#I love the fact you can make MC fucking weird as fuck and have nothing normal about them

[origamihoshi]

Help I played @oneknightstand-if's demo for their game and I can't stop thinking about the MC and how much I love them, so I drew my version of them.

Her name is Maika (but she's now going by Meika because names have power and there's noway she's going to tell an incubus her real name so why not just change one letter). She doesn't trust any of her allies, but to be fair one is a incubus and the other is a guy from her polo club she think is stalking her so she thinks she has some good reasons not to trust them, but it's okay because she has her beloved plant Audrey III and her magic 8 ball and surely they will never betray her.

I also didn't realize you can avoid getting possessed but when I think about it, it fits her very well that not be able to keep demons out of her head.

I love my weirdo amnesiac changeling who needs to stand out and make sure all eyes are on her, and wishes she could be a fairy princess instead of working in fast food.

[journey-to-the-attic]

started lesson 48 and then changed my mind after the first part, so this isn't entirely up-to-date, BUT

there's a weird dissonance in nb s3 where the characters very frequently behave/talk to you with a weird disconnect as if you're still in the past, despite the fact that you returned to the present at the end of s2

like, you and lucifer have known each other for a good few years at this point. you would KNOW this about him. why is he telling you this like it's early on in an otome game and he's making his personality clear to you before you pick his route.

(and depending on your preferences, or even from a character relationship view, wouldn't it make more sense for mc to walk home with him semi-frequently at this point in the story??)

and i'm not going to shut up about it: where did the main mystery of obey me nightbringer - namely, nightbringer himself - go?? we still don't know who he is, what his motivations were, why he sent mc to the past, what barbatos's fucking deal in the opening movie is, nothing??? we're just back to silly school shenanigans with the simeon subplot lurking? and i haven't seen any posts about it so i can only assume it's not in any of the new lessons that i haven't done, though i'd love to be proven wrong

the only way i can see this working is (as i might have mentioned) simeon's subplot relating to nightbringer somehow, but even if that's the case, the execution so far has been so lacking that i'm not sure they'd see that firecracker of a plot point through to a satisfying resolution. if you want to drop something like that, you don't preface it with half a season of tensionless school competition bullshit

the dialogue has also just been.... incredibly dry? very surface level observation-of-the-plot that's the bane of many a poorly written visual novel. "we need to do this now." "i am going to explain this bit of worldbuilding to you." "wow, something is happening. i wonder what's going on." "this thing just happened??!?!"

my favourite parts of obey me aren't even the drama-heavy parts, it's when the brothers banter with each other in a way that feels genuine and fun, and those moments have been real thin on the ground as of late

[quimichi]

Pspspsp could I request self-aware Kaeya and Rook (separately) finding out it's the players birthday?

(I think my type in men is a peacock, but a sneaky one)

. . . . . . . ╰──╮HAPPY BIRTHDAY╭──╯ . . . . . . .

ROOK AND KAEYA FINDING OUT ITS YOUR BIRTHDAY - SAGAU

Rook x Reader Kaeya x Reader

A/n: I also love myself a cute pot haircut guy ♡ I didn't know if you wanted the player in the game or not, but I put our MC in the game :) I can do it out of the game too no biggie just ask ♡

ROOK - Let the hunt begin

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ Rook Hunt is the kinda person who knows everything, he's a hunter after all. He watches his prey and that is currently you

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ nothing goes by him without him noticing. So, when he found out that today is your birthday, he was more than thrilled

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ he's so ready to give you the best presents of them all. Not even Vil could compare with the designer skin care set. Rook had a watchful eye all year over you and memorized everything you enjoy and take a liking too

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ you will, no, you must notice him now. He isn't hiding, heis on full display for the day, ready to sweep you off your feet and have the attention of the MC on him for the day. Only on him, he is begging for it with what he does.

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ Rook made so sure you will notice he ADORES you more than anyone else. Because the truth is, nobody adores you more than him. You are the MC, the player and the main character of the story, if you ask him to warship you, he will. Without any questions he would kneel in front of you and warship you the rest of his days, because you are true beauty and perfection.

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ and your birthday is giving him the best opportunity for this. You're thirsty? Have this water. Hungry? Take his lunch. Your legs are tired even while sitting down? Use him as a foot rest

KAEYA - Life's greatest illusions are the ones we believe in ourselves

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ oh~? So it's your birthday huh? What a pleasant surprise!

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ he does care a lot about you, but at the same time showing it makes it difficult. Just letting anyone near him is difficult. He loves you, adores you, is obsessed with you. And he for sure is smooth about them feelings for ya.

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ he refuses to let you play with his feelings for much longer. How dare you milk him dry with that smile of yours, your kind words and generous actions towards him that he just wants to return especially on your birthday, ugh f you.

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ those negative feelings are long gone because of you. He is still this closed off Worshipper of you, but accepted the feelings he has for his creator.

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ and since it's your birthday he will have an opportunity to ket those feelings slip out without being to weird about them. Yes, all the others are also giving you the best absolut presents but somehow his felt special to you

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ there was a thought behind the present, something you truly needed, not wanted, but needed. You can tell he spend his sweet time and money getting that and although for others it might not be special, it truly is. No diamond ring or ancient parfume could ever compare to what he gave you

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ he literally said, "Fuck ya'll, I'm their fav now" cause yes, he is. Oh btw, he just found out on your birthday, that it's your birthday---

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ because you never told anyone really so everything was kinda chaotic and people were going crazy over the fact. So did Kaeya-he usually always keeps his cool but you make him lose his shit

[wordstome]

So… I have a few uni!König questions 🤓📝

(Please, you don’t need to answer all of these unless you want to of course. It's just that this AU has me on my knees, I'm in love with these two nasty gremlins! send help)

1. Does it bother König that their relationship is not official? Or is he happy with the situationship? (This sounds like a stupid question, of course he’s bothered by it. Right?!?)

2. Is König a skilled lover? You said somewhere that reader can’t get satisfaction from other guys because “nobody is as good as König” but does this mean he’s experienced or does he make up for his possible lack of experience in… some other ways? Or is the good sex due to them having this crazy enemies *and* lovers thing going on?

3. Is it enough for König to shoo potential love interests away and off of her by being a hulking possessive menace, or will he still be jealous and butthurt after that? Brood silently for example? Slam doors passive-aggressively? Perhaps even start a full-on argument when they’re behind closed doors?

4. Do you have any hcs of the craziest place(s)/situation(s) they’ve had sex? Obviously because they were so horny or had to hatefuck because the other one said or did something annoying (again)

SALOOOME MY ANGELLL *rubs hands together wickedly* let's do this

1. Not a stupid question at all! In the beginning, it does bother him, especially when he contends with the idea of her sleeping with other guys--or, horror of all horrors, dating someone else. He's also just kind of a traditional guy who wants to woo a lady, but that would require the lady in question to be wooed. At some point, though, he realizes that it doesn't matter how reluctant she is to make it "official", she's not going anywhere. Then he's just intolerably smug about the fact that deep down, she's just as attached to him as he is to her.

2. I'm glad to elaborate on this! König is less experienced than Cinnamon (which is what I'm calling her for now, it probably won't be relevant in the fic itself but I like giving my MCs callsigns/nicknames). What makes him different than the casual partners she's had before is his dedication to pleasing her, if that makes sense. I mentioned in the headcanon post that "him getting better at fucking really just means he's getting better at fucking her". (continued under cut)

I'm going to elaborate more in the fic (if it goes the way that I have it planned), but König becomes so infatuated with Cinnamon because she doesn't treat him like a weird loser to avoid. It's not really that everyone König knows or comes into contact with avoids him or treats him with contempt--he does have friends, but none that are particularly close. Cinnamon is different in that she's an easygoing person (or at least puts on a persona of being easygoing), so whenever König says or does something dubious her reaction is just the equivalent of "haha, you're weird man, but I like that!" (At least until he starts to annoy her in the best way, and then the whole enemies-and-lovers thing kicks in.) Cinnamon's been with a lot of guys who don't really care about her enjoyment or are assholes in other ways, so König treating her like a priority is new to her and also something she can't find anywhere else. And of course, the more they fuck the better he gets 😈

3. Oh, he gets very jealous and pouty for sure. He does a lot of things as a sort of revenge, like scaring off people she’s flirting with. Initially, Cinnamon doesn’t take him that seriously and just humors him, so he never gets far in terms of being mad at her. (Plenty of brooding, though.) He takes it out on her by being rough and degrading in bed, and when he realizes she isn’t interested in anyone else anymore, he’s a lot more relaxed. At that point nothing she does can upset him because he knows she always comes back to him. By contrast, Cinnamon starts getting agitated because 1. She never intended on having a boyfriend 2. She starts to realize she’s fed a very dangerous beast. I'm probably going to write about their first real fight, and it is messyyyyy.

4. The riskiest is definitely a random utility closet on campus. He probably pulled her in there after she spent an entire lecture brushing his thigh with her foot and didn't anticipate just how immediate the consequences would be >:)

I'm also toying with the idea of him fucking her on someone else's bed, specifically someone she used to hook up with 🤭 They locked the door, but suffice to say that guy knows who she belongs to after that.

[fudanshidoublevision]

Double Vision as a father.

Ray better kill him before Double puts his bloody claws on MC and even thinks of forming a family with them. /j

Dude, no, imagine being his CHILD, i feel sorry for anyone who has Double as some type of...paternal figure, LMFAO.

Experiencing parenthood isn't on my “to-do list”. Plus having a child, on this ECONOMY? I'm good.

Parenting is a humbling experience, my parents had taught me AND told me that. Well, that is certainly my fault because I was the devil reincarnated when I was a kid— but they still call me their little devil so not much has changed I guess. ( ͡°з ͡°)

But in this scenario...even if the circumstances aren't ideal, I believe that anyone can do their best if they really want to, it's not easy. It isn't the children's fault that their parents are so troubled. (meaning, if their progenitor is Double Vision in this case, lol)

I've discussed this with my best friend once, a long time ago and they said something about how Double will view his child as a possesion and extension of himself (and yours too, because he would only care about that kid just enough 'cause you are attached to them), i kind of agree with him. But, I mean? If Double Vision has kids with MC, wouldn't that mean he is fond with the idea of having kids? I haven't mentioned nothing about him being capable of ���baby trapping” you because everyone else is disposable to him but you aren't. For all he cares, he only needs to held you tight by your throat to remember that he only needs you, he doesn't want or need someone else. In this scenario, your child was planned and wanted.

Even if you loved your child, he will be uncapable of loving them back the same way you love them but he wouldn't be uncaring, dude is deranged and a major bad influence. Mostly because of the way he is and taking in consideration the fact that his parents were emotionally and psychically absent when he needed them around, it's not an excuse considering how in this similar scenario Ray didn't had NO good-present parental figures on his whole life but wants to try his best, it just kind of explains why he acts and why would he act like that. I'm not saying that Ray would be perfect at parenting a child just a bit better than Double for sure, not gonna lie Double gives me “crazy-unstable uncle” vibes.

He is not right in the head, neither i am but hey, this is not a competition for who's more deranged, so...someone has to be the relatively-stable and emotionally available parental figure. (Meaning, YOU.)

Just sane enough to not make a mini Double 2.0. Who can be worse.

He would care...and “love” (the way he “loves you” is pretty different) his own child his very particular way. Yeah, he would be cruel and a piece of shit to you but just a tiny mean and highly authoritarian towards his child.

me if our kid ever asks me why their father fucking SUCKS at giving advice and why is it always has to end up with someone getting hurt:

"Mini-me, if you ever need adivice, you can open up to me and say whatever is bothering that little head of yours. Keeping some ugly thoughts to yourself isn't good, whatever it is, I'll never judge you and you'll never scare me off....What about your dad...? Eh, he...just isn't the best giving out advice. Some people aren't good with their words...and tend to say things that are bad, sometimes it's better to do...whatever you think is right instead of following what others may "advice” you but you can always double-check with me to know if you are doing the right thing.

Why, you ask? WELL... what about if we just...OH, what if we go out for a bit? Would you like that? I'll buy you whatever you want. ANYTHING! Just...dont tell your dad, okay..."

It's sad but it's not easy to explain to children why their mom/dad/parent acts or behaves “weird” or is incapable of doing things their other parent can do.

Oh well, i believe Double's kid wouldn't question what their dad tells them to do or say because...that's their father, they don't know any better than what their parents tell them.

Double's parental skills aren't the best; he is driven by his own emotions and he is the definition of what impulsivity means. He doesn't care much about consequences and who he might hurt to achieve what he wants and what he NEEDS. (You, again, for example. He obliterated the previous Night Crew members because of your “disappearance”. He may or may not broken someone's bones and mayyybe, just maybe! I think... he threatened some people here and there to get your location.)

I thought that maybe he would use your own child as a weapon to tame you so you'll do whatever he says. Emotional manipulation and conditioning...not even that poor kid is safe from that, Double is VERY MUCH controlling and overprotective. No matter how you behave, he stills wants you but of course, he loves a defiant behavior but he can't deny that he enjoys it when you "make things easier".

After all, parents will do anything for their children, right? Oh well, I'll be guessing that you'll do that for the sake of your child. Sorry if I'm wrong.

It doesn't really matter how that child appeared or how they were conceived and brought to you two to form a family. Those little details don't matter, you'll try your best, right? No matter what. You don't have much of an option if you are with Double, I guess. ಠಿ_ಠ

But I have the feeling that this freak will be overjoyed if the kid, shares your and his blood and genes. Just another thing to reaffirm his ownership over you. I don't think he will be capable of harming his own child, psychically, I mean. Maybe he WILL threaten you and say he'll hurt your kid when you “act feisty” so you'll give up.

Double Vision wouldn't be jealous at all of his child if they take all the attention from his most beloved possession off him because they aren't simply a bit of a threat to him and that kid is just trying to bond with you, i don't think Double would even bother to get in between of the parent of his kid and his child. Unless it is to annoy you or just be insufferable, as usual.

I like the idea that he underestimates what his child is capable of doing, lol.

For my own mental peace, i didn't added details like “what if your child had abilities?”. Because I have the feeling Double will be up to NO good with that little piece of information.

But let's just sit and think about it, either way, if your child is an ability holder or not, doesn't really matter if Daddy Double is around. Anything is possible and who is he to deny his child's wish to follow his daddy's step? Villainy, I mean, lol.

He would be overjoyed and proud his child wants to be a villain, like his parents. Well, he still is a villain and MC is not longer in the business because of Double, LMAO.

If you'd like to enter a more dangerous territory well, what if his kid wanted to become a hero? Not even an option, haha.

It's not like they have one, being a villain or just a regular citizen, no child of Double is going to become a hero on his guard. He will be very open about his distaste on the wish of his child wanting to be a hero, he might be ticked off by that.

Maybe he is usually cold-headed when he interacts with his own child, I think it's enough with him having you in edge constantly, at least he wouldn't behave or treat them the same way he treats you. Even though, there are times that his patience runs thin (when annoyed or angry, not entirely directed towards his child) and could say some concerning things that his child may take to heart.

Parents knows best, I've heard from a certain someone say before.

Now, what if that child grows? Woah, they are going through the terrifying, horrifying, traumatizing, horrible phase of adolescence! Amazing, worst years of my life! ᕕ( ՞ ᗜ ՞ )ᕗ

They are slowing growing into becoming an adult, they might realize how different everything looks when you are a bit...mature, you become more aware of what's going on around you. They will notice about how some behaviors from their parents aren't normal and not what they seemed, I'm specifically talking about Double Vision but you get it.

Maybe they will develop a rocky relationship with you but I believe that no matter what they will still love you and care for you, maybe you'll become their favorite and appreciate more the way you cared for them, who knows. Maybe they will hate you because you didn't tried enough and had to choose Double Vision as their shitty dad (I think it's for the best if they didn't know the reality of your situation 😁), they will grew and distant but who knows...?

About Double, I have the feeling that for their own sake they'll ignore his dad's existence as much as they can, Double is aware of that and doesn't care that much but I won't deny that he might be annoyed by that and oh NO! They ended up being just like you and Double is going to pick on you for that and even say that is your fault why they hate him so much.

Maybe it's for the better if your kid ended up being more like you rather than Double.

Double is an only child so i believe that he'll only want one single kid but I don't think he would be opposed of having another one but MAYBE, just maybe, no!

But there's something I believe that everyone can agree on and that's on the fact that Double looks so fucking HOT with grey hair.

And oh my FUCKING God, his gloves? You can see his tattooed sleeves and his neck? I feel like a Victorian man seeing a woman's ankles for the first time. I want to break his senile back.

Conclusion, could you have kids with Double? Absolutely, will he be a good dad? Questionable but most likely, not. I think he might be like his parents, he exists but he isn't a reliable person for his kids, it's kind of difficult to come a conclusion because he is so complex to me, my opinion on him is always ever-changing.

OH YEAH, you and your child might be the only ones besides some of your family members who probably meet him wayyyyyy before, a long time ago, that know his real name. It isn't that relevant but one of the most important things a kid has to know it's their parents name and last name, right? Not that Double's real name is going to be used as much as you might think.

I wrote this solely because I had a dream where Double Vision was my uncle and he lived on my grandparents backyard??? Sick and I just wanted to post this because I spent three days of my life writing this and then chickened out.

This post in particular wasn't proofreaded (at all) by my friends that usually encourage to post my dusty drafts.

I hope you liked it, I might add some things to this post in the future...

Anyways, Haley bae is next. Maybe even Binary Star because I think having kids with him sounds scary, if you are aware of WHY ARE YOU having kids with him on the first place (canonically speaking).

How would Double actually act if he ever had a kid: /j

I had this video on repeat playing in my head while writing this.

[sugar-omi]

i love your baxter posts sm i think you capture his character So well its wonderful fhdkfh theres a lot of talk about baxter and an mc that date and break up in step 3, but what if when baxter asks mc out, they want to say yes but state that they dont think itd be a good idea since he's only staying for the summer? They're very aware that he will be gone once summer ends and they don't want to get even closer with him just to have it end. Im curious what baxter would think, having an mc that fully accepts the fact that he's going to leave their life for good when he leaves Sunset Bird. Just a thought i've had for a little while!

ok im ngl its probably very ooc but i can also see it still being very true to his character bc i think that (especially if you date baxter in step 3 (n marry cove)) baxter regrets letting you go and no matter if you date or not, and he imagines what life could've been like if he didn't cut you off at the end of summer. ANYWAY I HOPE YOU LIKE IT <333 this hurt to write but fuck it made my brain tingle n i always end up writing the most delicious angst

tags : Angst (with/without happy ending), step 3 & 4 scenarios, baxter yearns for reader, option for baxter to have a big crush on you, multiple choice dialogue, requited love, unrequited love

(there's 2 options, one where you and baxter date, and another where you marry cove but baxter having feelings for you is up to you but is most preferred/implied)

synopsis : you reject baxter. how does he react?

he's grateful you're so aware, it makes it easier for when he does leave.

but as he gets to know you better over the summer, baxter starts to crush on you hard, and now he's very conflicted...

on one hand, he's glad you didn't date. he couldn't bear the idea of having to reject you, especially if you asked him to come back or keep seeing you.

but on the other, he sees the way you slide up to cove and tease him, the way you slot your hands together with Miranda and pull her into a dance under the sprinklers...

no matter how he feels, he accepts it easily, and he laughs off your rejection and even thanks you for your understanding, and it's like nothing ever happened.

but sometimes he thinks about what if. like when you fingers touch, or you're laughing, and that mischievous sparkle comes to your eyes and he wonders about what it'd be like if he could kiss that expression off your have and trade it for a flustered one.. but you both know it's nothing he can allow to continue outside of this one and only summer in sunset bird.

and even though he's glad you are so willing to let him go when the summer ends, baxter regrets not being able to let him be someone important, or at least be a common staple in someones life besides being the weird-monochrome-neighbor renting a condo for the summer.

he ends up hurting himself this way, and when he's staring the the ceiling of his temporary home he has regrets.

but in the morning he lets himself fall to the sidelines and tries to make himself a blurry figure in the memories of that summer...

when you meet again and start dating, he's glad you rejected him then. he doesn't think his 19 year old self could have handled pulling away from you. your affection is so tender, you're very gentle with him but firm in how much you love him. and one night he thanks you for rejecting him, and he feels high with the way your laugh shakes his head laying on your chest. "it would've filled me with double the regret to break up with you if we did..."

when you meet again, and he sees how you are with cove while planning your wedding, baxter sees why cove is so clingy with you. you look at him with tender eyes, and you grip his hand in excitement when you have your final session. even he's teary-eyed while you exchange vows, it moves him. but when the final chair is packed up and when baxter walks into his dark apartment. no one is waiting on the couch. no one is creeping down the hall with a sleepy call of his name... he wants what you have with cove. + maybe he even wants that with you.

[liquidstar]

Ok so, I have only ever watched one episode of Adventure Time, and it was on a hotel room TV, in terrible hindi dub, and I barely remember it on account of being 10(?) but it horrified me.

I remember the MCs trying to get Ice King a girlfriend or something, but he keeps being a gross asshole so they take him to a lake and point at some swans to try and explain love to him. They point to two swans kissing like ':D' and he's like 'ewww' and then the male swan suCKS IN AND EATS THE FEMALE and IK's like ':)))' while the boys stare in horror.

IDR how the episode ended or how much I watched, but I remember thinking 'wow american cartoons are hardcore. I'm sticking to pirated pokemon from now on.'

And you are telling me that show had lesbians in it leter????

oh my god im so sorry but imagining you watching that swan scene as a 10 year old is so fucking funny, i can understand why you stuck with pirated pokemon LOL

adventure time is absolutely very fucked up in a lot of different ways. the early seasons leaned into that type of absurd shit you just described a lot more especially. while the later ones actually started getting more existential and building on the worlds lore.

there wasnt exactly a focused plot, per say. i mean, there was, but it wasnt something methodical and planned out, it was played by ear. and i think it really worked. the way they did it turned out a really cool magic system (based on the idea that reality is just collective perception, and magic users are aware of this and can manipulate perception ergo reality. but the more cosmic knowledge you have the more insane or depressed you become etc especially if youre mortal), and also cool world building (it takes place in a post apocalypse after a nuclear war, now far into the future the face of the earth has completely changed but the horrors unleashed still impact it today), and also a lot of really amazing themes (the world is always changing and nothing is ever permanent, but no matter how things change things also stay the same, in a different way. especially where bonds and love are concerned. everything stays.)

and YEAH there are lesbians (i mean i always hc marcy as bi but still). and they also come from the shows improvisational nature. theres a lot of genuinely really amazing relationships and plotpoints born out of that to me. like, as the show starts to get a lot more thematically dense later on it can seem like a weird shift. some ppl say it got pretentious over time bc its not as goofy (its still pretty goofy lol), but i think it worked... like... perfectly.

because its a coming of age story where the main character actually ages, it actually feels so right that the world around him begins to seem different too. it makes sense that when he was 12 we were doing stupid goofy adventures, when he was 15 we were watching him deal with a lot of really fucked up trauma, and when he was 17 we watched him learn to grow as a person who thinks beyond simple terms of good and evil.

i know im tottaaallly rambling at this point but theres really an insane amount to talk about with adventure time. the timeline alone is ridiculous. but mostly i think my passion comes down to the fact that i was also growing up with the story, always around the same age as the mc going through similar stuff... even now, the story is focusing on a depressed 20-something trying to find whimsy in her life again. and technically the last episode timeline-wise is about accepting death lol

so like idk how exactly id recommend it to a new viewer, its really possible that a lot of ppl wont be able to really tolerate the early seasons as adults (i mean, i think theyre charming, but i have nostalgia goggles lol). that being said i think that its a series totally worth a shot for everyone... eventually. if it sounds interesting you just gotta accept the goofiness at first and trust that youre in for something wild in a totally different way later on. and totally unique and cool and special in a way nothing else has really been able to capture for me since.

TL;DR: no yeah the show was incredibly fucked up and that swan did eat that other swan. but it does have themes and also lesbians.

[mrboogerlip]

Jason and Marcus would be the funniest ass ship. I feel like they are both really flirty until someone flirts back and then they are just: 😐

What do you think would happen if they did start dating and Jason ended up where MC was?

I feel like that would be harder because they are both cops and Jason doesn't seem like he could be as easily emotionally manipulated. (I got bored one night and went heavy into this man's lore).

Also I imagine Marcus calling Jason "kitten" and Jason just being confused as fuck but just going with it.

Also Chris. Nothing much to say I just absolutely love him. I made a good character (went detailed because I'm apeshit) for him to date after he breaks up so now he is happy and taken care of. He went through six years of therapy. (Please let me have this).

- 🐠 anon

(I'm sorry for bothering you but you are one of the few still really active and I love that)

Also I know she's obsessed with Chris (and I'm choosing to ignore that because ew) but aria is dom femme lesbian. (She's actually bi with a MAJOR preference towards women). I will not take criticism.

Thank you and goodnight!

Haha! I think Jason would be a little more open to it, maybe XD

I agree with you! I doubt Jason could be easily emotionally manipulated. In fact, I can imagine he could even trick Marcus into thinking he has him wrapped around his finger, when in reality it’s the other way around…

I think Jason would make a great kitten XD

AGH Chris… that boy deserves someone nice… I like to think he gets his happy ending considering the “Coffee” scene :3 (I'm so glad I can think of Aria's route as canon instead of Chris's)

That’s totally alright, fishy anon! :D

Also, sorry about the late reply! I suddenly got a little insecure about making so many text posts, so I stopped... and then when I stopped feeling like that, I got lazy XDD (Don’t worry, you’re not the only one. I have something else in my inbox from like 3 months ago. Although, it is art related...)

Well, whoever Aria is with, she definitely won’t let them top her that easily!! They have to work for it!!

Personally, I find the incest thing quite hilarious and endearing in a way… But that’s just because I have weird tastes LOL

[jazlynriddle]

Welcome to your life - Pt 2:

Acting On Your Best Behaviour Ch 21:

Summary:

They'd seen it in their fellow orphans often enough to recognise the pattern and were now forced to admit, despite their hopes to the contrary, that Isidora had likely suffered similar side effects.

No… they'd always known she had. The Keeper had just wanted the power that Ranrok had, enough to convince themselves that they would be able to handle it better than that naive woman.

With the start of the Keeper’s sixth-year in Hogwarts, comes a whole slew of headache-inducing challenges from the most unexpected of places. Between insignificant pests throwing wrenches into their plans and tedious teenage drama, that the Keeper is entirely unprepared for, they wonder if they'll make it to their NEWTs without losing their sanity.

Or worse, Ominis or Sebastian.

Warnings: Sebastian x MC x Ominis! Drug Addiction! Spoilers! Slow-burn corruption! Dark content! Fucked up 1800s orphanages! MC has no love for Anne or Solomon! Dubious happy ending (it's happy for MC, Seb and Ominis at least).

You can also read on AO3! (chapter specific warnings below)

Notes:

The Keeper sipped from their cup of tea as they waited in the common room for Sebastian and Ominis to join them. They were almost regretting agreeing to the plan, it'd been a while since a day had felt quite this long.

Warnings: More misunderstandings-

Ugh, I feel bad doing this to our kids but I really have to, it's just, Ominis and Seb already have HUGE communication problems in their questline and the MC was never helping the boys with that (in fact you can argue that they made it worse in places) so we can assume they suck at it too.

So, I need to hammer those kinks out before it can progress to a healthy relationship. These are just growing pains-

For Poppy and Natty too, honestly, this is a lot of laying groundwork for the girls and the direction that I'm taking them in the future of the story xD

They looked up at the sound of jars breaking that oft signalled someone entering the common room, pleased to see their partners making their way over, though their expressions were worryingly sour.

"Did something bad happen?" The Keeper asked in concern, straightening when Sebastian refused to meet their gaze and setting their teacup on the table.

"Someone dropped a chandelier on us." Ominis replied curtly, as the two boys sat on the bench opposite them.

The Keeper cursed. "Blast, I'd hoped they'd only tried that with Poppy and I."

Sebastian frowned. "Tried what?"

"Our tail dropped a large ceiling fixture on us in Dervish and Banges'. I had to pull Poppy out of the way, she was rather shaken afterwards." The Keeper elaborated, surprised when the boys looked relieved at their words, they had thought that Sebastian and Ominis rather disliked Poppy. Well, it was nice that the two didn't hate her enough to wish Poppy dead, or severely injured at least.

"I see, that's- terrible." Ominis fought to stifle his smile.

"Yes, it was a rather close shave. I'd hoped they would focus on us rather than the two of you." The Keeper grimaced.

"It's alright, Sebastian's quick reflexes saved us, right?" Ominis gave Sebastian what looked like a painful jab in the side with his elbow.

"Urk- Y- yeah. It wasn't that bad." Sebastian rubbed his side. "How was your day with Sweeting?"

"Tiring, she was acting kind of weird today too." The Keeper sighed, picking up their cup and swirling their tea thoughtfully, before shrugging. "Well, Poppy's always been a little odd so it's probably nothing."

Sebastian eyed them sceptically, and the Keeper felt a wave of irritation when he simply looked away a moment later without speaking his thoughts. With a sigh, they decided to ignore him, they were too tired to deal with this and if he had something to say he would spit it out eventually.

"Ominis, I got something for you while in Gladrag's today." Digging through their satchel, the Keeper withdrew their gift.

"Oh? What is it?" Ominis' eyes softened further, and they leaned forward to place the package in his hands.

"Open it and you'll find out." The Keeper grinned as he curiously groped the package, finding the opening and neatly unwrapping it.

Sebastian leaned to the side to peer at it too, as Ominis withdrew the scarf and began to examine it with his hands with a small smile. "Oh, this feels nice, is this Cashmere? Ah, a scarf, how lovely."

"Yes, it's got some shimmery designs on it, so it'll be a good camouflage for the girls in the future." The Keeper explained, pleased when Ominis held it to his chest with a gentle smile.

"You thought of me while with Poppy?" Ominis murmured.

"Of course, why wouldn't I?" The Keeper tilted their head to the side in confusion.

"Thank you…" A brilliant smile lit Ominis’ face, his earlier stiffness completely absent now, and even Sebastian seemed to have relaxed significantly, to the Keeper's relief.

"You are most welcome." The Keeper cleared their throat, fighting the urge to kiss him and contenting themselves with touching the back of his hand gently as they refilled their teacup.

After taking a sip of their tea, the Keeper spoke with a determined set to their gaze. "We just need to endure this nonsense for another three weekends, then we'll be close enough to Selwyn and Macnair’s NEWTs for them to 'run away from the pressure'."

Sebastian's gaze was piercing, and the Keeper wondered what he was looking for, but after a moment, he nodded with an equally resolute fire in his eyes. "We'll get rid of them, and then everything will go back to the way it should be."

"So, how did it go?" The Keeper asked as they slipped into their seat at the Three Broomsticks.

Garreth's face immediately lit up. "Well, we started with Charms first, right before lunch. There's a door that leads to Professor Ronen's office from the roof, there's a weird cell on the landing too, but that's besides the point. So, we took our brooms up there and waited till he left to go to lunch, then Natty remained on the landing while I used Alohomora to ope-"

"You don't need to tell the whole day's story." Natty interrupted with a roll of her eyes. "It went well enough. There were some close calls, but we managed to get four essays from Macnair and three from Selwyn."

"Hopefully that'll be enough." Amit muttered, his voice muffled against the table that his face was firmly planted into. "I don't want to do this any more times than necessary. Thrice is more than enough."

"Hopefully." Natty agreed, before looking over at the Keeper and Poppy. "So, how was it on your end?"

"Our tail tried to drop a ceiling fixture on us." The Keeper nodded towards Poppy, before turning back to Natty with a frown. "As well as Sebastian and Ominis. No one was hurt but it was definitely close."

"I wonder why they're targeting Poppy and Ominis too." Amit wondered aloud, lifting his face from the table and resting it on an arm.

Natty glanced at the Keeper, before shaking her head. "It's pointless to try and figure out what's going on in the minds of jerks."

The Keeper chuckled. "True. It's difficult to win an argument with a smart person, but it's impossible to win an argument with an idiot."

“Oh, that's a pretty good line, I should like to use that in my book.” Amit's eyebrows rose in admiration.

"Well, I lose arguments all the time so I'm definitely not an idiot." Garreth grinned widely and the table fell silent.

He glanced back and forth for a moment. “What are you guys looking at me like that for?”

“Are you sure you're okay after the bullies’ attack?” Natty asked in concern as soon as the door closed behind Amit, leaving Poppy and Natty alone at their table.

“Don't worry, they pulled me out of the way, so it didn't even graze me.” Poppy reassured, before giggling in embarrassment. “It was pretty heroic too, they held me until it was over.”

“I'm glad they care about you so much.” Natty smiled in relief, it was probably a good decision to keep quiet about her guess that the bullies were targeting Poppy because she was important to the Keeper. They might distance themselves from Poppy for her own safety and that would just hurt her.

“Sooooo, how was the actual date?” Natty changed the topic, leaning forward eagerly.

Poppy blushed shyly, shifting slightly in place with a gentle smile. “It… it was pretty nice, they picked a snidget necklace for me and helped me put it on.”

“Aww, that's so sweet, the time they spent with you must mean a lot to them.” Natty giggled in delight. “And then?”

Poppy flashed a more subdued smile. “Well, they seemed pretty uncomfortable with linking arms, it was probably a bit too fast for them.”

“Ah, sorry, I guess I didn't think they were the shy kind.” Natty rubbed the side of her head sheepishly.

“It's alright, I think it wasn’t too bad because they seemed to shake it off afterwards, I also bought a nice dress that they thought looked good on me.” Poppy giggled.

“Told you they'd like seeing you nicely dressed up.” Natty grinned triumphantly.

Poppy nodded. “It was a really nice day, though I think both of us weren't very comfortable in Gladrag's, perhaps next week we can do something more relaxed, I was thinking of hanging around Honeydukes.”

“I see, maybe they'll let you feed them some sweets.” Natty winked, elated when Poppy squirmed adorably. “And now that they've seen you at your prettiest, it's a sight that's sure to stay with them.”

“You're just saying that. I'm nothing special.” Poppy looked away and Natty felt her heart tighten.

“No, I'm not.” Natty took Poppy's hand, driven by the need to convince her friend of how wonderful she was in her eyes. “You were so beautiful yesterday, no one could possibly miss it.”

Poppy's eyes were wide as Natty continued. “You're kind, sweet, gentle, strong, you're amazing and our friend is lucky to have your heart.”

Natty smiled as Poppy's eyes became damp, the girl gripping Natty's hand in return. “Do you really think so?”

“I know so.” Natty nodded confidently, she wanted her friends to be happy and she would put in every effort to make sure they were. “You'll see, next week's going to be even better.”

“She's- she's feeding them!?” Sebastian exclaimed in horror, barely noticing the cluster of girls sitting at the neighbouring table giggling at him as he crushed his napkin in a fist. “I hope her next Bertie Bott's is a bloody vomit flavour.”

“Sebastian!” Ominis scolded in a hushed voice, conscious of the fact that they were sitting at one of the tables outside Steepley and Sons, and Sebastian that was spying on their lover in full view of the public. Ominis didn't particularly care about public appearances but if someone told the Keeper what they'd seen… “Come on, let's stop watching them.”

“What!? How can you even suggest that!?” Sebastian stared at Ominis incredulously.

“Look, they're just being nice and not rocking the boat. We have to trust them.” Ominis replied firmly, rubbing his temples as he spoke, his voice tight with stress.

“Even if you say that, don't you want to know what they're doing?” Sebastian frowned sceptically.

“No, I don’t.” Ominis retorted, his tightly clenched fists trembling under the table.

Sebastian shook his head in disbelief and indignation. “How can you stand not knowing exactly what is going on!? Doesn't it bother you?”

At his incessant badgering and implications, Ominis slammed his hands on the table. “It's because it bothers me! I don't want to imagine it! If I don't know that they look like they're enjoying it, then I can tell myself that they're just doing what they have to, and I can continue trusting them like I said I would.”

Ominis took a few deep breaths to calm himself, running a hand through his hair and smoothing it back down. “If I don't know, it can't hurt me.”

Sebastian remained silent after his explosion and Ominis gritted his teeth in frustration.

With a sigh, Ominis stood from his seat. “I'm going inside. Do what you want.”

“Hang on, Poppy, let me have the first one.” The Keeper placed their hand on her arm. Gently stopping her from popping the bright blue bean, that she'd picked up from the open and exposed sample bowl, into her mouth.

“O- oh, sure.” Poppy's face was light pink, and her hand shook as she extended the bean towards their lips.

The Keeper flashed her a reassuring smile. It was nice of her to worry, but it was the Keeper who the bullies were targeting, so if anyone here should be at risk of poisoning, it was them. They knew their boys would be upset with that mentality, but for the first time, their conscience was being incredibly annoying.

Poppy wasn't like them, if anyone were to truly have the label of ‘innocent’, it would be this girl and she was only in danger because she cared about them. They couldn't repay that purity with callous disregard for her safety.

Besides, as they accepted the bean and began rolling it around in their mouth, the Keeper was likely far better at detecting poisons than she could possibly be. If it was poisoned, they would notice faster.

After rolling it with their tongue for a few seconds, they detected nothing abnormal and bit down, chewing for a moment and allowing the sweet blueberry flavour to spread through their mouth, before tentatively swallowing. They gave Poppy a small nod. “It's good.”

“T- that's great!” Poppy beamed brightly and reached into the dish for another. “Would you like another one?”

“No thanks, but feel free to have some yourself.” The Keeper shook their head, they weren't particularly into Honeydukes sweets. They knew Sebastian liked the excitement and anticipation of randomly getting an unknown flavour however, so they picked up a sealed box from the shelf to purchase on their way out.

“Mmn!” Poppy's face scrunched up and the Keeper felt a jolt of alarm.

“Are you alright?” They asked with a frown, ready to throw the girl over their shoulder and sprint for the infirmary.

“...lemon-” Poppy complained with a pinched expression. “Sour-”

The Keeper relaxed with an aborted eye roll, geez, she shouldn't scare them like that. “Let's try something else then.”

Poppy nodded and the two made their way to another sample bowl. However, as Poppy reached for the candy, through the spaces between each brightly coloured orb, the Keeper spotted a strange black ooze on the bottom of the tray.

They caught her hand again, shaking the bowl around to confirm that it wasn’t just a pattern on the base, before calling out to the shopkeeper. “Excuse me sir, is this meant to look like that?”

The shopkeeper made his way over and peered into the bowl, his expression immediately rather alarmed and embarrassed. “Oh my, how unusual, I do hope neither of you have eaten any of these?”

“Not a bite.” The Keeper reassured as he sniffed the bowl with a disgusted expression.

“Oh, thank heavens. I apologise for the mishap and thank you for bringing it to my attention, I shall fetch a new bowl right away!” The shopkeeper collected the contaminated bowl, waved his wand, summoned a new clean bowl from the counter, and opened a sealed box of candy to fill the new vessel. “There you go, I do hope you enjoy it and consider purchasing!”

The man smiled amicably and left the two to continue making their way around the shop.

“Wow, how did you even notice that?” Poppy asked, her eyes wide with admiration.

The Keeper raised an eyebrow, not entirely sure what she was asking. “The bottom was a different colour from the sides.”

“Ah, yes, I suppose that makes sense.” Poppy smiled nervously.

The atmosphere became oddly uncomfortable again and the Keeper internally sighed, why was this so different from their usual interactions? They had thought that spending time with Poppy would entail their usual hangouts at Brood and Peck, discussing magical beasts or even hanging out with Highwing. They sighed, wondering why this time was different from when they were suffering withdrawal.

If they'd known their Saturdays with her would be this awkward, they probably wouldn't have agreed to the plan.

Seeking to dispel said awkwardness, the Keeper pointed at a nearby sample bowl. “Have you tried those before?”

“Oh, I don't think so.” Poppy's eyes brightened and she drifted over to the indicated bowl to investigate it.

As Poppy busied herself trying the strange sweets, the Keeper scanned the neighbouring sample bowls for tampering, before noticing the poster featuring Fizzing Whizzbees on sale.

Huh. They didn't like admitting it, but they'd been experiencing a fair amount of stress when flying since the whole Selwyn broom incident. Perhaps they could run some tests to see if this candy might work for slowing one's fall. If it did, having some of this candy in their pockets would help with that annoying fear.

The Keeper picked up a box from the shelf to add to their purchases, cradling the two boxes in their arms and finding a spot of wall to lean against while Poppy watched some floating doxy floss.

Finding themselves incredibly bored with nothing left to do, the Keeper began entertaining themselves by imagining Sebastian holding the two bullies under the cruciatus for putting them through all of this tedium.

Thinking about that unforgivable however, the Keeper was reminded of how it had felt when the boy had cast it on them in the Scriptorium and how curious that experience had been, it'd hurt certainly, excruciatingly so, but it hadn't hurt. They'd seen the agony their enemies had suffered when under their own wand and knew that Sebastian's cast on themselves had been nowhere near as potent.

The Keeper hadn’t even collapsed or passed out like Natty had, merely made weak in the knees by the comparably measly amount of pain he'd inflicted, they almost considered the experience fondly now. After all, it wasn’t as though Sebastian couldn't cast it properly, he'd certainly put the spell to good use against the goblins.

They wondered if he'd cast it again on them if they asked.

The Keeper paused, what an odd thought, wanting to be hurt by their partner. Perhaps it had more to do with the lovely expression he'd wear when inflicting pain on his foes? Their mind helpfully conjured memories of Sebastian during their hunts, that flush of red high on his cheekbones, his pupils dilated and that wide grin.

Failing to encourage some enthusiasm from her companion over the sweets, Poppy bit her lip nervously and spoke up. “Would you like to visit Zonko's?”

The Keeper blinked, and quickly dispelled their... wandering thoughts, replying with a simple. “Sure.”

Poppy withheld a sigh as the Keeper made their way to the counter to make their purchases. Her companion had been rather distant today, perhaps they just weren't one for the more popular date activities. She thought back to their adventures hunting down poachers and rescuing beasts, that had been the most engaged and excited she'd ever seen them.

Perhaps she should try something less conventional next weekend…

The Keeper frowned in concern when, once again, Sebastian and Ominis returned to the common room with sour expressions, this time with a tense atmosphere hanging between them as well.

“What's wrong?” The Keeper asked as Sebastian flopped onto the couch opposite them and Ominis sat down beside the Keeper.

“Nothing.” Sebastian muttered, dropping his head backwards against the backrest.

The Keeper eyed him flatly, raising an eyebrow. “Yeah, sure, I believe you.”

“Don't mind him. He's just being ridiculous.” Ominis’ eyes were narrow and his lips thin.

Sebastian shot him a glare and the Keeper asked again. “About what?”

“Like he said, I'm just being ridiculous.” Sebastian reiterated with another glare at Ominis, who stiffened at his tone.

With a sigh, the Keeper shook their head. What was wrong with everyone lately? It felt like no one was actually talking to them and it was getting incredibly annoying. They ran a hand through their hair tiredly, not much they could do when they didn't even know where to start figuring out what was going on and they were so bloody exhausted after another long awkward day with Poppy.

Between the constant trap dodging and studying during the weekdays for their year-end exams, the Keeper was more tired than they'd been since the whole pain energy withdrawal debacle.

“Guys, you're supposed to be enjoying your time together. It's just another weekend before I can spend Saturdays with the two of you again.” The Keeper tried, they knew both boys were stubborn, and they didn't much like it when the two were at odds.

“You sure you want to?” Sebastian asked in a strange tone, tilting his head down to look at them.

“Sebastian.” Ominis’ tone was warning, and the Keeper felt mildly irritated at him, clearly Ominis was one of the reasons Sebastian wasn't talking. Was he just disapproving of Sebastian's attitude? Or was Ominis trying to keep him quiet? But what reason could Ominis possibly have to silence Sebastian? It was certainly concerning.

The Keeper really wanted to just ask what Ominis was thinking, but they knew that if they asked that, Ominis would get defensive and upset. Yet if they pretended nothing was wrong, Sebastian would get more upset, and they didn't like that either. Oh, the struggles of juggling two partners- but that's what they signed up for and they needed to do something to help regardless of how tired they were.

“I do. Of course, I do, what on earth would make you think otherwise?” The Keeper frowned, taking out the box of Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans and throwing it at Sebastian. “Here, I got this to share with you, so stop sulking.”

He jumped as the box hit him on the chin and tumbled into his lap, where he fumbled to catch it before it bounced all the way to the floor.

“Haven't you already had your fill of sweets today?” Sebastian grumbled as he glared down at the box.

“Not really, I had Poppy give me one when sampling from the bowl but didn't eat any more after that.” The Keeper shook their head, since when was Sebastian health conscious? They'd expected that question from Ominis.

“Huh? Why only one?” Sebastian looked confused.

“To test for poison, of course. I managed to catch one spiked bowl later, so it was probably a wise decision.” The Keeper shrugged, and while Sebastian looked surprised, Ominis frowned.

“You'd endanger yourself for Sweeting?” His pale eyes narrowed.

The Keeper felt a wave of relief, finally someone acting as expected, they placed a hand over Ominis’, squeezing it slightly as they reassured him. “Don't worry, I was fairly confident that it wasn’t poisoned, and Poppy is only in danger on my account, it wouldn't be very nice of me to throw her under the carriage.”

Ominis looked oddly conflicted as he replied. “I suppose that is rather honourable of you…”

The Keeper frowned, they'd thought he'd be proud of them, wondering why he still seemed upset, when Sebastian stood and moved to sit on the other side of the Keeper, holding up a single bean between his thumb and forefinger.

“Say ah.” Sebastian's tone was more akin to an order than a request and the Keeper stifled their amusement.

“Ah…” They opened their mouth obediently and allowed him to place the bean on their tongue, feeling the pad of his finger drag along the wet muscle as he withdrew his hand.

“One last Saturday.” Sebastian mumbled, his eyes lingering on their lips as they chewed the cinnamon bean, anxiety and frustration roiling in his stomach. I guess I can endure till then.

“Aren't you going to follow them?” Ominis muttered, burying his face deeper in the scarf the Keeper had gifted to him, despite the weather being nowhere near cool enough for one. He didn't care about the growing dampness against his collar, it was well worth the heat and discomfort, to have it wrapped around him.

A comforting reminder of the Keeper's affection, as he forced himself not to think about them frolicking through the forest, hand in hand with Sweeting. His imagination spurred on by the glimpse his wand sight had given him, of her taking the Keeper by the hand, laughing, and leading them out of Hogsmeade. Fiercely fighting off the urge to cry as he waited for Sebastian to leave his side too.

Sebastian remained silent for a few moments, observing his lover, before taking Ominis’ hand in his under their table. It was almost more upsetting, that Ominis was also clearly distressed, and Sebastian had no idea how to solve any of this.

He'd been so caught up with airing his own frustrations the last two Saturdays, that he'd made things more painful for his equally upset boyfriend. It had taken a few days of stewing through the mire of anger, frustration and anxiety fogging up his brain, before Sebastian eventually decided that, while he still had no idea what to actually do, he could at least try to comfort Ominis.

Sebastian had considered many times, simply asking the Keeper if they liked Poppy, but he was so afraid of the answer, afraid that words wouldn't be enough, that every time they expressed confusion, he found himself choking on the words. Fear clogging his throat, quickly followed by anger and frustration, directed more at himself than them, for being so… aarrrrrgh-

Sebastian closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The three of them had gone through so much together, seen each other at their best and at their worst, their most vulnerable and exposed, but what if that wasn't enough?

He'd believed that Anne would always understand him, always care about him, always be on his side and by his side. They were twins, they were once one person, practically able to guess each other's thoughts and execute plans in perfect synchronisation without any prior communication.

Every other relationship had no such guarantee, friends came and went, interests caught his fancy and then lost it, not even his parents were an exception.

Even Ominis, the most beautiful and elegant boy that Sebastian's eleven-year-old country bumpkin self had ever seen. Despite how close they'd become over the years and how Anne would tease him mercilessly whenever she caught him staring, a part of Sebastian never even bothered to hope that their relationship could ever become as strong as his twin bond.

He'd never have risked his relationship with Ominis by showing the Undercroft to the Keeper, or pushed Ominis so hard about the Scriptorium for Anne, if he'd known that Ominis would prove to be so deeply bound to him. Though in retrospect, he wouldn't have found that out without straining their friendship in the first place.

He'd been so sure that his bond with Anne was stronger than anything. Born together, live together, die together. She was a part of him, wasn't she?

He'd been proven wrong.

She'd chosen their inexplicably, perpetually angry, and hurtful uncle instead. In fact, her loyalty to him was so much stronger than it was to Sebastian, that she remained faithful to Solomon even after the man was dead.

If he'd been so horribly wrong then, how could Sebastian be sure he wasn't wrong again now?

Sebastian squeezed Ominis’ hand tightly, unable to do any more despite how deeply he wanted to, he couldn’t even find the words to comfort himself right now, let alone someone else.

A moment later, Sebastian felt Ominis squeeze back, relief plain in his pale eyes. Knowing that his solidarity brought Ominis some measure of comfort, eased some of the tightness in Sebastian's chest. Now, all they could do was wait and see.

And that was probably the most painful thing on earth.

Notes:

I wanted to draw a parallel at the end of this chapter with how during the game, Sebastian left Ominis to worry on his own while chasing a cure for Anne (aka a cure for his fears), this time, Sebastian suppresses his own desire to assuage his own fears to stay with Ominis. In a more selfless act of love.

It also bugged me that Sebastian told us about the Undercroft even though he didn't have any reason to think we could help him with Anne till we visited her. So, my theory is that he's always ready to lose anyone besides Anne since she's the only constant in his life.

Growing up is a struggle to find methods of coping. Coping with the fear of loss that comes with the encroaching understanding of how easy it is to lose everything you hold dear.

Sebastian already has one sword of Damocles hanging over his head, from Anne's imminent agonising death, it would be even more difficult for him to cope with an additional sword in the form of the constant fear of losing your partner.

Even more painful when it's two partners, twice the vulnerability and fear ha ha ha…

But that's the reality of having two partners, you need twice the amount of constant communication and effort. As someone who was in a three-way polyamorous relationship for three years, I can attest to that xD (my still remaining partner and I's third partner decided that our relationship was taking too much effort and he left us on reasonably amicable terms)

Despite wanting to write realistically, I love my happy endings and these kids are lucky to have each other, they just need to get some hard knocks to learn how to cope and support each other more sustainably. And it's a fictional story so of course I'm gonna make it dramatic, exciting and *hint hint* sexy x)

I also believe that, while a lot of people feel shame for it, there's nothing wrong with hitting a deficiency meltdown, it just means you've discovered a particular need that has been going unsustained and now you can work together to find a way to fulfil it. If both/all parties involved have the determination to work hard to make things work, it'll work out. That's how I see it at least xD

Holy shit these are some long notes-

Also props to anyone who catches the quote from Ruffnut xP

[cadybear420]

Cadybear's Reviews- Rules of Engagement

Welcome to the first official Cadybear's Reviews post! We'll be starting with Rules of Engagement, which I have ranked on the "Bronze Tier" at 5 stars out of a possible 10.

Frankly, ROE was a mixed bag for me.

To start off, I know everyone and their Nana has complained about it before, but I found it incredibly pointless that our MC could only have male love interest options. There was literally nothing about her storyline that would make zero sense with a female LI. “But Audrey and Mira–” yes but they’re love interests for established side characters that you play as, rather than love interests for the character that is meant to be “your character”. Luckily this is the only time PB has ever done a male-LIs-for-MC-only story, but still. 

Not that having a female love interest option would have changed how bland MC’s romance is. Even though the love interests we do get were nice characters, the romances between them and the MC are incredibly empty. I guess that’s to be expected when your nana basically forces you to marry by the end of the summer in order for you to get your inheritance, but yeah. 

Most of the other romances aren’t much better. Audrey is incredibly unfair to Bookish Twin in the first two books, crying about how she “doesn’t care about her” just because she chose to focus on pursuing her career instead of Nana’s stupid list (can we please retire this trope already holy fuck). Though their moments in Book 3 and onwards were thankfully more pleasant.

Brother and Elena’s romance was weird with some ups and downs, but it became a hot mess in the Jeff Willoughby arc. I don’t even know what was going on in there. And it was even worse in Newlyweds; while Elena has every right to be upset about Brother not telling her about his ex-wife from over a year ago, she acts ridiculously petty and immature towards him over it and that made the story very unpleasant. 

About the only romances that weren’t clusterfucks were Party Twin’s romances (and even then, her sole female love interest option is very sidelined) and Cousin’s romance with Chaz. I mean, they were just as shallow as the MC’s romance, but they at least felt less rushed? Considering they didn’t get married, after all.

And what I think bugs me most of all, something that I think does not get criticized nearly enough as it should: The fact that this entire story revolves around Nana having fucking quid pro quos on the shares of the inheritance money. Like… why is she putting weird conditional challenges on inheritance? Who the fuck does that?

"Oh my dear daughter MC has to find love and get married by the end of the summer in order to get her inheritance owo!" Bitch what if she ends up being aro or demi??? Or is just not ready to marry yet- especially since she spent the first two books, y’know, escaping an unfaithful and manipulative partner???? She's the last person who would be ready to marry right away. 

"My son please marry your girlfriend of two years" but then the next thing you know they break up because they realized they’re a lesbian and a gay man. What are you gonna do then, Nana? Huh?? Huh??? Does Brother not get his inheritance if he’s gay??? 

"Party Twin must hold a job for the summer" oh yeah because that's just sooooo easy isn't it? I mean it’s not like unemployment is a major issue in today’s society or anything.

"Bookish Twin has to do this list of trying new things" and why, why, why, why, WHY is getting a tattoo on this list? As someone who is kinda very squeamish about tattoo pen needles, I would tell Nana to fuck right off, and then get a temporary tattoo instead because fuck you. And if Dinesh bitches about it being a temporary tattoo and not a real one, I WILL drop kick his ass.

And this isn’t even getting into all the other fucking challenges that Nana adds onto the first ones. Like, Nana, I get you're trying to teach the kids about family and loyalty and adventure, but putting tasks onto your grandkids’ inheritance is just such a dick move. 

Fuck the Nana honestly, she’s the real villain of this story. Yeah she’s even worse than the fucking Aunt. YEAH I SAID IT. In fact how don’t I know the Aunt wouldn’t even be horrible in the first place had she not been raised by a mother who thinks it’s okay to put these kinds of quid pro quos on inheritance. Turned her into a greedy, competitive, abusive bitch raising her under that mindset. Fuck you, Nana. (Okay, okay, I’m getting a bit extreme here). 

Anyways. Instead, I think we should have gotten a story about the siblings and cousin wanting to get this inheritance, but having difficulty meeting the stupid quid pro quos, and then eventually admitting to themselves that the stupid quid pro quos are indeed stupid, and then finding ways to cheat the quid pro quos, and doing so successfully. 

For example:

MC tries to fall in love with someone, but realizes she’s rushing too quickly after getting cheated on, then agrees to have a fake marriage with the person (who is knowing of the fake marriage), only to divorce them right after they get the money. And then we get to decide if she wants to start building an actual romance with them or not. 

Brother and Elena realize they’re a lesbian and a gay man and don’t want to marry, so they have a mutually-agreed-upon lavender wedding and then divorce the moment the Brother gets his inheritance. 

I’m not sure about the rest of them, Bookish Twin could probably be the one who is most furious with Nana since she’s forced to get a tattoo, and so she gets a temporary tattoo because fuck the Nana. Party Twin, on the other hand, could be the one who minds it the least as she does seem to have motivation to hold a job for the summer, but she starts to come around when she realizes how difficult that is. IDK how she’s supposed to cheat hers tho.

But for all its problems and all the criticism it gets… I didn’t hate it. Even with the whole premise of the plot being fundamentally fucked up right from the start. It was only Choices’s 4th series, so it’s clear they were still working out a lot of things. And as shitty as Nana was for putting quid pro quos on the inheritance,I did also enjoy some of the family ties themes, as well as the Cousin’s redemption arc. It was pretty lightheated for the most part and it felt much easier to take it as a silly soap opera style story (compared to something like TNA or TBB) because it didn’t feel like it was forcing me to take it seriously.

Overall, the series as a whole to me was just lighthearted dumb fun with a little touch of emotional family themes. It has… a lot of glaring problems and it could have been much better, but ultimately, it’s not something to be taken too seriously.

[go-go-devil]

4 & 8?

4. Is there a film that you love except for the ending? What would you change about the ending?

Granted I've only seen this film once so far, but while I really enjoyed The 'Burbs I thought the ending was a bit too weak compared to the rest of the story. Spoilers for a somewhat obscure 1980's black comedy incoming!

So basically the entire film is about this painfully average American suburbanites being suspicious about their weird new neighbors, the Klopeks, thinking that they might be murderers and going to great (& illegal!) lengths to gather evidence for this (often coming up short in the process). But then at the VERY end of the film the main character ends up being proven right about them being murders when he himself is almost murdered right after finally declaring that he was wrong about his suspicions of them!

It's not a horrible ending per say, I just thought it felt rushed and goes completely against the main comedy of the film; that being the paranoia that so often breeds in average white Americans whenever something slightly different from their boring way of life enters their neighborhoods. I think it would've been WAY funnier if the Klopeks weren't murders after all and at the end the mc accidentally gets them arrested for something completely innocuous in comparison, like them owning weed, but he's still treated like a hero for what he did for a bit before everyone goes right back to their usual business. Agree to disagree 'Burbs fans, but that's just how I feel.

8. Has a film ever made you extremely angry?

If Yorgos Lanthimos's The Lobster has a million haters I'm one of them. If Yorgos Lanthimos's The Lobster has ten haters I'm one of them. If Yorgos Lanthimos's The Lobster has one hater then that's me. If Yorgos Lanthimos's The Lobster has zero haters then I am no longer alive. If the world is for Yorgos Lanthimos's The Lobster then I am against the world.

This is my personal worst film I've ever seen. Even worse than bottomless pit budget garbage like Poor White Trash 2 because at least that film doesn't trick you into thinking it's a good movie. This movie is a "satire" with no point. It pretends to mock the strictness of our amatonormative society with a system forcing people to find a romantic partner in 45 days or else face punishment, only to then introduce a group of deviants who don't want romance or sex and spend the rest of the film demonizing them. "Oh, these 'loners' are actually JUST as bad, if not WORSE than the dystopian government forcing people to pair up with strangers because these people, for no fucking reason, decide to maim those who dare form a relationship and/or have sex!!1!"

I have actually tears in my eyes as I type this I'm so angry right now. This entire film is just another reminder that most people don't want people like me to exist in society, particularly due to the fact that so many critics and arthouse snobs think it's a good if not great flick. This pretentious motherfucker of a director couldn't even fathom the idea that maybe, just fucking maybe, a satire is supposed to punch up at the society it's criticizing, not lay down like a limp dog with the useless hypothesis that "Humans are INHERENTLY cruel to each other and there's NOTHING we can do about it."

So yeah, this movie makes me real fucking angry! I hope it and its rotten ideology gets buried and forgotten in the deepest sands of time!

[rimeiii]

People were posting resemblances between the different representations of the WHB demons in other media a while back and let me introduce to you the fucker (affectionate) that is GBF Belial. And I implore you to search up Parade's Lust and listen to the song in its entirety. It's a great song and encapsulates Belial perfectly (though I still greatly prefer Paradise Lost over it).

Dude's literally one of my faves in GBF despite him being an antagonist, it's just his raid battle is annoying. And this may have been a snippet from a convo back when his raid first dropped but our sentiments regarding said raid battle remains the same.

Also am I the only one who finds it so unbelievably weird that WHB's Beelzebub has had no overt references to his title as the Lord of the Flies (unless I'm missing something)? One of SMT's renditions of Bubs is a giant fly, and even GBF's has a skill called 'Black Flies' in his raid...

As an aside I love how the Belial trailer in GBVS has a clip of him getting his ass handed to him by Bubs. It really reflects their current relationship; they were forced allies back in What Makes the Sky Blue 2: Paradise Lost, with Belial still being wholly loyal to Lucilius, whose goals (return the world to nothing) are at ends with Beelzebub's goals (take over the entire world).

Also no mention of the entire Fallen race in SMT? They're all demons from the Ars Goetia, and the way some of these demons are so different is quite intriguing I'm ngl. Off the top of my head:

Naberius, or Nebiros, is a necromancer who has one of the most bullshit mechanics in Devil Survivor 2, where he'll continuously revive himself in the place of any living demon teams. In the SMT multiverse, he, with Belial, is responsible for turning Alice into a Fiend by infusing her with demonic magic, causing the human to be driven insane before dying and finally becoming the Fiend she is known for today. All because she wanted to have friends.

Belial is also in SMT! And is so fucking annoying to deal with in Devil Survivor, because he has an NPC stuck in a ring of fire that you have to heal continuously, because she takes damage every turn and her dying is a lose condition. He is a participant of the War of Bel, an ongoing war between the Bel demons to prove themselves worthy to Babel, making them the King of Bel and by extension the king of the demons. He fights the MC as he is the reincarnation of Abel and also part of the War after slaying Beldr. Another fun fact about Belial and Nebiros: in at least one SMT title, the fusion recipe for Alice is Nebiros and Belial, referencing their role in turning Alice into the Fiend we know today.

Eligos, or Eligor, is often an early to midgame demon who specializes in physical skills. He often takes the form of an armored humanoid riding a horse.

Dantalian, or Dantalion, is portrayed as a scholar with many heads, holding a large book. Oftentimes a magic-oriented demon.

Astaroth carried me in midgame SMT Devil Survivor as an early Tyrant demon aha. MP recovery is always nice lmao. He's depicted as a naked, blonde man riding a giant snake.

Morax, in Strange Journey, is the boss of Sector Antlia, the first dungeon of the game. He has a skill called Gehenna, which is a partywide chance to inflict Fear. He's easy as long as you can use ice magic - I fused Apsaras and had other Law demons like Archangel or Hamsa for co-op attacks. Depicted as a humanoid with a bull for a head, he believes humanity's true nature is one of eternal conflict and conquest, reflected in how the latter half of Antlia is a war-torn battlefield.

For the demon kings in SMT, given their associations with the Seven Deadly Sins, they do have their own depictions. The two that I'm most familiar with (and has the largest roles across multiple entries) are Satan and Beelzebub - the latter of which I briefly touched upon earlier. So let's talk Satan first!

Satan, in the SMT multiverse, is on the side of Law, the side associated with angels. As a result, he and Lucifer (the usual Chaos route representative) absolutely detest each other. This is particularly obvious in SMT 2, where he is YHVH's right-hand man and a foe in the Chaos and Neutral routes. Interesting to note is that he betrays YHVH upon realizing His machinations wiped out all life on Earth, which happens on the Law path.

Yeah, the SMT multiverse is kinda fucked up like that. There's a reason why I'm a Neutral route truther, apart from certain endings (like the new Strange Journey Redux endings for all routes).

As for Beelzebub, one of his most relevant roles is as a participant of the War of Bel in Devil Survivor, in which Belial is also a participant. He has a special attack that inflicts the Egg ailment - a ticking time bomb that goes off after one turn, inflicting heavy Almighty damage to the victim and spawning a team of maggot flies right beside the team with the victim. Bring your ailment clears!

As for the angels, apart from the standard SMT fare of Archangels where they're loyal to YHVH's will (although at least once Gabriel isn't as blindly loyal to YHVH as the rest, like in SMT 2), GBF has the Four Primarchs!

Gabriel is the Primarch of water. Kind-hearted and motherly, yet deceptively smart - she destroyed her own wings in What Makes the Sky Blue so her powers cannot be used by the event's antagonist, Sandalphon, to destroy the world.

Michael is the Primarch of fire. A tactician, fierce in battle, and a commander, her close association with combat meant that she had the most trouble adjusting to a peaceful life after the events of What Makes the Sky Blue 3: 000. She tried her hand in acting and is decent enough at it actually!

Raphael is the Primarch of wind. The most silent and thoughtful of the four Primarchs, he is known to be able to heal others using his winds. Also the easiest Primarch to be bullied imo, because Fire has a lot of busted DPS characters in exchange for very limited sustain options (I run Yukata Silva, Wilnas, and Michael - Wilnas has hit 10 mil CA damage with Silva's CA debuff).

Uriel, who was presumably killed by Gabriel in WHB, is the Primarch of earth. Which is ironic in GBF terms, because earth has elemental advantage over water. Anyways, he loves sparring and is the most boisterous among all the Primarchs!

As for other demon references in GBF:

Morax appears once again, this time as Magisa's familiar. Most of her playable forms incorporate her fighting with Morax, usually as a source of additional damage (counted as skill damage for the most part). Also is a dark composition of Summer Magisa, Fediel, and Lich is overkill, because that's my main dark comp...

Mammon is a Primal Beast. Same with Avaritia. They're both event antagonists - Mammon being the main antagonist of Detective Barawa and the Jewel Resort Incident (also depicted as a female in this game!) and Avaritia being the main antagonist of The Inner Light. Both stories are about greed, and The Inner Light in particular talks about how greed can destroy relationships. It's one of the events that made me cry, apart from the What Makes the Sky Blue trilogy, Together in Song, Lonesome Dragoness, Marionette Stars, and you., and Home Sweet Moon.

Leviathan is the Primal Beast who serves as the Auguste Archipelago's guardian. Mellow and gentle, but turned violent due to the Erste Empire's machinations, and the main crew managed to calm him down. Thankfully it never got past the point of going berserk, but the raid battle Leviathan Malice is a decent enough interpretation of what could've happened to him should the Erste Empire continue. Also memed to hell and back because of his sprite, as if he's laughing at your bad drops.

Satan is also a Primal Beast who, ironically, isn't the Satan-adjacent figure (that role goes to Avatar, who looks similar but is a different being entirely). Notably, Satan is part of Lyria's April Fools skin, with him riding on the Demonbream that she's stuck in (it makes sense I swear). Video here - Lyria is the blue-haired girl in white (WHOA-WHOA-YEAH!!!!).

((my wind otk is pitiful - i'm a water and dark main))

Anyways I'll add on to this if I find more, but I just wanna say this sort of shit tickles my GBF and SMT brain a lot. So...

[hirokiyuu]

ok i did a huge ship meme for fun. if you read it u have to like this post. also i have more thoughts under the cut

some of these are copy pasted from twt so if u saw it there u can read them again i guess. theres some new ones also. perish by my hand

at a glance

yuujin calls leona "leona-san" until theyre both old n gray. they probably try "leona" a few times but it feels weird to them. leona's fine w/this

love languages are what they prefer to receive rather than what they naturally give wwww if it were that way around id switch it LOL. high natural compatability

"problematic a bit" in the sense of. well. if youve played twst. youve met leona. u see how he acts around mc at first. u kno.

dynamic stuff

i dont think leona would've had a Relationship relationship before. fwb? fucking around w/ppl? sure. but a Relationship? sounds like too much work

yuujin meanwhile had World's Shittiest Not Boyfriend before isekai'ing. mostly fwb but yuujin did have feelings and also he was the only person yuujin was ever like. emotionally close to beyond their sister. so

? on caretaker for leona bc its definitely not Traditional Caretaking but he does put in the work to help yuuin in ways they do really need. still.

? for yuujin mostly bc if they had to do more caretaking like they did for their sibs theyd die but also they do help leona how they cna. u kno how it is

re:attachment, theyre both independent but yuujin is more likely to pull Away if shit happens while leona is more likely to get territorial (lol) this is probably the only thing that ever causes any real fights

idk if i'd call it "wants to Corrupt yuujin" but leona definitely does sometimes wish they were less of a good person. not always. but sometimes.

nsfw stuff

being used is situational for yuujin bc when theyre into it theyre Really Into It but theres also a chance itll trigger them really badly. u kno how it is

my pillow princess leona agenda strikes again

i htink leona is in theory fairly ambivalent abt topping/bottoming but in practice if he tops he's expected to do more work. so.

theyre both shameless during sex but occasionally yuujin will remember they have Feelings for this guy and this guy has Feelings for them and they'll get flustered. they can nad will talk abt sticking their tongue up this man's ass w/o batting an eye but the moment anything abt Liking each other comes up? they get a little shy LMAO

the sex is pretty good for both of htem but again. leona is lazy. yuujin is hte one doing all the work.

particulars

re:things to change, if leona were a more classically Good Boyfriend (ie more demonstrative, trying harder, more obvious w/his feelings etc) yuujin would absolutely run. so. leona's personality is a good (?) thing

engagement

(looks at the checklist) (points at leona) Go King Give Us Nothing!

the one abt killing the other is v like. dependent on timeline i think. leona might be more willing at first but over time i dont think hed be able to.

yuujin is technically the pursuer in their rship at first but leona definitely catches the Big feelings before yuujin does. lmao. eat shit loser

tbh their communication style from the outside probably looks pretty callous. a lot of talking Around things and giving each other shit to hide the fact they both Hate talking straightforwardly in some respects. the kind of couple that never ever once say 'i love you' to the other even tho they're both aware they do (eventually)

they touch a lot, in terms of pda they're not obnoxious but usually leona will have a hand on yuujin's back or yuujin will be on his arm or w/e. leona generally initiates if theyre out in public but yuujin doesnt mind they just dont start it usually wwwwww

re:expectations, i actually dont think leona expects too much from Yuujin Specifically, just in general. but also. in some ways i dont think he believes he'll get it. if that makes sense

OK THAT WAS REALLY REALLY LONG if u read this whole thing thank u tell me if u like them. i am rotating them constantly

[vacantgodling]

It Blursday!! 🖤💜

WE’RE TAKING THE SQUADDIES TO EISENGARD!

You don’t have to fill all the roles, and they don’t all have to be from the same WIP, but who’s:

the Ring-bearer, entrusted with carrying the One Ring (bonus: funniest instance they use it to nope right out of reality)

the “Sam”, armed with a frying pan and a wizard of potatoes

Sean Bean, who dies in every movie — falls victim to their own hubris

totally crushing on Arwen and has a really cool sword

AND MY AXE

AND MY GLOCK BOW

Merry and Pippin the “package deal”, very concerned about missing second breakfast

the dude with a sick staff and a concerning amount of explosives, may or may not be an actual wizard

— @outpost51

THRJRJRJR THIS IS FUNNY AS FUCK I LOVE IT also this works so good for tcol bc one of its inspos is very obviously lotr LMAO

The Ring Bearer: it was a toss up for this one between deux and karenza but i’m gonna go karenza for this; she is definitely not someone that is easily corruptible and she’s more resilient than people think because she’s a bit ditzy. she’s amazing in a pinch and can hold her own and her amazing medical knowledge would definitely help on the long journey. the funniest reason she would use the ring is ABSOLUTELY to spy on kiba and eryn because they love to skirt around each other and she’s their number one shipper. i suppose in this weird universe karenza has been living in rivendell with them for some reason? lmao?? funniest reason for escape purposes is because she doesn’t want to do chores 💀

“I can’t carry the ring but I can carry you!”: since it was a toss up for ring bearer i think deux would be best in this spot. she’s strong as fuck literally the physical strongest of the main 5 mcs cuz of her heavy armor and big ass shield she can absolutely carry karenza lmao. also; she’s so much like sam. hearty, strong, good natured, the real hero of the story 🌚 and absolutely has everyone around hers best interest at heart. she’d crush it.

Hubris is strong so down u fall: best in this spot would be deux’s brother dion. this would be a really great juxtaposition if deux was the ring bearer which is another reason i REALLY considered it however i think karenza just works better. therefore, dion is definitely someone who has good intentions (for the most part canon not really but in this lotr bastardization yes!!) but he bites off more than he could chew.

Sword Dad: it’s kiba. for SOOOOOO MANY REASONS. firstly the fact that both of them (aragorn & kiba) are in line for the throne but don’t want it, they’re both powerful and resourceful but are humble and are more concerned with protecting others and being there for them. the only difference i’d say is that kiba is more outwardly jubilant instead of broody; and instead of being with arwen-character and cutting it off bc “she should be with her people” it’s more i’ve been pining over eryn for years and i can’t fucking get a grip (that’s canon also LMAO). he also wields a sword. another good candidate for this would be keevan — however i think kiba being in line for the throne definitely wins out in how close he fits the role.

MY AXE: piper. she wields an axe, she’s competitive, she will kick everyone’s ass she’ll kick her own ass.

MY BOW: forte. clearly. best fucking archer in canon lmao. also forte as an elf *bites lip*

Package Deal: now technically these two are NOTHING LIKE merry and pippin and they aren’t traditional best friends, they’re dating but moira and jagoda are my go to because they’re like… the only characters deadass attached at the hip do not separate. if i were to go closer to merry & pippin’s dynamic, then cameron and miona could be a good fit—the slightly more responsible cameron who wants people to take her seriously would be merry and more lackidaisy miona would be pippin. so either works? it depends on how much of a comedy we’re trying to make this LMAO. so overall cameron and miona might be better but they’re not as attached at the hip as moira and jagoda sO yAKnoW

questionable guardian wizard: if miona and cameron are merry and pippin the jihi would absolutely have to be gandalf. mysterious powerful guy that knows a lot and causes problems on purpose is definitely HIM.

thank you so much for this ask this was amazingly funny to think about LMAO

[cream-and-tea]

🌙 ⭐️ for the asks please!

asks! asks! asks! (game i took these from is right here)

🌙 Crescent moon - Do any of your character have to hide a part of themselves? Why?

oh absolutely because i love writing repressed little freaks and i also think that even the most open and honest characters almost always have some aspect of themselves they want to conceal even if they’re not aware of it. that kind of thing makes for really interesting conflict. it is hard to choose just one of my characters to ramble about for this since there’s so many of them, but i think i’m going to go with fiver because he’s such an extreme case. that guy isn’t just hiding A part of himself he is hiding EVERY part of himself knowingly and willingly and lying constantly to cover it up! in another world he’d be putting a fake name on his nametag at work and making up stories to impress people at clubs into buying him drinks but we’re here and he knows world-altering secrets instead! also he’s a late game main pov (i’m talking a one-off in the first books epilogue and then NOTHING until book 3) so we mostly see him through other characters eyes throughout the series, who all operate on varying levels of is-something-going-on-here-or-am-i-just-weird-about-this-guy?? (it’s both both is good) which is where you end up getting stuff like this:

And she likes Fiver. She does. Really. Truly. Probably because he’s impossible not to like. But as the days trip past it’s equally impossible to ignore the fact that talking to him feels an awful lot like talking to a one-way mirror. Seeing yourself reflected back ever-so-slightly tilted, knowing that there has to be something there just beyond the glass, behind the smile, but being unable to see past the light of your own shiny eyes in the cherry red tint of those infamous glasses.

as for WHY he’s like this… well you see- [COMICALLY LARGE TRUCK DRIVES PAST HONKING ITS HORN AND OBSCURING ME FROM VIEW] so yeah ☺️

⭐️ Star - Do you have a favourite character? If so, why are they your favourite?

i really wish this one was harder to answer because i love all of them so much i really really do, but it’s agnes-maria white (one of the mcs from my main project) alll the way for me. i think it’s because her voice just comes so? naturally?? to me? like i could be in her head for HOURS and not be worn down like i can get writing other characters. she just has a very strong presence to me and the arc i have planned for her is falling into place very very well even though i’m technically just at the beginning of it. she’s my best friend. she’s my specialist girl in the whole wide world. she’s 17. she’s never had a friend her age who wasn’t literally actually dead. she’s got mommy issues. she’s more worried about about being a closeted lesbian than about the cult that’s trying to kill her. shes an extrovert that doesn’t know how to talk to people. she’s filled with incredible kindness. she’s weird about god. she’s got the biggest brown eyes you’ve ever seen. she’s an “i can fix him” girl. she basically got into magic school by wandering through the death woods looking like three day old roadkill. she’s filled with incredible rage. she immediately imprints on anyone who is passingly nice to her. she was born to wear novelty earrings and listen to lo-fi beats to study and relax to but she’s in the fucking torture labyrinth instead. she’s even catholic.

[ss3890]

NEPHILIM LOST: Adrift On The Currents Of Time

***I have earlier seasons of OM! I should be writing on, but I felt inspired to write the opening of Nightbringer from my MC's point of view. Also the starting lessons for NB were awkward and weird as hell with the new app pushing, so that was, uh...interesting to work around.

It helps that NB is fresh and I'm terribly behind writing for the OG app, but..eh. I'll get there eventually.

Chapter 1: CASTAWAY

Cayrie puttered away in her room at Serenity Manor, getting herself ready for tomorrow’s trip. The room was bright and clean, music filled the space, and she happily hummed to herself as she worked. 

After becoming a full-fledged member of Diavolo’s council, she found herself traveling between worlds a handful of times per week. She was an efficient liaison between the human and demon worlds, fetching items for both and popping in frequently to see to her duties as a council member. 

Traveling between worlds had become second nature to her at this point, and she had established homes both here and there in the Devildom. In light of that, the bag she packed was very light, filled with little to nothing save a special treat for herself and the boys and some paperwork she’d been working on. 

There was no need to shuttle objects between places when she had all she needed wherever she went. 

Her DDD rang, causing her to smile when she saw who was calling.

“Yes?” she crooned. “What can I do for you, Lucifer?”

“I’m aware that you’re scheduled to come here early tomorrow morning.” he began, “But I was wondering if you would like to come this evening instead and have dinner with me? If you haven’t yet tired of Ristorante Six, I’d love to make a reservation. I’ll even bring Mammon along, as I’m feeling rather generous today.”

“Oooh, that you are.” she grinned. “And I’m never tired of Risto-six. What time are you thinking?”

“6 o’clock, if that works for you.”

“That works perfectly for me.”

“Great, I’ll see you then. Safe travels, Cae.”

“Thank you, Lu. See you soon.” she replied, looking forward to the evening. 

⥈

Packed and ready to go, Cayrie stood in front of the cage to bid her feathered friend farewell. 

“I’ll be back soon, Miri.” she crooned, making sure the little starling had enough food and water to tide her over. “Be a good bird, okay?”

Miri churred in response, watching her secure her bag to her shoulder. With one last goodbye to her friend, Cayrie began the incantation that would sweep her away to the Devildom.

“Make a path where there is none…and take me where I wish to go!”

Her power answered her eagerly, the path in her mind’s eye clear as day. In a swirl of light and magic, she was gone from her bedroom in the blink of an eye.

⥈

Seconds into her journey between realms, something went very, very wrong.

She had done this a hundred times already. Nothing should have gone wrong at all, and yet the portal’s corridor turned black and stretched impossibly long, suspending her in a tunnel of cloying darkness she couldn’t find a way out of.

Very quickly, her movement stopped altogether and she was suspended in the void-space alone…or so she thought. The hair raising on the back of her neck told that she did, in fact, have company she couldn’t see. 

“Hello, Cayrie” an inky voice called, vibrating all round her. It weedled its way into her mind, making her feel small, and the human knew then that she had been intercepted by a powerful, unknown entity.

“...Hello?” she answered meekly. “...Who are you?”

She could almost feel it shrug. “Perhaps you know me, perhaps you don’t. Regardless…know that I am very well acquainted with you.”

“Okay, well that’s a creepy fucking way to not answer that question.” she snapped back, trying to make out any sense of form in the darkness. “How do you know me?”

“Because you introduced yourself. Very recently, in fact.” the being chuckled, amused with her. “Though, I suppose it might have been quite some time ago for you. It’s clear that I have you worried. Well, there’s no need to be, really - because nothing remains hidden from me. I see everything. And by everything I don’t mean just the present, but the past and future as well.”

“...What?” she asked, her face scrunched up in confusion.  “...Th...That doesn’t reassure me at all.” 

How many times was it now that formless entities had held and spoken to her? She honestly didn’t know at this point.

“Regardless, it’s nearly time for you to depart, so I can’t keep you here much longer.”  the being answered, shifting around her.

“Oh, well, that’s great because I was already on my way somewhere!” she snapped, unable to move herself no matter how she tried to swim in the darkness. “So I would very much appreciate it if we could wrap up whatever this is and get a move on. I have people waiting on me.”

“I’m going to take you someplace better than where you were going.” the entity stated, disregarding her distress. “A place where you’re happy, a place that will bring you more joy than any other.” 

“And who are you to know that?!” Cayrie demanded, a feeling of panic turning her gut. “I’m happy enough as it is, so let me go on my way!”

“Oh, I will. However, your way is now to a world where you’ll find those you yearn for, and who yearn for you as well. Ah, but you will need some protection. I’ll gift you a disguise to make things easier for you when you arrive. Daemonos Forma.”

At the entity’s words, tendrils or darkness reached out to touch her, enveloping her in its magic. The words it had spoken etched themselves into her mind as her form tingled and changed into something foreign to her. She could feel extra limbs attached where no limbs had been before, although she was unable to turn and see them properly. 

“...No! What are you doing to me?!” she cried, overwhelmed by the presence that assaulted her. “Don’t you dare take me away from here! I don’t agree to this! LET ME GO!!”

“Now, now. Don’t worry. We’ll meet again in time.” it crooned, unswayed by her thrashing. “Though I must admit that Time for me is like a heavy, dark mud. It sits in a big container as it silently and slowly swirls around like a vortex. Will you be entering your own past? Or the past, present, or even future of someone you don’t know? 

“But never fear.”  the voice continued. “No matter where you go, they will always be waiting for you. Safe travels, Little Nephilim.” 

And with that, the power of the entity swept her away, tearing her out of the corridor she had built for herself and into one of its own murky making that made her entire being scream out in confusion and fear. 

⥈

Cayrie appeared in the Devildom high above the ground, over the roofs that made up the capital city. She caught a glimpse of the buildings, shining beautifully in the moonlight, before gravity took her and she began to fall.

Something caught her and sent her into a dizzying spiral as she tried to right herself, something heavy on her back that kept getting pushed and pulled in the whipping wind of her descent. She caught a glimpse of them flailing out behind her. 

Wings. 

Mottled black and white wings that were impossible to get under control. Gods knew she had always wanted a pair, but right now they were nothing more than a nuisance threatening to kill her. 

“…Oh god, oh god, oh god…!” she thought, unable to stop or slow herself. “…I’m going to fucking die here…! I’m going to fucking die!”

The ceiling and scaffold of an unfinished building came up to meet her. She crashed through them, tumbling down through the levels of supports until she met a hard stone floor, landing on it with a painful finality that turned her world dark once more.

⥈

“...ey, …..ay?”

Someone was gently shaking her. With a groan, Cayrie opened her eyes to see a blurry figure kneeling over her. It took a mighty effort to focus her vision through the splitting pain of her head and the ringing in her ears.

When she did, she saw a demonic Diavolo looking down at her with concern.

“Thank goodness…you’re awake.” he sighed, relief palpable. “You’ve been out cold for some time. We were really beginning to worry.”

“Hey, you…” Mammon ordered, standing over her, also in his demonic form. “Now that you’re awake, y’know what that means, doncha? You OWE me. I mean, I was the one who noticed ya lyin’ over here and all, so you definitely owe me some sorta reward, right?”

Cayrie just stared at him, completely bewildered. Not only was he being incredibly rude, but his voice was loud and made the pain in her head even worse.

“So, now that we’re on the same page…” he continued, looking very proud of himself, “Gimme all your money! The Great Mammon demands tribute!”

“...Pl…Please stop shouting.” she stammered, wincing as she touched a bloody spot on the back of her head. Her vision kept blurring out, it was hard to breathe, and everything hurt. 

“Eh?! You talkin’ back to me?” he exclaimed loudly, bristling at her. “You got a lotta nerve doin’ that. Who the hell are ya, anyway?!”

“Someone who’s obviously injured and bewildered, Mammon. Yelling at this lost little lamb isn't going to do any good.” Asmo chided, looking down at her with pity.

“Ugh, a lost demon? …Lame.” Belphie scoffed, swishing his tail in annoyance. 

“Don’t be like that, Belphie. Lost or not, something about her smells good…” Beel noted as he sniffed the air like a bear, wings humming with excitement as he caught the scent of something in her bag. “She’s got some kind of food on her. Good food.”

“Eh, whatever. Kinda fragile for a demon, ain’t ya?” Mammon assessed, looking down at her. “Must be one of them lesser ones. Did someone beat your ass or what?”

“…Um…not directly? I, uh…fell. From the sky.” Cayrie answered, pointing up toward the damaged ceiling.

“You mean to say that you, a demon who has wings, fell from the sky?” Mammon noted, judging her immensely. “You not know how to use those things or what?”

“…Apparently not.” she muttered, groaning as she lifted herself to her feet, stiff and unsteady. If Diavolo hadn’t caught her arm and supported her, she would have gone down again. 

Body trauma aside, her new appendages made her feel unsteady and was that…a tail she felt moving behind her?

It was.

“Aaaah! L-L-L-Lucifer! It’s moving!!” Leviathan cried, hiding behind the eldest brother for protection. He stared out from behind his shoulder, eyes wide with horror at the sight of her.

“Leviathan, stop pushing me.” Lucifer chided, irritable as he extricated the younger brother from his wings. “Pull yourself together.”

Levi wasn't the only one looking at her oddly. All of the brothers that stood around her were in their true forms, and all of them looked at her as if they had no idea who she was.

She took a moment to glance around the room and realized that she was in the Council Room on RAD grounds. Though unfinished, there was no mistaking it. It was a room she’d come to know very well. 

The entity’s word came back to her in a flash. “Will you be entering your own past? Or the past, present, or even future of someone you don’t know?”

Cayrie was undoubtedly in the past. In which timeline, she had no idea. What she did know, is that she couldn't go on in the state she was in.

“May the vestiges of pain that linger within me be eliminated…” Cayrie breathed, using a healing spell on herself. 

It didn’t come easy and took more out of her than it should have, as if the ocean of mana she was used to commanding had dried up to nothing more than a puddle in comparison.

She laid eyes on her left arm and saw…nothing. The skin was white and void of the black marks she’d come to expect there. She kept staring at it, mind numb as she processed what that meant for her. 

And that was when she felt the deep emptiness in her belly, even through the wave of nausea that almost choked her right then and there.

“Diavolo, this demon is your responsibility, are they not?” Lucifer asked, annoyed with the distraction that was She. “How are you going to handle this?”

Diavolo looked down to the demon on his arm who still seemed to be a bit out of it in spite of her recovery magic.

“Hmm. What is your name?” he asked gently.

“…It’s uh, Cayrie.” she answered softly, swallowing as she came back to reality.

“Well, Cayrie. As you’ve gathered, we found you lying unconscious and injured here on the floor. This facility — which is still under construction and was close to being finished, I might add — is under the direct authority of the Demon King. So tell me something. What led to you crashing through its ceiling? And now that I think of it…are even FROM here? Because I find it shocking that there’s a demon I haven't met in the Devildom.”

Cayrie took a moment to consider her words. Until she knew the situation better and who was behind it and why, it was probably unwise to come out and tell them the truth. However, she knew full well that Diavolo would know if she tried to lie.

“…I’m a traveler.” she explained. “I move around a lot, often outside of the capital. I was using a spell to travel here from a distant land, and it went wrong. I was intercepted by something. I don't know what - but it sent me a bit…off course.”

“Oh? How unfortunate. There are many dangerous things in the far reaches of the Devildom.” Diavolo uttered, offering his sympathy. “And why were you trying to come to the capital from such a distance?”

“For work.” she answered plainly.

“So you’re in need, are you?” the prince assessed, putting a hand to his chin as he considered her. “Well, as you may already know, I am Prince Diavolo, next in line to rule the Devildom. And the demon you see over there is Lucifer, the Avatar of Pride.”

The Avatar of Pride regarded her dismissively, saying nothing.

It had been a long time since she’d seen him look at her like that, as if she were an annoying gnat unworthy of his consideration.

“Next is Lucifer’s younger brother, The Avatar of Greed, Mammon.” The prince noted, indicating the brother in question. “And next to him is —“ 

“Listen up, ya nobody.” Mammon interjected, looking proud of himself. “It’s the Great Mammon to you, got it?!”

“Next to him is Leviathan, the Avatar of Envy, as well as Asmodeus, the Avatar of Lust.” Dia continued, unperturbed.

Levi lost his composure the second she met his eye. “Ahhh! L-L-L-Lucifeeer!” he wailed again. “It’s looking right at uuus!!”

Asmo smiled happily in response. “Hehe, you’re just so smitten by my beauty that you can’t help staring, right? Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, my little lost lamb.” he crooned sweetly, letting her look at him as long as she wanted.

“Now, that brings us to the two demons you see over there…” Diavolo nodded, bringing her attention to Beel and Belphie. 

“Belzfuph…after grunty.” Beel muttered, his mouth full of the chocolates she had stowed away in her bag. He didn't care that they were all broken or crushed, or that they hadn’t been his to eat to begin with.

“No one can understand you, Beel.” Belphegor chided with a sigh. “How about you swallow your food before you talk?”

“Mn…gulp…sorry.” the great demon apologized. “Beelzebub, Avatar of Gluttony. And this is my twin brother.”

“Belphegor.” the younger announced reluctantly. “…Avatar of Sloth.”

Cayrie looked between the brothers, noting that all of them were present except for Satan.

“Lucifer actually has one more brother.” Diavolo admitted after a moment, “but…”

A bellow of rage resounded through the halls, feral and full of wrath. 

Everyone stopped talking and looked between themselves - worried save for Lucifer, who simply looked annoyed.

“Ugh…” he muttered, glaring daggers at the door behind them.

“Tch, great.” Belphie scoffed. “He’s here…”

“RAAAAHHHHH!!” 

With a mighty roar, Satan entered the room, blowing the wooden doors off their hinges and littering the floor with debris.

“Man, he’s in one of his moods again…” Mammon lamented, wanting nothing to do with it. “You’d think he’d get tired of bein’ ticked off all the time.”

Leviathan shrugged in response. “Well, he was wrapped in chains and stuffed inside a closet because he couldn’t control his fits of rage. So yeah, it’s not really a surprise he’s super irritated.”

“...He was what now?” Cayrie breathed, regarding the wrathful brother with wide-eyes. She’d seen him angry before, but the anger coming from him now was a brand so powerful and raw it hit her like a wall.

“Asmo, you did make sure those chains were tight, didn’t you?” Lucifer asked, squaring up with the newcomer. 

Asmo looked a bit sheepish. “Well, I wrapped him up like you said, but I’ve got such soft, beautiful, tender hands. They aren’t suited for such a rough job. Honestly, you should’ve known that…”

If Lucifer had been irritable before, he was even more so now.

“The demon who’s just arrived is Satan, Avatar of Wrath.” Diavolo explained quietly, leaning into her a bit. “Remember when I said that Lucifer had one more brother? He’s who I was talking about. There’s seven of them in all, and they’ve only just arrived here in the…”

“You rotten little…” Satan growled, tail lashing the air behind him as he approached the group. “You’ve got some nerve locking me up like that! You’re DEAD, you hear me?! Every last one of you! I’m going to tear you limb from limb!”

“Hahaha, just listen to him…such violent language.” Diavolo chuckled at her side, not at all concerned. “They don’t call him the Avatar of Wrath for nothing. As his title suggests, the only emotion he knows is anger.”

“Lord Diavolo, this is no time to be standin’ around smilin’!” Mammon warned as Satan picked up a table and heaved it at the group.

Belphie flinched as he realized it was heading straight for him, but Beel was there to protect him, letting the table splinter around him as it shattered against his guard.

“You okay, Belphie?” the great demon asked, turning to look at his brother.

“Yeah…thanks, Beel.” The younger breathed, immensely relieved.

“How about you?” Beelzebub asked, turning to find her sheltered from the debris in Diavolo’s wing.

“I’m okay.” she answered, narrowly taking another blow to the head. 

“Good. That was a close one. We don't need you getting more injured than you already have.” the prince noted, releasing her from his protective membrane. 

“It doesn’t take much to send Satan flying off the handle.” Beel warned, taking a defensive stance. “Then he starts destroying stuff, just like that. Be very careful.”

Seeing that his table failed to connect as intended, Satan reeled with anger once again.

“RAAAAGH! I’ve had it!” he bellowed. “My brothers…this entire world…EVERYTHING!”

“Yikes! Time to hide! C’mon, over here!” Asmo urged as Satan charged them.

“Ugh, why am I stuck with HIM for a brother?!” Levi lamented, following close behind. “He’s terrifying!”

“Well that’s just how it is, right?” Asmo huffed, booking it for safety. “I mean, the Demon King said that we have to consider ourselves brothers from now on, and what that old demon says, goes.”

“That’s right.” Lucifer grumbled, dodging a vicious slash from the blonde. “Unfortunately, we’re new here and in no position to refuse a direct order from the Demon King himself.”

Satan, frustrated that his attack fell short, now turned his attention on her. His murderous intent was a visceral thing as he lunged, seeking to rend her apart.

The Satan before her now was a far cry from the one she’d come to know. This one here was nothing but feral rage, lashing out at everyone and everything around him…but she knew he was so much more than that.

A warm power bloomed in her chest as Cayrie watched him come at her. Her pact marks may have been gone, but she knew that if she wasn’t able to do anything, that she was going to die.

She reacted on reflex, throwing up her arm and bellowing a crippling “Satan, STAY!”

Power rumbled through each of the brothers like shockwave, rocking them as Satan found himself thrown face-first into the ground so hard it knocked him out cold.

Cayrie stood, wide-eyed and breathing heavily as she realized what she’d just done.

There was still a connection between them, even though it was so faint she could barely grasp it before it slipped from her hands once again.

 “…Well, how about that?” Diavolo appraised beside her, looking mighty interested in what she’d just done.

“Ugh…what the heck was that?!” Asmodeus whined, shaking off the aftershock of Cayrie’s power.

“I know…it was like my body just wanted to throw itself to the floor when I heard her say stay.” Beel noted, bewildered as he stared at her.

“Hey you!” Mammon demanded, marching up to grab her by the collar of her shirt. “What the hell kind of messed up magic was that?! And who do you think you are usin’ it on us?! Why the hell was Lord Diavolo the only one who didn’t seem to feel it, huh?!”

“Let go of me or I’ll do it again!” Cayrie warned, pulling out of his grasp. He eyed her suspiciously, daring her to try.

Lucifer was right behind him, regarding her as an enemy.

“You.” he growled, puffing himself up. “What did you just do?”

She didn’t have a chance to answer him before Diavolo laughed with merriment.

“Well! I’ve certainly never met a demon like you before!” he exclaimed, throwing a protective arm over her shoulder. “You’re an absolute riot!”

“A riot?!” Mammon sputtered angrily. “Yo, there was nothin’ funny about that!”

“Hmmm…I just had an idea. It must have been fate that brought us together like this.” the young prince mused, looking rather pleased with himself. “Cayrie, with your traveling, I’m not sure how much you know about recent developments, but…Lucifer and his brothers were expelled from the Celestial Realm and cast down to the Devildom following the recent Great Celestial War. They’re still new here, and were originally angels, you see. High-ranking ones at that.

“In light of this, there have been all sorts of rumors flying around about them in the Devildom.” he continued, capturing the attention of everyone present. “To say they’re the talk of the town would be an understatement. Things are rather chaotic right now…which is why I’d like to ask a favor of you.”

“…A favor?” she asked quietly, not sure where he was going with this.

Diavolo nodded. “Yes. Until things settle down here in the Devildom and the seven of them get used to it here, I’d like you to serve as their attendant.”

“Wha…? Our attendant?!” Mammon cried, aghast at the thought.

“Absolutely not.” Lucifer stated firmly, shutting it down immediately.

“Yeah, I’d rather not be stuck with someone who has freakish powers looking after us.” Belphie grumbled.

“I have to admit, I’m still trying to wrap my mind around what she just did.” Asmo noted, looking at her with suspicion. “Cayrie here is no lamb at all!”

“More like a wolf in sheep’s clothing.” Beel agreed. 

“Diavolo, we don’t need an attendant.” Lucifer insisted. “Just because we used to be angels doesn't mean you have to treat us like children. We can learn how to get by here on our own.”

Diavolo dropped his arm and moved forward to speak with Lucifer face-to-face. 

“I certainly don’t mean it as an insult.” he replied calmly. “But you must understand that I am the future Demon King…and my father isn't around right now, which means I have final say in all Devildom matters until such time that he returns.”

Lucifer fell sullen and silent, clearly unhappy yet knowing he didn't have a say in this.

“I appreciate your understanding, Lucifer.” Diavolo chimed amicably. “And you too, Cayrie - I take it you understand as well? You’re in want of work and you’ve found it. This is a job you’re not to take lightly, and you’ll be expected to do it well.”

Cayrie met his eye and nodded before bowing her head. 

“…Yes, my lord.” she answered, playing the role she needed to in order to survive in this world. “I understand completely.”

⥈

Cayrie gathered up her bag while Beelzebub collected Satan, throwing him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. She took a moment to fish around for her DDD only to find it broken, the screen shattered and unusable. 

She held it in her hand and stared at it for a long moment, her heart breaking right along with it.

“Are you coming?” Beel asked, looking over his shoulder at her. The rest of the group were already making their way out of the council room, leaving her to trail behind.

“…Yeah.” she uttered, sniffing as she slung her belongings over her shoulder. Letting them see her cry would only bring more unpleasant questions, so she preferred to avoid that situation altogether.

“How’re you hanging in there, Beel? Okay?” Belphie asked as she fell in line behind the twins. 

“Yeah, it's just Satan.” he shrugged. “I can usually carry a demon or two without breaking a sweat but…I’m pretty hungry though.”

Typical Beel. His immense strength seemed to be directly powered by how much food he ate, and if he was lacking? He became as weak as could be.

“…What are you going to do if he wakes up on your shoulder?” she asked, imagining that going the way of someone trying to wrangle a pissed off cat - all yowls and claws and bloody scratches.

“Eh, he was thrown to the ground with a lot of force…” Levi uttered, casting a glance at them. “I don’t think we have to worry about him waking up anytime soon.”

“Let’s not forget, our attendant here is the one who did the throwin’.” Mammon muttered, giving her a wide berth.

Cayrie lowered her eyes to the ground. It had been many years since he’d been this bitter toward her, and she found it quite difficult to endure on top of everything else.

Satan stirred a bit and muttered in his sleep, drawing the attention of his brothers.

“Hehe, he looks so adorable when he’s asleep.” Asmo grinned, doting on the unconscious brother. “He’s been out for a while now, yeah?”

“Well, the alternative is having him rampaging around town destroying everything in sight.” Lucifer sighed, casting him a glance. “If it were up to me, he’d stay like that for a good hundred years or so.”

Diavolo stopped and found her, as if something important just came to mind. “…Ah, Cayrie! I almost forgot. It’s important that I can get in touch with you when I need to. Do you happen to have a tablet on you?” 

The prince pulled out his own device to show her. It was a rudimentary D.D.D. that seemed to be more powered on magic and glyphs than it was electricity.

“…I did have something like that.” she admitted, rummaging around for the broken DDD to show him. “But unfortunately, it didn’t survive the fall.” 

“Oh…! Where did you get this?” he asked excitedly, turning it around in his hands. “The make and materials are quite different from what you can find around here…it’s almost like a different device entirely.”

“Ah, well…it doesn’t matter now that it’s broken.” she uttered, reaching out for the thing. “I’m going to need one like you have.”

“I’ll have one sent to where you’ll be staying, with all of the relevant contact information you’ll need as well.” the prince promised. “It will be very important that everyone will be able to get a hold of you.”

“So…will I be staying at the House of Lamentation with everyone else?” she asked hopefully, wanting the answer to be yes.

Instead, Diavolo’s eyes widened in surprise as he regarded her with a strange look on his face. 

“...Come again?” he uttered quietly. “You know about the House of Lamentation? Strange…it has only just been rebuilt down here and the name of it isn’t even public knowledge yet. 

“But no, you won’t be living there.” the prince continued, to Cayrie’s disappointment. “That house was built for the seven brothers so that they may have a place of their own. Their arrival sent the Devildom in a state of disarray, you see. Things have actually been quite volatile and have taken some time to settle down. For their own safety, they’ve been cooped up in the castle since they arrived, and today is the first time they’ve been allowed out of it.”

“The House of Lamentation…” Levi mused, having overheard the conversation. “That’s the place that used to be up in the human world, right? The one with a really dark history?”

“Yeah, I heard it’s supposed to be cursed or something…” Belphegor added. 

“Eh, whenever somethin’ bad happens, humans always blame it on a curse.” Mammon scoffed, brushing it off.  

“But I heard that a family with seven children used to live there, until the oldest one stabbed the rest of them to death, right?” Beel asked, looking for clarification. “His parents, all his siblings…everyone.”

Asmo was aghast at the thought. “What? But that means the curse is still fresh! I bet it’s haunted…we’ll probably see ghosts…eek!”

“Pff, quit bein’ dumb.” Mammon chided. “Demons don’t give a flyin’ flip about curses and ghosts or whatever. Everyone’s afraid of US, not the other way around.”

Cayrie raised her brow at that. Mammon unafraid of spooky things? That was a version of him she’d never seen before.

“Lucifer, I’m hungry.” Beel whined, like a kid on a road trip.

“Lucifer, Belphie looks like he’s about to fall asleep.” Levi noted, watching the slothful brother nod off as he walked.

The eldest sighed deeply to the amusement of Diavolo. “Alright, let’s get a move on.” he urged, leading them down the road.

Chapter 2: COCYTUS HALL

“Wow, now THAT looks like a haunted house!” Asmo marveled as the House of Lamentation came into view.

“Whatever, just move it.” Lucifer grumbled. “You’re holding everyone else up.” 

Diavolo and Cayrie stood together on the path, watching the brothers filter into their new home in a flurry of excitable chatter. Not one of them looked back to say anything.

“You’ve been very quiet since I said that you wouldn't be staying with them.” the prince noted. 

“I just figured that since I’m to be their attendant, it would make sense for me to stay close to them.” she replied sullenly. “That and I don't know where else to go.”

“I understand you’ve been traveling, but are you saying you don’t have any friends or family here to go home to?” he asked, a bit surprised. 

Cayrie cast a glance toward the House. “…No, I don't have any of those.”

Diavolo regarded her thoughtfully.

“Okay.” he said after a moment. “I won’t pry any further. Either way, the House of Lamentation belongs to the brothers. It’s the one place in the Devildom they can relax and be a family. I’ll find another place to accommodate you, since you appear to be in—“

“Cayrie!” a familiar voice called out to her, followed by the sound of jogging steps. She turned around to see Solomon running up to her, a look of relief on his face. “I was wondering where you’d disappeared to. I’ve been worried, you know!”

“…Solomon?” she breathed, bewildered as he came to a stop and put his hands on her arms, looking her new form over. “Solomon…do you know me?!”

“Of course.” he whispered back. “Though with the way you look I was a bit unsure at first. There’s no mistaking that aura of yours, however.”

Diavolo cleared his throat, drawing their attention to him. “Solomon, you got here fast…and it seems that you know Cayrie here?”

“Oh yes, very well actually.” he replied with a grin. “You see, it just so happens that she’s my apprentice.”

Diavolo was openly shocked at that revelation. “Your apprentice? …Cayrie? Really?”

Solomon nodded. “Yup, really. Isn’t that right, Cae?”

“It’s true.” she admitted. “I’m his apprentice.”

“Well, now this I didn’t expect…” the prince marveled. “I have to say, I wouldn’t have thought that…I mean, I knew you were one to do outlandish things, but even so…I never expected you to take a demon as an apprentice.”

Solomon laughed at that. “Cayrie here is my top student, actually. But I try to keep that on the down-low. Otherwise, everyone else would feel inadequate.”

Diavolo’s eyes lit up. “…Ah, I see! That would explain the whole ‘stay’ thing earlier.” 

“Oh?” Solomon asked, brow raised. “Did something happen earlier that I’m not aware of?”

“Well, Cayrie can tell you all about that later.” he dismissed. “I hate to be rude, but I should really be getting back to the castle. Solomon, since Cayrie here is your apprentice, can I assume that it’s okay for the two of you to share accommodations?”

The sorcerer smiled happily. “Oh yes. I’d appreciate it if we could stay at my usual spot.”

“Understood.” Dia nodded. “Well, I’ll be off then. Take care, Cayrie - and thank you for agreeing to my request earlier. I’m sure you’ll do an excellent job as an attendant.”

“Yes, of course.” she answered, bowing her head again. “Have a good evening, Lord Diavolo.”

Cayrie and Solomon stood together and watched him leave, making sure he was well out of earshot before speaking again.

“…Okay then.” he said after a moment, turning to face her. “I’m guessing you have a lot of questions?”

Cayrie gaped at him. “You’re damn straight I have a lot of questions!” she exclaimed, nigh on the verge of tears. “Why the fuck am I in the past and how the fuck do I go home?! You came here to get me, right? So come on, let’s go.” 

“Wait a minute, slow down and take a breath.” Solomon urged, trying to calm her down. “Before we can do any of that I’m going to need you to tell me what happened, starting from the point it all went awry. 

“But before all of that,” he continued, cutting her off before she could speak. “Let’s get off the road and go to Cocytus hall. We’ll be more comfortable and have some privacy. Also, you look like you could use some TLC.”

“…Cocytus hall?” Cayrie asked, having never heard of the place.

⥈

“Diavolo was nice enough to set up a place for me to stay while I’m here in the Devildom.” Solomon explained as they approached a building. “This is it, Cocytus Hall. While I do appreciate Diavolo providing a place for me here, it’s a little too extravagant a space for me alone. I’m glad you’re going to be staying here with me.”

“…I see.” Cayrie noted, allowing herself to be led inside. While that was a nice sentiment, she had no intention of spending any length of time here whatsoever.

The place was indeed massive and empty of anyone else in the halls. Their footsteps echoed hollowly throughout the lonely space.

Solomon led her to a sitting room and made her wait while he fetched water and made tea. It took Cayrie a significant effort to figure out how to manage her wings and tail so she could sit comfortably.

Once he returned, he asked her to recount the events that led her here while he cleaned the blood from her face and hair.

She explained how her portal went wrong, hijacked by a mysterious entity who changed her form and refused to tell them her name.

“A spell, huh?” Solomon asked, considering the way she looked. “And they said it was a gift in order for to protect yourself?”

“Pfft, yeah.” she scoffed. “They then promptly shat me out in the middle of the sky, so I’m not sure how concerned with my safety they actually are.”

Solomon chuckled at that. “Well, portals of this nature are tricky, especially if not everyone is on board with the trip. Do you remember the words they used to change your form?”

She considered that for a moment. “Uh…I believe it was Daemonos Forma.” 

The moment she finished saying the words, her extra appendages disappeared in a show of magical light, leaving her sitting in a body she was used to.

“Wow…” she marveled, checking herself over. “That’s some magic. Those wings felt incredibly real.”

Solomon nodded in agreement. “Indeed. That magic seems to allow you to change your look at will. Certainly handy if you’re trying to pass as a demon.” he noted, refreshing her tea cup. “So tell me, what else happened before I found you?”

⥈

Once she had finished her tale, Solomon settled into his seat with a sigh. It was already quite late at this point, but there was far more talking to be done.

“Okay then…I owe you an explanation. Or two.” he began. “Obviously, this Devildom is different from the one we used to live in. It’s still the Devildom, yes…but long, long before we came to study here as exchange students.

“In the ‘present’ - and by that I mean the time period you and I are originally from…in the present you just…disappeared. So I analyzed the traces of magic left behind, which indicated that you’d jumped through spacetime to a past version of the Devildom. Then I had Barbatos lend me his power so I could come here after you.”

He took a long drink from his cup before continuing. “In addition to being in the past, it seems we’re at a fairly momentous point in history. This is right after the Great Celestial War, and Lucifer and his brothers have just been cast down after their defeat.”

“Yeah, I’ve gathered that.” she dismissed with a wave of her hand. “What I’m interested in is how we get back to where we’re supposed to be.”

“…Right. That’s the issue.” Solomon uttered, face falling. “I have the ability to return to the present whenever I want. But sending you back is another story. That will require some of your own magic power, and it sounds like the pacts you forged with the demons of the present don’t function properly here in the past. Even your markings are gone…and as a result, the power of your magic seems to be much weaker here as well. Long story short…you can’t go back to the present. Not in the state you’re in.”

The pregnant silence between them could have been cut with a knife. Cayrie stared at him for a long moment, the gravity of her situation making it hard for her to breathe.

“No.” she uttered, voice shaky. “No, don’t you tell me that you can’t get me home, Solomon. Don’t you tell me that I’m stuck here with no way out! I can’t stay here, Sol! Please tell me you’re joking and we can leave, okay? Let’s just go…please.” 

Solomon came to her and braced his hands on her arms, kneeling down to meet her eye on equal level.

“Cayrie! Cayrie, listen to me.” he urged. “Do you really think I would leave you here without any options? Earlier, Diavolo mentioned that you were able to use a pact command and succeed, right? That means your pacts with the brothers haven’t been severed completely. If you were able to reforge your pacts with the seven of them here in the past, then you might regain your lost power.

“I’m sure it must of hurt when you realized they didn't know you.” he continued gently, “But don’t worry. You’re going to make it back to the present and be reunited with the versions of them you know and love. Your objective is to grow closer to Lucifer and his brothers in order to reforge pacts with them, and I intend to do everything I can to help you accomplish that.”

“…You make that sound like an easy thing to do.” Cayrie uttered numbly, eyes wet with unspilled tears.

“Well, no.” he admitted sadly, “And you’ll have to live here in the meantime, but…you won’t be alone, Cae. I’ll be right here with you.”

“…Thank you.” she replied softly, looking incredibly fragile. “If it’s alright with you, I’d like to go to my room now.”

Her teacher furrowed his brow in concern. “Sure, I’ll show you to it…but are you sure you’ll be okay on your own?”

“Yes.” she insisted, rising from her seat. “I’ll be fine.”

⥈

Her room at Cocytus hall was plenty spacious, but silent and devoid of anything she’d ever loved. No trinkets or personal comforts, no plants or Miri churring in greeting…

Oh god…Miri. The realization that she would be unable to care for her turned her stomach into knots. She prayed that someone would have the presence of mind to go get her from Serenity Manor and do it in her stead.

She placed her smashed up bag on the bed and began to sort through the few belongings she had. Beel had long since had his way with any food items she brought, the thought of which bringing to light the fact she was absolutely starving in spite of feeling nauseous as hell.

She had been on her way to have a dinner that never happened.

There weren't any items of clothing or toiletries, since she had some at both the House and Manor didn't need to pack them when she traveled between realms. Now, however, she was very much in want of those things.

She pulled out a crumpled folder of papers, no longer relevant to anything, and a dented glasses case. Mercifully, her magic lenses remained unbroken inside. A small mercy, that.

Again she found her smashed up DDD and held it in her hands, willing it to work. 

It didn’t. There wouldn’t be any old chats, or photos, or saved music she could seek out to comfort her in her isolation.

She could only imagine what her demons were going through right now, half out of their minds at her disappearance.

Now she would be forced to get close to other versions of them in order to get home…and have to abandon them in turn.

And Cayrie knew full well that you didn't get pacts with all seven brothers by treating them like tools or a means to an end. No…in order to pact with them as a whole, they had to love you - and they didn't love you unless you made an effort to love and understand them in return.

Her breathing deepened as an overwhelming sense of hatred for the one who had done this to her bloomed in her chest. She crushed the damaged DDD in her hand, gritting her teeth as her anguish overtook her.

“RRAAAAHHHHHHH!!!” she screamed, hurling the device into the wall as hard as she could. It shattered into pieces on impact, falling to the floor.

The folder of papers were scattered to the floor in a sweep of her arms. Hollow decorations placed to fill the spaces on surfaces were shattered against the floor and walls, covering the place with shards of debris. Paintings were hauled off the wall and hurled across the room, frames splintering to pieces on impact as she cursed and roared and raged against her helplessness.

And when there was nothing left to break, she unleashed another howl of anguish and crumpled to the floor, body shuddering with sobs as deep sadness overwhelmed her.

She wept until there was nothing left for her to feel and was left laying there amid the rubble, broken along with the rest of it.

⥈

Solomon sat outside of her door, listening to it all. He knew better than to interfere…so he just sat there in silence with his back against the wood. He stayed that way for a good long while, until not a sound or a sob could be heard on the other side of the door.

⥈