#sweets helluva rewrite

[sweetshelluvaau]

Because I don't know when I'm going to get around to coloring these, I thought I'd post up the sketches for my revisited M&Ms. original designs are here and here. I overall like how they ended up coming out (Millie's hair was so much fun to draw) but I'm likely gonna fix somethings like the hooves and get rid of the gun holster for Moxxie being it feels too big.

Also feel Mox may be a little too tall here hmm...

At this point I gave up on trying to replicate Vivizepop's artstyle and went with my own because it just makes things easier. But damn, does some of her characters have weird design traits that are hard to traslate to mine. XD I'm gonna dread draw Blitzo.

Anyways, hopefully I'll get around to finishing these soon but wanted to share them neither the less.

Drawn with Clip Studio Paint. Okay to reblog, Feedback is encourage.

[squiddcakes]

Hello! A lot of you had positive responses to my last post, so here I’ll be writing my personal rewrites of the I.M.P. Crew (Sorry this took so long, I got side-tracked this weekend <:]). For a reminder of what my redesigns looked like, you can find them Here. I’m gonna go from left to right and start with the first crew member:

Mildred (or Millie)

I did a lot of reworking around Mildred since a majority of her characterization is basically nonexistent, so I gave her a personality with a lot of potential and complexity that’s on par with her male crew members.

Mildred comes from a very low-income, Southern family in the Wrath Ring. She grew up on a barn with her parents and several other siblings, making her essentially a middle child. She worked on their farm for most of her life as a hand and delivery girl to send fresh produce to buyers and the local market. It was like this for some time until the family business had gone dry due to some messy ties with the upper-class that resulted in them going into poverty. Wanting to help her family and support them financially Mildred left to go find work elsewhere, in which she meets Blitzo and is hired onto the I.M.P. team.

She’s very hard-working, a bit brutish but has a heart of gold, and is blunt and out-spoken. She’s not very sophisticated but has a lot of Wisdom to her and gives some great advice to Loona as the only other woman in the workplace, and someone for Loona to look up to in times of need. She gets along great with everyone except Moxxie, who she butts heads with constantly due to their conflicting personalities and backgrounds. Speaking of Moxxie, he’s next on the list.

Moxandicus (Moxxie)

Moxxie was an Imp born into the wealthier part of Imp society, basically making him the equivalent of your typical “uptight, sophisticated rich boy”. His family comes from a line of competitive businessmen, none of that mafia mumbo-jumbo, though they probably do have some loose ties to them in some way. Moxxie is the odd-one-out of his family, rather than taking an interest in the family business, instead finds his passion in Mortals History (this man is so infatuated with Humans culture its crazy). Because of this, his family looked at him more as a nuisance “wasting his time on silly hobbies”, and basically cut him off from his wealth until he “proved himself worthy” of being welcomed back into the family. Now broke and nowhere to go, Moxxie finds himself looking for work, where he meets Blitzo and joins I.M.P.

I imagine my Moxxie has a very similar personality to the one if the show, except he’s more educated, calculating, snooty and uptight, and less of.. I don’t know how to put this— coward? Butt of the joke? You get what I mean. He’s essentially the straight man and voice of reason for the group, and is the one who usually has to get them out of their pickles when working. He doesn’t have a lot of street smarts and is less willing to get his hands dirty compared to everyone else. Like I said earlier he clashes a lot with Millie and frequently questions Blitzo’s authority, but most of the time doesn’t argue back on the count of that’s his boss. He’s indifferent towards Loona, though questions why a teenager is working for them in the first place.

Blitz(o)

A lot of Blitz’s backstory and personality is mostly the same: Grew up in the circus in the Pride Ring, left after wanting to seek more in life prove to everyone someone from his social class can make it big in the world, yadayadayada. However I did rewrite some things that I believed wold make his character a lot better/more tolerable:

He’s still on good terms with his sister, they’re just really busy all the time so they don’t have a lot of time to talk or see each other (I’m so sick of this dude not having at LEAST one good relationship).

He and Verosika are still on bad terms due to their messy break-up, though I want to believe Blitzo regrets and sometimes even misses her and the actions that led to their falling out, though due to his pride refuses to admit it out loud.

None of that weird “sexually harassing my coworkers” shit. That was weird and gross.

I gave him a personality that’s more attuned to “if Weird Al was a bounty hunter who grew up in the circus”. He was always some silly little guy to me. The man grew up in a circus, I’d expect him to be a little clowned down if you get what I’m sayin’.

His relationship with Loona is typically the same. He adopted her when she was around 13-14 and has been raising her ever since as his teenage daughter (None of that weird “treating hellhounds like literal peta thing that was weird and confusing). He makes her work as their secretary and “social media manager” as a way to earn a weekly allowance and also “the kids are hip with it she’ll do wonders for us promotionally”. She does not, he just refuses to admit it.

Leona (Loona)

I’ve done a lot of reworking for Loona as well, same reasons as Millie. Istg they do not know how to wrote female characters.

Loona is a hellhound born from the Sloth Ring. She doesn’t know a lot of her background, but was raised in foster care for a small portion of her life until Blitzo took her in when she hit her teenage years. Before that however she took a liking towards astrology and magic and would constantly read about it in her formative years. When she began living with Blitz she began attending schooling to further learn about magic and how to translate older works, which is how she’s able to use Stolas’ book for the IMP team to use. She get’s teased on a lot in school for being one of the only Hellhounds there, which causes her to feel insecure about herself and shut in from people including Blitz.

Loona’s a very quiet, closed-off teenager (16-17), who’s very much in that “going through a phase” part of growing up. She’s very insecure about herself and is easily-impressionable, which is why she looks up to Millie so much, since she’s cool and is the only other girl in the office space to talk to. Loona’s relationship with Blitz is the same, except she actually acts like a teenager and not an abusive asshole. She wants to prove to herself that she’s not some “loser nobody” and can actually do magic and make friends with other teens her age.

And that’s it. Sorry it was so long I had a lot to say lol. If you have further questions, direct them to my ask box.

[themolescriticalblog]

Like I did with Hazbin on my main blog partially, I'm starting to think of ways I'd rewrite Helluva Boss and specifically focusing in Stolas and Blitz, and trying to make it an actual arc that makes sense with the character beats and development.

Something I think really hinders Stoltiz from truly being something that people could actually get there backs on is:

· The development of Stolas's feelings towards Blitz is way too fast, and out of nowhere. For example: in LooLoo land, Stolas has almost no interested in Blitz besides sexual interest (from what I remember it's been a while since I've seen it). But it's weird for me, since he's acting this way when we've seen how basically he's always had a crush on Blitz. So him purely acting this way at first and then slowly it getting basically retconed (thanks Vivzie) is really weird to me.

· Everything is about STOLAS. Tell me when we've ever gotten a genuine look, into Blitz thoughts about this agreement. Besides one off jokes, and basically Truth Seekers, Full Moon and Apology Tour (if you ignore Stolas's whining). We only get to see how Blitz feels in STOLAS'S PERSPECTIVE during major moments. We never really get to have a moment where Blitz is truly contemplating Stolas. I hope this part makes sense.

So, from these two points and a few smaller things, like Stolas being this sappy, "good" royal from the start who if ever called out for his actions, the show basically tries to frame it as non-serious as it can cause it's from "villains" or people who "misunderstood", here's kinda the basics of what I've come up with, for rewriting Stoltiz:

Stolas and Blitz don't meet when they were children, we don't have that emotional connection between them at all from the start, and the simple bases is that Blitz one night sneaks the Grimorie, and Stolas in a drunken stooper fails to catch Blitz with the book before he's run off

That doesn't mean Blitz is off the hook though, as Stolas finds him, and instead of killing him as he normally would go a "foolish imp" who tried to really steal his most prized possession. He instead offers a deal to Blitz, which he consents to begrudgingly and they seal it in a handshake, where if the dues are broken with no word as to why the full moon meeting was missed, or any other reasons from either parties side, it's broken off, with the Grimorie going back to Stolas, and Blitz to never step foot in his home again.

Reason why he even let's Blitz live? Well he sees here he has an imp he finds cute wanting to trade something for the Grimorie for a business. Perhaps he thinks he's being so generous and kind giving someone lower than him an opportunity to rise. Or perhaps it involves getting back at Stella in some way by actively cheating on her in their own bed, a horrible thing, which he has little thought of being so horrible. It really depends, it could be both.

Stolas here is explicitly morally dubious/very grey at "best" or an antagonist at worse here from the start. In this he was once a sweet child who soon was expected to fit the form of your petty, selfish, and horrid prince, who became who he was fully. Inside he knows what he is doing is horrible, that he shouldn't treat people the way he does, but doesn't properly have the facilities to change, and no active reason to change, besides for Octavia. But even he's too ignorant to really see it as more than "the common mistakes a parent makes their first time around".

While he is abused by Stella, it's not as if he's completely innocent himself, and Stella in this case isn't overly cartoonishly evil. And while he loves Octavia and tries to make their home life the best for her, he's ignorant to her needs, and not just one episode at LuLu Land is going to "fix" it all as mentioned earlier.

From this point in it's kinda difficult for me to think about how this would turn into an "actual relationship"??? I was thinking of something like this:

basically Blitz during different episodes that involve him and Stolas directly causes Stolas to began rethinking many of his actions, and his prejudice/so far as racism to the other races of hell that are deemed lower than him. These ideas, that are also perpetuated by Octavia, and in episodes such as Ozzie's, begin to change him, begin to make him realize how much of a fuck head he's been.

This is when Stolas begins to try to fix what he's done, he talks to Asmodeus about these things, he tries to have a serious chat with Stella, apologizes for his cheating but knows he's gone to far to really fix anything. They decide on divorce, and Asmodeus mentions the crystal. Not as a way out for Stolas, to excuse himself from using what's more than just an Imp, but a person. But, as a way to let Blitz have a choice, a proper choice, on what he wants to do.

Full Moon happens, but this time, Stolas doesn't beat around the bush, he tells Blitz full out in text that it's important they have a proper talk, and Stolas explains it out front without making Blitz begin to beg on his knees, saying he'll do anything before presenting the crystal (that scene makes me SEETHE). He presents the crystal, explains his reasoning, and what Blitz has helped him realize about himself. That he's an extremely flawed and horrible person, who needs time to really think about who he's become, but knows he doesn't want to keep Blitz trapped. And Blitz then takes the crystal.

Thought it doesn't stop their communication, basically you'd see any following episodes featuring Stolas slowly showing him fully developing into a better person. I feel like him and Blitz though a series of events would become more like friends if anything, they'd help each other with their own struggle. Maybe they'd never be good for each other even, but they're healing.

That's kinda all, MAYBE IT WAS, PRETTY SAPPY, you see I really just wish, this could work, that the writing was ok in some fashion. Hell maybe my version of it makes it worse, doesn't make Stolas less borderline if not rapey than he is, but if anything I wanted this version of their arc to show Stolas actually CHANGING as a person due to his ACTIONS EFFECTING OTHERS and being called out for it. If you have any thoughts feel free to reblog, comment or send an ask!!!! Main reason I started this blog besides ranting is I wanted a place to also share my ideas!!!

[starrclown]

☆Fixing the biggest problem with Stolitz so it's not creepy☆

Ahoy Matey's, I'm gonna keep this short and sweet so I can get back to working on tiktok art, personal art, and other random stuff. (When I say random stuff I mean working on my Blitzø Redesign because hes so skrunkly and I love him.)

As you all know, (Actually as I'm writing this I don't think I've said this on here. Um, I'm rewriting Helluva Boss. Lol 🫶), I'm rewriting Helluva Boss. I've seen alot of people, me included, hating Stolitz because it's unhealthy and toxic and Stolas abuses Blitzø. I've seen one main issue that is so easily fixed. DON'T MAKE STOLAS SEXUALLY ABUSE BLITZØ. Seriously it's that easy. Wanna know how I'm gonna fix this I'm my rewrite?

Stolas doesn't use sex as the deal.

How I'm fixing this is Stolas has Blitzø kill people for him instead of Stolas wanting to bang him. That would fix it. Instead of Stolas sexually abusing Blitzø he has him kill people, like in the pilot. If they wanna sleep with each other than they can because they are two consensual adults but it would be less creepy.

See how easy that is. C'mon Viv step up.

(Will post Blitzø soon!! Then the Hazbin Hotel human designs and redesigns. I have so much work to do-)

- ⭐️StarClown⭐️

[hezuart]

Hezu your latest video about wendell and wild i have to disagree with you. For me kat elliot is sympathetic character i even dare to said she's much more likable and sympathetic than loona the hellhound from helluva boss. I think you went way too far calling kat elliot an asshole and jerk, Laika studio animation who produced coraline movie. Coraline jones is actually much more rude than kat

Hezu you have implicit biases against dark skin female character. You called isabela a bitch even though it's clear she suffer from unreleastic expectation from alma and throw that into mirabel, then you called kat elliot an asshole and jerk when she clear suffer from loss of her parent and being bullied, abuse, exploited. So please check your implicit biases don't forget racism and colorism too

But your rewrite of wendell and wild is nice i liked it

buddy, pal, sweet summer child Kat Elliot being abused is not an excuse for her to be an asshole and jerk to other people, especially not those who are constantly offering her help. Her own parents sat her down and talked about making better decisions and protecting people close to her. Isabela is a diva, someone who relishes the attention and praise but is essentially forced into keeping this role as the generational trauma and expectations of their family bear down on her. This is understandable. This is a well-written complex character. The moment I claim she is a "bitch" is when she can finally have the freedom she longs for, when her sister whom she shares a rivalry with actually saves her with the bell (or in this case, a crumbling house), causing a distraction that finally takes focus off of Isabela and interrupting her marriage contract, a contract that made her so upset and uncomfortable, she physically (with her nature powers) assaults her husband-to-be several times (it is played off for comedy but, it's not fair to him)

When it finally matters most, when Isabela has the opportunity to be honest and true, she treats Mirabel badly. She yells at Mirabel. She says Mirabel "ruined her life" when Mirabel did nothing of the sort, if anything she saved her future by interfering. She smiles as she makes Mirabel apologize, delighting in making her sister grovel at her feet. She's arrogant and petty. She doesn't turn around until mid-song, out of the blue, when she finally confesses to everything. Where she doesn't want that marriage, that she wants to be free, and thus becoming a better person. It's merely that moment of her interaction with Mirabel that makes her awful. Had the scene been written better, or if they had gone with the original plan of Mirabel catching Isabela dating some other guy and blabbing about it to the other family members where Mirabel DID in fact, ruin her life, Isabela's reaction would have made more sense. She would not be presented as a bad sister if things had been tweaked.

Neither of these women are assholes or jerks because of their skin tone, please see them as more than their race I am begging you

[thor-is-trans-and-pan-he-told-me]

more about that helluva boss rewrite bc why not

tw for implied dv/abuse

stella married for well politics her family is ranked much lower and aren't given much respect because of that. they(her parents and andrealphus) pressured stella to marry stolas because they'd be given a bit of a higher rank if stella married a goetia

eventually stella gave in and agreed even though she didn't love stolas(though she eventually did as the years went by)

stella and stolas' relationship was one sided though as stolas had no feelings for her whatsoever much to stella's disappointment when she's reminded of that fact she tells herself that they only married for politics and nothing else and any hopes or possibilities of it ever being more than that were stupid and impossible

when they have octavia stella's forcibly turned into a 1960s housewife no i'm not kidding

the goetia's in this rewrite have very traditional views(such as women should give up their hopes and dreams to raise the children) anyone who goes against those views and values disappear and are never seen again so out of fear for her life and child(due to stella having a family who's lower ranked and not having much wealth or power if stella dares to defy the goetia's she could lose everything such as her home her rank and her life as well) stella conforms to these beliefs and values much to her displeasure

as the years go stella and stolas' relationship begins to fail and stella desperately tries to make everything seem okay when it's not believing that the relationship is failing because she's not being a good enough wife to stolas doing her best to rationalize the situation as fear begins to take hold of her(octavia is nine when the relationship goes down hill)

she and stolas begin to argue a lot more unfortunately a lot of it is in front of octavia stella tries to argue with stolas when octavia isn't around but stolas doesn't care and argues with his wife in front of his daughter anyway

the last straw is when stella finds her husband in bed with an imp she's rightfully furious and tells the imp(blitz) to get out and leave

she and stolas have an explosive argument which causes stella to say that she can't keep doing this anymore and that she wants a divorce

it goes like this basically

"I-I can't keep doing this anymore Stolas! I'm done with this shit! I want a divorce!" Stella shouts trying to ignore the racing of her heart and the panic fluttering in her chest.

Stolas throws his head back and let's out a haughty and disbelieving laugh. He stops when he sees she's serious. "You're serious?"

Stella gulps. What is she thinking? She can't do this? Going up against a goetia like this? What is she,an idiot? She can't just do this! If she does,she-she could-.

She could die. There's a risk she's taking. And she knows it.

So why is she taking the risk then?

Because...because she has to. She can't keep living with him anymore. Can't live in a place where her daughter has to hear her parents argue and fight all the time. Where her daughter wakes up to fighting and yelling and shouting and her mother sobbing on the floor with bruises on her arms and neck.

She can't do this anymore.

"I-I meant what I said! I want a divorce!"

Stolas' eyes darken at that. A dangerous glint appears in his eyes. He takes a step forward,hand balling into a fist. For a moment she thinks he's about to hit her. She wouldn't be surprised if he did. After all he's done it before.

"Are you sure about that darling?,"she feels a chill go down her spine at that. The way he says "darling" doesn't sound right. It's not romantic or sweet at all. It's never been. It's always been condescending and demeaning. Disgust and hatred all in one.

Stella stares him in the eye. "Yes I am. I can't keep living like this anymore Stolas. Neither can you or Octavia. It'd be hell for the rest of our lives and we both know that. So let's just end it while we still can."

She turns to grab the door and leave only to let out a yelp as he grabs her arm with impeccable strength. It sends a jolt of pain throughout her body. She jerks her arm out of reach. She can still feel the unhealed scars from last time this happened.

Stolas still has that dark glint in his eyes. He's unusually calm now.

"Well if you're really going to go through with this,..."He says moving past her.

He's close to her now,body pressing against hers. She stiffens at that.

He leans and says,

"Let's see who win this then. But we already know who's going to win this,now don't we?" An eerie smile spread on his face.

He leaves the room after that.

Stella let's out a heavy breath,collapsing on the floor. A new feeling spreads throughout her chest. One she hasn't felt in....for what feels like forever.

Freedom.

She hasn't free in years she realizes.

-------

so yeah that's what I have so far hope you enjoyed the little short at the end there:)

[his-red-right-hand]

Chapter 4

An excerpt from notes found written on a yellow legal pad:

I should be mad. I should be furious. Had to rewrite my fucking article.

I never have to change my articles.

Girl came in and fucked up my design, should’ve slit her throat the moment I saw her. Dumb bitch didn’t even have the sense to run. But she sounded so fucking pretty begging for me to kill her though. Looked pretty with her blood all over her too. And when she started crying, fuck.

Had half a mind to shove her down onto her knees and make her beg for my cock, choke her on it until she passed out. Fuck her throat until I finish.

Might do it later, when there’s no risk of being caught. Hell, she wants to die so bad, might as well make herself useful beforehand. Don’t know if I want to gut her or fuck her. Maybe both. Either way, I’ll be rearranging her guts.

--

She met Jed at the hospital today, she lied to him as well as the cops. Cute she’s already willing to lie for me. And her advice for people to run from me? Is she trying to get on my good side?

Oh, and that little “off the record” confession? Too sweet. Idiot never noticed I didn’t turn off the tape recorder, so I can listen to her say it over and over. Oh, and I intend to.

Meant what I told her though, going to have a long game with her. Even if I did want to fuck her on that hospital bed after she admitted her death wish so nicely. Gonna masturbate to her picture again, maybe as I watch her sleep. Got to keep in control, no matter how tempting it is to just take what I want now. Gotta enjoy the chase first.

Found out from her nurse that she’s getting discharged tomorrow, so I’ll look around her house tonight, see what I can find. Then do a check in with the next name on the list to make sure nothing’s changed, going to be abandoning them for a bit. This new design is going to take some time to plan, but the execution is going to be a helluva good time.

--

Lives in a fairly shitty one bedroom house, but the backyard’s big and backs onto the woods. Plenty of nice spots to keep watch from, a good view into her bedroom and living room. A little sad there’s nowhere to get a good view into her bathroom, but you can’t have everything.

Backdoor key is hidden under a painted rock next to a chair and a little table: roach in an ashtray. Might be an option to fuck with her there - depends on what her consumption is like.

Inside is cheap everything, a lot of mismatched flea market furniture, except the stereo. And she has a lot of vinyl. Rearranged a few just to fuck with her a little. A pile of mix tapes in a box, all labelled in the same handwriting, so either she makes them or knows one person who does.

Kitchen cupboards were mostly empty, a bunch of instant ramen and some jiffy pop. Fridge was mostly take away containers. She had left milk out on the side that had gone bad. Disposed of it for her, I’m not a complete monster.

Bedroom had some nice discoveries, a bullet vibe in a drawer next to some Clive Barker novel with a few bookmarks. My girl is a freak. Knew I had good taste.

Thought about stealing some of her panties, but I think I’ll wait until she’s back and I can take the pair she was wearing when we met. I’m a romantic like that.

She’s got lots of books, but the dust on the bookcase shows she wasn’t lying about not reading much lately. What the fuck else was she doing?

Whole place has the vibe of a shut-in. The couch looks like she sleeps on it most nights, pizza boxes all around it. Sleeping pills on the coffee table, some heavy duty stuff. Definitely something to mess with in future.

Found her Blockbuster rentals, The Evil Dead and Silence of the Lambs. Hid that one, she should only be thinking about one killer. Maybe I’ll return it for her, it’ll spare her a late fee as well as fuck with her head a bit. Still a bit of a monster.

--

I was watching when she came home. She checked the front blinds, but didn’t bother with the back windows. Then again I’m the only one here watching. Gave me a nice show, walking around naked for me except for the bandage. Want to see her without it, want to see her with my marks on her. Want to give her so many more.

Watched her get stoned in her backyard wearing just a t-shirt. A guy would normally have to pay for the shows she keeps giving me, can’t wait until she does it knowing I’m watching her. Took some pictures, a few in her natural environment to go with that cute little polaroid I got of her all bloody when we first met.

Hasn’t seemed to notice anything I moved yet, or if she has she’s explaining it away to herself. Gonna have to amp that up over time, until she knows it’s me. Not sure about her taste in music, a bit maudlin for my tastes, but it was kinda catchy in a sad way.

She called a few people, her boss and a couple of friends, they were the only ones who had left her messages. Glad I got the tap set up, gotta keep track of my favourite girl’s social life, doesn’t she know there’s a killer loose? Don’t think she calls the friends often though, which is good for me. They won’t miss her so much once I start taking up her time. And if they do, I can always get rid of the answer machine tapes.

She ended up falling asleep on the couch to The Evil Dead, looking all cute and pouty lying there. Wanted to go in and take those panties, but decided not to risk it just yet. Don’t know how deeply she sleeps. She’s going to work tomorrow, I can come back on Jed’s lunch break and get them then. Maybe do a little more rearranging, maybe leave a present or two. After all, I gotta treat my girl right, don’t I?

Maybe she’d like the pictures I just took of her sleeping, nice and close up through the unlocked backdoor, her shirt riding up enough that you can see where those legs end, and it is quite the view. Such a little exhibitionist for me.

Oh, we’re going to have so much fun together.

[jeschalynn]

for the ask game-- 🍓🍑🍇?

Daisy my beloved! Thank you for the tasty fruits~

🍓 What’s a fic you’ve written you feel is underrated?

I mentioned some fics in a previous ask, but another that comes to mind might be my fluffy Beel fics? I'm thinking of this sickfic specifically. Sometimes the game does his character so dirty. We have great little moments with him but the rest of the time it's oh look, Beel's eating/hungry or he's thinking/talking about food again. It gets SO OLD. Yes, it doesn't escape me that the sickfic involves cooking for him but food can be such a sweet, impactful way of connecting to someone if it's written well. There's a difference between Beel liking food, and Beel liking food because you made it specially for him and every time he eats that food, it reminds him of you and he appreciates you for it. That's the element of Beel's gluttonous nature I like most.

🍑 If you could make a connection between your favorite character and another work you care about (whether a crossover/fusion or a wonderfully “pretentious” literary reference) what would it be? How would it work?

I tend to think about crossover potential with the Obey Me universe as a whole and other fandoms I'm interested in. There are the obvious candidates - Twisted Wonderland, Arcana Twilight, What in Hell is Bad, Helluva Boss/Hazbin Hotel - but my lowkey favourite is Demon Slayer.

How it works is some vague explanation of Devildom/hell power dynamics and their multiple systems of checks and balances where Muzan and the Twelve Kizuki are basically like their own sect of high-ranking demons. Due to their bloodthirsty nature, they probably spend most of their time in the human world gaining pacts with humans so they can collect their souls (and consume them in the process). Maybe some of the demon lords look down on them because of their unrepentant fondness for murder and mayhem (since the demon lords that also engage in those activities do so more discreetly).

When Lucifer and his brothers fall, the balance of power in the Devildom shifts. The demon rulers of the past had to carefully navigate and appease the various sects of demon lords of considerable influence to minimize violence and chaos within the realm. Due to their unique circumstances, the Avatars of Sin are not only given considerable rank and prestige upon arriving in the Devildom, but they're firmly in Diavolo's camp which gives the royal family considerable strength that maybe they were lacking before. This shakes up things for the rest of the nobility and everyone else gets bumped down a peg or two in the hierarchy to make way for Lucifer and his siblings who now sit very close to the top.

By the time the exchange program commences, Muzan is on par with the higher ranking demon lords of the Ars Goetia with the Twelve Kizuki ranked by power level below him. As far as demons go, they're still strong and have powerful reputations and connections within the Devildom, but there might be some lingering bitterness that they were so easily shoved aside for the demon brothers. They spend a lot of time in the human world to avoid interacting with them, although their behaviour is more closely scrutinized by Diavolo in order to prevent aggression or hostility with the Sorcerer's Society or Celestial Realm.

(My very self-indulgent selfship lore with Gyutaro/Daki involves this premise where my MC has a pact with them before entering the exchange program.)

🍇 Is there a particular scene/episode/book/etc that you want to just write a million fics about, over and over? Which one?

There are specific OM story lines for certain characters that I could write about over and over again.

Lucifer - making his pact with MC in S1

Belphie - the aftermath of Lesson 16 (good and bad)

Solomon - rewriting his relationship with MC in S1, the apprenticeship trials in S3

Barbatos - continuing the romantic buildup of S4 and the hypothetical S5 we never got

Michael - his first meeting with MC (what I think would've happened in OG S5)

[fatratbabyy]

hi! i really love your designs, the colours are always really well done anf the characters are full of life.. and i love how your rewrites give the characters complexity and make them really interesting to me, much more so than canon(though i am a fan of some ideas introduced there, they don’t quite turn out in ways that make sense to me)! i’ve been wondering a few things about helluva troupe for a while however and hopefully the answers aren’t spoilers, lol.. in HT, what is Fizz’s involvement with the ‘troupe’ and what is stolas’s involvement too.? i wish you much luck on your work as it is lovely to see! (also apologies for my silly username)

Thank You!

Thank you so much that means a lot!! waaAahee! It makes me happy to see people interested 🥺👉👈

With Fizz it's,,, a bit Fuzzy, because hilariously he's the whole reason I made this AU among other things But I ended up makinh him a sorta side character antag again because while originally he was going to be part of the main crew from the start of HT's storyline, as I went along in trying to write I saw some cool hcs about his star clown days and so I thought to use the more canonized view- mostly in that he's a star clown during the events of HT instead of dropping the show life to join Blitz in I.M.P. That previous version is why you see him in the I.M.P references- and hinty hoo that ol version isnt completely null and voice to the current HT

ANYWAY so yeah- While Fizz isn't as much a main character as he was he still has a great deal of importance to the story and themes I want to express in HT. When it comes to him and the Troupe itself, I could best describe him as one of the biggest foils or parallels to the main cast. Just,, he's this golden image that represents their every want fulfilled. For Blitz especially given their thick history heehooo. (That's not to say this 'golden image' is entirely as it seems btw...)

Now it sounds much like canon I know but I like to think I'm taking a different direction with it- It's not really just the "haha you suck with relationships, fuck, shit, pénis im doing better look at my good relationship" nonsense cuz for 1. Fizzarozzie does nOT exist anymore- its Mamzie now 😊 (Mammon + Ozzie) and 2. The themes with Fizz and really most of HT has less to do with the melodramatic romance "will they wont they" of Stolitz (which isnt really a thing either) and more the struggle impoverished and oppressed peoples experience with success, failure, identity, community, family, status, history, trauma, etccc. Specifically, because I am an indigenous person from Canada, a lot of the themes are drawn from my own experiences, knowledge and history as an indigenous person. Though with execution, creative liberties were taken to make the fact they're in Hell clear btww-

That very likely did nOT answer jour question but i amn,,,stoopi 😭😭😭 simpler answer i suppose maybe by chance would be Fizz is an eventual antagonist to I.M.P. Specifics and how it happens and wheNNN?? Im still not sure yet if im honest- been really busy the last year or so and so Ive hadnt had any time or energy to work as much on writing all the things! ;u; thats probs disappointing to hear cuz plaNNing and all is important if you're gonna post story stuff at all,,, but !! I do hope to work more on the story this year so i can wrap up all these floating ideas into a Concrete line of stuff cuz truly all im missing is the middle pieces. Maybe an HT comic will be real this/or next year! 👀🏃

ANYHOOT ONTO STOLAS! i rambled a bit too much about Fizz cuz im still figuring him out- Stolas might be a bit shorter cuz his role is sweet and simplisticerr.

So, Stolas is an antagonist. He and Blitz still have an exchange sort of deal, but the deal is Blitz gets to keep the grimoire for I.M.P if he handles Stolas' "errands" and gives it back on the full moon with ofc none of the uh,,hawny stuff, obv. Blitz kinda keeps this deal under wraps from the rest of I.M.P because for him, it hurts his pride to admit he's in need of some big guy's help. And Stolas is somewhat aware of this. And so, Stolas is this looming, cruel threat that Blitz carries the burden of cuz he's stubborn as fuck whilst the rest of I.M.P remain ignorant.

Some bonus notes that dont really have to do with Stolas involvement with imp but jus how stuff ive changed with his canon influence the story diff than canon; so, Stella isnt a thing anymore. In general the Goetia work much differently- majority of the Goetia being the children of Ozzie instead of Paimon (who is Stolas' sibling now btw too) and the Goetia being thousands of years old instead of fucking 30- Also! While Via is existant she is but a baby instead of a moody teen,, ties heavily with Stolas' motives and how he operates as a character, royal, and Goetian and felt it would work better with how HT Stolas is as a character than it would otherwise.

Also no worries about the username! I dont like canon stolas much either lol,,;

I apologize if this didnt answer much 😭 feel free to let me know if you wanna hear about somn else gwahgh 🏃

[sweetshelluvaau]

Finally, I finished him!

So here he is, the King of Lust himself, Asmodeus! I wanted to take a break from the main cast plus hyperfixation came into play so if I didn't draw Ozzie my brain would have exploded so here we are. I'm putting this under read more because there's a lot of ranting before I get to the notes on the redesign plus pictures to address my points:

To be honest: I don't mind Ozzie's design/outfit in the show. It isn't horrible by any means and there was a time where I could say I even liked it. But when Oops dropped and seeing him without the suit happened, disappointment sunk in.

Are you telling me this man, is a beefcake under that compression suit? The embodiment of lust is jacked and his outfit doesn't show that!?

Seriously Viv, where's the beef?

And while I did say that I did at one time like his design, I never found it really 'sexy' (his voice on the other hand...) and after seeing his beautiful chest all I can do is cry about it.

Also: what is it with Viviziepop and top hats? It's if half of her male cast wears them. It'd make sense for some characters, notability sinners who died in their era that they were popular but it makes no sense for other characters. In this case, I just think Ozzie looks better without one.

Ahem, yeah okay, right, soooo notes:

I noticed one of his earlier looks before the final design he had a longer, thicker and fluffier neck and kinda sad they didn't keep that being it worked with the rooster motif he's suppose to have. I decided to incorporate it back into my design just because I can. Plus, ya know it's fluffy:

I also decided to give him bird feet/chicken legs and make him a bit thicker thighs because excuse me he's part rooster have you seen the meat on those things?!

Because my obsession with his chest, I decided that the outfits should show it off more because, um...chest. Also: FLUFF. idk why I just really wanted to make him fluffy.

The outfit on the right was the one I drew first but I felt it was lacking the regal feel I wanted to go with being he is one of the Deadly Sins and I wanted to show that (along with his chest and fluff but shh). I decided to keep it as a secondary, causal outfit on days off when all you want to just lay on the couch and chill/cuddle with your boyfriend. (likely gonna get rid of the neckless being I mostly just added it because I thought it was funny. If you know, you know.)

After going back at it a second time I decided to go for a burlesque style (Not sure if I nailed it or not) considering his club sorta had that theme going for it and while I'm more than likely going to revisit and change a few things later on, I overall love how the outfit came out.

And of course, a crown. I may get rid of the fire/flaming top in later drawings but I thought it was cool at the time.

I may still revisit the design to maybe add a bit more bull, goat and possible dragon to his design outside of the heads but I think I may save that for when I cerate his full demon form where I'll have those features stand out more. Likely won't have him have his tiny form in my au, no matter how cute it is.

not really a design note persay but kinda want to mention it because it bothers me: I drew/inked and colored both of these at different times which is why the anatomy and coloring is so different from each other. I'm still playing around with clip studio paint tho I think the shading style on the right is the one I'm gonna go with for now on.

As for character/lore notes: I really don't like how it feels as if Ozzie (along with some other characters) was defanged in season two plus how they made him, a deadly sin, not feeling all too threating. Granted, Ozzie being nice isn't the problem (being nice doesn't necessarily mean you're a good person plus I do like that the sins do have some virtues like believing in consent being ya know, complexity and what not suppose to be full on evil) and I even have him being one of the nicer Sins in my AU but still can have his dickish moments and hell, he and Fizz are gonna drag your corpse with the amount of roasting they're dishing you about your sex life because god they were so much fun when both them had more bite. Please bring back my chaotic asshole jester gremlin and his rooster boyfriend tag teaming about how much you suck in bed and just being a general nuisances to society plzthx. (plus ya know, Fizz is a Jester his job is roasting people. Not to say he can't have some kindhearted moments. His friendship with Blitzo gives me life and I love the moment with the deaf kid even if you have to question why a kid is doing at a 18+ event to begin with but that's a whole other can of worms.)

While I'm not going with the circus theme that Viv claims she's going for with each Deadly Sin being based off a circus act (which is a fun idea in theory tbh if that idea expanded on outside of a poorly done aesthetic), I kind of like the idea of a magician motif for Ozzie due to his use of fire plus one of his infernal correspondences happens to be illusions, which we kinda saw him do in Ozzie's. I thought it was a cool touch, regardless if that was intentional or not.

Also, apparently it's canon that Fizzarolli is his first romantic relationship and idk that kinda bothers me. Asmodeus is over thousand years old and in biblical lore he's been in a few relationship (plus what happened in the Book of Tobit with Sarah). Why not play around with that? In my AU, he's been in at least two (Lilith and Mammon respectfully, and I'll talk about that at a later time) before but they were all failed relationships, which soured his view on love for a long time until he fell for Fizz. I also headcanon Ozzie being/use to being a bit of a hopeless romantic, as much as he tries to hide it (poorly).

Hey, I drew some half decent hands for once.

Anyways, yeah, here's my version of Ozzie. Next up with be either Stolas (which is less of an rewrite and more of a damn overhaul because holy shit I really had enough of this guy in canon) or perhaps Beelzebub being I got some ideas for her too.

Made with Clip Studio Paint and Photoshop CS6 for final touches. Okay to reblog, Feedback is encourage.

[tarsusfeathers]

Verse: Hazbin // Helluva

In the beginning, there were many Gods. Some lived peacefully together, while others held themselves above the separate religions. When the world began there was discontent on how to handle the dead. While some believed in unity, no matter the religion, there were a few who demanded their own religion stand above the others. In an attempt to ease the feud, the Gods decided to separate the souls not based on their good intentions and worship, but on what God they deemed ‘true’. And so different afterlife’s were made. Some were reborn in Reincarnation, some travelling the Hall of Two Truths, or perhaps the River of Styx. And of course, others joined the party in Valhalla. But there was one God who took this as blasphemy, rewriting its own religion and how Man came to be. This God created Heaven, for those who were devoted to their word, and Hell for those who lived in what the book deemed ‘sin’. —

“Yikes! This guy really had what the kids today call, the big mad~.”

While some religions were torn apart by this new Christianity, others thrived as the people rebelled against a God who demanded so much. And in turn, all religion continued to function under the rule of their respectful divinity.

“Mm.. I’d say different. But hey, who am I to argue with the scrolls, huh? — I’m just Hermes. Haha. That’s right, baby. The one and only~ The God Hermes. I’ve had so many names across sooo many more religions; The Grim reaper, The Angel of Death, Yama, Yanluo.. It’s exhausting being a conductor of souls, the one who leads your dead little corpse to.. weeeell whatever afterlife you’ve been signed up for. And I hear you, ‘but Hermes, all these death bringers look different in photos! How can they all be the same person?’ — Listen, sweet-cakes. Do you really think they’d appoint a whole different being for every religion? You people make them up all the time, we’re not looking at resumes. And don’t get me started on Pastafarianism.. Hilarious! We leave you alone for one decade and it’s a Flying Spaghetti Monster you come up with? Brilliant, truly! —

But that’s enough lecture.. the boring stuff, YAAAWN. You, my dear little mortal, are about to venture into your very own afterlife! Is that not exciting? Haha.. I hope you lived your life to the fullest. Indulged in all sorts of.. mischief~ Now.. what religion did you say you practiced..?”

[karahalloway]

(Un)Common Attraction: Bonus Chapter - Burnt

Series: TRR (following the events of Book 1, with some changes)

Pairing: Drake Walker x OC (Harper Gale)

Rights belong to Pixelberry, most characters and some dialogue belong to them.

Book Synopsis: Harper Gale is a small-town girl working as a waitress at a seedy New York dive bar. After a chance encounter with nobility sees her jetting halfway around the world to compete for the hand of the Prince of Cordonia, her dream of seeing the world starts to come true sooner than she expected. But as the completion heats up, Harper quickly learns that life at court is a lot more than just pretty dresses and fancy balls, and that the polished aristocratic smiles often hide deceit. Does she have what it takes to rise above the gossip and intrigue of the social season, and beat the nobles at their own games? And, more importantly, does she actually want to become the queen of a small European country? Or will her heart have other ideas?

Masterlist: (Un)Common Attraction

Chapter Summary: This chapter takes place at the same time as Chapter 22 - Common Pretensions and is written from Drake’s POV.

Word Count: 7,200

Rating/Warnings: M (a shed ton of swearing, so much angst, sexual frustration, way too much drinking, bad decisions and sour lemons) This is not exactly a ‘fun’ read (but there is a sweet moment at the end that I hope makes up for it!)

Chapter theme song:

A/N: So, several months ago, I received an Anon request to do a chapter from Drake's POV exploring his reaction and feelings re the kiss in the cave during the beach party. I was originally thinking of doing a rewrite of the applicable parts of Chapter 21 - Dive Into The Deep End and Chapter 22 - Common Pretensions, but then I got hit with the scene that starts off this chapter and decided to roll with it (ending up in a very different place than I thought I would, but Drake has a habit of taking matters into his own hands, and, by now, I've learnt to just follow his lead), so here we are 🙃

PS: Thank you to @aussiegurl1234 for reading a snippet of an earlier draft and confirming that it was as angsty/cringey as I saw it in my head 🙃

Please read: Author’s Note

Also available on Wattpad.

Bonus Chapter - Burnt

A/N: So, several months ago, I received an Anon request on Tumblr to do a chapter from Drake's POV exploring his reaction and feelings re the kiss in the cave during the beach party.

I was originally thinking of doing a rewrite of the applicable parts of Chapter 21 - Dive Into The Deep End and Chapter 22 - Common Pretensions, but then I got hit with the scene that starts off this chapter and decided to roll with it (ending up in a very different place than I thought I would, but Drake has a habit of taking matters into his own hands, and, by now, I've learnt to just follow his lead).

I will warn you now that this is not a 'fun' read. There is a lot of drinking, a shit-ton of angst, bad decisions, sour lemons and a helluva lot of swearing. But, there is a sweet moment at the end that (I hope!) makes up for all of that! Enjoy!

PS: Thank you to Aussiegurl1234 for reading a snippet of an earlier draft and confirming that it was as angsty/cringey as I saw it in my head 🙃

***

Chapter theme song: Must Be the Whiskey by Cody Jinks

I'm an idiot.

A fuckin' idiot. Of epic proportions.

What — in the name of sweet, motherfuckin' Jesus! — had possessed me to fuck off with her fuckin' bikini top?

I hadn't even had anything to drink!

No.

Wait.

I'd had that glass of Eagle Rare on Hana's yacht.

But that had been like a finger and a half. Max. With food. Almost three hours prior.

No way had my judgement been impaired.

It normally took at least three good-sized shots for me to start feeling buzzed... And lit enough to even consider pulling some stupid shit like that? Half the bottle. Minimum.

So it hadn't been the whiskey.

"Fuck..." I groan, dropping my head onto my crossed arms on the bar top.

I wish it had been the whiskey...

Because then I could absolve myself of at least some of the responsibility for the epic clusterfuck I'd just created.

I flick the empty tumbler towards the guy behind the bar. "La même."

I may not've been drunk at the beach, but I  sure as hell am planning on remedying that now.

Because maybe that way I can wash the taste of her lips from my mouth, forget the way her damp skin had felt against mine, and — most importantly— drown the urge to do it all again, consequences be damned.

Catching the glass, the bartender refills it without comment and slides it over.

Closing my hand around the Jim Beam, I throw it back, grimacing at the crass sweetness of it.

But I'm here to get hammered. Not to indulge in top-shelf bourbon. 'Cause God knows I don't deserve enjoyment right now.

I fucked up... Big time.

She was here for Chris. As an official suitor on behalf of House Beaumont.

And that means that she's off-limits to everyone else.

Especially me.

Because even though Chris had asked me to look out for her, to make sure she kept her head above the water and steered clear of the sharks that would've loved to take a bite out of her — having committed the double sin of being not just a commoner competing for a Crown Prince's hand, but an American as well — that had not been an invitation to screw around with the girl when no one was looking...

...the girl my best friend is in love with.

Even Judas hadn't stooped that low.

I let out a low exhale as I lift the refreshed tumbler to my mouth.

I deserve to be shot for being such a perfidious piece of shit...

Sure, she doesn't feel the same way as he does about her. But the season had only just started, she is still finding her feet and is bound to feel in over her head. Especially now that she's seen that living at court is nothing like the romantic, happily-ever-after fantasy that Disney liked to peddle.

A slap-in-the-face reality check if there ever was one...

But that doesn't give me the right to take advantage of her insecurities. To feed her uncertainty about becoming Queen. And shove myself between her and one person who can make all her dreams come true.

Because I sure as hell can't give her everything that Chris can... everything that she deserves.

I mean, I am up against a literal fuckin' prince! There is no way I can compete with that...

Even if she is everything I want.

I slam the glass back down.

God, Jesus and the saints must all have me on their divine shitlist... and this is their way of sticking it to me.

Because if Gale isn't the definition of damnation by temptation, then I am the blessed Virgin fuckin' Mary.

It is the only possible explanation for why someone like her would drop into my life like this — to torment me with glimpses of what could've been had we met literally anywhere else.

I drain the remainder of the bourbon and signal the guy for another.

Why does something so wrong have to feel so goddamn right?

I've never been this affected by a woman before.

And it wasn't just simple lust... or the thrill of chasing after the forbidden...

It's the way she makes me feel.

Whenever I'm with her, it's like I'm a kid again... No cares, no worries, just living moment to moment, doing stupid, cocky shit just for the hell of it. Like I had before Savs had disappeared, before Mom upped sticks, before Dad had been taken from us.

The Kentucky straight arrives and I tip it back once more.

And that's why she's so dangerous.

She makes me throw caution to the wind, ignore professional judgement, and flip the rules the motherfucking bird just to see that sparkle in her hazel-green eyes.

And when she's near, I can't seem to keep my hands off her — brushing my fingers against hers, tucking those wayward strands of gold that are always falling into her face back behind her ear, constantly finding excuses to close the distance between us when I should be steering clear.

She's like a drug, and I can't get enough...

I'd tried to tell myself that I'm simply doing what any good friend would do — picking her up when she was down, and maybe making her laugh a little so she could get back to Chris as good as new.

But who am I kidding?

Every time I say 'yes' to her, it's for my own selfish benefit. So I could steal a moment with her and catch the smiles she threw my way because of something I said to her.

But I lost control. I crossed the line.

In more ways than one...

I sling the remainder of the whiskey back.

...and now I'm royally fucked.

Because as much as part of me feels unspeakably guilty for betraying Chris' trust and making out with Gale at a royal event — after I'd gotten her as good as naked — the cold, hard truth is that I hadn't wanted to stop.

And neither had she.

An involuntary groan escapes me.

The way she'd pressed herself against me... Christ, it had been enough to make me want to throw her down right there in the sand and fuck her like an animal.

But the pull of my principles was apparently stronger than the tug of my dick.

And while I can sleep soundly tonight knowing that I managed to avoid carpet bombing my friendship with Chris – just – I am acutely aware that I'd done it at the expense of...whatever it is that I had with Gale. Because after making as many passes at her as I had — intentional or not — only to turn around and throw cold water in her face like that, I wouldn't be surprised if she never speaks to me again.

Well done, Walker... Well done.

So, here I am, sitting alone at a bar nursing blue balls and a whiskey, feeling like an all 'round piece of shit.

And I deserve it.

I raise the glass to my mouth again with a sigh.

At least I have cheap bourbon to get trashed on...

"Drake...?"

My hand stills.

"...is that you?"

I turn my head.

A blonde with choppy, shoulder-length hair is staring at me.

My eyes widen. "Freya?"

Her mouth cracks into a grin. "Christ on a bike! Fancy seeing ye here!"

I scoff. "I showed you this bar."

"Which ye've been avoiding like the mange."

"Been busy."

I'd met Freya a few summers ago out in the bay. The rust bucket of a fishing boat she'd hired to go diving on had broken down on her. And since mine was the only other craft in the vicinity, I'd given her a tow back to shore. During that time, I'd found out that she was Irish, cussed like a sailor, and was a doctoral research student at the local university, writing her thesis on a Roman-era shipwreck that had recently been discovered off the coast of the kingdom.

And after I'd helped her get her money back from the owner of the boat — who didn't speak English, and probably wouldn't've understood her if he'd had anyway —I'd brought her to this very beach-side bar, where I'd discovered that – like me – she was a whiskey-drinker and loved the sea, but hated seafood... and the rain. Which was part of the reason why she'd taken up a post here — to escape the relentlessly lashing weather back home.

And even though we'd hit it off — and had ended up going back to her tiny flat that faced out onto the harbour — she wasn't looking for anything serious because of her academic commitments, and I had a rule against taking girls back to the Palace anyway. So, we'd kept things casual, meeting up for drinks and kicks from time to time, seeing other people in between, and occasionally going diving together when my schedule allowed.

But since Leo's unexpected abdication, I've had my plate full and hadn't seen her in nearly a year.

"So, what's the craic?" she asks, settling onto the bar stool next to me.

"Could be better," I admit, dropping the once again empty glass onto the wood of the bar top.

"I'm not surprised," she mutters. "I'd be pretty miffed as well if I had to get fluthered on that Yankee swill."

I slant her a sidelong glance. "It ain't swill."

"Well, it sure as shite inna whiskey!"

"That's 'cause it's bourbon," I inform her, raising my hand to flag the bartender down again.

We've had various iterations of this conversation over the years. But Freya remained inconsolably biased against anything that wasn't Irish whiskey.

She shakes her head. "Yer a lost cause, boyo..."

"You just can't appreciate the good stuff," I reply. Not that what I'm drinking right now is the good stuff. But my point stands.

She rolls her eyes at me. Turning to the bartender, she says, "Un Jameson, s'il vous plaît."

I raise a brow. "You finally picked up French, huh? Un autre coup," I add, lifting my empty glass.

"Just some everyday basics," she corrects. "Asking for directions, ordering whiskey, apologising for not speaking French... That kind of shite."

"So, the important stuff," I surmise.

"What else?" she confirms with a grin.

I shake my head wryly. She hasn't changed a bit... "So, how've you been?"

"Busy as well," she admits. "But I finally submitted my thesis."

"Congratulations," I nod. "So, you're out celebrating?"

"Not yet," she sighs. "I still need to defend it. But after going at it like the clappers for the past two weeks to get it finished, I need a feckin' whiskey."

"You'll do great," I say sincerely as the bartender appears again with our drinks. "To the soon to be Dr. Freya Bryne, PhD."

"Does have a fierce ring to it, huh?" she smiles, clinking her glass against mine.

"Sure does," I agree, taking a swig.

"So, what are ye doing here all by yer lonesome?" she asks.

"Ah needed a feckin' whiskey," I reply in her trademark West Cork accent.

She snorts into her glass. "Ye takin' the piss, boy?"

"Me?" I grin. "Never."

"Cheeky dosser..." she mutters with a smirk. "So, what's the story? Yer boat didn't sink, did it?"

"First off, she's a Marlow-Hunter 37, not a boat," I remind her. "Second, if she had sunk, I'd be at the bottom of the Med salvaging her. Not sat at a bar drinking."

"Fair point," she acknowledges. "Ye do love that ol' tub..."

I roll my eyes. But she isn't wrong.

"...so, if it inna the Gypsea, why d'ye have such a puss on ye?"

I heave a breath.

Freya is probably the closest thing I have to a friend outside of court. But even she doesn't know who I really am, where I live, or the type of people I'm on a first name basis with. Because of my close association with the royal family, I have to keep certain aspects of my life vague and other parts completely off-limits to avoid a potential security breach. So, even if I had wanted to, I can't tell her why I'm sucking down bourbon faster than a truck does diesel.

So, I simply say, "Shit day at the office." It's more or less accurate.

She nods sympathetically. "Happens to the best of us. Need a mate to get banjanxed with?"

"Sure," I agree. "Why not?"

"Good answer," she approves, waving the bartender over again.

We settle into easy conversation, catching up on each other's lives, slinging back shots in between.

But as the evening ticks on, and the whiskey — plus absinthe that Freya thought would be hilarious to mix it with to help me forget my troubles — starts to work its magic, I find myself talking less and less, preferring to just watch Freya carry on in that animated, slightly too brash way of hers as she recounted a story about...

...honestly, I have no clue.

The dim lights of the bar are casting an amber glow on her tanned skin, her eyes flashing with sardonic humour as she reaches the punchline of her narrative, and I suddenly find myself in the mood for a very different kind of conversation.

"Wanna get outta here?"

She stops mid-flow to fix me with the same look she gave me the very first time — the one that says that I am delusional for even thinking that I had a chance with her.

But I know what her answer's gonna be. Because it's always the same.

"Yes."

Standing up, I grab some cash out of my wallet before she can reach for hers and settle both our tabs.

"I can pay for my own drinks, Drake."

"I know," I acknowledge. "Doesn't mean you have to."

She shakes her head as she gets up. "Always the gent." But despite her dry tone, there is a contented smile tugging at her lips.

Laying a hand on the small of her back as she slides past me, I lean in to murmur, "Not always..."

Her turquoise gaze meets mine, her face inches a way, and out of the blue, I'm hit by a sudden pang of—

I quash the feeling down before it has a chance to gain traction.

Don't ruin it, Walker.

Stepping outside, we catch the tram to her apartment, neither of us really saying anything because we both knew what's coming when we get there.

Jumping off at the harbourside, she leads me through the narrow maze of one-way cobblestone streets until we arrive at a brightly coloured brick building that had started life as a shipping warehouse in the late 1800s, but has since been converted into a block of flats. Freya's apartment sits on the top storey, nestled amongst the eaves.

"Nightcap?" she asks, unlocking the door.

"Sure," I reply, following her inside.

Kicking off her sandals, she drops her satchel by the door and walks into the kitchenette.

I follow suit, casting my eyes around the cramped studio. Apart from a couple of new throw pillows on the sofa, it's exactly the same as last time I was here — books and papers piled on every available surface outside of the kitchen area, her laptop on the sofa.

The clank of glass against glass draws my attention away from the one selling point of the place — the view out of the large, porthole-style window.

Freya is rooting for drinkware in one of the upper cabinets.

Moving over to her, I slide a palm around the soft skin of her stomach that had been revealed by the hem of her tank top having ridden up when she'd stretched up towards the top shelf.

"Ye try'na make me break my stuff?" she accuses, even as I feel her press back against me.

"Nope," I reply, coasting my fingers higher while I reach up with ease with my other hand to grab the two tumblers that she'd been after. "Just lending you a hand."

I hear the breath catch in her throat as I reach her breast. "Just one...?"

"D'you need another?" I ask, ghosting my other hand up the inside of her bare thigh.

"Hmm... Probably."

Her head tips back against my shoulder with a sigh, her sea salt and coconut scent jolting my senses.

Dammit... Focus, Walker. Gale isn't happening right now... or ever. Freya is. Quit distracting yourself.

I sink my teeth against the sensitive skin of her neck with dogged attention, pressing lightly. "I'm sure we can accommodate that..."

Hooking a palm between her legs, I pull her flush against me as I dip my fingers underneath the lace of her bra. She bites her bottom lip with a moan, arching into my hands.

"...but you're gonna need to help me out."

She mews in agreement, eyes fluttering shut as I find her nipple and begin to play, hoping that this will kick me into gear as well.

I shouldn't've had so much to drink...

"Undo your pants," I instruct, kneading my fingers into her through the material of her shorts.

She brings her own hands up with a ragged inhale, fumbling with the buttons. They pop free after a second or two.

"Now lose 'em," I murmur, nipping her earlobe while continuing to circle her now hardened nipple with my thumb.

She shoves her shorts down and they hit the floor with a soft thud.

"Did we forget something...?" I ask, gliding my fingers around the waistband of her underwear.

"Ye dinna say anything about my knickers..." she breathes.

"It was implied."

"Yer a grown lad, Drake. You ca—"

I shove my fingers beneath the lace, making her shudder when I find her already slick clit. "My hands are otherwise occupied."

"Jesus, Mary...!" she gasps, grabbing onto my arm to steady herself as I begin to tease her with slow, deliberate movements.

"...ain't gonna do it for you," I drawl, trailing my tongue up her neck.

"Think yer a right gas, huh?" she accuses, hooking her thumbs into the elastic of her panties.

"And you like it..." I counter, dipping a finger into her wet heat.

Her mouth falls open with a moan as she struggles to get her underwear off.

"Still waiting..." I prompt, withdrawing to circle around the edge of her pussy. The undeniable evidence of her arousal coating my fingers at last convinces my dick to get with the program.

Thank-fuckin'-finally...

She mutters something unintelligible as she yanks the lace off.

"Good girl," I breathe, rewarding her by shoving my middle finger into her.

She groans at the sudden, forceful intrusion, bucking against my hand.

"Now your top..." I growl, the blood flowing south with purpose now as I feel her walls clench involuntary around me when I start to curl my finger against her.

She scoffs breathlessly. "Ye... yer a sod..."

I roll her nipple between my thumb and forefinger. "D'you want me to stop?"

She lifts her hands to the hem of her top with a whimper. "No..."

"That's what I thought," I drawl, adding two more fingers inside her and feeling my dick twitch in response at her tacit approval.

"Fuck..." she moans, her top coming to a stop halfway up her breasts as she trembles with need.

"In a minute," I assure her, yanking the material the rest of the way off and sending it sailing across the flat. I'm not quite there yet.

The absinthe had definitely been a bad idea... I've never had this problem with whiskey.

She scoffs breathlessly as I reach for her bra clasp. "Glib-tongued devil..."

"You want tongue?" I ask, letting the bra fall to the floor.

Spinning her around, I lift her up onto the counter, scattering the glasses and the bottle of whiskey with a clatter.

"Did ye break it?" she demands, stiffening.

"Does it matter?" I query, trailing kisses down her neck and collarbone.

"Those were my Nan's..."

Pausing above her pert nipple, I heave a breath. Everything is against me tonight...

Lifting my head, I glance behind her.

"They're fine," I assure her, sucking the hardened bud into my mouth.

She throws her head back with a moan, grabbing onto my hair to pull me closer. "And... and the whiskey?"

I groan. Seriously...?

"Is that really what you're thinkin' about right now?" I ask, releasing her nipple.

"When it's a 21-year old single malt, yes!" she exclaims.

"You need to get your priorities straight, girl," I mutter, shoving her knees apart.

"It was a pres—"

She cries out when I thrust my tongue into her hot centre.

There... Back on the same page.

Slinging her legs over my shoulders to give myself better access, I slide over her throbbing skin, using the full surface of my tongue to lick her up before changing tact to tease her with just the tip.

Her hands tangle into my hair again as she arcs her lower body towards me, offering herself up to my mouth like an oblation.

I pull her legs wider, pushing my tongue into her heat with determination as I feel her arousal drip down my chin.

Fuck, she's wet.

My dick is straining against the front of my board shorts now, wanting to get in on the action. But I'm planning on making Gale cum at least once before—

A growl of frustration rattles my chest.

Jesus fuckin' Christ... What the hell is wrong with me tonight?

First, I have trouble getting it up — which I never thought would be an issue, especially after having had to make the swim back to shore earlier with an effing rudder in my pants — and then every time I start getting into it, my stupid brain insists on crashing the party.

Un-fuckin'-real...

Clenching my jaw, I suck Freya's clit forcefully into my mouth, hoping that if I double down, I'll be able to keep myself in the zone without further distractions.

She presses herself into my face. "Holy shite... Drake!"

And normally that would drive me up the wall — knowing that I'm about to make a girl's world implode just with my tongue. Because there is something especially erotic about having another person at the mercy of your mouth, literally lapping up their excitement, that not even the dirtiest, sweatiest screw can replicate.

But tonight, it just isn't doing it for me.

Gritting my teeth in irritation, I push myself to my feet.

Maybe the late nights are starting to catch up with me. Maybe I had one too many back at the bar. Maybe I shouldn't've suggested this.

But I'm here now and I'd be a monumental asshole if I left Freya in the lurch.

And if I was to have any hope of salvaging what was rapidly turning into a massive train wreck — instead of the hot fuck I'd thought it was gonna be — there was only one card left to play.

Tearing my trunks open, I yank her towards me.

"Drake..." pants Freya dazedly. "Wha—?"

Grabbing my dick before it has a chance to deflate further, I line myself. "You still on the pill?"

She nods, biting her bottom lip in anticipation.

Thank fuck for that. Not sure I'd've made it if I'd've had to dick around with a rubber.

Finding her entrance, I ram myself balls-deep into her without further preamble.

Freya's eyes flutter shut with a moan.

Jesus, she's tight.

She wraps her legs around my waist and a low groan escapes me as I start to move.

Would Gale feel this good...?

My head drops back in aggravation, eyes clenched shut in an effort to refocus myself as I heave a strained breath.

Why can't I just—?

A full-frontal, HD image of Gale climbing out of the sea, the skimpy, wet material of her bikini clinging to her body as the salt water drips off her skin hits me out of the blue like a well-timed right hook.

My lower body jerks forward, like a hungry beast finally freed of its cage, as my dick snaps to attention, drawing a votive sound from my throat.

Ah, hell... Screw it.

If this is what needd to happen, then so be it.

Dropping my head back down, I let my gaze travel down the naked body in front of me, over the heaving, hard-nippled breasts, past the soft expanse of bare midriff to where we're joined together... and I give into the fantasy that I've been fighting a losing battle against all night.

The fantasy that I'm fucking Gale.

I begin to move with revived ambition as the floodgates of my mind burst open and my liquor-fuelled imagination goes wild...

Gale on top of me, naked except for that criminally short skirt she'd changed into after her shift, grinding against me slowly, almost playfully...

Gale going down on me out on one of the ballroom balconies, her red lips wrapped sinfully around my dick as she holds my gaze from behind her black lace mask...

Gale pressed up against the wall of the disused study in Lythikos, panting with need as I tease the nipple that had escaped the shockingly low front of her dress...

I fuck with abandon, living out every X-rated daydream that I've had since I laid eyes on her, my dick rigid with now single-minded purpose.

The wet sounds of our bodies slamming together reverberate around the room to the accompaniment of the animalistic noises being pulled involuntarily from our throats.

Christ, she feels amazing!

How I've held out over the past few weeks, I have no idea. It had been bad enough knowing that she is at court, sleeping just a few doors down from me. But I managed to resist the urge to jack myself off while thinking about her. Mostly by avoiding her as much as possible.

But then Chris had asked me to look out for her and suddenly I was with her what felt like 24/7, watching every little thing she did — adjusting her skirt when she thought no one was watching, sucking wayward bits of food off her fingers, tucking her hair behind her ear when she was nervous. And each little gesture, each subconscious reaction only seemed to fuel my imagination... and desire for her.

Because as much as Bertrand tried to mould her into his vision of a perfect lady, and as good as she looked in all those fancy clothes, she is never going to be able to fully hide who she really is: herself.

And that's what turns me on more than anything else with her. There is no guesswork, no fakery, no ulterior motives. What you see was what you get.

And God, is what you get hot as hell!

I feel her start to tighten around me and I know she's close.

But I can't bring myself to let go yet. Even though my breath is ragged, my body is dripping with sweat, and the pressure in my balls is becoming almost painful.

Because I know in the back of my mind that if I allow myself to cave, then the fantastical castle I constructed in the sky would collapse and I'll plummet back down to Earth faster than Icarus after his ill-fated flight.

And I'm not ready to return to the real world yet.

Her walls begin to spasm around me, and it takes every ounce of my willpower to not shoot my load right then and there.

"Drake...! Oh, fuck...! Ah—!"

I'm only vaguely aware of the cry of ecstasy that washes over me, the sharpness of the nails digging into my shoulders, or the fact that my heart is about to burst out of my chest from the relentless pace I've set.

Because I'm a man possessed by a singular, all-consuming mania — to make this last for as long as humanly possible before the illusion shatters into a million, irreparable pieces.

Biting down on the inside of my mouth, I power through the convulsions as her orgasm drenches my dick like a downpour.

Fuck, I never want this to end...

Every muscle strained with effort, I pound mercilessly into her, struggling to hold the inevitable at bay, all the while driving inexorably towards to it.

I feel her start to tighten again. And I know that this time, I won't be able to hold out.

Clenching my eyes shut, I try to balance on the edge, pushing my sanity to the limit, even as I feel myself begin to fall...

Oh, sweet Jesus...!

I explode inside of her with a roar, all the suppressed need, pent-up desire and restless frustration gushing out of me like a long-dormant geyser.

My heart stops, my mind goes blank and even breathing becomes optional as the entirety of my existence coalesces around an overwhelming feeling of blissful release.

My hips jerk out a few more haphazard pumps on autopilot before my knees give way and I slump against the kitchen counter, gasping for air like I just survived a near-drowning.

Holy... fuckin'... shit.

My entire body is shaking, and I literally can't see straight.

To say that I needed that... Well, that's obviously an understatement.

I have no idea how long I stand there, eyes closed, chest heaving, as I savour one of the best orgasms I've ever had.

A single syllable floats lazily across the periphery of my consciousness. "Wow..."

I hear myself scoff. Yeah... That about sums it up. I don't think I'd ever cum so hard in my life. And God it'd felt—

"... you must've had a proper shite day at the office, huh?"

My eyes snap open.

Freya lifts her head and the illusion I worked so hard to sustain evaporates instantly...

...along with the post-climax high.

"Yeah," I mutter, pulling out of her and reaching for my pants that had fallen to the floor.

This had been a mistake...

Yanking the board shorts back up, I focus on fastening them, not being able to bring myself to meet Freya's eye.

Not after I just made her think that I got off on her when I actually had been thinking about someone else the whole time... especially since I was the one to suggest this, on the mistaken belief that screwing my sexual frustrations into someone would rid me of my craving for Gale.

Because it hasn't.

And if I thought I was an opportunistic piece of shit before, that is nothing compared to how I feel now, seeing the evidence of my fraud drip down Freya's thighs onto the floor.

I never thought I'd sink this low, vicariously exploiting someone's body to replicate something I can't have in real life. Especially when that someone is a friend. Because while that kind of shit may be excusable with a call girl or a random pull, it sure as hell isn't with a person I actually care about.

I'm officially destined for the lowest circle of Hell...

She's saying something — inviting me to stay, I think — but all I can think about is getting as far away from her as possible.

I know in the back of my mind that it's a dick move to walk away after I just fucked the literal bejesus out of her... like she's some kind of cheap ho.

But I can't get myself to stay in the same room as her, sharing a drink over small-talk while shackled up on the sofa, or — Jesus help me — go for round two. Not when my insides are burning up with shame.

"I'm sorry..."

I know it doesn't cut it. But I don't know what else to say.

So, with a look of apologetic regret, I turn on my heel and make for the exit, grabbing my shoes on the way.

I hear her call my name... In hurt? In confusion? I have no idea.

I'm already out the door.

Flying down the steps two- or three at a time, I burst out onto the street like the building is on fire.

Because, in a way, it is.

This is the second girl I torched my bridges with in the space of a single night. Straight up ruined what I had with two people I actually like and who reciprocated that amity. And now neither of them are likely to ever want to speak to me again. All because I couldn't keep it in my pants.

Christ, I'm a fucking idiot...

Throwing my shoes on, I route march the four or so k's back to the Palace, hoping the walk will help clear my head and ease the vice of deprivation that had clamped itself onto my chest.

It doesn't.

If anything, it gives me further opportunity to convince myself that I'm the shittiest human being on this planet. No better — or possibly even worse — than those self-serving aristos I try so hard to distance myself from. Because just like them, I abuse my position, take advantage, and can't be trusted.

Arriving back at Palace, winded from the steep climb up the hill and a stitch in my side, I let myself in through the back, tapping my access code into the alpha-numeric panel next to the door. The Guard manning the entrance gives me a brief nod as I file past, but my mind is focused on only one thing...

Getting absolutely shit-faced.

Because as exhausted as I feel from all of the day's physical exertions, not to mention the emotional anvil of guilt that I've been dragging around behind me the whole evening, I know that I'll never be able to catch any sleep in my current state... at least, not until I've drunk myself into oblivion.

Because that is all I deserve — to pass out by myself like the moral reprobate that I am.

Navigating the service corridors on muscle memory more than anything else, I finally reach my room.

Not bothering with the lights, I make a straight line to the make-shift liquor cabinet ensconced in the commode on the near side of the room.

Wrenching the door open, I grab out a bottle at random. Unscrewing the top, I lift the whiskey to my mouth, barely even registering the taste as I gulp it down as if it were oxygen.

The burn hits the back of my throat, and I nearly choke.

Whiskey is supposed to be sipped. Or maybe shot back in one or two finger doses. Not chugged like cheap beer at a frat party.

But my goal is to get smashed. And this is the fastest way to do it.

...even if I swear I can feel Dad's disapproving glare boring into the back of my head.

Fuck off, old man...

I don't need his from-beyond-the-grave judgement right now.

Punching myself in the chest to dislodge the part of the mouthful that had gone down the wrong way, I stomp across the room to draw the curtains, coughing like an asthmatic.

My path takes me past the bed.

The bed I tackled Gale into when she snuck into my room... leaving my covers smelling like her wildflower perfume, and me with an instant semi every time I catch a whiff of it.

Sweet Jesus, she's everywhere...

Making a ninety-degree turn, I march up to the bed, slamming the bottle down onto the nightstand in aggravation so I can tear the sheets off and burn them...

...only to end up swearing up a motherfuckin' storm when the whiskey knocks something off the table that nearly breaks my big toe.

"Putain de merde!"

Hopping on one leg, while trying to find the stupid whatever the hell it is, I manage to catch my heel on the damn thing.

Clutching my foot, I fall back onto the bed with a growl of pain. "Fuck my fucking life..."

Squeezing my eyes shut, I suck air in through my teeth in an attempt to stave off the throbbing ache in my toe.

The entire fuckin' world is against me tonight.

My throat tightens with misery.

I can't even seem get blackout drunk without being crapped on by karma, or whatever it is that has it in for me.

I feel a tell-tale prick in the corners of my eyes.

No! I will not—!

A lone tear rolls down the side of my face.

Goddammit...

I haven't cried since Dad died.

And even then not until both the funeral and the wake were over and I was alone in the stables with the bottle of Maker's Mark I'd stolen from his desk so I could get drunk for the first time in my life and rant and rail at the injustice of it all before falling down and sobbing myself to sleep in the straw, wrapped in one of his jackets that still smelled like him.

So, I sure as hell am not gonna let myself cry now. Because no one died. And even though the universe may be treating me like its own personal punching bag, that is not exactly new, and I need to man the fuck up and take the hits.

Yes, I messed up. In more ways than I want to count.

But wallowing in self-pity ain't gonna fix shit. And even though I've broken Chris' trust, and Gale probably hates me, and Freya most definitely thinks I'm an ass, I still have a job to do and people who depend on me. So, I can't just crawl into a corner and give myself alcohol poisoning.

Even though it is more than tempting right now.

Heaving a weary breath, I push myself up, wiping the moisture from my face.

I have no clue how I'm going to even begin making things right with everyone. But that is a hurdle for the morning... after I get over the killer hangover I know is in store for me.

Serves me right...

My foot brushes against something cold.

Bending down, I pick up the offending object that almost broke my toe, and something about the shape and feel of it pulls me up short.

"...the hell?"

I reach over to flick on the bedside light.

The soft glow of the lamp illuminates the metal in my hand.

It's the golden sailing boat that Gale gave me after the ceremonial race.

I'm instantly transported back onto the deck of Hana's yacht, trying to shrug off all the attention that I suddenly found myself in the centre of when Gale decided to throw Max and I an impromptu awards ceremony. To thank us for helping her pilot her yacht... as if I wouldn't have done that for her in a heartbeat, no questions asked.

I just made Max beg for the hell of it. Because I'd known he was out of options, and I couldn't resist finding out if I could actually get him down on his hands and knees to supplicate like a tool — which he did. Much to my private amusement.

But that feeling of accomplishment was nothing compared to how I felt when Gale had thrown her arms around me as we crossed the finish line. I'd tried to play it cool, as if it were all in a day's work, but her unadulterated joy had been infectious. And even though I knew I shouldn't, I hadn't been able to resist wrapping my arms around her, pulling her close to breathe in her honey-floral scent.

A satisfying warmth spreads across my chest as I remember the glowing smile she gave me when she handed the trophy over — as if I really had gone above and beyond. And in that moment, I'd felt like the king of the world.

But how the hell had the statue gotten into my room?

Last I recalled, I'd left in the Beaumonts' limo, as I hadn't wanted to take it with me to the beach, as I figured that we'd end up riding back up to the Palace all together.

Had Max dropped it off?

Unlikely.

He'd never miss out on the beach party that went on until the crack of dawn and he knew better than to sneak into my room. He tried that once — hiding himself in my closet dressed in a Scream outfit to scare me on Halloween. Suffice to say one of us had crapped our pants, and it hadn't been me.

I quickly rule out Hana and Bertrand as well. While Hana is one of those conscientious people who'd return lost property to its rightful owner — even if they were on the other side of the country — she is not the type to secretly let herself into another's room, and I doubt she knows which room is mine anyway. And Bertrand would never inconvenience himself for the benefit of a commoner.

That leaves Gale.

I drop my head with a low exhale.

She'd been here. In my room. Wearing that bikini...

The blood ices in my veins.

If the statue is in my room, that means Gale had come back to the Palace... by herself.

I slam the boat back onto the bedside table — nearly upending the half-empty bottle of whiskey in the process — and bolt from my room.

God-fuckin'-dammit, Walker!

I left my mark unattended, thinking that she'll simply stay with Max at the beach. But I should've known better. She isn't exactly a stickler for the rules, and this wouldn't be the first time she's wandered off by herself. And that blockhead of a Beaumont kept letting her — I nearly burst a blood vessel when I'd found out that he'd let her go down into the village in Lythikos without a proper escort.

I'm going to have to keep a much closer eye on her from now on. She may hate my guts, but there is no way in hell I'm going to let anything happen to her on my watch. Especially considering how much of a magnet for trouble she is.

I skid to a halt outside her room. Quickly checking that the coast was clear — I cannot be caught sneaking into a suitor's room; no matter the reason — I push the handle down and slip quietly inside.

It's dark and the curtains are drawn, so it takes my eyes a moment to adjust after the bright lights of the hallway outside.

Christ, I hope she's in here. Because if she isn't then—

My gaze lands on the lump in the middle of the bed and I let out a relieved exhale.

She's in bed. Asleep.

Knowing I shouldn't linger, I turn to leave.

"...Drake?"

I freeze, foot in the air like some kind of cartoon villain caught red-handed.

The hell am I going to tell her?

"....where's the whiskey gone?"

...the fuck?

"Erm... Gale?" I ask softly, stepping towards the bed. "You—?"

"...a pirate's life for me."

I stifle a bemused snort with some difficultly.

She'a talking in her sleep again.

Before I realise what I'm doing, I've reached down to brush my fingers through her golden-caramel hair.

"Shh..." I soothe, more out of habit than anything else. It worked with the horses, at least...

She heaves a deep sigh as she rolls over onto her side...

...and traps my hand between her face and the pillow in the process.

Crap.

Kneeling down, so I'm not at such an awkward angle, I try to pull my hand out as gently as possible, so I don't accidentally rouse her.

"No."

I freeze again.

Did I—?

I peer down at her.

Nope, she's definitely still asleep...

She wraps her fingers around my wrist, snuggling into my open palm with what I swear was a smile on her face... But I'm still the worse for drink, so I'm probably not seeing clearly.

I heave a breath.

I have to get out of here before I wake her up... or climbe into bed with her.

After a bit of manoeuvring and a near dislocation of my elbow, I finally manage to extricate my hand. Tucking a lose strand of hair back behind her ear, I whisper, "Sweet dreams, Harper."

With one last look at her sleeping form, I make my way quietly out of her room and back to mine, feeling a rare sense of peace settle over me.

She doesn't hate me.

Back to Chapter 23 - A Bitter Aftertaste or back to (Un)Common Attraction masterlist

Whoo! Yet another chapter that ended up being significantly longer than planned! 😅 If you made it to the end, congratulations! It was a bit of a rollercoaster to write... and I'm guessing to read as well. But that's for sticking with me (and Drake)!

Permatags (let me know if you want to be added!)

@twinkleallnight @lovingchoices14 @kingliam2019 @petiteboheme @aussiegurl1234 @queen-arabella-of-cordonia @tessa-liam @alyshak92 @secretaryunpaid @princessleac1 @walkerdrakewalker @angelasscribbles @drakewalkerisreal @nestledonthaveone @tinkie1973 @twinkle-320 @lunaseasblog @indiana-jr @choicesficwriterscreations @knaussal @differenttyphoonwerewolf @texaskitten30 @pinklipsandmasonjars @sillydg @spookycolorpeanut @peonierose @mrsnazariowrites @shellybee85 @3pawandme @honey358luv @anahoreva @minicraftywitch @ficloverevie​ @lolablackwrites​

[sweetshelluvaau]

World/Lore Building - What are, or WHAT IS an Ars Goetia

So this was something that's been bothering me for a while being I was always confused with how the Ars Goetia worked and it just made me think over it in the case of my AU how to have it make sense and this is what I've came up with:

Ars Goetia is a title given to those who are descendants of the original 72 Ars Goetia suppose to Ars Goetia being a tpye of demon to begin with.

Note: I did take the descendants idea from Lovearts23's Stolas' redesign video, but the Ars Goetia being a tile is mine (as far as I know. I haven't seen anyone else with a familiar idea).

Ex: Helluva!Stolas is not the same Stolas from The Lesser Key of Solomon but part of a line of other Stolas’ throughout time with our!Stolas being the recent one with Octavia is ‘supposed’ to be the next if/when her dad kicks the bucket.

Helluva!Pamion is not named Pamion in my AU but ‘‘Stolas The whatever-number-in-line-we-were-once-at-’cause-I-haven’t-figured-out-how-long-the-lineage-is-yet” but it’s long.

Also worth noting is that with each descendant, while they're still powerful demons, become weaker and more closer to mortal the longer the line becomes. Our!Stolas isn't exactly immortal but can live for a really long time and can only be taken down by angelic weapons.

So if Ars Goetia aren't a type of noble, who are the bird people we see in the show?

I'm still trying to figure this out but I like the idea of there being different types of clans/royals of various kind of demons/species. Maybe their descendants from somewhere/angels that joined Lucifer's side (We've seen in Hazbin that the seraphim do have a bit of a bird motif to them so it's possible), maybe some were creatures that lived in Hell before it was called Hell (Hellhounds are this in my AU but more on that later). I need to work this out more and once I do I'll make a post regarding this.

So is anyone still in charge of the Ars Goetia? How do they keep track of descendants?

Still figuring this part out. I may still keep it as Asmodeus, or have Ozzie at the very least in change of record keeping and Bael or another King having the final say in regard to politics around the Goetia. Plus ya know, Ozzie is one of the Deadly Sins and and has his own ring to rule on top of his side ventures man is busy as it is. (Ozzie and Bael are one of the few OG ars goetias).

Again gonna have to do a bit of biblical research along with thinking more on this.

[sweetshelluvaau]

World/Lore Building - Redoing the Rings of Hell [Pt 1 - The Basics]

this is the best picture I could fine for the ring colors lol

Today in 'Sweets Attempt to Overhauling the Messy Worldbuilding in Hellaverse Because She's Bored', we gonna revamp, rework and add to how the Rings of Hell work because why the fuck not. This post will covering color changes, travel between them and other fun stuff. I will briefly go over ring aesthetics but I'm gonna be saving a post on each ring for another time Anyways putting this under Read More because it's gonna get looooooong...

Okay to reblog, feedback and criticism is welcomed.

Part One: Colors of each Ring.

More of a nitpick than anything else but I don't like some of the color choices for each ring because some just don't really make sense. Why is Envy purple when it should be green? Ya know: 'green with envy'? That and Purple is Pride's color normally. I think the color red itself is fine in itself but I feel as if you're gonna give purple to another ring at the very least it shouldn't be Envy!

Again these are kinda nitpicks but they bother me nether the less. Here's how Hellaverse's rings work right now color wise.

Pride: Red

Wrath: Orange

Gluttony: Yellow

Greed: Green

Lust: Blue

Envy: Purple (why tho?)

Sloth: Pink

Here is how I plan on changing the colors a bit:

Pride: Purple

Wrath: Red

Gluttony: Orange

Greed: Yellow

Lust: Blue

Envy: Green (as it should have been!)

Sloth: Teal

Yes, all the colors are of biblical context (minus Sloth which is a light blue but didn't want two blues). I was ordinally thinking about switching the canon colors of Lust and Sloth around but decided agasist it. The Lust Ring's color is the only one to remains the same from canon and I changed Sloth from pink to a lighter shade of teal but that may change if I can think of a more 'dreamy' like color.

Decided to keep the canon order the same for now but that could change later on. I think it's fine the way it is.

Part Two: Ring Aesthetics

One of the major complaints I see people bring up about Pride, let alone Hell in general is that it's too Earth like which in some sense, I agree but also don't really mind it at the same time. I'd be more forgiving however if the world around the aesthetic of Hell was interesting and we understood how the worldbuilding worked I honestly feel like I'm repeating myself at this point but it's true wtf is the worldbuilding in these shows.

Some rings won't change too much aesthetically but will be added on to, while some will get a complete overhaul.

-Pride-

So this is the Pride Ring we have in canon. To be honest, outside of all the red I don't think a city HELLscape (lol get it) is necessarily bad. Maybe not the most creative, but I don't have a problem with it. If anything I'd expand on the architecture where there's a mixture of old otherworldly and fantasy like structures but as time went by parts of Hell became more modern and there are parts that do represent different era's in time as well as Sinners start taking over areas of the Pride Ring.

This is more of a question for myself but how does the Pride Ring work in regard to cities and such: We have two shows, in Hazbin we have Pentagram City, In HB we have Imp City? So my question is are Sinners stuck in the first city or is Imp City a section of Pentagram City? Where is Stolas' palace in Pride? Is it even in Pride? Honestly this kinda confuses me more. Not that this persay matters on the grand scale of things being Sinners are in all rings in my AU but um does anyone think about this? Why are their different cities in rings anyways. Should it just be one huge thing in each ring? Am I thinking too hard about this?

Anyways if you read the above part, I'm also gonna just have Pentagram City being the center of Pride while the outskirts of the city being more like 'suburbs' where you'll have some royal and higher ranking demons as well as hellborn in general while the edges of the ring is more rural/undeveloped land which is mostly owned by nobles or sold off and made into makeshift little communities by others, often imps and hellhounds due to high prices within the Pentagram itself.

A lot of hellborn ordinally from Pride moved to other Rings or choose to live in the outskirts being how Sinners started taking over Pride, both of those who landed there and those who 'smuggled' themselves in and considering leadership does not care enough to do anything about it, well...

Also: NOT SO MUCH RED WHAT'S WITH YOUR OBESSION WITH RED VIV! Definitely will add some purple because um...pride?

-Wrath-

Honestly: No complaints about Wrath. I think it's mostly prefect the way it is. Again, maybe not have it so bright with the red and add some other colors along with maybe some wild west style towns but over all I like how it is in the show.

All imps originated from Satan with the original purpose of them being troops and labors during a war between Heaven and Hell (I'll talk about that along with my timeline lore for this AU at another time), though after the war and as time went by, imps ended up across all of Hell and gainned freedoms, even though they're still second class citizens.

A lot of Wrath's culture is very violent and hostile and outside of The Pain Games, sports that then towards violence and destruction like wrestling, mix martial arts, boxing and monster truck derbies are also really big. I will expand on talking more about the ring itself when it gets it's own post.

-Gluttony-

Again: No complaints about the aesthetic here. I love the lush, tropical vibe it has going along the beehive/70's architecture. I plan on even having my Beelzebub having a bit of 70's disco queen/Donna Summer's vibe for her. And ya know, NO RED IN SIGHT!

Gluttony is seen as a vacation destination for foodies and for it's beaches and party culture. It's also where most of Hell's agriculture is grown when it doesn't come from Wrath.

Hellhounds also originated from Gluttony but not from Bee herself but from Cerberus and were part of Hell before it was known as Hell. Again, something I will talk about at a later date.

-Greed-

Okay, you guys are bored seeing me praise shit now we're gonna get critical. To say I'm not a fan is putting it lightly. Honestly the idea of there being suburbs like we see here in the picture above looks boring and well...what's with the greenery (not a pun this time)? Isn't Greed suppose to be a toxic wasteland and a crime filled HELLhole (lol I did it again hahahaha I think I'm funny). Why is there organized crime in Hell? Let alone law enforcement? Who the fuck knows the worldbuilding in this show makes as much sense as Viv wanting to make Stolitz end game despite there being no chemistry between them.

I'm gonna take some ideas and headcanons from my friend Nihlis while also do my own twist on things:

Greed is made up of different sections: In the very middle we got the city part of Greed along with an entertainment district. Like, Gluttony, Greed or at least that part of Greed is basically a vacation destination not too similar to Las Vegas. Gambling, nightlife, lives ruined in more ways than one. Basically an overly exaggerated hellish version of that where the house more than never always wins. It's also where Loo Loo Land is which is definitely not a rip off of LuLu Land nope no legal issues to be seen here.

The surrounding area, often concealed by magic to those who visit and live in central Greed so no one can view the more nastier parts is basically a concrete jungle filled with industry and mining facilities. Most sinners and hellborn who can't afford living in the center are in these parts.

Greed is basically Hell's manufacturing center due to lax rules and cheap labor cost. About all industries in the ring are owned by Mammon himself (the final CEO) but he has others making sure these facilities are running smoothly considering he has a lot of business going on throughout Hell.

There may be tiny little edges which aren't anything but rock and mines and a few nice establishment depending on who claims the land but other than that the whole Ring is an over the top capitalistic shit hole.

Also, more yellow and other colors outside of green because damn that is a lot of green. At least it's not red but c'mon you can mix colors together Viv. I may still do something with the whole demon mafia/crime syndicate thing in the show but they're treated more like legitimate but still under the table 'business' while also funneling money in other rings as well. About all of these are Hellborn ran which are made up of mostly Imps, Lone Sharks and depending on who leads them, allow sinners in their ranks. There are at least two or three successful Sinner Overlords who do also run these 'business' but they're no where as powerful they would be if they were in Pride...

There's also no REAL law enforcement in hell neither so of course these go uncheck.

-Lust-

Not gonna lie: I kinda dig the red light district vibe. I think it makes sense and overall works but I'd likely play around with it a bit and flesh it out more.

As for my version of it for the notes I got down so far: Humorlessly enough though The Lust Ring is pretty tame during the day, where the skies are more pink and bright but nothing really risqué is going on. Yeah you'll likely stumble across a few sex shops that are open and general shops/restaurants that have double entendre names because c'mon but at night is when it's alive and well...Lustful XD Not sure if I'm gonna keep the 'always rains in Lust due to Greed's water leaking down' thing but heh. Honestly I may scrap that and move that idea for Sloth being Envy is above it but more of that below...

-Envy-

Considering we have yet to see what Hellaverse's Envy Ring will be like, well...

Will go more into it in it's own post but definitely like the idea of an glamorous underwater city that only those with Souls (my Hellaverse's currency) can afford. Leviathan also makes sure that the more 'ugly' parts of Envy are hidden away from the general public and those visiting the ring and is completely not ashamed to throw out those that don't fit her ideal utopia.

Loan Sharks are originally from Envy but because they didn't fit the 'aesthetic' they're either down in the slums of Envy (which unless you live in the ring, you're completely unaware it exist) or tell them to take a hike and throw them into Greed or Pride if they refuse to stay down there.

Envy is also where Hell's fashion and beauty industry thrives and Leviathan also hires social media influencers to hype up and sell the Ring and their own ventures being the sin of Envy is about having something the other has but you don't and will tear them down just to get it, after all...

The sin of Envy is pretty fucked thinking about it...

-Sloth-

I'm completely overhauling Sloth for two reasons: 1) There's no REAL health care system in Hell in my AU (still doesn't really make sense to me) and 2) Honestly I prefer the idea of Sloth being a weird hybrid of a Cyberpunk dystopia and Silicon Valley. Very high tech, most things are automated and unless you happen to be an Imp or Sinner: Life is easy and relaxed being even as an inventor, you don't need to do the hard part of creating and building it. Once you have your ideas down just throw it at the Imps and Sinners and they'll build your invention for you while you claim all the work.

There's always a new start up each day where investors are throwing whatever Souls they have at pretty much every thing they see all at once knowing only one or two of those start ups are going to be profitable and successful while the rest crash a burn. You know: Like the real Silicon Valley.

Will talk about my version of sloth in more details soon...

Part Three: Traversal Between Rings.

I really do love the elevator concept and think it's something that could be explored more so I'm keeping that but what other modes of transportation could there be?

First I'll talk about the elevator system: I like to view it working similar to a rail system. Ya know: buy a ticket, hop aboard, get to your destination within an hour depending where in Hell you are. It may be longer if you're going to Sloth from Pride. These modes of transportation are open to all excluding sinners unless they have clearance to travel outside their ring which is a luxury rarely ever given out.

However, due to the elevator system being over 100,000 years old and possibility even older when ever Hell was fully established, this lead to the crust of each ring to tear and change form which lead to cracks that unless you know where to look, are untraceable. This lead to another form of transportation open to sinners that wish to escape the ring that they're in hoping for a better opportunity or escape there enteral punishment: Travel between the cracks.

Unusually the safest route to traverses these 'tunnels' is sinners going though 'smuggling operations' often ran by hellborn (part of those gang ran 'business' I talked about in the Greed section) who happen to have mapped their own path, either playing as their guide or selling these maps for a price. However these are often extremely expensive as those running these operations often take advantage of desperate sinners and scam them out of their money.

Most Sinners however go at it alone or in small groups but this could be a dangerous endeavor due to the fact these tunnels are unmapped and easy to get lost in. Eventually you will make it out but it may not be the destination you originally intended. You may even end up back where you started from.

But what about those who don't have time to take long haul travel? A Sin who need to get somewhere ASAP or perhaps a royal who doesn't want be sitting next to those filthy presents?

Easy: Portals. I mean we see Stolas using them all the time and Ozzie even was playing around with them in the Mammon episode but for my AU they work a little differently.

For one, they can only be used to traverse though Hell and only Hell! Unless you have Stolas or Loona having that actual spellbook on hand or one of those crystal things that makes the whole point of the grimoire in the show pointless, travel to Earth (or the mortal realm by Hellborn, sometimes referred to 'topside' by sinners and hellborn alike even though Hell/Heaven is more a different plane/dimension and not under/above the earth itself but we're getting off topic) is impossible. You need strong magic and/or spells that work in order to travel topside (ex the Grimoire) but unless you work for a Sin to spread...well, sin on Earth or some noble; you don't have clearance to do so. (At least legality...)

It's possible a few of these things can change in the future but this what I got as of right now. I'll have the other seven parts written out I get the chance and feel I have enough to share.

[sweetshelluvaau]

World/Lore Building - My Hierarchy of Hell

A smaller AU world building post because I was meant to talk about this for a while now and we're getting a new episode today apparently so what better time to talk about how much the world building than now, right?

No the real reason is that I'm over at my folks place and I'm bored at the moment and have some spare time to write this.

Anyways, putting under the cut. Likely isn't that long but it's more for cleanliness reasons:

Okay so this is the current Hellaverse hierarchy we got in canon now:

Oh paper I don't think there's really anything wrong with it but I do have some questions on why sinners are above hellborn? Wouldn't it make more sense if Sinners were seen as the lowest of the low on the food chain?

Think about it: Hellborn, imps and hellhounds included, are BORN in hell. Sinners on the other hand are SENT to hell, purposely to suffer for all enterally even though the Sins themselves don't really torture souls anymore considering sinners are completely second class in my AU, even below imps and hellhounds. Society is doing the suffering for them.

So here is my updated hierarchy list:

Lucifer and his family (Lilith and Charlie)

The Deadly Sins (and their families for those who have them)

Various royalty clans and other higher rank demons. (Ars Goetia is now a title supposed to be a type of demon in my au. Read about it here)

The General Hellborn population

Overlords (ring dependent, otherwise they'll be seen no lowly as sinners)

Imps and Hellhounds

Sinners

I'm still working out the whole clans thing and once it's completely figured out I'll write a world building post about it. The same thing implies to Overlords.

Anyways that's all I got for today. See ya~

[sweetshelluvaau]

World/Lore Building - Overlords

The first half of my of my Part 2 of the Seven Rings (p2 focusing on Pride) is basically about finish but before I clean and finish it up, I want to focus on the Overlords being my Pride post talks about them for a bit so I wanted to make a deeper dive on how they work in my rewrite/AU.

Putting under the cut being this will be a bit long.

Okay to reblog, feedback and criticism is welcomed.

Part One: How they work in Canon (or the exploration of why worldbuilding is a big deal and something you need to consider and not just throw shit at the wall and hoping it sticks)

Sorry I have to be a bit of a snarky shit.

So, I do have questions on how Overlords as a whole work in Hellaverse because it isn't really fully explained what they are outside of being 'sinners with power'. I'm assuming they are the ones that are the real leadership over Pride considering how Lucifer and Charlie don't really do anything in regard to running the ring? idk?

Why are Overlords as powerful as they are? Why do they have powers, let alone power in general? How did they gain those powers? Granted, a lot of this also has to do my feelings in regard how Sinners are so high up the caste ladder to begin with to even out ranking Hellborns but but I do think these questions like these matter regardless how big or small they are.

I think we take worldbuilding for granted sometimes being this blog really made me rethink how important it is for your story's universe is to have rules on how things work and why they work the way they do. I'm not asking for the story to stop every second and give us a long exposition lore dump before moving on, visual storytelling is a great way of exploring the world the characters are in and just small details can leave just as much of a big impact of portraying what a story is trying to say about it's surroundings. Hazbin is the kind of show that really needs to take time to breath and not speed run everything suppose to letting us the audience take it all in. Honestly, Hellaverse in general really could have benefit from having a story/lore bible before production ever began suppose to just throwing things at the wall because everything is a mess.

Sorry, I went on a tangent here, but these things do bother me not just as a writer but as a viewer as well but I digress.

Anyways, enough of me ranting, lets dive into my rewrite:

Part Two: So, Overlords huh?

I didn't know what to name this section lol

I kinda talked about this here that I decided that Overlords are both Sinners and Hellborns in my AU and are more close to gang leaders/business owners that gained influence though backstabbing/manipulation/killing their competition and raising though the ranks but they also gain power due to various activities in trust and talent as well. Basically: Anyone can become an Overlord if they have the influence and resources to do so! Even an Imp or Hellhound, even though rare.

Sinners also can't use magic (Alastor being an outlier) in a way most Hellborn could, and not all Hellborn can cast it either (They mostly use it though artifacts such as a Transversal Crystal or Stolas' grimoire just for examples). This makes it a bit more tricky for Sinners to rise up the ladder in power putting aside them already being the lowest caste in hell. They'd have to work up a lot of connections and good will from their Hellborn counterparts which can be hard due to not all Hellborn Overlords look kindly on Sinners. And that's on top of the whole gaining influence in general thing.

Overlords are in almost every ring of Hell but Sinner Overlords are often exclusive to Pride, but there are some cases where a Sinner could make it big in another ring such as Greed or Sloth. There's also the case of the Lust Ring where Overlords kinda play an ambassador role representing Sinners taking matters to Lust's leadership but that's a topic for another day.

Overlords are often more seen in the Rings that more 'lax' in rules/leadership, Pride obviously due to it's title of 'The Wild West of Hell' but they are also big in Greed, Sloth and Wrath. There's a few in Gluttony and Envy as well with Lust being a bit of an outlier in regard to handling Overlords being for the most part they're 'regulated' to the point they're completely a different thing despite still carrying the name (see above).

Part Three: Blood Pacts

This may be a me thing, but I'm not a fan of the fact that Overlords in the show can own souls and the 'contract' thing. Granted this has to do with the sinner issue I already addressed with Hellaverse along with the worldbuilding deal I also mentioned. I'm not gonna repeat myself being I said my piece in part one.

In my AU, Overlords cannot create/form Soul Contacts. Only The Sins and a few powerful demons can own someone's soul physically however Overlords do have an equivalent to them. Enter Blood Pacts!

How they work: Basically, they collect a drop of blood from the person giving up their 'soul' to them and put it into a glass vial lanced with magic that bounds the soul to the owner. Overlords often do this in both a power sense and a way for the soul to pay their 'debts'. Ordinally Blood Pacts were pitched as a way for (un)fortunate souls who in some shape or form got into whatever fucked up thing they landed themselves into that they may need help getting out of or they ended up wronging an Overlord in some way that they choose to make it up to them by working under them for as long as is required (this could be for a good few decades to basically a long time where you might as well say that they own them forever unless one of them kicks the bucket) of them before being set free. Some more 'honest' Overlords do obliged to this once their debts are fulfilled and even fewer don't engage in practice, but most of the time they never let go of there power over there victim and some make it mandatory if you choose to just work under them just because you needed a job so you can never leave (popular tactic used by the Vees).

Because these glass vials are fragile and could easily be broken if one isn't careful or if there victim gets any ideas of choosing to free themselves, these vials are kept in a safe place that only Overlords are given access too. Basically, it's a huge vault, a 'blood' bank if you will where these are sorted and carefully handled so no one can tamper with them and their 'ownership' of their souls are safe. These vaults are secretive, even to Overlords who aren't so high up in the food chain.

Part Four: Notable Overlords

I'm only going to do an overview of some of the overlords here that will or may play a role in my AU/Rewrite being I don't want to go into full descriptions right now. Whenever I get to redesign these characters or just want to talk more about them is when I'll go in more deeper details.

Zestial:

Zestial One of the oldest, if NOT the oldest Hellborn Overlords still alive in this day and age and rumored he's been around before Lucifer's Fall and what Hell is today. Zestial controls The Old Town Historic District (you'll learn about it in my Pride Ring post) and is the creator of the the 'Blood Pacts'. He's basically the same in the show personality wise but Hellborn suppose to a sinner.

The Vees:

The Vee's (all sinners) are the Overlords that run The Red Light district, along with various business and ventures regardless if you have a say in it or not. They're basically the same in the show expect Val is taken more seriously and Velvet has nothing to do with fashion in my AU. She works closely with Vox with fueling the Social Media side of Voxtec and feeding the propaganda machine though the media via mind control thing that Vox has going with him, but Velvet is a popular online influencer in her own right. She's also the youngest Overlord, dying in the 2010's.

Carmilla Carmine:

Carmilla Carmine (sinner) is basically the same character in the show personality wise. She doesn't own a district but is a big player in smuggling, producing and experimenting with angelic weapons. Her engineering and weapon production quality is second to none which alone has gartered her infamously and influence.

Crimson:

A small time Hellborn Overlord from the Greed Ring, as well as Moxxie's father figure (not biological father. I plan on going though Moxxie's backstory once I get his re-redesgin done) who 'inherited' and owns a successful sinner smuggling operation along with plenty of other completely legit businesses you guys in Greed and some influence in Pride as well. I'll talk more about my take on Crismon in my AU another day.

Alastor:

Ah yes, the tumblr sexy man edgelord Radio Demon we all know and love (???). I'm still working on the direction I want to take with his character but he's one of the few Sinner Overlords that has powers (not Voodeo. They're more Lovecraftian in nature and the symbols he uses are radio ones) that he may or may have not made a deal with a demon when still alive that came with him into the after life for some reason. Alastor hosts his radio show at his station in Uptown (where the Happy Hotel also is) every morning (along with the screams of the lives and souls he's taken ya know for shits and giggles). For most, he's an enigma and no one knows what his true goals and where his alliances lie. Even Charlie doesn't understand why he's so invested in helping the hotel if he's not the slightest bit of interested in redeeming himself despite accepting his help. But regardless who you are, what walk of life you're from, hellborn or sinner; he's feared by all.

Anyways, I'm gonna wrap up this post here. Next one will be my Pride Ring post which the first part is basically about done just need to do some last second editing! Likely will post it up Friday...