First Day in Hell
First Day in Hell
A groan had sounded out in the streets of a city, from a woman who’s just now regaining consciousness.
“Where am I…?”
Of course, there was no answer. Not that the groggy lady really expected one. She blinked repeatedly, even, yet she was in disbelief. After all, if she was interpreting it right, the sky was a crimson red.
“Why…?”
The woman got up, too groggy to really make out her rather unusual skin color. The same with the hair color and the fact that her hair seemed to be of a certain shape. Although she stumbled and staggered upon realizing that she could see only out of one eye. Because then that made her flash back to a horribly vivid memory.
“Screw you, Vaggie! Or that’s what I would have wanted but no! You just had to be so damn difficult!”
Accompanying the furious voice was the image of that knife just being pushed and pulled into her eye socket, from the eye that could still see. The pain was pretty much excruciating and agonizing.
Vaggie, which came from Vagatha, wondered just how could it be possible. If the memory serves right, and it’s a damn unmistakable one, then there’s no way she could have survived that. She should be dead.
Vaggie finally gained complete eyesight again, albeit just through one side. And she straightened up and looked alarmed once she regained it and saw what she’s seeing. Everywhere she looked, all the people didn’t look like people. They were like walking, talking animals of different shapes, sizes, and colors. There was even one or two with a television for a head. The freaking-out lady backed away into a wall and a window and she immediately turned around in a bit of fright. Then she gasped at seeing her reflection.
Vaggie finally saw how her skin and hair was different, not anything like when she was human. And she figured that she’s not human anymore because she’s seeing that she doesn’t look anything like it.
The pink eye poking out from her bangs, the greyish skin, long, white hair styled almost like wings… the fact that she has a gigantic pink X poking through the strands, right where she got stabbed… definitely different from when she was human.
She saw that she’s wearing a different outfit than the one she swore she had on minutes ago. Instead of the black v-neck dress and matching low-heels and sheer leggings from before, she was now wearing a white dress with x’s on her breasts and a pair of mismatched arm sleeves and stockings.
Vaggie stood where she was, still processing and, until someone had bumped into her. It made her stagger once again and even almost fall. Although the other person was way more pissed off than she was.
“Hey, watch where you’re going, you spacey bitch! I coulda gotten!”
I was just standing where I was. You’re the one who’s walking
Of course, the pink X-eyed girl didn’t say that. She has learned from experience to never say such things that could escalate to a fight. As much as her mom liked to tell her that words are just words, her mom also said words still apparently make things happen. It just needed to be the right ones directed at the according people.
Vaggie still sent a fierce glare, though, since that combined with not speaking usually got most probable douches to back off. However, this guy seemed more… interested. And not in the way that really felt good. In fact, it was just sending shivers down Vaggie’s spine.
Sure enough, “You know, I think we can actually get along with one another. So let’s start again.”
Oh, no, not again!
So the pink X-eyed girl got to a swift but hard kick to the balls, which made the douchebag fall to the ground. Then she got to running away as fast as she could.
The indignant cries and harsh insults rung in Vaggie’s ears, before fading away. Eventually, she had gotten to a park and had picked a spot that didn’t have anyone within proximity to her. Somewhere that kept her hidden and, hopefully, somewhere no one would have seen her go to. Vaggie had remained standing but placed her hands on her knees. She took some minutes, breathing in and out, before finally getting a grip on herself.
The pink x-eyed girl had straightened up and peeked out of the foliage she hid herself in. Of course, she was careful not to be seen as she took in her surroundings. Although she couldn’t help but mutter something at noticing the biggest detail, particularly now that she has a moment to register things.
“The sky’s red…?”
Obviously, it was time to get some answers. Unfortunately, the best way to do that right now is to walk around and look at everything. Because Vaggie severely doubted that she would have gotten answers if she tried talking to people. Just the looks she’s seeing on those around, when it came to their demeanor… those people are bound to not be very generous with information or very concerned with helping a lost woman who's somewhere she's never been before. So the pink x-eyed girl did what she planned to do but made sure to avoid where she had seen that douchebag from earlier.
All in all, though, it was a rather uneventful walk. That was probably a good thing since Vaggie’s head was overwhelmed with all the sights that came from it.
Everywhere she looked, all the ‘people’ around the pink x-eyed girl weren’t anything like humans. They were… anything but actual humans. Cats, weasels, lizards… there was even talking mattresses and a sinner with a TV for a head. And even with sinners who seemed pretty human, there was always some feature that reminds them and others around that they're not human after all; features like black void eyes or digitigrade legs or horns and a tail.
A couple of hours had passed and Vaggie concluded that she needed to be alone somewhere, to process everything she’s seen. Just the sights were so much. And of course, her stomach had rumbled then, that being a clear indication of hunger. There was just one problem.
How the fuck am I supposed to get food?
Vaggie recognized that she’s in some resemblance of a society. And if she’s right, then there’s food that has be bought with money. Money of which that Vaggie’s lost when she had checked her clothes.
The pink x-eyed girl decided to just find someplace alone first. She’ll have to power through the rumbling belly while thinking of what to do but, then again, it’s not like she hadn’t had to do it before.
Before she could get long, though, there was someone new calling out to her. “Hi! You look like someone who’s had it rough today!”
The pink x-eyed girl had tensed, already on guard for the new person who’s skipping towards her. Sure, it was another girl, and this one seemed one of the most human that Vaggie's seen, but you don’t live a life of always having to fend for yourself in Salvador without being skeptical of people.
The cheerful blonde continued, the other taking note of those red eyes for a moment. “My name’s Charlie. I mean, it’s a nickname, but I like Charlie best.”
Vaggie still didn’t let her guard down but she found that Charlie seemed a lot more genuine than most other people. At least it seems introductions can be made.
“Name’s Vagatha. But I like Vaggie better.”
“Oh, we both have nicknames! That's so cool! I mean, that’s probably not anything super special. It’s just- I guess I like having something in common. Do you- do you want to go eat? If you haven't eaten yet, that is.”
The pink x-eyed girl was getting more and more comfortable with this princess. In fact, she couldn’t help but crack a smile. The former of them can always appreciate a bit of adorable goofiness.
Vaggie said, “if you don’t mind, I think I should get a job so I can pay off the meal. If you get me some food, that is.”
“Oh! There’s no need to worry about debts. But I can still help you. It’s always a rough thing for a new soul down here.”
“…what?”
“Yeah. Maybe you don't exactly know yet but you’re in Hell. And I have the ability to tell when someone new arrived down here when I see them.”
“Okay, if it wasn’t for the fact that practically everyone around me doesn’t look human and the sky is blood red, I would have never believed you.”
“Yeah, I don’t blame you. It’s the common reaction for lots of newcomers. But you seem to be holding up great! That's impressive, you know. How about now we go somewhere to eat so I can properly explain everything?"
"And why would you want to go all this way for me? Not that I'm ungrateful but... you know..."
Charlie got a little nervously rigid as Vaggie, before answering in a quiet tone, "I- I can't help but want to help...”
There was a bit of thinking and then, "No, it's fine. Lead the way."
The pair of women had walked together to a quiet, tucked-away. The chipper blonde had insisted on it, promising to tell the pink x-eyed girl managed everything that she wanted to know. Vaggie thought of it as peculiar but went with it. Then she found out it was because Charlie was apparently supposed to a princess of all things. A princess of Hell, of all places.
It was all so crazy, when finally being given answers. The pink x-eyed girl did die and she descended down to Hell. And once one lands themselves in Hell, their soul takes shape to something other than human. Something that reflects their soul as its true form.
Vaggie takes another look at herself in the reflection of the window of the café. There was still the comically big ‘x’ poking through her bangs, the different eye color and skin tone, and the change of clothes. She lifted up her hair to take a look at more of it, which showed her it was rather in the resemblance of moth wings.
Finally, the pink x-eyed girl inquired, “Am I supposed to be like a moth?”
Charlie nodded and said, “I think so. A lot of moth demons are those who did a lot of… certain activities at night. I’m sorry if it’s kind of obvious.”
That bit of info certainly had made the now identified moth demoness flare up inside. Not at the chipper blonde herself but at the new thing learned. After all, anyone can take a look at this form and easily figure out some things that Vaggie’s done back when she was alive.
I’ll probably have to do that same shit all over again, too…
Vaggie powered through her irritation and said, “It’s-it’s fine. Nothing can be done about it.”
“Well, let’s talk about something else. Anything you want! It would be great to learn about you.”
The pink x-eyed girl blinked her good eye, surprised. What’s more, the interest the red-eyed girl had was genuine; there was no mistaking it, especially given how friendly those crimson orbs seemed.
How long has it been since someone has really wanted to know about me? Mierda, forget that, how long has it been since someone just wanted to talk?
Because really, the moth demoness couldn’t detect anything shady about the demon princess. Maybe it was more in comparison to all the others around, who did seem like they would have ulterior motives behind their kindness. At least that's the vibe Vaggie's getting. In any case, it’d probably be okay to stay associated with the chipper blonde.
Vaggie chose to engage. Of course, when this time they spent came to an end, she had to go, knowing that she’s gonna have to find some way to set up a new life. It's not like she can move to somewhere better, anyways.
“I think it’s time for me to go. It looks like- it looks like it’s going to be a long time before we can see each other again."
“Oh, wait!”
The moth demoness stopped to see what it is that her companion had to say left; there was the feeling deep down, anyways, that didn't want this encounter to end just yet.
“Maybe… if you want to… you can come with me?”
Well, that was unexpected and it came with a damn large chunk of fear and apprehension, too. After all, nice person or not, when a stranger's a stranger, an offer like that can be downright frightening.
“I…” However, there was no more that was said. The hesitation was pretty much detected.
“Look, I don’t want to force you to come with me. Really, I would never want to force anybody into anything, no matter how much my dad insists I need to be a little bit firmer. But if you want, I can help you.”
Normally, that kind of offer would have been met with extreme disbelief, likely even to the point of hostile. Some words about Charlie's father was certainly concerning. But of course, everything about Charlie herself hasn’t really struck out as a red flag.
That’s not to say that Vaggie is entirely up for this. There’s still apprehension over what’s to come. Years of perpetual caution and learned dislike of people in general doesn’t just go away, after all.
Still, the pink x-eyed girl knows that you gotta take a risk sometimes and so went with her gut instincts. So she said, “I guess why not, right?”
The chipper blonde had brightened up even more and had taken her companion’s hands.
“Great! Let’s go to a distant guest house. I don’t think Mom and Dad would be okay with me just taking home a complete stranger straight off the bat but you know… they're my parents. You know how it is, right?”
At least there was the feeling that this decision was going to end well, even with any bumps in the road. The first bump is no doubt gonna be seeing how a princess would offer her guests in a guest house and feeling the sheer shock from the experience.