🕸𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚗𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚍🕸 | Hazbin Hotel OC

Chapter 8 | Tick Returns

"Okay," she finally said, turning back towards the apparently sexy fly. "Maybe I was wondering if I could help you with coding. Or just watch... to see what you're making."

Leeroy raised an eyebrow. "You want to help me?"

"Although I am the top technologies person in all of Hell," Tick said, gaining some of her composure back, "I can't help but wonder what you've got going on. And, I don't know, maybe it'll help me take down Vox. We could infiltrate his tower, knock out the power, then steal all his stuff while he isn't looking!"

Wow. She just spilled her entire plan, not subtle at all.

"I'm sorry, Tick, but I don't have an interest in taking down Vox," Leeroy said, shrugging. His plans reached much further than that—he wanted to gain an ally in Vox to help him become powerful. Something about this place made him so... power hungry. "So, I'm afraid we don't have a common interest."

While Leeroy turned to walk away, Tick sucked in some air and called out, "Wait! I don't—!"

The fly stopped and looked back. Tick fumbled with her words, trying to piece together something that would make Leeroy stay. "Maybe I wouldn't take him down," Tick blurted out, "but you seem like you want something to do with him, right? From what I've seen... you've even made a miniature version of him on your laptop, haven't you?" Leeroy turned around, watching as the gears turned inside Tick's head.

"So, you'd want to become business partners with him," Tick said, thinking hard about what she was going to say next. "You need to prove to him that you've got power. And influence."

"Yeah?" Leeroy asked, curious where she was going with this.

"What better way to prove that you've got both," Tick said, "than owning a soul?"

Leeroy tensed up. That entirely came out of nowhere. Tick looked determined, though. Fire in her eyes, resolve in her composure—the only thing that gave her away was the subtle way she trembled.

"Owning a soul?" Leeroy asked. Having got here literally three days ago, he had little to no idea what that actually entailed. It sounded powerful, though, like getting complete control over a person. Showing off something like that would certainly help him gain points with Vox.

Tick and Leeroy stared at each other. The small dragon's eyes burned and her body shook, as if she was second-guessing what she had just proposed. If Leeroy owned a soul, and by the looks of it, Tick had just offered her own, what would that truly mean for him?

Eventually, Leeroy resumed his cutesy smile and walked away from the trash heap, waving his hand to get Tick to follow him. "I don't care for owning your soul," at least not yet, "but I can show you what I've been working on."

Tick's eyes widened and she smiled before clearing her throat and putting on her normal face. "Yeah, that's cool, I guess if you feel like you really need the approval of the T.I.C.K, which stands for Technology Intelligence Complete Kickass, but the way, then I'll humor you."

Leeroy was smiling on the outside, but cringing up a storm on the inside. Maybe this wasn't worth it after all. Leading her to the dining table, he motioned for her to stop. "Please be quiet while Tajín is resting, he would probably freak out if he knew that you were back and sitting at our table."

Tick cut him off before he could continue with, "Are you two dating?" Sadness and desperation laced her voice despite her best efforts to keep it casual.

Stunned for a moment, Leeroy choked. "Are we—? No, we're not. We just slept on the same bed and live together," he explained. From a stalker's point of view, that could look like dating. And if Tick was any more like Leeroy, that thought would lead to a lot of bad endings. "We're just friends."