- "Y'know, Dunny, when I was above the sod, I used to have a little boy. Had a smile so bright and beautiful I swear I could hear the angels tellin' him to cool it down! Keep smilin', ya hear? When that darkness grabs hold of you and the storm clouds feel like they're suffocating you, use that smile to cast a guiding light and I promise the sun'll shine bright as ever on you again! Hell, smile even when the sun ain't shinin', sugar!"
- — Ms. Hartfelt to Mr. Dunglow.
Ms. Hartfelt is a minor character in Hazbin Hotel: Journey to the Light.
She was a Creole woman and the loving, doting mother of Alastor who taught him much of what he knows now. Now a winner in Heaven, she operates the Hartfelt Foods restaurant.
Biography
Background
Around the late 1800s, she became involved with a Caucasian man and would go on to have a son who became known as Alastor. Shortly after Alastor's birth, her partner abandoned both her and Alastor to avoid possible persecution for being involved with a woman of Creole descent, leaving her to raise Alastor on her own.
According to Alastor, his mother was a very doting woman who raised him with love and care, comforting him whenever he was upset, and singing his favorite songs whenever he was upset. She also kept her son away from the subpar education system available for people of his background at the time, and instead homeschooled him, teaching him how to cook, dance, clean, and do math from a very young age. Additionally, she practiced Voodoo and taught Alastor everything she knew, which her son would use for his evil intentions much later in his life.
She also encouraged Alastor to always smile, instilling in him the belief that a smile makes a person stronger. When she died, her son smiled through tears, as his mother had encouraged him to do so. After her death, Alastor swore to himself to never stop smiling, in honor of her.
Following her death, she ascended to Heaven as a winner, which created quite a poignant dilemma for Alastor, who was quickly on the road to Hell when he surrendered his humanity to become a demon, started murdering people for entertainment and notoriety, even perverting the Voodoo his mother had taught him and using it for his own evil intentions. Still, as his mother taught him, Alastor maintains his resolve in Hell, steadfastly holding onto the aspiration of reuniting with his mother as a secondary goal, even if only for a fleeting moment, even as he contemplates the audacious, yet exciting notion of tearing Heaven apart to get to her.
Holy Hell
In "Dirty Little Secrets", the anniversary of Hartfelt Foods is coming up and Ms. Hartfelt and her business partner Mr. Dunglow is in a tizzy over having an insufficient amount of her "secret ingredient", which turns out to be literal star dust, apparently a favorite "spice" among angels. Luckily for her, Serenity and Saint Peter fly by and volunteer to fetch the star dust and venture into outer space to get it. Ms. Hartfelt thanks them as they fly off, continuing to banter with Mr. Dunglow where she accuses him of just being "hangry".
Upon Serenity and St. Peter's return, Ms. Hartfelt checks them for any injuries as if they were her own children and upon seeing that they brought back plenty of star dust, she is positively thrilled and kisses both of them on the cheeks, announcing a feast to the streets of Heaven. She then instructs her staff to start cooking and invites Serenity and Peter to help, where she spends the afternoon teaching both of them how to cook properly, both of them astonished by her skills.
That evening, the anniversary dinner is a resounding success, with angels flocking to the restaurant and spilling out into the streets, all joyfully united over the simple pleasure of food. Ms. Hartfelt and Mr. Dunglow have a quiet moment on the balcony together, watching people brought together by what they built. She also teases Mr. Dunglow on his good mood, saying food was what he needed to soothe his nerves. Ms. Hartfelt then wistfully begins talking about the son she had in life, putting an emphasis on his smile. She encourages Ms. Dunglow to always smile even despite how dark things seem.
Personality
- "'Grab a paddle, give 'em a rattle! If mischief won't lessen, teach 'em a lesson!' That's what my mother used to say and I am happy to uphold her values!"
- — Alastor.
Ms. Hartfelt is passionate, whimsical, energetic and nurturing to a fault. While living, she taught Alastor everything he knows, wanting him to receive only the best education, showing that she is additionally very intelligent and well-taught despite the sub-par education available for women of her background during the time she lived in. In Heaven, she seems to always know what everyone loves, and her passion shines through her dedication to her business, Hartfelt Foods.
She is easily bored, not one to twiddle her thumbs, and always keeps herself busy. Owning every room she's in with her boisterous, go-getter attitude, she is deeply committed to ensuring her businesses' success, showing strong work ethic and infectious enthusiasm for her craft. Generally speaking, she is very passionate, heartfelt, and rather flamboyant, with a tendency to scream announcements to the streets of Heaven.
Ms. Hartfelt is enthusiastic and ever ready to share her beliefs and knows with others, as she taught Alastor how to dance, and upon learning that Serenity and Saint Peter have little cooking knowledge, she enthusiastically took it upon herself to teach them to cook, showing a love for sharing her knowledge and skills. Much like her son, Ms. Hartfelt is never seen without a grin on her face, no matter how "dire" things may get. She believes that smiling makes a person stronger, jumping at the opportunity to teach others about having a positive outlook.
She is very caring as shown in the way she checked Serenity and St. Peter for injuries upon their return from collecting stardust, treating them as if they were her own children, smooching them on the cheeks and involving them in cooking.
She is also slightly snarky and endearingly playful, as shown in her playful banter with Mr. Dunglow, excusing his behavior as simply being "hangry" and teasing him about his improved mood after the meal.
Alastor has described his mother as nothing but a nurturing and wise person; casual and very entertaining, but strict and forthright when she needed to be. An incredibly loving and energetic woman, she was determined to keep her son safe from the cruelties of the world around him, and would do anything to make him happy. She also seemed to be an optimistic, determined and positive person, encouraging her son to always smile even in the darkest of times, believing that a smile makes a person stronger and more confident.
Despite her sweet disposition, Alastor claims that she could also be strict and authoritative when she needed to be with a "my way or the highway" attitude. She refrained from spoiling Alastor, wanting to teach him how to obtain things with his own two hands instead of it just being handed to him. She also did not shy away from punishing and spanking her son whenever she caught him swearing or misbehaving, though this done was out of love and a desire for him to be a better person.
Abilities
- Culinary Intuition: Ms. Hartfelt is a masterfully - almost supernaturally - skilled chef who could cook dishes, primarily soul foods such as Jambalaya and gumbo, with amazing skill. As shown when she was teaching Serenity and Saint Peter, she is capable of dicing and chopping a variety of vegetables at ease and with incredible speeds, and cooked hundreds of meals for her restaurants anniversary dinner in a single evening. Alastor outright claims that she could cook Jambalaya that was "wonderful", and that it nearly killed her. She shared all of her recipes with Alastor, making him an amazing cook as well.
- Intelligence: Ms. Hartfelt seems to have above-average intelligence, having home-schooled Alastor and being unnaturally skilled at cooking, which led him to becoming a bright individual himself.
- Multilingualism: She can speak English as well as Creole French.
Quotes
Holy Hell
- "Ms. Hartfelt: (to Serenity and Saint Peter) Well, if you're feelin' up to it, then listen up, pumpkins! I need ya'll to get me some star dust for tonight's supper...
Mr. Dunglow: 'Star dust'...?
Ms. Hartfelt: (to Mr. Dunglow, incredulous) Mr. Dunglow, have you got cloud vapors in your ears since ya got here?! Star dust is an angel's favorite spice! By golly, they go madder than a march hare over the stuff! BONKERS, I say!" - — Ms. Hartfelt accepting Serenity and Saint Peter's help.
- "Oh, honey, I wish I could adopt ya!!!"
- — Ms. Hartfelt while watching Serenity cook.
Quotes Pertaining to Ms. Hartfelt
Chapter 1
- "It's times like this where I remember some sage advice my mother bestowed to me; 'Smile! Even as the darkness swallows you whole, use your smile to cast a light!' Ho-ho! She was a wise woman, I'm sure you all would have loved her!"
- — Alastor while defending the Hazbin Hotel from the Vees' henchmen.
- "Well, I'm starved! Who wants some Jambalaya? My mother once showed me a wonderful recipe for Jambalaya. In fact, it nearly killed her! Hahaha!"
- — Alastor about his mother.
Trivia
- Her last name is a play on the expression "heartfelt", which means "sincerely and deeply felt".
- Her theme song would be "Tomorrow" from Annie.
- Alastor jokingly claims that his mother is the only person he was ever afraid of.
- She is very much a gal of her time and uses a lot of slang from the period she live in.
- The series authors believe that Ms. Hartfelt is a very selective, Gordon Ramsay-type chef. She cooks most of her restaurant's meals herself and anyone who wants to cook for her has to prove themselves, showing that she is somewhat prideful in her abilities.
- Additionally, she is a bit of a food critic as she dislikes "lazy" food. She also does not like sweets, such as candy.
- It is implied by Alastor that his mother might have also taught him how to hunt, in addition to teaching him Voodoo and self-sufficiency.