I was heading back home after a long day's work. I finally arrived back at the hotel, and I saw that Charlie was doing the girl's hair.
"Hey, Charlie."
"Hey, Stygy! How was your day?"
"It was okay. Not many souls wandering the human realm."
"It's also nice that you're getting along with her, Charlie."
"Yeah! We've been talking about lots of things while you were away."
"That's good to hear. It's also nice to finally meet you properly, miss?"
"Vaggie."
"Nice to meet you too, Vaggie. It's good that you're doing much better now."
"Yeah, and it's all thanks to you. No amount of thanks would be enough for saving my life."
She then got up and hugged me, which caught me off guard a bit.
"It's no problem. Anyone would have done the same."
I patted her on the head and noticed how soft her white hair was. Charlie had a smug smile on her face while looking at me.
"What?"
"Nothing. Just thought how sweet you look patting her head."
I rolled my eyes at her, and Vaggie finally let go of the hug.
"Again, thank you for saving me."
I just smiled at her and nodded.
"We should probably get to bed now. It's late."
Charlie nodded at me, but before I could go upstairs to rest, she pulled out a small box.
"Hey Stygy, Dad gave me this as an apology for beating you up."
"What's inside?"
"No clue, but Dad said he left a note in there to explain things."
I looked at the box and noticed that it was covered in sigils meant to keep people out. I then placed my hand over it, and it began to pulse with energy. Suddenly, I was struck with a spell that turned me into a small bird.
"What the hell!"
To say I was a bit surprised was an understatement. What's worse, I felt weaker, a bit sluggish. My thoughts were interrupted when I noticed the box was gone, and in place of it were two eggs with a letter from Lucifer.
I flew up there and read it.
---
"Dear Stygian,
If you're reading this letter, then you must have already opened the box and are now wondering why you're suddenly much smaller. Well, to answer your questions: this box contains two Hellbeast eggs. They're currently dormant and will only hatch when they absorb magic from their new owner.
They will take on traits from you and will most likely make you feel significantly smaller and weaker. But don't worry, you'll be back to normal in just a few weeks, at the same time they hatch. The beast you'll be getting could be anything from a dog to a cow.
P.S. Charlie's really mad at me, so please keep her happy so she doesn't burn down my rubber duck collection."
---
I finished reading the note and turned to Charlie and saw both Charlie and Vaggie staring at me.
"What?"
"Stygian... You look so cute!"
She hugged me tightly, nearly breaking my now tiny spine.
"Charlie... I can't breathe."
"Oh, sorry, sorry."
She let go of me, and I could finally breathe.
"Ow... Charlie, I'm not that strong right now, so please no hugs, okay?"
"Oh... Okay. But can't you just turn back?"
"Apparently not. I'll need to wait for the eggs to hatch."
"Okay, but what's inside the eggs?"
"A Hellbeast, but I don't know what they'll be. Lucifer said they'll take on my traits and change appropriately."
"Wait... does that mean... I'm gonna be a mom!"
"I guess?"
Charlie was practically exploding with joy as she bounced around me and the eggs.
"Ohhh, what should we call them?!"
"Not yet. We'll have to wait until they hatch."
"Oh, I just can't wait!"
She then picked me up and the eggs and brought me inside our bedroom. She placed the eggs on the bed, making a makeshift nest around them, and finally placed me down on top of both of them.
"Okay, Stygy, now that you're a dad, it's your job to keep our kids warm, and I'll take care of your every need. So just relax and be the best dad ever!"
She then left before I could reply, and I was left with the eggs.
"Well, guess I'll... just sit here."