#but i decided human turned demon was more fun / tragic

[ladytauria]

for the au game :) a supernatural creatures or shifter au for the batfam and/or pairing of your choosing!

thank you!!! this one was a lot of fun <333

i didn’t end up with either a pairing or a plot for this one, exactly, (there’s kind of a bunch of mini plots tbh) but i had a lot of fun imagining what supernatural creature each of the batkids could be~

i also went over 5 facts but. i blame bruce for that, tbh. he has too many kids :P

After Bruce’s parents are killed by some kind of creature, Bruce becomes a monster hunter. However, one way or another, all the children he adopts turn out to be monsters.

Dick has siren heritage (of the bird variety, not aquatic). It remains dormant until the Court of Owls brings it out of him. He adores the ability to fly, but it leaves him far more careful about his voice.

Jason is killed by Joker, a demon. His return is bathed in hellfire, now a lesser demon himself. He’s managed to keep a tight grip on his humanity, though—even if Bruce doesn’t always appreciate that.

Cass is half-vampire (a dhampir?). Though her need for blood isn’t as all-consuming as a full-blooded vampire, it’s still present, and something she struggles with greatly.

Steph is turned into a werewolf when Black Mask captures her. It’s part of the reason she fakes her death—she leaves to spend time learning to control her shifts.

Tim is a changeling—either he knew the entire time and hid it from everyone, or discovers this himself later in his life. It comes with some small ability to shapeshift and sense what people will find most pleasing. He is able to lie, and well, but is quite sensitive to iron.

Duke has angel blood—maybe he’s nephilim, or the child of a nephilim. (So half- or quarter-angel.) Bruce makes the mistake of thinking that his angel blood means Duke will be the most well-behaved. He’s wrong :)

Damian is half- or quarter-demon, and Bruce really only has himself to blame for that one. Because Talia is a major demon, though, or the descendant of a major demon, he’s about equal to Jason in power. Yes, this causes a lot of problems, lmao.

BONUS: Oracle isn’t just a title; Babs does have some minor precog powers. Alfred is either a (very old) fey or a vampire; he’s just been waiting for Bruce to notice :)

[ AU ask game ]

[adventures-in-mangaland]

Yet Another Dead Boy Detective Fic Rec List

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

I've been having so much fun with these, so I've decided to make another! See above for links to my other fic rec lists. ♥️

Like We're Gonna Die Young (Again) by RoseGanymede95

The latest installment in the superb Codependency World Cup series has the boys attend a nefarious house party and grapple with old frenemies, 90s fashion and temporary amnesia. Also fleshes out their achingly sad backstories, but compensates with the triumphant return of Pierre the rabbit.

When I Picture You by Gruoch

Charles gets braceleted by the Cat King instead of Edwin and receives his heart's desire... being alive again. This author has a special gift for taking fun sounding premises and turning the angst up to 11. So excellent.

young blood (never get chained) by ghostinthelibrary

University AU in which half-demon Charles intervenes in Edwin's ritual sacrifice and inadvertently binds their souls together... I'm genuinely obsessed with this AU, it has so much potential for tons of delicious tropes. Human!Edwin getting a crash course in supernatural shenanigans! Soulmate vibes!Found Family! Demon lore! What's not to love??

Ghosts and Monsters by justafandomfollower

Charles is also sacrificed and the boys meet in Hell! Fantastic premise and executed really well. I loved Masterful Edwin taking charge and protecting Charles while inwardly despairing. Highly recommended.

back to back they faced each other by ShanaStoryteller

The Night Nurse has a theory about how Charles was able to rescue Edwin from Hell so quickly... I'm genuinely shocked I haven't recced this one already. Sorry guys, I forgor. Anyway, this has interesting "Guardian" (angel?) lore, great meta and we even get some temporary amnesia as a treat.

boyfriend jacket by skadii

5+1 times Edwin borrowed Charles' jacket. The characterisation is on point, and it has some great OCs (Kyle the snarky seeing-eye cat!) and really sweet payneland moments. Plus Charles' jacket doing its most to annoy the Cat King.

Looking Like the Sunrise by letters_of_stars

Edwin thinks he's cursed so he and Crystal must team up to solve the case of his Mysterious and Suddenly Appearing Rizz. Funny and sweet friendship fic with some quality Edwin-Crystal bonding and discussions of trauma.

The Case of the Anonymous Confession by Mayarenerose

College AU featuring Charles posting an 'anonymous' online confession about his complicated feelings for his bestie. The closet is glass, but Edwin is oblivious and Crystal is in pain. Cute and funny epistolary social media fic done really well.

the middle of something wonderful by KiaraSayre

Does what it says on the tin and gives us a trope salad of cosy vignettes, including a time loop, temporary amnesia, sudden corporality and Crystal and Edwin trying to get a good grade in Party. Wholesome.

My heart is like a haunted house (series) by halffulljampot

Charles (unknowingly) befriends the ghost of Edwin's mother and constantly gushes to her about his amazing best friend/boyfriend. Beatrice is a great OC and it's just nice (though extra tragic) to read a fic in which Edwin had loving parents. Read it for Family Feels and wholesome intergenerational friendship.

the first rule of fight club by e_va

The boys are captured by an evil underground fighting ring. The fic is from Charles' PoV, so the prospect of having to fight Edwin was especially stomach-churning. Still, we get Edwin being a badass and a brilliant surprise cameo I don't want to spoil.

The Case of The... by sophisticatedyet

Edwin borrows Niko's negligee and Charles' brain breaks. There's also a case and giant squids, but Charles' Distracted By The Sexy crisis is the main (hilarious) event.

in those heavy days when love became an act of defiance by aletterinthenameofsanity, JUBE514

Daemon AU and first meeting fic! Loved the worldbuilding, insightful character work and lovely use of Greek mythology. Honestly, this fandom needs more daemon AUs.

spinning around and around in an ocean of grief (your ladder came down to the sea) by Ingi

Prequel to DontOffendTheBees' excellent College AU, expanding on the boys being alive and in school together. Also has its own prequel about their first meeting from Edwin's point of view. This one, though, is a Charles' Bisexual Journey/Feelings Realization fic. So lovely.

head in the clouds but my gravity's centered by shadowquill17

Face Touching: The Fic. I just love non-sexual intimacy in fics and this one is so tender. I also love Accidental Kissing and Feelings Realization so my cup runneth over.

i don't want to rest in peace by handwrittenhello

Different First Meeting fic featuring Poltergeist Charles! Loved the concept, even though it made me sad.

the great snogging debacle of '95 by thatgayprince

Edwin disguises himself as a girl and Charles starts and then defers a sexuality crisis for 30 years. Funny, steamy and emotional.

a beautiful day to say goodbye by ofstitches

The agency take on the case of a depressed house. This is another bittersweet Edwin backstory fic with discussions of grief.

Smitten in the Stacks by cordelianoir

Adorable prequel to lolotr's equally adorable library AU. Meet cute featuring (platonically married) Dad!Charles crushing on the hot librarian who leads Children's Storytime.

Jenny Green: Butcher, Hot Mess, Reluctant Queer Elder by Money_Maker

Jenny-centric fic! The focus is on Jenny and her financial, mental and emotional struggles post-canon, but mentoring Edwin through his queer self-discovery becomes a big part of that. This turns into a really sweet friendship, plus Found Family Feels and some fun outsider PoV of the boys' dynamic.

I've always got more recs so watch this space! ❤️

[furicookiebndz]

Lucifer x !FemReader : My old friend

Hello everyone, it is my first time writing this, i hope it will be good enough, have fun! This fan art isn't mine. Full credits to the amazingly talented artist/creator.

It has been thousands of years since evil began.

Lucifer, whose pride blinded him, attempted to dethrone the creator, only to ultimately fail and be banished from Paradise.

Lilith, who refused to submit to Adam, in turn fled from this magical place, but which hides many facades.

Yet few people know that with them, a third person flew out of Paradise. And even rarer are people who know the cause, 3 to be precise.

However, behind this unusual act lie very dark secrets, seen as…

-Can you stop, Vag'? You're giving me a headache.

The young woman turned her head towards the source of this execrable voice, a spider who was visibly lying carefree on the sofa, arms behind her head, a bored expression on her face.

Refraining from answering him, she continued:

Tragic, some thought it was another rebellious woman, others a fallen angel because of a serious crime, but that wasn't logical, what's worse than to confront the creator?"

-That doesn't help all of us, the young woman noted, running her hand through her hair, frustrated.

-It would be beneficial to have her on our side, especially if she has such a significant influence on the world of the living and beyond, Charlie concluded thoughtfully.

-But she hid from the world, living as a hermit. Many think it's a myth, but given what's been happening lately, I believe it's much more present than sinners think.

Vaggie rubbed her temples, trying to come up with an idea.

-Who the hell are you talking about? I hate it when you pretend to be Sherlock and leave me like the old cookie in the back of the cupboard.

-Are you interested in what we do? retorted Vaggie sarcastically

-No, more about why you were busting my balls, joked Angel.

-You don't even have one, asshole, mumbled quietly Husk, taking a sip of his cheap booze.

-Want to check~? It is free for you kitty cat.

-Not even for a thousand balls, growled quietly Husk, who was beginning to lose his patient.

-Ouuh finally a price there is progress, Daddy, the spider sent him a kiss

Alastor, who was reading a book by the fireplace, decided to speak

-Charlie, Darling, you seem concerned about this person Let me see…

He seemed surprised for a moment, before smiling more, if possible.

-My my, what a terrible coincidence. The person you are looking for is one of the most sought after. Didn't Lucifer tell you about Lady (Y/N)?

-Um… We're not exactly talking about all that-

“Daddy issues,” Husk muttered.

Alastor continued:

-As reported in this document, she flew away shortly after your parents. She was a person living in Heaven, she was not human, but not an angel entirely though, she had two pairs of wings, although she is the appearance of a mortal, yet she had her own power, not to be underestimated. She embodied humor, justice and determination. In short, all these things that are way too boring-

-Cut it short, Alastor, Vaggie said, snapping her fingers.

-But when Lucifer challenged God, she did not follow him, not because she had to beat him, but because he knew just as well as she did that what he was doing was wrong. For the first time in her life she felt an immense disappointment in the love he had once inspired in her, and the semblance of a relationship that was perhaps tending to end disappeared with the appearance of the first demon, your father, Charlie.

However, you are aware that shortly after the creation of Lilith, she quickly became friends with your mother, and when she flew away from Paradise, and she learned the cause, she entered in a black anger, so black that Gabriel had difficulty in containing it, Until then, she had always been obedient, never contesting the decisions, which were of infallible Justice, but this departure had torn away part of her herself. She confronted the lord, she tried to rally the others to her cause, but nothing changed. Disappointed, she left that place, and no one ever saw her again.

There was a heavy silence for a moment, before Angel said:

-So…Is she still a virgin?

Vaggie rolled her eyes before Charlie had an idea:

I'm sure she's not that far away. Maybe I should ask my father to contact her again. She must care about him, at least I hope so, and if I convince her, Gabriel won't be able to object!

Vaggie refrained from adding a comment, she knew it was too good to be able to do it, but in front of her girlfriend's adorable face, she couldn't refuse anything.

______________________________________________________________

-No, Lucifer said firmly, before Charlie could even finish his idea.

-But dad-

-End of discussion, I don't want to hear anything, he turned around and mechanically squeezed the rubber duck in his hand, like an anti-stress ball.

Lucifer seemed elsewhere, deep in thought. His friend, his old friend…

.

.

.

“Luciferrrrr!” A burst of joy appeared as she walked towards him, a smile on her lips, a book in her hands.

Lucifer as usual had a lyre in his hands. He looked up at Y/N and smiled.

One discussion led to another, he shared his ideas about the mortal world, while she agreed with some and shared her opinion on others. They would sometimes just stay silent, or she would read aloud from a book, and he would then accompany her with his lyre.

Such a beautiful memory…

.

.

.

Why Lucifer?! Why did you do this?

This same friend was there with her eyes filled with tears, disappointed in him.

Lucifer looked down. One mistake, just one mistake, had caused him to lose those he considered family, and his closest friend.

He wanted to tell her that it was just a misunderstanding, that it was for the best, but the damage was already done.

He took Lilith's hand and without a word, left for their new home.

The young woman, in tears, could only watch them leave, the man she loved and her friend, without being able to do anything, because her principles prevented her. Gabriel placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, and said nothing. If she knew, he couldn't imagine how she would have reacted

.

.

.

-Dad?

Lucifer seemed to come out of his thoughts and focused on a family portrait. Lilith was already gone, after their separation he only had his daughter left, and after a second of thought he sighed and said:

-I'll see what I can do…

-It's true? Oh thank you Dad, thank you thank you thank you!, cried Charlie enthusiastically.

She took him in her arms, and Lucifer said to himself that finally, if having a hug from his daughter meant having to seek the 7 rings of Hell and even the beyond, he would do it without complaining.

Now all that remained was to find it, the most complicated part…

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lucifer, Charlie and the hotel members thought for several days, using all their knowledge and powers to find her. If she was neither in Hell, nor in Heaven, or even in the mortal world, she must be between the latter options-

Lucifer suddenly had an idea, remembering a conversation they had shared long ago, and he cast an incantation, which opened a portal to a world- no, a unique place, so messy and blurry, and yet so… familiar, as if he were…

“In the middle of a dream,” Charlie whispered softly. The rest of the team followed her, looking around curiously. Lucifer asked himself so many questions, was it a place where souls rested between life and death? He did not know it. After all, the soul left the body for a while when it slept, that would explain the place.

-Who are you? I sense human souls, but something else…

They saw several women advancing, of great beauty, similar to fairies, but armed, ready to defend themselves, if it was not for another who stopped them by raising her hand, she advanced slowly, and Lucifer recognized her completely. right now.

-(Y/N)..Lucifer seemed upset to see her, and tried to pull himself together by talking to himself. "Ok, Ok. It's going to be okay buddy, you can do it, you can do it", When he met her gaze, he lost all his courage and hid behind Charlie.

-Dad!

-What? I-I'm just covering your back Charlie.

-At least what I thought of you is true, you're just a sissy Lucifer, Alastor sneered.

You looked at him for a moment, the man you had loved for thousands of years, it was..strange. You didn't know whether you should greet him or hit him.

-Lucifer, what is the honor of this visit worth to me? In 10,000 years you have never had the decency to come visit me.

Sarcasm. Something unusual about you, he couldn't help but admire you. Your two pairs of wings were now grey, but your eyes were still this soft (e/c) shade, but now full of resentment, and perhaps.. mockery?

-And you, you must be his daughter, mhh?

You moved closer to her and observed her suspiciously, while she was sweating profusely, and Vaggie seemed on the edge on attacking you, and to her surprise, you smiled widely and took her in your arms, with surprising strength.

-My lord you are his carbon copy, so pretty~, you squish her cheek cheeks and gush about her, while she laughs awkwardly.

Everyone was stunned by how fast the tension dissipates, and the women behind you giggle, seemingly aware by how fast your emotions tend to change. Lucifer smiles, maybe he still had a chance..

-But you seem so polite, unlike some, you cast a dark look at Lucifer, and greeted the others with a sympathetic and curious look, their offering to sit down for a while to talk.

...maybe not finally.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

-If I understood everything, you created a hotel to rehabilitate sinners… and are trying to convince Heaven, is that right?

She nodded and Lucifer tried to add something, but you stopped him:

-I don't speak with traitors and liars, especially if they forget to send me a life message for eons.

Lucifer doesn't say anything wanting to make anything worse. He knew he was wrong, and sighed heavily.

(Y/N)-1 Lucifer-0.

-Damn, this girl is awesome, Angel whispered excitedly.

Vaggie continued:

-Lady (Y/N), you still have decent relationship with heaven.Could you try talking to some highers-up about it? Like Gabrie-

-No, this thing is no longer part of my circle of close friends, I can still try to talk about it again with Sera and Emily, but I can't do anything with the other weirdo.

Charlie felt hopeless, and she took your hands and looked at you with a miserable expression.

-I beg you, you must speak to him, my people are dying every year at the hands of the exorcists, and I-I cannot stand by and do nothing. Can you try..?

At his beaten puppy look, you widened your eyes, it was exactly-

Please don't tell them where I was, Lucifer pleaded with adorable eyes. You sighed but smiled, nodding your head.

-Well, i will. But I'm not promising anything though-

-Thank you thank you thank you, she hugged you, and you hugged her back with a smile.

Lucifer felt his heart beat faster, these two women who are precious to him have finally met, and got along better than he expected.

Now all he had to do was sort out one last problem.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Explanations were made. You listened patiently, and after a while you answered:

-Why Lucifer, didn't you tell me before? I-I thought I was your friend.

Lucifer held her gaze, and for the first time in millennia he took his courage in both hands and took hers:

-I didn't want to see your disappointed look, I know I made a mistake, but I only thought about doing the right thing. And I-

-You got scared?

He nodded, and you sighed:

-I don't blame you, at least not anymore.

He raised his eyes, feeling a bit of hope, and feeling Charlie's encouraging look, he continued:

-So, can we try again? I mean our relationship- Well our friendship!

He blushed slightly and you chuckled softly:

-Yes, always Lucifer.

[2demon2slayer]

What does the not-friend group think of Sabito?

giyuu obviously loves sabito a whole lot. they're the best of friends. he's very nervous about being sabito's sort-of-caretaker now that he's a demon and kind of needs to be hidden from people. but giyuu's also kind of dealing with sabito's turn into a demon worse than sabito himself and is banking his entire mental stability on turning sabito back into a human. he's a little bit codependent

kanae was initially cautious about sabito (as you would be upon meeting any demon, no matter how friendly they supposedly were), but basically the moment she realizes that sabito really is a Good Demon, she's all in on becoming best friends with him. something about his existence is just . it gives her so much hope. hope for what demons could be. (arguably, maybe too much hope. she ought to be more careful or i'll write her another tragic death, but on-screen this time)

shinobu doesn't really know how to feel about sabito. she's distrustful of him at the start, but she's rational enough to recognize that he really is harmless towards humans. so she's generally nice to him, but she still finds mr fox boy sort of off-putting

despite his brother's relative faith in sabito, kyoujurou still didn't really trust the demon for a while! after all, it's a demon's nature to want to hurt and kill and eat people! he doesn't say it because he loves his brother, but kyoujurou thinks senjurou's a bit stupid for trusting sabito. but all it takes is one mission together for kyoujurou to realize that sabito's not only a genuinely good dude, but he's also Very strong. kyoujurou ends up dragging him over to train together a handful of times and ultimately decides that sabito's also very fun to be around. they get on like a house on fire. (kyoujurou also maybe goes to his brother afterwards and is like "hey, i'm sorry i thought you were stupid" and senjurou, heartbroken, goes "you thought i was stupid????")

gyoumei was initially distrusting of sabito, but with his teacher's (genya's) approval of the guy, and eventual proof that sabito's not bad, he decides that he's fine with the kid. they don't interact much, but if ever gyoumei encounters a weird fox that feels a bit too much like a demon, he'll give it a little pet before moving on

look. see, here's the thing. sanemi kind of has this thing where he cannot let himself believe that any demon could do any good. because if he follows that train of thought, it'll lead him to the ultimate realization that he murdered his mother for no reason when she could've been saved and reasoned with. and sanemi can't have that particular breakdown, so he hates sabito on principle. because fuck demons, am i right?

obanai has never encountered a demon who wasn't terrible awful. and in his mind, he never will. because sabito is also terrible awful and obanai Does Not like or trust him. nothing more to say than that

tengen thinks the fox boy is kind of scrawny, but pretty flashy! he definitely approves, even if he's not usually a fan of demons. honestly they don't really interact much.

and sabito interacts with kaigaku even less. kaigaku's kind of on the fence about sabito. he's heard good things from both zenitsu and tengen, but also sabito is a whole ass demon. kaigaku sometimes finds himself almost envious of sabito. all the power of a demon without any of the hunger. the guy's not even an actual demon slayer and yet he's allowed to follow around the goddamn sun hashira on missions. if kaigaku was a demon- ah, well. he's not, so it doesn't really matter

mitsuri thinks sabito's kind of really cool! he's a demon, which made him kinda scary at first, but then he turned out to be a good demon which is crazy but also super cool! he's a genuinely kind guy and really strong, too! mitsuri properly met him when he started hanging out with kyoujurou, and so the three of them tend to hang out all together! also, very important tidbit: his fox form is so fucking fluffy!!!!!!!!!

[koko-doodle]

Demon Vamp AU: Chapter 1

Heyo! I’m excited to share this FNAF x Undertale story mash up with you guys, I think it will be quite a doozy. This is the humble beginnings of your tragic life when everything changed. There are some depictions of violence (fighting monsters) but the most graphic scene of this chapter involves decapitating a hellhound. Nothing explicit, I’d say it’s like PG to PG13ish. I don’t write gore stuff, grosses me out but this is just a warning in case it might bother someone.

Summary: 500 years ago monsters were banished to a deep crater called The Pit and confined by an impenetrable barrier. About 450 years later, the barrier is suddenly no longer in tact and humans are once again fighting against the monsters. You are a knight, a protector of humanity but you died one dreadful night near the barriers edge where you shouldn’t have been. Strangely, you wake up not dead, in a place unfamiliar to you, and under the “protection” of demon-vampire brothers. After confronting your new reality, you end up facing the obstacles of deciding what is really true and what was a lie.

CHAPTER 1: LIFE’S END

Chapter 2: Life Anew

Words: 3,841

AO3 Link or continue down bellow

“This is a bad idea Jeremy” you state nervously, thumbing the hilt of a small knife that rested in its sheath at your hip.

“Oh come on, you need to learn to live a little. Nothings happened for two weeks, I think those monsters have given up on this town.” Your partner replied triumphantly.

“Just because nothing HAS happened doesn’t mean nothing WILL.” You emphasize.

“Ugh, you’re no fun when you’re focused.” Jeremy grumbles, rolling his eyes before he forges ahead.

“Focused on keeping us alive, we wouldn’t want to be caught unaware of any monsters lurking in the dark you know.” You rebutted and watched him wave an annoyed hand at you without turning around. You shake your head with a slight chuckle, if there was anything you knew about your partner it was that he, Jeremy Fitzgerald, was as stubborn and determined as they come. He was committed to crossing into enemy territory just to get a glimpse of any creatures lurking around the edge of The Pit. His plans always seemed like he was trying to get you both killed, or worse, captured.

Your enemies were not exactly known for being the most kind to humans, you had been taught about the horrors of the War of Ages that came to an end just over 500 years ago. Monsters and humans never got along very well before the war but when the monsters decided they were the superior race, humanity was on the brink of being enslaved. You grew up knowing the story by heart; how a brave group of warriors, inventors, and sorcerers brought their talents together to fight against the monsters and free those humans who had been in bondage. They founded the Knights of the Dawn Age, noble warriors who fought against monsters for the freedom of humans. Humans could never truly eradicate the monsters however, so they were sealed in the deepest pit by a barrier that no monster could cross. Lives were sacrificed to create the barrier but in the end, humans prevailed.

Or so humanity thought.

About fifty years ago around the time your parents would have been born, there were reports of monsters attacking villages located near the outskirts of the barrier. It was thought to be a rumor at first but when attacks started happening more often and with undeniable video evidence, it became clear the barrier was no longer intact and that monsters did in fact exist. The Knights of the Dawn Age never dispersed after the original war, their knowledge and artifacts were passed down from generation to generation and the role of a Knight was opened to any who sought to protect humanity from threats. The continual advancements in technology were preparing humans for the day monsters might return and all that preparation was proving effective in the current growing war, however, humans were not the only ones who had been finding new ways to arm themselves for battle. With a new war came new threats in the form of new monsters unknown to humans, deadlier than before. While the sorcerers and inventors sought to find a way to repair the barrier, humanity still needed protection from the ravenous beasts emerging from The Pit.

As you both walked through the dark night, the only sounds you heard were gravel shifting from your footsteps and the peaceful melody of crickets singing. This forest was just outside a small town and was a beautiful place, despite being so dangerous. Your thoughts shifted to the day you were enlisted into the Knights of the Dawn Age. You were merely an orphan whose parents had been killed by a monster raid while they were attacking your village. You had nowhere to go, no one to turn to, that is when a Knight brought you back to the capital city at the heart of the mainland and you began your training. You trained hard, learned everything you could about every race of monster including the new ones, and passed every test you were given. You were a good warrior, a well trained soldier, and loyal to the Knights of the Dawn. Some thought you were too invested into your role as a Knight, unhealthily loyal, but no one could ever understand your drive to please those who had saved your life and given you purpose. You fought hard because you wanted to ensure that no child would have to grow up in fear or without parents like you had.

“Hey, earth to the killjoy” Jeremy says, elbowing you in the ribs to snap you out of your thoughts. “You okay?”

“I’m fine” you reply, you hadn’t realized how much time that had passed in silence. “Just wondering how I always get stuck with you on your ‘I’m trying to get us killed’ expositions.”

“How rude! I wouldn’t call them that, they are explorative expositions! Knowledge is power you know, the more we have the better. Besides, how many times have we really been that close to death huh?” He pauses and shakes his head. “Don’t answer that…” You stifle a laugh.

“And what exactly are we looking for tonight Indiana Jones?” You tease.

“Well, Laura Croft” he teases back, “we are on a reconnaissance mission. Looking for clues or hints to any recent monster activity.”

“Yeah right, you just want to see the edge of The Pit don’t you? There could be monsters guarding it, you know. That’s why the Council warned against anyone going near it. Or did you already forget that rule after training?”

“Maybe” he nods slightly, “but aren’t you at least a liiiittle bit curious as to what it looks like? I mean come on, there’s a giant black hole in the ground that spans for miles and you don’t want to see it? What’s wrong with you.” He argues playfully.

“I don’t have a death wish, unlike you.” You say, smacking him lightly against the back of the head, to which he flinches and laughs. “Haven’t you ever heard of the saying ‘curiosity killed the cat’? We are supposed to be on night patrol around town, not the woods outside of town.”

“So we’re taking a little detour, no one will even know we left. Unless you tell them of course because-“ he begins walking backwards in front of you holding his hand against his forehead like a distraught maiden and his voice shifts to a high pitched tone in an attempt to mimic you. “‘It is my duty to please the Knights of the Dawn Age. All I want is for them to recognize my skills as a valiant knight and dub me a member of the Barrons.’”

“Ha ha very funny.” You shove him lightly away from you, resisting a giggle at his horrible attempt to make you loosen up. He moves to walk beside you and pulls your hand up to his chest by his heart.

“‘Then maybe I’ll finally get Mike Schmidt, my best friend and the man of my dreams, to notice me because I’m too much of a wuss to tell him how I feel” he continues.

“Oh shut up Jer!” You playfully shout and sneak your foot in front of his, causing him to trip forward and face plant right into the dirt. You find yourself giggling at the thud sound he makes when he hits the ground.

“Ouch.” He grumbles, rolling onto his back and staring back up at you with a very fake looking frown. “Betrayed by my own partner and tossed into the dirt, how could you?”

“Maybe next time you’ll learn not to bring up topics I wish I had never told you.” You remark, bending over his head to block his view of the tree line.

“Double ouch! I’m your partner! I’m supposed to know everything about you, its protocol!” He disputed as he sat up and started brushing the dirt off his chest.

“I think you’re confusing professional and personal again. The rule is to know your partner’s skills, not secrets.” You jested.

“I disagree, how are you supposed to sync with your partner if you don’t know everything that defines them as a person. Knowing your crush falls under that category, for your information.” He refutes.

“Just stop talking, please.” You grumbled but the distant sound of a twig snapping attracts your attention.

“I don’t get what the big deal is about personal stuff with you-” He says, standing up to wipe the rest of the dirt off.

“Stop talking.” You interrupt, your eyes searching the dark trees for any movement.

“Sharing how you feel does not make you weak, it makes you human.” He added.

“Shut up Jeremy.” You quickly respond, your posture tensing up.

“I’m not done, and I’m saying this as your friend and not your partner. I think-“

“Jeremy!” You whisper shout, slapping a hand over his mouth and holding up a finger to hush him. He follows your gaze as you both scan the area around you.

“Oh no, you are not doing this to me again. Are you just trying to get out of the conversation?” He whispers after removing your hand.

“Shhh! Listen.” Your eyes don’t leave an area behind you, straining your vision to pick up any movement.

“I don’t hear anything.” He retorts, frustrated.

“Exactly. The crickets stopped…” You quietly unsheath the spear like weapon on your back, the retractable hilt extending to its full length making it a foot taller than you. “It's dead silent in the middle of a forest at night.”

Jeremy seems to realize the situation and slowly draws his sword from its sheath. You move into a back to back formation, preparing for an attack from any direction. What felt like minutes was only a matter of seconds when a dark figure jumps out from behind a bush and launches itself at Jeremy. He quickly dodges the beast and turns to slash at its legs. The beast lets out a horrible screech while it turns to face you both. The creature was four legged and about the size of a large Great Dane, it’s skin looked like dried lava rock with spikes protruding from the spine while the head held the skull of a dog but with ears. The creature growled and its chest, eyes, and mouth began to glow red and yellow hues like magma heating up beneath the skin.

“Hellhounds!” You exclaim as three more emerge from the bushes at full speed, snarling grotesquely with every step.

“Aw come on!!!” Jeremy shouts raising his sword and activating the plasma edge of the blade, the sword edge began to glow a dark red. “I was in the middle of a serious conversation and you just had to ruin the moment!!!”

You activate the plasma blade on your own weapon, the blade extending to make the cutting edge of the weapon twice as large as its original form. You swing the glaive around in front of you and slice the face of a hellhound as it launches at you, missing your side by a matter of inches. You flow into another attack and catch the ribs of another beast while it runs past you, falling to its side and sliding into a nearby tree. Jeremy swings his sword and severs the legs off of one beast and twists into another maneuver, blocking the claws of a second hound from digging into his side. You bash the head of that beast with the end of your glaive and send it rolling away a few feet, you jab your glaive straight on into the chest of one going after your partner for a second time and rip it out as the beast crashes to the ground.

“Well this is turning out to be an exciting night, huh!” Jeremy hollers, catching his breath.

“That is not the word I would use!” You exclaim, examining the four bodies surrounding you. You pant, your heart racing with the adrenaline kicking into your system. The four lump creatures begin to shift as molten lava oozes from their wounds and reforms their bodies, they stand up and bark threateningly at you both.

“Ugh, we could be here all night! I forget these things don’t die easily!” Jeremy complains, raising his sword to prepare for more attacks from the beasts. “Could be worse I guess, at least there’s only four.” As you both defend yourself from the gnashing teeth and claws coming towards you, two more emerge from the dark from behind a tree.

“You just had to ask, didn’t you…” You accused, whacking away the jaws of a hound before it bit you.

The hounds all make their moves, lunging, dashing, and gnawing in an attempt to get their prey but you and your partner were always faster than them and anticipated every attack. Some hounds would fall to what seemed like fatal wounds but would get back up moments later completely healed, snarling with more ferocity. You both fought with equal fierceness however, returning every attack they gave with a plasma blade embedded into some area of their body. Their attacks began to slow but the hellhounds showed no sign of retreat anytime soon. One was too focused on Jeremy and came inches away from biting his arm but with a swift move you managed to sever its head before its teeth could make contact with his skin. Its body fell to the ground and began fading into ash as it died, the ash flying away in the breeze.

“Whatever you do, do not let one bite you Jer! A scratch is excruciating but a bite will kill you!” You shout in a panic.

“I know, I know! Let’s just get rid of these things already!” He hollers back.

It is not easy to kill a hellhound but it is not impossible either as you just proved. The hellhound has to be weak enough or else a blade will not cut through the neck completely. Difficult, exhausting, and incredibly dangerous to do; there was a reason people nicknamed them devil dogs, most don’t survive the attacks unharmed. You had the advantage of being together but the odds would have been better if there were at least three of you. There were still five hellhounds left fighting and getting a shot at their neck without being bit was a task within itself. You managed to pin one down with your glaive as Jeremy brought his sword down like a guillotine and sliced the head clean from the body. You pulled your weapon away as the beast began fading but were tackled to the ground by a leap from one of the remaining creatures.

The beast snarled and growled viciously while you held the pole of your glaive in its mouth to prevent it from biting you. The stench of its breath smelled like burnt flesh and radiated heat, you could see the metal from your weapon begin to glow as it was being superheated by the mouth of the beast. You tried to toss the creature to the side and off of you but it stood firm. You had a moment of relief when Jeremy kicked it off you with as much force as he could muster and sent it rolling to a skid a few feet away. Your partner reached out a hand to help you up but was tackled just before you could grasp it.

“Jeremy!!!” You shout in horror while you watched him struggle on the ground. By the time you got to your feet, the beast had somehow gotten its claws through a small area of his leg armor and was digging them into his skin. He shouted out in pain, defending his upper body from the ravenous bitting with his sword firmly embedded into the neck of his attacker. You rushed over and skewered the hound in the chest so hard it was almost sliced in half, its body slumped just beside Jeremy as his hand quickly fell to the wound on his leg.

“You’re okay it’s just a scratch, you'll be fine! You gotta get up!” You exclaim, looking around to see the four hounds recovering from their current wounds. Jeremy just lay there shouting through gritted teeth and you did your best to help him up but he seemed consumed by the pain.

“Hey, we have about sixty seconds before they recuperate and come back for another round. They should relent soon, they can’t have that much fight left in them. Come on, get up!”

“It hurts….” He hissed.

“I know but you can do this! We are not going to die here, you hear me?!” You grab his arm and wrap it around your neck in an effort to help lift him from the ground. He shouts out in pain but you both manage to get him standing, his hand still shakily holding his leg. You get him stabilized enough to stand on his own and hand him his weapon. “We’re gonna get through this, I promise. I’ll carry you back to town when this fight is over and you can tease me all you want then, but right now I need you to-“

You began to say but were suddenly dragged to the ground by your leg. A hellhound with a partially healed back had your limb in its mouth and was dragging you away. Luckily your armor prevented its teeth from getting a hold on your skin but you could feel indents forming in the metal where teeth should be. You kicked at its head with your other foot and its grip on you loosened enough for you to remove your leg and scurry to your feet but just before you fully stood up the creature lunged at you knocking you forward onto your stomach. As you tried to catch your breath that is when you felt it. A burning, excruciating searing pain began to radiate from your shoulder. You screamed but no sound escaped your throat, you were paralyzed from the pain that was starting to spread to your whole body. You felt like you were burning from the inside out, you knew you needed to get out of the grip of your attacker but your muscles wouldn’t respond no matter how hard you tried. Suddenly the source of pain was ripped from your shoulder and sent crashing into another hound, yelping loudly in the process. You felt a pair of hands roll you onto your back and the figure of Jeremy loomed over you, fear and pain covering his expression.

“J-Jer…” was all you managed to get out. You felt tears welling up in your eyes uncontrollably and streak down your face while you looked slowly down to your shoulder. The distinct shape of a bite mark covered the armor and the metal indents from the teeth marks were glowing from the super heated metal. You grunted in pain from simply trying to move your hand. Everything still burned, your muscles, your bones, even your skin started to feel like it would melt off.

“No… it didn’t. Please tell me it didn’t.” He asks, panic filling every word. You grit your teeth hard and force yourself to sit up. The more you moved, the more painful it became but you tried to collect yourself and form a solid sentence while you stared at your horrified partner.

“G-Go… You need to go, g-get out of here.” You stutter.

“What?! No! You told me we weren’t going to die here!” He exclaims.

“WE aren’t, I am… You can still make it back to town.” You use him as a crutch while you both stand up unsteady and shaking. He holds onto your forearms tightly, refusing to let

“I am not going anywhere, I won’t abandon my partner!” His grip tightens.

“I’m not asking you, I’m telling you. GET. BACK. TO. TOWN.” You hiss.

“N-No! I can’t! We stick together, that's the first rule of being a knight!”

“I’m already dead Jeremy!!!” You holler, the physical and mental pain clouding your ability to think straight. “There’s no reason for you to die too, just GO!” You rip your arms from his grasp and grab both of your weapons, connecting the hilts together.

“But I-“ He takes a step back, every emotion crossing over his expression all at once and his breathing beginning to sound more like gasping for air. He watches the four remaining hellhounds shifting as they heal, moments away from attacking again. “I can’t! You can’t-!”

“Hey” you said, locking eyes with him. “It’s okay. I’ll make sure they don’t follow you.” The weapon in your hand shifts as it interlocks itself together forming a dual ended spear. “You were the best partner I could have ever had, don’t forget that okay?”

Jeremy collects himself and straightens his posture, he gives you a knight’s salute with a shaky hand. “Fight with honor…” he quavered.

“Die with glory.” You nod and watch as he runs away limping.

—————

You dropped your weapon, breathing hard but it honestly felt like you weren’t breathing at all. You limp over to a tree and lean against it as you slide to the ground, watching the last pile of ash fade in the wind. You coughed, the taste of blood and tears filled your mouth but you didn’t care. You had managed to slay every hellhound, you fought with everything you had left and survived despite scratches and bite marks covering your entire body. Jeremy got away safe, he was alive and that was all you cared about. The searing pain had faded into complete numbness after the adrenaline in your body went into overdrive while you slayed the first hellhound by yourself. The other three were easier since you could barely feel anything they did to attack you.

The numbness was slowly fading into heaviness. Everything started to feel like it was turning to stone, your limbs feeling heavier and heavier with each passing second. Your heart rate was slowing down fast while your shaky breathing became shallow. This was it. This was the end. The hellhound bite was quickly shutting all your organs down, not that your other injuries weren’t contributing to your death as well. Your vision began to blur and the ringing in your ears began to fade but you vaguely made out the shape of a figure approaching you. The black figure moved slowly, closer and closer to you.

If that’s you Jeremy I’m going to come back as a ghost and haunt you for the rest of your life. You say, or at least attempted to say if any part of your body still worked. You grunted softly while one last cough escaped your chest just as the figure approached you, they bent down and lifted your chin. You heard the figure speak but by this point your lungs refused to take in any more oxygen and your heart made its last attempt to keep you alive.

Everything faded to black.

[tanjir0se]

WAKE UP BABES YOUR NEW FAVORITE KNY CHARACTERS JUST DROPPED

Half-baked backstory below the cut !

Sakuya✨🌸

Star breather, dual wields two Nichirin that can connect into a long staff. Energetic, reckless, kind but extremely stubborn, thinks she’s really funny but literally isnt.

Met Natsuki at final selection and barely made it through thanks to his help.

Began training in first aid/Kakushi work at the Kocho sisters’ house for wayward girls (very bad at it due to natural inability to follow directions/listen/not make trouble)

That came to an end after Kanae was killed, she wanted to fight for revenge so was paired with Natsuki (Tomioka’s first attempt at mentoring/taking a tsuguko (didn’t work)(made them both weirder))on a mission where she discovered kind of on accident that she could star breathe

Given to Tengen for Tsuguko training 1. Because she is also a dual wielder and he requested and 2. because if she broke one more thing at the butterfly mansion Shinobu and Aoi were going to go insane

Grew close with Natsuki because they were assigned to multiple missions together because 1. Tengen kept volunteering her because he was ALSO going to go insane if Sakuya didn’t learn to grow some fucking responsibility and later 2. Because Tengen found it INCREDIBLY funny that Giyuu’s tsuguko had a crush on his

On a mission that could have made them both Hashira, Natsuki was turned into a demon by Kokushibo. Devastated, Sakuya was unable to slay either of them and later quit her training despite Tengen’s insistence she stay and went back to kakushi work/rogue slaying. Like, kakushi by day and slayer by night. Ig

She has run into Natsuki (now a demon) several times and neither can manage to kill the other so they end up weird half secret friends ?

Natsuki 🌌

Void breather—>Demon. Extremely shy, thoughtful, intelligent and determined but insecure and prone to overthinking. As a demon, superiority complex, hates both humans and other demons, almost feral. Wields a [REDACTED because Cam hasn’t decided yet lmfao]

Self taught with his own breathing style because he tried literally every other one and nothing worked. He had to work extremely hard and do almost everything the hard way to finally make it to final selection. Considers himself to be a naturally unlucky person.

Became Giyuu’s tsuguko because the Master saw something special in him (maybe the fact that he invented void breathing lol) and thought their personalities would mesh, but also that it would be easy for Giyuu because he and Natsuki were fairly similar in age.

They do mesh! But Natsuki is functionally mute so. Um. He learns a lot from Giyuu like sword wise but not so much …socially.

Despite feeling like the odd one out/a fish out of water because his friend Sakuya already knows all of the Hashira due to her learning from Shinobu, and he can barely manage to speak to his own mentor, he gains power and skill extremely quickly because he’s extremely determined and just wants to work hard.

EXTREMELY shy and finds himself disappearing into the background, except to Sakuya, who initially believes he doesn’t like her and makes it her mission to get him to

(He did like her he just sucks at saying it)

(He is completely in love with her and Sakuya, known dumbass, is oblivious)

He opens up to her on their missions and tries to protect her both out of love and out of a sense of ‘paying her back’ for the many, MANY times her medical training has saved his ass. They bond over their as of yet undetermined tragic backstories.

After being turned into a demon he retains next to nothing about his former life but is captivated by the times he sees Sakuya from a distance. The closer he gets the more he remembers so he finds himself seeking her out.

I’m going to start going through my ideas for Star and Void breathing because they’re cool as hell and I want to make move names !!! Also I haven’t made a self insert since LITERALLY 2011 so. Turns out it’s really fun cool and based and everyone should do it always

[fullscoreshenanigans]

I appreciate that Shirai didn’t think this was a satisfactory conclusion to a conflict that had been simmering in the background for twenty-five chapters, but this was still one of the most disappointing moments of the back half of the series for me, especially when he notes Ayshe contributed to saving Norman in chapter 6 of the mystic code book.

“Recover from the stigma of slaughter” is an interesting way of phrasing it because as @hylialeia​ concisely phrases it in this post, Norman and the Lambda kids do deserve the chance to do this:

#this is why I feel he's so similar to scar from fmab #like I love the demon characters in tpn but it would have been extremely iffy if the writing had decided they were all suddenly innocent #overall the narrative does a good job of balancing that complexity #without veering off into that self-righteous bs so many stories try to pull #like. the demons commit genocide. actively farmed humans.experimented on them. brainwashed and enslaved a good portion of them.and that happened when there were alternatives! #even the more sympathetic demons are guilty of complacency in the face of this #and the reason I'm still able to root for them is because that sympathy #doesn't require norman or the other lambda kids to be demonized (pun not intended) #so yeah I'm not onboard with the idea that norman didn't ~suffer enough~ for his actions #the kid was raised as food and turned into a human experiment and tortured #the idea that like. musica or sonju should have been meaner to him or whatever leaves such a bad taste in my mouth #(ayshe is valid tho.)

But Ayshe is only given one impassioned sentence in response to her father being slaughtered that’s enough to make her fist clench in anger before the narrative pushes onward.

(Chapter 139 & Mystic Code Book Chapter 6 Q&A)

And it’s made even more tragic because Ayshe’s father was largely reclusive already after a lifetime of being made fun of for his misshapen face

Adopting Ayshe pushed him further to demon society’s outskirts, potentially not speaking to any other demons after quitting his job except possibly at the rare market exchange for goods he might need for her. There was no one he was going to tell about the Lambda escapees.

(Shirai does state he was part of the aristocracy at some point to explain why he knew the demon language:)

(So between that and working at the farm, he did implicitly uphold the system without questioning it, but by the time he leaves his job we can assume he’s only eating humans to maintain his sanity, or he’s somehow related to the group of aristocrats who drank Mujika’s blood 700 years prior so he has no need for it. He wasn’t actively fighting against it, but he wasn’t contributing to it in the last twelve years of his life.)

But while most of the Lambda crew doesn’t know any of this backstory, Shirai also notes that Norman knew the demon language by the point they meet Ayshe thanks to Smee:

So he knows exactly what she’s saying as he stands before her in the wake of her father’s murder. He doesn’t make any attempts to correct the others’ inferences based on their own experiences with the demons at Lambda. Ayshe either quickly composes herself and goes along with them without a fight or another word, or Norman plays her reaction off as her not being in the right mind after being her held captive by a demon for however long as they carry her off to the paradise hideout (I’m assuming it’s the former though because her dogs would likely attack in the latter scenario). And he lets all of this simmer for potentially months (the timeline’s not exactly clear on how long Ayshe has been with them)

(Mystic Code Book Chapter 7)

instead of talking to her about any of this despite knowing they made a mistake. Upon meeting with her again after the events at the imperial capital, he takes a few panels to collect himself before deciding on a single sentence to say to her, and then moves on. Ayshe contributed to saving him per Shirai, but we’re not privy to any attempts at him repaying her or trying to make amends. It’s a shame such a promising, nuanced conflict that should not have an easy, immediate answer was sidestepped to save on page space and expedite the series finale.

I do think it’s interesting that despite whatever he said being infuriating to her, Ayshe is willing to be in physical proximity to him during the timeskip, and her and her dogs allow him to hold a puppy.

(Chapter 181; fucking rip Vincent getting a new scar on his head)

Like many people I’m defaulting to him providing her with some form of a short apology in that chapter 160 exchange. He’s accepted that Ayshe might kill him one day, though after everything he’s gone through in his arc about the flawed thinking of sacrificing your life in pursuit of a cause, I don’t believe he offered her his life in exchange as part of any honor customs, or at least not while he’s still able to do some good in the world. Ayshe has accepted this, albeit not happily by any means.

Finally, all that said,

(TPN Exhibition Booklet: Tracks to the Neverland (Dec. 2020) Interview)

Really fucking glad these didn’t happen ldskfslk

[cherry-valentine]

Winter 2023 Anime Season

Here’s what I’m watching:

Buddy Daddies is easily my favorite new show this season. Following a pair of skilled but unlucky hitmen (Kazuki and Rei) who end up taking in and attempting to raise a little girl they just orphaned (Miri), the show is primarily a comedy. The humor mostly comes from watching two people who are woefully ill equipped to deal with a child having to work through the day to day challenges of caring for a little girl, from finding a good daycare to figuring out how to dress her. These mundane objectives are made hilarious through the lens of these guys being literal assassins. They go from shootouts to making dinner for their daughter. The show also sneaks in some truly heartwarming moments, as well as truly traumatic ones. Both Kazuki and Rei have tragic backgrounds that explain why they can’t just abandon Miri. The relationship between the two men is fun and interesting. While a lot of viewers are hoping for a romance between them, I just don’t see it happening. So far I’ve yet to see a single hint that the story will go that direction. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to see it, but I’m afraid there’s going to be a lot of disappointed fans at the end of the season. Other than that, the show has decent animation and excellent character designs (Just look at Rei when he’s in assassin mode. Just. Look. At. Him.), as well as fun peppy music. The series overall is just super watchable. There’s not a moment in any episode that I’m not entertained. Highly recommended.

The Tale of Outcasts follows a young orphan girl named Wisteria who can see a powerful demon named Marbas, a rare ability among humans. Marbas is immortal, very old, and very bored, so he decides to take Wisteria along with him to travel around the country, meeting other demons along the way as well as avoiding powerful demon hunters sent by the church to destroy him, one of them being Wisteria’s long lost older brother Snow. This show is a bit more light hearted and mild than I expected at first. It does have serious or darker moments, but overall the stakes don’t feel incredibly high at any given time. The charm of this story centers on the relationship between Wisteria and Marbas. Both care very much for each other, and thankfully (so far) the age difference prevents it from becoming a romance. If anything, Marbas takes an almost fatherly role with Wisteria, even if he sometimes forgets how fragile humans are and unintentionally puts Wisteria in danger. It’s a soft, sweet relationship that carries the series on its back. The animation is fine, nothing special, and the design work is pretty good. In particular, the demons all have cool designs. I’m not crazy about the music but that’s a small quibble. Recommended.

High Card is an energetic action series set in a fictional modern kingdom where 52 special playing cards give people super powers. These cards were accidentally (?) scattered across the kingdom, one of which lands in the possession of a young thief named Finn. After getting drawn into a battle for possession of another card between rival groups seeking to collect them, Finn is recruited to join High Card, an organization trying to gather all the cards for the king. This is a very colorful, vibrant series with a fun setting, exciting battles, and excellent visuals. The characters are cool, especially Wendy, a somewhat shy and mousy young woman who turns into a batshit crazy, unstoppable killing machine when she uses her card, and Chris, the flippant ladies’ man who is rendered immortal by his card’s ability (and there’s obviously more to him than meets the eye). The animation is slick. The music is, in my opinion, the best of the season (both the opening and ending themes are absolute bangers). Honestly, if not for Buddy Daddies, this would have easily been my favorite new show of the season. The show has a generally light hearted vibe but they’ve thrown at least one episode at us to prove how serious and dark the story can get. Highly recommended.

Bungou Stray Dogs has a new season (I think it’s season four?) and like with a previous season, it opened with a mini arc that’s entirely comprised of a flashback. This is something not every show can get away with, but Bungou Stray Dogs pulls it off. This flashback deals with the creation of the Armed Detective Agency, a group of “gifted” (people with special powers) agents who work with the government to neutralize threats, most often involving other “gifted” folks. When the season’s actual plot kicks in following the flashback, it’s about the Agency being framed for horrific crimes and being pursued by powerful government-sponsored hunters. The strength of this series has always been its ability to balance its genuinely funny humor with the darker, more violent aspects of its plots. It does both things so well, and manages to overlap them without one aspect distracting too much from the other (something a lot of stories, anime or otherwise, struggle to do). This season might just be the darkest yet, with each new nightmarish development making the situation more and more bleak for the Detective Agency. The animation remains polished and the design work attractive and interesting. If you watched previous seasons, you’re definitely already watching this. If you haven’t, this is a great time to catch up.

Revenger follows a group or mercenaries who take jobs killing targets as revenge for people who can’t afford to hire hitmen, charging only a single coin that has been bitten into, to display the rage of the person who was wronged. A skilled but stoic samurai named Raizo joins them after they get involved in a plot by his lord that tricked him into killing his fiancé’s father. While they’re definitely a group of killers, there’s a lot of moral variety among the group, with some seeming to enjoy the kills while others simply want to see the guilty punished. It’s an interesting mix of personalities. There’s an overarching plot about a giant stash of opium hidden somewhere in the city and corrupt government officials, but the show is best when focusing on stand alone stories of random people needing revenge. The animation is decent and the character designs are varied and attractive, particularly the leader of the group Yuen. The backgrounds are especially nice, with lovely colors and lighting. The music is quite good too. It’s not my favorite show this season, but it has a solid spot on my watch list.

Carry Over Shows From Previous Seasons:

Boku no Hero Academia

Blue Lock

Yowamushi Pedal

To Your Eternity

Best of Season:

Best New Show: Buddy Daddies

Best Opening Theme: High Card

Best Ending Theme: Buddy Daddies

Best New Male Character: Rei (Buddy Daddies)

Best New Female Character: Wendy (High Card)

[misc-obeyme]

hi i LOVE your threads that bind series (and all ur other work). i was curious about if you had any more info on arsenios? like, his power seems to be persuasion through song, is it in like a siren kinda way or? and any other tidbits if youd like to share *insert marge simpson 'i just think theyre neat' meme* <3 also every demon ever being 100% done with solomons shit before he even opens his mouth lmao

asldfjkaskldf anon... you have no idea what this means to me lol.

I will be posting the next chapter of The Threads That Bind tonight! It really kinda took on a life of its own when I started writing it, but I actually like how it turned out. It means so much to me that other people are enjoying it!

As for Arsenios, well... I have a lot of info on him lol. It just happened that he fit in with this story so I decided to include him because I am fond of him and I really wanted to write about him more. Being asked about him makes me sooo happy!

So to explain his power a little more, it was initially inspired by the concept of human musicians making a deal with the devil in exchange for musical talent. The ones who come out of nowhere and play amazingly well, but then die young tragic deaths. I figured it made sense that the demon who was making those deals would be good at music themselves and maybe their power was rooted in all things musical.

Arsenios spent a lot of time answering summons from humans that wanted to make deals to gain musical talent. He had to make pacts with them and in that way lent them his power in the form of skill. Of course, these were just regular humans and not immortal sorcerers, so they did inevitably die young, thus releasing Arsenios from whatever pact he had made with them. And of course he got their soul out of the deal.

Something really terrible happened to him, though, and changed his whole life, so he doesn't actually do that anymore. It happened some time after Lucifer and his brothers fell, but before MC showed up in the OG.

Now he mostly spends his time performing at gigs in various places throughout the Devildom. He's not super famous, just kind of a local musician, but he's busy enough that he needs a manager to book things for him. He only goes to RAD sporadically because of this and he only goes at all because Barbatos talked him into it.

He can choose whether or not to weave magic into his song and he rarely does it. But it is kind of like a siren song when he does do it. Depending on the intention, he can persuade people to do things. But it's kind of subtle, he was really going hard in The Threads That Bind lol. More often, he uses it as kind of a suggestion and he only needs a handful of notes. He can use instruments to do it, too, but because he often doesn't need much, he usually just sings.

I had him singing in what I called the "ancient language of demons" because I didn't wanna make up lyrics lol. But the lyrics can have an impact on the power of the song. For instance, if he sings in a language that the person being influenced can understand, it lingers a lot longer in their mind and can be more powerful. He's nervous about doing this to humans because he doesn't want to drive them mad by accident, so he sticks with demonic for them.

Arsenios could write entire songs that weave complex spells if he really wanted to, but he has no such ambitions, so he doesn't bother.

And you know it's so funny because I LOVE Solomon, but Arsenios only barely tolerates him and it is so fun to write. I think they could become friends eventually. Arsenios actually respects his power and he's secretly impressed by it, but good luck getting him to admit it lol.

Anyway, I didn't mean for this to get so long! But I felt like some context was needed about where the idea for his power comes from. And of course I could write about him all day lol.

Thank you so much for asking and I'm so glad you're enjoying the story! <3

[anthuan0]

I finished Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne finally, and I wanna talk about my thoughts on the game. Imma keep it brief cause this is a very long game, and I probably will never get done if I don't limit myself.

Gameplay

Where to begin, where to begin. I think my favorite thing about it was the Press Turn system. It rocks. Everyone knows it rocks. It adds so much to every battle. And when it goes just right, and you get a bunch of press turns on an enemy. Chefs kiss, mama mi 🤌. Of course, when the opposite happens and you get mauled by a bunch of demons, it feels horrible, but I don't know it just added more tension.

But the battle system would be nothing without the demons. And I can say that I love how the demons were handled in this game. In SMT 1 the first game in the series I ever played, I felt like you were too constricted on what demons you could use due to the alignment system. I loved all the freedom you could have when it came to recruiting and fusion in this game. But I gotta say my biggest issue with the game was with one of the aspects of fusion. I HATED how I couldn't choose what skills to pass down. I spent so much time just re-rolling and re-rolling... and re-rolling, for the skills I wanted. I heard they changed this in the remake, though, so I'll have to check it out since that really was my biggest issue with the game.

Character and Story

Now, this is where the bulk of my enjoyment came from. I loved how the bleakness of the world was juxtaposed with the little pockets of civilization you would find. Seeing demons and souls just go about their daily live was always super fun. The dialog in this game is truly top-notch. To me, the most notable aspect of this games identity.

When it comes to the overall story I can't I remember specific details too well mostly cause I played this game over a broad period of time, but what I can say is that it felt epic, it felt important. The game really makes you feel like you're just a small part of something bigger as you fall deeper and deeper into a rabbit hole.

On to the main cast of rapscallions,the conception cabal as I decided to call them just now. Hikawa, Isamu, Chiaki, Yuko, and Futomimi. Overall, I loved the cast. I've seen people take issue with how the characters were handled throughout the story. They're mostly off doing their own thing, going through their own revelations. A lot of people feel like this hurts their characterization due to us not seeing their growth step by step. Yes, I would've loved to learn more about these characters more intimately. But the fact that their journeys didn't revolve around you added to the feeling that you're just another another player in this game to conceive a new world. In the end, I ended up finding their motivations to still be believable and compelling.

My favorite characters were definitely Isamu, Yuko, and Futomimi. Isamu, because I have a bad tendency to isolate myself and his plan to create a world without the need for human interaction really impacted me.

Yuko was probably the most complex character to me. She seemed like such a kind person, and you could tell that she truly cared about her students. However, she was still willing to end the world in the hope of creating something better. And sort of, used said students to guarantee that a new world would be made in case she couldn't.

Finally, Futomimi and the Manikins. I loved the Manikins, man. They were tragic, but also some of the funniest characters in the game. I loved how genuine Futomimi's kindness towards his people felt. And it broke my heart when he was killed.

There's much more I want to say about characters like Chiaki,Hijiri, and Hikawa,but this post is getting too long.

Ending

The ending I went with was The True Demon Ending. For one, because I already did so much of the amala labyrinth, I wanted to get something out of it. And 2 because I love it thematically. I like the idea of putting an end to this endless cycle of death and rebirth in order to build a world that we're free to build up continuously without the threat of it being destroyed later on. I also love Lucifer's role in it. He's a more complex figure than just being an avatar of chaos, and I appreciate that.

Will probably do Isamu's Ending the next time I play it.

Miscellaneous Thoughts

Music: Bangers all throughout. I love just how many songs there are. Usually, RPGs reuse a lot of songs.

Favorite demon designs:

And favorite boss design are all the gods

Annnnnd, I feel like I've put most of my thoughts on this game down. Overall, it's a great game. 9/10 one of my favorite RPGs I've played.

It wasn't even that brutal. It can be frustrating, but the game is very generous with save points, and the like. So give it a try, don't be put off.

[keiraleth]

Books Read in 2022 (Part IV/V)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here are all the books I’ve read in 2022.

RATING: 5/5 = All-Time Favorite | 4/5 = Loved It | 3/5 = Liked It | 2/5 = It’s Complicated | 1/5 = Not For Me

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan

Read in German | Rating: 5/5

  “Don't feel bad, I'm usually about to die.”

Summary: Percy Jackson isn't expecting freshman orientation to be any fun. But when a mysterious mortal acquaintance appears at his potential new school, followed by demon cheerleaders, things quickly move from bad to worse. In this fourth installment of the blockbuster series, time is running out as war between the Olympians and the evil Titan lord Kronos draws near. Even the safe haven of Camp Half-Blood grows more vulnerable by the minute as Kronos's army prepares to invade its once impenetrable borders. To stop the invasion, Percy and his demigod friends must set out on a quest through the Labyrinth - a sprawling underground world with stunning surprises at every turn.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~oo~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Test by Sylvain Neuvel

Read in English | Rating: 5/5

“When faced with a choice, humans almost invariably seek a no-action, no-change option, even when one of the presented alternatives is quantifiably and logically more advantageous.”

Summary: Britain, the not-too-distant future. Idir is sitting the British Citizenship Test. He wants his family to belong. Twenty-five questions to determine their fate. Twenty-five chances to impress. When the test takes an unexpected and tragic turn, Idir is handed the power of life and death. How do you value a life when all you have is multiple choice?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~oo~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

Read in English | Rating: 4/5

“Cora didn't know what optimistic meant. She asked the other girls that night if they were familiar with the word. None of them had heard it before. She decided that it meant trying.”

Summary: Cora is a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. Life is hell for all the slaves, but especially bad for Cora; an outcast even among her fellow Africans, she is coming into womanhood--where even greater pain awaits. When Caesar, a recent arrival from Virginia, tells her about the Underground Railroad, they decide to take a terrifying risk and escape. Matters do not go as planned--Cora kills a young white boy who tries to capture her. Though they manage to find a station and head north, they are being hunted.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~oo~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson

Read in German | Rating: 5/5

“Why have I survived? Because I am a creature more devious than all the other mes put together. Because I saw myself bleeding out and instead of checking for a pulse, I began collecting her things. I survive the desert like a coyote survives, like all tricksters do.”

Summary: Multiverse travel is finally possible, but there’s just one catch: No one can visit a world where their counterpart is still alive. Enter Cara, whose parallel selves happen to be exceptionally good at dying—from disease, turf wars, or vendettas they couldn’t outrun. Cara’s life has been cut short on 372 worlds in total. On this Earth, however, Cara has survived. Identified as an outlier and therefore a perfect candidate for multiverse travel, Cara is plucked from the dirt of the wastelands. Now she has a nice apartment on the lower levels of the wealthy and walled-off Wiley City. She works—and shamelessly flirts—with her enticing yet aloof handler, Dell, as the two women collect off-world data for the Eldridge Institute. She even occasionally leaves the city to visit her family in the wastes, though she struggles to feel at home in either place. So long as she can keep her head down and avoid trouble, Cara is on a sure path to citizenship and security. But trouble finds Cara when one of her eight remaining doppelgängers dies under mysterious circumstances, plunging her into a new world with an old secret. What she discovers will connect her past and her future in ways she could have never imagined—and reveal her own role in a plot that endangers not just her world, but the entire multiverse.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~oo~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

His Last Bow by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Read in German | Rating: 3/5

“There have,” said I, “been numerous petty thefts.” Holmes snorted his contempt. “This great and sombre stage is set for something more worthy than that,” said he. “It is fortunate for this community that I am not a criminal.”    

Summary: 'His Last Bow', the title story of this collection, tells how Sherlock Holmes is brought out of retirement to help the Government fight the German threat at the approach of the First World War. The Prime Minister himself requests Holmes's services to hunt down the remarkable German agent, Von Bork. Several of the detective's earlier cases complete the volume, including 'Wisteria Lodge', 'The Bruce-Partington Plans', and 'The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax'. In 'The Dying Detective', Dr Watson is horrified to discover Holmes at death's door from a mysterious tropical disease as his friend lays a trap for a murderer.

[theveryworstthing]

So over on patreon Trevor asked for my take on the Addams Family and I grew up LOVING the Addams family movies so here we are. Instead of doing a straight up style interpretation, I decided to do a full on design challenge, using the characters as bases to make a black southern gothic Addams au. I actually drew the kids first, using the character bases of Wednesday and Pugsley to create some delightful kiddos I'm calling Sunday and Blanche. I of course then redesigned Gomez and Morticia into Carlisle and Mortesha.

The Addams have a very specific high aristocratic goth aesthetic (they've got a butler and nobody really works among other things) so in this re-imagining I wanted to go with vibes that run a little more middle class/upper middle class.  I thought it would be interesting to think about what would be considered weird and off-putting in an entirely different culture, and how being a big ol' goth is way less controversial than it used to be.

I tried to keep this short (HAHAHAHAHAHA) so I didn't spin off into an essay about villain coded families, black people in the horror genre, and normalcy as it pertains to social survival, but just...bits of that are in these designs and lore. Keep that in mind.

Also I made the kids twins because they've flip flopped in age so much in different media and also twins run in my family (i'm the daughter of one). And let's face it, I'm pulling a lot of their southern gothic traits from living as a southern goth so *shrug*.

10 thousand pounds of lore incoming loooooooooool.

The Parents

From the moment he saw her he knew that there was a 50/50 chance of him either never making it out of that swamp alive or marrying the figure that was creeping out from under the distant willow tree in a black cocktail dress. The third time she found him trussed up in one of her traps, he complimented her rope work and asked if she'd like to go out sometime after his head wound stopped bleeding.

Or while it was still bleeding.

If she was into that.

Some kids and a mysteriously burnt down Piggly Wiggly later, their love is still as strong and inescapable as a bear trap in a sink hole.

Carlisle Guillermo (now Addams through marriage but I wanted to give him two first names for a name since Gomez has two last names) makes a vaguely described living practicing ‘law’ around town. A loophole king, people come to him from miles around with contracts signed in blood, fights over chunks of hair buried in their rivals’ yard, dehydrated primate hands, memories that seemed like dreams until the evidence of their happenings became too real, and other regular Legal Items asking for counsel which he is all too happy to give. For a price. Sometimes that price is a homemade pie and sometimes it’s a million dollars, depends on who you are. Whatever you’re asked to pay it’s worth that price, and if you try to scam him out of work or he just plain doesn’t like you? Well. He knows how to twist a contract better than anything at the crossroads.

And he always gets his due.

He doesn’t just serve the local (living)humans though, there are many things that need proper legal representation in this day and age. You wouldn’t believe how many city councils try to build on sacred burial grounds even after he lets them know that his ghostly clients are totally gonna haunt the FUCK out of the ensuing shitty condos and curse their families for all eternity. At least 50% of his energy goes towards dealing with real estate bullshit.

Carl is an excitable and good natured(?) man who loves his family, cigars, dancing, and his many knife-based hobbies. People find him very charming once they get past the feeling that they’re talking to a sultry gator badly disguising itself as a human. I didn’t put a ton of deep thought into designing him, mostly I wanted to make a middle aged dude who looked like he would have been voted ‘most likely to smooch the literal devil’ in high school. Tbh he probably has, but no demonic ex’s can compare to his lovely wife~

Mortesha Addams(her name was already perfect so I just tweaked it)is a woman of many talents. A self proclaimed homemaker, she prides herself on a greenhouse full of Concerning Foliage, a beautiful wasp apiary, and a coop full of what are probably chickens that she keeps for what are probably eggs. She’s also an avid creator of the outsider art that can be seen around the estate. She has taken on the family business of selling her homemade goods in a little stall by the road just outside the swamp with her mom, and makes pretty good money doing so. A surprising amount of poison gets bought in quaint southern towns.

Speaking of poison, people who come out to the edge of the swamp to buy it are usually carrying a lot of secrets around, and Mortesha knows most of them. It’s not like she pries the truth out of people, it just so happens that many nervous hellos eventually turn into the tragic backstory power hour if she’s alone with a client for long enough. She supposes that’s just how people are. Despite the fact that the Addams are very active in the community (whether the community likes it or not) she especially, as a direct descendant of the first Addams matriarch, is seen as…Well not an outsider because the community feels A Certain Way about outsiders and despite it all the Addams are their people, but maybe something like an exception. They feel like whatever weirdness they’re hiding can’t be weirder than any given Addams, so they get a little loose with their words.

This is amusing to her, since Addams’ don’t naturally keep the kind dramatic secrets that their surface level prim and proper neighbors do. It’s much more fun to openly talk about those things.

Do they have a sadly decrepit yet terrifying grandma up in the attic? Yeah, like three. They got a tv, all the creepy porcelain dolls they could want, and they’re close to family. Where do you keep your gram-grams?

Any bodies buried on the property? Yeah some, but most are thrown to the gators.

Any creeping through the balmy summer night with ill intentions? Yeah dude, everyone loves a nice family stroll.

What about dangerous forbidden love? If an adult Addams isn’t incorporeal then they’re either queer or in a torrid romance with some person/thing mysteriously drawn to that awful swamp. Sometimes both at the same time. Most times actually.

Mortesha would know.

The current head of the Addams family is just as outgoing as her husband but a lot quieter and harder to read. She never really seems to get mad about much and always has a genteel smile for everyone whether they deserve it or not. A seven foot tall human shaped “Oh, bless your heart”. A perfectly composed Lady even when she’s, oh I dunno, burning down a Piggly Wiggly. You know. A regular southern mom. Chat her up at the hair salon for 50% off a jar of wasp honey with your next purchase of a mysterious but foreboding packet of herbs.

Designing her was pretty easy because I just drew a lankier Grace Jones and called it a day. I had some problems with her outfit simply because if we were going HARD southern gothic then she’d probably be wearing a white/cream dress with a fuller skirt but I thought keeping the silhouette and the black was more important. She’s supposed to be an anti southern gothic southern gothic character anyway. A woman who looks like she has a million secrets who is actually the most open person you could meet. For better or worse. The red hair came from a coloring error that I really ended up liking (my mom had red hair her whole childhood that only darkened up in high school so I can buy that an Addams can be naturally fire engine red) and the veil was to get more of that classic Morticia silhouette in there.

The Children

Sunday and Blanche are the twin children of Carlisle and Mortesha Addams. Some say the Addams clan got their cursed homestead when a wealthy local businessman made a deal with the devil and lost, leaving his grand mansion to his least favorite maid and cutting his losses once he realized that the swamp would do everything it could to drag the house into the water and take what was owed with its horrible curse. Others say that the family has just always squatted there and no one really cares because man, fuck that particular swamp. Have you been in there? Absolute horror show.

Anyway.

Blanche is the more outgoing sibling and quite the engineer/mad scientist in the making. He started going grey at 2 weeks old but considering he was also rocking some extra fingers, toes, and a tiny tail (he takes after his dad), his parents just put it on the 'not life threatening' pile and decided not to worry about it. He's the kind of smart that teachers find utterly infuriating, less a dog eagerly learning and obeying commands and more a hyena who keeps teaching itself how to pick locks. He has a few friends in his school's robotics club (which they honestly allowed him to make so the school could contain his... creations) but mostly hangs out with his sister exploring the swamp. They find all sorts of neat things in there! wedding rings, suspiciously lumpy garbage bags, cloaked cultists who can't read private property signs, it's an adventure every day!

Blanche is all about experimentation with his creations, his look, and his tether to this mortal coil. Is lipstick a cool thing to try? Let's find out. Can he get out of a strait jacket fast enough after being pushed into the depths of the swamp by his sister? let's find out. He's not dead yet and confused local doctors can attest to the fact that he's rarely attained more than a bad bruise so he's pretty set on continuing to kiss rattlesnakes on their cute little heads and have his sister practice her knife throwing at him until that fact changes.

Blanche is very much a country goth. Cowboy boots (customized by his mom), knife, and lighter are daily accessories. He likes to wear the crusty swamp jewelry they find (the rust adds a splash of color!) and despite appearances he does try to keep himself neat. He's just got  natural Grunge Colors and a tendency to wear clothes he likes until they fall apart. Pugsley always seemed the most modernly styled to me (which might just be because little boys clothes have been the same for a long time) so I wanted Blanche to be the most purposely fashionable Addams. Everyone else is goth by nature, but he's the only one truly familiar with goth as an alternative fashion.

I got really into designing Blanche because honestly, I find Pugsley to be the most boring member of the family. And he was hard to design! I had to mess with his vibe a lot to get him looking how I wanted. I know he's supposed to evoke an " 'evil' little boy next door who's parents never reign him in", but that's just goth Dennis The Menace.  I's 2020. We can at least go queer goth Calvin.

Sunday was much easier to design. Wednesday was my favorite as a child (of course) and I really wanted to keep the spirit of her look while adding things like billowy sleeves (it gets HOT down here), big poofy twists instead of braids, and a nice tie. She's a professional after all, been running the local pet cemetery since she was 6 and the previous groundskeeper met with an unfortunate accident after telling her that tarantulas don't have souls. Her specialty is creating beautiful naturalistic animal funerals similar to those that Maquenda (https://linktr.ee/artofmaquenda) makes, and she takes pride in creating miniature dioramas of her subjects after each burial which she uses as a kind of 3D catalog for future clients.

She really wants to try out her skills on humans one day. Well. Publicly try out her skills. Lotta random bodies float into the swamp. None of them have turned down her requests for diorama models so far. Most seem downright flattered. Plus, she usually figures out which graveyard/crime scene they floated over from and gets her parents to give them a lift back. She'll even help enact terrifying revenge from beyond the grave on whoever put them there if she's not, y'know, busy.

Besides arts, crafts, and pet based funerary arrangements, Sunday is an avid lover of archery (any ranged weapon really), books where little fantasy adventure animals die dramatic deaths, and history. She is That Kid who eagerly raises her hand when asked who Christopher Columbus was and ends up being sent out of class after 15 minutes for making 'a scene'. Her favorite party trick is just picking an item in the room and talking about how it relates to either some obscure historical figure with a buck wild life or a horrible disaster. At least one charity pancake breakfast ended with children in tears after her vivid description of the Great Molasses Flood of 1919.

Social-wise, while Wednesday is the girl that people ask to smile because they think she'd, "look so pretty", Sunday is rarely asked anything at all. People just kind of assume from her quiet nature (in between horrible history facts) that she's angry all the time and that she hates everyone. This is untrue. She hates some people but she's ambivalent to most everyone else and even downright friendly if you bother to talk to her like a person instead of a terrifying cryptid. Like, she IS a terrifying cryptid but she's also a little girl.  

That’s about it for now. One day I might do the other family members but for now I’m happy with the four I’ve redesigned. Making an au! Lurch in a family that doesn’t do butlers could be interesting. Over on patreon I put forth that he could just be Motesha’s mute little brother (similar bone structure) but Amy Crook had the nice idea of quote: “ a mysterious "cousin" that "helps around the house" whose origins are both long in the past and faintly unsettling. He's good for lifting heavy things, like that tank of propane you're about to throw into the burning Piggly Wiggly... “ which i now consider canon. Who's kid is he? How old is he? Not important. Anyone willing to commit arson with you is family.

Annnnyway.  This challenge was a lot of fun! I love indulging in AU’s.

[absolutepokemontrash]

MC is Half Demon and They Look Awfully Familiar

(Lessons 1-5!)

Part 1 Part 2 Lessons 5-6 Group Retreat Lessons 10-12 Lessons 13-15 Part 3 Part 4

So we obviously know that things would run a little differently with L!MC instead of a normal human MC, but just how differently do things go?

No Mammon, you are not allowed to babysit!

Unlike in canon, Mammon needs to be kept away from MC at the start. Why? He’s known this kid for less than a day, he’s gonna try and use them for scams.

Everyone else in the house? Well, they’re of... observing MC. This is a first, a half human kid just wandering around the house...

MC and Lucifer, despite their amicable meeting, were in this really awkward beginning stage where they didn’t really know what to do with each other.

“So...” MC resisted the urge to twiddle their thumbs as they followed their father through the halls of the House of Lamentation. This was their home for the next year. It was very grand... and also very creepy in some places. “Where’s my room?”

“Right here.” Lucifer stopped suddenly in front of a door in the hallway, nearly causing MC to crash into him. He opened up the door, the room was very very pink. “Asmodeus decorated, you can redecorate as you see fit.”

MC popped their head in and looked around, there were approximately a thousand pillows scattered around the bed. It was the perfect amount! The very pink colour scheme was... okay. Maybe they’d be able to switch some of it out for a nice blue.

“It’s nice! Thank you,” MC was about to say Lucifer, then father, then just shut their mouth. What were they supposed to call him? They had known each other for like... an hour. He seemed like the type to want to be called father, he was too posh to be ‘dad’ or ‘pops’, and calling their father by his first name seemed way too casual as well... Parental Figure..? Guardian? Sir..? Should they call him sir???

The fact that MC ended their sentence like they were going to continue it left the two in a very awkward silence. A+ job at conversation.

“Anyway,” Lucifer finally broke the silence. “If you need time to settle in, we can pick up the tour later.”

“N-no, it’s okay! I didn’t really bring anything so...” MC was in the middle of mentally cursing themselves out, they thought they had successfully avoided falling into the awkward middle schooler stereotype! “We can keep the tour going.”

“Alright then.” Lucifer turned and motioned for MC to follow. Wow... he was very... curt? Was that the right word to use? MC hoped this was as awkward for him as it was for them.

The next stop was the portrait staircase, Lucifer explained each one down to each minute detail, MC listened in rapt attention.

“We received that one from a painter from the sixth layer of the Devildom, it was quite a rare find.”

“How many layers are there?”

“Nine, we’re in the centre most layer. This is the most highly defended part of the Devildom.” Lucifer explained.

“Oh,” MC smiled. “Cool, so it’s like how Dante described it in the Divine Comedy?”

“Mostly, some changes have been made since that time.”

“Ah, okay.” MC nodded, a thought came to them which made them clear their throat to suppress a giggle. “May I ask a question that might bother you?”

Lucifer turned and raised an eyebrow at them. “You may ask one such question.”

“Why did Dante say you were frozen in an ice lake?”

Lucifer looked around, once he was sure that no one was listening, he turned back to MC, his voice was slightly lower when he answered. “I was ice skating with Lord Diavolo, I fell through the ice and into the lake right as Virgil and Dante arrived. Of course, Dante had to embellish or I’d smite him, if only he left out the ice part.”

To MC’s credit, they didn’t laugh, but they weren’t doing a very good job of hiding how hard it was to not burst into laughter. “Oh my... how upsetting...”

Lucifer rolled his eyes. “I’d tell you not to tell anyone but,” his lips quirked up into a smile. “No one would believe you if you said anything anyway.”

MC gasped, but the gasp ended up releasing the laugh they were holding in.

The half demon noticed some of the other portraits on the wall, each of the brothers had a portrait, there were two demons that MC didn’t recognize. So that was their family... they wondered if their picture might be on that wall one day...

“Who’s he?” MC pointed at the portrait between Mammon’s and Satan’s.

“That’s Leviathan, the third eldest, the Avatar of Envy, and the Grand Admiral of Hell’s Navy.”

‘Oooo, so he’s a military guy!’ MC thought to themselves. ‘And the third most powerful brother? Wow... he must be crazy scary...’

“What about him?” MC pointed at the seventh and final portrait.

It may have just been MC’s imagination, but they swore they saw Lucifer’s expression sour slightly.

“That’s Belphegor, the youngest and the Avatar of Sloth.” Lucifer explained. “He is currently in the human world as an exchange student.”

“Oh,” MC studied the portraits a bit more. “Cool! I hope he’s having a good time up there.”

“As do I.” Lucifer replied. “Now we should move on to the Underground-”

“LUCIFER!” Asmodeus cried. “MAMMON’S BEING STUPID AGAIN!”

Lucifer sighed and dragged a gloved hand down his face. “We’ll continue this tour later, MC. Feel free to explore some more, try not to break anything.”

“Because the things might be cursed?”

“That and the things are old and expensive.”

MC spends the rest of the day chilling in the house with Asmo, who peppers MC with ALL the questions.

They does their best to answer... but it’s clear Asmo was hoping for something a little more interesting.

“So, do you run the human world?”

“No. No I do not.”

Finally, Mammon escapes whatever punishment Lucifer’s got him caught up in and tried to get MC involved in something that’ll probably make them lose their money.

Mini HC! A demon’s wings, tail, or horns might pop out randomly if they aren’t paying attention! The demon doesn’t even need to be in their true demonic form for this to happen. It happens more often with younger demons like MC!

Mammon stops his little scheme when he notices that MC’s wings have popped out and left a few stray feathers lying about... he can hear the CHA CHING sound already.

Our favourite dummy tried to Mission Impossible his way into MC’s room but MC caught him trying to make off with some loose feathers after they came back with a dustpan to clean them up.

Eventually, it was dinner time, and Levi was still camped out in his room. Mammon got sent to get him out, and he decided to drag MC along with him.

“I don’t think we should bother him-”

“Sh! We gotta get him out of his stupid room or he’s gonna stay in there until the exchange year’s over.” Mammon snapped, stopping in front of Leviathan’s door.

“I still don’t think we should-”

Mammon rudely interrupted poor, aghast MC by slamming his fists against the door. “LEVI! GET UP! DINNER’S READY!”

The only response was someone increasing the volume on whatever show was playing behind the door. Wow, petty. MC suppressed a snort until they realized exactly what they were hearing.

Was that...

“Is that the Sailor Moon theme?” MC turned to Mammon and asked. The moment the question left their lips the pair heard someone practically bolt to the door. It swung open and hit Mammon right in the face.

“MOTHER FUCKER-”

“You!”

Ah, so this was the Grand Admiral of Hell’s Navy. MC didn’t know that track pants and headphones were a part of the uniform.

“You like anime?!” Levi asked, MC slowly nodded.

“Y-yeah..?”

Quick as lightning, MC was pulled into the room, and Levi slammed the door shut, tragically, the door hit Mammon again.

“LEVI YOU ASS-”

Leviathan didn’t seem too interested in Mammon’s chorus of curse words and angry knocks, he was grabbing some figurines off shelves and showing some to MC.

“Do you know who this is?!”

“That’s White Blood Cell from Cells at Work. What about Mamm-”

“How about this!”

“Violet Evergarden from the show of the same name, now Levia-”

“Whose this?!”

“LEVIATHAN!” MC stomped their foot and pointed at the door. “Mammon said we need to go eat dinner.”

“Don’t interrupt me, human!” Levi hissed, MC rolled their eyes and snorted.

“Nice to meet you, by the way.” MC crossed their arms and let their wings appear and puff up behind them.

“...w-whu-WHAT?!”

“We have to go to-” MC was cut off yet again by Levi passing out. Wow... what a day...

Mammon was still pounding on the door, MC rolled their eyes and opened it.

“He passed out, can you carry him?”

Mammon was decidedly not careful with his dear little brother when he dragged him out of his room and into the dining room. When Levi finally woke up, he got an earful from Lucifer, and tried to kill Mammon.

Apparently money was owed that Mammon wasn’t about to pay.

So yeah, MC and Levi’s alliance did not stem from desperation, it stems from otaku-camaraderie.

MC and Levi planned their credit-card hostage situation over a fun evening of watching anime.

Mammon never knew what hit him...

“Okay Mammon, pay up or your credit card gets cut up.” MC playfully opened and closed the scissors before poising them to cut up the helpless credit card. Mammon let out a shriek and shook his head.

“NONONONONO- don’t do that!” Mammon put his hands up and let out a nervous laugh. “MC... wh-what’s with all the animosity..? We’re buddies, right?”

MC snorted and rolled their eyes. “Buddies don’t try and make money off each other’s feathers.”

“You heard them, Mammon.” Levi snickered. “Pay me back the money you owe me!”

“I don’t have the money right now!”

MC shook their head. “Pity... oh well, bye bye Goldie-”

“The money’s in my sock drawer- just please put the scissors down!”

They slowly lowered the scissors. “What do you think, Levi?”

“Hmmm... you have two minutes.” Levi said, Mammon took off in a sprint out of the kitchen.

“Nice job Agent L!” MC chirped, holding their hand out for a high five, Levi looked positively elated and gleefully hit his hand against MC’s.

“We did it! I’m finally going to have enough money to go to the live show! Couldn’t have done it without your help, Agent Near.”

“Wait- why am I Near?” MC asked. “You get to be L and I have to be Near?”

Levi crossed his arms and huffed. “Would you rather be Mellow?”

“No! I want to be Light! We agreed that I’d be Light!” MC hissed. Levi, literally hissed back.

Rude.

Anyway, Levi got paid, and everyone had a very entertaining breakfast. Well, Mammon didn’t have a very good time, but boo hoo he should have paid Levi back sooner.

I think MC felt legitimately bad for Mammon, all the insults and jabs being aimed at him made MC feel a little guilty...

MC took care to be extra sweet that day, and it made Mammon feel a bit better. You know what made both of them feel amazing?

Screwing with the dipshits that were talking crap about the two of them.

MC didn’t need super-hearing to notice that some of the demons at RAD found it to be peak comedy that Mammon got slapped with babysitting duty.

“...do you want to mess with them?”

“What?”

“Too late, I’m doing it with or without you.”

Mammon was totally in, obviously. A little magic to move some of the lesser demons’ things around and voila! They were all at each other’s throats and Mammon and MC got to enjoy a fun lunchtime show!

The Purgatory Hall crew got to meet MC too, of course!

“And this,” Lucifer gestured to MC. “Is the other human exchange student.”

MC popped up from behind one of the rows of desks and gave the three newcomers a toothy grin. “Nice to meet you!”

Simeon’s calm and serene expression dropped almost immediately as he quickly looked from Lucifer to MC. The latter just gave him an innocent smile and tilted their head.

“Is something the matter?” MC asked, through the corner of their eye they saw Lucifer smirk slightly.

“N...” Simeon snapped back to reality. “No, nothing’s the matter, it’s nice to meet you, MC.”

“You awful demons!” A much younger voice yapped. “You brought a human child down here?! Shame on you!”

Lucifer rolled his eyes. “I’m overwhelmed with guilt, put me out of my misery.”

“Oh!” MC gasped. “You’re the chihuahua!”

“Wh-what?!”

“What?” MC shook their head and shrugged. “What’s the matter with me being a kid? You look like you’re ten.”

“I’ll have you know that I’m well over-”

“Am I just going to go ignored?” The third and final stranger asked, a cheeky/very suspicious looking grin on his face.

“Right, you.” Lucifer sighed. “This is Solomon, another human exchange student.”

“It’s nice to finally meet the other... human exchange student.” Solomon offered a nod.

“Likewise.” MC pretended not to notice the pause before he said human.

The first bell that meant “haul your ass to next period because if the cleaning staff finds you skipping class you will be maimed” sounded. MC slung their bag over their shoulder and brushed past their fellow students.

“Have a nice rest of your day, everyone!” MC chirped as they and Lucifer headed off to their next class.

“What do you stand to gain by pretending you aren’t my child?” Lucifer asked.

MC snickered. “It’s funny! Didn’t you see their faces?”

Lucifer half smiled and shook his head. “Perhaps.”

—————

“That kid is Lucifer’s.” Solomon said the moment Lucifer and MC were out of earshot.

“Oh thank heavens someone else saw too... I thought I was going crazy...” Simeon sighed in relief.

“Hey! We’ll be late to class if you guys don’t hurry!” Luke called from down the hall.

Solomon chuckled under his breath. “This whole year just got way more interesting...”

A lot of MC’s time got devoted to getting to know their newly found family.

Satan was proving to be very... polite? Almost weirdly so? He’d address MC like he would address a formal acquaintance, not like one would address a family member... or even a roommate.

MC tried the delicate dance of trying to respect his boundaries and trying to get him to like them...

Once the glasses incident happened everything kinda caved. MC had been quite rudely shunned by Satan and they were quite done trying to be his friend! Hmph!

...hmph :(

At least Beel was nice... despite MC being a little intimidated by his size and resting bitch face, MC soon found out that Beel was a massive cinnamon roll.

In return for all the snacks Beel shared with MC, they introduced him to at least five human world cooking shows.

“MC, why is the music so dramatic? They’re just revealing the cooking supplies.”

“It’s a reality TV thing... everything is 10 times more dramatic than it needs to be. The music’s doing its job though, I’m very impressed by that pie dish.”

Overall, MC’s first week at RAD was pretty decent! Until... well... until Friday.

MC could only hide their demonic side for so long...

“That’s them?”

MC slowed their steps and turned to look for the source of the voice.

“Yep.” A second voice confirmed. “Human kid, like I said.”

Ugh... of all the times to have needed to stay late after school... the hallway MC was in was completely empty and they had no clue where anyone they actually knew was-

“Boo.”

MC whirled around to see the two gossiping demons standing right behind them. They instinctively took a few steps back before the taller of the two demons grabbed them by the wrist and yanked them forward.

“Geez, are all humans this tiny?” The taller one asked as he slowly lifted MC off the ground. MC fixed him with the nastiest glare possible, he tried to scowl back, but ended up looking away and laughing to the shorter demon. “Look at them, barely enough for a snack, no wonder Beel hasn’t eaten them yet.”

Turning to the shorter demon, MC gave them a similar glare. “Put me down.”

“Tsk, quiet.” The taller demon snapped, he turned back to the shorter demon. “So if we just nab them now, how much do you think someone’ll take for their soul?”

“I-uh...” the shorter demon couldn’t pry their gaze away from MC’s as they tried to sputter a response. “I don’t think we should...”

“Why not? The exchange program’s still in its trial phase anyway, we kill this human and they’ll just bring in another one.”

The way he was speaking about them made MC’s skin crawl. How dare he? How dare he talk about them like they were just common trash? Who did this... person think he was?

An old familiar feeling bubbled beneath the surface. It had always been there, the intense, sometimes overwhelming desire to let the whole world know that they were better. The feeling coiled its way up MC’s spine and wormed its way into their head where it settled.

“You can’t be spoken to like that.”

Every single time this feeling had flared up, MC had done their best to suppress it. They didn’t know what would happen if they gave in, and frankly, they didn’t want to know.

“Let them know you’re not to be trifled with.”

The burning desire to crush the two demons like ants was almost impossible to ignore. MC felt their hands twitch and sparks snap between their fingertips.

“I’m not going to tell you again,” MC growled. “Put. Me. Down.”

“Human,” the taller demon turned back and cooed, his mocking tone made MC want to rip his throat out. “I said be quiet.”

His grip on MC’s wrist tightened until a sickening crack echoed through the empty hallway.

Bile immediately rose in MC’s throat as they let out an earsplitting scream. Their wrist seared in pain and their heart began to race hammer against their ribcage.

The desire to give in only grew and became harder to control, MC could feel themselves slipping. The feeling only had one simple question to ask, one that MC knew the answer to.

“Are you going to let them get away with that?”

Their face morphed into a cheek splitting grin despite the pain, their head tilted to the left as they stared down the two demons.

“No.”

Horns twisted and burst out of their skull as they dug their rapidly sharpening nails into the demon’s arm. Their teeth grew and sharpened while formerly hidden fangs burst through their upper gums. The agonizing pain of their bones growing, snapping, and shifting in and out of place as their demonic form took hold for the first time numbed as MC revelled in their new power.

Through the reflection in the taller demon’s horrified stare, MC could see their pupils stretch into almost catlike slits. He dropped them onto the floor while he and the shorter demon backed up. MC’s impossibly wide smile only grew as they watched the realization dawn upon the lesser demon as he stitched together what he had just done. The human he had decided to bother wasn’t quite so human after all.

“Oh?” MC cooed as their wings split through their back and unfurled behind them. “Where do you think you two are going? We haven’t even gotten started yet.”

—————

Lucifer was jolted from his conversation by a sharp blast of blue light and the sound of screams from a nearby hallway. He instinctively rolled his eyes.

“Lord Diavolo, pardon me but I need to go deal with a disturbance in the halls.” Lucifer said, Diavolo sighed mournfully on the other end of the call.

“Alright, if you must, but make sure to come over later! There are events that need to be scheduled.”

Lucifer knew full well that Diavolo was making half of the school events up as an excuse for basic social interaction. Oh well, it wasn’t the time to think on his prince’s social woes, he had a problem to solve.

How many times did he have to tell some of those idiotic students to take their petty squabbles outside?

Lucifer made his way over to where the fight was happening, he wasn’t walking with particular urgency, a fight on school property wasn’t too unusual, until a massive shockwave spilled through the hallways and slammed into him.

The Avatar of Pride felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand straight up, that was his magical signature... wasn’t it? No, it was just different enough...

“Dammit.” Lucifer doubled his pace, when he reached the end of the hallway, the sight was just what he feared.

MC stood straight in the middle of the hallway with their back to him, two other demons were lying in crumpled heaps on the ground, one was next to an incredibly dented row of lockers while the other was lying next to an almost completely broken drinking fountain.

Lucifer’s own true form was out in a flash as MC turned to look at him. their eyes glowing a shining blue. Their lips curled into a snarl as they let out an otherworldly growl.

“Go away.”

“MC, calm yourself down.” Lucifer said slowly as he approached them. “Return to your normal form.”

The half demon bowed their head slightly and took a few steps back as he stepped closer. Lucifer almost patted himself on the back for such a show of authority, until MC paused and looked up defiantly. The glow in their eyes doubled as any sense of fear left them completely.

“I said, GO AWAY!”

They lunged at him, which he easily sidestepped, only for MC to quickly turn and latch their claws into his arm.

The child packed a surprising amount of force into their strikes, but he was able to block and redirect almost every single one. If this were any normal fight, Lucifer would have just swatted them away and have been done with it, but this wasn’t any ordinary opponent.

MC was his child, the exchange student, and going through their first transformation. They weren’t exactly rational or directly responsible for any of their actions at that moment.

During a first transformation the demon is almost completely relying on base instincts to function, they’ll go completely ballistic for a while, trying to tear through anything in their way until they run out of energy and pass out. Which is why during a demon’s first transformation usually happened much earlier in their lives under the watchful eyes of parents or guardians.

It was clear to anyone with even casual knowledge of demons that MC had fully given themselves over to their pride and wouldn’t stop trying to prove their superiority until they passed out.

Even though Lucifer was blocking and avoiding most of the blows, MC had managed to get in a few good scratches.

They snapped at Lucifer’s right hand, narrowly missing it and aimed their elbow at his jaw. Almost casually batting the hit away, he hissed in frustration.

“Damn it... MC, control yourself!”

MC snarled and sloppily lunged forward, only for Lucifer to use his wings to bat them to the side. They slid across the floor, their glasses falling off and skidding away from them. MC lay still for a few moments, their chest rising and falling rapidly.

Lucifer stood in place, waiting for any sudden movement. For a few moments, the hallway was quiet, save for the massive gulps of air MC was taking and the occasional groan of pain from one of the demons on the floor. MC slowly sat up and blinked a few times, then looked from side to side.

Something important dawned on Lucifer, he didn’t know just how blind MC was without their glasses.

MC’s rapid breathing began to slow as they continued to squint and search the area around them for their glasses. Lucifer almost audibly sighed in relief as the blue glow in his child’s eyes began to dull.

“MC.” Lucifer allowed his demon form to disappear as he slowly moved towards them, making sure MC could hear him approaching.

The half demon stopped scanning the area for their glasses and looked up at him, they awkwardly covered a yawn with their hand as their wings sleepily fluttered behind them. It would have been much cuter if MC wasn’t spattered with blood.

Lucifer slowly offered his hand, which MC eyed suspiciously. “Come on, let’s go.”

MC blinked a few times, then yawned again and awkwardly accepted his hand. “Mmph... m’tired...”

“That’s good,” Lucifer said quietly. “Everything’s okay.”

MC half nodded and awkwardly stumbled as they tried to find their footing. Lucifer tried to help steady them, but it proved ineffective as MC collapsed into his arms. Sighing, he picked them up and began to walk back to the House of Lamentation.

Just before leaving the school, Lucifer passed by Simeon and Solomon, who looked from MC, who had curled their wings around themselves and was sleeping soundly, to Lucifer, who had a few scratch marks on his face and whose hair was a complete mess.

“Ah, you two, one of you do me a favour.” Lucifer said as he brushed past them. “One of you go to the biology hallway and pick up MC’s glasses.”

Simeon and Solomon nodded and mumbled out an affirmation as Lucifer left the school with MC. Hmph, it seemed MC was right, their confused/shocked faces were quite funny.

MC woke up the next morning with the worst muscle pain they had ever and hopefully would ever feel. On the bright side, their wrist wasn’t broken anymore :D

They had literally built their true form. Their skeleton just stretched and rearranged itself, horns grew out from their cranium, their wings broke through their back and a new set of fangs decided to break through their gums... and then all of that new stuff was gone as MC lay in bed in their normal form like a deflated beach ball.

Not wanting to seem like a wimp, MC dragged themselves to breakfast, and everyone was all: “MC, go back to bed, you can’t do anything when you’re like this.”

“Quiet, I’m fine.”

“MC, if you’re fine, then give Beel a high five, make sure it makes the slap sound.”

“Alright then, Beel, come here.”

Beel didn’t exactly think to take MC’s shorter stature into account when holding up his hand for a high five. He’s tall, okay?

MC then proceeded to grit their teeth and try not to scream as they lifted their arm to weakly hit their hand against Beel’s.

“It made the noise..!”

“No it didn’t, I didn’t hear it.”

“Fatherrrr!”

“Couldn’t hear it, go back upstairs.”

When MC trudged upstairs, Asmo practically squealed and pointed out that MC had called Lucifer father for the first time. It’s a shame no one took a picture of happy/surprised Lucifer.

Side note: after the whole event calmed down, Lucifer was crazy proud that his kid kicked the asses of two grown demons.

Funnily enough, this incident is what kickstarted MC and Luke’s friendship! Luke heard MC got into a fight and brought over get-well cookies! Sure... Beel, Mammon and Levi stole most of the cookies but they were still good!

At school on Monday... hooooooo boy... the two demons that tried to kill MC had lived to tell the tale thanks to MC getting distracted by Lucifer, and now the entire student body knew NOT to fuck with MC.

A few weeks into the exchange year, things had settled into a somewhat normal routine... until one really shitty night in particular.

MC was curled up in bed, their new comforter and sheets were a pain to put in, but they suited MC’s taste much better than the pink that had been there previously. Sighing in contentment, MC felt themselves drifting off to sleep-

Mother fucker who was texting at the ungodly hour of 10:30 pm on a Sunday? ‘Twas the lord’s day and the lord of the house stated that everyone needed to get their asses to bed at a reasonable hour.

MC picked up their phone and put on their glasses. After being blinded by the light of the phone for a brief moment, MC read the text.

Not-Rich Uncle Pennybags 💰🕶: Oi! MC! U want a snack?

Not-Rich Uncle Pennybags💰🕶: I’m in the kitchen! Get down here!

After debating whether or not to throw Mammon to the wolves and rat him out, MC decided that they did in fact want a snack and hopped out of bed to go to the kitchen.

“Hey kiddo!” Mammon said through a mouthful of something in a container, a loose note hung limply from a piece of tape that was stuck on the Tupperware. “Next time, hurry it up, got it? Ya can’t keep me waitin’ like this!”

“Mm...” MC grumbled, rubbing their eyes and looking around the kitchen. “What are you eating?”

“Custard!” Mammon smiled brightly. “Ya gotta try this!”

Oooo, custard! MC grabbed a spoon and practically skipped over to try some. Right before they were about to try a bit of the heavenly deliciousness, MC paused and finally caught a glimpse of what the note said.

‘Property of Beelzebub, you eat it, you die.’

Uh oh-

———————

Okay, the next few bits of this WILL come out in order, I promise! Kinda... not really... eh... but it matters not! I hope you all enjoyed this! I didn’t leave you with a cliffhanger this time considering Lessons 5-6 are already out ^_^

So uh- wanna fight the demons that tried to hurt MC? I’m bringing the pitchforks, who’s driving?

[therealvinelle]

in the “everyone is in love with Bella” scenario, what about the wolves? Wouldn’t it be really fucked up for Sam to fall in love with her? Would it make the wolves try to redefine imprinting? how would Leah react to the whole situation?

Anon is referring to this post. For the record, I didn't get into them in the post because the plot would veer so far off-course in Twilight that Edward never leaves and Victoria never becomes a threat to Bella, meaning Bella and Jake don't get close and she doesn't need their protection.

But, let's do this.

First encounter

Bella arrives in Forks, and Billy and Jacob are there to hand over the pickup.

Boom.

They fall in love.

Jacob, having never had a real crush before nevermind something so powerful as falling in love, is overwhelmed by these new feelings. He blushes and flushes and stutters, and fails to say anything reasonable or even intelligble to Bella. Too mortified to function, he decides to hide in La Push until the embarrassment fades. Which very well could be never.

Billy, meanwhile, is unable to cope. He just fell in love with Charlie's daughter. Charlie's 17-year-old daughter who used to make mud cakes with Billy's daughters.

This is bad.

This, to a good man like Billy, is unforgivably bad.

He goes from being Charlie's best friend to suddenly being very distant, not wanting to ever cross paths with Bella again.

But, you asked about the wolves, not just Jake and Billy, so let's take this scenario further.

Bella's friends, all of whom are hopelessly in love with her, drag her to La Push

Jessica, Lauren, Mike, Angela, Tyler, Eric, Ben, the whole gang, they're all going to La Push for the weekend.

And it just won't be the same without Bella. She's just so great, you know?

Everyone looks at each other and nods. Yeah, it's just not fun without Bella. Bella's great, someone should invite her.

They all invite her, one by one, all of them with wide, adoring eyes. "It would be so amazing if you came, Bella," Jessica says dreamily, twirling a lock of Bella's hair around her fingers. "Your hair is really pretty," she giggles.

Angela and Ben are each blushing too hard to really say anything to Bella, so they end up running away from her. Bella is left feeling like some kind of freak. She later receives two notes in class, one from each, begging her in cramped writing to come to La Push. Yeah, not helping her feel like less of a freak.

Mike, Eric, Tyler, and Lauren all corner her, each worse than the last.

By the end of the schoolday Bella doesn't know what's going to happen at La Push but she does know that she doesn't want to go.

She complains about this to the Cullens (remember, her and Edward became an item much earlier in this timeline), and they all fawn and coo over her and act like she just went through a warzone. If she wants to go to the beach, she could try Isle Esme Bella. Would she like that, an island vacation? Or an island?

Bella is pulled out of school for a romantic two-week totally-not-a-honeymoon.

La Push never happens.

But surely Bella and the wolves must meet at some point

Billy catches wind that Bella Swan is dating Edward Cullen. As in, the girl he has fallen so deeply in love with is now being preyed upon by a blood-sucking demon.

Billy's own sense of propriety or honor be damned, he has to save this girl's life.

He tries to speak to her, just as in canon, but just as in canon this goes poorly. Bella is a savvy 17-year-old who doesn't need no warning, and besides, the Cullens are all so sweet. They're like hobbits, really, obviously she's not in any danger. She tells Billy as much. Vampires are lovely, does he know they gave her an island?

(Billy did not know this, and yes, that's weird. Doesn't mean they're not evil, though.)

Billy gets nowhere with his would-be intervention.

Time to bring in the big guns.

Sam phases around this time, and imprints on Emily. Break-ups with Leah, maulings, and tragic lovestories all around are had.

It is around this time that Billy brings Sam up to speed on the Bella situation, although leaving out the part where he's hopelessly in love with the girl because that would not be received well. Could Sam go speak with her about this, see if maybe she will take his warning seriously? The situation is dire.

Sure, Sam can do that. No one wants a human girl to get eaten or turned, after all.

Sam goes to see Bella.

And promptly falls in love just as he did Emily.

Emily, who is currently in the hospital from Sam mauling her, which happened specifically because Sam had imprinted.

It's official, Sam thinks, he's the greatest scumbag there ever was.

The Emily and Leah situation was awful enough as it was, breaking all three of their hearts and causing irreparable damage both physically and mentally. Sam wronged them both colossaly, and he can never amend that.

But he imprinted. He wasn't just being a douchebag, actual magic made him do it.

Now, though...

Either Sam imprinted on multiple people, in which case his happy ending is now polygamy. And how would that be a happy ending for Emily and Bella?

Or, possibly even more terrifying yet, he didn't imprint on either woman.

Breaking up with Leah, mauling Emily, making Emily fall in love with him after that and ruining her relationship with her cousin, in short putting these women through hell, all of it- it was for nothing. Sam's just a horndog who sees supernatural intervention where there's really just hormones.

Why couldn't he just have imprinted on Leah?

Sam can't go on a sabbatical to figure this out, his tribe needs him. So he takes to living in the woods alone, where he is alone, to try and figure this out.

But it gets more painful yet, because he can't just disappear on Emily.

So, he tells her. He owes her that much. And it's not goodbye forever, either, just- goodbye until he can figure out how to be the man she deserves. A man anybody deserves, really, because right now Sam's not it.

Emily has no idea what to make of any of this, but she knows her heart is broken.

She has to see this woman all of this is about.

Naturally, she falls in love as well.

The plot thickens

The next time Sam drops by, Emily gives him the news. They're both in love with Bella now.

Sam no longer knows what to make of anything.

Is the universe trying to tell them to form a polycule?

Nothing like that has ever happened before, but not much is known about imprinting. There's a first time for everything..?

At this point they're both giving themselves headaches trying to figure this out. It's a mess.

More, Bella hasn't even met either of them. Sam and Emily can't just walk up to her and say "Hi, be our wife".

Or can they?

If Emily fell in love at first sight, maybe it'll work in reverse. Maybe Bella just has to look upon them, and she'll fall in love.

Sam is dubious, but at this point let's just do this. Let's just do this, see what happens.

They walk up to Charlie's to deliver some of Harry's fish fry. Bella opens the door.

"HIIIII" Emily says, trying to act normal.

Sam's not saying anything.

"Hi," Bella says back, nonplussed, and looks at the bag Emily is clutching with white-knuckled fists.

All three of them are silent.

Bella is starting to wonder if there's something with the town water supply. She is also wondering if these people are planning to say anything, or if they just really enjoy knocking on doors and saying hi to people. Is there something Bella should be doing?

Eventually she clears er throat and asks if there's anything she can do for them.

Sam and Emily glance at each other. Bella's not looking starstruck with love, but she's not acting normal either. Who stands in a doorway and stares at people for almost a minute before talking?

It's inconclusive.

Emily hands over the fish fry. "From Harry," she says, and introduces herself.

Bella nods, remembering Charlie's friend who all but ran out of the door when he saw her and hasn't been fishing with Charlie since. None of Charlie's friends have. Charlie is going nuts. Maybe she should try hooking him up with Carlisle, vampires are lovely, they'd get along so well.

Bella, noting Emily and Sam aren't saying anything else, says bye and moves to close the door.

"Wait!" Sam yells, at the same time as Emily rips a piece of paper from her pocket, and sticks it into Bella's hand.

Bella looks down on it. It's two phone numbers.

She looks back up at Sam and Emily, who by now feel quite certain that this girl hasn't fallen in love with them and that this is the most humiliating moment of both their lives.

Just in case, though...

"Call us," Emily says flirtatiously, winks, and runs away.

Sam follows.

Bella never calls them back, and they never speak of this again.

A few months later, Leah who’d been shopping in Forks happily tells Sam and Emily that she's fallen in love with a girl, she lives in Forks, she's amazing, her name is Bella Swan.

"I took one look at her, and I knew," Leah says dreamily.

[tossawary]

hey, weird idea. But what if shang was a half demon. But like, one that was basically baseline human if not for the fact that he had something that let his family know it was there. A tail they cut off? Sharp teeth? Like, this could be the real reason that he canonically saved Mobei and betrayed the humans. Since he was on both sides of the line, he was trying to play both sides. Just the opposite of Binghe even if he's similar.

I think it could be fun for a one-shot concept, I really do think it could be a very fun fic premise, but otherwise I’m afraid that I don’t vibe with Demon or Half-Demon Shang Qinghua at all (outside of a full cast Human-Demon swap). 

See, what appeals to me personally about Shang Qinghua (other people will have different takes) is that he’s just some guy. He has no special or tragic backstory, beyond some people pushing him around a bit and not showing him sufficient respect in his eyes (also transmigration, but that doesn’t count in this list that I’m making here). He has no special powers. He’s not even very good-looking or anything. Airplane created the story that was the basis for this world and then he gets shoved into a two-dimensional cannon-fodder role where he has to hug thighs to survive. 

I also like the fact that he and Mobei-Jun are coming towards each other from two completely different and separate worlds. Shang Qinghua is very, very human. Mobei-Jun is very, very demon. They have no common ground whatsoever, neither physically nor culturally. They’re flying blind. I personally like the fact that Mobei-Jun is arrogant and prejudiced and ignorant (makes his “oh, shit, I fucked up, I fucked up BAD” suffering more delicious, imo). 

I wrote about this a little bit in the first chapter of my full cast Human-Demon swap fic, in which Shang Qinghua is angry at his character being turned into a demon before he knows that it’s a full cast swap. If Shang Qinghua is a demon or half-demon, then I feel like it undermines the fact that he betrayed his sect out of nothing more than greed, entitlement, and personal resentment. (Which, funnily enough, kind of mirrors the fact that Airplane “sold out” and turned PIDW into a power fantasy harem novel because it was more popular.) 

The vibe I get from the flawed / corrupt Peak Lords of the original Proud Immortal Demon Way is that Airplane wanted to give reason for his blackened protagonist to decide that humans were hypocrites, only out for themselves, and no better than demons despite humans feeling inherently morally superior. I feel like Airplane originally had an “everyone just sucks" thesis here. And the vibe I get from Original Shang Qinghua is that he had no personal loyalty to Mobei-Jun whatsoever, which is why PIDW MBJ killed him and SQH was certain that MBJ would do it again. He really thinks that Shang Qinghua is just some lowly, power-grubbing human worm in Mobei-Jun’s eyes. 

So, giving Original Shang Qinghua any kind of loyalty to demonkind, anything to make Mobei-Jun sympathetic to him (like, say, being a demon child struck among humans), or anything that makes him a significant character parallel to the protagonist in any way kind of undermines all of that. 

I like the fact that Shang Qinghua spared Mobei-Jun just because he was so attached to the character (and MBJ was handsome, but I think there’s an element of sentimentality and spite against the System here too). I like the fact that Shang Qinghua clawed his way into Mobei-Jun’s heart and into surviving the plot despite the fact that he has no special traits and they have no common ground. Shang Qinghua is just so quintessentially “just some random guy in over his head doing his best to Make It Work” to me. 

 So, yeah, I feel like it would be a good one-shot concept for an AU. For another AU idea, I think a dream or a curse temporarily making Shang Qinghua a demon would be fun, because I think MBJ would be Into It as a roleplay/temporary thing and then you could have some relationship-building, self-esteem stuff afterwards with SQH going, “Would MBJ prefer it if I was a demon? Should I find a way to make the change permanent?” And MBJ going, “NO.” 

Thanks for sharing! 

[habaritess]

I have to say, I was very, very impressed with episode 5. They address a lot of my complaints and did Sam some justice! I have high hopes going in for the last episode. Some highlights for me: 

Sam and Bucky working together to take down Walker was handled brilliantly. They really did take him down as a team and gave Sam his screen time to really show his fighting talents. 

Zemo choosing to let Bucky live out of his respect for Sam. This is great because narratively speaking, I was expecting Zemo to attempt to take out Bucky because Bucky is everything Zemo is against. Bucky is a super human and he not shy at all about using those abilities to intimidate Zemo. Zemo, the guy who will kill people without hesitation, who truly believes all super humans should not exist, choses not to kill Bucky because he knows Sam is that rare good man, he is a Steve Rodgers, and he knows that Sam will keep a handle on Bucky. That is amazing.

Bucky deciding to give Zemo the scare of his life one more time before he is taken away forever. Bucky, you didn’t have to do that, but you just have to be “that guy” and give Zemo something to remember ya by for the rest of his life.

The scenes with Isaiah was utterly heart wrenching. Please give this man an oscar because he acted the hell out of this role! I loved Sam for bringing the shield to Isaiah. The US had failed him, just as they failed and betrayed all the African American soldiers who fought for this country pre-civil rights act. I love how they addressed the historically accurate situation of black soldiers being let down in this country, and their anger is what helped propel the civil rights movement. What sad is that it was a nurse who took pity on him, who let him go. The government was very willing to experiment and torture this man till death. Isaiah is broken and he like many of our black elders who faced the brunt of a racist American society, are not trusting of the attempts at equality by modern american society. Absolutely brilliant scene and man, I related to Sam here. Sam listening to it all breaks my hearts because he knows and has experience the prejudice and racism of today, but even he still had a hard time hearing the true depths to which the country he lived in use to regard black lives. It reminded me of my own personal research into black history and having to read up all the things that the US has done to target the black american community. It’s tough.

It kind of hard to believe that the Dora Milaje would forgive Bucky so easily and like him enough to do him a favor...but I’m just going to take it as Oyo being very forgiving and she must have a soft spot for Bucky for her to have Wakanda do him this solid. Please don’t ever take these people for granted again, Bucky.

"You built me" gave me chills. Walker represents all the young men who fought for this country, sacrificing their mental well being in the process. Once they came back, damaged and destroyed, so many of them are further failed by the country they fought for just because they turn up less than mentally sound. I'm looking at all those mentally ill homeless veterans out there who cant escape their demons.

Thank you for allowing us to meet Lemar’s family and humanizing him even further. I really felt for their lost.

Thank you for the domestic bless scenes after everything that's happened. I loved Sam family life. I love Sarah, I love his nephews, I love the neighborhood. I loved the whole vibe of the town with that tint of sepia whenever they go there. It makes the whole area feel like home. Hell, I want to visit that place.

Bucky flirting with Sarah will forever be fun.

Bucky not wanting to intrude and Sam telling him to sit his butt down and stay over is beautiful and a part of my fanfic dreams. Thank you.

My god yes, Bucky apologizing for both him and Steve for overlooking what being Captain American might mean for a black american man. I would have liked to see how he came to this realization, but I'm grateful on what we got. Bucky didn't try to avoid the elephant. He said I did not think about it through the perspective of a black man and I give them a lot props for being straightforward with it and not going around it.

Sam getting Bucky to open up to him. This touched me. Sam asked Bucky straight up about his nightmares and rather than Bucky trying to lie or play it off like with his therapist, Bucky looked Sam straight in the eyes and told him the truth. The amount of trust and respect that was built between them is perfectly portrayed in this scene. Talk about progress.

I love how Sam gave Bucky some tough love and a reality check. Sam didn't hold anything back and it plays directly to his veteran therapist background. I loved Sam even more after this scene.

Sam choosing to carry the shield was handled beautifully. I’m happy he didn't just go with Isaiah view point, tragic as his story was. He considered all sides and even went to talk about it with his sister. Overall, it was Sam choice and no one else. Another scene that made me fall for Sam. 

Sam working out with the shield is one of my favorite parts of this episode. It didn’t just come immediately to Sam, he had really learn how to handle it. I love this humanizing hero that Sam represents. 

Sam nephews tracing the star on the shield was very a poetic touch