#I was going to go more into Nicaise and everyone else's reaction but this ended up being more about Lucifer and Alastor

[blue-rose-soul]

So we all know Alastor's gonna be at second death's door before that wound gets fixed. Even with the footage of his fight with Adam, he'd sidestep any acknowledgement of it.

What's the fallout like in the Main Devil's Bastard AUs?

In the Devil's Bastard AU, Alastor manages to hide his wound up until the moment the Vees make their move and launch an assault against Charlie and her people. Alastor steps in to give his sister investment a chance to escape and in the ensuing combat his wound is reopened. The battle is vicious, resulting in widespread destruction and a massive number of bystander casualties. At first Alastor does manage to hold his own against Vox in spite of the wound gushing blood.

But then the other Vees step in. I'm willing to bet that Vox is the powerhouse of the group with his hypnotism and eletrokinesis, but being Overlords themselves, Valentino and Velvette have to be quite powerful as well. Alastor does manage to hold them at bay for a while, even as badly wounded as he is, but he winds up on the back foot surrounded by three powerful Overlords, the leader of whom is gleefully bragging about how he's going to break Alastor over and over again until Alastor's begging Vox to take his soul just to stop the pain.

Fortunately by this point Charlie's caught her second wind and rejoins the battle. She easily dispatches Valentino and Velvette thanks to her pure strength and the element of surprise. Vox avoids her assault by teleporting away though and no matter Alastor's taunts, he's quite powerful on his own. Maybe not as powerful as Alastor or Charlie at full strength, but both of them are wounded and exhausted and Vox is still in fighting shape. Still, two against one with Charlie's strength and Alastor's skill combined, the battle is far more even than Vox would like it. So he makes a final desperate move for Alastor, planning to grab him and drag him back to Vee Tower through the electrical currents, even if it means leaving the other Vees behind.

That's when Lucifer appears, called by Charlie before she jumped back into battle. He plows Vox into the concrete so hard that the crater Charlie smacked Adam into looks puny by comparison. Vox is just lucky Lucifer is far more concerned about his wounded and exhausted children. Lucifer leaves the Vees twitching on the ground like insects on a windshield as he lifts up Alastor - who's now lost so much blood he's struggling to keep himself upright - and opens a portal back to the hotel.

The next few weeks are filled with much smothering and hovering. For Charlie and Alastor both, but it's especially intense directed towards Alastor, whom everyone in the hotel now knows has been hiding a very large angel-inflicted wound for well over a month. Even when he wakes after passing out for three days, he's confined to further bed rest against his will and really, the only thing keeping him there is Nicaise's, 'I am both angry AND disappointed,' glare.

This would likely mark the first time since The Reveal that Alastor and Lucifer actually talk to one another, and that's mainly because Alastor is a captive audience. Granted, it's less a conversation than an argument, with Alastor reiterating for what must be the thousandth time that he's capable of looking after himself and Lucifer trying to drive home that, as much as Alastor may try to act otherwise, he isn't invincible (without making it sound like a slight. It only sort of gets through).

The argument gradually shifts to Lucifer trying, again, to verbally reaffirm their familial connection and Alastor, again, shooting it down.

L: We're family! That should mean something! A: Why should it? I am the exact same person now as I was when you first stepped foot through the old hotel's doors. I am the same mass murderer. I am the same cannibal. I am the same sinner you so thoroughly despise. The only thing that's changed is that you are aware of this flimsy blood relation that hasn't affected either of us for the past century, so why should it now? L: It just does! What do I need to do to prove it? I would have taken responsibility for you if I'd known you existed back then, and I want to now. Okay? I want to be your dad! A: No, you don't. You just don't want to feel like you've failed as a parent twice over.

Lucifer spends the rest of the evening down at the bar bending Husk's ear.

This is also the point where Charlie decides maybe staying uninvolved isn't the best move. She asks Angel Dust for advice - not wanting to repeat earlier mistakes - but he doesn't have much insight to offer since this situation is very different from the one between him and Valentino. But he does reassure her that this situation is her business, considering it's her family involved.

[chromemuffin]

Captive Prince Liveblog (Chapters 8 & 9)

Halfway through the book and most of my reactions are half-whispered wtf’s, but it’s all good. 

Chapter 8

Damen would probably look more than a little ridiculous if he was sitting half in Laurent’s lap, like, apparently Laurent isn’t tiny or extremely thin or anything, but the way it’s written, it seems like Damen is a fairly big guy. So he’d end up looking like one of those massive dogs that somehow think they still fit in your lap like when they were puppies. idk I think about these dog comparisons a lot

Nicaise is such a little shit omg. I can’t tell if he’s actually afraid of Damen? He keeps being nasty to him, could be a defense mechanism thing, but he even goes as far as stabbing him to get a reaction so is the nervousness from something else that Damen is interpreting as fear of him?

I also try not to think too hard on the fact that he’s what, 13-14.

He had apparently - incredibly - divested himself of malice and washed his mouth out with soap.

Damen’s narration is too funny. Even funnier that he’s totally serious.

Haha oh these characters. Everyone is a little shit. “I think I’m out of stabbing range”

like a puppy. I see I’m not too off with all these dog comparisons. But, docile and adoring. w-who would believe you.

lol at Damen and the pet from Ver-Tan bonding over ‘my people could kill your people’ and manly men vs pretty boys

Alright, I’m confused. What’s the deal with Vere’s pets? They seem more like high class prostitutes...since they apparently form contracts and it says that Ancel can choose to go with the guy he’s been with or try for another.

Yup the regent is a bastard. Who the hell talks about his own nephew in terms of ‘plundering treasure’.

“...perhaps Torveld admired reptiles.” oh my fucking god this book. Reptiles.

Torveld. Dude. He’s so serious about this courting thing. it’s like. like. Heian era Japan, when you could only speak to the person you were interested in from behind a screen, and servants had to pass along letters. (i remember nothing about western customs anymore to reach acceptable comparisons wtf has it really been that long since I read non-eastern fiction) 

“Torveld’s servant is better supplied than you are.” you two are such children.

Aww poor Erasmus again. But at least Torveld isn’t a complete ass, even if he is much much older.

Oh, Nicaise. It’s funny and sad how much he acts like, well, a preteen. and they’ve been hinting at it with how many times Nicaise has been going back and forth with messages from the Regent, but it’s still pretty gross that he’s actually the Regent’s pet. And at 13 going on 14 will be too old to interest him. Like, what the hell.

Chapter 9

By our standards, it’s still wildly inappropriate, but I’m really glad Erasmus is in the hands of someone who will actually treat him decently. Poor boy deserves something better than the fuckery that went on in Vere. I think there’s actually a sidestory about him at the end of the book.

Ah, Kastor. Seems like a lovely bastard, pun intended.

It lasted for a while, Damen keeping his mouth shut, but at least this time it wasn’t an insult that slipped out. Still, dangerous to even hint that he was more than a soldier.

Trying to imagine Kastor plotting against Laurent was like trying to imagine a wolf plotting against a serpent.

haha just keep these comparisons coming I’m loving them. Kastor’s plan was quite good, and would probably have been solid if he had simply killed Damen. Although Damen was throughly fooled, he can’t even imagine that Kastor could plot against Laurent and actually win. pffft my god

“a few of the wispier pets” I love these little throwaway descriptions.

But, boar hunting. I like how Damen knows it by one name, and mentions how Veretians call it another. Adds to the realism of the world.

Ah, yes, I did wonder why Laurent was oddly fond of Nicaise a few chapters ago. Still don’t quite know. They both play each other, so maybe it’s a battle of wits thing.

It was wasteful of nature to have bestowed those looks on one whose character was so unpleasant.

Such gold. Insults used to be so fun and dramatic.

Ah, now that Damen’s burning hatred for Laurent has subsided a bit, he’s back to admiring him for a whole paragraph. A small paragraph, but one nonetheless.

aww Erasmus. he is so sad and precious.

Oh, it must be killing Damen to be calling Laurent kind so many times in one conversation haha.

It was as close as any man of his station would come to criticizing a prince.

And oh, how these characters do insults and criticism so very well. Poor horse. Their hides are fairly tough, so to injure them that badly requires a lot of force.

Hm, wonder what this late night visit could be about. But that is the end of this chapter, so I will have to wait and see.