#the monkey king and the infant au

[quitealotofsodapop]

Based on our DMs, Wukong and Macaque met is actually really, really cute. And also kinda scary becaise of depictions of child abductions and exploitation. What we discussed was that at, unlike in the book, Wukong had not officially been crowned the Monkey King at the time he hadn't left for Subodhi's but rather had held the title of soemthing similar to a prince, the confirmed next ruler of the tribe but not yet because he was, quite frankly, far too young. During those intervening years, the Stalwarts, most of whom were much older than him and reaching their own late teen/young adult stages when he had gone on his first pilgrimage for immortality, handled the majority of the regency stuff. They'd wanted their little brother to enjoy being a kid as long as possible and learn and grow at his new school.

Unfortunately, that isn't what ended up happening, as when Wukong had his falling out with Subodhi and returned home, he found the place in a very dire state. A terrifying beast of a demon had taken all the cubs hostage, using them to exploit the tribe and force them to work for him as their servants. It's something of a modus operandi for this version of the Demon King of Havoc, as we've discussed him not simply stopping at the demons of FFM, but having made an empire of sorts of exploiting celestials, demons, spirits, and dragons alike by holding their young hostage. Amongst those hostages were a young, headstrong bull prince, a pair of celestial princes, a trio of celestial animals, and most importantly... a unique little monkey demon who was adopted and raised amongst the celestials as the younger siblings of the moon goddess, and an unhatched dragon egg. All of their parents were held at bay from the fear of what Havoc would do to the kids.

Wukong, naturally, challenged the Demons King of Havoc, but where the book depicted him as easily as in the book and had on fact been forced to flee the first time around, albeit with a handful of his monkeys escaping with him. One of them gave him the idea of reaching out to the other kingdoms for help, which is how he came to be at Ao Guang's doorstep way back when. He and the other dragon signs had been reluctant to help, frightened Ao Jun's unhatched child would be harmed, but Wukong had managed to convince them to at least let himself be armed. And then Ruyi Jingu Bang began to call for Wukong, and the famous weapon found it's a true owner. They also gave him the armor he is known for wearing as well, but insists they Wukong never mention it was they who armed him.

With that, Wukong was ready for his second match against Havoc. This time, it went much better, but it was a very close thing. He had been gravely injured, and had he not had that first layer of immortality, he would certainly have died! But the fighting was enough, and while Havoc was with the then young monkey prince's challenge, a certain other monkey had taken advantage of the distraction to make their own escape and help free all the other children. Nezha and Erlang had never known that Wukong had been the one to defeat Havoc, having not seen the end of the battle while they eld the children to safety, so the credit for the rescie had fallen to another.

The monkeys, the bull prince, and the trio of celestial animals, however, had a much clearer view of the fight and were able to view the final outcome. How Wukong had soundly defeated the demon that had held them captive for so long, only to collapse moments later. When Wukong later awoke, having had his adventure in the Diyu in-between, it was to the sight of a gorgeous black furred monkey who he tecognized as having been and old cubhood playmate who used to have snow white fur tending his wounds and calling him and idiot for trying to get out of bed when he wasn't well. Shortly after, Wukong is officially crowned the Monkey King.

Yesss, been meaning for an excuse to share this idea we had!

This is all considered canon in the Tkmati AU and a lot of the other aus.

The Stalwarts and the Elder knew that Wukong was still just a little guy, too young to be a King/Matriarch of his own troop. So when he showed interest in the world beyond Alolai, they were happy to let him go. He was still a fresh soul and needed to roam, like a bird seeking migration.

They just had not expected someone to view their dear island as the perfect base for their terrible dominion.

The Demon of Havoc was such a dangerous foe, rising quickly in the ranks because he did the one thing that threatened every layer of society be it demon, celestial or dragon; hold their children captive and at his mercy.

DBK, then just Bull or Niu, had been a headstrong teenage prince of the Underworld at the time. And whilst he'd huff about his capture for centuries to come, he will always sing the praises of the tiny yellow-orange monkey that came to his (and many others) aid!

Among the celestials, it had initially been Erlang, then still barely a demi-god, that had been captured. After the Jade Emperor did the divine equivalent of a shrug, the Havoc Demon upped the stakes by snaring the Third Lotus Prince that came to his cousin's aid. Azure, Yellowtusk, and Peng had each been sent forward by their masters as scouts to determine who or what had taken Nezha captive, only to be themselves captured by the Havoc demon and his lackeys.

The dragon egg had been shockingly the most difficult to acquire. The future royal dragon had been protected by the coils of his parents and elder siblings. But all it took was for a well-timed sleep bug, and another stolen prince (the Flood Dragon, often believed to be an illegitimate child of the Southern Sea King) to get the egg in his clutches.

And of course thats not mentioning all the "lesser" demon clans the Havoc King kept at bay. Wukong's home had simply been a good base of operations in the grand scheme of things.

So imagine the look on The Demon King of Havoc's face when a tiny barely-teenage monkey demon in a school robe bust down his door, demanding that he release all of his people. The fiend had cackled in the cub's face! But was concerned when the child, although forced to flee, seemed to be holding a vast wealth of power...

The Dragon Kings seeing this little monkey offering to take down the fiend, and all wondering if he could be the key to saving their pups. By weaponizing Wukong, they could hide their involvement where they could not if they sent any of their own kind to face the Havoc King. The ancient water-pole calling out to the monkey as it's master had been what ultimately convinced them to armour the young demon for battle.

I like the idea of Wukong nearly dying after his fight with Havoc intersecting with his trip to Diyu, and him confronting the Ten Kings. Wukong taking his and many others names from the Books of the Dead now becomes an act fuelled by worry not for himself, but for his people - unsure who managed to escape during his fight with Havoc.

When his eyes opened and he saw that gorgeous dark fur and butterfly-shaped face mask, Wukong wondered if this was what awaited him in the afterlife? Until he tried moving, hurt himself, and the beautiful monkey called him a moron.

It would be only in the months afterwards that Bull/Niu would explain the process of courtnapping, reverse-courtnapping, that Wukong realised that he and Macaque ("Yuehua/Moonflower" when they were cubs) had accidentally declared romantic interest in one another. Macaque didn't care to mention that the Havoc King had stolen him as a bride, and was impatiently trying to speed up the courting period before Wukong arrived. All the shadow monkey knew was that this old playmate of his had saved him and many others from an uncertain fate, for reasons he simply could not fathom - he would not accept "Cus' its the right thing" as an answer.

The Brotherhood having been the ones to see the fight directly, were the most impressed, hence why they decided to form a brotherhood-contract with the monkey. Whilst the celestial animals had seen it as more of a tactical strategy (make the monkey an ally), Bull had seen it as akin to adopting a little brother (considering the one at home, could you blame him?). And Macaque? Well it took him a moment to realise that Wukong wasn't asking to marry all of them! The shadow monkey quickly coughed and agreed to the platonic contract.

Romance between the two monkeys bloomed after that adventure.

In a number of AUs, the Havoc King is eventually revived, and up to his old tricks.

Namely in the Hidden Egg Au; he learns that Sun Wukong has a child of his own now...

[nem0lux3]

A LIL SOMETHING!!

"oh, Hua Jiao, please look at me the same.." /ref

HQUWIAS THEY MAKE ME SO SICK I LOVE THEM SM

HUA JIAO'S REACTION BY THE WAY NAJSJWJSJSJSNS

I'm still tryna master the LMK art style, sort if it's really not that good !!

[junichan]

Recently I've been seeing a lot of Sun Wukong and reader / OC with baby monkeys stuff, and I am just living for it. ( @journey-to-the-au's #Fruit Troup and @semisolidmind's #Royal Children especially) Something about baby monkeys rattled around in my little brain long enough that I had to bang out this drabble. Its my first ever x reader story, and its just slightly nsfw so beware!

Cuddle Break

Synopsis: Your reaction to snuggling a baby monkey has quite an effect on Sun Wukong

Warning / Triggers: Slight NSFW - mention of an erection and implied adult situations

For several days now the group had been traveling through a dense jungle. You had stopped for a break on the side of the road to eat some lunch and rest your weary feet. Although it was a little humid, it felt pleasantly cool beneath the shade of the jungle canopy. You would have liked to take a quick nap, but Tang was anxious as ever to get moving again.

“YN, would you mind finding Wukong?” the monk asked. He smiled apologetically, as if he knew he was sending you into the lion’s den.

Almost since the day you’d joined the group, the demon monkey had begun teasing and flirting with you. You did your best to laugh off his advances, thinking he was probably just messing with you, but lately Wukong was getting so provocative that Tang was forced to use the headache spell a few times just to get him to give you some space. You were starting to consider that maybe Wukong really was into you, which wouldn’t have been a problem if you didn’t find him so damn attractive too!

As usual Wukong had gone off on his own to scout out the surroundings as soon as the group had settled down. Normally Pigsy would have been asked to go find the monkey, but he had eaten so much lunch that he’d zonked out hard enough that even Sandy was struggling to wake him up. There was nothing to be done about it, so you set off in the direction you had seen Wukong go earlier, hoping he hadn’t gone too far.

It wasn’t much trouble to find a little footpath that meandered through the jungle underbrush. You tracked it for a while, occasionally calling out the demon monkey’s name. Eventually you came to a wide, slow running creek, and trusting the intuition that had served you so well on the journey so far decided to follow it upstream. It wasn’t too long before you caught a familiar chirping, chattering sound. You had heard Wukong occasionally making those noises, but this time they sounded surprisingly soft.

“Wukong!” you called as you got closer, “Tang wants to get going…!”

It wasn’t long before you spotted him and understood why the noises were so unusually gentle.

Sun Wukong was perched on a thick branch hanging low over the creek, surrounded by a troop of infant monkeys. It was the little ones that were chirping and giggling as they climbed on him like a living jungle gym. He seemed to be enjoying it, indulging the little ones with the softest smile you had ever seen on his face. And the babies were so cute! Little fluffy beans with their little tails and itty-bitty noses!

“❤️Oooh my gooooosh!!❤️❤️” You gushed before you could stop yourself.

The Monkey King and his tiny subjects looked at you in surprise, only just noticing your presence. The babies looked a little nervous, but Wukong’s grin only got bigger as you approached. You were glad to see that the little ones trusted Wukong enough that they didn’t run away, even when you pulled yourself up on the branch to sit beside him.

“They’re so adorable, Wukong! Do… Do you think I could hold one?”  

Wukong had never seen you so enamored before, it was adorable! “Sure,” he chuckled, “Just be careful. They got a strong grip.” He lifted one of the little ones off his knee, making reassuring noises as he handed him over to your waiting arms.

The baby was clearly a bit frightened of you, staring at your face with wide, darting eyes. “It’s okay sweetie,” you cooed to reassure him, stroking his head and back. “Don’t be scared.” To your delight the infant started to purr, and snuggled against you as you cradled him against your chest. You were so besotted with affection for the little guy that you didn’t even notice the intense way Wukong was staring at you.

It wasn’t until he’d handed the child over that Wukong realized the little one had fur that was remarkably like the color of your hair. Watching you snuggle and coo at the infant made him think of you doing the same with his offspring. Just imagining you getting you pregnant with his heirs drove him wild. If it weren’t for the children still clinging to him, he would have pounced on you right there.

What was worse, he was a little jealous of the little one! What he wouldn’t give to have you hold him and stroke his fur like that! That look of sweet and tender adoration in your eyes should have been for him!

Oblivious to the immortal demon’s internal struggle (and the bulge in his pants) you continued to soothe the baby monkey in your arms. The little guy was practically melting as you pet his soft fur. Then two more of the little ones abandoned Wukong to crawl into your lap, eager for their turn at cuddles. You scooped them up happily, pressing kisses to their foreheads. “Aww! Mama’s sweet babies! ❤️”

Wukong grit his teeth to stifle a groan. The jolt of arousal that went through him was so violent his hand shot up and snapped the branch above him like a twig. The baby monkeys that were still sitting on him were startled enough to scatter further up the tree.

You gave him a puzzled look, holding the little ones in your lap a bit protectively. “Something wrong, Wukong?”

“I’m fine,” he answered, jumping down from the branch. He sounded a bit more terse than usual. Obviously he wasn’t fine, but he wasn’t going to tell you about it. “You said Master wanted to get going. We should head back now.”

You sighed, glancing down at the baby monkeys curled in your lap. They had been startled by Wukong crushing the branch but had hunkered down rather than run away. “Aw, can’t we stay just a little longer?”

"C'mon, YN, let's go." Wukong shook his head, shooing the little ones with a few soft hoots. They reluctantly crawled out of your lap, and you pouted as you let them go. Then he reached up, grabbing your waist to lift you down off the branch. You accepted the surprisingly chivalrous gesture, even putting your hands on his strong shoulders to steady yourself. But once your feet were on the ground, he didn’t let go.

You felt your face heat up with a blush as Wukong stepped into your space, his grip on your waist keeping you from escaping when his chest pressed flush against yours. You could feel his warm breath on your ear as he leaned in and growled suggestively, “You know, I could give you a few of your own if you wanted…”

“Wukong!!” The insufferable demon laughed as you pounded your fist on his chest in protest. But at least he let you step back, and you took a deep breath to try calming your racing heart. And racing hormones!

Against your better judgement, you let him carry you back to the others on his cloud. You tried to ignore his tail curled around your middle, somehow convincing yourself that it was only to keep you steady.

Wukong could tell under all that flustered embarrassment you were turned on. He could smell it on you, and it made him grin victoriously. It wouldn’t be long now before he’d finally have you. He might have even been able to convince you to let him have his way right there in the jungle, but he knew there wasn’t enough time to really enjoy himself. If the monk had sent you to look for him, it wouldn’t be long before he sent Pigsy or Sandy to look for you. He could wait a little longer. You were worth it flexing a little patience, and no matter what, in the end you’d be his.

And in the meantime, seeing you snuggle the baby monkeys gave him a sneaky idea for how to get some of that attention for himself…

[kodee-22-blog]

Hi hi!!! Here’s some art of Baby Xiotain/MK from my own AU titled, “This Is Impossible!” Also here’s a little short story to go with the art

Wukong was scrubbing some dishes from his lunch, Xiotain sitting on a blanket nearby and playing with some toys. Soft coos could be heard from the monkey cub as he clanked the wooden blocks together, soft little giggles coming from his mouth.

“Are you having fun Star?” Wukong asked, glancing at his son for a moment, gentle smile crossing his face as he watched his cub play. His tail curled into a heart and wagged slightly, loving how adorable his son was. “You’re so cute.” He chuckled before returning his attention to the dishes once more.

Xiotain cooed some more before setting his blocks down. The cub tilted his head as his Dada cleaned the dishes, he was getting bored and really wanted his Dada. The small monkey pressed his lips together in a pout, before his little tail thumped against the blanket, an idea coming to the infants head. He focused hard on his Dada, before opening his mouth. “DADA!”

Wukong froze before turning towards his cub, eyes wide with amazement. “You?! Just said Dada!!” The russet monkey said before rushing towards his cub, not caring about his wet hands. “Can you say it again? Say Dada?” HE asked as he pulled his son into his arms.

Xiotain let out a giggle as he was lifted, his tiny tail wagging with excitement. “Dada!!” He said again, his hands pressing against his Dada’s cheeks, feeling happy that he finally had his Dada’s attention.

“Oh my god! Ah! You’re so adorable Star!” Wukong squealed, usually that would be an embarrassing sound, but he didn’t care! His son said his first word! And it was Dada! The Monkey King was so happy and filled with pride. “AH! My smart baby!” He said, pressing kisses to his son’s face, earning giggles from the cub.

“Dada!!!” Xiotain giggled out, before nuzzling his face against his Dada’s, happy to have his Dada’s full attention. His little brain was filling with the idea, to say Dada more, especially if it got him this much attention.

For the rest of the day, Wukong was fascinating by listening to his son’s voice, it being music to his ears. Xiotain was having a great time, loving that all of his Dada’s attention was on him.

[quitealotofsodapop]

Them!!

I love the twin boys having vitiligo alongside their patterned fur - it makes them look so distinct! Wukong and Macaque were likely a little confused by their looks at first, joking that the "paint didn't mix well". They love their colourful babies either way. <3 Little tortieshell boys who idolize their adoptive uncles Jin & Yin.

And teen Yuebei!! She is such a pouty teenager it hurts. I love her jewelry and light blue hanfu - taking some fashion tips from Aunt Chang'e looks like, with her own gothic twist.

Poor beautiful Wukong. I love his long hair and red robes - he looks so pretty and maternal. And now he's dealing with his own head-strong monkey who wants to go out on their own. But its so hard for him to do that when Yuebei is still very much his little mooncake. XD

I love everything about these - you have such a distinct artstyle and you draw the characters so appealing! All the little details on Yuebei's dress, and the mirrored patterns on the boys. <3

Tysm for being so invested in my little monkey ideas!

@quitealotofsodapop Third on the list! Jidu & Luohuo! Another set of twins! The only way to tell them apart is by their skin color but that doesn’t mean they won’t try to confuse you with each other. You said their fur was kind of like tortoiseshell cats and tortoise shell cats kind of remind me of people with vitiligo so I also gave them spots on their skin aside from their fur. Other demons say they look kind of weird but hey! Their parents were also called weird when they were little and they turned out to be pretty cool so they don’t mind.

And a little bonus! Teen yuebei and her baba!

[the-strawhats-kitchen]

Royalty AU (ASL)

!!Likes do nothing, Reblog instead!!

Masterlist

•Asl royalty AU. Where they were all -minus Luffy- born not as nobles, but as normal kids. One day Roger -who’s “enemies” with Garp- gives the king his infant , claiming that the tiny human would be more then safe and secure with him. Garp takes the infant, after some small protest.

•From that day forward the infant -named Acrux- was raised inside the Goa kingdom palace, surrounded by servants that were at his beck and call. But the only one he truly ever liked, or even semi respected, was a lady in her late 30s called Dadan that was part of the guards. She took care of little Acrux and he would always go to her before anyone when needing someone, even his own grandpa.

•One day, however, Acrux got bored and left the palace in a “disguise” and with a fake name, Porgas D Ace. Acrux, or Ace now. Roamed around the capital of Goa, meeting various people who, in his opinion, were super mean rude and just plain boring. That is until he met a boy around his age named Raka. The boy was shorter than him by a bit and had blond short hair. He dressed like a noble but didn’t act like one, in fact he seemed to hate being one.

•So Ace did what anyone else would do and took the kids out with him to the jungle. They stayed there for a few days and decided that the two will continue to stay hidden so they can finally be free of their duties as nobles. That is until Dadan managed to find the two and drag both of them with her back to the palace. Raka’s -who decided to go under the alias Sabo- parents were waiting at the palace, worry painting their face.

•But Ace didn’t let them take his new brother back. So the two left Sabo at the palace, delighted that the crown prince had taken a liking to their little boy. And so Sabo became a prince. He attended etiquette lessons with his brother -he got so happy when he called him that- and went everywhere with him.

•One day the two boys were called by their grandpa, Garp, to the throne room. The two thought it was just another one of his weird harsh training sessions, but instead were greeted with the sight of young boy with black hair and the brightest smile ever. Garp introduced the boy as Nika, his biological grandson. Nika was more than delighted to meet them and decided to cling to them from that day forward.

•At first Ace and Sabo hated the kid and his clinginess. But as time went on the two ended up warming up to Nika and started treating him like their own brother. They taught him things that they knew. They took him with them places. And soon they took him with them to the treehouse and they did what both of them did in that treehouse, finding a different name for him, and that name was Monkey D Luffy.

•And that’s how the three grew up. Ace, the crown prince, Sabo, second in line for the thrown and Luffy, the shining star for the Goa kingdom. Years passed by like this. A few things did change however, Sabo getting more into politics, and Luffy somehow managed to recruit a bunch of random people throughout all the blues and make alliances with a bunch of countries.

•One day Luffy gets an invite to a banquet at a faraway kingdom, it wasn’t unusual for the young prince to get invites to various things from the most random people -he was extremely loved by young and old alike- so of course he accepted the invite without hesitation. But there was a minor problem, he couldn’t be left unsupervised and no one was free or could free up their schedules to go with him -except zoro but that was worse then him going alone-, so Garp assigned one of -if not- his most trusted knights, Koby.

•And so they sailed away. Koby -Luffy noted- was younger than him but very tense and nervous, especially around the prince. And no matter how many times Luffy told him to refere to him by his name as they are friends now, Koby kept referring to him by his honorific -Prince Nika-. As they spent more time together the two grew closer and closer. Koby started to open up to the young prince -even calling him Luffy once, which he beamed at- and Luffy opened up to him and hyped him up in return.

•By the time they returned the two had basically became best friends, and would seek each other out at random. Luffy would also always seek out the other whenever he had to leave, whether that be on a walk, a party or when going away on a voyage. At this point everyone knew that if you’re looking for Prince Nika, simply find Koby. And if you’re looking for Koby, simply find Prince Nika.

•As time passed people had noticed something shift between the two. While everyone knew how clingy and touchy Luffy can get, he was especially touchy with Koby.

•Whenever Koby was in the same room as him -weather it was just to hang out or for formal business like talking to the king- Luffy would always find a way to attach himself to the young knight. And Koby wouldn’t even flinch or back away nervously like how he does when anyone else gets too close to him. Instead he would lean into his touch. The people closest to them -the strawhat crew(the people under Luffy) Sabo Ace and Helpmo- also noticed how they would always take about one another and would always get excited when the other was brought up.

•The first one to bring this up was, of course, Nami. One day her and Luffy were sat in his study, her actually doing work while the teenager played with something. She started by testing the water, asking what Koby has been up to. And just as she predicted Luffy gave up right away and started yammering about how Koby was up for a promotion and what not. After around, 20 minute? Nami asked him the question.

•“Luffy, do you like Koby?”

•And of course being the idiot that he is Luffy didn’t get the question. So Nami explained it him. And after what felt like ages the young prince looked out the window, where the pink haired knight was talking to Ace, and smiled softly at the two.

•“Yeah” he said softly, voice filled with adoration and love “yeah I think I do”

!!requests are open!!

comments are more than appreciated. but reblogs help the content reach more people so please reblog if you want to like<3 likes do nothing. Seriously, don’t like, reblog.

Tag list🏷️: @dibbledoodle @midnightmah07 @siphoklansan @jade-s-nymph @carameldansan @drdepper

[imbeccablee]

Do you have any LMK fanfic recommends?

oh sure, tons!

if you're a spicy noodles fan (mk and red son) then you MUST read ALL of PittedPeaches' work. They're just... so very good. the way they write red son is better than the show itself ngl!!!

a VERY sweet dad!wukong of monkey!mk is PeaceOfArt's Sunrise Au that is just, so very fluffy and precious. Wukong loves his son so very much and he is trying his best!!!

LadyGreenFrisbee has a whole plethora of fics that are incredible. I've admittedly not read all of them, but favorites of mine are Sunbreak, The Evil Monkey, and A Theatre of Shadows. their ideas are so well thought out and interesting and unique!

Another dad!wukong fic is Is This A Monkey Thing or a Dad Thing? which is a series of instances of mk and wukong bonding and being cute and loving each other so completely. I adore them anon.

Another cute AU fic where wukong and mk are brothers is you, me (and him!) about a teenage wukong raising his infant brother when their shit head parents leave them alone!

Crimson_Owl has TONS of wukong angst too which scratch my brain in all the right ways. that poor monkey, someone please help him 😭

Promise is some good wukong and macaque hurt/comfort as well, where MK gets more hurt at the end of season 2 than in canon and Wukong didn't actually have the fillet removed from his head

The Accidental Son of Sun Wukong is once again GREAT dad!wukong and mk where, wouldn't you know it, wukong accidentally adopts mk

Monkey King's Guide to Physical Contact, or the fic where wukong finally gets the hug he deserves

Wukong and his Path To Recovery is a series of fics where wukong heals, as he deserves

im (not) lovin' it is just. so funny. wukong gets a job at McDonald's to prove something, because of course he does. it makes me die every time I read it

Peach Tea Burns, or the fic where MK suffers so very much and for what??? at least wukong's there to try and save him-

Camping Trip Disaster, or the fic where MK has to deal with two monkeys trying to kill each other on their fun family bonding trip, as usual. alas.

also.... there are my fics as well 👉👈 you can find them here, I have a bunch of mk and wukong fics, and a dadsy fic that I'm so very proud of

There's probably more, but those are the ones that I found via a cursory glance through other recs I've given before, let me know if you want more! I hope you enjoy!!!!

[racfoam]

I actually do have a story with Fem! Harry raising Delphi (Voldemort Wins AU, Voldemort literally tells Harry this is what she'll do or he’ll kill her friends, nice way to get a permanent babysitter, Voldy) but my headcanon is that Voldemort had no idea about Delphini and that Bellatrix stole his blood and Delphini was made with magic.

Canon Voldemort was too busy obsessing over Harry and wanting to have Harry, sorry, lads.

The fic is titled accismus

First line

The last thing Harry thought she would be doing at seventeen was changing the nappy of the Dark Lord’s seven-month-old daughter.

Harry meeting Delphi

Big, reddish, dark eyes blinked up at Harry. The baby was bigger than a newborn infant. By its gaze focused on Harry, the Chosen One assumed the baby was one year old, give or take. The delicate dark eyebrows drew together, the baby-fat cheeks scrunching, the lips drawing in a thin line. Cute, Harry thought, fondness flooding her chest.  “Whose are you? Who left you here alone?” Harry knows very much how that was like. Being cast aside somewhere lonely, left with no comforting adult supervision. A grunt passed Harry's lips as she put her hands under the baby’s arms, “Whoa, you’re heavy.” Or maybe I’m too light. It took a bit of awkward maneuvering for Harry to manage to hold the baby with both arms properly without it looking like the child was dangling off her hands like a monkey. While maneuvering her hands like an idiot who’s never held a baby in her life, Harry ascertained the baby was most definitely a girl. Voldemort entered the room. At the sight of his serpentine face and red eyes, the baby girl squealed happily, squirming in Harry's hold, reaching her tiny arms toward the Dark Lord like he was her favourite person in the world.

Harry was baffled. Suspicious, she held the baby out, toward Voldemort. The baby girl squealed happily, laughing, making grabby hands toward Voldemort. Harry brought her back to her chest, and the girl's smile dropped, face absolutely blank again, turning completely still. Harry looked from the baby to Voldemort. Baby to Voldemort. Then back again one final time. The baby gurgled happily again when Harry extended her to the serpentine wizard again like Rafiki did with Simba in Lion King. The baby extended her short arms, reaching for Voldemort with her tiny hands. The baby’s dark brown eyes blew wide, filled with awe and happiness (?) when they looked at Voldemort. Voldemort, on his part, looked completely uninterested, ignoring the baby’s heart-melting giggles. A heart of bedrock, this one. “You can do better than him,” Harry whispered to the baby girl, patting the girl’s back comfortingly, sending a venomous glare Voldemort’s way. “Kidnapping magical children now?” “No,” was everything Voldemort said, sounding amused. “The child’s name is Delphini. She is my biological offspring.” Silence.  Harry was rendered speechless. Voldemort leaned against the wall, not moving to separate Harry from his — his daughter. There was no way… No way this adorable, cute baby girl was the offspring of… the entire nightmare-fuel package that Voldemort is. “What crazy woman had sex with you?!” shrieked Harry incredulously.

“I haven't had relations since my rebirth, Harry. Delphini is a special case. She was not conceived. She was created with blood magic.” At Harry's gaping mouth, he continued, “Bella stole a drop of my blood without my knowledge.”

“Oh,” said Harry, suddenly feeling very sorry for Voldemort. He had a kid he didn't even know about... And... By the looks of it... didn't want.

Voldemort raised a hand, most likely prophesizing a speech. Harry readjusted Delphini in her arms for the toddler to be more comfortable.

“I don't ask for your pity,” he said coldly. “I ask you raise the child and take care of it.”

Harry was sure if she wasn't holding Delphini, she would have dropped her from shock.

[quitealotofsodapop]

AHHH TY SO MUCH YOUR ART IS AMAZING!!! :,D

Dad bod!Wukong looks so plush and huggable - love the little monkey king pen in the first one! Mom bod!Mac is his beautiful self!

And ofc baby MK being the ray of sunshine that he is!!

My all sketch that "the monkey king AND the infant au" @quitealotofsodapop

And in the university uwu

[quitealotofsodapop]

Just imagining, in a world where Wukogn wasn't immediately trapped in the scroll of memory after Azure freed the rest of the Brotherhood, he'd have some things to say. I'm thinking TMKATI au post Wu is Wikong reveal

Wu: MK... who helped you get me out of there?

MK: Oh, this only friend of yours. Called himself the Azure Lion?

Wu, immediately going pale as a ghost: Azure Lion!? MK, please tell me you didn't listen to him or make any deals!

Pigsy: What? Why would it be such a big deal? He's your friend isn't he?

Wu: Azure is anything but a friend! He's the reason I was trapped on the Furnace and under the Mountain to begin with, him and his rebellion!

Tang: Uh, what? But all the stories say it was because of the Havoc you caused!

Wu: The Peach Festival I crashed and ruined was hardly important enough for Heaven to do what they did to me, even with the pills and immortal peaches and wine I had stolen. It was just the catalyst. I was still a cub back then, a stupid, reckless cub who was impressionable enough to trust the wrong person. And then Azure had left me to take the fall for the rebellion he had started! Whatever you do, don't trust Azure!

Tang, taking in the implications: ...I'll kill him.

+Bonus:

Even if Azure did not realise it himself, he had built Wukong up in his mind to be the matyr of the Rebellion. And when Wukong surrendered, rather than die for it, Azure became convinced it was a great betrayal.

There's even hints of Macaque recognising/suspecting this sort of manipulation all the way back during their carefree Brotherhood days. There's a split second in "New Adventures" just after Azure convinces the others to make Wukong the leader of the rebellion, when Macaque is clearly unhappy/thinking about the situation. The only reason he doesn't speak out then and there is because Wukong seemed so sure of it. We see a similar look again just before they head out on their first attack.

And of course there's the memory Tang wanders into in "Court of the Yellow Robed Demon" thats very telling;

Peng: "Wukong is a traitor! He'll end us the first chance he gets!" Yellowtusk: "Yes. The Stone Monkey is unpredictable. Now he's thrown his lot in with the Celestial Host, there's no telling where his true allegiances lie." Peng: "You're characteristically quiet, Macaque!" Macaque: "I just think we should consider all our options before we—" Peng: "What's to consider? Wukong's made his choice. I say we strike him down now while we have the chance!"

The Trio are discussing attacking Wukong for aligning himself with "the Celestial Host" [i.e helping Tripitaka on the Journey so he can do parole] - the memory taking place within Camel Ridge.

Macaque's reaction brings up a super interesting twist to the story told in JTTW. Was the whole plan of disguising himself as Wukong and taking the scriptures not his own? Did the other three or an unknown villain working in the background insist he do so? Did he do it to stall Wukong so that his best friend/mate did not fall into a trap from the rest of the Brotherhood? Did Macaque die trying to give Wukong another option less the Monkey King risk being captured or worse at the hands of his former sworn brothers?

Macaque recognised that *something* was super wrong in how the Brotherhood treated Wukong, especially how Azure directed the situation. But being the same, barely-a-cub, age Wukong was at the time, Macaque wasn't sure/confident enough to speak out about it.

And ofc this whole thing with the Brotherhood would come to a boil in the TMKATI au when Macaque and Wukong are having their Big Fight.

Wukong/Wu had long since recognised that Azure was grooming/manipulating him for the fall, but isn't sure why he tried attacking him afterwards. Macaque is a bit proud in a "I told you so"-way and says that Azure had expected Wukong to *die* in the war as a matyr rather than live as a prisoner.

Wukong: "Why didn't you say anything!?" Macaque: "I was as young and stupid as you were! I only wanted to see you happy!" Wukong: "Oh yeah! Like you did when you left me under that mountain!" Macaque: "You weren't exactly grateful for the company at the time." Wukong: "Uh, need I remind you that before I was imprisoned, I had just spent 49 days being broiled alive!? I wasn't exactly firing on all cylinders. You could have atleast tried to visit me after a few years!" Macaque, uncharastically quiet: "I wanted to..." Wukong: "Huh?" Macaque: (*goes silent and leaves the room*) Wukong: "Wait! Mihou! What do you mean "you wanted" to!?"

note: Tang is accidentally privy to this convo cus he was in the stairwell when it started and got nosey. Then he kinda gets kidnapped by a baby bull demon before he can ramble his discovery to Pigsy and/or Sandy.

Wu gives the clipnote version of events to the gang as he's trying The Big Stupid, and they are horrified. The Monkey King, one of the most infamous tricksters in folkore, was ultimately a groomed teenager at the time of his punishment! And the Macaque was in the same boat, just more cautious...

When things are said and done - Wukong and Macaque go out of their way to tell their kids to always be wary of powerful people who put you on a pedestal. Perhaps not delving into their personal history (they are Normal Demon Parents™ afterall), but using the story of the Monkey King and his Brotherhood as an aesop. The Monkey King had many friends who thought he should lead them, but they shrunk away for whatever reasons when he chose to live and not die in heaven.

MK thinks its the saddest "superhero backstory" ever.

So when S4 of TMKATI comes about and the memory curse gets loose...

Azure Lion: "Ah, Monkie Kid-" MK:

Legit the only reason Azure is able to get away unscathed is because he's the only one who knows how the Scroll works and MK and the rest of the babus want their parents back.

Red Son is on standby (fire ready) outside the Scroll in case Azure tries some sh-t. But of course that doesn't last long.

Tang, Pigsy, and Sandy: (*released from the scroll. Sees Azure Lion*) All three: "YOU."

Then again this is all with the idea that someone else was additionally pulling the strings to ensure the demons downfall...

[nem0lux3]

Thanks! (⁠´⁠ ⁠.⁠ ⁠.̫⁠ ⁠.⁠ ⁠`⁠)

Actually, I am a lazy Wattpad writer and a traditional artist.. art block and writer's block have been beating me up like hell but I still want to continue the start of my branch for The Monkey King and the Infant AU..

[ultrastarseeker]

RANDOM FANFIC IDEA(that anyone can use if they want, just credit me.)

AU: MK dies from over using his power but Wukong manages to trap his soul into a jar. Now the crew has to figure out how to get MK back, since they want to keep him in their lives. With the help of Nezha, they figured out there’s a potion to rebirth MK but they need a host to get pregnant for it.

Now I’ve created four routes for this AU, I might make more if I want to, but anyways the routes are:

Lotus baby: Nezha takes the potion and pours it into a Lotus seed, he explains that no one needs to actually get pregnant, they just need a host. So Nezha takes care of the Lotus seed until it blooms and reveals a baby monkey MK with faded pink hair. Nezha becomes official brothers with baby MK who now has Flower powers and Monkey king powers.

(TW: Mention of miscarriage)

Dragon egg: Mei takes the potion and explained that her mother recently had an (unfortunate) unfertilized dragon egg that they could put the potion in. So they take the potion to Mei’s parents and at first they refuse but then Mei’s mother still wanted another baby, so she agreed and put the potion into the egg which fertilized it. Mei’s family takes care of the egg for the next year and nine months and then BOOM, Mixed dragon-monkey toddler MK was born and then raised by Mei’s parents.(btw MK is a toddler because he grew in the egg since dragon hatch from eggs and live a really long time.)

(This is the part where Mpreg is mentioned, so if you’re uncomfortable with that then skip these two routes, Please.)

The freenoodles piglet: Tang decided to be the host since He and Pigsy raised MK, and drank the potion. Pigsy (with the help of the others), help Tang with troubles and joys of pregnancy. When Tang gives birth to Our pride and joy, MK, he now only has a monkey tail and claws while the rest of his body is human. Tang and Pigsy raise MK again but now with the powers edition. :)

The Shadowpeach infant: Wukong begs Pigsy and Tang to let him give birth to MK, since he felt that MK and he developed a Father and child bond and the fact that he feels guilty that MK died from his mistakes. Pigsy and Tang reluctantly agreed(Pigsy: Damn those baby monkey eyes.), and Wukong drinks the potion. Now after everyone talked about it, Wukong was going to stay in Flower Fruit Mountain for the pregnancy since it’s safer but there was a problem, who would help Wukong during his second and third trimester? Suddenly A emo monkey appears! Macaque volunteered since he knows how demon monkeys work since he is one, he can easily tell the others when MK is being born with shadow clones, he has a father-son relationship with MK too, and he already lived on the mountain anyways. (Wukong raised an eyebrow at that but anyways) Wukong agreed and the two of them went to FFM. During this pregnancy, They worked out more of their communication issues and got back together(DBK: for the fifth time in a row!), The Demon Bull Family visited(even though we never got to see how Wukong and the demon family worked it out!), Pigsy and Tang fuss over Wukong like a lot. And then MK is born like a regular monkey demon with Wukong’s powers.

Now here are some extras you can put into the story routes!

Redson having a crisis since she had a crush on MK but getting over it as they realized that his MK won’t be coming back and he should embrace this new MK. (This is for Spicynoodles fans if you want angst for Redson. Also if you want Redson could develop a crush on Mei instead if you’re also a Dragonfruit fan.)

Wukong, Pigsy, Tang and or Macaque fussing over MK’s host like the dads they are. This will annoy the caretakers and they’ll tell them that they need to realize that MK is being taken care and that they(the caretakers) need a break from their fussiness! The MK dads (reluctantly) agree and take a step back. (Wukong and Macaque ignores this and use bug transformations to spy on MK’s host without the Caretakers noticing, expect for Nezha. Don’t worry Nezha scolds them for being clingy.)

Crazy baby MK shenanigans(I gave y’all a lot of potential for this. >:3 )

This is a goofy idea that I randomly made, so just have fun with it. I might make it myself once I’m done with my other fanfics.

[sunny-days-and-warm-mournings]

Please I want to know more about your Son Wukong AUs!

OH!!! OHHH!!! So my inbox really is working after all!!

As for my AUs, well, *fixes bones and coffin nails*

SO I have a LOT of Sun WuKong AUs in my folder, some more fleshed out some not. I think I have about 15 AUs in total if I count the other "What If" scenarios that circles around in my noggin, but the more prominent ones that I'll be showcasing in my blog are: Huānlè Jìjié Dà (of course), Kǎishèng Dàshèng, SāngQī Yǒngjiǔ, SāngQī Zhēngdòu, and Qíyuàn Zhízhèng Guān.

As you can see there's a shit ton of em, which may speak about my malaptive daydreaming mind but hey! I may do with my hyperfixations.

For Huānlè I've already explained some bits about the AU here as well as there, and I'll explain more in the future once I'm done with the lil comic I've been working on ;)

The others HOWEVER, they are a little bit more complex and are interconnected with each other in some ways. For now though, I'll explain the list I've included in this post.

1. Kǎishèng Dàshèng is an AU that is related to the Monkey King Hero Is Back (2015) iteration of the Xiyouji, and this AU takes place after Jiang Liu'er died (or implied to have passed away, but honestly even as it breaks my damn heart and the ending was there I know what it meant). Sun WuKong goes on to some type of redemption after failing to protect the little monk, slaying Yaoguai here and there where major trails and ambushes happen.

He can already activate his golden eye bc it unlocked with some of his abilities when he defeated Hun Dun (can't remember the guy's name right) and with some heavenly interventions SWK knew about the reincarnations of the Golden Cicada (I can't get in too much detail but I'll take it to my notes after some research) and the fates that came with it.

Long story short he was hailed as a protector of children AND a War God after much fuss with demons trying to thwart him, all the while fulfilling his failed promise of protecting Jiang Liu'er through protecting kids like him. The process of this is even more complicated and circles around the idea of quasi-exemption bc "I must protect these young mortals because I failed Liu'er" "I was not strong enough to even save him" "I have fallen from grace long before I was imprisoned" and more, it's not really a "an eye for an eye" thing because SWK chooses to protect and look out for children. He wants to not as an obligation but something beyond that, like a higher form concept of promise and the child's death that sparked this fire. The death of his kid wasn't a power up and more of a realization that "I failed so many people, I left, and what did I get from that? What was the answer of my goal in the end? " I can word that much better but I'm running out of time so—

"Sun WuKong always spat out his guts and fangs laced with fire and ambitions, until infant teeth dropped with his gore."

2. SāngQī Yǒngjiǔ is the darkest of my AUs, holy shit, I've taken everything from this man. You know how we set fire to ant hills because they bit us? Yes, that's how this AU ended up in. The story follows just as much as the beginning of the book, he goes to find the immortal, takes his cudgel from Ao Guang, causes some chaos in Di Yu; but Heaven wasn't having any of that. They did not like this monkey one but and ordered for the "exorcism" of the Huagoushan troops, not batting any more of an eye.

It was a full on genocide. No monkey survived in the fire Yù Huáng ordered to be put upon them, and the mountains died with tens of thousands of monkey individuals either curled up in ashes behind the long gone Shuilian cave or is not set apart from the dead earth.

And guess what? This made Sun WuKong so distraught and full of rage (and so much more emotions). He didn't "die" per say, but his stole was taken back again to Di Yu for judgement. The half-dead half-alive monkey razed great havoc upon Di Yu and almost beat the living shit out of King Qin'guang— who wouldn't? When the whole of your household and home are gone? Forget the crown of the Monkey King or his immortality, he was the patriarch and communal grandfather to the Huagou mountains.

It was Buddha himself who intervened the anguished Sun WuKong's war path and struck a deal with him to stop him from killing King Qin'guang off completely and risk upsetting the balance set in Hell, including the mortal souls and the monkeys' souls. They compromised by striking a deal that concerned SWK "dethroning" King Qin'guang for the time being until every last one of his monkey family's souls were set for the Samsara Cycle, otherwise known as the Reincarnation Cycle. If SWK does not accept this deal then he'd face a much, much, worse punishment that if compared to the genocide of his people and what could've been the Five Elements Mountain imprisonment, it would seem like child's play.

Sun WuKong disrupted what peace was in Di Yu, almost completely turning over the Cycle, and there's darker Hell to suffer for that.

So SWK accepted, rotten and burning unlike flesh and maggots but like nebulae and empty enclaves of world-birthing stars, and accepts King Qin'guang's place only for the small comfort of overseeing his monkeys handed to the Cycle.

It is estimated that that lasted for 6,000 years, possibly more. Sun WuKong spent that time suffering and wallowing in his anguish and loss. The genocide and SWK's reaction also sparked something to other Yaoguai that was near then, or in Pūrvavideha continent that felt the sheer force of horror, agony, pain, and everything else that came from SWK. He also does not a face, only a void where it was supposed to be.

(I can't say he got any justice at all. Or comfort or felt the sun on his fur again. I can't say he recovered.)

3. SāngQī Zhēngdòu follows almost the same plot as SāngQī Yǒngjiǔ, but it wasn't a genocide. This one isn't too fleshed out yet but he stayed as Warlord and wasn't imprisoned because of the Havoc in Heaven. If anything, his relation to other Yaoguai solidified some cases that saved him from being put under Buddha's palm.

Let's just say he hates Yù Huáng's guts (they're both mutually exclusive, which is the greatest idea ever that Heaven came up with ever since sending Erlang Shen's army to raze Huagou), and mingles with other forms of Yaoguai more than ever. There are lots of deals and compromises in my AUs and this one isn't an exception. Sun WuKong doesn't back down when his goal perceives what may be the return of some of his troops.

Hints: God of War, white fur and red robes. Ruler of the Yaoguai Kingdom and the allied sworn brothers

4. Qíyuàn Zhízhèng Guān is a little more lighthearted and purely for shits and giggles (which provides as a pit stop from all the bloody angst).

Sun WuKong is a lot more bastardly here and gives Heaven the troubles they deserve. It started on him being bored out of his mind and thought that the best solution for this is to: tell the Jade Emperor he was bored out of his mind and wants another job, and then wanting freedom without anybody's decree of agreement.

Basically he kinda miraculously convinced Yù Huáng to give him a "raise" from his title as The Great Sage Equalling Heaven (that he knew was an empty title, btw) and Guardian Of The Immortal Peach Orchard. Passive aggressively hinting violence if the old Jade wasn't going to cooperate until he got what he wanted.

Which he did! He became a supervisor for some surprisingly religious stuff related to prayer and worship. Archon and stuff that will lead to greater things in that future, which I won't tell you about just yet ;)

There's actually a fic out there for this bit as well as another AU!

Here are the links:

Peaches And Prayers

White Sun | 白日，甚至在子時辰之前

5. (Bonus) White Sun is an AU that explores the idea of rehabilitation of Huagou Mountain and the monkeys, and that Sun WuKong escaped from Buddha's would-be punishment for him after the havoc in heaven just the last seconds. I may rewrite it to be more accurate to the OG classic but is is what it is right now.

——————————————————————

And that settles it! I can explain in it better and clearer ways but I don't have too much time left, so here they are anyhow! A couple of my more than dozens AUs! I hope you like them and keep asking about them still <3

I will make more art and content for these AUs when I have a better schedule and when our tests are done, so please be patient! I know how to write them I promise JDNKSNS

Anyway, it's time for me to go now! I hope you liked my messy explanation @blastflight :)

[quitealotofsodapop]

Our handsome lotus-demon boy!

We discussed in dm's how Nezha definitely had obvious demonic traits as a child, and when he was revived; he developed lotus flower features.

The hair-cutting was an amazing idea, since we realised that Li Jing and most of the Celestial Realm likely follow Confuscian values. When the Pagoda King exiles Nezha from heaven as punishment for defying him; he cuts Nezha's hair as a mark that he's literally "cut off" from the family.

So in the TMKATI au, when Wukong finds Nezha; he sees a scared pre-teen demon who's just gone through a tramatic separation from his blood family.

Free son.

And since Nezha is finally being raised as a child, and no longer as a soldier or weapon, he begins to age naturally for the first time in centuries. He grows into a handsome, mechanics-obsessed demon.

As for Chenxiang... his role in the story has changed a little bit. But he still reunites with his sifu in the end.

Ty @crazysaru99 so much fkr this wonderful fanart <3

Nezha in his true form for the au ''The monkey king and the infant''

Little Nezha when he was banished and his true glamour was revealed to a child, @quitealotofsodapop we are talking about how in ancient China families banished their children by cutting their hair, that is why he has it short and has kept it that way to be shitty with his sperm donor (Li Jing)

Adult Nezhawe accidentally turned him into Yunxiang dsahvbask Here Nezha wears makeup as something he inherited from raising monkeys once he became an adult, being a way of saying that he left the celestials behind; another stronger proof is that Nez has a phoenix feather on his wrist; in my headcanon Wukong usually identifies his disciples or children in this way (MK with his bandana and Chenxiang with her hair ribbon)

[echo-lore]

Okay I’ve been thinking about this a lot and the idea is like- so you know how in jttw one day in heaven is one year in the earth realm (or something like that) do what if we applied that to when Monkey king left to find the map of the samadhi fire?

And during that time the earth realm became a huge war zone between Lady bone demon and her army versus Mk and his group. The only place that is not controlled over by lady bone is Megaopolis and it’s surrounding areas

Mk sides is made up pretty much anyone who was able to survive LBD attacks and Mk becomes some type of general/commander as he leads people to fights or get resources etc.

And after a couple of years (days for wukong) Mk ends up finding Monkey kid during one of their missions and he is fucking ecstatic while everyone is pissed that Monkey king left- basically the whole reason why Mk was forced to take as much responsibility as he was forced to. Which leads to Mei absolutely refusing to cooperate with Monkey King while everyone else who’s part of the rebellion against LBD just fucking hates him while Mk is just glad his back.

During this whole thing Monkey king has to deal with the fact the city and world he knew has drastically change without him noticing. He also has to deal with the fact that Mk isn’t the same kid he used to be , years on the battlefield and leadership changing him.

Bonus: Maybe macaque is on Mk side and wukong now has to deal with the fact that Mk has more trust and looks up to macaque more than he does him.

[cryptic-underground]

Wrote another part for the "karaoke dream" fic thing, you can read all the parts together under the title "A Night Out That Felt Like A Dream.." on AO3 if you're interested.

As always this references @animemoonprincess 's Giggle Glow au but for this one I also added Peace-of-arts on yt fillet au since I thought it fit the vibe I wanted for the fic.

TW/CW: contains mentions and imagery of character death and blood, as well but of self destructive talk

Word count: 5832

Dreaming For Hope

Sun Wukong felt the breeze rush by him as he quickly dashed forward, his laughter being carried with the wind as his glowed a bright yellow almost white. The fabric of his clothes bellowing like sails on a ship in the warm air.

Why is he running? The baby monkeys of course.

They usually are well behaved, finding some entertainment around the mountain to occupy themselves or occasionally cling to him. Today, however, they had decided to be mischievous little things. 

Wukong had been sifting through old documents, they had been living in a forgotten desk for a few hundred years and he'd only now gotten around to organizing them all. They were dull, to put it kindly, being reports mainly. Nothing that mattered now seeing as it's been years, the king was pretty sure he started having people report to him in person rather than by letter soon after these were sent. 

He had welcomed the change of pace when the baby monkeys had come into his study, becoming bored with documents rather quickly and was honestly looking for a distraction. What he didn't welcome so much was prank they pulled on him.

They essentially dumped a mix of berries, mud and leaves on him. The gunk staining his fur and clothes. Luckily though none of the papers getting splattered, they were dreadfully dull but we're important records to keep even so. 

The infants had scattered away soon after the prank was played. Snickering to themselves as they hastily left to hide. 

Wukong had picked up part of what had fallen on his head, looked down at the document then smirking before taking off and running after them. The documents had waited for his attention for a few hundreds years, they could spare to wait a little longer he figured.

The sage could easily catch them, being able to teleport and fly, but there wasn't much fun in that. The game would be over too soon. So he purposely slowed his pace, allowing them a chance to feel victorious.

When they had made it to the entrance of the temple, he leaped forward and picked them up into his arms. "You really got me guys!" Wukong commented, ruffling one the infants' fur playfully as they chirped at him happily.

He froze when he heard someone clear their throat, halting his movements suddenly.

"I guess I'm interrupting" to that the stone monkey's head snapped up, and he felt his face burned. 'Of course he chose when I have mud in my fur to visit' he cursed bitterly in his head, just his luck.

The king allowed the infants to jump out of his arms, them having sense the tense between the two and deciding to scampering off to another part of the mountain instead of staying. Leaving the two demon monkeys alone. "Macaque hi- this is a surprise!" He squeaked out.

"Your appearance makes that pretty telling" Macaque chuckled, glowing a bright silver, pointing amusingly at the state of the Great Sage's fur. 

Wukong grumbled, embarrassment evident in his face. "The baby monkeys played a trick on me, that's why uh- I'm like this" gesturing towards himself.

The shadow weaver smirked and he felt his chest flutter a bit, a feeling he was growing used to again. "Then remind me to give them a high five the next time I see them for their job well done" the other teased, voice full of mischief. 

"Must my suffering always be something you enjoy?" Wukong said through a groan which only caused the darker of two to laugh more, glowing brighter. The stone monkey secretly relishing in old friend displaying his enjoyment so freely, even if was at the cost of his own current displeasure.

Macaque laughter settled and so too the glow of his face, causing the king to frown slightly from lack of it, a soft smile being placed on his tanned face. It remained there briefly, only for a short while before he realized and replaced it with a more wicked looking one. Putting on the expected sly demeanor everyone had grown accustomed to seeing from the demon. "Who am I if not the person who finds content in your pain hm?" Putting on a voice of saccharin innocence.

Wukong forced his mouth to shut, words sitting near his lips that he wouldn't allow himself the chance to say. Sappy ones he was sure wouldn't come out right, heavy words he didn't feel justified saying maybe ever. 

"Why did you visit Macaque?" He decided on saying instead, the previous ones burning the back of his throat like they were smoke clogging his lungs.

The demon monkey bravo seemed to falter a bit "y'know just wanted to annoy you a bit, what I usually come to see you for.." hiding more in the red fabric of his scarf with every word that left him. The sage hummed, sensing their was more to it. 

He shrugged, turning around and walking back into the temple "whatever you say." Calling out "you can come in y'know" when Macaque hadn't instantly followed him inside.

Wukong lend him to the kitchen, gesturing for him to sit at the small table he had it the room. It was hardly use except for certain instances when his successor came into the temple. 

He took off his head piece, sitting it on the counter, his cape and chest armor coming off soon after. With those out of the way, he began to wash the gunk out of his fur in the sink. 

Normally, when he wasn't clean, he would shower or go to a river to wash it off but the shadow weaver had unexpectedly visited and he didn't feel comfortable leaving him alone. For now anyway. Though the other monkey had redeemed himself slightly, and he was sure there wasn't anything in his place that would be of interest to him, it didn't feel right to leave him just yet. Chalk it up to paranoia.

"If you're here to annoy me, you're doing a pretty lackluster job at it" he jabbed as he felt the cool water rush over his head, washing the dirt into the sink.

He watched the muck swirl into the drain before scrubbing to get whatever didn't already wash out. He didn't worry about whether the other could hear him over the faucet, he knew well that he very much could.

The king both hoped and feared that Macaque would read into the hidden meaning he had put into those sentence, the secret words he had been putting behind the ones he said when he talked to the other demon for last while. That the reason he wasn't annoyed was because he had been looking forward to this visit, it just had to have happened when the auburn monkey had just been tricked.

Because, truthfully, he was happy that the shadow monkey had shown up. He had been patiently, well more so impatiently, for him to arrive at the mountain. Wukong nearly flying over to the other's dojo multiple times before promptly reminding himself and heading back, sometimes being right outside Macaque's place and having to use his limited impulse control to not go inside. 

It was why he had thrown himself into organizing his belongings, why he had been looking through those documents not even thirty minutes ago. He was trying to distract himself, and failing miserably.

When he wasn't waiting for the shadow weaver's arrival, he was attempting to think about what he'll say. Trying to encompass everything he needed, wanted to say to his old friend in a way that couldn't be misconstrued. Buddha knows they have a lot of misunderstandings between them already.

This was a hard task to accomplish when he wasn't even sure what Macaque was going to say. If what Wukong was going to say would contradict what the other was saying without  the intention to, then they would be back at square one in a flash.

Xiaotian had been helpful to remind him that it's important that they both get what they want to say off their chest. Even if you believe something one of you says is incorrect, you should still allow the person the floor to talk until they're done and then you can address how you feel about it when it's your turn to talk. "And if you feel you're losing patience with him," his kid had started to say once when they were taking a break from training "take a breather, this is important and you can mess it up if you don't have the patience to listen clearly."

Xiaotian was young, but he knew how to give advice when it's needed. Something the sage felt a twinge of guilt about. That he, a person with a thousands of years worth of life time, needs a person that's not even middle age to give him advice on how to do something. A bit shameful really..

"That's because I haven't been trying to annoy you yet" Macaque had jabbed back, holding a cheshire cat like smirk on his face that he saw through his peripheral. Even with his eyes not on him, he put on this act. The overly confident, always scheming villian act he did.

And that was part of the shadow monkey, he usually had something up his sleeve. But this.. this act was a caricature of the true Macaque, the one that could be gentle and kind as well as cunning. He wondered if he acted this way when he was alone too, incase someone out there was watching him..

'Do you ever allow yourself to breathe?' Wukong thought, but really he wasn't one to be able to criticize the other's stage act. Since he too acted like how he was expected to be; the hero that couldn't make mistakes, ever.

"Really now? And how come you haven't started?" He asked playfully, lifting his head out of the sink. Small droplets of water dripping from his still soaked fur.

He noticed Macaque's face flush for a split second before the shadow weaver had glamoured it away, and Wukong swore he saw the other's eyes flick up towards his wet fur before looking away quickly.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say the Great Sage is wanting me to annoy him" the darker monkey prompt up a hand as he allowed his head to be supported by it. "Is the king happy to see me?" He said in a false sweet voice, fluttering his lashes to complete the picture, causing the king to scoff. A smile threatening to make it's way on the stone monkey's face.

He preferred when they were like this, playful, joking. No fighting, their words without the usual venom flowing through them. These moments were rare, but seemed to becoming more common.

It has been months since they had defeated the Lady Bone Demon. At first, Macaque and Sun Wukong could barely stay in the same room without one of them picking a fight with one another. They had their moments still, but it's getting better.

"Yeah, you're such a delight" he remarked sarcastically, taking a seat next to the shadow monkey. Mango, a nickname he used to call the other, had almost slipped out then. It seemed foreign to his lips now, the now ancient nickname, as though it was a word it didn't recognize any longer. If he were to say it, a different voice would come out instead of his own.

Macaque chuckled, glowing but not as bright as before which hurt to see, "I know I am" he commented.

They sat silently . Wukong fiddling with his fingers as they were placed on the table, Macaque doing the same but with his scarf.

"Why are you here?" He asked, his voice gentle "because I don't believe it was to annoy me like you had said it was."

The sage saw the shadow weaver's throat bob as he had gulped nervously, refusing to meet the gold eyes that bore into him.

"Macaque-"

"You forgot a leaf in your fur when you washed the stuff out, I'll get it" his old friend had interrupted, ignoring the question completely, quickly standing and reaching the supposed leaf he hadn't gotten. Sticking in a the fur around his temple.

Truthfully Wukong hadn't felt a thing, so for all he knew it could've been a cheap way to avoid answering.

The shadow demon's fingers lightly graze his scalp as he plucked the the leaf and held it between his finger. Wukong felt as though lightening had struck through him from the small touch. He had forgotten how gentle the other could be if he wanted to. "You always were so messy Wukong" Macaque had intented it to be a jab but it didn't hold the poison it needed to be one, even to be playful, his voice sounding shaky and nervous instead.

As he had tried to pull his hand away, leaf still gripped between two fingers, Wukong grasped his wrist. His hold was soft, enough to get the monkey's attention but not anything that could hurt.

"Macaque" the ash monkey's ears twitched as he called his name weakly but didn't make a move to look at the sage. If anything, the other monkey was purposely avoiding it.

"Please."

He sighed. "MK told me you wanted to talk a while ago during training, the day after he had checked up on you.." Wukong let go of the other's wrist, missing the touch as the darker of the two took his seat again.

"I want to talk too.. I don't want to just get whatever's on my chest off it, I want you to do that as well, I want us to get closure" he said earnestly "that's if you want to talk about it today.. no pressure obviously!"

He chuckled in an attempt to ease some of the tension that was building up inside, glowing orange.

"I did come over to talk, I still want to talk I just.. didn't think it would be this hard to"

The stone monkey nodded. "I didn't think it would be this hard either.." he sighed, scratching at some fur on his cheek "I mean we've had all this pent up for centuries, it's like I have all this stuff I wanna say.. but everytime I try it comes out wrong or I can't say any of it."

"I know what you mean.. we can at least be glad we've lived long enough to talk about it right? Imagine if we weren't immortal, we've had been two grouchy ol' guys that died without any reconciliation" Macaque joked causing the other to laugh.

After his laughter settled, Wukong allowed his body to relax in his seat. "How bout this," he began "since you're the guest, you can go first and I'll try to not talk until it's my turn sound good?"

"Wow Wukong letting someone else go? How selfless of you," "yeah yeah just go" the other smirked but didn't add anything else.

"You'd left me.. at the mountain without knowing where you were then the next time I see you, you were on some journey with people I didn't recognize and were allowing them to hurt you. I was so confused and frustrated and hurt! I couldn't understand you ever choosing to go with them willingly so I blame them for you not coming back. That they had some how brain washed you.." he eventually said, chewing on his scarf after he finished.

"You had left me first, under that mountain, for five hundred years" Wukong said when the other hadn't continued, his eyes gazed up and met gold. The shadow monkey had grimaced a tad at his statement, thick eyebrows knitting together and tired eyes glared at the table before softening. Looking sad instead of angry. He nodded to allow the sage to continue.

"I believed you forgot about me, so it seemed perfectly reasonable at the time to go with the people that had freed me from that stupid rock. But them hurting me... After a few years I started to think I deserved it. they made me feel like a tool, I was practically just a tool to them anyway, 'Wukong get that demon!' 'Wukong get me something to eat'" the stone monkey paused, harbouring a shaky breath as he pushed back tears "but then you made it worse when you came to 'save me.'"

"You made them lose all trust in me from your little shadow act.. I became even more of a monster to them..." The warrior forced his lips together, laying both hands on the table to wordlessly convey obedience. Wukong stood up suddenly, a hand shakily covering his mouth as he paced around the room. Macaque stayed put.

The king gave a watery laugh, his gold eyes filled with unshed tears, he turned to the other monkey; causing him to sit up straighter. "You wanna know the sick part? After everything- all the protecting, the fighting and everything I gave to that journey?" He asked, gaze never staying in one spot.

Sun Wukong felt barely sane, why was he suddenly so emotional? He hadn't cried since he found out his brothers had died. 

Macaque was also in this discussion and he wasn't tearing up, he was always more emotional than him so then why..was he crying? 

Wukong felt so weak, so cold, so breakable. He couldn't look in the other's eyes, he knew if he did then he would be crying for real..

He choked down a sob. The auburn monkey lifted a hand to his head and pulled harshly at a golden string of magic that was part of the glamours he wore everyday. He pulled at another, and another until the glamours around his head were gone. Revealing the gold fillet Qian Yin had given Tripitaka to put on him. To teach him self control. 

Macaque stumbled out of his sit, walking slowly over as his eyes began to feel wet. "They never..." He remarked quietly, grasping at the sage's sleeves. Sun Wukong lowered his head, that was all the answers the shadow weaver needed. 

"After everything I did.. all the times I saved them from harm.. treated them as nice as I could, follow their rules... They still saw the need to have a collar on me" the hero sobbed, tugging his old friend closer. The king cried violently into the darker monkey's shoulder, the two dropping to the kitchen floor as their legs could no longer hold them up. 

Macaque rubbed circles into his back, holding in his own sobs. He had been the victim between them enough, the shadow weaver had figured, it had been high time the Great Sage was allowed to be vulnerable.

"The celestial realm had kept me from visiting, or freeing you, I suppose any monkeys they thought were affiliated with you couldn't be trusted" he said quietly after Wukong had eventually calmed down enough, letting the stone monkey rest his head on his shoulder "I was too cowardly to try and sneak by.. they may have stuck me under a mountain too if I'd tried, and I wasn't exactly immortal at that point so if I was under one I'd be dead within a few days."

He sighed, glaring down at the tiles on the floor "I don't know why I thought disguising myself as you would work, then attacking them as you- gods I'm stupid!" Macaque smacked his forehead angrily. Wukong pouted at the action but let the other continue. 

"I should've just talked to the monk and see if I could get you out of the journey or join myself so you'd at least have someone on your side during them treating you so poorly" the shadow monkey removed his hand as he hid in the sage's fur "I really did deserve to get killed.." he mumbled quietly.

Sun Wukong hit his arm causing Macaque to yelp. "Don't ever say that!" The king demanded, eyes narrowing. 

"Wukong I've clearly done more to you than you have to me, abandoned you under a mountain practically, I impersonated you, tried to kill your friends and that's not even counting the crap I did after being revived! You were obviously in the right to kill-"

"No-!" His hand covered Macaque's lips, the other sitting startled. Slowly he removed it, intertwining their fingers. Wukong heartbeat felt it was booming in his chest.

"Sure.. you did shit, I'm not going to refute that, but don't tell me it give me the right to kill my best friend!" His gold eyes looked pained as he shouted, looking close to crying once more. 

"I was called a monster because of what you did but it hurt even more than usual since I felt like one from what I had done to you.."

"Wukong.." the shadow weaver whispered, grabbing hold of the stone monkey's other hand.

"I can't lose you again" he rest their foreheads against one another, his voice break as the sage attempted to hold down sobs so he could speak. "I can't.." he sputtered through tears.

"You won't, I promise.."

--

The two monkeys laid bundled together in Wukong's room, cuddled close.Their heads resting gently against one another, the other's form the only keeping them upright. Tails wrapped together much like that fated night.

They had moved some time ago, the shadow weaver complaining about being stiff on the tiled floor. And they had gotten to the room, Wukong had made quick of tossing Macaque onto the bed before joining himself. The shadow demon had scoffed after he had righted himself but moved closer nonetheless.

The king exhaled softly, letting his eyes close. Content.

"Macaque" he said quietly, opening his eyes ever so slightly to gaze upward to the other, giving the other's arm a slight nudge. The darker monkey hummed in acknowledgement, half dozing off from the sage's warmth, glancing to the side at the auburn one sat next to him.

"Do you think you could sing for me?" He asked, voice just as quiet. Face slightly heated up as the shadow weaver stared at him; confused.

"I could. But why would you want that exactly?"

Sun Wukong shrugged. "Just wanna hear you sing mainly I guess, you used to sing quite a bit when we were younger, when I heard you sing that night at karaoke.... It made me realize how much I missed your singing" he answered. "Your voice is.. pretty" He added but restrained himself from saying and so are you, the sage didn't feel like testing the waters with that. He was already asking a lot to hear him sing again.

Macaque glanced away, seeming to be pondering the request. Leaning away a bit from the other, making Wukong frown slightly.

"I suppose I can sing something for you" the shadow demon eventually said, causing the golden monkey's ears to perk up. 

"I can't think of any cheery tunes though.." the other had warned with a sigh. The king smiled "that's fine, sing me whatever song you can think of!"

Macaque nodded, pausing to think again. Sitting more upright as to not have his voice be stifled from slouching.

"Okay I got one."

Sun Wukong waited patiently, getting comfy as the shadow monkey cleared his throat. "Now it’s just my luck to have the watch, with nothing left to do" his voice became gentle, reminding Wukong of the friend he had known so well centuries ago.

His old friend's face was soft, eyes half lidded and curtained by long dark lashes. His gold eyes, a lighter shade than his own, locked onto the blanket below them. "But watch the deadly waters glide as we roll north to the ‘Soo’," the shadow sung "and wonder when they’ll turn again and pitch us to the rail"

From the first lines, the stone monkey wasn't able to place the song. It was western for sure but not the usual songs he'd hear from there, he couldn't of imagine Macaque knowing a song like this.

"And whirl off one more youngster in the gale." He rested his head against the other's shoulder, closing his eyes. It felt odd to keep staring at the shadow weaver, though he wasn't complaining about the view he was being given... But figured he might get questioned if the sage were to continue. Staring intently at the person you just reconciled with doesn't give the most compelling show of politeness or lack of ill feelings towards the person, kinda gives the impression you're might want to fight. Probably doesn't help ease the mind when you know that said person staring at you has laser eyes..

"The kid was so damned eager. It was all so big and new" Wukong smiled fondly, eyes still shut, memories of two spry monkeys coming to mind. One black, one brown.

His fur used to be darker when he was younger, it had turned more golden as he had gained new powers and immortality. As though it were bleeding into every aspect of him, becoming one. He almost wished it had done the same for his eyes, instead of him having to glamour them to be gold.

They had originally been a brown colour, much like his fur but darker, boring though presentable. Until heaven had stuck him in the brazier and the smoke turned his eyes red. The king hadn't minded them much at first, didn't really think about it much with being shoved under a mountain, it had only started to become aware to him during the journey. People pointing out how monstrous they looked made them into an insecurity, and it became tenfold once he was turning into a household name. Glamours to hide the hideous colour and glowing in the dark factor soon followed.

"You never had to tell him twice, or find him work to do."

Wukong could remember the first time Macaque had saw him with the red eyes, he had been so nervous but the shadow monkey had embraced him as though it hadn't even been something to think about.

He was Sun Wukong, his Sun Wukong, and that all that mattered to the darker monkey. To have his Sun once more.

But then, in seemingly a blink, he had to leave the mountain to join the journey again. And the next time Macaque saw him... It looked as though that veil of love and admiration had been ripped to shreds in front of his eyes. That he had become the red-eyed monster everyone else saw and he was meant to be the exception from. Like the red-eyed monster had taken away his Sun, because in some truth, it had.

Wukong sighed softly, trying to keep in near silent to not interrupt Mac's singing. "And evenings on the mess deck he was always first to sing" the stone monkey thought it a shame, earnestly, that more hadn't heard the shadow weaver sing. He was certain if the monkey had truely wanted to be singer he very well could've been one, he most definitely had the stage presence. But if he was being fully truthful, though a shame more couldn't hear it, he found himself special because of this. To be of the few to hear the demon's singing—until recently he had been the only one—and selfishly he wanted to keep it that way.

Be the only audience to the Moon's symphony.

"And show us pictures of the girl he’d wed in spring" the king blushed at that, thankfully the warrior was too forced on remembering the lyrics to notice. 

He recalled once that him and Baije had been chatting one day during the journey, to pass the time between monk kidnappings. It had been relatively boring stuff, things they heard from neighboring villages mainly, until his brother had brought up something that surprised him. The pig demon had asked a question about whether someone waiting back home for him and he remembered misunderstanding what the other meant.

Wukong had thought he was speaking generally, just anyone at all waiting for him to return (friends, family, and subjects). So he went on to talk about Macaque, how much he missed the shadow monkey and how he couldn't wait to see him again. It turns Bajie had meant someone in the romantic sense...

The other ended up teasing him about it for the next day or so, and not only because of the mix up. He was just relieved that hadn't been included in the Journey to the West book.

"But I told that kid a hundred times 'don’t take the Lakes for granted.

They go from calm to a hundred knots so fast they seem enchanted.'" 

He felt something touch his hand, before the something joined their hands together. 'Mac you idiot ' he whined in his head, feeling his stomach twist. Wukong knew how utterly ridiculous he was being, but it's hard to even think with something so... alluring? Next to him. Macaque would know the right word.

"But tonight some red-eyed Wiarton girl lies staring at the wall, and her lover’s gone into a white squall..." The shadow weaver's voice became sad as he sang the verse. Sun Wukong felt it too. 

Macaque's body lying cold and absent, void of life, upon the battlefield. He was batted and bruised, yet doll like in an unsettling sort of way.. as if he could be mistaken for just being asleep.

"Now it’s a thing that us oldtimers know. In a sultry summer calm

There comes a blow from nowhere, and it goes off like a bomb."

Sun Wukong gazing down towards his hands, covered in blood and dirt but unharmed. Not a drop of his own had hit the ground or ever graced his fur..

"And a fifteen thousand tonner can be thrown upon her beam-"

Gazing around at the destroyed valley, the ruined mountains and trees..

He had made the Earth shed it's blood..

Looking back at his hands, 'not my blood' he thought as felt himself fall to his knees.

"-While the gale takes all before it with a scream."

Crying and screaming over Macaque, pleading for him to wake up..

He squeezed the darker monkey's hand. Opening his eyes to make sure his old friend was still next to him and alive, the shadow squeezing his hand in response.

Wukong sighed. Relieved.

"The kid was on the hatches, lying staring at the sky. From where I stood I swear I could see tears fall from his eyes" he glanced up, noticing that the other's gaze had shifted from the blankets to be staring at their interlocked hands and tails. Having a tiny blush colour his face, eyes shining like new stars.

"So I hadn’t the heart to tell him that he should be on a line, even on a night so warm and fine" another squeeze was placed on his hand and he swore the affection was going to end him. Feeling giddy.

"When it struck, he sat up with a start; I roared to him, 'Get down!' but for all that he could hear, I could as well not made a sound."

'Macaque would've been able to hear him' the stone monkey thought, having ignored the dark undertones, thinking about the other monkey's six cute ears. Though he figured they wouldn't be in a situation like that, hopefully, anyway. He's not going to cross out being tossed off a ship just yet, his enemies could be rather creative with their timing.

"So, I clung there to the stanchions, and I felt my face go pale,

As he crawled hand over hand along the rail."

Wukong shivered, the thought of being on a boat a less than friendly one. Stone doesn't exactly float..

"I could feel her keeling over with the fury of the blow. I watched the rail go under then, so terrible and slow" Macaque voice held a pain to it that the auburn monkey could place to one source, eyes turning sad and vacant. He rubbed a thumb across the other's in comforting manner.

The song was making them relive just as much as their earlier conversation had. More so maybe. All of being laid out in front of them, scary and painful but yet cathartic. 

"Then, like some great dog she shook herself and roared upright again. Far overside. I heard him call my name."

He resung the first part again, his voice more melancholic than the first run through of it.

"But tonight some red-eyed Wiarton girl lies staring at the wall," the shadow weaver sung and, for the first time since they entered the sage's room, he looked in Wukong's eyes. And he felt his gut twist as his gold eyes peered into the lighter gold ones. 

"And her lover’s gone into a white squall" he finished and his eyes flickered down again, the stone monkey pouted.

"So what do you think? Live up to your expectations?" Macaque asked with a smirk that looked wobbly, showing the nervousness the monkey was clearly trying to hide.

"It was great! You-" he paused. "You sang really beautifully" the king answered after clearing his throat, eyes flashing pink briefly.

The darker monkey chuckled quietly,using the red cloth to hide the soft silver glow that emitted  from his face, probably only meant to be witness by himself but Wukong noticed. And he took secret pride in it, something he would bost about in his head once the other left. 

He made Macaque laugh earlier sure, and many times before that, but that was before they talked about the past. When they were bantering. The stone monkey had worried that opening old wounds would make the shadow monkey close up again after their progress, though it seemed that it had done the opposite. The other seemed to be more open to him, which was good. It'd make more talks in the future easier.

The two immortal monkeys fell silent. Enjoying one another presence as they say comfortably on the king's bed.

"Wukong" Mac said gently, echoing earlier when Sun Wukong had done the same to him.

"Yes?"

The shadow weaver breathed, chewing at his scarf. Then sighed as he let go of the stone monkey's hand as he began getting up to leave "it's nothing.. forget it."

The king grabbed his sleeving and made him stop in his tracks. Macaque quickly shook it away away, saying a quiet "see ya around Peaches.." before sinking into the floor.

Wukong sat there in shock, letting the hand he had used to reach out to the other monkey fall against the mattress. "Yeah, see ya 'round Mango.." he whispered before standing up and leaving his room, making sure to reapply the glamours to his fillet.

Linked together,

The two monkeys are,

Great distance between them

But tethered by memories.

Much like tails,

The Sun and Moon remain together.

Linked.