#i like to believe they're keeping it up under the guise of needing somewhere to live

[golyadkin]

this fake dating thing is tough

[weebsinstash]

sorry I can't get over/keep forgetting that episode 2 outright said that Angel was either living IN V Tower with Val or living in the studio, (Val literally says "he thinks he can work and then go home somewhere else?!" while AT home) and like

Shit man if he's willing to let Angel sleep in his house and have this weird possessive sexual obsession over him when they're not even fucking dating, and considering how large V Tower looks from outside, it kinda leads me to believe Valentino would lure a potential darling into living at his home under the guise of "oh, I have plenty of room, Angel already lives there, you'd have rides to work and a little friend ;)"

and like Valentino may entirely be correct, he DOES have more space than he knows what to deal with, and there have been employers to house their employees before, but imagine him offering you shelter at his house like night ONE and Angel's head SNAPS to look between both of you because??? Huh??? Whuh??? Val isnt nice unless he WANTS something, and Angel barely knows you, but, you've been nice all night and he can tell by looking at you that maybe you shouldn't even be "down here" AT ALL. he's risking his own safety to interrupt the conversation, "Val, c'mon, don't, they're just a kid" ( 'kid' as in you're probably still in your 20s, whereas he's been dead SINCE the twenties and is technically over a hundred years old)

but Valentino just looks at him with this fake smile, "why don't you go make me a drink Angel"

"But Val-"

"WHY DON'T YOU GO MAKE ME A DRINK ANGEL :)"

And Angel is walking away... leaving you with Valentino... telling himself that he's pathetic and worthless for not being able to help more. But.... if he's going to be trapped in that awful house with that horrible man, at least, now, being there means he can help protect you. He doesn't care if Val takes it out on him at the studio the next day; Angel makes sure you're safe and you at least get to sleep during your first night in the afterlife

when Angel runs off to the Hazbin Hotel, though, of course that means he'll take you with and he'll tell you as many horrific and humiliating stories about his experiences with Val as you need to hear until you finally listen and come with him, sneaking out once Val is asleep, potentially mayhe even "assisted" into slumber by Anthony to help you two run away. You're like his lil sibling now; he couldn't POSSIBLY leave you behind! 🥺❤️

Or worse... maybe you have to run back for something, or you're a little slower than Angel, and you get caught. "What do you think you're fucking doing?", you're spinning around, Val has woken up, Anthony is waiting outside... you risk it all to text him quickly on your phone, "he's awake. RUN" and hitting the side button of your phone just before Valentino swipes it, looking at your lockscreen with FURY because now you're HIDING shit from him TO HIS FACE

Valentino grabs you HARD by your arm and is just about to start really screaming at you asking what the fuck you're doing and. Angel appears. He could've ran away but he came back for you 🥺 he tells Valentino he was just gonna take you out for some fun and, it wasn't YOUR idea, it was his, HE convinced you to try and leave the house at night without Valentino's permission, and you have to hold your tongue in horror as Val drags him away and orders you to go back to your room, "or else!!"

You're sobbing your little heart out and his entire body hurts when he practically limps (for multiple reasons) back to your room, but, at least when you hold him and hug him and promise you'll do anything to help get both of you out of here, it helps everything feel better...

[darkstarofchaos]

You know what, I'm going to make a theory for how Transformers One is going to play out. Let's see.

So a lot of people have observed that Megatron/D-16 already has a Decepticon insignia in all of his clips in the trailer. As far as I could tell, no other character has any symbols at all (aside from some text that might be part of an altmode, similar to Prowl's doorwings having "police" on them when he's on Earth). In one clip, however, we see him kneeling in front of what could be the head of a long-dead ancient Cybertronian - I would guess Megatronus, since Megatron has to get his name from somewhere. So my theories for that:

D-16 is religious and/or believes in the ancient Primes, and the insignia is similar to a tattoo.

The insignia is actually used by the current regime to mark criminals or other "undesirables". D-16 got in trouble in the past, either for something he did or something someone else did, and now he's gun-shy (heh) about breaking further rules; hence why he resists Orion's desire to go to the surface, and is generally more cautious than he is. When they do get to the surface, however, he learns about the ancient Prime whose face resembles the brand he wears, and he eventually claims both the name and the symbol as his own.

Honestly, I prefer option 2. It has more potential for storytelling, and it feels more like Megatron to me. So I'm going to go with that.

To the story itself. I'm going to guess that the Quintessons are in charge, but this might not be common knowledge - D-16 does say that the surface is dangerous, but the "lowly worker-bots" might not know exactly why. I prefer the more deceptive approach that those stuck living underground believe they're at war with the Quintessons, when in reality, that war ended long ago. The workers are allowed to keep up the illusion either because it serves the Quints - workers who believe their oppressors are already being fought aren't going to rise up - or because it allows the higher-ranking Cybertronians to keep some portion of their population safely out of the Quints' reach. Maybe both.

If it's the former, workers' T-cogs are taken to further reduce the odds of an uprising, while for the latter, perhaps the cogs were taken under the guise of being needed for soldiers, when in reality, it's to keep the workers from leaving their safe place. I lean more towards the leaders having good intentions but deplorable methods, because it sets the stage for a divide in the Cybertronian people after the Quintessons are dealt with. Also, it fits better with my theory that the Decepticon insignia is being used as a criminal brand of some kind.

So our heroes get to the surface and learn the truth of things - the war long-since ended and their people are functionally slaves to the Quints. But there are still bots capable of resisting the invaders - the proto-Decepticons, currently lead by Starscream.

I feel like this could go one of two ways - either the proto-Cons could fight the Quints but won't, and so need to be convinced. Or they are fighting them and refuse to let the eager young heroes help because they can't even transform. I prefer the latter, partly because I already have someone else the heroes need to convince, and partly because it's the heroes being turned away that leads them to the next story beat: they can't transform and there are no T-cogs left, but there is someone who might be able to help them.

And so the *ahem* Quest for Alpha Trion begins.

They find him at the gravesite of his long-since fallen brethren, D-16 discovers Megatronus - and Alpha Trion will not help them, because he sees no point. The Quints have already won, and further fighting will only lead to more death.

My basis for this beat comes from Elita's line in the trailer: "We were given these powers for a reason". It's possible this was just a line plucked from somewhere else as a voiceover, and that it just happens to synch up very well with the clip where the line starts. But based on that clip, she says it to Alpha Trion while the heroes are still unable to transform. So when she says "we were given these powers" she's not talking about the heroes; she's talking about Cybertronians as a whole. I think that, while Alpha Trion initially refuses to help them, he does fill them in on some of their history, which then gives the heroes what they need to talk him into helping.

And so, with their newly acquired T-cogs, the crew is able to join the battle against the Quints, they successfully drive out the invaders, and everything ends well - except there is disagreement over how the Cybertronian race should proceed now that they're free to govern themselves.

Cue end credits.

(Yes, I think they're going to use the Bots vs Cons war as sequel bait. I do not think they can tell the entire story in one movie and would frankly prefer they not try. Of course, they could handle things far differently than I laid out, but even then, with the inclusion of the Quints, I just don't think one movie has time to address everything). Edit: Oh yeah, and I guess Orion becomes Optimus at some point near the end there. I dunno how or why. I don't think Hasbro would let him stay Orion for an entire movie, but with the setup they've got, I'm not sure how they're gonna fit Pax-to-Prime in there.

[rrasado]

Yo! If that's okay could i request the brothers (or some of the of your choice) reacting to a teen mc who already has a pact with a demon long before coming to the Devildom and this demon is pretty much their (very protective) guardian/caretaker? Like, the demon is really sweet and gentle with MC and babies them constantly but they're wary of the brothers (Nothing romantic, just platonic hcs!) Feel free to ignore if i'm bothering you!

Congrats on the 400 followers!!💞

Who’s The Guardian?

On another episode of “why didn’t I see this in my inbox before-“ but this is such a cute request.

I...haven’t played OMSWD in half a year ;-;. I never got past lesson 40 so, sorry in advanced for the OOC-

When you already have a pact

Lucifer

...is caught off guard, big time.

He probably skimmed through your files and records but not once did the thought of a seemingly innocent teenager already having a pact with a demon prior the exchange program crossed his mind.

That’s coming from someone who overthinks a lot.

As the so called right hand man of the young lord himself, he’ll want to conduct a thorough investigation on whoever this demon is. He can’t risk sullying the honor of Diavolo because of some minor slip up.

Under the guise of a friendly get together he asks MC to invite their demon pact mate over for a nice afternoon tea. Harmless correct? Well that -less becomes -ful when the demon immediate smothers their favorite human with such rare affections he didn’t knew demons were capable of.

He’ll attempt to be discreet about his intentions but, it seems the demon is more vocal about their displeasure of finding out that their dear human is living with seven of the most powerful demons in hell. So lucifer would blatantly put on a facade to keep the dignity of the council and the prince at peace. But if it were up to him...

“We all care for the human’s well being yes? A little cooperation is to be called for”

Mammon

...Feels betrayed. And disappointed

He...wasn’t MC’s first- oh god the others are laughing at him as we speak aren’t they.

Would probably try to not so discreetly compare himself to the demon, arms crossed™️

Is that why MC was so fast in making a pact with him? Like no fear whatsoever because they’ve already done this before? Now he feels dumber than before

It all ultimately ends with..the demon and mammon trying to out do each other when it comes to spoiling Mc whether material wise or affection, of course mammon is at a disadvantage given how much he denies his concern for not being Mc’s first.

But in the end, if anything bad no matter how small happens to the two demon’s beloved human, they’d probably set aside their differences and hunt down the source. It’s a whole other story if the source was mammon-

“Oi the human also has a pact with me Ya got that!”

Leviathan

...is both amazed and disdained.

On one hand- HOLY SHI- YOU’RE YOUNGER THAN MOST SUMMONERS AND YOU ALREADY HAVE A PACT? THAT’S SO SHOUNEN-

And on the other hand- wow...you’re such a normie for being able to pull in other races, what in the name of damned friendship is this-

But that disdain turns to envy, whether envying you or the demon sometimes it’s interchangeable- because he wished he was also that cared for. Being able to be brought gifts or being protective over- it’s the otome dream he’s secretly wanted.

But once he realizes that the demon just genuinely cares for MC, for whatever reason- he seems to understand along the way, maybe he to wishes to protect one of the few people that willingly put up with him with a wild smile. Teen mutuality huh.

He might even invite their demon pact mate over for a game or two- heck if things go well they three might even become a triumvirate. Overall he’ll learn to get along with them but...it’ll take a good while djdndnbd.

“H-hey...ya sure you wanna hang out with someone as yucky as me? Ah- wait I have games for three here somewhere.”

Satan

...Is highly intrigued suffice it to say.

The guy was highly enthralled when you managed to even make a pact with him through hard work and it seems there was a much farther history as to why.

Unlike the first born however, he’d be actually successful in hiding his true intentions when he decided to investigate whoever demon managed to wind up with the young human in the first place.

Those detective novels did him good Huh-

On a more serious note. He’d actually be encouraging to a certain extent until the demon directs their threats to him. Like how dare this lowly bastard make a point to the Avatar sin of Wrath- oh it was for MC’s sake...hard pass-

At one point he’s probably the closest to this demon in terms of peace next to Beelzebub since he’s the most serene of the brothers. Overall neutral to them unless the demon gives him a reason to.

“It’s nice to see the human having someone to lean on to...I wonder what would happen if that support were to suddenly collapse”

Asmodeus

...is sappy to the brim

Look at the lovely human already catching demons with finesse! Proud wine aunt moment™️. And the fact that it was prior to the program? Damn the kid has more potential than he thought.

At first the demon themself is gonna- Ehe carry MC away everytime asmo ties coming in but. With a little nudge and convincing they’d probably stay to listen to Asmo.

Trust me when I say these three will go shopping every weekend once everyone is comfortable with each other. And for what it’s worth they might even get matching outfits.

Asmo would probably try and nitpick how MC even managed to wind up in a pact with a demon without knowledge of the Devildom in the first place but at the same time he thinks it adds to the younger’s charm

These three end up being the child the mom and wine aunt dynamic and y’all can’t convince me otherwise.

“Ehh~? Oh don’t look so weary it’s bad for your face darling~”

Beelzebub

...For some reason happy.

Is this why MC managed to make a pact with his brothers so easily in so little time? Is this why the teen never seems to be bothered by any of his brothers’ threats? Overall he’s happy that you have experience.

He remembers something oddly like this...but in his case he didn’t had experience prior the fall wow way to go at angsting this am I right-

Because unlike him, a being millennia old was so confused of what’s in store for hell after the fall but he had no choice but to grit his teeth and bare the fear.

And someone so young managed to get a taste of a fraction of that experience but here was MC...laughing without a care whilst this other demon places a protective arm in front of them as they interrogate beel- oh wait they were talking to him-

Food as peace offering? You bet, thankfully they did settle with food and unlike first impressions- the demon actually is the most sensible to beel seeing as he was one of the few who...didn’t actively attempt to kill their human- in fact, the demon is probably the one to inform Beel of what demon food the young teen can actually eat and what they prefer.

“I see...ah, would you maybe wanna join us? Food always tastes better when shared”

Belphegor

...could care less until they talk about the whole time universe killing thing-

Ohhh boy- belphie run I’m telling you run- no beel won’t defend you on this one in fact I think I see mammon running with the demon but belphie run boy run-

In all seriousness him and the demon will take the longest to get into terms. Heck not even Mc’s convincing has effect, because the demon really really doesn’t like the avatar of sloth for good reason.

Depending on how the demon even winded up with MC. Belphie would also not like the demon.

That...is until something actually bad happens to MC-

The demon might blindly pin it on belphie but the thing is- he’s also panicking because if he and his brothers were there and the demon was there- wHO TF IS WITH THE TEENAGER-

He...didnt want to have what he did to MC happen again. Let him be the last one to harm the spunky human. I even considered him and the demon to never actually get along no matter how long of a time but...again it all depends on the Hows and Whys.

“I...Care for them as much as you do. Just- Tsk... I don’t need you to believe me.”

[inky-duchess]

Court Archetypes: The Pretender

There are always those who want the throne. They carve it, they need the power it gives... or else somebody behind them wants them to do it. Pretenders add a threat to any throne as well as interesting subplots for your WIP.

The Successful

These were all pretenders in their times but they won their throne and kept it for a number of years.

Stephen I of England: Henry I had one son and a daughter. His son died in a shipwreck, leaving his daughter, Matilda or Maud to take the throne on his death. During this period, England's empire straddled the Channel. Matilda was in France when her father died and pregnant as well. In her absence, her cousin Stephen seized the throne. So ensued a bloody war for the throne which Matilda was winning at one point, entering her coronation but was chased away by Londoners. Matilda gave up the war on the terms that her son Henry would become King when Stephen died, which he did.

Richard III: I like Richard. He suffered from scoliosis, remained loyal to his brother and had a fairytale-like elopement with his wife. In 1483, Richard's brother died leaving a twelve year old heir. Richard had agreed to act as Regent but after putting off the prince's coronation for months, arresting the boys maternal uncle and half brother, executing his dead brother's best friend and imprisoning his brother in the tower with him, Richard seized the throne. There is murkiness about whether Richard had the boys killed. The boys did vanish but whether it was Richard or another power, we can never know for certain. Personally, I think Richard was acting in protection for the realm which would have been endanger from civil unrest, the commons resented the Queen's family and there were other pretenders. Richard was a tested battle commander and the strongest hope to keep the country stable. I think he had good intentions if he went the wrong way about it.

Edward IV: Edward was the son of another pretender, Richard of York. When Richard of York died at the hands of Margaret of Anjou along with his young son Edmund, Edward took up the mantle of kingship and ousted the House of Lancaster from the throne, installing the House of York.

The Exiles

Some royals were thrown out of their homeland by either a coup or another pretender. Sometimes they're the hero, other times they are not.

Charles Edward Stuart ("Bonnie Prince Charlie): I have mixed feelings about this man. He doesn't deserve the grand legend attached to him nor the kindness history gilds him with. He was a drunken fool who led thousands to their death like his shithead father. But his claim is just. The only reason barring him from his throne is his religion. His story should have been a fairytale, the prince riding to reclaim his family throne. But he died a poor beggar, drinking and lamenting past glories.

Charles II: Charles II was exiled from England along with his mother and younger siblings after the monarchy was overthrown. Charles was technically a pretender while Oliver "Dickbreath" Cromwell ruled England. He shot his shot when Cromwell died and restored the monarchy.

Henry VII: Henry had no chance at throne. Born of a legitimized bastard line and a Welsh line, Henry was not the first person people thought of when considering heirs to the throne. During the mess of the Wars of the Roses, he got closer and closer to the throne which meant he was a threat to the Yorkist line. He escaped to Brittany and then to France, where he waited for his chance. His mother helped orchestrate his two invasions of England, his second being successful at Bosworth Field.

The False

Some Pretenders are not pretenders at all. Some Pretenders are charlatans or mad men or perhaps greedy fools. Some are even almost successful

Perkin Warbeck (Richard Plantagenet/ Richard IV?): Perkin Warbeck, the son of a Tournai boatman, invaded England in 1495 under the guise of Prince Richard Plantagenet, Prince no. 2 in the Tower. He went to Scotland to garner support, winning a wife from the Scottish King. He rode south toward London, the country divided in opinion over his legitimacy. Was he the lost Prince of York? Real or not, Warbeck was defeated. Henry VII chose to be merciful offering Warbeck a place a court which he accepted. But the plots kept swirling about the mysterious pretender. In order to secure an alliance with Spain, Henry was finally forced to kill the pretender. Was he really Prince Richard? Some historians say no, some say yes. As for me, I am open to the theory that he is but I rather liked to think that if Prince Richard did survive the Tower, that he found safety somewhere far away and forgot all about crowns and thrones. Of course, that's just wishful thinking....

Anna Andersen (Anastasia Romanov): In 1918, the Russian Tsar, Tsarina, Tsarevitch and four Grand Duchesses were executed by rebels. Once that terrible murder happened, rumours began to spread that one daughter had escaped when they were burying the bodies, helped away by a young scared soldier. The rumours allowed pretenders to come forward pretending to be the youngest daughter, Anastasia. The remaining Russian royals met with several promising ones but they all cons. In Germany in the 1920s, a young woman began claiming to be the Grand Duchess. A few members of the royal family met her and believed her along with her childhood friend, Gleb Botkin. There was some evidence, her signature was the same, she knew somethings about the Grand Duchess's childhood and had similar birth marks. By the time DNA testing came about, Anderson was dead. They tested her remains and it was clear that she was a pretender. I don't like Andersen but I think that she did believe in the lie, she was emotionally disturbed person with a history of mental illness.

Yemelyan Pugachev (Peter III of Russia): Pugachev was a Cossack who led a rebellion against Catherine the Great. He convinced a great number of Russian serfs that he was the dickweed Peter III, who had died months after his wife Catherine kicked him off the throne. She may or may not have known about the assassination plot against his life. Catherine's armies obliterated the rebellion and Pugachev was beheaded, drawn and quartered.

The Puppet

Some Pretenders are just innocents who troublemakers gather about in order to gain power. The puppet pretender is always a sympathetic figure in literature.

Edward Plantagenet, Earl of Warwick: Edward was a simple-minded child whose great misfortune it was to be born into the House of York. The son of the Duke of Clarence, the brother to two of England's kings, he was named heir to the throne by his uncle Richard III when his own son died. Edward was imprisoned in the Tower when Henry VII came to power. But though Edward was likely incapable of ruling, Yorkist rebels kept rebelling in his name. In 1499, he was executed at the behest of the Anglo-Spanish treaty. He was a harmless man killed for a throne he likely didn't even realise was his by right. It is probably the one of the only events of history that I hate.

Lambert Simnel: Lambert Simnel was a pretender to the throne during the reign of Henry VII. He was a schoolboy who was placed at the head of a Yorkist rebellion for the resemblance between he and the Princes in the Tower. He was put forward as the Earl of Warwick, who people believed had escaped the Tower. When the rebellion was quashed, Henry VII was merciful and had the boy placed in the kitchens as a spit boy. Years later, he went on to become a royal falconer. Nothing else is known about his life.

Lady Jane Grey, Queen of England: Jane Grey was named Queen by her predecessor and cousin Edward VI. This was mainly due to her being Protestant as Edward VI was a Reformer. Jane had not wanted to be Queen, claiming that it was her Catholic cousin's throne not hers. In the name of faith, she was pressed to proclaim herself queen, in which the heralds had to explain who she was and how she could be queen. People had trouble with the claim for a few reasons: the succession had never included her only the king's two sisters, her mother who she drew her claim through was still alive meaning her mother was ahead of her by rights and nobody knew who she was. Jane's ascension had been a grand plot hatched by the Dukes of Suffolk and Northumberland. Northumberland wed Jane to his own son only months before. But Jane was no shrinking violet. In her nine days, she told her husband that he would never be king only a duke, she wrote her declarations signing herself as queen and ordered Northumberland to head her armies in place of her father. When Mary I ousted her from the throne, Jane was glad to give up the throne but not her Protestant faith. After failed rebellions to put Jane back in power, Mary I had no choice but to have her executed.