Max sat alone in his room at the Hazbin Hotel, a dim crimson light illuminating the space from the floating symbols around him. Resting on the table before him was the massive black-and-red tome known as the Hell's Registry Book. The artifact was absurdly powerful, containing information on nearly every soul connected to Hell in some way.
And Max was absolutely abusing it to check on his girlfriends.
"Alright," Max muttered as he leaned back in his chair. "Let's see how everyone's doing."
The book flipped open on its own, pages turning rapidly before stopping on a familiar profile.
Verosika Mayday
A detailed magical profile appeared across the pages, including emotional states, magical bonds, recent memories, and relationship connections.
Max blinked.
"Nice," he said with a grin. "She actually likes me a lot."
His eyes skimmed lower.
"Still pissed at Blitzo… honestly expected that."
The page updated with glowing text.
Recent Personal Actions:
— Commissioned custom womb tattoo containing Max's name.
Max immediately froze.
"…What."
He stared at the page for several long seconds.
"…That was supposed to be a surprise, wasn't it?"
He slowly closed the section with a cough.
"Yep. Gonna pretend I never saw that."
The book continued displaying information.
"She still keeps Vortex around as security," Max murmured. "Makes sense. And… wow."
His ears twitched slightly.
"She imagines me during dream invasions?"
Max leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling.
"…I really should stop reading these."
He absolutely did not stop reading.
"Alright, next. Loona."
The pages flipped again.
Loona
Max's expression softened slightly while reading.
"Okay… mostly unchanged."
He kept scanning.
"Social anxiety improved quite a bit though."
The book displayed several recent interactions showing Loona being more comfortable speaking with others around the hotel and at Bee's parties.
Max smiled faintly.
"That's good."
Another section appeared.
Primary Emotional Anchor: Max.
"…Damn."
He continued reading.
"Still has a really small social circle," he muttered. "I should probably help with that. Maybe get her around more normal people… well, as normal as Hell gets."
The page flipped again.
Millie
Max instantly smiled.
"Yep, still adorable."
Millie's page was surprisingly stable emotionally compared to most demons in Hell.
"Largely unchanged," Max said. "Besides not ending up with Moxxie in this timeline."
That thought lingered for a moment.
"…Still feels weird."
He kept reading.
"Huh. She's suspicious of Moxxie and Sallie May now."
Max snorted.
"Honestly surprised it took this long."
The page shifted again.
Beelzebub
"Alright, Bee."
Immediately the page became significantly louder somehow, glowing with colorful symbols, food stains, and magical sugar-like sparkles.
"Yep. That tracks."
Max skimmed through it.
"She really likes the other girls… especially Angel Dust."
Another section appeared.
Former Relationships:
— Chazwick Thurman
Max blinked.
"…Wait, she dated Chaz?"
The book suddenly expanded several extra pages.
Max stared in disbelief.
"…Why does this shark have a body count longer than a history book?"
He flipped through page after page after page.
"Good lord."
Another profile comparison appeared beside it.
Blitzo
Max slowly looked between the two records.
"…He's almost tied with Blitzo."
He closed the book halfway.
"That is genuinely impressive and horrifying."
For the next several minutes, Max casually flipped through profiles of nearly everyone he knew. Charlie's page was full of optimism and anxiety. Vaggie's was mostly protective instincts and hidden affection. Angel's page was an absolute disaster of emotional contradictions mixed with increasingly strong attachment to the hotel.
Then Max suddenly paused.
"…Wait."
His ears perked up.
"Sinsmas is coming soon."
The room went silent for a moment before Max snapped his fingers.
"Hey! God! Roo!"
Time instantly froze.
The air distorted as two familiar figures appeared in the room.
God looked mildly exhausted already.
Roo looked dramatically annoyed.
"What is it now?" Roo asked with a sigh. "I'm very busy."
Both Max and God stared at her blankly.
A second later, Roo burst out laughing.
"I'm kidding. I literally do nothing."
God rubbed his temples.
"One day I'm muting you."
"Impossible."
Max shook his head.
"I just wanted to ask something."
Roo suddenly grinned mischievously.
"Ooo, what is it? Want to meet Leyley early?"
"No," Max answered immediately. "Absolutely not."
"Aww."
Max ignored her.
"I want to do something for Sinsmas this year."
That got both of their attention.
"What kind of something?" God asked cautiously.
Max closed the Registry Book.
"You said every soul that dies in Hell eventually falls under my domain, right?"
Roo nodded slowly.
"Yeah. You're the Entity. The End. Anything without a destination eventually reaches your realm."
Max leaned forward slightly.
"Then I want to give people one night back."
The room went quiet.
"I want to temporarily revive loved ones whose families still miss them. Just for Sinsmas."
Even Roo looked stunned for once.
"Like…" Max continued quietly, "Blitzo's family. Moxxie's mother. People who never got closure."
God's jaw slowly dropped.
"…That's actually incredibly kind."
Roo blinked several times.
"…You're making us look bad."
"I just think people deserve one good night," Max said simply.
God was quiet for a moment before speaking again.
"You realize how massive this miracle would be, right?"
"I know," Max answered. "That's why I need permission to borrow more from my true self."
Roo folded her arms.
"Technically nothing's stopping you."
God glanced at Roo before looking back at Max.
"You know you only have about a week after Sinsmas to figure things out with Octavia, right?"
Max groaned slightly.
"Yes, I know. I'm working on it."
"Slowly," Roo teased.
"She's emotionally fragile!"
"She's emotionally goth," Roo corrected.
"Not helping."
God chuckled quietly before looking thoughtful.
"What else do you need?"
Max hesitated briefly.
"…Angel."
Both gods looked at him.
"You said she has a sister in Heaven, right?" Max asked. "Maybe letting them meet again would help both of them."
God considered it for a moment.
"…That can probably be arranged."
"Good."
Then God narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Did you ever figure out your connection to Angel's family?"
Max sighed.
"Yeah. Turns out the mafia family I used to belong to was connected to Angel Dust's family. Different branch, same organization."
Roo winced.
"Ouch."
"I honestly don't care anymore," Max admitted. "I just want everyone safe."
Silence lingered for a moment before both God and Roo slowly nodded.
"…Alright," God finally said. "We'll help."