#guardian macaque au

[lotusmonkey]

[semisolidmind]

How do you think season 5 would’ve gone in your Bad End or Twice As Bad AU?

ok, so

y'know how, since season 4, mk has been going through the whole “i don’t want to use or even acknowledge my monkey form because it makes me feel like a monster” thing? well, bad end/twice as bad mk doesn’t have that hangup to address, because he’s spent his entire life up until the shows’ events in that form, training and living in it. he knows no other way.

he is an incredibly powerful monkey demon; he is the harbinger of chaos, and he's fine with it.

his “mortal” form is the one he’s been having visions and confrontations with. (i imagine the ink curse in s4 using his mortal form to taunt him about being weak now that he's got mortals he cares about– "keep on compromising for them, and you'll end up just like them; too small and insignificant to ever make a difference.")

instead of having to face his fear that he may be dangerous (because as a crazy powerful monkey demon trained by the two other most powerful monkey demons in the universe, of course he is), his mortal self is trying to tell him that he doesn't have to be a monster like wukong. death and rampant destruction don't have to be his legacy.

the mortal mk in his meditative visions tells him that caring for his friends doesn't make him weak or undeserving of his power and lineage. the visions he has during the guardian trials (and the guardians themselves) tell him that in order to be a real hero, he has to care about those that his training would tell him are "lesser" than him (also that his friends aren't worth less just because they don't have a ridiculous amount of power).

mk would learn to accept that every being in the world has value, regardless of their status. nuwa would tell him this as well, when he meets her.

season 5 would be bad end/twice as bad mk's journey of accepting that he has a mortal heart, and that caring for others has immense power all on its own. he must choose to be the change to the status quo.

he'd always known he was an "agent of chaos," but the events of season five cement in his mind that he was brought into the world for a reason. just that now, he alone gets to decide what that reason is.

----------

as for his mentors...

getting captured and re-bound by the gold fillet wasn't exactly on the monkey king's itinerary, and he's majorly pissed. he levels the surrounding area about it, and decimates all of the soldiers sent to subdue him (regardless of how agonizing the tightening spell is; the pain just makes him angrier). he breaks every ward and barrier placed against him, tears apart any enemy who dares to come close. his rage is a force to be reckoned with.

wukong had sworn he'd never be subjugated by heaven ever again; he's definitely not just gonna let this slide. the celestial realm will suffer for their breach of the tentative peace they brokered by leaving the monkey king well enough alone.

as the only one that gets captured after his fit of rage, he only has to get himself out of celestial prison. easy, despite how many wards are placed on his cell (it's not like heaven has ever been much of a threat to him before, after all). he has to get back to the group, for his family's sake. nothing will stand in his way.

macaque only barely dodges getting locked into a fillet as well, and uses his advantage to launch a sneak attack on nezha and li jing; this forces them back and gives the gang their chance to escape in the chaos caused by the monkey bros.

the shadow general takes the distraction provided by wukong's rampage to get reader and everyone else somewhere safe. from there, the gang helps mk find all the stones, defeat the guardians trials, and eventually make their way to the pillar.

both wukong and macaque try to stop mk from sacrificing himself (in-between fighting the nine-headed demon), and reader tries to talk him down from it. however, she can't argue with the look of quiet determination on his face..she knows that he's made up his mind. with tears in her eyes she embraces him, then lets him go.

wukong tries to go after him, but one look at reader stops him. she's...she's accepted his decision. just like she always has. maybe...maybe this time, wukong should too. he sheds tears and holds onto his wife... but doesn't follow his son into the pillar.

the world goes silent, before bursting back to life.

the stones are destroyed, the nine-headed demon dissapears, and things go back to almost normal.

----------

—i imagine reader, with her skills as a peacemaker developed from her centuries as queen of flower fruit mountain, is the one who keeps everyone calm and grounded throughout their ordeals. she's gotten to know them all through her adopted charge, and keeps them on track.

—now it'd make sense for reader to be left relatively safe on ffm, but given the state of the universe in this season, the monkey bros aren't about to let her out of their sight (weird end-of -the-world-again family road trip). they don't care much for the rest of existence, but even they have to acknowledge that they'd prefer the world and their mountain unbroken.

—the pagoda sequence is a very emotionally tense one for reader and the boys in twice as bad. reader relives being stolen and the early years of her imprisonment; after they break her out of the hundred eyed demon's spell, she won't look at either of them and flinches away when they try to touch her; little does she know, her husbands relived the same thing (plus all the other bad shit they've done). they've learned enough compassion for her to feel a bit of shame.

[kristea9ay]

This probably won’t make sense but I hope it does, sorry In advance lol

So Mk is still the harbinger of chaos, does this mean season 5 still happens? So him sacrificing himself for his friends and family? And everyone (especially macaque and Sun wukong) trying to prevent this and trying to find another way without loosing him? As well as meeting Nüwa etc.

And also do any of the events throughout/during LMK occur in the celestial family au?

The story is a lot different from the original.

It's mainly because in this AU Azure is the new Emperor and so the whole story from that point changed and doesn't follow the Canon.

MK is still harbinger of chaos, but no one really knows what it is or that it even exists (except for the underworld kings and Nuwa)

MK in this AU doesn't have to sacrifice himself and restart the cycle. Instead, when he finds out he is the Harbinger of chaos, his "duty"/"mission" is to keep an eye on the guardians of the stones and recharge their energy so they can keep the stones safe forever.

That's why his energy level is so fricking high compared to everyone.

[quitealotofsodapop]

I just thought of the perfect excuse for Wukogn to come down from the mountain in Soft Boiled au! If Yuebei is a ribbondancer, she had to start young. This means Wukong had to enroll her in classes for it at some point. Imagine if, after winning some competition, Yuebei was actually IN the parade as one of the dancers! This means she, unfortunately, was smack dab in the middle of the chaos, hidden behind a glamour. This could be both how her dancing troupe and otber friends finds out about her being a monkey... and the world at large discovering Sun Wukong had a daughter if she hadn't been known about beforehand.

To make things angst, imagine if she had left her asthma inhaler with Wukong so it wouldn't get lost/damaged in the performance. And unlike Redson, Yuebei didn't escape without being captured. Luckily, SQ isn't willing to actually harm a little girl like that, even if she is Wukong's daughter. In fact she finds the fact Yuebei is such a Daddy's Girl and Wukong is so protective of her extremely amusing and kind of sweet! Unfortunately Yuebei ends up having an asthma attack tho, just form a mix of tbe bad quality air in the mech, the excitement and exercise she had, and jsut waking up feeling kinda bad. And since Wukong has the inhaler and both are currently trapped, they have to rely on their captors to be kind enough to get Yuebei her inhaler from Wukong's pocket. And it isn't SQ who is in the room when it happens.

Macaque was spying on them from the shadows and watching as Wukong damn near begged LBD to let him save his little girl, actually crying tears as the bone witch just laughed in his face, not caring about the girl. She grabbed the inhaler andjsut threw it on the ground in front of him, stepping on it, before walking out. Once he was sure LBD was gone, and Wukong was distracted trying to help his daughter and keep her calm, Macaque made his move. The medicine disappears into a shadow portal and Macaque slides out next to Yuebei, inhaler in hand. It's a very tense moment before Macaque proceeds to help Yuebei use said inhaler, but he won't cut them free.

Not without a VERY overdue conversation with his ex.

Prev.

Oohh that would be so cute <3

Wukong noticed Yuebei's interest in ribbon-dancing a long time ago, and found it a good way to get her to interact with regular kids roughly her age but under supervision. Wukong may be a bit of a helicopter parent, but none of the other guardians or teachers judge him for it when he expains that Yuebei is health-compromised.

Yuebei thinks her dad is super embarassing, sitting on the sidelines with a whole doctor's office in his bag, cheering for her and her group for every bit of progress, bringing fresh fruit for everyone, calling her his little Moonlight - UGH!

But she'd rather have he there and keep going to class than not go at all so...

At New Years, Yuebei's school gets a prestigious role; acting as junior dancers in the parade! They've done competitions and live performances before, but New Years!? :D

Yuebei does not stop fretting about it when she gets home or meets up with the Noodle Gang. She's low-key panicking since it will be her first time in a parade at all. All that anxiety makes her start to wheeze a bit...

So on the evening of New Years; Wukong tells MK to go hang out with his dads and friends for the day - and maybe take a break to watch the parade! MK and Mei are super excited to see Yuebei perform for real, and convince Pigsy to close the food truck for a few minutes when it's time for her school's progression.

Then the spiders attack.

Yuebei is scream-wheezing with anger by now. She's spent days preparing for this parade! How dare these B-Tier villains wreck her and her team's performance!? Nearly aflame with rage, her glamour falls apart, revealing a very familiar-looking monkey demon...

Spider Queen is quick to capture this one, even if the little Monkey Princess is too cute to eat. She's perfect bait for catching her Daddy.

Wukong is captured alongside DBK as in canon, with the addition of Yuebei in the web next to him. Weirdly, the spider mech seems to "glitch out" a bit when it draws energy from her.

As Wukong soothes his crying little girl that it's ok and that they'll make it out of here, he notices how here breathing is Off.

Yuebei's asthma had gotten better as she grew up, but it never went away. And now she was in the midst of a massive attack.

Wukong panics as he struggles to reach for the inhaler in his pocket, gritting his teeth as the contricting webs pull at his strength, still assuring his daughter that everything will be okay.

Then the strange little girl appears... and Wukong pales at the sight of her. He weakly asks for assistance to help his child, only for the Bone Demon to mock him for having "such a weak progeny" and crush the inhaler underfoot. She leaves the room, threatening her future goals.

The other demons in the room now fully realise that Sun Wukong, The Monkey King, is terrified in this moment - terrified for his child's life. Wukong is trying his best not to cry, still trying to keep his daughter calm and breathing, but hope is running thin....

Until a shadow leaks into frame.

Anyone whos broken an inhaler casing will tell you that you can still release the medicine if the cartridge is intact, its just a little awkward.

Macaque fumbles with the cartridge as Wukong instructs him how to use it to help Yuebei, all three monkeys breathing a sigh of relief as the youngest's wheezing calms and breathing steadies.

Macaque is about to ask Wukong a much needed question when DBK manages to break free from his own webbing, terrified for his niece's well-being.

Ripping the webs asunder, DBK brushes the tears from Yuebei's eyes, asking if she's indeed ok before heading out to look for his own child. Wukong thanks his brother sincerely. And thanks Macaque too.

Macaque acts non-chalantly about it, and finally gets to ask;

"Who's kid is this?"

Wukong and Yuebei's faces tells him it's not a question they expected him to ask. Or one they would need an answer for. Macaque mentally panics as he calculates all the similarities between his ex-mate and the little monkey demon he just helped save.

Macaque blinks as the realisation comes to him; "Oh sh-"

And then the gang's airship releases the spider venom antidote throughout the city. More questions for later!

[ryin-silverfish]

LMK S5 trailer, Chinese pantheon infodump, and some ideas

…Man, normally, I feel the urge to write fix-it AUs after rewatching episodes and coming across particularly bizarre theories and takes, not before the new season's even out.

Thanks, S5 trailer.

Consider this your spoiler warning, because the rest of this post will all be my personal opinions about a few major story beats that were revealed + the rough outline for a fix-it AU.

It's also a bit ranty, and features some criticisms of the general narrative, so if that's not your cup of tea, feel free to avoid this one.

Li Jing becoming JE/the regent of the Celestial Realm is just hilariously absurd. I mean, it makes a teeny tiny bit more sense than the "Nezha will be the new JE" fan theory, but that's not a very high bar.

1) In-universe, he had done a grand total of nothing while shit was hitting the fan, and only showed up after it was all over. Which, tbh, isn't too far from his role in FSYY. No, wait, at least in FSYY, he killed Luo Xuan via a pagoda to the head, after the guy had all his fire-based magical treasures neutralized and taken away by Princess Longji.

Yeah, congrats, LMK's Li Jing, you've somehow become even more useless than your FSYY and JTTW counterparts——which is a true feat.

2) Even if someone's making him JE/regent, it wouldn't be the Ten Kings. To put it simply: the Underworld doesn't have that authority. They are the most pathetic of all divine bureaucracies, who pretty much only show up to get pushed around and revive the occasional dead guy in JTTW (and I still love them).

Like, they ain't no Hades or Satan. Just the 10 judges of the Dead People Supreme Court. To heavily paraphrase Di Ting in the original JTTW novel:

"How much power do Underworld gods really have? (幽冥之神，能有多少法力)" "...Certainly not enough to stop a rampaging demonic macaque who's as strong as SWK, if I say the truth out loud in here and piss him off. Just send them to the Buddha, please."

An analogy: if the Celestial Host is the imperial court, the Underworld is the ministry in charge of judicial processes and prisons. They don't even have authority over the imperial censors who answer directly to the emperor, let alone the power to determine a successor to the throne during a major crisis.

If this was to make the tiniest bit of sense, Li Jing would be the one commanding THEM, not the other way around. Or if it's Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha himself giving orders to Li Jing…for some reason.

But we know that ain't happening bc of the show's strange aversion to showing Buddhist deities on screen, not to mention it would be very OOC for Ksitigarbha, whose job is granting relief and salvation to souls in the Path of Hell, not judging and punishing them like the Ten Kings.

3) If you must make Li Jing the emperor/regent, you have a more mythos-accurate and obvious choice than the Ten Kings, considering you already got the Four Divine Beasts involved!

Yes, I'm talking about their bosses, the humanoid "directional + elemental gods": Lord Father of the East (Wood), Queen Mother of the West (Metal), Emperor Zhenwu of the North (Water).

No South though...because our mythos can't agree on a single directional god of the South, but for shit and giggles, just imagine Zhurong, Yandi, Huaguang, and the Star of Fiery Virtues all sitting on the same narrow bench, staring awkwardly at each other.

Maybe we can have Ziwei, Great Emperor of the Central Sky and North Stars, who is one of the Four Sovereigns(四御) in Daoism (two of which could also be an alternate choice, but maybe a bit too obscure for foreign audiences).

He commands the stellar deities and heavenly bodies——which the Four Divine Beasts would technically fall under, as guardians of the four quadrants of the sky, each in charge of 7 Lunar Mansions.

4) But if you already have these deities, why the hell would any of them make Li Jing the regent? Wouldn't it be more likely for them to create a Celestial Council of Regents themselves, with Devaraja Li Jing under their command as the leader of what's left of the celestial army?

Like, you can still have them, or one of them, going after the gang and ordering Li Jing to put the fillet on SWK.

I can see Zhenwu the Demon-Vanquisher doing that, since the fillet isn't too different from what he did to Huaguang and a lot of the demons he subdued in JTTN: feeding them magical water/fire pills that would corrode/ignite their insides whenever they tried to resist.

(Yeah, compared to that, the fillet would look like the lenient option, since it's just pain and won't actually dissolve/cook you alive from the inside out...)

And it wouldn't be bc he thought SWK was to blame for the Brotherhood's epic fuck-up...somehow. Like, what even is that logic?!

I mean, I can kinda see the Ten Kings doing it as a pre-emptive "Don't blame us for our shitty security, blame that guy over there!" move...except they are no longer answering to any higher authorities who'd hold them responsible at that point!

"What about Li Jing?" You may ask. Yeah, WHAT ABOUT LI JING? Why does Li Jing have to get involved in this?

If he's forcing the Ten Kings to pass judgement on the gang (which surely doesn't look like it in the trailers), why's he enlisting the help of the weakest faction and not, y'know, his celestial soldiers and other gods?

If the Ten Kings get Li Jing to be their enforcer...well, how the Eighteen Hells did they manage that? What could the Ghost Supreme Court and their crappy prison-torture chamber-soul customs office complex even offer Li Jing as a bribe?

And if their goals were to avoid responsibilities by blaming someone else, how stupid did they have to be to actively involve/create a higher authority who can punish them once the cat gets out of the proverbial bag, instead of, I dunno, just stay where they are and keep their head down???

So in my fix-it AU, it's more of a "Better safe than sorry" scenario, where every demon working for the new Celestial Council must prove their loyalty via swallowing the water/fire pill, now that even more dangerous demons have escaped and are running around in the aftermath of S4.

And Great Sage and company are not exempt from that new law either——"If you are truly righteous and Not Like Them and not planning to rebel, what's there to be afraid of?"

Horrified by the Demon-Vanquishing Mansion's 16th century standards of "justice" and "mercy", they naturally would not have any of it, and thus the conflict begins.

Not only would this show the fallout of Azure's misguided rebellion——that, in trying to make a better world, he had made it 120% worse for both humanity and demonkind in less drastic and more realistic ways aside from dooming reality to irreversible destruction, it would also help with the major show-not-tell problem about Celestial cruelty bc the "good guys" in power saw no problem with this kind of shit.

If you want your lawful antagonists who take Order to its extremes, the warrior sovereign in black leading an elite army of demon-hunters + penal legions made of "reformed" demons would be a better choice than the Ghost Supreme Court, don't ya think?

(Fun fact: in Zaju plays, Zhenwu was often said to be the boss of Nezha and Erlang, so him commanding Li Jing wouldn't be too out of place either.)

Now, you may ask, why do I even care? After all, isn't it clear that the show is neither mythos-accurate nor trying to be, considering the JE got K.O.ed by a Bodhisattva's cat of all things?

Not to mention the season's not even out yet, so why jump to conclusions so quickly? Maybe the actual episodes will have explanations that make sense. Relax.

...Cause I don't mind less-than-stellar animations if the story's good, and since I keep noticing the less-than-stellar animations, it clearly isn't good enough.

Also, it's not like it's only the implications that are absurd——my problem is with the whole premise of "Li Jing becoming the new JE/Regent" and "The gang is prosecuted by the Ten Kings for bullshit reasons, even though these guys should not, and never have the power to enforce anything over SWK."

I don't like calling narrative choices "wrong" per se, and prefer to see it on a gradient of "least to most narrative potential". When it comes to adaptations, if the option that is faithful to the original work will result in a less interesting story, then I'll happily take the one that isn't as faithful and takes creative liberties, but makes a better story.

And here, I feel like being faithful to the Chinese mythos inspirations will add to the narrative potential instead of subtract from it, and the idea they come up with kinda...goes against how Chinese pantheons work, in a very simplified and "westernized" manner.

Mostly bc I am a Chinese Underworld mythos lover and think they deserve better than being ominous Hades/Grim Reaper knockoffs. And out of all the possible Chinese gods, Nezha's asshole dad is the least qualified or interesting candidate to fill in the power vaccum left by JE's death.

[muffinsouffle]

In your lantern au, what is Macaque and Wukong's relationship?

And is MK a monkey, or just a normal human? Like does he get Monkey King's powers like in the show?

Love your art style btw <3

Thanks, Anon! Hope you're having a nice day.

Wukong and macaque were very distant from each other before MK entered the spirit realm. They used to be friends, but things happened in the past that ruined their relationship.

When MK came, Wukong became his guardian to help him find a way to get back to his human realm safely. Macaque, on the other hand, is working for LBD (a banned witch) and the mayor (a puppet soldier). He follows wukong or MK around by curiosity or even by instinct.

The moment they see each other again, it's very bitter. Wukong doesn't recognize him because of his changed appearance, but he has the gut feeling that he knows him and he's a threat for both of them.

and macaque also doesn't reconize his "old friend" at first. What he did was be hostile towards him, but later, he does recognize him and just follows them in the shadows. As time passes, he has the feeling that what he's doing will not get the freedom he once had before he met the witch. But sometimes macaque helps the MK if he needs something, only if the mayor is not watching.

Mk is a human in this AU. He doesn't gain powers in this, but he gets trained by Wukong. Mei used to be human. Her body slowly turned into a dragon spirit since her family has a heritage of dragons.

[icearts]

Lmk season 5 spoilers:

I need to talk about Nezha and Li Jing right fucking now

As much as I didn't like how the show wrote Li Jing, specifically the part where he pulled a complete 180 on his entire characterization for the sake of rushing the one plot I was most excited about, I really like the way Nezha was characterized (as long as we pretend Li Jing's the tyrannical asshole he was in mythology and was introduced to be in the season). Nezha's guilty that Li Jing hurt Wukong and Macaque, and he agreed with MK that his motives were suspicious, but as always, he places his duty before his feelings, connections, and physical needs. But he draws the line when Li Jing starts trying to hurt the kids. He stops him, no hesitation, and at the end of the season he even snaps at him, using Li Jing's own controlling rhetoric against him.

They could've used this in the season, that Nezha without hesitation will violate his orders to protect the kids. This is good characterization, considering the fact he was basically a soldier as a child, himself, and he had nobody to protect him. Even in the special at the end of season 3, when Nezha barely knows MK, he's still leaping to protect him from the mind-controlled Wukong.

Nezha tends to be treated as a warrior or a soldier by his peers, when in reality, he's a guardian. A protector. And this duty will take priority even over the fear he has for his father. He's been conditioned to believe the celestials and their leaders are above all, but his protective nature breaks this programming instantly.

Season 5 would've been better if Li Jing hadn't stopped to listen, because we would've seen this characterization front and center. We could've gotten Nezha fighting his dad (who Wukong commented was "a little stronger than Nezh-ie") and it would've been such a powerful moment, for all of the characters, too. This destiny stuff is assigned by the Heavens, and Nezha fighting against them on MK's side will show that MK should be against these pompous fuckers.

Li Jing could've been a major villain. We can have the Nine-Headed Demon as a major villain, too. Extremists on both sides, and it's up to MK to find that balance between order and chaos. MK represents the concepts of choice and will in this conflict. Willpower is a great mixture between chaos and order, because it defies the control others give and it fights the chaos trying to shatter it.

Back to the topic of Nezha and Li Jing, we could get Nezha becoming part of the group, and he and Pigsy could have a cool dynamic because Pigsy doesn't trust the gods, and he's a very unconventional father in comparison to King Li Jing. They'll disagree, question things, and idk maybe Nezha becomes like a big brother to MK, just wishful thinking there. Either way, Nezha and Pigsy would not get along (at least at first) and it would be really funny and interesting.

All I'm saying is that Nezha has the potential for dynamics with everyone. He and Wukong could also reference the fact that Au Guang (the Great Grand Dragon of the East, he was in season 3) kinda hates both of them. Idk, again, just some fanfic-y things. Maybe the show wouldn't write these things, maybe it would just stay plot-relevant, either way, there's lots of character dynamics to explore

[centuryberry]

very very curious as to how A. Xiaotian is different in this AU B. Where his courtship struggles come from C. Where in the world is he this whole time??? His egg gets snatched but by whom???

Just to put it out there, this applies to both the Flourish AU and the Unpaid Babysitting AU.

A. So, unlike QotM!Xiaotian, this Xiaotian has no memories of a prior life. This Xiaotian wasn't raised by Pigsy and Tang either. He's not the sweet, earnest, Monkey King fan (*gasp* I know, right?) we know and love. Instead, he's chaos incarnate. He's a bit feral. He's an eldritch being who's driven with the sole purpose of ending the world.

...He also knows nothing about the world he's set to destroy. He's only known the evils and sins of the worst of the worst.

When Xiaotian (known only as the "Harbinger of Chaos" at this point) breaks into Heaven and attacks Emperor Wukong, he actually nearly wins. He knocks the older monkey off his feet and is ready to deliver the fatal blow that would make Wukong lose his grip on the universe, only to be stopped by a barrage of spells that knock him back.

Enter: Yue, (grand)daughter of the Emperor of Heaven and the world's best sealmaster. She poses as a worthy opponent.

Yue is also a very, very pretty girl. A very pretty girl who, after seeing his face, blurts out that he's gorgeous. That never happened before. So, in a moment of distraction, Xiaotian falls onto his face.

B. Xiaotian's courtship struggles mostly come from his inexperience. He's never socialized with living beings aside from his "guardian" before. He doesn't know why he feels so strange and gooey and funny whenever he looks at Yue and hears her compliments.

When he does learn what these feelings mean, Xiaotian then faces the trouble of successfully reciprocating. He fumbles and stumbles a lot in his attempts. Yue is charmed, but the people around her are far more critical. The court doesn't want a troublemaker near the future Empress.

Wukong and Macaque are surprisingly the most accepting of Xiaotian as a suitor for Yue. They still put up an act, but they're easier on him and give him a few pointers.

Honestly, Yue is the one taking the lead in this entire courtship. She's the one who decided to oversee Xiaotian's rehabilitation process and shamelessly uses that as an excuse to spend time with him.

C. Where in the world was he?! Well, to make matters simple, he was in Diyu. Out of desperation to kickstart the end of the world, Xiang Liu took the stone egg and hatched it pretty early. He kind of raised Xiaotian as a single dad who works two jobs (as the King of Diyu and as the Agent of Chaos) and left most of the parenting to the cursed scrolls to give Xiaotian some form of education. The exposure stained his fur black and what he saw made him a bit sarcastic and jaded.

But after meeting Yue, the world doesn't seem too bad. Xiaotian was given a name and the opportunity to learn about the world he was raised to hate and destroy. He finds that he likes noodles and boba and playing in the arcade during his visits to the Mortal cities. He's encountered kind and generous souls. Brave souls. Good souls.

Xiaotian also learns more about himself. He starts to like existing. He starts to like living.

Maybe this world doesn't have to end? Not now, at least.

[lucagray813]

I've put together some initial thoughts/prompts/questions/ramblings after watching Season 5 of LMK.

CW: SPOILERS FOR ALL OF LMK SEASON 5!

Ten Kings are no more - are they replaced? What happens to the Dìyù without them?

Wukong can't remember being friends/enemies with Nine - was it in a previous cycle or outside of it?

Nine (Xiāngliǔ) and his metaphor of leaving the cave. Of embracing chaos and choice, rejecting destiny and order.

What are Nǚwā's cycles like? Is it the same people making the same decisions over and over again? Or is it a clean slate? Who knows about this? Does anyone survive and retain their knowledge of the previous cycle?

Macaque's time in Lǐ Jìng's Pagoda. How long was he there? Does time move differently? How are basic needs met? Do you no longer need to eat once you're there? Is food provided? Does it create a demon eat demon environment out of necessity?

How was MK's life supposed to be? If he'd woken up at the "right" time would he have known exactly what he was supposed to be doing? Would he have head off immediately to gather the stones? Would he have even been much of a person? Was Monkey King still meant to train him so he would be ready to gather the stones?

How did MK get to Pigsy's? Nine? To what end? How much influence has he had on MK's life before the staff? He makes a big deal about choice so perhaps little after his initial move?

The ramifications of everyone (?) having some sort of power. What kind of powers does everyone have? One of the elements?

The five elements in Chinese mythology are Wood, Metal, Fire, Water and Earth. But that wouldn't explain how the dog at the end is able to fly (very cute reference that it is) so it could be possible that the element of Earth has been replaced by Air? Or perhaps just replaced with a vague sort of heavenly power owing to the fact it's guardian was the Jade Emperor? Or there could be more to the powers than pure elemental magic? (Or mostly likely it is elemental powers and I'm too focused on the dog)

If each stone granted a specific set of powers would this then cause lines to be drawn? Divisions made? Would those who received the blessing of the yellow stone, the stone of the Jade Emperor, start to think themselves better than the rest? Possible A:TLA sort of situation?

What would the dragon and tiger have tested MK on if they had time? What was their relationship?

Smaller personal themes to explore:

Pigsy's feelings about being a father and what that means, Red Son's developing relationship with his family, Mei's fears of not getting stronger and of getting left behind (she was understandably upset at her lack of MK time but it really did border on desperate), MK coming to terms with what he was made for and choosing differently, MK's fear of chaos.

There is so much food for thought this season and I've got loads of fic ideas brewing! I will absolutely be writing a fic about Mac's time in the Pagoda - that just has way too much golden potential - but there's so many themes big and small to explore.

Needless to say most of S5 won't make it into my Monkey Talk AU but there's so much good stuff to explore! So I can almost guarantee some standalone fics!

Now I need to go have a long hard think about the nature of chaos...

[coffee-master]

Idea: Lego Monkie kid AU

(Red Son-centric & maybe spicynoodles(?))

'Lost fire'

I would really like to read a fic, where Red Son died as a child, because of the samadhi fire.

Ok, before you go listen-

Red Son died as a child because of the enourmous power of his samadhi fire. Everyone just didn't complete the ritual on time, and during one of his fire outbursts he hurt himself fatally.

The power was just too strong for such a young demon and it finished him.

His parents his parents had to cope up with their child's death and were devastated by it.

Later, they decided they would never have children again to prevent such a situation like Red Son from happening again.

BUT-

We know that Lady Bone Demon is able to revive people and demons to life. For instance Macaque.

And she needs samadhi fire to make her great plan come true.

She'd bring Red Son back to life, but unfortunately the power in hands of the little demon is still unstable for his age.

So, Lady Bone Demon would instruct her servant to partially seal the demon powers until he grows up, and his body could handle the power under control.

The demon would be sealed and hidden (somwhere) from the rest of the world to prevent anyone from interfering with her plans.

All of this was supposed to last until he reached the right age, then she planned to use him as a weapon.

But as it is known the child can't rise himself, right?

That's where Macaque comes.

As the LBD revived also Macaque. She decided to use him as some sort of babysitter for the Red Boy, instead of giving the key.

Because who elese she could choose to take care of that little demon? Major??

[Let's be honest we all know that nobody should leave kids with that guy- Just look at this freak-]

Anyway-

After comming back to life Macaque's job is to take care of the little demon child.

He is isolated from the rest of society along with a small demon and under the control of the major.

The monkey doesn't have much of a choice or even any chances of leaving, since major here is strong and both him and LBD are watching over him.

LBD promises to freed him after Macaque will rised the bull demon until he'll be ready to fullfill his 'mission'.

The shadow monkey and demon-child are practycally 'prisioners' and since noone would look for people who are supposed to be death, Macaque looses his hope of escaping.

While every attempt to escape results in a severe punishment.

So the warrior finds himself in his new role, as a guardian.

At first, the demon is not pleased with his situation in any way, and the thought of taking care of the red demon downright annoys him.

But over time, he gets used to it and tolerates the little child until eventually his heart softens and he begins to raise him as his own.

The monkie does the best what he can do.

Beside obvious diuties, like watching over him and using the ice powers (which LBD gave him for such occasions) to extinguish his sudden uncontrollable bursts of samadhi fire..

Macaque also teaches him.. how to speak, read, control and peace, plays with him or organizes a shadow puppet show for him and ect.

He also gets close to the kid and becomes his parent fugire.

The Red Boy grows up. He's energetic full of life and curious kid, who wants to see more of the word. To finally find out who he is. He wants to see people and everything. (No suprise since he was isolated from society)

But the Bull demon it also curious about his past and family. He knows that the monkie isn't his relative and he knows that he used to have parents.

The Red possesses some memories as if through a haze. They are small details that motivate him.

With each passing day Red Son gets more control ower his samadhi fire, which start to worry the black monkie.

Macaque figured LBD's plan long ago and he knows that as soon as Red will finally fully control his powers, it will not only mean death for the demon, but also for the rest of the world.

It worries him.

He doesn't want to loose Red kid.

He doesn't want world to end.

He's devastated.

But then suddenly he finds himself in a situation where the major has to leave (because DBK discovered the box in which LBD was imprisoned, and he has to ensure that she is freed).

(Btw in this universe, DBK was released from above in a different way. MK accidentally freed him by moving the staff of Sun Wukong.)

Macaque immediately takes the opportunity when the major is gone go free Red Son...like..

----

"Hey Red." The black monkey suddenly started, while not taking his eyes form the sea. "Remember when you told me, yo wanted to get off of this island?"

The fire demon immediately looked at the Macaque with excitement, but mostly with confusion.

Since he had know Mr Macaque telling him how his attempts to escape were futile or that he should let it go.

But the demon never truly stopped hopping that they both would someday go and he could finally see more.

"Well, today's the day." The older demon said and the fire demon almost couldn't belive his ears.

Before Red could even ask the monkie rapidly went to him and started using his magic on him and to exact it was glamour.

"Red, you need listen to me carefully, because there's no other chance-" Mr Macaque started, as he concealed the scar on his cheek. "I don't know when the other will come back. But this is really important, so remmber-"

"But you're comming with me-" The younger demon didn't ask, because it was a fact.

Macaque had to go with him. He couldn't stay here, right?

"You can't trust anybody and don't tell them anything." Instead of answering the man continued his speach. "Try to use your fire as little as possible and at all cost do not use samadhi fire. Nobody can put it down and it's very dangerous." The monkie then changed the colour of his hair from red to black. "I'll try to I maintain the camouflage for as long as I can, but if it disappears, you must cover your hair and not let yourself be recognized."

"But, Mr Macaque-"

"Red." The demon interrupted seriously. "It's very imortant."

At his words Red went silent.

"You need to find Sun Wukong, the Monkie King." The black monkie said seriously. "Tell him that Lady Bone Demon is back. That she's after you and the can't get to you and.." The demon paused for a second. "And then surely everything will be alright.." Then the black monkie smiled softly at him.

Red knew that something was wrong and he was trying to cheer him up.

"If you see the Watcher run as fast as possible.." He put a cap on his head." If he catches you, you have to free yourself at all costs, you can even use samadhi fire."

Suddenly a portal opened behind him.

"Remember find Sun Wukong." The the demon pushed Red to the portal despite his protest.

The fire demon was only able to see a light smile of his paret figure face as the portal slowly closed.

----

Basicly Macaque doesn't have much of a choice, but letting Red go. The monkie can't escape the island, because of the deal with the LBD. He's sealed in there.

Macaque also doesn't trust Wukong, but he doesn't see any better option. The shadow demon knows that the monkie king is one of the strongest and could possibly defeat her or just buy some time.

So in that way Red finds himself in complete difftent place.

Dazed, lost, scared, and bewildered in the Megapolis.

He completely doesn't know how behave it that weird place, where he is alone and see things that he hadn't seen before.

He's also scared about Macaque.

So he tries to find This Sun Wukong-

He starts asks random people about him, but ineffectively. People on the street ignore him and consider him a bit of an oddball.

In the meantime he accidentally runs into MK and they end up somehow together.

They talk a little and MK shows him around a little. Red is obviouly fascinated even by the simplest thing, which makes Mk think he's kinda cute.

Then have meal at Pigsy noodles. (There Red Son eat the best meal ever-)

Their talk suddenly goes towards the monkie king and here's the part where everything becomes the mess.

- Major stars chasing after them

- Everyone are looking for Sun Wukong

- Red doesn't know what he can tell and not-

- Wukongs finds out that Macaque is alive-

- Troubles, problems, and action.

- They have a dinner at Demon Bull Family house!!! But neither Red Son knows that that's his parents and They don't know that that's their son becuase of the disguise!!!!

- fighting Macaque! LBD took control over him

- LBD still tries to catch Red.. and she kinda is able to..

- Red is finally reviled to be the 'death' Red Son-

- ...In the end we finally get family reunion..! ;)

[Yes, here I was too lazy to write ⬆️]

OK.

I've written a bit, but hopefully someone will like this idea. I guess..

Honestly I mainly want to see pain of the greaving parents and family reunion, which would be full of love...

I HOPE SOMEONE LIKES THIS!

What do you think? Please tell me.

[journey-thru-six-ears]

self insert in JttW au? Self insert in JttW AU, yes. <3

alt. version of Papillon, the Lunar Chrysalis, Moon and Shadows Guardian of Templum Augmentum in Sole et Luna of Semita Lunae. My own personal lore with @sun-uwu-kong

More profile info below the cut

─☾-name: Papillon Nox Averne 

─☾-rough name translation: “night butterfly among the ferns”

─☾-nicknames: Po-Po, Poe, Pap, Pappers,

─☾-nicknames cont.: Pappy, Pappers, Pap[s], [various from others lol]

─☾-title: The Lunar Chrysalis of Semita Lunae

─☾-type: [Therian] Celestial

─☾-species/theriotype: Sulawesi Crested Black Macaque/vague monkey [Celestial/Stone]

─☾-gender: xenogender; trans man

─☾-Pronouns: [ˢᵉˡᶠ] mí / [ᵗʰᵉʸ...ᵗʰᵉᵐ] mí hóu / [ᵗʰᵉⁱʳˢ] mí hóu's, but for other beings, He/Him/His; works just fine, as well.

─☾-age: 30 [human] years; ageless

─☾-attraction: gray/aro/ace [very rarely becomes attached to anyone beyond Six-Ears/Mac]

─☾-moral alignment: Neutral Good 

**(a neutral good character typically acts altruistically, without regard for or against lawful precepts such as rules or tradition. We have no problems with cooperating with lawful officials, but we do not beholden to them.) 

─☾-mbti: infp-t (turbulent mediator)

─☾-personality description: Papillon is a soulful and introspective individual, displaying a strong understanding of emotions and an ability to deeply empathize with others. He has a keen sense of the world around himself and often finds beauty in all aspects and milestones in life, from the simplest joys to the most profound experiences. His gentle and intuitive nature makes him highly attuned to the emotions and needs of both his familial and creature friends, providing a comforting presence in times of distress.

Papillon is highly protective of his loved ones. The loyalty and dedication he exhibits towards his family and friends know no bounds. He goes to great lengths to ensure the safety and happiness of those he holds dear. His protective nature extends beyond physical safety to emotional well-being as well, always ready to offer a listening ear and provide support.

He craves authenticity and level-understanding. He’s driven by a desire to be true to himself and, in turn, encourage others to do the same. Papillon values personal growth and introspection, often seeking solitude to reflect on his thoughts and feelings. In such moments, he unleashes his inner creativity, allowing his unique voice to emerge.

While Papillon’s personality brings forth many strengths, it also presents some challenges. He can be prone to self-doubt and overthinking, constantly questioning his own abilities and decisions. His sensitive nature makes him susceptible to taking criticism personally and sometimes struggling to assert himself confidently. However, his resilience and determination ultimately prevails, pushing him to overcome these obstacles and grow stronger.

─☾-Random:

⁂-rain is a natural soother for Papillon on restless nights. He finds the subtle, rumbling thunder quite soothing, and the soft rain patterns bring a sense of security to him. The thunder and lightning carry more difficult struggles, as well. He’s often plagued with headaches and weather induced migraines. 

⁂-Papillon enjoys warm, sweetened earl gray,  black, green, or peppermint teas. They assist in calming and soothing his sore mood or even his stomach on some occasions. 

⁂-much like any tell of a demon/stone monkey, Papillon has four alert, very characteristic ears; unlike Six-Ears who has, well, six and can hide them, Papillon struggles to maintain that visual aid in hiding them, so he wears them with absolute pride. It allows others to see that he wears his gift from his leader with the utmost elegance and devotion.

⁂-Commonly smells like a combination of Sandalwood, Jasmine, Ylang-Ylang, and Cinnamon Bark; sometimes a subtle hint of Vanilla may be present, as well.

[starsfic]

I know this is spoilers but what role does Nuwa play in your art school au? Or season 5 in general?

Okay!

So, I'm still not sure about Nuwa's role in the present time of the AU, but she's Wukong and Xiaotian's bio mom who both gave them up in the past for her own reasons. Wukong got called because he was the closest blood-related relative to this child who popped up. The thing about him marrying Sanzang to help with Xiaotian's custody or at least splitting it with Freenoodles stays the same. While technically Xiaotian's older brother, Xiaotian views Wukong more as a dad, so neither really mind if Xiaotian refers to him and Sanzang with father titles.

I already had Li Jing as a politician of the city who's on the museum board- he and Wukong don't like each other, mostly because Wukong has issues about how he treats Nezha.

Xiangliu/Nine Head works at the museum with Sanzang in exhibit design, although he's a weird nilihist. He keeps trying to twist the exhibits to match his views on chaos, much to Tang Near-Became-a-Monk Sanzang's frustration, since some research suggested that chaos in Chinese mythology doesn't really work like what it says in LMK. He claims to have been friends with Wukong when they were younger, although Wukong and Macaque both have no idea who this guy is.

The Hundred-Eyed Demon works for Li Jing.

I'm thinking for the four guardians of the stones that they're experts in certain historic and religious areas that the museum calls on for exhibits and research. Sandy has beef with Black Tortoise because he was rude to Xiaotian once.

[winterpower98]

In your Actor AU, who’s most likely to know sign language and sign with a deaf fan? Am I asking because the latest Helluva Boss episode broke me in more ways than I can count? Yes. Am I ashamed? No.

I SAW!

I got so excited when I got to that scene because I am learning ASL and I could actually understand a good chunk of what was being signed (there were a few words that I didn't see before, like "clown" and "fan")

But for the AU, uhm... I think Wukong and Macaque would both know it.

Wukong because he lived for so long he might as well learn how to sign.

And Macaque because his whole thing is listening, so I assume he would also know how to read lips and sign for people who are deaf.

Maybe Mayor also knows how to sign, I doubt Bai He was the first kid he had to be the guardian of so he might had to learn how to sign at some point.

Nazha (the actor, not the god) also strikes me as someone who would have learned how to sign

[theoutcastedartist]

How interesting! This Jade Rabbit captured my interest. Are they childhood friends? And what happened between them that caused them to be apart from each other?

Yes! The Jade Rabbit and Liu'er Mihou were childhood friends. Well, it would be more accurate to say they were siblings, as the Jade Rabbit (who is a little bit older than Mihou) was another orphan that had been taken in by the Old Monkey before Six-Ears had emerged from the sealing stone on Moon Blossom Mountain.

She became a part of the troop, albeit felt a bit like an outsider given that she wasnt a monkey like the rest. When she met Mihou, she basically claimed him as her younger brother almost immediately and sees the Elder as a grandfather figure like most of the young ones in the troop. She viewed the generals and marshals as funny uncles she could mess with from time to time.

The two were VERY close, where ever one was, the other was close behind. Jade Rabbit, in her youth, especially LOVED to cause mischief for the generals and marshals (very much a "Wild Child" that the adults of the troop were very fond of) and was overprotective of her little brother.

Jade Rabbit and Six Eared Macaque became separated during the Demon King of Havoc's invasion on Moon Blossom Mountain. She had tried to find him, but was dragged away by one of the generals to escape off the mountain.

She could not find him. The rest of the troop thought that he had died in the invasion. She refuses to believe and accept that, even after all this time.

She vowed to protect whatever was left of the troop, what was left of her family, in honor of Mihou's disappearance. And when he returned to them (because she KNOWS he's still alive, still kicking, still breathing somewhere out there), she is never letting him leave her sight.

After Havoc's invasion, the troop found their new home in a hidden forest cave. One that has yet to ever be found, even in the modern day, it is where the troop currently resides unbeknownst to anyone, thanks to Jade Rabbit's concealing magic.

She now takes pride in her role as a guardian to the troop. She's fight tooth and nail to protect the troop that took her in when no one else would.

In Anathema AU, she has never met Sun Wukong in person. Her only impression of him, thus far, has been the light whispers of the wind from the outside world, and what she's heard of him does not leave a good impression.

[quitealotofsodapop]

"The Monkey King and the Infant" (au?) idea

Oh man I just had a Dark Thought about the Jade Emperor and how he thinks of MK after seeing that "The Horse and the Infant" animatic.

What if the Jade Emperor and the rest of the Celestial Realm, not wanting "Another Sun Wukong", want MK dead?

The Jade Emperor, seeing a newborn Stone Monkey and deciding that it needs to DIE. So he informs (now unoffically retired) Monkey King of MK's existance, hoping that fear and jealousy alone would spur him to follow his gruesome order. Showing him visions of MK as a troubled adult, struggling with powers no mortal should hold.

But... Sun Wukong had grown so much more since the Emperor had last saw him. He agrees to "monitor the situation" and acts as a guardian angel throughout MK's life. At first he convinces himself that at the first sign of trouble, he'll complete his dark task, but as the little boy giggles and grabs for the orange-coloured wildlife that haunts him, he simply Cannot. Cue deciding that MK is to be his successor instead.

Bonus: A certain Macaque is revived by Lady Bone Demon at the same time for the same task. Macaque becomes MK's shadowy godfather in response, telling the Bone Demon that he's "biding his time".

Meanwhile; Pigsy wonders why these two strangers are always in the shop, glaring at eachother in semi-recognition, and tending to his adopted noodle child?

[digitaldoeslmk]

MK's lion guardian mech is criminaly underutilized, so!!

in my AU that baby is a legit mystic lion MK wished into existence. they are part MK's mount part guard dog for the noodle shop at first. after Act 3, they help the gang track down wandering ghosts and demons left over from Macaque's Havoc in Hell. they take a shining to Xiaobai and Xiaolan (LBD and Mayor) and become a guardian at their village in FFM.