#Husk also isn't around just yet so they're actually out two heavy hitters

[blue-rose-soul]

In Happy Hotel AU, what do you think happens when Charlie brings little Alastor to heaven? Will the angels be shocked that such a young soul is tossed into Hell? I can imagine the court scene being much different with Charlie bringing Alastor into her argument of there are some souls that do not belong in Hell. 

I think it’s around here along with the reveal of extermination that Alastor heritage is somehow revealed. Being the child of the devil does send you straight to hell regardless if you are a good person or not. This might show that Heaven does not know everything and is in the dark as Hell in judgment of souls. Charlie and Lucifer are in for a surprise after everything happened in Heaven.

In addition to this, how do you think the final battle with Adam will be? They are certainly not bringing a baby into the fold and with no adult Alastor around they won’t have the information on angelic steel or recruitment of the cannibals from Rosie. Maybe Lucifer could give them a hand?

Wow, from what I seen so far Alastor really pulled his weight in helping the Hotel in canon.

Lucifer was the one who suggested that Charlie bring Aster* to Heaven to show the leaders that there were at least some souls in Hell that didn't deserve to be wiped out. Although Lucifer had his own underlying motives for this suggestion - hoping Sera or one of the angels would keep Aster in Heaven, where he'd be safe - Charlie believes in it wholeheartedly. She argues earnestly that if Heaven rejected the soul of a two-year-old child whose worst action on Earth couldn't have been worse than a common temper tantrum, then it's not only possible but in fact very likely that the Exorcists aren't just slaughtering mass murderers or rapists, but perfectly average people who were only later warped by their environment.

Granted, Charlie doesn't believe even the worst, cruelest human souls deserve genocide ending in complete erasure from existence either. She's simply using this argument as a starting point to convince Heaven's leadership to at least reexamine whether the Exterminations are truly necessary.

They use the glowy magicky ball thing to examine Aster's life. As they watch the scene of his death, Aster buries his little face in Vaggie's chest and Vaggie wants to smash Sera's nose in for showing that while Aster's in the courtroom. They go further back, effectively watching Aster's life in reverse (learning his birth name along the way, though the Aster nickname sticks) and Charlie feels tears welling up in her eyes as she realizes the reason the human in the memory looks so familiar is because she's identical to that Winner she and Emily met at the zoo. Aster keeps reaching for her image and yelling 'ma.' They go back further, and further, to the very beginning of his life.

Then to the night of his conception.

The... the night of, not the exact moment. They see Nicaise meeting Lucifer in human disguise, and cut to black before things get inappropriate for a court room.

Needless to say, the 'You Didn't Know' song takes on an additional meaning.

The aftermath is a bit similar to what I described here as far as Sera confronting Lucifer about Aster's creation. But the more immediate reaction in the courtroom is pure chaos. Adam is laughing his ass off and outright mocking Charlie, Charlie's frozen to the spot staring at the still image of her dad with this human, the various higher ranked angels are arguing with one another, torn between wanting to take Aster and lock him away or banish him and Charlie and Vaggie back to Hell, and Sera's eyes are locked on Aster, her heart stuck in her throat.

Ultimately, she declares Aster belongs in Hell just like any Hellborn and there's no proof that Sinners are capable of redemption. And then she ejects the three of them from the courtroom. Aster sobs the whole time and Charlie never even gets a chance to take him back to Nicaise.

As for the battle at the hotel.

Yeah, Alastor really did pull his weight, despite what some might say. Without Alastor uncovering the angels' weakness, or showing Charlie where to recruit an army, Charlie's focus is more on evacuation and defense rather than a counterattack. Lucifer brings Aster to the palace. Now knowing that Aster is in fact his child. Over the past six months, he's built a pretty strong bond with the little guy, but he's been acting more in the role of a grandparent, since Charlie and Vaggie assumed primary care over him after finding him on their doorstep. He's torn over the revelation, and it doesn't help when Aster looks up at him with those big, ruby eyes and says 'Anpè!*'

Ultimately, it's Vaggie who comes up with the exorcists' weakness. While reminiscing over hers and Charlie's first meeting, it hits her that Lute should not have been able to permanently injure her the way she had. Up until now, Vaggie had assumed that she was truly Fallen. That by sparing demon she'd lost her divine protection and that's why she could be maimed. It's only now that she begins to consider another possibility. But if she's going to tell Charlie, that means she'll have to tell Charlie everything. In the chaos of the heavenly court, Adam didn't get a chance to reveal her secret but Vaggie knows she can't keep it forever. Especially not if she wants to help Charlie achieve her dream.

She braces herself. Then, she tells Charlie her theory that exorcists can be harmed by angelic steel. Her evidence? Her empty eye socket.

Like in canon, Charlie is shocked and hurt that Vaggie kept this secret for so long. But unlike canon, this Vaggie told her the truth herself. That goes a long way towards softening the blow.

That just leaves them in need of manpower to wield enough angelic steel to turn back the exorcist army. So Charlie puts out an announcement to all of the Pride Ring; the exorcists can be killed. She knows how to defeat them but in order to win they're going to have to work together. She invites anyone willing to fight alongside her to come to the Happy Hotel to finally take a stand against Heaven.

No one shows up. At least, not for the first two days.

On the morning of the third day, Rosie appears at the front gates of the hotel with a pack of bloodthirsty cannibals.

Of course, Rosie isn't offering to help Charlie out of the goodness of her heart. As Alastor says, Charlie is filled with potential and in need of a guide. To which Rosie gleefully sings:

"I concur! Stick with her, you'll be on the winning side!"

Rosie knows there's a lot to gain from allying herself with Hell's princess. And if the rest of the Overlords are too blind to realize that, well, that suits her just fine and dandy! Their loss is her gain!

(*Toddler Alastor's nickname in this AU, as of this post.)

(*Mispronunciation of 'granpè.' Unfortunately I haven't had much luck finding a resource for Louisiana Creole, so sometimes I substitute Haitian Creole terms. I'm not really sure how much or little overlap there is.)