Work Text:
“What the FUCK is that doing here?!” Octavia seethed in a dark tone. She quickly had Blitzø’s couch levitating above the monster that has haunted her nightmares when she was a small owlet.
What was meant to be a casual family and friend hang session at Blitzø’s apartment quickly turned into keeping Octavia from smashing Hell’s clown sweetheart.
Days prior to this event, Blitzø wanted to invite Fizz over for a dinner get together now that Stolas was on better terms with his daughter. It took long, uncomfortable conversations about Stolas’s situation with him and Stella for Via to understand what he was going through. Stolas gave what his daughter wanted; the truth about her family. When Octavia had all the context her father supplied, she understood why Stolas did what he did on that fateful day in court. Octavia said that she was still upset that Stolas kept this from her for all these years but understood why he kept it from her. She also started to see first hand why her dad and Blitzø worked so well together. She may still see Blitzø as a dickhead, but that dickhead seemed to make her dad incredibly happy.
When Via came over to the apartment to hang out with Loona, Stolas asked if she wanted to stay for dinner and meet Blitzø’s close friend. She shrugged and said sure. She’s only seen Blitzø around his employees and her dad, wondering what kind of friend he would bring over. Her feathers stood on end and her fight response took over when she saw that damn clown.
“Woah woah woah, it? You said she was progressive!” Fizz said towards Blitzø while hiding behind him.
“She is!” Stolas defended on his daughters behalf. He quickly went to her side and placed his hands on her shoulders to ease the tension she was holding. “Calm down sweetheart, put… the couch…down.” Stolas only had his words to diffuse the situation since he had no magic to stop her.
“Your friend is a Fizzbot!?” Octavia asked Blitzø in a threatening tone, still holding the couch above them. It was starting to wiggle since Via wasn’t used to levitating something of this size for so long.
“O-Oh, no no no. This is the real Fizz,” Blitzø explained nervously, maintaining eye contact with the princess.
“Yeah yeah!” Fizz said and came out from behind Blitzø so he could walk slowly over to Via with his hands up. “I don’t know what your beef is with the Fizzbots, but I promise I’m not whatever you’re picturing. We met once at a Goetia party. I was with Asmodeous, remember?”
Octavia clicked her beak and rolled her eyes. “So I’m supposed to believe that my dad’s freaky imp boyfriend is good friends with someone as famous as him? The same Fizzarolli who is dating the sin of Lust? I wasn’t hatched yesterday.”
“I can prove it! Just…please put the couch down and I can show you. No funny business.” Fizz promised.
“He’s not going to harm you, starfire. I’ll be right here next to you…okay?” Stolas said soothingly, still gripping her shoulders.
Octavia let out an angry huff and set the couch back to where it was.
Fizz walked closer and held his hand out to her. “Give me your hand,” Fizz asked calmly. She scowled back and Fizz added “please?”
Octavia lazily held her hand out and Fizz took it so he could press the palm against his chest. Taking deep breaths to show the rise and fall of his chest. “You feel that? My heart is still reeling from that warm welcome of yours. It’s flesh and blood. Only my arms and legs are robotic.”
The tension in her body began to loosen slowly, both from the heartbeat under her hand and her fathers arm around her shoulders. She looked at the clown’s face and saw droplets of sweat go down his head.
Oh. Maybe he was the real deal. But she had to be a hundred percent sure.
“Don’t Fizzbots have like…artificial skin? Like the stuff that’s used in sex toys?” Via asked in a calmer demeanor.
“I was afraid you’d say that. Alright, I have one more thing I can show you. But everyone else has to close their eyes and NOT open them till I say so! I’m only doing this for her.” Fizz let go of Via’s hand and waited for the crowd to comply.
“Is this a trick?” Via asked.
“No. I just don’t like everyone staring. But if it'll make you feel better being around me, so be it.” Fizz reached for his jester hat and slowly slid it off his head to show his disfigured horns. Via couldn’t hold in her gasp when she saw it. She wasn’t disgusted. Just surprised. She wouldn’t have guessed in a million years what was under Fizz’s hat. There’s no way a fizzbot would be sold with broken horns. The edges looked like real, aged bone. And the skin splotches around the base of his horns didn’t look artificial either. He even had that same mark that Blitzø had on his forehead. Was that a coincidence?
Fizz put his hat back on and told the crowd they could open their eyes now. He looked back towards Octavia and gave her an embarrassed smile. “I hope that convinces you that I’m the real Fizzarolli. Not many people have seen me…like that.”
Via’s shoulders slouched and started to hug herself. She went from furious rage to a soft shameful look. Seeing someone lay themselves bare like that in front of a stranger made her heart twist in guilt. “I…am so sorry. Fuck. I-I didn’t-“
“Stop. You wouldn’t have known,” Fizz interrupted. “It happened a long time ago. I have enough sympathy to last ten lifetimes, so don’t feel bad.” Fizz did his best to come off kind and gentle.
The shame in Via grew larger and larger inside her, wishing she could just disappear right now. “I need a moment.” Via turned around and took her dads hand as she dragged him into Loona’s room and locked the door behind them. She crumbled against her father.
“I’m a-a terrible person,” Via mumbled against Stolas’s chest, sniffling against him while her talons sunk into his back.
“Sweetie, no…” Stolas cooed and wrapped his arms around her, petting her head with one hand. “Is this about the Fizzbot at Loo Loo Land?” That was the only Fizzbot Stolas could think of that his daughter could have an unpleasant memory about.
Via sniffed again and nodded, too embarrassed to admit it out loud.
“Lucifer. This is all my doing. I’m the terrible one. I didn’t know he scared you so much back then. I wasn’t nearly as attentive as I should’ve been. I’ve failed you, starfire. I am so deeply sorry.”
Via shook her head more and pulled back, wiping the tears that were in the corners of her eyes. “It’s okay, dad. I over-reacted. I should’ve just…told you I was afraid. But I didn’t want you to think I was weak…since I’m the heir and all.”
“Via, you were a child. I’ve never cared about what is or isn’t ‘becoming’ of a Goetia. All this time I thought you were comfortable showing your emotions around me. I’m the idiot thinking you were shedding tears of joy.”
“Besides that show…the rest of the park was fun. And spending time with you. So…yeah.” Via got embarrassed giving that much of a compliment, but she didn’t want her dad to feel guilty all the time. She accepted that her dad was far from a perfect father. But he cared, and that mattered more to her.
—
Only ten or fifteen minutes went by before Via and Stolas emerged from Loona’s bedroom. She calmed down but still felt mortified on the inside for making such a scene. She walked back up to Fizz and bowed her head slowly. “I’m sorry for yelling at you and threatening you with a couch.”
Fizz couldn’t help but let out a small laugh from the absurdity of the situation. “Happens to the best of us, am I right?”
That got a chuckle out of Via, but covered her beak with one hand to hide it.
“That’s more like it,” Fizz said before he gave a supportive pat on Via’s shoulder. “Now, you gotta tell me what this Fizzbot did to you for you to wanna squash me so bad. They’re discontinued now, but I can relay it to the big guy in case something could be happening to other demons.”
Via stepped back and nudged her dad with her elbow, nodding her head towards Fizz. She felt more comfortable with Stolas explaining it to the clown.
“Ah, yes. You see, we would travel to Loo Loo Land as a family when Via was small-“ Stolas started to explain before Fizz extended his hand in front of the owl’s face to stop talking.
“Say no more. Now I get why she freaked out like that. Phew! Good thing that bot is done-zo like the rest of that knock-off death trap.” Fizz wiped his brow in relief and was able to relax finally.
“Uuugh, that bot was such a dick. I would’ve smashed him the bits myself back in the day.” Blitzø added.
“How do you know that?” Fizz asked.
“I-uh…heard through the grapevine,” Blitzø said nervously. He did not want to unpack that time of his life after they just solved Via’s debacle.
“Don’t worry, I’ll ask you next time,” Fizz punched Blitzø’s shoulder playfully as they both laughed at each other. This made Via smile. The fights she would witness back at the palace would never resolve this amicably.
“So…how do you know Blitzø?” Via asked Fizz.
“Oh yeah! I have to admit, it was hilarious how dumbfounded you were wondering how he could be friends with someone sooooooo famous~” Fizz teased, just making Blitzø roll his eyes but still smiling softly. “We grew up together in the circus.”
“What!?” Via, Stolas and Loona said all at once.
“Is that so damn hard to believe!? You think I was just born with these amazing acrobatic skills? Let’s just say I didn’t earn these abs from being an assassin.” Blitzø said proudly with his hands on his hips and his chest puffed. “And don’t act surprised Stolas, you saw Fizz yourself when you saw our act back in the day.”
“Oh, that’s right! I apologize, Fizzarolli.”
“Oh don’t apologize, I know your focus was on a different clown that day,” Fizz looked back at Blitzø and wiggled his eyebrows while sticking his tongue out.
“Hold on, you knew my dad when he was a kid?” Via asked while pointing at Blitzø.
“That’s right. We only met the one time. We reconnected like, a year or so ago. But you know all about that.”
“I gotta fucking hear this. You never told me this stuff before.” Loona piped up, feeling like she’s just learning about her adoptive dad for the first time.
“I want to hear all about how my dad was when he was a kid!” Octavia said excitedly.
“Oh, he wasn’t much different than he is now. Just super nerdy about his books.” Blitzø explained while Stolas pouted.
Fizz saw this and decided to level the playing field. “I remember that day. You wouldn’t stop talking about the Prince for weeks after you got to play with him. You kept asking your folks when you would get to see him again.”
“Wha- Fizz, what the fuck!?” Blitzø blushed and forcefully shoved him to show his displeasure. Not too hard that it would hurt but to get his point across. Stolas was also blushing to himself, imagining a young Blitzø wanting to see him again. It gave him a bubbly feeling.
“So Blitzø wasn’t just some random guy who showed up wanting your grimoire? That kind of makes me feel better about…you know…you two.” Via smiled towards her dad while Stolas gave her a tight side hug while nuzzling his beak into her head feathers. She protested the affection but it didn’t have any venom in it.
“I know, otherwise there would be no way this creature could get with someone as top tier as your dad,” Fizz added and let out a hearty laugh while Blitzø just gave him another “fuck you” while crossing his arms across his chest. Stolas couldn’t help but giggle along with the performer and Via. The former prince moved to stand next to said creature and placed his arm around his shoulders.
“I’m the lucky one. Truly.” Stolas whispered to Blitzø and gave him a squeeze as well. Blitzø could never stay mad at his owl, so he leaned into the hug happily.