her closest friends, passing around little gifts and laughing and cozying up with hot cocoa had evaporated now in knowing that Husk would likely not be joining them, or that Cherri would be forcing a smile with Fat Nuggets in her lap the entire time.
It just didn't seem like a fair thing to do, at least in terms of her closest friends.
But after talking it through with Vaggi again, the couple decide it's still in their best interest to at least put up some decorations to ring in the festive season for the plethora of new guests to make the hotel all the more welcoming.
Charlie's parents had used to decorate when she was very young, more for their own remembrances of what the holiday stood for than for anything Charlie would have known about. Lucifer hadn't done anything in the last hundred years or so though, and Charlie's memories of any of it were faint, if anything. But she had gone through some of his old storage boxes and found some things.
Early one morning, Charlie and Vaggi do a little decorating before the guests and rest of the staff wake up, along with Razzle and Keekee. They line the main hallways, lobby, bar, and staircases with green garlands, complete with colorful miniature ornaments. Vaggi and Razzle fly up to drape more garlands and colorful strings of bulb lights along the banisters, while Charlie places random decorations around the main lobby.
Being that her father harbored a particular love of circus-themed things, she'd taken out a few little carousel statues to place on the check-in desk, the fireplace hearth, and the back shelves of the bar.
There were also some winter-like decorations she'd picked up from shops around town. These were decorations the sinners created that resembled what they remembered back on Earth to the best of their abilities, though most had a bit of a Hellish spin to them. For example, the statues of white snowmen had more demonic features like horns, and tails instead of carrot noses, and the deer sported sharp carnivorous teeth, spiked backs, and stringy bits of flesh across their antlers.
But there were some tamer ones as well, cuter more harmless depictions of teddy bears in warm sweaters, and non-threatening deer curled up beneath green snow-capped trees.
Charlie enthusiastically nestles whatever she can wherever she can, darting around on the ground-level while Vaggi flits around overhead.
Once Vaggi finishes with the lights and garlands on the staircases and walls, she starts on the paper cut-out blue-and-white snowflakes she and Charlie had worked on the past few evenings. Working together with Razzle, she hangs these from the ceiling, along with some other large festive red and green ribbons, and small bushels of holly and mistletoe.
When they've both finished with their tasks, Charlie opens up a box of large rainbow light bulbs, which she hands to her girlfriend a few at a time. Vaggi then flies up to the main chandelier and unscrews the current plain white bulbs in favor of the colorful ones. After making several trips down to gather them from Charlie, Vaggi finishes up the last bulb, and once she's flown back enough, Charlie flips the switch.
Immediately, the entire hotel lights up in beautiful rainbow colors, pouring pastel merriment into the air. Charlie lets out a loud, excited squeal and opens her arms to her girlfriend. Vaggi flies down to her as the princess catches her in an exuberant embrace.
"Wow! This looks absolutely beautiful, Vaggi! Everyone's gonna love it!" Twirling Vaggi around several times, she finishes by leaving a big kiss on her cheek. Vaggi lets out a chuckle, her heart fluttering as much as her wings.
"I agree. I think it'll really help lift some spirits, even if just a little bit."
"Buuuuut we aren't quite finished yet!"
As Charlie sets her down, she turns to face one more large vertical box that had been leaning against the far wall. Together they hurry over, where Charlie cuts through the tape with her nails before opening the cardboard.
Inside is a large tree with wispy, willowy needles, all ranging anywhere from greens to blues to purples. It held the generic Christmas tree sort of shape, but instead of a decorative star at the top, there was a carnivorous plant curled into its blossom.
Razzle flaps up to the top to inspect it, pawing it gently with a hoof until it opens up to snap at him. Vaggi flies off into the kitchen to find a spare chunk of meat and brings it up to feed the plant and pacify it before landing again.
"Wow. So you said your dad ordered this for you?"
"Yup! He sure did! He knows someone in the Ares Goetia who's super skilled in botany, so he put in a special request!"
"That's pretty incredible."
"Right?! Come on, let's set it up!"
So with Vaggi steadying the tree from up high and Charlie supporting it from the floor, they manage to get it balanced onto its base across from the couch by the fireplace.
Charlie lays out a red-and-black checkered blanket beneath it and places a couple of cute random plushies down to add to the cozy vibe.
At the top of the tree, Vaggi hovers and holds onto one line of sparkly red garlands and one string of bulb lights. She hands the other ends of each to Keekee and Razzle respectively, staying still at the top as the animals carry their ends to glide down and around the perimeter of the tree to decorate it. Once they've both finished layering at the bottom, Vaggi secures the other ends around the top, and they finish in just a few minutes.
From there, the four of them hang random little ornaments from an old box Charlie had brought down, most of which are just colorful sparkly plastic orbs or star shapes.
When they finally finish, they all stand back to admire their work.
The hotel lobby almost looks like an entirely different realm altogether, with dazzling colorful lights, garlands, and decorations across the entire space. And with the large green tree adorned with ornaments and plushies beside a crackling fireplace, it almost resembles an Earthly holiday scene.
Hands clasped together, Charlie marvels with wide, sparkling eyes - the same kind of innocent wonder Vaggi can still recall seeing on the faces of children back when she'd been alive. She knows they celebrate Christmas in Heaven as well, but she'd never had much of a positive experience there, even during the holidays. The fact that it had taken her coming to Hell in order to feel the same sort of comfort she'd once felt when she was alive was pretty telling, but she doesn't allow herself to dwell on that now. Not when her princess is so giddy with glee and excitement.
"Oooohhh my gosh, Vaggi, this looks wonderful! Magical, even! We have to do this every year from now on!"
"Of course," Vaggi smiles. "Whatever makes you happy, hun."
"Do you like it, though?" Charlie asks.
"As long as I'm celebrating it here with you, I love it, Charlie."
Charlie coos, clicking her shoes to channel her overflowing emotions.
"Ooooooh, you are so sweet! C'mere, you!" Locking her arms around Vaggi's waist, Charlie hoists her up into her arms and twirls her a few more times. Vaggi flutters her wings, laughing as she holds onto her princess' shoulders. Charlie hums as she nuzzles into her chest for a moment, then peeks up to steal a kiss from her lips.
"Y'know, I heard that angels are a pre-tty big deal around Christmastime, right?"
Vaggi hums as she cradles her princess' face, gazing adoringly down into her eyes.
"Yeah, I guess they are."
"Hmm~ Well this angel is alllll mine~ I'm not sharing her~"
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
They share another quiet kiss before Charlie gently sets her back down, and from there they begin on their usual morning chores for the day.
As the other staff members make their way down first, Charlie and Vaggi are able to see their reactions.
Alastor seems uninterested at first, but once Niffty emerges and starts marveling, both girls catch the Radio Demon looking mildly bemused as well.
Husk's ears initially flatten when he sees everything, in the sort of way that worries the girls that he hated the holidays, and would even more so now without Angel around. But when Cherri shows up to put a hand on his shoulder and offer a smile, the bartender's mouth twitches upward, and his pinned ears eventually lift back up.
Baxter seems rather thrilled in that still-refined way of his, appearing as if he's willing to tolerate the festivities.
And when the other guests begin waking up and moving about, the majority of them seem delighted, or indifferent at worst.
The hotel's daily activities proceed as planned, though in the evening, Charlie is struck by entirely new inspiration brought on by the upcoming holiday. She sits at her desk before bed with Vaggi snuggled up across her lap as they brainstorm new bonding activities and exercises that follow the Christmas theme.
These include having the guests ponder what sort of gifts they would give to their fellow residents in theory, and would eventually lead up to them actually picking out presents to exchange on Christmas Day. Charlie would provide the funds for each sinner so they could go out and pick a thoughtful gift for their "secret Santa" activity, as Vaggi informs her it's called, and those who didn't want to participate directly would contribute to an anonymous gift pool.
They discuss a few other potential ideas before Charlie carries her to bed, and they curl up together to get some rest.
But of course, the idea of celebrating Christmas at the hotel secretly gets each of them thinking about what gifts they could possibly get for each other, as well…
Over the next two weeks, the excitement for the oncoming holiday mounts, and the hotel guests are relatively behaved for the most part. And it isn't due to a belief that some jolly man will be coming to deliver them presents overnight if they're kind - the sinners of Hell hardly care for that sort of story.
Rather, it's more to do with remembering the time they'd been alive, and how the holiday season had maintained its sense of meaning throughout the ages. Looking back on somewhat fonder winter memories was something common between even some of the most diabolical sinners, and especially now with Exterminations canceled and Heaven being closer to allies than enemies, more demons had a bit more reason to act tamely.
Charlie holds her enthusiastic group therapy sessions with gusto, while Vaggi continues ensuring the hotel is running smoothly in terms of check-ins, laundry, dining, security, satisfaction, and all the rest of her duties as manager.
And in between performing their usual duties, they narrow down gift ideas.
Charlie babbles to Razzle, Keekee, and Lucifer whenever she can catch him, deliberating over a million different ideas.
Vaggi mulls over a couple of options to Cherri and Husk in the lounge whenever she has a rare moment of break time.
In the nearly four years since they'd met and been together, they had always done a little something around the holiday season.
For their first year, when Charlie had still been living alone at the hotel and working on renovations, she'd been the one to start things off, offering her at-the-time crush a small gift basket of snacks and Hell flowers.
Vaggi had never anticipated anything like that. She'd still been getting used to the fact that Hell wasn't as terrible as Earth and Heaven alike had made it out to be, so for the Princess to then surprise her with a Christmas present had certainly thrown her for a loop.
Naturally, Vaggi had insisted that she didn't deserve it, for reasons unbeknownst to Charlie at the time, and that she had nothing prepared to offer her in return. But Charlie had happily insisted right back, simply requesting to spend some time with her that evening, and nothing more.
So the following year, Vaggi had been prepared, even amongst all their work in trying to get the hotel ready for business. They'd been dating by then, and the gifts became a bit more personalized for the second and third years.
And now going on their fourth Christmas together, each girl still wants to maintain that sense of uniqueness with their gifts.
However, this time, things are significantly busier for each of them, and it's a bit of a challenge to find the time to come up with something.
In the final week before Christmas, Charlie eventually deems it time to distribute funds for the residents in order to purchase their secret gifts for another random sinner, or someone of their choice. She gives a fixed amount of money to each resident, and lays the ground rules that it is only to be spent on the gift-giving activity, and that all presents must be presented to herself and Vaggi for a safety inspection prior to being given out.
The week is as fun and entertaining as it is busy and stressful, but the overall vibe tends to be one of positivity.
And before they know it, it's Christmas Eve.
Charlie officially cancels all hotel activities for the next two days, other than the gift exchange, encouraging the residents to spend time with any loved ones, or otherwise just relax and indulge in the calmer atmosphere.
Husk offers specialized eggnog and other seasonal alcoholic beverages at the bar, while Niffty and Baxter train and orchestrate their roach band to perform Christmas-esque music.
Alastor claims to 'accidentally' make too much coffee that afternoon, and states that since he has no use for it that they can offer it to the guests. And when Niffty takes a break from conducting her band, classical, staticy holiday songs mysteriously begin playing on the lobby radio instead.
Vaggi still has chores to take care of, but Charlie insists on helping her so they can accomplish it all in half the time and spend more time snuggled up on the lobby couch together by the fireplace, chatting leisurely with the others.
A little after lunchtime, Baxter uses the large television Vox had previously 'gifted' to the hotel (which Baxter had examined, wiped, and ensured was entirely untainted) in order to stream a live broadcast with Pentious in Heaven.
As the group of friends catch up, chat, and laugh, it serves as a time of healing in Angel's glaring absence.
And, as an added surprise, Emily portals down with a plethora of treats, gift baskets, and trays of cookies made by Pentious himself.
After a few more hours of merriment and mild tipsiness, some unharmonized caroling starts up. Miraculously, there aren't any brawls or squabbles amongst the sinners, and everyone rather enjoys themselves.
Even Lucifer himself comes down briefly to join in the festivities, using a bit of magic to create an indoor snowfall of confetti.
It was as close to perfect as Charlie ever could have hoped for.
Of course, like the rest of them, she just wished Angel could have been here. But they make the most of what they have, with who they have, and celebrate well into the night.
It's a little past 2AM by the time the last residents retire. Charlie and Vaggi hang back to finish the last of the cleanup before finally retreating to bed themselves.
Charlie had put on a pair of her coziest sweatpants and sweater pajamas, whereas Vaggi chose cotton thigh-high socks and a long, oversized hoodie. Charlie flops face-down into bed first before rolling over to grab at the air, impatiently waiting for her to join.
"Vaggiiiiii, c'meeeere~"
"One sec, babe. I'm still covered in sparkles." Vaggi is still at the vanity across the room, plucking the last few bits of confetti out of her wings. She gives herself a shake to dislodge the rest before gliding over to the bed. She releases her hair from its usual ponytail, and several more pieces of confetti rain down onto her princess below.
"Whoops."
But Charlie doesn't mind one bit. She simply marvels at the sight of the snowy cascade of Vaggi's hair as it falls down around her shoulders, her silver feathers glinting beneath the soft pastel glow of the string lights hung around the room. With the bits of sparkles fluttering down like snowflakes to top it off…
"Uhh… Charlie…?"
The princess had actually dropped her jaw a bit as she stared, and now quickly closes it, though her eyes maintain the same lovestruck haze.
"Come here, Vaggi~"
She extends her arms as far as she can, letting out a needy little sigh. Blushing faintly, Vaggi folds in her wings and sinks down into her princess' arms. Charlie lets out a cozy little "mmph!" and gives into her cuteness aggression as she nuzzles herself into Vaggi's collar, earning a bout of laughter from her.
"Charlie, take it easy! We're supposed to be resting now, hun. Tomorrow's kind of a big day."
"Mmm, you're right…"
Turning onto her side, Charlie lays Vaggi down onto the mattress beside her, then immediately gets to bundling her up in the blankets and snuggling close to her. She showers Vaggi's face with a few kisses as she settles in and finally rests her head onto the pillow. Vaggi closes her eye as Charlie aimlessly runs her nails down through her hair a few times. The princess sidles closer to her, interlocking their legs as she continues her light petting.
After a few minutes, Vaggi looks up at her curiously.
"Someone's awfully handsy tonight," she muses.
"Well, can you blame me?" Charlie playfully counters her. "You're so beautiful, Vaggi."
"Speak for yourself, Princess." Vaggi lifts her hand to cradle her cheek, then leans in to leave a sweet, soft kiss on her lips. Charlie hums against her, coaxing her closer, folding both arms around her and settling her palms at the small of her back. When they part from the kiss, Charlie still has that sleepy, giddy look in her eyes.
"Hey, Vaggi?"
"Yes, honey?"
"Do you ever get cold here in Hell?"
Vaggi blinks at the rather unexpected question.
"Cold? I mean… not really, I guess. Definitely not like I remember. Hell's base temperature in Pride is pretty constant and comfortable. Of course, in Heaven it's pretty much always a perfect 75 degrees. But even when they had snow and rain, it never really felt as cold as it could back on Earth." Even just remembering those wet, frigid, miserable gray days sends a shiver through her. Charlie feels her jolt and gently rubs her hands up and down her back.
"Well, I'm glad you don't have to be cold like that anymore. It doesn't seem very pleasant."
"Trust me, it wasn't. But I have to admit it wasn't always so bad. The rain and the snow could be really refreshing and pretty sometimes…" She tapers off just for a heartbeat. Charlie's smile shrinks the tiniest bit.
"Do you ever miss it…?"
Vaggi scoffs outright.
"Huh-? Absolutely not. I don't miss anything about Earth or Heaven." She offers Charlie a warm, earnest smile, and an even warmer kiss. "This is my home now, Charlie. And I wouldn't trade it for anything."
A pleasant tingle of heat blossoms across Charlie's chest, and she can't help but squeeze her girlfriend tighter.
"You're so sweet, Vaggi… ugh, I feel like I'm gonna cry-"
"That's okay." Vaggi lays herself down more fully over her, sharing as much of her body heat as she can. "Every day for the past four years since I met you, I've felt like crying. In a good way."
"Yeah," Charlie chuckles. "I get it. Me, too."
When she next blinks, a single tear does dribble down her cheek. Vaggi thumbs it away, then replaces it with another soft kiss.
Charlie is overwhelmed by the urge to just hold her, so she hugs her close and doesn't let go. Vaggi happily stays nestled on top of her, perfectly warm and comfortable beneath the blankets.
A few moments pass, and Charlie eventually lets out a yawn, which Vaggi quickly mirrors.
"Let's get some sleep," she murmurs. "Tomorrow's a big day."
"Yeah." Charlie turns watery eyes and an adoring smile up at her. "Night, Vaggi. I love you."
"Love you too, hun."
Not a moment after they close their eyes, the two of them quickly drift off to sleep together to the tune of a mutual heartbeat.
The hotel's first official Christmas Day turns out to be a pleasantly hectic holiday.
Charlie and Vaggi get into the spirit by dressing up a bit.
Vaggi keeps her usual red top and black skirt, but swaps out her black thigh-high socks for green ones instead.
Charlie reverses her girlfriend's look and wears some red checkered sweatpants and a comfy green patchwork sweater instead of the usual blazer.
The two of them oversee the mass gift exchange between residents. It's actually quite successful, with little need for damage control due to how the gifts had all been screened before distribution.
The staff and closer friends make some exchanges as well.
Niffty had crafted a fitted roach crown for Baxter, who blushes outright upon receiving it. He then bashfully reveals that he'd built her a customized duster, made with the colorful feathers of Hell's most exotic avian species. Her response is a delighted gasp, a cackle, and a fervent, excited hug that lifts him off his feet.
Cherri waits for a private moment to approach Husk at the bar when no one is watching. She gives him one of Angel's old perfume bottles that had always been one of his favorite scents. Husk is speechlessly humbled by the gesture, accepting the small pink bottle in his claws with silent delicacy before carefully slipping it into his pocket.
Charlie and Vaggi had spent the morning baking, and present their closest friends with little baggies of cookies and other sweets tailored to their likings. They had set aside a larger gift bag for Heaven, as they were expecting a visit from Emily in a little while.
Lucifer comes down to join in as well. Charlie gives him a brand new colorful miniature carousel music box with all different kinds of circus animals. Lucifer bursts into tears on the spot, smooshing her into a massive hug.
Vaggi then shyly offers him a gift box she'd compiled, complete with all different flavors of coffees, milks, and even pancake mixes. Touched by her efforts, Lucifer pulls her in for a hug as well, and this time Vaggi is the one to tear up.
Not long afterward, the portal opens, and Emily flits through singing an excited greeting with her arms full of presents and gift bags.
A lot of sweets and cookies are exchanged, passed around, and eaten as everyone indulges in the Christmas atmosphere. At one point, Emily does pull Cherri aside to give her a letter and a gift from Pentious, and Cherri subtly slips her a gift to send back for him.
A few familiar cheerful songs break out through the lobby, and all around the vibes are uplifting and joyous.
It all comes and goes far too quickly for everyone's liking, and come tomorrow, Hell would likely be back to its usual atrocities. But at least for the remainder of this evening, all of the hotel residents return to their rooms well-fed, perhaps a little tipsy, but overall happily exhausted.
Vaggi makes several attempts to do some paperwork and laundry as things are winding down, but Charlie catches and stops her every time, promising to help her with it all tomorrow, but insisting that she not do any work today.
It's early evening by the time they've finally finished with the festivities. They go around picking up the shredded wrapping paper and ribbons, leaving just a few on the floor for Keekee and Razzle to crumple up and play in. Alastor had left his old-timey radio playing cozy winter classics, which hum at the perfect volume for some pleasant background noise.
Even when it's all over, Charlie can't keep the smile off her face, one so wide and so consistent that her cheeks have been aching for hours, but she doesn't care.
Once they've finally finished tidying up the lobby, she prances her way over to the check-in kiosk, where Vaggi just had been checking to ensure everything was still in order.
"Oh! My! Goodness! Today was amaaaazing, Vaggi! Everything went sooooo well! Did you see how happy all those sinners were to get their presents?! And I've never heard so many of them sing a song that didn't involve questionable lyrics like that before! It was so wholesome and sweet! And it's always so fun to see Emily and to hear from Pentious! Gosh, I wish every day could be Christmas in Hell~!"
She blabbers it all seemingly in one breath as she takes Vaggi's hand and leads her away from the kiosk, pulling her into a few twirls and spins in the process. Vaggi laughs as she brings out her wings, motivated by her princess' infectious mirth. With seamless ease, she lifts Charlie off the floor one inch at a time, and it seems like she doesn't even realize she's airborne until she's a full foot off the ground. She lets out a squeal, throwing her arms delightedly around Vaggi's shoulders and kicking up her legs so Vaggi can catch her in a princess carry.
"I'm glad you had fun today, babe. I'm glad everyone had fun. I don't think I've ever seen so many sinners come together and just… exist peacefully like that before. It was inspiring."
"Wasn't it?!" Charlie lets out a dreamy sigh as she rests her head against her girlfriend's shoulder. But then, her tone fades into something quieter, more distant. "It was almost perfect… I just wish Angel could have been with us…"
Vaggi's heart sinks as she hovers for a moment with her, brushing her cheek against Charlie's.
"Yeah… I think we all had the same wish… But I'm sure he'll come home soon, and if he isn't redeemed with Pentious in Heaven by next year, he can celebrate Christmas with us then."
Charlie casts her a sad little smile, appreciative of what she's trying to do. As thanks for Vaggi's comforting words, Charlie nuzzles against her cheek and hugs her a little tighter.
"You're right."
"I miss him too, honey. But for now, let's just try to stay positive and enjoy what we can."
"Yeah. Thanks, Vaggi." Charlie dips her face into her shoulder briefly to get rid of the tears that had started brimming, drawing in a big sniffle to compose herself.
Wanting to maintain the uplifting mood, Vaggi decides to bring her princess on a private little flight across the hotel. With the music still playing down below, she glides leisurely through the banners and garlands and cut-out snowflakes, making the flight as wondrous as possible as she weaves through the various decorations.
Charlie holds her tight and laughs merrily as she enjoys the ride, though it isn't long before she stops admiring the scenery and turns her gaze solely upon her girlfriend instead.
Vaggi's light grey feathers catch in the rainbow glow of the lights, bathing her in beautiful colors as she moves, and her long fluffy ponytail billows out behind her, shimmering in pastels.
Purely angelic, in every sense of the word, and then some.
Charlie can feel her heart soaring higher than the two of them are going. She's overwhelmed with affection for Vaggi, to the point where she feels like she just has to kiss her on the spot. Vaggi chuckles, arching around the room with her as they pass by the decorated staircases, looping around several times, just wanting it all to last.
Charlie showers her with little hugs and kisses all the while. Whenever a song she knows comes on, she breaks out singing, and Vaggi always joins in.
They fly until they lose track of time, lose track of how many songs they've sung. Charlie just doesn't want Vaggi to overuse her wings and end up sore, so after one last song she catches her eye and inclines her head.
Vaggi takes her around one more time, while Charlie gently rubs her back above her wings. They land again beside the fireplace, and the second Charlie has her feet on solid ground she picks Vaggi up completely and squeezes her into a long hug.
"Thank yooooou, Vaggi! That was magical!"
Vaggi leaves a kiss on the crown of her head before resting her chin on top of her, hugging her softly.
"I'm glad you liked it. Buuut I hope you didn't think that's all I got you for Christmas, babe."
Charlie eases back from the embrace with a loud, excited gasp as she gently sets her back down.
"What?! Ohmygosh, Vaggiiii! You didn't have to get me anything!"
"It's Christmas, hun. Of course I got you something."
Taking her princess by the hand, Vaggi leads her over to the couch and has her sit down, though Charlie is already more or less vibrating with anticipation, tapping her heels a mile a minute. Vaggi chuckles, resting her hands on Charlie's shoulders in an effort to calm her down.
"Easy, babe. It's not that exciting."
"A Christmas present from my wonderful, beautiful, talented, hard-working, incredible girlfriend?! Uhmm, yes it is that exciting, actually!"
Vaggi turns away as she feels a warm blush spreading across her face, ducking around the tree to find where she'd secretly stored her pink gift bag addressed to Charlie. She returns to the couch a bit bashfully, in contrast to Charlie nearly bursting at the seams.
"Again," Vaggi warns her. "It's not much, but… Merry Christmas, Charlie." She offers out the bag, which Charlie accepts with wide, sparkling eyes, as if it were a coveted treasure.
"Vaggi, I don't care what it is or isn't. I already love it!" She scooches over, patting the space beside her on the couch before looping her arm around Vaggi's waist and pulling her in to sit beside her. Vaggi slips an arm across her princess' stomach and leans close as Charlie balances the gift bag on her lap.
"Ooooh, can I open it now?!"
"Yes, sweetie. That's kinda the point."
"Should I close my eyes? I'm gonna close my eyes!"
"Whatever you want."
"I lied! I'm keeping them open! I have to know!"
Jittery with excitement, Charlie carefully reaches into the bag to pull out the tissue paper. Vaggi tenses up just a little bit as she finally finds the present. Charlie lets out a gasp as her fingertips brush against something soft.
"Oh! Okay, I'm gonna go slow-"
"Don't go crazy. It's not breakable."
Even still, Charlie tilts the bag gingerly and scoops out the present inside.
It's a long, thick, red cotton scarf with white tassels bordering the ends, and a mixture of tiny white and blue snowflakes sprinkled all across. And embroidered into each end is a customized image of two little ducks - a yellow one which is wearing a red suit, and a white one which has an X over one eye and a red ribbon behind its head.
Charlie's jaw drops, and her hands start to tremble as her eyes fill with emotion. Before she can say anything, Vaggi shyly mumbles an explanation.
"It's not my best work, but I wanted to do something customized. I asked your dad for ideas and, well… he actually designed a couple of ducks for me to reference. He gave me those, too. They're upstairs in the desk drawer." She pauses, scratching her head a bit awkwardly. "I know it… doesn't really get cold in Hell, so you probably won't ever actually need to use it… But I just thought for the sake of the holiday…"
Charlie remains speechless for a moment longer as she listens, marveling at all the little details of the images, the softness of the material, the care and time that went into every individual stitch and thread.
"You… Vaggi, you made this…? Wh-When did you even have time-?"
"During my lunch breaks, mostly," she confesses. "And there were a few nights when you were completely passed out when I could sneak it in."
Charlie is still incredulous, gliding her fingertips across the plush fabric and admiring the little ducks, smiling so hard it actually hurts this time. A rush of tears swells up in her eyes.
"Oh… Vaggi, this is… this is so adorable-! I love it sooooo sosososo much!"
She's torn between needing to rant a mile a minute about how impressed and thankful she is, and also being touched beyond words. But either way, the tears are beginning to dribble down her cheeks. Sniffling, Charlie lays the scarf down on the empty side of the couch as she turns to her girlfriend with open arms.
"Vaggiiiiii… I love it so much- Come heeeere!"
All at once, she pulls Vaggi across her lap and hugs her tight. Vaggi fits herself perfectly against her chest, sinking in close and looping her arms around her princess' shoulders. Her heart had been jittery all this time from the anticipation of finally presenting Charlie with the gift she'd toiled many hours over. But now, it's finally calming down, thumping softly in time with Charlie's.
"I'm glad you like it-"
"Love it!"
"Right. I'm glad you love it, hun."
Charlie sniffles and hums and whimpers and coos as she just locks her arms in place and holds Vaggi close, rocking her back and forth on her lap.
With the fireplace emitting a cozy warmth at her back, and Charlie's embrace spreading across her chest, Vaggi positively melts.
They'd spent a few Christmases together before, most of which when they'd already been dating.
But this year it just feels different.
Because of everything they've been through, and also because this would be the first year they're celebrating when Vaggi no longer had a massive secret to keep from her. Having nothing to hide from Charlie is an indescribable weight off her soul, to the point where Vaggi just wants to enjoy this feeling of being so close to her.
With the Christmas jazz still playing softly from the radio, the two of them are more than happy to stay as they are for a little while.
Charlie just keeps humming out happy little sighs, running her hands up and down Vaggi's back. Vaggi reciprocates by patting lazily across her shoulders, basking in the relief that she'd managed to keep Charlie away from the sadder thoughts today. She'd admittedly been a little nervous that today might just end up being more bittersweet than anything, but thankfully that wasn't the case. Though, she is still slightly nervous about one more thing she has planned…
But before she can start overthinking about that too much, Charlie finally lets her ease back out of the embrace. Her eyes are still sparkling, wavering with so much love and appreciation.
"Thank you, Vaggi. Not just for this beautiful present, but for everything. For helping me make Christmas such a success for all the guests, and for still taking care of the hotel so perfectly, and for just… being you!" Keeping one arm around Vaggi's waist, Charlie delicately picks up the scarf again and cuddles it against her face. "Ahhh, it's so soft… But it's so lovely I don't even wanna wear it!"
"You don't have to, babe. And you're welcome. I'm glad you had fun today."
"Buuuuut we aren't done yet!" Charlie slides Vaggi back into her seat on the couch, then folds up her scarf neatly and kisses it before slipping it back into the bag.
Vaggi tilts her head curiously.
"Oh? How so?"
Charlie leaps to her feet, and Vaggi makes a move to follow her, but Charlie quickly rests her hands on her shoulders to guide her back down.
"Nope! You stay right there! I'll be back in two shakes of Keekee's tail!" With this, she scampers off across the lobby. Vaggi peeks over the back of the couch to watch her as she rounds the bar, rummaging around for a moment before pulling out a little purple gift bag.
Vaggi is admittedly surprised.
"How did I miss that?"
Charlie puffs out her chest proudly as she bounds back to the couch.
"I pre-planned it all with Emily~ And Husk was fine letting me hide it behind the bar!"
She does a little twirl as she reaches Vaggi, bowing lavishly as she offers out the bag to her. Vaggi accepts it with a blush and Charlie plops back down beside her. She dives back into her own bag and takes the scarf out again, folding the side with the little white duck around herself. Leaning close to brush shoulders with Vaggi, she wraps the other end loosely around her.
"There! Oh my gosh, it's sooooo soft!" Charlie rubs her cheek vigorously against Vaggi's before coaxing her to open her gift. "Okay! It's really not much, and I'm not nearly as talented as you are, so I didn't make anything myself, but-"
"Honey, you're fine."
A little trill wiggles through Vaggi's chest as she reaches into the bag and pulls out the contents. It's soft, much like her own gift to Charlie, only it isn't an article of clothing.
Rather, it's a set of little plush animals.
One is an adorable red demon puppy with little horns on its head, and spikes all down its back and tail. The other is a cute lavender angelic cat plush, complete with shiny white wings. The two plushies had been sewn together at their front paws to serve as a couple's gift. But they had very telling differences in their tailoring, which leads Vaggi to suspect they hadn't come exactly as they're being presented to her now.
"Charlie… these are adorable…" She inspects the cat a moment longer. "Is this-?"
"Directly from Heaven?" Charlie guesses. "That's right! I had Emily help me pick it out! She went from store to store and let me look through a crystal until I found the perfect one, and then she portaled over to deliver it to me! I picked out this guy myself, and stitched them together." She pokes the cat and dog on the noses in turn. "So this one's from Heaven, and this one's from Hell. But they still found their way to each other~"
She leans into Vaggi's side, wrapping an arm around her waist again as she leaves a little kiss on her cheek. Vaggi's heart throbs hard enough to elicit a whimper from her.
"Charlie… This is so sweet. I love them." She brings the plushies up to her chest and hugs them dearly, then sits them in her lap to hug her princess instead. "Thank you, baby."
"You're very welcome. Merry Christmas, Vaggi."
And it wouldn't have mattered whether there had been a conveniently-placed bushel of mistletoe hanging from the ceiling directly above them or not, but there did just so happen to be one above the couch.
The girls come together for a warm, tender kiss, then eventually slump back against the couch, still bundled in the scarf, hugging the plushies between them. The crackling heat of the fire, combined with the old-timey jazz of classic Christmas music, makes for the perfect cozy atmosphere.
The girls snuggle up together, hugging and being hugged, pressing close and simply enjoying the stillness of the evening. They laze around and snuggle for about half an hour, relishing in the relaxation of a successful big day.
However, there is just one more thing on Vaggi's mind, and when she considers it now, it makes her fidget a bit from nerves.
Charlie is so in-tune to her and knows her so well that she senses even that slight increase in Vaggi's pulse. She runs a hand gently up and down her back, but even after a moment of this, her girlfriend still continues to shift about a little strangely. Charlie opens her eyes and clears her throat to get her attention.
"You okay, Vaggi…? I guess we should head up to bed soon, huh?"
Vaggi stiffens, steeling herself as she eases away, and decides that she's going to go through with it after all.
"Actually… I sort of had... one more gift for you. Kind of…"
Charlie blinks in total surprise.
"Huh? You do? Vaggi, you didn't have to!"
"Maybe not…" Vaggi looks away as a golden dusting of a blush spreads across her face. "But I wanted to anyway."
"Okay!" Charlie sits up straight. "I'm gonna close my eyes this time!"
"Actually…" Vaggi mumbles. "It's not here. It's upstairs. I'll go and get it ready. Meet me in five?"
"Sure! Okay!"
Vaggi unwinds the scarf from around herself and drapes it fully around Charlie instead. She picks up her plushies and gives her princess a little kiss before bringing out her wings.
"See you up there."
"Roger that!"
With this, Vaggi takes off, channeling the jittery beats of her heart into the beating of her wings instead.
Charlie watches her go, her face aching once again from how much she's been smiling. She lets out a long, content sigh as she slumps back against the cushions and buries her face in the plush softness of the scarf, admiring the two adorable little ducks. She closes her eyes, waiting until the song on the radio finishes playing before getting to her feet.
"Okay! Let's go see what it is~!"
Drawing in a deep breath, she excitedly starts her march across the lobby to the elevator.
A/N: What ever could Vaggi's other present be...?
Sorry I didn't really write any of the other characters that much. I wanted the main focus to be on Chaggie!
Based off one of Almir's posts, I went with the headcanon that Alastor secretly really likes Christmas. And I tried to think of the best gifts the rest of them might give to each other (Baxter's was especially fun to think up). It was also really fun to come up with the image of the hotel lobby being decorated for Christmas. But it did really stink to not get to write Angel, oh how he would have been trying to lure Husk under mistletoe for hours on end...
And yes, I was trying to imply that Lucifer got the tree from Stolas!
Another enormous thanks to SARIEL for drawing such gorgeous, adorable artworks for this chapter! They're absolutely perfect, so soft and cozy - exactly the vibe I was going for! Please go follow and support them on twitter too!
See you next week for the other half of this two-shot, and my final fic/chapter of 2025!
Please leave comments or kudos!