#damn dantes DID you even know her?

[llycaons]

oh shit I think mercedes recognizes him. like she doesn't think it's him but he definitely reminds her of him

[hohuios]

Tag drop: 2/2

[somnoir]

How to pull a Batman by J. Constantine

John Constantine wouldn't say he was quite fond of children. He's not fatherly by any means so he knows that he's not suitable for raising children. It's just that he somehow ends up with a young girl at his front door (how she found the house of mystery, he's not sure). The little girl looked normal but she felt off. Too drenched in death to be a run-of-the-mill child. Her red hair seemed to turn into flames at the tips, and her eyes were eerily teal and glowed. Everything about her seemed wrong.

"Hello." She murmured, "Clockwork told me to come find you."

And she was just blinking, looking utterly uncanny as John reluctantly welcomed her into the house. "Master of Time?" He hesitated, knowing that amongst the many powerful beings he'd met the ancient of time had been one of them. A mirthful entity who seemed amused by the chaos and order of the multiverse. 

"He told me to give you this!" The girl fished out a glowing green paper from... y'know, he's not sure. 

And in mocking calligraphy the words:

"You owe me :). p.s. there's more."

was directed at John like a fucking signal. 

Great... Being indebted to the cosmic entity of time has made him a father.

He thought it'd happen one time. Just once. Little Jasmine was adept at the occult and got along well with ghosts, often playing peacemaker when one of them tried bothering Constantine. She was concerningly liminal for a twelve-year-old child, but she brushed it of for the fact that her siblings were either halfas or very liminal. Was he concerned, admittedly yes. 

It wasn't until there was a pounding at the door again did he start praying to any god willing to listen. But no. The sentient house practically dragged him through the halls and led him to where Jazz was eagerly waiting, a grin on her face. 

"My baby brothers are here!" She excitedly says, eyes practically sparkling as she grabs him by the hand. 

"Slow down, darlin'. They won't bloody leave if we slow down." He sighed in exasperation, before pulling the door open. Two pairs of eyes stared into his very soul, making his breath hitch.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. What the hell was Clockwork sending him?!

"Danny! Dan" Jazz squealed, dragging the two halfas into the house. One with green eyes and another with red. 

"Clockie wasn't kidding when he said he's a sad guy in a trench coat." The one with green eyes muttered, still floating and staying close to Jazz and his twin. 

"Clockwork slept with that?" The red-eyed one unabashedly judged. "Another fruitloop..." The boy snarled.

John Constantine could already predict the future at this point.

Daniel and Dante take to the house immediately, haunting it to their hearts content.

In the course of four years, the hellblazer drowns in the depths of fatherhood, making sure that no one could find out about his children. No. Not even Batman.

He'd be damned (even more) than let anyone involve the best parts of his life in contingency plans and whatnot. 

His kids grow up to be a rowdy and peculiar bunch.

His eldest, Jazz, was turning out to be one hell of a magician. Especially in necromantic arts that he's tried not to touch many times.

The twins, Danny and Dante were little hellions that made him want to tear his hair out. Its later on when Clockwork comes to visit their children (because its joint custody now) that he's informed that one is the crown prince of the realms and to be king upon the expiration of his mortality, and the other was an alternate version of him and was dubbed the world destroyer. 

His fourth child and second daughter had come in the form of Sam, who had popped up in the house and was decorating it with plants he from different dimensions. Also, she was apparently a green witch that now had the powers of the spirit known as undergrowth. The house was green.

His fifth child came in the form of a boy with a red hat and a laptop clutched against his chest. Tucker had seemed so harmless and sweet compared to his older siblings... until John found him performing ancient egyptian rituals and casually hacking into the Pentagon for fun. 

His last (Thank god) daughter was a zoomie toddler. Little Elle had arrived three years after Jazz did. A five year old with such intense wanderlust that he was tempted to buy one of those harness leash thingies parents had their children wear. Also, like the twins in which she was the clone of, she was one hell of a child being directly connected to the speed force.

So in conclusion, John Constantine was the father of three children on the verge of becoming Ancients, a highly intelligent girl with a very deep connection to death, the successor of fucking Undergrowth, and a boy who could effortlessly hack into government systems whilst being a pharao-in-training. 

Batman must never know.

In the far future, John Constantine battles it out with Bruce Wayne, who's children thought it was a good idea to start flirting with his hellions.

Constantine: TO HELL WITH YOU IF YOU THINK IM LETTING MY PERFECT JAZZY PANTS DATE YOUR FLIPPY SON!

Bruce: SHE'S GOOD FOR HIM!

Constantine: YEAH WILL IS HE GOOD FOR HER?!

And then it gets worse once John catches the Red Hood displaying some ghostly courting behaviour towards Dan. And he's just.

Constantine: Tell your children to back off.

Bruce: You think I haven't tried???

Then comes Danny and Tim with their unhinged behavior. Constantine isn't even mad about the fact that his son is dating one of the Bats. He's just concerned about the chaos with these two.

Bruce: okay, that one is not allowed. How do we get them to break up?

Constantine who's already witnessed Danny making plans to brutally murder Ra's for some spleen: Yeah, no. Good luck with that one.

By the time it's just Sam, Tucked, and Elle, he's praying it's not one of the Bats.

He really is.

Tucked is emmersed in his work but that didn't stop him from befriending Bart Allen and the current Kid Flash. Time travel is the one they usually discuss. (Dante and Constantine were very much on the same page when it came to keeping them just friends.)

And then Sam somehow ends up catching the attention of a daughter of Zeus. By this point, Constantine was preparing to fight god again and would have to ask his ex for a favor.

He's just so happy his precious princess Elle was being a sweet fifteen years old and wasn't daring crazy people.

(Damian was being rather suspicious...)

[impactrueno]

Beetlejuice clearly wasn't interested in Lydia when they met, so when do you think he actually fell for her? Was he so impressed by Lydia defeating him that he developed a little crush?

i think this might be the biggest thing i've been turning around in my head since the sequel dropped. how did bro get to this point. i need to know. you weren't like this where we left off, what happened during that huge time gap????

this is where canon ends and conjecture begins, you just have to theorize and fill in the gaps yourself with whatever makes the most sense to you, which is what i've been trying to do this whole time. so please bear with me here.

i don't know how much i want share or save for my comics because i don't know how much he would actually reveal about this but whatever we ball

edit: ok so i scrolled back up to this after finishing writing this and as it turns out i have no self control and i ended up sharing everything that crossed my mind. craziest stream of consciousness i've ever written down. strap on and keep your limbs inside the ride at all times. whatever. we BALL.

let's review their first encounter from his point of view:

you're hired to scare the deetzes, right? so you do just that. excellently you might add. just when you're about to terrorize their teenage daughter, barbara banishes you and the party is over. what fucking losers right? you get the sense that adam and barbara care about this girl so you make some remark about her and it pisses them off. haha. also whoa where did this place come from? damn adam, who could've guessed he had it in him. you forget about everything else and dance your way to dante's inferno room.

after spending a respectably tasteful evening with those ladies, you're chill now. relaxing under your little sun lamp to work on your tan.

someone walks in looking for adam and barbara. don't they know they're dead?

"are you a ghost too?"

"i'm the ghost with the most, babe."

hold on a sec, who's even—

...well hey. it's the girl.

the girl who can see ghosts, and she's talking to you.

target acquired. this one's your ticket out of this hellhole.

"you look like somebody i can relate to," you tell her. relate how? doesn't matter. you're ensnaring her with your affable demeanor like you always do, make people feel like you're pals with them first and foremost. she seems like a nice girl, so this should be easy. you tell her upfront that you want to get out of there and you need her help to do so.

"i want to get in," she says.

whoa there.

what? she wants to get in? she says that in response to you saying that you wanted out. she really has no idea what it's like on the other side, huh. but shit, that kinda stops you in your tracks a bit. this girl wants to die. this young? that's not right. makes no sense.

"...why?"

she just looks at you and says nothing. jesus. ok maybe it's none of your business so let's back it up. you're losing control of the conversation and you're on a mission here. you figure if she helps you get out, you might as well talk her off that ledge or show her how shitty it is on the other side or somethin'. frankly, you can't afford to care right now. you're not entirely sure why she thinks things would be better on the side you're so desperate to get out of, but alright. doesn't matter, right now you gotta get her to summon you. so you begin your little game of charades.

after she correctly guesses your name and almost says it a third time, she recognizes you as the snake that terrorized her family. god fucking dammit. you're losing her. you're getting impatient. your affable act is over. "nah...i want to talk to barbara," she says and now she's REALLY getting on your nerves because fuck barbara, fuck adam, you're SO CLOSE to getting out and you're not gonna let this go now, go go GO GO SAY IIIIIIITTTTTTT

adam and barbara walk in because of course they do. womp womp

ok well that didn't work, but you're not gonna give up so easily. sooner or later another opportunity will come and soon you will be free.

wait why are they moving the model— where are they taking it—

ooohhhhh. business meeting. get a load of these yuppies, trying to turn winter river into a town-sized Ripley's Believe it or Not. a talking marcel marceau statue? and you thought you were a con man. no wonder the deetz girl wants to die, it's bleak as hell here too. but if you get out...you can fix that. hell, you can fix anything.

these bozos are here to see some ghosts, but the girl says they're not going to show up unless the fleshbags stop making a mockery out of the whole thing and that maybe they can all live happy together in the house. ain't that sweet.

of course no one's taking her seriously. she's a kid, what does she know, right? they'd rather listen to the most obnoxious guy in the room (besides yourself) who has no idea what the fuck he's talking about, but somehow, he's got his hands on the handbook.

the girl panics, then immediately says completely deadpan "wait, what am i even worried about, otho, you can't even change a tire" and you're surprised they didn't hear how hard you cackled at that.

despite all that, they seem to have started a séance with their old wedding clothes. bad news for the maitlands. they're about to be dead-dead. the girl cries for them to stop, and these guys are just sitting there scared shitless. you're hearing everything. you knew a new opportunity would arise, so you wait, because this is the part where people remember how good at your job you are. they always do.

she knows you can help. you're the only one who can help. so here she comes. those wedding clothes give you an idea. plan B is now in motion.

well well well.

look who came crawling back.

she asks for your help, and you're happy to oblige, under one condition of course. after all, you don't do anything for free, and she's the only one who can help you with your problem. how serendipitous.

once again, you lay it on her, straight up. you want out. and a way to do it (thanks adam and barbara for the reminder) is through marriage with a fleshbag. you need to get married. a green card marriage, if you will.

she's immediately disgusted by the idea. you don't take that personally, of course, because it doesn't matter. she's just a kid and it's not a real marriage. she just happens to be unlucky enough to be the only one around who can assist you with this, the poor girl. it's a marriage of convenience—or rather, inconvenience—and you're not planning on sticking around because you will get the hell out of there as soon as you can. so there shouldn't be a problem, right? besides, does she know how many women would kill to be in that position? she gets to brag about it to her friends, what's not to like? it's a totally even deal.

the clock is ticking and the maitlands aren't getting any younger. she agrees to the deal. you win, at last.

she already knows what to do, so you sit there patiently with a shit-eating grin on your face, awaiting the three little B words. gloating.

Beetlejuice........Beetlejuice...........Beetlejuice.

it's showtime.

this is your favorite part. you love a dramatic entrance. you decide to show the deetzes and their greedy friends the circus they so wanted to turn this town into. horrible as you are, you're also pretty damn good at calling out other people's horribleness, and you do love an ironic karmic way of dealing with someone. for example tubby here thinks he can escape, but not before you change his sleek black suit into a tacky white leisure suit. the horror! this is why you're a professional at this.

you effortlessly end the exorcism and the maitlands are saved. a little pruney right now but they'll be fine. everything is taken care of, you have fulfilled your end of the deal like you promised. only one thing left to do.

"shall we?"

there's really no need to make a whole show out of this, but you're a showman first and foremost and as a 𝒥𝓊𝒾𝓁𝓁𝒾𝒶𝓇𝒹 𝒶𝓁𝓊𝓂 you'll be damned if you're not gonna let yourself have a little fun with this. everyone looks terrified. this is why you're a professional at this.

witnesses and reverend in place, you can finally begin the ceremony. you're having fun, yes, but let's try to pick up the pace a bit, okay? the closer you get to your goal, the more impatient you get. the girl isn't finding any of this very funny at all and she protests. the maitlands butt in and are now kind of twisting your arm a bit, but you deal with them harmlessly, until they get on your last nerve so you send adam to the model and barbara to saturn. all of this after you honorably fulfilled your end of the bargain and saved the day. jesus christ, are you the only one with some integrity around here or what.

you forget the stupid ring. shit. you're pretty sure you have it on you somewhere, ever since you chopped up delores into pieces for poisoning you. you kept her ring finger as a trophy and as a reminder to never get married again, and yet here you are, but desperate times call for desperate measures. finally, you find the ring (still on her severed finger) and hastily tell your new bride-to-be that delores meant nothing to you. in case she even cares. she doesn't seem to. not even a chuckle? oh well.

almost done with the ceremony. almost there. you're holding the girl's hand with an iron grip to keep her in place as you're about to put that ring on her finger. "i now pronounce you, man and��"

a tiny car crashes against your foot and it catches on fire. you scream. a fucking sandworm crashes into the room through the ceiling. everyone screams. you scream LOUDER.

you're sent back to the afterlife waiting room.

not your first rodeo with a sandworm, but that doesn't make the experience any less shitty. the real annoying part is being in the waiting room again. this could take ages. you're number 9,998,383,750,000 and they're serving number 3 right now. you trick the guy next to you and steal his ticket (number 4) but he's not too pleased about that, so that didn't work.

a long time sitting here it is, then.

movie ends, credits roll.

for reference, that was 1988. winona ryder was 15 when they were filming in 1987 so while lydia doesn't have a confirmed age, i think we can safely assume that she was the same age as winona at the time.

36 years later, it's 2024. or 34 years later, it's 2022. we don't know the exact year because while bob's in memoriam credits scene says 2024 and all the interviews talk about how 36 years have passed in universe as well, there's this other one tiny detail.

jeremy's death passport says he died on march 11, 1999. jane butterfield says he died "23 years ago," putting the movie in 2022. they did film it in 2022 so the math is mathing correctly there. given that the in memoriam scene was more of a joke and jeremy's passport is a canon prop in the movie, i'd say 2022 is the canon year the movie is set in. (small sidenote; the passport also has the roman numerals DCLXVI which is 666. cute detail i loved it)

in the sequel, beetlejuice says lydia has been ignoring him for 30 years. i always thought that was curious because outside of this claim, they always specify how many years exactly have passed since. he doesn't say 34 or 36, he says 30. and for his degree of obsession (and the fact that he remembers exactly how many times he's watched The Exorcist) i think he would be counting even the days so i think he did really mean 30 years. so this would mean at least 4 years passed between getting sent back to the waiting room and the beginning of his stalking.

AND NOW that we established all that, we are finally getting to the answer to the question, "when and how did this all start?"

so okay, he spent a while in the waiting room. a lot of time to think. probably replaying the events at the deetzes' in his head over and over, how he got here, where he fucked up, what's he gonna do once he gets out. cursing the maitlands for ruining his plan when he was soooo fucking close. wondering what ever happened to lydia deetz.

lydia deetz, the young girl who told him she wanted to die.

...

is she alright?

i don't think he's capable of feeling guilt, but we can probably argue that he's not entirely heartless. what she said about how she wanted to "get in" must've stuck with him from the way he reacted when she dropped that bomb. she never showed up in the waiting room so he knows she didn't follow through with that. still, he used a vulnerable young girl for his own selfish gain. ironically enough, he knows exactly how that feels, because he also got tricked into marriage and got used for someone else's gain. the difference being that he dealt with that shit with an axe.

much much much to think about for mr. juice.

after years of ruminating in that waiting room, he's finally out and back to the regular day to day afterlife. definitely gets chewed out by juno, maybe forced to do community service or labor or what have you, he basically just needs to clean up his act now. this freelancing shit is becoming more trouble than it's worth anyway.

he's still wondering about lydia deetz. should he check in on her? maybe he should, he's too curious now.

at this point, lydia is now about 19-21 and in college. maybe he manages to sneak into the model one time she's back home for the holidays or something. and oh my god would you look at that, what a beautiful young woman she's grown into. she's radiant. she's happy. she's no longer that gloomy suicidal kid he met in the attic. seems like what she said about the deetzes and the maitlands sharing the house did come true after all.

that's nice. very sweet. good to know.

maybe he wonders if she remembers him and tries to get her attention somehow, give her a little scare for old times sake or whatever. for a brief moment it seems like she saw something and her expression changes, but she shrugs it off and continues on chatting with her two sets of parents. no such luck.

oh well. curiosity sated! and beetlejuice goes back home and doesn't return.

until the next time he returns.

and he keeps coming back to check in on her, telling himself he's just making sure that she hasn't killed herself or something. and he's not above admitting that with every year that passes, she keeps getting more beautiful. and to think they almost got married, huh.

he constantly tries to get her to notice him somehow, and sometimes she almost does, but ultimately he never really succeeds beyond making her do a double take. very rarely she does catch a glimpse of him. he's seen her mutter to herself that she's just seeing things and she seems a bit frightened every time this happens, but there's nothing to fear, honey, it's just good ol' beetlejuice. he won't lie, he gets a bit of a rush every time and it makes his dead heart beat faintly. he's gotten this far, he can't just stop now. in his mind, this has become their little private game of cat and mouse, where the mouse ignores the cat. but aren't they cute? he thinks they're cute. this is not creepy at all!

before he realizes, he's already learned everything about her. he knows about richard and even watched their wedding from afar like a loser. he knows she gave birth to a healthy baby girl named astrid. he knows they have a blast on halloween. halloween is lydia's favorite holiday, and his too. sometimes he can't help but see the three of them happy together and think it could've totally been him. even if he and richard are nothing alike (in fact could not be more opposite) and the circumstances of their unholy wedding were nothing short of grim and a farce. but in his mind, he's starting to convince himself otherwise.

maybe it's his jealousy speaking, but lydia doesn't seem to be that happy with richard despite everything. even though richard is like, the perfect guy. then one day his suspicions are proven correct: neither of them knows why it happened, but after having a long and emotional talk (that he watched with a bucket of popcorn) they decide to get a divorce. he pumps his fist, feeling victorious for some reason. sure he's a little sadistic at times, but why is this giving him so much glee?

the divorce is hard on lydia's kid, who was always more attached to her father, but they still spend a lot of time together. sometimes the three of them, since richard and lydia kept things amicable after the divorce. lydia tries to move on and see other people, but each relationship fails before it even starts. mostly because she keeps holding back and so fails to connect with anyone else, but also sometimes because, well, he can't help himself but to scare them away from her from time to time. it's fun. in his mind, he's just being protective of her, as a gentleman should for a lady.

then richard dies. fell into a piranha infested river from the looks of it (he saw him at immigration one day, don't ask what he was doing around there, force of habit after constantly making sure lydia hasn't killed herself yet.) it's devastating for both lydia and astrid, straining their relationship even more for the next few years as they both try to cope with the loss. the shock proves to be too much for lydia, so she goes to a survivors retreat to work through her trauma, both from richard's death and "unresolved feelings."

then lydia, at her most vulnerable, meets rory.

beetlejuice was able to clock him immediately. a textbook manipulative opportunist, he himself knows the tactics very well. swoop in to "help" someone in a vulnerable position, pull the wool over their eyes and begin taking control so you can get what you want out of that person.

he wouldn't admit it, but this really irks beetlejuice. you know when you see someone who reminds you of the worst parts of yourself, so you despise them? yeah. he's been there, and he's also been him.

but rory is somehow even worse than beetlejuice. see, rory is her manager, and boy does he manage to get on his nerves. he takes her phone. he controls what medication she takes. he blames and guilt trips her about every mishap that HE causes, making himself look like her benevolent savior and making her feel like she would be lost without him, confusing her with his psychobabble. on top of all that, he's forcing her to do this hacky show called Ghost House where she "hunts ghosts" or whatever. the houses he's been helping newly-deads with in his day job as a bio-exorcist (now with a fleet of employees,) she's "hunting" those ghosts now. it's so dumb. it never works. beetlejuice doesn't even know what the hell she's doing, she's phoning it in most of the time and she knows she's become a sellout. what happened to that "strange and unusual" girl who stood up for her ghost friends when those suits wanted to profit off of them back in winter river?

he needs to bring that back. he's the only one who can.

in his mind, beetlejuice has already rewritten the events that transpired. in his mind, lydia has been his wife this entire time, it's just, y'know, one of those open long distance relationships and she doesn't always remember him, but that's okay. in his mind, they share a psychic bond that allows her to sense his presence or see him in her dreams from time to time. he's got nothing to be jealous about, because other men can't compare. no one else can match what they have.

sure, part of him knows he's lying to himself a little bit. but he's already clung to this idea; these past 30 years wouldn't make sense otherwise. he's in love with lydia deetz. this isn't insane of him to say at all. and if it is, well, you know what they say, love makes you do batshit crazy things.

it's not that complicated, no matter what they say you'll never meet another me it's not that difficult to get my head around i'll never meet another you

the end

don't trick me into writing a fanfic again

[doyouknowhowtowaltz]

YES!!! YES!!! YEEESSSS!!!!

The hadestown au gave me ideas :3 I’ll probably draw more tbh it’s fun doing little sketches of the songs and certain scenes from the musical @doyouknowhowtowaltz

[cerezzzita]

Hi, i saw you have your request open so here i go, requesting some hcs for Dante, Vergil and Trish having a short sweet-toothed s/o who also loves to bake.

notes: heeey there, anon! In advance sorry for the waiting, it took long enough but at least here we are! I hope you like it, because I surely did loved writing these headcanons, and with Trish being included? Better than ever!

Enjoy the reading and thanks for requesting! <3

⠀🍓 ˖ . ᵎᵎ Dante, Vergil & Trish with a short sweet-toothed S/O

♡ tags: gender-neutral reader, no use of pronouns (you/yours only), no description of reader's appearance, short!reader, use of petnames, three devils being soft af, Vergil and Trish might have been sorta ooc pardon in advance.

ⓘ gif's not mine!!

Dante

Perfect match, to be honest.

Calls you "shortcake" or "shortie" most of the time and if you're annoyed by that… he'll keep doing it, sorry. He loves you enough to annoy you as well. 

Being as sweet-toothed as he is, no wonder he'll ask you constantly to make some desserts with strawberries or red fruits in general such as raspberries or cherries. 

And please don't let Dante get one inch near the kitchen, this man will eat as many of the berries plus he's catastrophic at cooking.

At least let him add some of the ingredients and mix them together here and there, he'll be satisfied and happy enough. 

He'll eat the batter when you're not looking, by the way. 

Still on the ingredients topic, doesn't this bitch (affectionately) loves when you ask him for help to reach something you can't? He's all smugly smirks, towering you with that huge figure of his and in the best of the cases, lifting you so you can reach it by yourself. 

Dante's personal favorite dessert made by you became The Devil's Cake, but instead of being fulfilled of chocolate only, there's lots and lots of strawberry jam and fresh strawberries on top of it. 

Late night munchies are a must! You two can and will be watching whatever series or movies while cuddling and devouring almost all of a whole damn bakery because Dante has a black hole instead of a regular stomach. 

Saw a recipe for dessert pizza once, got obsessed with it, asked you to make it, you made it, he's even more in love with you. 

"Babe, you're a sweetheartie. A candy angel, I love you so much," said Dante, mouth full of sweet pizza and eyes full of tears of joy and passion. 

ⓘ gif's not mine!!

Vergil

Vergil strikes me as a cinnamon roll enjoyer. That's it, that's the post. 

But really, I don't think he has a sweet-tooth or enjoys sugary foods that much. He likes it, sure, but at moderate bits. 

Unlike Dante, he does not make fun of your height… Yet he finds it quite endearing. 

Calls you "little bird". Let me have him be affectionate and lovely for a sec, okay? 

Vergil also gets worried by the amount of sugar you consume. 

"You'll get plenty of cavities if you keep eating desserts at that level." 

He helps you with your recipes too. I'm kinda sure that Vergil knows a thing or two in the cooking field, correct me if I'm wrong (I am wrong). 

As previously said, he likes more, hm, refined flavors, such as cinnamon and vanilla and if you're baking cinnamon rolls, count him on it! 

Don't ask Vergil to chop the ingredients unless you want him to put on a show about it. 

If you like drinking tea, you better prepare a bunch of sweet treats because you're having regular, calm silent tea evenings ft. Vergil and his poetry book. 

ⓘ gif's not mine!!

Trish

Oh my, what can I say about Trish?

She's not a sugary-sweet person. Instead, she's mostly on sour candies and neutral fruits field. 

With that being said, I hope you're ready to constantly bake lemon pies and banana cakes. 

Trish does not know how to cook for her dear life, she prefers watching you instead and maybe teasing you along with it.

"Trish, I could use a little hand." "Pardon me if I can't help but think you're all cute on your own, sugar."

Speaking of teasing, this devil surely knows how to make you fluster with her little comments about your height, but of course, always keeping it comfortable enough to not get you mad or sad. 

"Need some help there, honeypie?" "My, if you ever get trouble reaching that shelf, you need to wear some of my heels."

And although Trish is not your sous chef, she is certainly your personal tasting critic, which is an advantage mostly to her. 

"So, what do you think?" "Hm, I liked the caramel on top of the fruit, and it's sour just in the way I love. It's a ten out of ten, honey." 

Brought you some silly clothes like sweaters and shirts with some candy motif and oh, sure, fruity flavored lip gloss. 

Anything for her honeybun~

cerezzzita©, 2023 · all rights reserved ⓘ do not edit, copy, steal or claim as yours | reblogs and comments are appreciated!

[waldosakimbo]

OH MY GOD Heretic (2024) has me by the throat. I feel like this one is definitely worth rewatching, because it TELLS you so much, it advertises SO MUCH right away, and it's sinister how it plays out!

Does Sister Barnes have faith? Does Sister Paxton actually believe she's seen evidence of god from, hilariously, some amateur porn? You're given the idea Sister Paxton believes more but she has no converts and no baptisms. Sister Barnes is questioning, but she's more successful. Why is that? (Is it the big sad eyes?) When they spot the teenagers in the street and Sister Paxton earnestly says "I love them," they immediately betray her. She loves the world. Its cruel. She wants to save this man. He's cruel. Faith and cruelty. Iterations. The butterfly image. The dead moths coating the window. Belief and disbelief and god damn it's tasty. Quick aside, did anyone else think he drugged those drinks or not? I worried initially, but I think it was genuinely just another one of his tests for later. Also it's insidious how Reed tells them "truths." He tells them the walls and ceiling have metal but they don't know that would block cell phones. He tells them the front door locks by a mechanism timer that doesn't come undone until daylight, (but he can switch it off). He tells them the house is wired weird. He tells them he put the aromatic pie there, he tests them, and it's so. Good! So when he tells them about religion, his motivations, his study of theology, and the challenge from Sister Barnes (the faithless? Who choses Belief and stands up to him? Who has her throat slit as the sacrificial lamb? Beautiful, tragic) is the other side of that. The flipside of the coin. Hugh Grant is AMAZING in this, because he's Hugh Granting it up but instead of a comedy, it's a horror. Unsettling to the max. Why? Because it's just the power of humanity and faith. It's JUST. The power. Of humanity. And Faith. It's nothing supernatural. It's using knowledge, history, the arts, humanity and psychology. As a weapon. Longlegs fell short for me because it was eventually supernatural and I thought it clunky and mishandled in the second half. This one? It's just humans. It's just an evil man. And it's visceral. More grounded, which makes it Terrifying. Even when faced with a miracle, we learn it's false. It's a magic trick. Even when we could pray, we're told BY THE PERSON. WHO IS FAITHFUL, that it means nothing, but sometimes it's beautiful to still pray for someone. Which brings me to the point where Sister Paxton was stabbed and praying in level...three? of his twisted Dante's inferno house? Actually, quick aside to that, I love the back and forth of quoting Spider-Man or Voltaire. Quoting Virgil or the Swamp Thing. It's again putting them on opposite sides, another mirror. But also showing the house itself as a labyrinth, yes, but specifically I think that was Dante's Inferno poster in his office, making Paxton Virgil, travelling the levels of Hell to the frozen pit/horrifying chamber of cages where he keeps other pious women, going Through to get Out. "Sister P" Is praying even though she Just said it does nothing. Reed crawling towards her, his own throat slit. But there's this moment where he's draped over her, sobbing or choking, looking for the warmth of her prayer, I think trying to feel her belief because he's been searching for it for so long and he's left empty. Before he can find peace (or kill her, did he have his knife to her throat to kill her? I think he would, but I still think he had this moment where he wished he could believe to find peace with someone, especially after seeing that interview where Grant stated backstory of Reed that he was a lonely man who lost someone dearly to him and he searched through religions to find comfort and couldn't) he's killed. He's smashed in the head with the McGuffin from earlier. Victory. Did Barnes come back? I think she was saving her strength and had one final moment to help her friend. And then that fucking ending. Is she dead? Is she alive? Was the butterfly real? Did she believe? Is it only her belief, her butterfly, or is a final hallucination before she passes? Did she make it out of Hell? Anyways, I'm going to have to see this again soon. Delicious. Horrifying. Loved it.

[eresia-catara]

Okay let's consider this sonnet once more

Guido is listing a bunch of beautiful and pleasant things in the first eight lines, then in the last six he says that all of them are surpassed by his beloved who's even more beautiful to the point that in comparison they all look like vile things.

Now. Let's go straight to the point with line 6

"and white snow falling without wind"

this image is used by Dante in Inferno XIV, 30

"Above the sand, with a slow fall,/ were raining large firey rocks,/ like snow on mountains with no wind."

We're in the company of the violent against God (blashphemous), Nature (sodomites) and Art (usurers). The rain of fire falls on top of everyone, but each has to do diffferent things. Sodomites, in particular, have to run costantly and if they stop they have to spend 100 years lying down under the rain without being able to shield themselves with their body.

The fire of course references the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, however Dante decides to add this new detail, this fact that the fire falls slowly...like snow without wind. It is a clear reference to this sonnet and even the footnotes in the book say so. You already see my premise: Dante had Guido in mind when he wrote about these sinners.

If we consider the image, however, the most obvious difference we can point out is that while Guido is talking of actual snow, Dante is talking about fire; and also while Guido is listing pleasant, beautiful things, Dante is describing anguish and bodies uglied by burn scars (let's remember he then describes Brunetto Latini's face as "abbrusciato", "burnt up", "roasted" lmao). It is a quote and a full reversal of it at the same time.

Now, this gets very interesting as soon as we realize the whole sonnet is reversed.

Let's start from the ambience. While Guido mentions serene skies at dawn, we know full well that Hell is dark and it surely isn't serene. While Guido talks about a nice river, Dante says there's a river of blood, the Phlegethon. While Guido talks about a field full of colourful flowers, Dante says that there's a desert, the only vegetation is the surrounding wood made of the souls of those who killed themselves (which is where he and Virgil are walking so as not to get burnt, and it's also where the canto begins), so it's a grotesque, twisted kind of nature. Guido talks about the song of birds, Dante talks about the laments of the damned but we can also mention the harpies in the woods that lacerate the trees/souls and that he must be hearing too.

Now the people. Guido talks the beauty of a woman and her wisdom, Dante describes ugly bodies and talks with the blasphemous who despise God due to their pride that makes them averse to the truth (so the opposite of wisdom). Guido writes "gold, silver, lazuli", Dante throws usurers in the circle. Guido writes about armed knights who are courteous, Dante throws amongst the sodomites people of high prestige and respect (politicians, knights, intellectuals, clergy). Also who are sodomites if not those who turned to sin the act of "reasoning of love" that Guido mentions?

Amongst the sodomites, Dante says in canto XV, there are mostly writers and members of the clergy, so we essentially have intellectuals, cultured people, towards whom Dante shows pity and reverence (he addresses them with formal you aka voi and even expresses the desire to hug them, if it weren't for the fire). But there's a dichotomy of morals: character-Dante shows pity, God's justice shows disapproval, so we could say those who in life were highly esteemed for their intellect are now shown for their vileness like....like the list of pleasant things that compared to Guido's beloved become vile. And yet Dante still doesn't have it in him to condemn them. God did, he did not. We already know that when Dante shows pity towards a soul's sin it's because he felt guilty too, remember? But again, God said: they operated violence against nature thus nature is sterile and twisted, they were noble now they are vile. They had "wisdom/ as much as the sky is greater than the earth" (Guido, lines 12-13)? Now they are buried in the earth.

Also another similarity that I found, though it's a little less solid, is the last line in the sonnet that goes "from such a creature no virtue ever stays away" where 'to stay away' is expressed through a word that literally means 'delay'. And delay is exactly what sodomites cannot do, they have to keep running even when they talk to Dante. When Brunetto Latini leaves Dante after they talk, he runs away and is described like a runner who's winning the race, his virtues are being displayed but because he's forced to do so, which feels like an ironic and bitter parody.

Dante constructed this circle of Hell as the exact opposite of this sonnet, by which on the one hand he distanced himself from its contents (through the point of view of God), on the other he welcomed them once more (through character-Dante). From this we can hypothesize that maybe Guido's sonnet actually talked about a man à la shepherd(ess) poem, making Dante see it fit to reference in this circle, or that Dante chose to reverse this sonnet simply because it was Guido's and Guido maybe (probably) was involved in sodomy, or that they were involved with each other and Dante is the addressee of the sonnet, or maybe I'm just seeing things and none of this was coherent! Who knows.

[icycoldninja]

I’m sorry I just love this idea so hear my out: DMC 3 Dante X fem gf reader where they have like a really cute and fluffy late night call (basically phone pillow talk) cause y/n’s parents forbid her from dating Dante

Alright, here it is, extra fluffy! Enjoy! 💜

Secret chat (DMC3! Dante x Fem!Reader)

Giggling softly, you crept towards your bedroom door and quietly slipped out of it, padding down the hall to your parents' darkened bedroom. You pressed your ear to the door and listened intently for any sounds of movement or talking, but were thankfully only able to hear soft snores. Glad that they were finally asleep, you returned to your bedroom just as silently as you'd exited it and shut the door carefully before snatching your phone from your nighstand, leaping into your bed and sliding under the covers, a wide smile on your face.

Your fingers practically trembling with excitement, you dialed your boyfriend's number and (im)patiently waited for him to pick up. After two rings, you heard a click, followed by his voice.

"Hey, babe, miss me?" A massive grin erupted on your face as you eagerly responded,

"I sure as hell was. How are you?"

"Good, pretty good...been missing you a lot though. Folks still being hard-asses?" You nodded, sighing softly.

"Yeah. They caught me texting you once and threatened to cancel my phone service if I contact you again, so now I can only call you when they're asleep."

"Damn, that sucks. Can't wait for ya to get the hell outta there and come live with me...think of all the cool shit we could do together," Dante chuckled lowly, his voice echoing through the phone. "Could cuddle all day 'n night...no need to look over our shoulders cause we're free as birds." You laughed, adjusting your position and pulling the covers further over your head.

"I'd love that, but I love my parents, even if they are bit strict. I can't just up and leave."

"Yeah, alright," Dante sighed, though there was a tinge of laughter in his voice. "Should've guessed--my girl is the sweetest and most loyal chick to've ever lived." You felt yourself blush at the compliment, and unintentionally out a small grumble-whine. "Aww, what's wrong?" Dante cooed, laughing some more. "My girl not know how to take a compliment?"

"Shut up," You retorted, jokingly, before changing the subject. "So, did you do anything interesting today?" Dante let out a long exhale before responding,

"Nah, not really. Well, I did kill this giant demon lizard with 400 eyeballs, but not much else. You?"

"I mostly just missed you all day."

"Aww, baby..."

"What? It's true! I miss you whenever you're not around."

"Ah, you're so sweet. I miss you too, y'know. I love ya."

"I love you too, Dante." At that moment, Dante yawned, prompting you to yawn as well.

"Ya tired?" He asked, yawning again. You nodded, sighing and rolling over.

"Yeah..you?"

"Very." He yawned again, then groaned; judging by the cracking of limbs your heard in the background, he was stretching. "Wanna go to bed?" You hesitated, before shaking your head and responding,

"Nope, I wanna stay up and talk to you some more."

"What? C'mon," Dante sniggered playfully, "You'd pick me over a good night's sleep? Now I know you ain't thinking straight."

"How can I?" You giggled, grinning. "I'm crazy over you."

"Ah, you're just butterin' me up," Dante chortled, "You're so sweet and I love that 'bout you. Well, to be honest, I love all of ya."

"I love you too, Dante," You answered, blushing madly. "I love you so, so-" You paused to yawn, "-much."

"You sound real tired," Dante remarked, "No wonder, it's almost 2 A.M. Go get some rest, babe, otherwise your pretty face'll have dark eye circles."

"Ok," You conceded, reluctantly. "Love you, baby."

"Love ya too, sweetcheeks. Sweet dreams. Can't wait till our next secret chat."

"Me too, Dante, me too," You agreed, puckering your lips to make a kiss sound that Dante could hear. Then, you hung up, turning your phone off and sliding it back onto your nightstand before curling up under your blankets and getting ready to drift off to sleep.

[paintyoureyeswithavividmind]

close to home | chapter seventy five

close to home | chapter seventy five

plot: Daryl breaks a promise, and the reader goes after him

series masterlist

Pairing: Eventual Daryl Dixon x f!reader Word Count: 4,050 Warnings: violence, blood, typical twd A/N: I've been on such a reading kick lately

The following days were a blur. After your panic attack, Daryl kept an eye on you. After your delirium from the waves of fighting walkers passed, you joined in with the rest of the community. You were doing better. And you were sure it was because of Daryl picking you over the community, even though it made you feel guilty. 

Despite the days moving quickly, they were long. Lydia was attacked, and Margo was accidentally killed by Negan. You and Daryl thought Negan was right but couldn’t do anything about it. Then the Whisperers attacked Hilltop, though there wasn’t any real proof. And Michonne took off with Judith to assist them. You stayed back to watch over RJ. Eugene left too after what happened with Rosita--which she happily told you while you and she hung out with your daughters. 

Daryl went with Carol to look for Alpha’s horde, which you fought him every step of the way. But you needed to know about the horde, and he promised he would stay on your side of the border. You believed him until they came back with a Whisperer. You wanted to throw him off a cliff for lying to you, but when you found out it was all Carol, your anger dissipated. You knew she wasn't in a good place. You’d found the pills. 

But then the Whisperer died. And then Siddiq was killed by Dante, and you and Daryl sat with Josie the entire night. He’d helped deliver her. If Dante wasn’t already dead, you would’ve killed him yourself for ever touching Josie. 

Then, a freak named Mary showed up and told Alexandria where the horde was if she got to see Earle’s son. And Lydia went missing after something happened with Carol. And if all that wasn’t the worst of it, finding Daryl’s note was. 

Gonna end this. I’m sorry. I love you. Don’t come looking for me. 

Well, you did exactly that. 

***

“You stupid son of a bitch,” You nearly yelled, throwing your bow down beside the fire. You didn’t care that you had an audience or the surprised--and then very angry--look that crossed your husband's features. 

“What the hell are ya doin’ here?”

“You taught me how to track, dumbass! Don’t you think I know how to track you, of all people?” You seethed. Your bag was heavy on your shoulders, and you dropped it. “You didn’t think I would come after you? Do you have any idea how stupid this is?”

Daryl grabbed your arm and pulled you a good fifteen feet away from the small camp, and you pulled your arm free after a few seconds. 

“Who has Josie?”

“Rosita.” You glared. “Why, Daryl? After everything that’s happened the past few days.”

“‘Cause I can’ stand lookin’ at ya during all this shit. I can’ stand knowin’ ya lookin’ over ya shoulder for Alpha. I want her dead.”

You crossed your arms. “I want her dead too, but you don’t just walk out like that. How would you like it if I did that?”

“I’d drag ya back by ya ass if ya did.”

“Exactly. We’re a team, Daryl. Since the beginning. Since the damn night we met and we fought our way back to my safehouse. I don’t appreciate this.”

Daryl sighed angrily. “Well, ya here now. Exactly where I didn’ want ya.”

“Josie needs her father.”

“She needs her mother, too.”

Your hard glare dropped. “She needs both of us, Daryl.”

His own anger seemed to deflate, and he nodded slowly. “‘M sorry. Just want this over.”

“I know. So do I. But we work better together, and you know that. So let’s find this mother fucking horde and get home to our daughter.”

Daryl shook his head, but it wasn’t like he had any other choice. “Can’ believe ya fuckin’ followed me out here.” He swung his arm around your shoulder and kissed your forehead. You closed your eyes at the embrace. 

“Well, next time don’t be such a dumbass and I won’t have to.”

***

The next day, you found the valley that the horde was supposed to be in. But it was empty, and you didn’t know if you were happy about it or pissed off. Everyone seemed to be the latter, but it wasn’t something you had to worry about this exact second.

You’d only walked about a mile before you came across a river, and Daryl thought Lydia would’ve followed it. You were set to keep following him when you turned back and noticed Carol had stopped by a tree. You inwardly sighed--you couldn’t keep up with her lately, no matter how hard you tried to be there for her. 

“Carol, let’s go,” You called out to her. You knew Daryl was behind you when you felt his hand brush against your backside. 

“You guys go ahead. I’ll meet you.”

“We should stay together,” You said, but she was already walking toward a small field about twenty yards away. 

You glanced at Daryl, sharing an exhausted expression, and followed after her. When she started running, you looped your bow over your shoulder and picked up the pace, a train of obscenities being muttered under your breath. 

You were breathless when you came to a trench, a few dead walkers on the ground. Daryl was fighting off a few walkers, and he looked at you for only a second. “Go, get her ass outta there!”

Magna pushed you forward, and you jumped into the trench and pulled yourself out of it, running toward the opening toward whatever structure was ahead. You were going to kill Carol. 

It was dark and much cooler in the structure than it was outside, and you paused beside Magna momentarily. But then you heard Carol scream and you quickly ran after her. 

“Carol!” You yelled. 

“Oh, shit,” Magna cursed, grabbing onto your arm. The weight of her body pulled you forward, and your feet slipped. 

You screamed as you dropped a good ten feet, landing on rock. You didn’t have time to focus on your vision before your body rolled. You tasted blood in your mouth as you fell from another ledge and landed harshly on the rock below. You heard your friends landing around you as well. 

“Mother fucker,” You cursed, spitting out blood as you rolled over onto your side. Your back ached, and your lip was bleeding from where you must’ve bitten down on it. 

“Are you okay?” 

You glanced at Carol, who was dusting her shirt off. She helped you up as you replied, “Just peachy.” 

You heard your name echoing from above, and you thanked God that Daryl was still up there. “Daryl, don’t come down--.”

You cringed as you heard your husband fall and took a step back when you saw him come down. He landed with a groan, and you were immediately kneeling by his side. “You alright?”

“Ya bleedin��,” He said, using his thumb to wipe the corner of your mouth. 

“I’m okay,” You said, standing and helping him to his feet. 

You set your hands on your waist as you looked around the cave, trying your best to ignore the groans of walkers below you. You cursed under your breath and grabbed Daryl’s hand as Jerry yelled for everyone’s attention. You looked over to where he pointed, and that was when you saw Alpha. 

Your breath hitched in your throat as memories of the barn filled you, and you took a step backward. Daryl squeezed your hand and pulled you closer to him. You could’ve sworn you could feel the tip of her knife dragging across your arms again. 

There was a lump in your throat as you looked back at Daryl. “Just take a breath.” He told you. 

Nodding, you did as he asked and looked back to where Alpha was, but she was gone. You took another deep breath and looked at Aaron, who was against the wall you fell from. 

“Okay, maybe we can get back up,” Aaron said. “If we can get one of you women up there…”

It was a no-go. They tried to lift each and every one of you, but none of you could get a grip. Besides, the wall beyond that was too high. 

So you grabbed Daryl’s flashlight and looked around for any other way out of the damn cave. Water was running in from somewhere, and Daryl and Aaron were discussing how to get out of there. You noticed a chain of boulders that looked close enough to jump to, and they stretched across to the other side. 

“Shine the light for me over there for me,” You handed the flashlight to Daryl. 

“What are ya thinkin’?” Daryl asked but shined where you pointed. 

You didn’t reply and took a few steps back. Without a word, you ran the few steps to the ledge and jumped. Daryl immediately yelled after you as you landed on the first boulder, your knees buckling under the weight of your bag and weapon. But your boots were steady, and you stood straight up. 

“(Y/N), are you crazy?” Carol yelled. 

“Yeah, but she on to somethin’,” Daryl said. He pointed the light to the rock in front of you, and you took a deep breath, steadying yourself before you jumped again. 

You climbed around the formation, feeling wisps of fingertips touching your boots and back legs. But they couldn’t grab you. You glanced back at Daryl, who was following closely behind you. You looked back at the ground, who were all looking a little unsure. 

You kept moving, getting to the next boulder. It was there that you paused and took a deep breath and turned when Daryl called your name. He tossed you the flashlight, and you caught it one-handed, shining the light so he could get to you. 

“Knew I called ya crazy woman for a reason,” Daryl said when he was standing beside you. His arms were on either side of you, effectively pinning you to the boulder so there wasn’t a chance you’d fall or slip. 

“Gotta keep our relationship interesting, huh?” You gently teased, though you were sweating profusely and wanted to bang your head against the rock itself. “Starting to wish I never found your note, though.”

“One more jump, baby girl. Let me go first. I can help ya,” Daryl said. 

You wanted to roll your eyes and tell him that you’d been perfectly fine, but you knew he was only doing it because he loved you and because he was scared for you. So you shined the light onto the cave wall, with just enough room to jump onto. 

When he was on the other side, you tossed him the light and then jumped yourself. His arms were around your waist, and he pulled you tightly against his chest. You could feel his hands shaking as he urged you forward while he waited to help everyone else. 

You watched from a safer place as the rest of the group slowly made their way to the other side, and then you sighed with relief when everyone was over safely. Then you followed Daryl through a tunnel, your hand gripping tightly to the back of his vest.

When you reached a larger area, Daryl dug out his matches and handed you a few. While he told Connie to keep everyone, you lit the match and walked slowly, trying to find a cross breeze. 

You tuned out the conversation happening behind you as you glanced at Daryl. You paused momentarily, admiring his form and the pull of his arms as he held up the match. Shaking your head, you turned around and got back to work. 

“Pst.”

You walked over to Daryl and watched the flame find wind. You smiled and looked up at him. “Nice job, sexy.”

Daryl grunted and put the match out. “Nice thinkin’ with the jumpin’. Gonna have to curse ya out later for it, though.”

You stood on your toes to give him a quick and private--thanks to the boulders--kiss. “You’re welcome for saving your life for the thousandth time.”

***

About an hour later, you sat against a rock wall with your heavy head on Daryl’s shoulder. A half-empty skin of water lay between you two, and you had long since intertwined your fingers. 

Daryl’s thumb was absentmindedly rubbing against your hand while he chewed on his other thumb, and no matter how many times you swatted it away, it was there again in a few minutes. 

“So,” You whispered low enough so nobody would hear. “Ever wanna do it in a cave?”

Daryl snorted. 

“We could find some dark corner,” You teased. 

“Ya ain’ quiet enough, darlin’.”

You smiled and squeezed his hand momentarily before kissing his shoulder. You looked up in time to see Carol headed toward you. “I’ll let you two talk,” You said. You knew very well of the tension between them since everything happened with Lydia and just in general. She hadn’t been the same since she got off the boat, and you knew Daryl was missing his friend. 

Carol smiled as you passed her, and you walked over to where Jerry was sitting. You smiled widely despite how tired, hot, and sweaty you were. “Jerry, my main squeeze,” You collapsed beside him, setting your bow aside. “How are you holding up?”

The two of you murmured, swapping stories of your children. It was the only thing that kept you from falling apart. Getting back to Josie. You would be damned if you let anything keep you from seeing your daughter. 

You’d just settled into a nice silence when you heard Magna screaming ‘skins’. You were on your feet immediately, grabbing your bow and getting an arrow ready. With hardly any light in the cave system, your fingers twitched in anticipation as you followed Jerry toward Magna. 

Rounding the corner, you only had a second to see Magna fighting off a freak when another one dropped before you. They swung their arm at you, and you jumped backward, dropping your bow in favor of the machete at your hip. You ducked underneath their next swing and drove your knife up into their stomach, lifting it as high as you could. Then, with a swift pull, you yanked it to the side. 

Warm guts hit your boots, and the freak dropped dead just in time for another one to approach you. Before they could make the first move, a knife embedded itself in the back of their skull, and when the body fell, Daryl grabbed your arm and handed you your bow. 

In the distance, you could see the last of the freaks running off. You nodded your head toward it, and Daryl yelled for everyone to follow. 

You ran for a good few minutes before you lost the figures, and everyone around you needed to stop. You took a deep breath and wiped your sweat from your forehead. You lowered your bow and slung it over your shoulder. 

When Jerry found an arrow, you all decided to follow it. If freaks got in, then you could get out. So you followed the arrows until you reached a gap in the wall, and Daryl picked up their trail. You watched anxiously as your husband walked through the tight funnel, and you kept an arrow in your bow in case something happened. 

After a few minutes, he gave the signal, and you were the first one to follow him. You fit through the tunnel easily and caught up to Daryl within thirty seconds. You grabbed the back of his vest again until he reached behind you and took your hand in his. 

***

“How ya doin’?”

“Oh, I’m just snug as a bug,” You retorted, pulling your body forward in a painful army crawl. You could feel your jeans rip over a particularly sharp rock, and you bit your lip to stifle a colorful choice of words. 

You focused on the light above you and the bottoms of Daryl’s boots. It was the only thing keeping you from freaking out. You weren’t claustrophobic by any means, but the idea of being sandwiched between tons of rock and who knows how far underground made you want to cry. 

Still, you were doing better than Carol. 

You wanted to cry with happiness when you saw Daryl pull himself out of a hole and then shine his flashlight toward you. “Hand up ya bow first. Gonna be a tight fit.”

“That’s what she said,” You laughed humorlessly as you struggled to get the bow off you and then send it up toward your husband. You could just barely make out the glare he sent you, and then you actually did laugh. 

His hands wrapped around your wrists, and he helped pull you the rest of the way out. When your feet were on the ground and you were finally standing upright, you threw your arms around him and kissed him. 

When you parted, you grabbed your bow. “Don’t act like you don’t like my jokes.”

“Ya got jokes all damn day, every day, since the damn prison.” He replied, shining the light back into the hole, where you could see Kelly slowly making her way. 

You smiled and leaned against the rock, reaching out to pinch his ass. Daryl jumped and smacked your hand away, which made you laugh. 

“Can’ ya ever take anythin’ seriously?”

Your smile widened, and you shook your head. “Gotta try and keep my mind off of our impending deaths for a little while.”

“Ya ain’ dyin’. ‘M gettin’ us home to Josie.” 

***

When the tunnels led you all to an old mining setup, and after you found Alpha’s horde, you sighed with relief. It meant that there was an exit. And you’d see the sky soon. 

So when Daryl found the sun streaming through the ground above you, everyone jumped at once to start clearing a path to dig out of there. But nothing made you more nervous than Kelly finding dynamite, and you prayed that nothing bad would happen. 

“Ya seen Carol?”

You looked up from the pile of rocks you and Connie were moving, and you shook your head. “I thought she was with you guys.”

“‘Mma look for her, ya stay here and keep workin’.”

You hesitated but nodded. She couldn’t have gone off far, and Daryl wouldn’t leave you for long. So after he squeezed your forearm, he went to find her. 

You’d only been working with Connie for a few more minutes before you heard an explosion, and everything around you started to shake. Dirt fell into your eyes, and you cursed loudly, stumbling backward before someone grabbed you. Fingers worked at your eyes, and when you opened them, you saw Connie signing to you. 

Are you okay?

Yes.

“Come on!”

You grabbed your flashlight and shined down the tunnel where Daryl had gone, but you couldn’t see a damn thing. “Son of a bitch,” You muttered before you walked forward. 

An arm wrapped around yours, and you were pulled back by Magna and Connie. “What are you doing?”

“They could be hurt,” You stressed. “I’m not leaving my husband down here or Carol.” You pulled your arm away from Magna’s and took off. You knew they followed you by the sound of their boots, but you didn’t stop. 

When you saw the glow of a lantern, you nearly cried and ran up to Daryl and Carol; the ladder hurt. You wrapped an arm around her waist and helped Daryl get her back to where your exit was. 

“Aaron and Kelly, we got freaks up there!” Jerry strained as he tried to keep the post up. 

“You need to go up first. She can’t climb out!” You yelled to Daryl. When you saw the hesitation on his face, you yelled louder, “Go, dammit! You need to pull her out.”

Dirt was spilling from everywhere, and you coughed loudly as you pushed Carol up. She struggled, and Magna had to help you push her until Daryl had her. 

As you strained, you saw movement in the distance. “Freaks!” You yelled. 

You heard Magna curse loudly. You glanced at the hole above your head, where you could see Daryl getting Carol out. Then you looked at Jerry, who was struggling with holding the post. 

You took a deep breath and wrapped your hand around your machete. Then you ran after Magna, toward the freaks. 

There was barely any light, and you struggled as dirt continued to rain down on you. But you could see figures, and you swiped your machete at each one. Tears burned your eyes from the dirt, and you felt warm blood spray on your face. 

“Get out of here!” Magna screamed. 

You saw her go down, and you quickly stabbed one of the freaks in the head before running over to her. Connie was struggling toward you, weapons raised. But she was signing something you couldn’t see, and you helped Magna. 

The ground shook before you heard the explosion. The ceiling was coming down, and wooden beams were falling. You couldn’t see Magna or Connie through the cloud of dirt. The last thing you heard was the sound of Magna’s screams. 

***

Daryl squinted in the sunlight as he dragged Carol’s body backward. She was nearly unconscious, and Daryl knelt down for a moment, shaking her head. When her eyes blinked slowly, and she nodded, he took a second to look for you before he stood up and ran back over to the hole in the ground. 

“(Y/N)?” He yelled, watching Aaron pull someone up from the hole. His stomach twisted in a knot when he saw it was Jerry he was pulling up. “Where’s (Y/N)? Why didn’ ya send her up first?” He yelled as Aaron helped get Jerry out. 

The ground started shaking, and Daryl’s eyes widened as he realized what it was. “(Y/N)!” He made a beeline for the open hole. 

“Daryl!” Aaron yelled, throwing himself against Daryl’s body and sending them rolling down the hill. 

Shards of rock blasted up from the ground and rained around the group. Daryl covered his head as he struggled against Aaron. When the ground settled, and Aaron let him go, his knees went weak. 

“No!” He screamed, running toward the pile of rocks. “(Y/N)!” He climbed over the debris, and when he saw the cratered hole the explosion left, when he knew the roof had collapsed, he sank down to his knees to dig through the debris. 

He could barely hear Kelly crying; he could barely hear himself crying and grunting with the weight of each rock he threw as he dug. 

“Daryl…”

“We gotta dig!” He yelled. “She’s down there, we gotta get her out.” 

“Daryl… it’ll take us a week to dig this.”

“Then help me!” Daryl screamed. “That’s my fuckin’ wife down there.”

“We can’t,” Kelly yelled through thick tears. “This blast is going to call walkers and Whisperers from a hundred miles from here. We don’t want our backs pressed up against this mountain when they come. We can’t save them if we’re dead!” 

Daryl stared at the pile of rocks as tears fell from his eyes. You couldn’t be dead. You couldn’t be dead. He repeated it over and over in his head. And then his grief, his desperation, turned into white, hot rage. 

He walked away slowly and looked at Carol. 

“Go ahead and say it to me. I deserve it.” Carol cried. 

Daryl’s mind couldn’t even think of a response. All he could see was red. All he could feel was a level of anger that he’d never experienced before. 

“Just say it to me,” Carol said. “That’s (Y/N) down there. Our (Y/N). Your (Y/N). Just say it.”

He could see the desperation on her face. The guilt. The self-hatred. His jaw quivered in anger as he thought about you down there, about you being dead.

And then he found his voice. 

“If she dead, it’s on you,” He stressed. “And you will be dead to me.”

[anonymous-existences]

Chapter 5 : Fun Streaming Shenanigans

[World Building Chapter 2]

[𝙶𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚖 𝙲𝚒𝚝𝚢, 𝙱𝚊𝚡𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝙼𝚊𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗, 12:45 𝙿𝙼]

Tucker was setting up his streaming set-up and dash helping with the heavier sets, "What... Are they doing...?" Valerie asks as she drank her coffee beside Dante. "... Being idiots." Dante scoffs "No Dante, This is Genius! Streaming Valerie!" Danny says Excitedly because they're gonna let Danny Join the dismantling Parts. The Elders were very supportive and even gave them their own streaming Room that is their lounge. Very supportive sweet people who even gave them all Seperate rooms, except Danny and Dante who Says they wanted to stay in the same room.

"Hello Chat! Tucker Foley here and I'm finally back after a Loooong hiatus! A lot of things has happened but anyways! We have new members! Valerie." Tucker shows Valerie to the chat. "Oh come On..." Valerie says and winks at the camera. "There's Dash! He's my Brother now! Cool innit." Tucker says and Dash waves at the Camera.

"Danny and Dante as you all know from Before—" Tucker reads one of the messages. "Where's Sam...? Uhm..." They looked at each other and Valerie spoke up and walked over to the Set-up to talk to Chat. "Unfortunately Sam has passed due to... An accident. It took a long while for us to move on and Grieve and that why Tucker Here took long to post again." Valerie says as she Drank the rest of her Coffee and walked back to beside Dante.

"Yep! Thank you Valerie for Telling the viewers but yes! We're back as always! Soon I might introduce you all to our Grandparents!" Tucker says and Dash and Him continues to chat and talk to the viewers, "I missed this yk... It's been a long time since we've.. streamed stuff actually —" Danny says with a gentle gaze and Dante ruffles his hair.

"Ofcourse I Know that Danny. For now let's have fun." Dante says and also finished drinking his coffee. "Gasp! Hello First Subscriber! CoffeeAddictDrake!" Tucker waves at the Camera. "You remember our first subscriber?" Danny asks as he rolls his wheelchair over to the camera. "ofcourse! He's the one who always gave mone— 500$ WOW— GODDAMN— it's not even 5 minutes yet—" Tucker looks shock and the rest Laughing.

"It's been a while chat! It's me Danny as always, I'm kinda disabled and Gay now but that's fine. I know you guys haven't met my twin Brother Dante. Cmere Dan." Danny looked over to Dante who sighs and Went over to Danny. "Sup Chat." His voice was deeper than Danny's and he was more muscular and built unlike Danny who was more and I qoute "Twink" build.

"Oop chat's going crazy again—" Dash Blurts out as everyone was going crazy over Dan who still hand fixed his messy hair and still half naked with an unbuttoned shirt. "Damn. We went from a thousand viewers and 500 subscribers to 4k Subscribers and Riding and a few thousand Viewers because and Val and Dan. 'is he single?' Uh Yes Chat but I think Valerie wants to fuck him—" Danny blurts out and Dante just stunned.

"If you gave me the opportunity I would." Valerie states and Chat went even crazier. "Damn. This went from Oh Welcome Back introduction to Oh my God people are Simping over you, your brother and Valerie. And Dash is also simping on you so that's something els— oh damn—" chat going crazier.

"Anyways— Let's all calm down- alright??" Tucker says and Valerie chuckled and walked out, Dante just sighs and sat beside Danny's Wheelchair as Dash, Danny and Tucker Went on about Technology and how they're in Gotham for an Hour or 2. Dante slept in his seat as they did so. "And that's all for today! Thank you for watching!" Tucker says "we'll see you again soon." Danny bows his head and smiles. "make Em go Viral if Possible since they're such Fanatics of Wayne Enterprises Technology and Tucker to Tim Drake." Dante laughed.

"If I got the opportunity to Date Tim Drake I'd take it and become a househusband." Tucker says with pure determination, "Then you'd be my brother In Law—" Danny blurts out which chat tries to question but Dante distracted them with unbuttoning his shirt more. It was effective.

"I'm not even surprised.." Dash mutters and waved good bye to the camera and they turned off the stream. They soon heard Dash's Grandma calling for them downstairs as Lunch was Ready. "Just in time! YAY! FOOD!" Tucker stood up excitedly and ran out the door. Dante let Dash push the wheelchair for now as he fixed his shirt and ties his hair back up. Dash was pleased as Danny kept chattering about more stuff in Technology and Dash listening to everything. "Smitten son of a—" Dante glared at Dash who was looking at Danny with "Those Eyes" that clockwork also used to look at Vlad. Dante shuddered slightly and scoffed.

[𝙽𝚎𝚡𝚝 𝙳𝚊𝚢]

"Good Morning Chat! It's a new Day! It's a new discovery— Tim Drake's official account subscribed to me and I couldn't be more happier." Tucker says as he leans on his Chair, "Good morning Chat." Dante says whilst Hair wet and Shirtless, "Damn those abs." Valerie blurts out. "Please stop simping for my brother Infront of me— anyways Morning Chat! Today we will talk about more nerd stuff! Specifically Aerospace Engineering because why not we're nerds, and there's two non nerds behind us—" SLAP. "VALERIE— DO NOT SLAP MY ASS—" Dante yells and Valerie laughing. "That's normal, I'm not even gonna Bother—" Dash falls asleep again resting his head On Danny's Shoulder. "that's not normal but I'm not gonna move nontheless" Danny smiles.

"Uhm chat says uhh...Check... Tiktok? Alright—" Tucker opens TikTok and let's it stream. "ARE THOSE THIRST TRAPS OF DANTE—" Tucker yelled in shock. "WHAT THE— WDYM??" Dante looked over at the screen and in total shock. "Goodness of the Ancients.." Dante mutters slowly falling back down to his seat and Danny laughing his ass off until he sees a Thirst Trap of himself in a "Before and After" Edit. "Pardon Me for Laughing—" Danny mutters regretfully. Tucker was stuttering and questioning chat on how they even made these within a day.

"This is so fun." Danny laughs at Tucker who was mentally overloading.

This was so fun.. Danny smiles softly.

[𝙻𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙰𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚗𝚘𝚘𝚗]

Danny and Dante were with Valerie touring around the City Malls whilst Dash and Tucker was left to the Manor Streaming and Letting Grandma and Grandpa Join the streams. They hinted that the Three icons were out for the day Around Gotham. "This city is both amazing, terrifying and Largely fucked—" Valerie says as she's looking around. "Oh right? When are you guys gonna look for your Biological Family?" Valerie looks at them. "Probably never— I mean... He already has a lot of children—" Danny mutters, "And I heard the youngest is a bit Feral so I'd rather not deal with another Ellie." Dante scoffs as he picked out a book from the shelf in the Store. "Fair reasons but he has to atleast know you guys exist." Valerie tries to reason but Danny shook his head.

"I'd rather not have it like that... I want to stay in low profile and a normal life for longer, I prefer the silent warmth of the mansion." Danny says with a soft gaze and Dante nodding in agreement. "Vlad is still getting my Bike transfered here because it's my favorite and first Bike. Hopefully it doesn't come back Damaged." Dante sighs and drinks from Valerie's Straw. "Uhm that's stealing." Valerie complains as he practically is drinking from her cup. "Doesn't matter. Don't care." Dante chuckles. "Please stop flirting behind me for Ancient's Sake.." Danny groans sarcastically as he rolled his eyes and raised his legs to cross them to add more sass.

"Tucker says he'll vlog tommorow around Gotham, you wanna join?" Valerie asks Danny as she ruffled his hair, "Ofcourse I do! It's fun." Danny smiles and giggled. "You sweet summer child." Valerie kept ruffling his hair. "Jesus Christ, Ancient's Mercy, I am not a sweet summer Child—" Danny says annoyed and embarrassed. "Uh-huh. Right..." Dante says Sarcastically. "Ugh.." Danny groans and Gave up as Valerie kept Fondling and ruffling his poor hair.

Danny was thinking about what he said yesterday. Hopefully someone doesn't take it seriously... I mean Only Tim Drake-Wayne is subscribed to them yeah— hopefully he didn't notice that thing he did. Confessing indirectly was such a stupid move, he feels like an idiot for doing that as that could risk his wish for a normal unbothered life away from the public. Please don't let them find out. Please please please. Ancients have Mercy don't let the Phantom Luck Hit Now and Make the world find out He and Dante are Wayne's Biological sons. That'll be the worst.

Dante gave Danny a cup of Milk tea he just bought. "Ease Up Danny." Dante reassures Danny as he drinks the boba tea happily, The three just tours around the Mall with Danny still on the wheelchair but it's fine, atleast he can still float, not walk anymore though that's still upsetting him but it's fine, hell get used to it as he always does.

[𝚆𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚃𝚞𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙳𝚊𝚜𝚑]

"Why did Danny call my brother in-law when I talked about the marrying Tim Drake Wayne? Uhh... Out of Wedlock Child." Tucker mutters, "Danny sometimes looks like a victorian child in the edge of Deaths Blade." Dash speaks up to try and distract chat. "That's true! Yeah he does! It's normal tho! He's just really pale and ever since the accident with the electricity as you all know we've talked about it cuz that's how he got his Lichtenberg scar, his Heart is barely detectable by the Heart Monitors! Now he's even more slightly sickly more than before ever since an accident." Tucker says

"Yeah! And it left him unable to walk but we're here to help him at his needs ofcourse." Dash finger guns the camera as he spun his chair. "Oh Cujo— OH MY GOD— TUCKER—" Dash yells as he looks at the door. "OH FU— WAIT CHAT—" Tucker turns off the Camera. "CUJO! PUT THAT STICK DOWN! IT LITERALLY HAS FIRE ANTS! PUT IT BACK outside OR DANNY AND VAL WILL GET REALLY UPSET." tucker yells and Cujo whimpers and whined in compliance as he... Threw back the tree log outside again.

Tucker turned on the camera again and looks stressed. "Anyways Chat. Meet our Dog Cujo." Dash raises cujo to the camera and made his paw wave at the Camera. "he's kind of a demon spawn...." Tucker whispers to the Camera. "Aw come on! Look at his cute face! He's so cute..." Dash says as he made Cujo that's in large Pitbull Dog Form wave at the camera, Cujo licking Dash's Face, "you're such a cutie pie! Yes you are, you're such a good boy, who's a good boy? You are! You are" dash coos and Tucker sighed.

"Don't mind him chat he loves the dog as much as he loves Danny." Tucker says Loudly which Made Dash flush red, "TUCKER!! You don't JUST SAY THAT!!" Dash yells his face tomato red as Cujo kept licking his face and Tucker laughing at him as he buried his face on Cujo's chest Fur in Embarrasament. "WHAT IF DANNY SEES THIS!! IM NOT READY TO CONFESS!!" Dash groaned and Tucker laughed Louder.

"Look at that guy! He's so jock like he's Embarrassed about being gay for someone." Tucker Snorts and Dash tackled him from Behind, Both boys now Wrestling Like Brothers and Cujo Barking and Playing around them thinking they're playing and Tucker Laughing his Ass Off as Dash still looked like a red and ripe tomato.

Hopefully this type of happiness lasts forever... Even if not forever please let it be long. Tucker hopes that it lasts long so they can enjoy the last bits of childhood they can have.

Let them Have fun just for a longer while.

[athenaluciscaelum]

Dante reacting to the reader wearing pheromone perfume.

Pheromone Perfume

Pairing: Post- DMC 1 Dante x Fem! Reader

Rated: Mature

Words: 3661 words

Warning: Sexual Content

Note:

I did not know what Pheromones are or Pheromone Perfume. I have to search, hope you like it.

You were surfing channels on the TV when you stopped on a channel. It was a Prank Show where a salesperson was making men try Pheromone Perfume and suddenly a girl from the crew started to act crazy for the said man making them confused and question, “it worked!?” To say the least their reactions were funny…you found it amusing. You were unaware what Pheromone Perfumes were before, so you looked it up in a magazine and from your research, it was a gimmick. And didn't do much for normal humans.

But your mind started to race thousand miles in a minute, and you thought it doesn't work with human. But if someone who is more in tune with raw nature or one of his side is more in tune with raw nature, then what will happen? You wanted to mess with Dante. He has heightened sense of everything thanks to his demonic heritage…and you wanted to make him go crazy by doing nothing. Well, not exactly nothing, but he won't be able to tell, right?

So the plan was in action. You got out of shower sprayed some perfume on your neck, wrist, and some spots on your body. You put on the simplest clothes to not give him any chance of coming up with excuse that you were tempting him. You wanted him to lose his mind. So you walked down in your simple black tee and black cargo. You sat on the red leather couch and started to go through some paperwork. Dante was on his chair, a magazine on his face. Just a little sniff and his eyes were in a slit, he frowned and looked around. You acted normal but god, you were snickering on the inside… Dante stood up and walked up to you…he sneaked behind his nose close to your neck…a sniff and then soft kisses on your neck. You hummed, “Dante, what's gotten into you…? Are you in heat?” Dante shook his head, frustration evident in his voice, “I am not sure…babe… I just need you…doll…come here." Dante picked you up and threw you over his shoulder. You squeaked, and he spanked your ass…you laughed, “Dante?!” Dante took you upstairs and deposited you on the bed…he kicked of his boots, slid of his coat and peeled his Hensley off in a second… Dante voice was urgent, “No time to explain, babe…” You can hear his labored breathing. His voice laced with desire, eyes lustful and he was so beautiful, you cupped his cheeks. You loved this man. Before you can say anything, your cargo, and panties were torn, and he was lapping on your folds, licking broad strip and sucking on your nub. His arms curling around your thighs to spread them far. The air was knocked out of your lungs, your hand in his soft silver locks. You were in heaven, you were always when with Dante. You loved him even if not this. But this was so welcomed. You thanked person who made this damn product. Lord…but you want to play.

You moaned, “Dante, what's gotten into you… I'm so irresistible…?" Dante chuckled against your clit and gave it a good suck. Making you choke on your words, he spoke “You always are…but I need you so much, right now…besides….your little trick is working.”

You frowned and spoke, “What! D-Dan-” Before you can complete the sentence Dante started to fuck your sweet spot with his morphed demon tongue…he spoke in his demonic voice, his face showing little scales and horn on a side…he continued until you came, and your mind was mush, all you can do was whimper and moan…He lapped on your essence…and stood up. He took off his pants and boxers, positioning his cock head against her folds, he leaned down and kissed her lips passionately as you were already coming down from an orgasm…Dante rammed himself in making you gasp and open your lips for his tongue to slid in your mouth…you were whimpering and moaning as he softly moved his hip, his thrust slow but long…a torture…he pulled away …your lips swollen. You mumbled, “Dante.....please….faster…" Dante chuckled…" My little vixen, she thought she is playing me…."

His snapped his hip making you moan, “Nghghh!” Dante loved seeing you flustered and dumb around his cock. He leaned down to kiss your nose, neck, pushing up your shirt and bra to kiss your chest and suck on your nipple. You were going crazy under his soft ministration and slow, yet alternatively brutal pace…you thought he was done when his thrust were fast and hard, but as you were close…Dante stopped…and licked your nipples. You cried, “Dante! No fair…" Dante smirked, “And this was fair? We both can play a game, my angel… you're all I need to get riled up. But you think no other women try to use the trick on your handsome man to get laid with him? Tsk...tsk...so innocent, my baby." Dante snapped his hip in as he entangled his fingers with yours. Your entangled hands above your head, as he was continuing his slow torturous thrust.You cried, “Dante, please…you win!” Dante smirks as he kisses your neck, “I know … I did .Okay." Dante started to thrust setting in a sweet pace, making it hard and fast as he grounded your hip. You were moaning and wrapping hand around his neck…while legs around his waist…" D-D-Dante! Dante… I'm coming." Dante nibbled your earlobe… making you come and releasing his loads inside you. You were limp and panting as he laid you down gently. He cleaned you and snuggled with you on bed.Dante chuckled, “You're so sweet…. I love you…my little vixen." You nuzzled his chest and pouted, Dante just laughed. You asked embarassed, "when you understood" Dante chuckled, "I knew the moment you brought it past the door, baby..."

Tag: @marshmallows-and-champagne @sacredwarrior88

[cannedpeachess]

Dante: I…..I have made a terrible mistake…..

Nicola: What? At church?? How???

Dante: ….a grave, irreparable blunder….

Nicola: Whaaaat????

Dante: ….I’ve ruined everything. EVERYTHING, Nicola. We….we need to move. Today. Like, right now.

Nicola, losing patience: Wha— nonono, hold up, Dante, calm down. Tell me what happened first.

Dante: ….I can’t. It’s too horrible for me to even say out loud. Please…just end my suffering already.

Nicola: *stands up* Seriously, dude?! We’re in the mafia! What the fuck happened back there???

Dante: *sobs*

Nicola: *grabs Dante by the collar* TELL ME

Dante: *hiccups* OKAY, OKAY, DAMN, LET ME GO

Nicola: START TALKING

Dante: …Okay, so like I visited my parents’ grave and left a bouquet of flowers for them, right

Nicola: Right…

Dante: And then I went to leave the cemetery, right, and then Liliana was suddenly just, like, THERE

Nicola: *gasps sarcastically* At the CHURCH?!?! Where she LIVES?!?! NO WAY

Dante: YES WAY, DUDE. And she saw me. And I saw her. And she saw that I saw her. And I saw that she saw that I saw her. And she greeted me — like, BY NAME. How did she know my name, Nicola?!?!

Nicola: *facepalms*

Dante, voice breaking: And then I…..I…..

Nicola, trying not to laugh: What’d you do, Dante?

Dante, miserably: I….I just sort of….grunted at her??????

Nicola: YOU WHAT

Dante, openly weeping: I GRUNTED AT HER, OKAY?!?! I GRUNTED AT HER LIKE A FUCKING CAVEMAN, AND THEN I RAN AWAY

Nicola: LMFAOOOOOOOO

Dante, scream-crying: FUCK YOU MAN, THIS IS SERIOUS!!

Nicola: NO IT ISN’T, YOU FUCKING IDIOT😂🤣

Dante: *bangs his head on his desk and prays for a concussion*

[wingedshadowfan]

the 'breaking expensive glassware' scene in ninth house is so important for darlington's character (it's essentially an extension of 'the moths' scene)

first of all. he's a man of knowledge and preparedness. he believes he knows all there is to know and that makes him prepared for it. alex easily challenges that belief, breaks his rules.

“It wasn’t the ritual.” “Was it the blood?” “No. One of them grabbed me. You didn’t say that was going to happen. I—” Darlington couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You’re saying one of them touched you?” “More than one. I—” “That isn’t possible. I mean …” He set down his wine, ran his hands through his hair. “Rarely. So rarely. Sometimes in the presence of blood or if the spirit is particularly moved. That’s why true hauntings are so rare.” Her voice was hard, distant. “It’s possible.” Maybe. Unless she was lying.

his very obvious disbelief and distrust toward her is understandable - not only is what she's saying so incredibly unlikely, but he's also read her file. he has some surface level knowledge of her life and the state she was in when sandow recruited her. she's an uneducated, untrained, unprepared, a juvenile, an addict with no prospects (he never stops to consider how she got to that point, deems it irrelevant) who somehow wound up the only survivor at a murder scene. what incentive does he have to trust her?

His Dante, the girl he would gift with the keys to a secret world, was a criminal, a drug user, a dropout who cared about none of the things he did.

she was fortunate enough to be born with what he considers a gift - the ability to see grays - something lethe took notice of and rewarded generously. that's the only reason she's here. she has no other redeeming qualities to him, unlike each of the thousands of lethe house candidates he was supposed to review and pick from, that opportunity, that honor ripped away from him. this would've never happened, if not for her.

“You need to be ready next time. You weren’t prepared—” “And whose fault is that?” Darlington sat up straighter. “I beg your pardon? I gave you two weeks to get up to speed. I sent you specific passages to read to keep it manageable.”

she doesn't mean him in particular, but he predictably misunderstands (and i'll explain why). he's confident he did the right thing, that he did enough. he readily gave her what was most dear to him in a silver platter - his knowledge, the key to this world of mystery. partially he did it for lethe, partially he did it because he felt for her (referencing he moth scene here). he doesn't take lightly to being accused of being wrong, of having done the wrong thing. especially by a seemingly ungrateful newcomer throwing a temper tantrum after fucking up and possibly even lying about why.

“And what about all of the years before that?” Alex stood and shoved her chair back. She paced into the breakfast room, her black hair reflecting the lamplight, energy sparking off her. The house gave a warning groan. She wasn’t sad or ashamed or worried. She was mad. “Where were you?” she demanded. “All you wise men of Lethe with your spells and your chalk and your books? Where were you when the dead were following me home? When they were barging into my classrooms? My bedroom? My damn bathtub? Sandow said you had been tracking me for years, since I was a kid. One of you couldn’t have told me how to get rid of them? That all it would take was a few magic words to send them away?”

“They’re harmless. It’s only the rituals that—”

Alex grabbed Darlington’s glass and threw it hard against the wall, sending glass and red wine flying. “They are not harmless. You talk as if you know, like you’re some kind of expert.” She struck her hands against the table, leaning toward him. “You have no idea what they can do.”

“Are you done or would you like another glass to break?”

his distrust also very reasonably drives her mad. she's sick of not being believed, not being trusted her whole life - even here at lethe, where magic is a widely accepted fact, people like him, who've never had to live a day in her life, with her ability, still think they know better. she's supposed to be safe, understood, helped here. she isn't. she's only being used for lethe's agenda. and darlington? he perpetuates that fact. he's her mentor, for fuck's sake. she'd barely began to trust him when he showed her magic, when he taught her to protect herself. she must've misjudged him. he did all that for lethe, not for her, just like how he covered up the almost butchered ritual from scroll and key.

“Why didn’t you help me?” said Alex, her voice nearly a growl.

“I did. You were about to be buried under a sea of Grays, if you recall.”

“Not you.” Alex waved her arm, indicating the house. “Sandow. Lethe. Someone.” She covered her face with her hands. “Take courage. No one is immortal. Do you know what it would have meant to me to know those words when I was a kid? It would have taken so little to change everything. But no one bothered. Not until I could be useful to you.”

this is why he misunderstands. she doesn't challenge him directly, she attacks lethe, but he's taken it upon himself to assert lethe's authority, to protect its credibility and integrity from such accusations. he's embodied lethe. it's a part of who he is now. he considers himself an extension of it, its golden boy, its gentleman. so this criticism, he takes personally. but it's not about him.

Darlington did not like to think he had behaved badly. He did not like to think that Lethe had behaved badly. We are the shepherds. And yet they’d left Alex to face the wolves. She was right. They hadn’t cared. She’d been someone for Lethe to study and observe from afar.

He’d told himself he was giving her a chance, being fair to this girl who had washed up on his shore. But he’d let himself think of her as someone who had made all of the wrong choices and stumbled down the wrong path. It hadn’t occurred to him that she was being chased.

he's not a fool. he pieces it all together. he realizes she's right, she isn't lying. his blind trust in lethe prevented him from seeing it all before. her records start making sense. her anger now and her fear earlier start making sense. but that doesn't mean he's equipped to help her, to comfort her, to deal with the weight of what it all means. i imagine her sudden depth and pain must've scared him. he was raised by his grandpa who thought the solution to everything was alcohol, ice and manners. only thing darlington seems to have added to that list is breaking things. and alex seems to already be well versed in that.

After a long moment, he said, “Would it help to break something else?” She was breathing hard. “Maybe.” Darlington rose and opened a cupboard, then another, and another, revealing shelf after shelf of Lenox, Waterford, Limoges—glassware, plates, pitchers, platters, butter dishes, gravy boats, thousands of dollars’ worth of crystal and china. He took down a glass, filled it with wine, and handed it to Alex. “Where would you like to start?”

[xerith-42]

Dante hesdcanons pls pls pls pls pls

I'll admit, I haven't given blue hair and pronouns enough love, so let's give it to him.

Dante was like 18 fresh out of the guard academy when Aph met him, compared to Garroth and Laurance who are in their mid to late twenties, and he was kind of just a little feral. Dante is just used to being a bewildering presence for people and he loves it. Like "Yes, I am basically a very tall child (5'7) and yes I will kick your ass." He likes confusing people, but he also really likes that Aph isn't thrown off by him. She treats him the way she would treat any guard she got roped into helping on a mission.

Dante's favorite color is magenta. Don't ask me why.

Dante carries on the honored tradition started by Gene of being a completely disastrous bisexual. Then again, with Garroth, Aph, and Laurance as his other role models, he really didn't stand a chance. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he thinks about the possibility of just being with Nana and Nicole at the same time. He knows it's impossible, they've already pushed the situation past the point of no return because of his and Nicole's refusal to communicate, and he can't even begin to fathom how he'd explain it to the kids if Nana and Nicole even agreed to it.

Dante's favorite sweet that Nana makes is strawberry tarts. Strawberries are just his favorite fruits and Nana is always able to make something delicious with them.

This is basically canon but I want to turn up Dante's "I love my wife so god damn much!!" energy to 11. Like even if there's problems with Nicole, especially after they're resolved, he's so in love with Nana it's ridiculous. Y'know the way Maes Hughes is in Fullmetal Alchemist about his wife and kid? That's how Dante is.

And nobody can even really be mad at him because he's so earnest and loving and especially his mentors are so proud of him for really finding love and learning to cherish it. But there is more than a few times when Dante is gushing about his wife to Laurance while they're sparring and Laurance just groans and rolls his eyes. "Dante, I literally knew your wife before you did." "But you don't understand how she makes me feel Laurance! She's so brilliant, and beautiful--" "I've already heard you go on this rant before!"

There are some days where he's sort of distant. They became more and more frequent after Aph and everyone disappeared. Sometimes he would just go out to the gates of Phoenix Drop where he waited for them, or to that spot in the forest where they were last seen. He doesn't really say a lot, just stares at those spots, letting his brain feeling the crushing loneliness of missing almost everyone important to him. History has repeated itself. Due to forces that were honestly largely out of Dante's control, he's lost his entire family.

When Nana told him she was pregnant, Dante started crying. Tears of joy, relief, terror, grief, adoration, hopefulness. He just falls to his knees while holding her hand and cries. And Nana kneels down and comforts him. She knows what this means to him, how important and yet twisted Dante's relationship to having a family is. But neither one of them doubt that the other wants this. Dante wants this more than anything.

Oh my Irene he must have been a MESS after finding out about Dmitri. I know the show gave us some of this, but he probably hid a lot of it from Aph because she hasn't been around for so long, and he saw the kind of relationship bull shit she is still kind of getting up to, so he doesn't want to burden her with this. But when everyone's gone home for the night and it's just Nana and Dante in their bed together?

Needless to say a lot of tears were shed, apologies were stumbled through, and Dante ultimately resolves that he wants to be an even better father than he is to make up for not being there for Dmitri. And Nana assures him he's already a great father (because he is), but adores how dedicated her husband is to making up for his past mistakes in a very substantial way.

It takes a very long time for Dante to forgive Nicole. He still loves her, he never won't love her honestly, but he can't forgive her for hiding Dmitri from him. Even if they weren't together when he was born, he still would have done anything Nicole needed. Whether that was keeping Dmitri in his home for a few weeks, or just giving Nicole monthly payments, Dante would have taken what he could get. He's heartbroken that after all the time they spent together Nicole didn't realize that about him. Even if he'd "moved on".

I don't think Dante is capable of moving on. He's a character who constantly gets stuck in the past and shoulders the consequences of not only his own mistakes, but the mistakes of many others around him. Even when he tries to move forward, his past keeps coming back to bite him in the ass.

[kattythingz]

I'll release your men and I'll get you to the Underworld instead / Wait, you're helping us?

BACK ON MY CIRCE AU BULLSHIT, WHAT'S UP. This time with a proper scene (and close-ups) under the cut!!! Many thanks to my dearest @sirchenchen for drawing Ling as amazingly as always, everyone check out her other art, it's just as amazing!! This scene was yet again inspired by a gorgeous animatic, so check that out too for context and to have your eyes blessed~

Ling stopping Ed gently during There Are Other Ways, telling him, “I do think you’re beautiful. But I have more respect for you than that. And I think you have more respect for yourself than that too.”

Ed’s stunned. “What are you—?”

“I’m telling you no, Edward.”

So succinctly. And yet…

Respect. That’s the word Ling used. Respect for Ed? After he blushed at him and looked at him like that, just like every man before him has?

It should be laughable how bizarre the concept is to Ed. But all he can do is sit back unconsciously from Ling, allowing him to rise too.

“I understand now why you responded to our arrival with hostility,” Ling says softly. “And I must clarify, if any of my men did anything to imply otherwise—we are here for no such thing. I am not here for such a thing. We sought your island for rest from the storm, and, truly, the party’s only intent had been to scout for our safety. We mean you and your own no harm.”

“What are you here for, then?” Ed asks lowly. A near hiss, defensive as he shifts the knife to plain sight over Ling’s chest. “Give me one good reason to believe you, mortal, because believe me—your lot have tried those words before too.” 

Ling swallows at the edge of the knife so close to his unarmored chest. He looks between the active threat and the even more dangerous one, perhaps, glaring down at him.

“We only wanted one thing since the beginning,” he says after a pause. “We want to get home.”

“Home. And where’s that? A long way from here, I’m sure.”

Ed says it sarcastically—mocking the flimsy excuse to him, certainly.

He’s surprised, then, when Ling’s expression twists with a real agony, as he rasps, “Yes.”

Ed furrows his brow, and Ling continues thickly, “We’ve been seeking home for ten years now. We only just escaped another danger keeping us from there, and it was—” A hard, swallowing pause. “It was much larger than we could’ve handled. The ship we docked at your shore is all that’s left of us.”

“What was it?”

Ed gazes down at him impassively. Compelling honesty from Ling, and nothing else.

Ling can’t even lie if he wants to. “Dante,” he whispers.

He’s surprised when Ed jolts at the name, reeling back.

“What?” Ed spits. “That fucking bitch? How’d you go and piss her off? Do you realize how hard it is, with how little a shit she gives about you damn mortals?"

The words sail sharply into Ling’s exposed pain, and he flinches.

Yes, he’s well aware.

“I didn’t know,” Ling rasps. “I thought... I thought I was doing the right thing. But it wasn’t, and—it cost my men instead of me.” His throat bobs with a startling emotion to Ed. “That’s why I beg you, Edward. Release what little I have left of my men. We won’t overstay our welcome. I swear it.”

It’s a long, awful pause before Ed’s sharp gaze leaves Ling’s face.

Ling’s heart stops with the abrupt sigh Ed lets out.

“Well, shit.”

Ling scrambles to sit fully upright when Ed gets off him. He fears Ed will spell him while he’s defenseless, but Ed only swirls a finger to tie up his hair into a regal high ponytail, golden waves and decorated braids swaying as he says, “I won’t kill you, Ling Yao. But I’ll have to ask for the rest of your story.”

Hope flutters golden in Ling’s chest, and he fixes himself to do exactly that.

Ling begins his story from their first steps away from Amestris, and, as he speaks, Ed moves about his spellworks room. When he reaches the devastation Dante set upon his men, Ed looks up in reflexive horror at the loss. He hides it swiftly, but the spark of sympathy keeps Ling’s voice steady as he finishes up to the present.

“Well, that definitely checks out for the old bitch,” Ed says when Ling’s done. “Good riddance with her abomination of a son, though. I’m surprised you got the drop on him at all.”

Ling looks up, surprised at Ed’s—friendliness? What’s this supposed to be?

“You couldn’t have killed Gluttony if you’d tried,” Ed then tells him, shuttering Ling’s lungs from breath. “He’s not just a god by your standards, but a fake one. Created by the bitch herself. Though, I honestly can’t tell you why.”

Ling doesn’t know what to say to any of that, so he gulps.

“You won’t last another day in the ocean if she’s so hot on your tails,” Ed continues, rattling a half-full potion bottle in his hand. Whatever the motion tells him must be good, as he nods to himself before dipping it into the cauldron to fill the rest of the way. Ling watches the process with some interest, straightening up when golden eyes fall on him again afterward. “Not without some help, at least."

Ling understands immediately.

“You’re helping us?” he stutters.

“Don’t take it so personally yet,” Ed says with a tug of his lips. “Consider this a trial run. You’re an oddity, Ling Yao. And I don’t like ignorance. I need to figure you out somehow. And this”—he clinks the bottle in his hand on Ling’s dangling earring—”is my first experiment.”

His lips catch a full, coy smile when he notes Ling’s idle rubbing of the disturbed earring—otherwise unaffected by Ed’s closeness and state of dress.

“Whether you’re worth a second experiment... That’s completely up to you.”

“Just for curiosity’s sake...” Ling starts, eyeing the silvery potion and the ominous glow of the cauldron. “What, exactly, does this experiment entail?”

Ed grins at the blatant anxiety. Still smart, this mortal. Good.

“You’ve heard of the Underworld, haven’t you?” Ed hums, flicking a hand to shift the “smoke” into a silvery vision. He doesn’t risk turning around when Ling’s eyes widen at the image of Al. “I’ve got... a friend, there. A prophet. He can read your future so you can do your thing and dodge it. Or so you can accidentally fulfill it.” He spins around as he snaps his fingers, and the illusions snuffs out just in time. He lets out a soundless sigh. “Whichever you’re capable of.”

“And—what do you get out of this, if I agree?” Ling can’t help asking despite his hope.

Ed smirks back at him over a shoulder. He doesn’t answer as he makes a “come hither” motion for Ling to follow him outside, and Ling does so blindly, distracted by Ed’s robe also floating over to wrap back around him at the same time.

“Nothing, technically,” Ed says as they walk, ignoring Ling’s falling behind as he begins looking around the palace properly. The overgrown vines and wildflowers from the cracks are unlike any plants Ling’s ever seen before, sans the few hanging in the cauldron room just now. They don’t resemble the moly Greed gave him, though...

Ling starts, “You’ll forgive me if I don’t trust… that...”

He putters off when his gaze lands naturally on Ed. Without the shadows of Ed’s hair obscuring his face, the sunlight brushing that skin put a spontaneous pin in Ling’s foolish heart.

He noticed it much earlier, naturally, but...

Edward is beautiful.

And he’s smiling now.

Not directly at Ling, but at an unseen distance. An unseen memory, perhaps. Or a train of thoughts Ling really oughta pry after for his own safety.

And yet, no such instinct strikes when Ed says, “I’m figuring it out too, I guess.”

“Me?” Ling realizes faintly.

Ed’s eyes sparkle even without the sun when they turn to Ling. “I told you not to take it personally yet.”

Ling straightens. “Am I wrong, then?”

Ed shakes his head, staring ahead with a low chuckle. He doesn’t answer that either, but Ling has a feeling the answer wouldn’t have mattered anyway.

Edward’s giving him a chance. A chance to patron to their journey home, should Ling please him. After the loss of Athena’s favor, this is a golden opportunity. In several senses of the word.

For now, the best response is this: to kiss the back of its hand before he leaves—and pray to the gods he doesn’t waste another blessing.

(“Ooooh, looking a little red there, goldilocks. Guess this one’s okay, after all?”

“WHA—GREED! There you are!”

“Aw, did you miss—ohhh, shit. Put down the rat spell, kid—”

“SHOULD’VE THOUGHT OF THAT BEFORE YOU GAVE HIM THAT DAMN MOLY! GET BACK HERE!”)