#rococo is so entitled and arrogant here

[lilac-gold]

1) What if, rather than Sweetheart trapping Rococo in the walls, Rococo trapped her?

The timeline begins the same way it does in canon. Sweetheart finds the Keeper and gets her castle. It bends to her will and takes the form of her deepest desires- one of which is to be adored by everyone. Naturally, this extends to the boy she grew up with.

She invites Rococo to live in her castle with her, and he's a mixture of happy and uneasy at the offer. He's never been outside of Orange Oasis, and he knows that being alone with Sweetheart is far from sensible. Still, he moves in with her, and the Castle soon starts to affect him.

He falls in love with her, and he falls hard. He's completely infatuated, the Castle molding him into the ideal husband in Sweetheart's eyes. All of his attention is on her, and even if they fight sometimes, he still loves her immensely. They get engaged and it's the happiest day of his life.

Then her fanbase grows, and the whole "Sweetheart is for sharing" point comes up, and Rococo's never felt more hurt. He doesn't remember when he fell in love with her (or even why), but now she's his everything. Angry at the lack of reciprocation, he hopes to teach her a lesson about how much she'd miss him by locking her away in the walls.

Only, upon Sweetheart's imprisonment, Rococo becomes the new owner of the Castle. He's "defeated her" and it is no longer subject to her fancies and desires, but his. His love for Sweetheart wears off and he finds the Keeper, who explains everything.

Naturally, he's devastated, deciding to keep Sweetheart in the walls for good so she can't hurt anyone else. He feels awful about it at first, but over time, as the Castle gives him everything he could ever want, he starts to care less. One immoral decision spirals out of control as he gains the spotlight that Sweetheart's claimed all their lives. There's no more running, no more hiding, no more arguments.

He's praised and applauded, recognised and appreciated, and he revels in it. Rococo's always been dramatic, and as newly-declared Duke of Rococo Castle, he's able to put on a show whenever he likes.

His main goal is still to repopulate his species, so he sets about searching for a suitable mate. He hosts a show titled 'Rococo's Quest for Romance', where ladies vie for his affection and he rejects each one. Somehow, it feels like there's something missing, like this isn't really what he wants. None of the women on his show seem to be right, and he gets angry at the Castle quickly.

Rococo becomes callous, prone to makeshift tantrums and fits of anger. The Castle's made him rather entitled, far more self-centred than in canon as he dresses himself in the finest clothes, his hair kept behind him in an elegant bun as he wears a golden crown atop his head. He has everything he could possibly want (except for a girlfriend), but somehow, he's still miserable.

Then, he meets Captain Spaceboy, and something shifts. Rococo finds himself laughing again, an old ache in his chest starting to mend. He spends more time with Spaceboy than anyone else, out in his garden of red and yellow roses, planting an orange one together, or travelling the stars. Spaceboy helps him write a song with him, and they spend plenty of nights just being together, enjoying one another's company.

Eventually, it clicks. Rococo likes Spaceboy. Like, like-likes him. And he's terrified.

What does he have, if not his purpose? What reason is there for him to be alive, if not to repopulate his species?? As far as he knows, it would be impossible to do so with Spaceboy.

So he pushes him away, reverting back to his arrogant, cold persona as he pretends he's fine. His rejections grow harsher, Rococo imprisoning those he sees as unfit for courting him in his dungeon. He takes up art as a hobby, painting portrait after portrait of himself- and sometimes, when he feels at his lowest, portraits of Spaceboy, too.

Omori & co show up and try to free Sweetheart, learning that she's trapped in the walls, but he can't have that. To them, he's a tyrant, locking them away in the dungeon too. They navigate the walls anyway, without his knowledge, and meet Sweetheart.

Now, Sweetheart... Hasn't been faring well for the past year or so. She's a mess, furious about her imprisonment and seeking revenge. She hasn't changed clothes or washed herself in months and it is torture for her. There are no mirrors in the dungeon, only the same walls every day, and it's infuriating to hear him living in her castle while she's trapped in its walls.

She's rude to the Omori & co because of course she is, she's Sweetheart. She demands they take her back to her castle so she can get it back and get revenge on her 'evil ex'. Omori & co are worried, but as far as they know, she's just a victim caught up in all of this; a childhood friend and former lover of Rococo's who he imprisoned in the walls out of jealousy. There's something a little off about Sweetheart, and she's certainly not what they expected- plus, her flirting with Hero as they travel makes things very uncomfortable- but they help her nonetheless, asking if she's seen Basil. She hasn't, and does not care about their mission.

Rococo, needless to say, is shocked to see her again. She tries to attack him, so he fights back, using the castle to his advantage. Omori & co rush in to defend Sweetheart, getting caught up in battle too. There's a big fight before it's interrupted by someone Omori & co helped out earlier: Captain Spaceboy.

After being abruptly kicked out of and banned from reentering Rococo's Castle, he falls into a state of depression. He's just lost the closest friend he's ever had, and had even begun starting to develop,,, other feelings towards him before he was inexplicably pushed away, Rococo cutting off all contact. Spaceboy's really upset, lamenting that he never confessed his feelings, angry that their relationship seemingly meant nothing to Rococo, and spending every day bedridden.

Then Omori & co show up and play the song, encouraging him to march into the Castle himself and force Rococo to talk things out. Their encounter with Spaceboy means that their opinion of Duke Rococo isn't exactly good even before they meet Sweetheart, so they believe he's a bad person from the start.

Spaceboy overcomes his anger and decides to take some time to think, rushing around to buy a ring and plan a speech. He's waited for too long, and he refuses to wait anymore! It's time,,, to propose.

He shows up at the fight in his spaceship and confesses his feelings for Rococo. Omori & co watch, appalled, as the two of them fly off into the distance together to get married back in Otherworld, and the Castle passes back to Sweetheart. She offers Hero the chance to stay with her, but he declines quickly for obvious reasons.

There is no Ex-Husband arc, just Rococo & Spaceboy searching for a house and preparing a nursery for all the children they're going to have. Spaceboy helps Rococo start to care for others again and stop taking things for granted, while Rococo assures Spaceboy that he is loved and helps him with his emotion problems.

Duke Rococo's... A bit of a jerk, but he gets a marriage arc and becomes less of a jerk so it's fine <3

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This is Part One of a series called The Rococoverse: a collection of Rococo-centric AUs with plenty of angst, ridiculousness and variety. From a Rococo who never left the walls to one who's never even met Sweetheart, there are plenty of different Rococos in store! If you like 'what-if' questions, Headspace character content in general and this funny little elf, make sure to keep your eyes pealed for more :D