Chapter Text
Valentino more often than not liked to make a spectacle when entering any kind of establishment, and that day it was no different.
As one might expect, Husk didn’t take much notice of Valentino’s side piece as the overlord walked in long strides.
His gold tooth shone in the lights of the casino, asserting dominance over anyone who looked at him by flashing his (rather off-putting) grin.
A red cloud of smoke followed his trail as if it were sentient.
Valentino and his companion quickly reached the main table, where Husk was shuffling a deck of cards in preparation for a game of blackjack
surrounded by other guests.
“Husk! Dear, it’s been so long since I came here! And this time, I’m here to play."
“Y’ave been here just last week, but who am I to send away such good company”
Oblivious to Husk’s very sarcastic tone, Valentino took a seat right next to him, blowing red smoke over the table.
“But I’m not here just to play, darling; I’m here to talk business."
The red-clad overlord rested his chin atop his hands as he looked expectantly at Husk.
It wasn’t the first time that Valentino tried to propose a business partnership between the two. All Husk ever had to say about said proposal was that his casino wasn’t a strip club, that it wasn’t the image he was going for, and similar bullshit.
In reality, Husk wouldn’t have been opposed to having some eye candy here and there in the casino, but the sole prospect of working with a demon so unpredictable and generally annoying like Valentino wasn’t worth the gain for him.
“Ya know my answer about that ‘Tino, it just isn’t the place for that.”
He took a sip of his drink, looking
behind his glass to see Valentino stop a waiter to order a drink for himself and his companion.
That’s when Husk finally took notice of the pink spider, who was now sitting on Valentino’s lap, legs crossed and arms wrapped around the overlord’s neck, looking pretty.
Feigning interest, he decided to strike a conversation that wasn’t about work.
“Who’s that you got with you, ‘Tino?”
Valentino blew a cloud of smoke in Angel’s face, the poor spider obviously trying to refrain from coughing.
“Angel Dust, my prettiest whore at the moment for sure”
He winked and continued.
“Definitely would look perfect somewhere in here, don’t you think, Husk? Dress him up real nice and have him walk around with a bunch of other whores, you’d attract so many clients, I can assure you, darling.”
And so, with this crass statement and a charmingly fake smile of acknowledgment from Husk, he began dealing the cards.
“I’ll think about that, Val."
He wouldn’t.
One thing you must know about Husk is that he never won the first game. No matter who he was playing with or why, he’d never let himself win first.
It’s a rather simple tactic; when the other thinks they’re in control and that the odds are in their favor, it’s extremely easy for them to get distracted, blinded by their arrogance. It also worked well as a means to convince them to keep playing once they lose the second round.
Husker would let them win big, so big it seemed to them like it must be faith, only to take it all away a moment later.
And just this happened that night with Valentino, who, between a huff of red smoke and a flashy grin of gold, kept playing to try and win back what he lost of his first big victory.
Things escalated rather quickly; being as arrogant as he was, Valentino didn’t back off even after Husker advised him not to bother to continue playing.
Had he been smarter, he wouldn’t have let himself run out of money so quickly, either.
Husk, obviously amused by the situation, would have done nothing else than watch Valentino lose all his cash and let him walk out, if it weren’t for the scene he made as he lost yet another round.
The pink spider, whose name Husk had already forgotten, said something in Valentino’s ear. Husk didn’t quite catch what he said, but it definitely had something to do with money and the obscene amount Valentino threw away in his long streak of losses.
Whatever it was, it made Valentino snap.
“You really think I care what a whore like you has to say?! If I remember correctly, your job is getting fucked, not being a financial advisor! So shut that filthy mouth of yours and do what I brought you here to do, being silent and looking pretty!"
“I’m sorry, Valentino."
His voice was so small that to Husk, he seemed like a completely different person from the sultry one that was grinning just a few moments before.
Adding salt to the wound, Valentino slapped the spider so hard that his nose started bleeding, some of the blood ending up on the carpet.
He let out a small whimper but quickly straightened himself up and, as if nothing happened, took his seat next to Valentino again.
Husk knew too well how Valentino treated anyone who was unlucky enough to have signed a contract with him, and although he found it always left a sour taste in his mouth if he thought too much about it, he didn’t really care enough to go out of his way and call Valentino out for that.
What he was willing to do was inconvenience him, not just for his disrespectfully annoying behavior, but for thinking he had the right to act like this in Husk’s domain.
Yes, Husk’s casino was full of low-lifes with a crippling gambling addiction, but they all knew not to misbehave unless they wanted to get (not so kindly) kicked out.
Husk decided to try one last thing, both for his own entertainment and to make Valentino lose his current favorite moneymaker, before telling him to fuck off for the night.
“So what d’ya say, ‘Tino, wanna play another round?”
Husk raised an eyebrow expectantly.
"Well, sadly, my dear angel here is right, and if you have no interest in going forward with our little business chat, I might as well go and try again another time, darling.”
“Alright alright, what if we play one-on-one with no money involved? We can just bet souls like last time. Ya beat me good that time if I ain’t rememberin’ wrong."
He posed it as nonchalantly as possible, referencing the only time he allowed Valentino to win just to maintain a semi-good relationship with him.
Husk’s tactic worked rather quickly, as Valentino instantly agreed.
“Since we’re playin’ for fun after all, I’ll just get to pick a soul o’ yours, ya cool with that?”
"Alright, darling, but if I win, you’ll accept my work offer. Which, by the way, I still don’t get why you won’t just accept. Ugh.”
Husk cringed a bit at Valentino’s typical
immature behavior, but accepted the offer and shook hands with the demon.
They moved to a private room, where the more important games usually took place (Although Husk barely found this important and just wanted to piss off Valentino by effortlessly winning).
It would be of no use to describe how the game went, as Husk rather obviously cheated, beating an oblivious Valentino in just a few hands.
During all of this, Husk didn’t notice that the lanky spider had left and come back, at least a couple of times, right before the game came to its unsurprising conclusion—always with a new drink in hand that looked more like pure alcohol than an actually enjoyable drink.
He sat down in the corner, trying his best to look pretty and nonchalant, even with a piece of paper in his nostril to stop the bleeding from his nose, and more alcohol in his system than oxygen in his lungs.
"Well, ‘Tino, guess luck just wasn’t on yo’ side today was it? Don’t worry tho, I’ll think about your offer, really. Now, since he’s already here, I think Fluff works well enough for me, what d’ya think ‘Tino?”
Husk flashed his knowing yellow grin at an obviously furious Valentino, who after this loss had to be forced to hand over Angel’s contract, all while yelling what Husk could only assume were rather creative profanities directed at him in Spanish.
Once Valentino was escorted out (all while still yelling), Husk was finally satisfied with his little self-indulgent endeavor.
He turned to look at Angel, who was still slumped on an armchair in the corner of the room, barely conscious.
Husk put his paw on Angel’s shoulder for a brief moment, finally taking a good look at him and his awful condition.
“Must’ve been a rough night for you huh?”
He muttered under his breath as he left the room.
He kept the “In use” sign of said room on as he continued his night as per usual, until the clock struck 5 a.m., and it was finally time to close.