#we know he used to be an overlord and we assume that comes with all the terrible overlord qualities

[justarandomhelluvablog]

having thoughts about how Husk actually has very little left to redeem bc he started his journey of self-change before even coming to work at the hotel, but at the same time redemption isn't even his goal- he ain't even aiming for heaven, he just wanted to be a better person and maybe now with friends and especially Angel, who he supports so much and wants to see succeed, maybe now he has a reason to be a better person

[signedkoko]

HEHEHHEE OPEN REQUESTS???

Hello koko! I was summoned by your open requests, and I just had an idea, how about headcanons/one shot for Alastor and Vox (separately) with a reader who has powers a bit like Toge Inumaki in JJK?( I saw that you were watching JJK so I assume you know how his powers works) like what do they think about it? how do they react when reader uses her powers? How they communicate with her?

THANKS FOR READING MY REQUEST DEAR KOKO! HAVE A GOOD DAY/NIGHT

-🐚

Alastor | Vox X Reader [Romantic]

In which your speech causes action, so you can't speak unless you wish to control others. Reader is female.

When you first came to the hotel, Alastor was not impressed

You were certainly a gorgeous sight, but it was ruined by the device in your hands that you had your nose buried in, screen lighting ruining your face

It took him quite a while when he heard strings of words emanating from the device to realize you were speaking through it, your fingers pressing on keys faster than he could follow

You introduced yourself to everyone that day, as a new hire for the hotel, and how you couldn't speak but hoped it wouldn't get in the way

He was certainly irked by the device in your hands, but it was funny to see someone so weak that they had to rely on a flimsy device made by an even flimsier overlord

Truly a shame

You learn the hard way not to get too close to him while using your device, or else it starts to act up and get damaged

Alastor still spoke to you; of course he did! Because he was amused knowing you couldn't retort

But eventually, without noticing, he would talk more and more, filling every aspect of the silence between you

You were the best listener, both since you had no choice and because you didn't give any shitty advice

The only thing that weirded him out was the weird clicking he started to hear around you

Something about it was so familiar

J-E-R-K-J-E-R-K-J-E-R

When he looked down at your hand and saw a clicker in your hand, he realized what you were doing

Of course he knew morse code by heart! He studied all sorts of things, but he wasn't sure why you'd do things that way when you had a much easier device

Unless you did it just for him?

R-K-J-E-R-K-J

" And who are we calling names, my voiceless companion? "

Y-O-U

Still, it's very touching to see you go from using your phone to putting it away when you come to him to talk

And not much changes since you can't get out too many words with your morse method

One evening, while on a walk together, Alastor was reciting to you how he'd come to work for Charlie and how she sang on the news for so many to see! When a group of assassins surrounded the two of you, angel steel weapons were on full display

Before Alastor handled them—which, let's be fair, would be no issue to him—you pulled quicker on the draw

" COMATOSE. "

You yelled it with your hands clamped over Alastors ears, and the instant the word came out, they all dropped, beyond unconcious

Alastor laughs, because wow, that was quite the display!

But he's already dragging you over them to continue talking, now teasing you for treating him like a helpless damsel

He was certainly glad that he hadn't made an enemy of you when he first saw you, because you may stand a chance against him with an ability like that

Most sinners had some kind of ability that grew with their power, often souls under contract or training enhancing them

Vox himself had plenty of tricks under his sleeves, and he'd seen the most pathetic of abilities to those worth cowering before

But he'd never heard of something like yours

Overlords loved showing off their resources, which could include people who became very useful in battle

You were a 'friend' of Zestial, though, while most jumped at the opportunity to introduce themselves to other overlords, you only waved

Of course you piqued his interest, because when he ran his servers over you, he found little to nothing beyond pictures

After several days of stalking video feeds, he caught you and Zestial together when—oh fuck! You sign!

While he could have just waited for the next opportunity, Vox was far too invested in your story and opted to pay Zestial a visit, if it meant he could see you

From what he could tell, you were using ASL, so once he bumped into you he began signing his typical introduction

Something about his heart sparked when he saw you smile, the way those curious eyes sparkled

He was immediately embarrassed when you revealed he didn't have to sign because you could hear

But he was all healed when you signed that you were very glad to have met someone else you could talk with

Vox is used to the overstimulation of noises from news, music, footage, all of it always beaming into his head so much that the silence around you is eerie and takes him awhile to get used to

Zestial certainly has an ace; one Vox is jealous of

Since you got along so well, you and Vox schedule meet-ups so you can interact, seeing as he and Zestial are almost exact opposites

The first time he witnesses your powers is when Alastor shows up at one of your meetings, and he was certainly trying to embarrass Vox in front of you

But Vox was your friend, and you had no tolerance for Alastors threats

" Silence. "

From your lips poured a thick fog, which whisped its way over Alastor's mouth, forming a seal that prevented him from speaking

The radio demon wasn't pleased, but he wasn't about to act up a scene right now, so he turned and left

Vox immediately fanboys because, oh my FUCKING GOD, you showed him!!!

Wait, you can talk? You sound like that?

YOUR POWERS DID THAT???

He is about to waste your evening asking all kinds of things, you probably can't sign as fast as he can ask, too

Author's Note - Conch anon gets only the BEST of the BEST!!! I did like writing these anyways though, because i adore Inumaki...thank you for requesting!

[revelboo]

Do you have any plans to write for any mtmte villians? Pharma, tyrest, the djd, overlord etc? In the mtmte rodimus fic brainstorm mentiones that there might be humans outside of the lost light as well, so i wonder if that's how you plan to write those ones (assuming you will at some point) ��

I do. Two little guys and one rabid dog today

L.G. Fuad

IDW Tarn x Reader

• “No,” he growls, trying to walk away from Nickel and that organic animal she has in her servos. Ignoring as best he can when she jogs after him. Megatron, give him strength to deal with this lunacy. Especially as she cuts him off and holds it up at arm’s length, it’s little head lolling forward. Out cold either from terror or the trauma of being caught by the Pet. And he knows exactly why Nickel had saved the thing, it’s even smaller than she is. “We have a pet, remember?”

• “But it’s cute and helpless. It needs us,” she protests. Helpless just means weak and weak things don’t survive. Don’t deserve to survive. Optics narrowing behind his mask, he vents tiredly. Wouldn’t it be better to leave it here to die or have let the Pet mauled it? It’s not like any of them know anything about organics, but staring down at Nickel, there’s no denying her. She’s asks for so little and does so much. Relenting, he kneels to prod at the thing with a servo and sensing victory, Nickel thrusts it into his hands. “Watch it for a second.” And she’s hurrying off leaving him with this small, pathetic thing warm in his servos.

• Wanting to demand she come back, because letting her keep this thing doesn’t mean he wants anything to do with it. But it shifts in his servos, a little hand bumping against his palm. And the skin is red and broken from the Pet. It’s honestly amazing there’s not more damage, almost like the Pet was playing not trying to kill it. Studying the little thing, it’s the similarities that nag at him, make him uncomfortable. Its little face is curiously almost Cybertronian. Similar body shape to a crude protoform, same number of fingers as his own servos. Just horribly, eerily soft and organic.

• Carrying it to a chair and sitting in the medbay, he uses the clawed tip of a servo to nudge its head. Like a Cybertronian, but not. A mockery really. Too weak and fragile to be anything like they are. Little bones under flesh that will snap with the slightest pressure. So why does he keep toying with it? Touching it to feel that strange soft give its skin has or the steady beat of its heart. It’s alien and ugly. Soft and warm. Not his problem at all and he needs to stress that to Nickel. This thing is her pet, not his. He doesn’t care if it lives or dies at all even as it curls into a ball against his servos and makes a soft, pained sound, forehead pressing against him.

Next

[reticent-writer]

Hiii, can you please write another fic about a teenage reader (16-18) and anybody from hazbin hotel. It can be about anything

HEloooo

Alastor x teen reader platonic

Headcannon by @ghostly-one: "During Alastor's absence, Reader went to the overlord meetings in his place"

✿✼:*ﾟ:.｡..｡.:*･ﾟﾟ･**･ﾟﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*ﾟ:*:✼✿　

*knock knock knock*

You heard as you groaned and pushed your head up from your pillow.

"It's me, Y/n." You could hear the radio static through your door, "I have an errand to run and would like for you to join me."

"I'll be down in a minute." You replied as you started to get up.

------

"Oh, boy whats the plan, boss?"

"I like your suits."

"What are the antlers for?"

"Can I touch your ~staff thing~?"

"Are those your ears? or is it your hair? I can't tell."

The egg boiz were annoying the fuck outta you and Alastor. If you knew they would've tagged along, you wouldn't have come even if you were going to an overlord meeting.

"Hark Alastor, Y/n. How fare thee this day." Zestial appeared from nowhere in front of the both of you.

"Good evening Zestial, It's nice to see you again." You greeted with a smile as Alastor quickly threatened the eggs.

"Greetings Zestial." Alastor said as the sinners around you three started to take notice and run.

"Ah, the weather doth become this fine day."

"Indeed. Looks like we might have some acid rain this afternoon."

"If our luck doth hold! I do revel in the screams. How art thou? It has been an age since thou hath graced us with thy presence. Y/n hast been in thy lodging since thee've been gone." Zestial looked to you with a pleased expression as he patted your shoulder before continuing his conversation with Alastor.

"Some hath spun wild tales of you falling into... Holy arms."

"Hahaha Oh, I just took a well-earned sabbatical. Nothing serious. Though it's fun to keep everyone of their toes."

"There too hath been rumour of thy involvement with the princess and her recent flight of fancy. TELL ME, how does thou fall in such folly." Zestial would've creeped you out if you weren't used to his (and Alastor's) over-the-top and old-timey ways.

"That is more me to know. But please do guess. I'd love to know the theories."

"T'would be grander folly by far to assume the workings of your mind, Alastor. Thou hath been naught but an enigma since thy manifested in this realm."

"Coming from someone as ancient as you, I take that as quite the compliment."

The three of you made it the the building where the meeting would be taking place as you and Zestial stepped into the elevator you waiting for Alastor to tell the eggs to wait for him before pressing the button.

-------

You sat in between Alastor and one of Carmilla's daughters.

"Welcome, Hell sovereign overlords. I've invited you all here because you represent the controlling powers of out city. Together you own millions of souls. Souls at risk with the new extermination schedule. We need to discuss what can be done to minimize the impact to our interest." Carmilla said matter-of-factly. "Zestial, so good to see you, my friend."

"Enchanted as always Carmilla." He said as he sipped his tea.

Carmilla was about to look around the room when she spotted Alastor. The face that she made nearly made you laugh.

"Alastor?"

"Yes, I know I've been absent some time. I'm sure you've all been wondering." Alastor spoke like he'd been waiting 7 years just to say that.

"Not really. But welcome back in any case." She dismissed him. You could hear the static abruptly stop and had to bite your lip so you wouldn't laugh.

Once the meeting started you zoned out staring at the wall. To be honest you didn't really care about the meetings you were only there to show your face and now that Alastor is back it gave you less of a reason to care, but interesting things did happen quite often.

Like Velvette wanting a war with the exterminators.

✿✼:*ﾟ:.｡..｡.:*･ﾟﾟ･**･ﾟﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*ﾟ:*:✼✿　

Zestial translation: It would be much more foolish to think that I understand how your mind works, Alastor. You have always been a mystery to me ever since you came into this world. (just thought it would be nice to add this.)

@ghostly-one

This is choppy and rushed but parade season is starting soon and I have a lot of performances before then too.

[aeithalian]

What even are the ancient laws?

I've been meaning to get around to this one for ages.

Anyways! Good question, guys! Answer: nobody fucking knows. Sure, we have good ideas. The laws are mentioned every now and then as a "oh, no little mortal child I can't help you - that's against the ancient laws. But hey! You can help me."

Let's be honest: the ancient laws, while there might be legitimate reasons for some of them, have transformed into yet another way that the gods hold themselves as the high and mighty overlords of the world, and keep their mortal offspring below them at all costs. But... why? Are the demigods really that dangerous to the gods? The answer: yes, but not to the gods - to Zeus.

Let's start from the beginning and list out everything we know about the laws. I did the hard work, you're welcome:

1. Gods cannot steal each others' symbols of power.

2. A god cannot initiate a fight with a mortal.

3. No direct interference - gods are not allowed to interfere in the lives and ongoings of mortals or monsters.

4. No more than 3 people are allowed on a quest.

5. Harming the sacred animals of a god is forbidden.

And that's it. Those are the only true mentions of the Ancient Laws in the entirety of the Riordanverse (at least, the Greco-Roman books).

And I think we all know what the most important one is. Direct Interference is the only one we see Zeus actively enforcing (or at least attempting to). But why is that? Well, stealing another god's symbol of power and initiating a battle with a mortal are physically impossible for gods, and the ban on harming a sacred animal is very commonly accepted already, as it's a guaranteed way to get your ass whooped. And the rule about having 3 on a quest isn't really something Zeus is going to spare the effort to enforce - starting a quest with more than 3 will typically guarantee that you come home with only 3, if at all.

But Direct Interference is the most interesting law, simply because it's the one that our demigod narrators are affected by the most, either in the ways their godly parents violate it, or refuse to do so.

There's plenty of instances where this law has had quite a bit of impact on the story and relationships. For example, Hermes used this law as a major reason why he could not help Luke or prevent him from raising Kronos. But let's be honest: besides Zeus himself, Hermes might be one of the only gods that actually obey this rule, despite the fact that he wants to break it. Just off the top of my head, I can name an instance in the series where every single Olympian at least toed the line of violating Direct Interference, except for maybe Demeter. And I'm not sure Dionysus counts, since he has contact with his half-blood children because of his position at CHB.

But there's something interesting even about the ways these gods break the law of Direct Interference. In most instances, these interactions with mortals happen when the god is in disguise, or through dreams. And, based on how little it seems like the gods get punished for breaking Direct Interference, we can only assume that Zeus is not aware of when gods talk to demigods via dreams. I mean, he's probably aware that it happens: Apollo, Poseidon, Hephaestus, Aphrodite, Hera, Ares (who occasionally follows the rule, but only as an excuse to not help a demigod out), Artemis (although she is subject to exceptions due to her domain), Dionysus, Athena (I think?), and Hades all do it at least once in the RRverse. I mean, you could also argue that dreams are a more indirect means if interference, but I can also see how that's an iffy argument at best.

So, what does this mean? If there is one thing I know about laws and rules in general is that people tend to break laws if the direct consequences of their own actions don't directly apply to them. Gods would probably respect the law of Direct Interference more if there was an immediate negative effect on themselves, aside from just the punishment.

Think of a law or a rule that people break all the time. Littering, for example. People do it all the time, even though it's bad. But why is it bad? A person who doesn't have a lot of forethought will drop a piece of trash and say 'hey, that doesn't affect me. The planet will suffer and this will be a pain in the ass to clean up, but I'm not the one cleaning it up, so why do I care?' If you don't care about the planet or other people cleaning up your trash, the only reason you have to not litter is that you're afraid of the punishment.

I think the attitude towards Direct Interference is similar. The only reason a god would obey is if they're afraid of the punishment, or if they respect Zeus enough to follow his laws (which, clearly, is not the norm in godly society). And even then, what is a punishment to an immortal being? The only way Zeus punishes gods that really matters to them is turning them mortal - and that's a very rare occurrence.

By that logic, we can assume that a violation of Direct Interference does not actually negatively affect gods all that much. To be honest, it doesn't negatively affect mortals either. Maybe monsters have the short end of the stick, but monsters didn't write the law of Direct Interference - Zeus did. So... why? Why does it exist?

My first thought was the Fates and prophecy - if gods can interact in mortal life without recourse, then it might fuck with the way the Fates operate. But gods have been interfering for the entirety of civilization. If they really had a the power to alter the future just by dipping a toe in mortal life, don't you think it would have been obvious? Even in the RRverse, there are plenty of instances, as I've mentioned, that gods have interfered in a quest, and said quest wasn't severely fucked over because of that interference. Take, for instance, Percy's quest to save Artemis - Apollo intervened, but where were the consequences of that? Where were the earth-shattering effects?

So what gives? Also, I'd argue that the gods would actually obey the law more if they knew it had such a negative effect on the proper functioning of the Fates, especially Apollo since that's his domain. So I'm going to say that's not the case.

So we're back to the first question: why does the law against Direct Interference exist if it has no effect on the gods or the Fates? In all references to the law against Direct Interference in the Riordanverse, never once is it explained why this law exists. Why would Zeus create it if violating it doesn't have some major world-ending effect? Gods are gods: what could make this law so important that it's the only one Zeus makes a true effort to enforce?

Well, it makes sense to me that Zeus would create the law if he's the one who has to bear the immediate consequences of it. Which raises the question: what are the immediate consequences? What reason could Zeus possibly have to separate half-blood children from their godly parents? HMmmmmmmMMMM.

Well, there's another interesting thing about the Ancient Laws: some of them don't apply to mortals. Mortals can steal a god's symbol of power, and mortals can initiate battles with gods. Imagine with me a scenario in which your enemy has an army that is not subject to the same laws you are. Gods are (as far as I know) physically incapable of stealing symbols of power and starting battles with mortals, but what does that matter if they have half-blood children that reach the power of minor gods, like Percy, who can do that for you?

It's a terrifying premise, if you're Zeus. And before you start telling me that I'm going down yet another far-fetched rabbit hole (listen - I always make sense in the end), we've seen Zeus go down this line of thought before, all the way back in The Lightning Thief. Remember???

Chiron said that the reason Zeus blamed Percy for stealing the Master Bolt was because the mines the Cyclopes used to forge the bolts is close to Poseidon's domain, and he thinks Poseidon has it out for him. Now, there's a theory running around the TOA fandom that gods can control how much power they hand off to their children (as seen with Apollo's children, who rarely inherit the power of prophecy, which we're willing to bet is something Apollo is controlling from behind the scenes), and if Zeus knew that Poseidon had had a child, it's possible Zeus thought Poseidon was trying to create a super-child just for the sake of overthrowing him. I'm willing to bet that one of his greatest fears is that an über-powerful child of one of his brothers would be used to steal his symbol of power and then overthrow him. He views demigod children like weapons that his enemies can use because they could be inherently dangerous to the standard structure of godly society. His main fear is somebody with the motivation of Luke having the power of Percy. And what do paranoid kings do when presented with the idea of their greatest fears? Make laws against them.

The only way Zeus could be sure that Poseidon would never intentionally have a child like Percy, then bring him under his wing just in time to start a rebellion against him is to ban that kind of interaction at all.

Counterpoint: you could also say that the law against Direct Interference was a way to protect the mortals against the gods who might harm them or do them dirty. Like getting women pregnant while in the form of a swan. Ahem ahem. Do you get my point, though? It's not like Zeus has any real reason to protect the mortals in this way, since he was one of the main perpetrators anyways, but it is a damn good excuse if he also wanted a reason to prevent a potential revolution led by demigods.

Now, if you'll bear with me for a little bit longer, there is one more interesting thing I'd like to point out: In the entirety of Trials of Apollo, Apollo (a god, obviously) only mentions following the Ancient Laws once. Unsurprisingly, at the time he's mentioning the law against Direct Interference, he's also violating it - when he kills Commodus to save lives, Rome, and for his own peace of mind. So, to me this basically means that Apollo doesn't give two single shits about following laws against Direct Interference.

Connect that with everything else we know about Apollo post-trials: he loves his kids, doesn't want to see them hurt, and is trying to distance himself from Zeus and godly society. Even pre-trials, he doesn't have any trouble admitting that Zeus makes his rules and laws difficult to follow - nobody is good enough in Zeus' eyes. I truly believe, if there's any person who, given the proper means and motivation to overthrow at least some aspects of the Direct Interference law, he would.

Just saying. Feel free to add on if anybody else has more thoughts!

[a masterlist of my other metas]

[abstractnaturaldisaster]

is it over now? (was it over then?)

part four

part five: i was hoping you'd be there

Robin managed to keep her shit together for approximately ten minutes after she stopped watching Steve make his way through security and into the depths of the airport. In the ride back to Steve's place, her leg was shaking so much Nancy discreetly grabbed Robin's pinky and held it in the back of the car.

The rest of the trafficky route back to Steve's all Robin could think about was how to fix things. She knew Steve didn't tell her about Eddie so she could fix things and Steve didn't run off to Italy to hide from everything but the situation still bothered Robin. She hadn't known Eddie for a terribly long time but he made her dingus happy so she held him in relatively high regard. It didn't make sense for him to just cut tail and run without leaving some sort of door open for a resolution and Robin was going to her darndest to figure out how on earth she could find that crack.

When they got back to Steve's apartment, Nancy didn't let Robin go long without asking for an explanation.

"Robs, babe, what is going on?" Nancy asked.

"I need to figure out how to solve Steve and Eddie." Robin answered.

"I don't think Steve wants you too. He seemed pretty resolved to close that chapter." Nancy urged.

"I know what he said but that's not what he wants. Also Eddie is a huge dummy if he doesn't realize how good he had it with Steve and also that Steve would never cheat on anyone. Especially not after y'all's whole thing. No offense." Robin continued.

"Okay so we aren't letting this go. What's the plan?" Nancy asked.

"Thanks for your support, love. I just can't figure out why Eddie jumped to the conclusion that you and Steve were together again. I mean no offense but like that ship very publicly sailed," Robin said.

"I'm trying really hard not to take offense but the more often you say it the more I am having trouble not being offended," Nancy snarked.

"Sorry, dingus wormed his way into my little heart long before you so I still gotta give you shit over soulmate solidarity. But back to the matter at hand. Eddie only assumed you would only be visiting Steve if you were trying to get back together when really you were coming to see little old me. So what if I came out. Like what if we came out? And shared some of the pictures from like super early on and thanked Steve for being a great friend for many years when I wasn't ready to take that step," Robin knew she was rambling but, hell, she was on a roll.

"Are you ready for that? I'm happy to take your lead on all this. It's not like we haven't already told everyone who is actually important to us. I mostly write freelance nowadays anyways so there isn't really some big bag corporate overlord I need to worry about. You know Steve doesn't need you to do this? It's one thing if you're ready to come out on your own, it's a whole different thing to do it for someone else," Nancy counseled.

"I really think I'm ready. I'm sick of Steve feeling like he needs to come to everything with me and you're stateside a lot more often and I'd love to go out on dates without the next day having like a million articles speculate if you're trying to move in on Steve. I think it's time," Robin rationalized.

"All right, then. We're doing this. Should we use this as an excuse to make Jon take cute couple pictures of us?" Nancy giggled a little at her suggestion.

"Yes! Perfect. Get him over here. Operation Save Dingus from his Self Sacrifice is a go!" Robin jumped up on the couch to make her point and Nancy immediately had to come to her aid as she wobbled enough to lose her balance.

Robin was excited. She was ready for the next step with Nancy and if it helped Steve get out of his own head and/or convinced a certain metalhead with very few remaining braincells to get his head out of his ass then so be it. Robin couldn't wait to think of all the sappy shit Nancy would pretend to be annoyed at she'd be able to do now. Steve would be back in a few weeks so Robin anxiously awaited Jon's response and started several caption ideas in her notes app.

part six

@lololol-1234 @swimmingbirdrunningrock @zombiethingy @grtwdsmwhr @dreamercec @anne-bennett-cosplayer @strawberryyyenthusiast @mensch-anthropos-human @kal-ology @ttyrussss @kristmkris @starman-jpg @wonderland-girl143-blog @child-of-cthulhu @legalmenace87 (if you wanna be tagged in future parts feel free to comment! happy to add people)

it's not quite fixed yet but we are getting so close!!!

[themage9062]

Tottmnt spoilers!!

I love the show and all of its funny and angsty parts but one thing that I think has been overlooked by most of us is how the turtles are treated by society

On surface level we all assumed by the crumbs we got at the end of mm that they're treated like normal people like they wanted but tottmnt goes out of its way to prove otherwise

Most citizens as a whole treats them as celebrities, but the are treated like different celebrities based on their age, for example, teens and kids treat them like fictional characters come to life, As seen in episode one at the party where there was a Donatello cosplayer. Adults treat them as a path to fame or something that needs to be studied, like those two cops who pretty much refused to help Donnie because they wanted fame, and people like Rod who treat them highly, but as a science experiment.

Then there's the criminals and overlords who either want them dead or as a product to buy or sell, or the mutants and other enemies who put a stain on their name, forcing them to fight to keep their current lives and subsequently putting them back into the spotlight of the city.

I think all of this is pretty sad because the show constantly reminds both us and the turtles that they aren't normal, when that was the whole plan. And if Mikey actually wasn't joking when he dropped that "I miss who I was" line, they know this. It's a nice way of telling us that the ending wasn't all sunshine and rainbows, and the balance is fragile, waiting for whatever is in the second movie to destroy it.

Anyways thank you for coming to my Ted talk

[eevanta]

as someone obsessed with phils hardcore lore, this stream is quite literally a dream come true for me. the fact that not only were we right in assuming the first letter was from rose, the flower goddess, we also were right in assuming that the ender king was the one sending the second letter.

for ease of comprehension, everytime i use qphil, i will also be talking about hcphil!

i also find it fascinating that this suggests the ender king is alive. for those unaware, in the current time of phils hardcore world, the ender king has been defeated. you may be familiar with the endlantis project; the flooded end realm phil made. the whole reason endlantis exists is because it was how the ender king was defeated, the other 5 deities in the world redirected his attempt to merge all 3 realms together to an overworld ocean.

so the fact is seems the ender king is alive, and not only is alive, he is ACTIVELY looking to help qphil? we know the ender king is selfish and only does things with a motive to gain power, so, is the ender king looking to take over quesadilla island?

but even then, there holes in that theory, because the ender king isnt the only one to reach out from the hc deities. rose has too. albeit a lot kinder and gentler in making him realise his 'dreams' weren't dreams, she still reached out. so is the pattern to continue? is the blaze empress going to reach out? is the ocean overlord going to? it strangely seems as though the deities are united in this, even if the ender king has ulterior motives to do so.

its going to be really interesting to see how they incorporate the hardcore lore, its already been interesting seeing how the admin writing the letters interprets their personalities. i hope the ocean overlords letter is like 'hiya m8, sorry for this, sure this is baffling. but uhh i wanna help u man'

its also going to be interesting to see how they handle the black concrete. the qsmp uses black concrete as a way to represent the shadow virus, but hcs4 uses it to depict void; hence the nethervoid. we've already seen a difference in how it's affected qphil versus, say, qforever

anyways this is my roman empire i think

[hetrosjistin]

All of you talking about how Alastor is bound to Lilith are sleeping on Zestial.

Seriously, all of you are ignoring ALL the signs. Been talking this over with a friend several nights in a row, and it's such a better theory than assuming that Lilith owns him (that's not to say that Alastor and Lilith aren't in cahoots SOMEHOW, but that's something for another post)

Now there's not a large sample size, but let's start with this one. Alastor's contract chains do not match his emissive colors at all, nor the colors of his magic. He has red and black as his demonic magic motif. Why does this matter? Well the only other sample we have for contract magic is Valentino with his smoke chains on Angeldust, which is identical to his magic.

Above you can see Valentino's emissive color, the color of his magic in full force, and the color of his contract magic. Now let's do this with Alastor

Emissive colors, magic colors when he's personally about to fuck someone up without calling on his shadow minions... and... his contract magic... huh...

Extra ones of him doing deals with charlie as a bonus:

So a bit of wild theory crafting now.

What happens if you are bound to someone else and you go around and get someone to sell their soul to you? What if your soul contracts roll up to the guy who owns your soul? So your contract magic uses THEIR colors?

Okay, then who DOES have the same emissive colors (those used for magic in almost every case).

Zestial is the only one who comes close, even if he's more yellowy, I blame that on the overall lighting of the scene.

Further evidence?

The ONLY time Alastor looks even REMOTELY frightened is when he's speaking with Zestial. Even when he's with other overlords he's irreverant and playful, NOT with Zestial, he's cagey, he's polite, he's watching what he says.

Further, during this conversation the subtext is CONSTANTLY on a back and forth of 'oh I know where you've been, and YOU know where you've been, but we're in public so we have to speak in code' plus the scene CONSTANTLY focuses on the fact of how they are under observation either by direct persons or through electronic means (but stealthily elides this by implying it's just the impact 2 overlords walking around in public would have on society)

Oh, and did you notice? The demonic stitching that appears on Alastor's body? Same style as the stitching we see Zestial's hat and other bits of clothing.

Then there's the fact that he's one of the only characters with consistent COLOR THEMING to his songs, whenever he does songs, (ESPECIALLY those having to do with deals or trying to maintain his deals), he's got green and... purple?

Why the fuck purple? Purple doesn't turn up anywhere. This is where the theory falls apart a little, but if I had to guess? It's an allusion to something. What could it be?

But why then is his contract magic showing in these songs? Does Zestial have some deep interest in the hotel?

I think not, but Alastor has very DEEP contract related reasons for his interest.

Let's take a quick aside to another of Alastor's song pieces. Let's consider the pit as Alastor prepares to leave his tower during his breakdown song in the season finale. The center of Alastor's power is his broadcast tower, it's painted everywhere in his colors, from top to bottom. The last time he sang in here, all of his emissive colors were black and red... hell, even when he ENTERED it, it was HIS colors.

but now with him beaten, broken, and focused on the deal he so desperately wants to escape...

Oh look, Zestial's colors again.

Alastor's power is a shadow cast by Zestial's light. He is chained to it, it's what keeps him alive and gives him his power... but all the same, he wants out.

He's looking for a loophole. A way out of the deal.

If you get to heaven, can a Overlord still own you soul?

This helps explain why Alastor was willing to come out of hiding fo the hotel, why he's so nervous around Zestial, why Zestial is poking for reasons, subtly, about what the fuck Alastor is doing in their conversation with one another going to the overlord's meeting.

So smart money says that Alastor made a deal with Zestial before he died, and became Zestial's catspaw. How was he able to fuck up everything and everyone he came across the moment he turned up? Because he had a tutor and a big old battery backstopping him. Zestial is the most subtle of the overlords, he wants to remain in the background, he wants to play things safe and is always happy to be underestimated and underrated... so he comes along and takes the hammiest, loudest, most attention grabbing soul he has in his portfolio the moment they get down to Hell, and puts him to work CLEANING HOUSE.

[psychiccent]

The Elephant in The Room: Frederica

I almost made this as a post for Shinkane week but wanted to keep the attention primarily on my fav Psycho couple. The Frederica/Kogami situation might be worrisome for some shippers, but I absolutely ADORE watching the interactions play out between these two characters. When analyzing, we can spot key differences in how both relationships are handled/developed by our PP Overlords.

It is safe to say that Frederica harbors an attraction for Ko... THAT aspect of the story, the writers have made no secret of. Poor Tenzing had to witness Frede pull out the big guns in their initial meeting, noting the arch of Frede's back/chest as she bent forward to interact with Ko. There is even a scene in the Sinners novelization wherein Frederica sets the mood for SOMETHING to happen between them using body language and a suggestive tone. During this scene, we learn something vital about the current dynamic that exists between these two: The attraction felt here is running on a one-way street, with no reciprocation in sight from Ko. What DOES Kogami end up doing in this situation? An obviously attractive woman, neutral in standing for now, is exhibiting a keen interest in getting closer to you. It's an easy way for the writers to establish the potential for chemistry and yet... Deciding that he doesn't know WHAT to make of all that Frederica is silently offering, Ko settles for simply ignoring the obvious and the scene ends shortly after. I believe this serves as another callback to Ko not being a casual fling type of guy. These interactions (and many others) help reinforce the idea that Kogami is not a man easily swayed by traditional beauty standards, despite the man's knack for letting his instincts reign supreme in most situations.

That scene was a bit of a missed opportunity, don't you think? There is another moment wherein Ko introduces Frede as someone from his home country, and we have another male gaze in the room posed to appreciate the obvious appeal that Frede brings to the table. In this scene, writers could have taken it a tiny step further (if this was truly their intent to establish SOMETHING here) and have the merc outright assume that Frede was Ko's woman. But no such conclusions were drawn, no implications of Ko enjoying his newfound company or missing home...nada. The same can't be said for Akane and Ko, whom have enemies nicknaming Akane 'JULIET' of all things, Shion sounding the alarm anytime those two are together, or the fact that Gino's reactions to their (Akane and Ko's) ACTIONS speaks volumes.

Kogami strikes me as a man with a desire for both understanding AND intimacy when it comes to potential partners, and the life Ko has led so far has not been ideal for cultivating that kind of love/connection. We see, through Ko and Frede's interactions that they function well as a unit/team but are still learning about one another. Whatever level of intimacy/understanding that Ko needs to share with his potential love interest is (whoever that may be *COUGHAKANECOUGH*), Frede is a far cry from being able to qualify in that particular category. Frede's dynamic with Kogami is, in my opinion, what a proper Inspector/Enforcer relationship SHOULD have been like between Ko and Akane (with less emphasis on the obvious attraction undertones, of course) and when looking at these two relationships from that perspective, the parallels we can observe are very telling.

I also can't help but mention that in supplementary PP content (I believe it was a game?) , it is stated that Ko is not a fan of having people/girls hanging off of, or otherwise pining over him... they even joke and say that it's the other way around and Akane is shocked to discover this "side" of Ko. I will take that with a grain of salt, but it certainly checks out with what we have seen so far, don't ya think? Is it impossible for Kogami and Frederica to wind up together? of course not, anything can happen! But color me surprised if that is the direction the writers decide to take.

[citygirlyuno305]

I dont think the Hazbin s2 spoilers are more than meets the eye, and fan perception of certain characters is a big reason why theyre dissatisfied

Spoilers under the cut for s2.

I See a lot of people saying Rosie is Roo, Eve is Roo, etc etc. I find it hard to organize my thoughts on this but I’m going to try to.

I hear hoofbeats, and I think horses, not zebras. The spoilers kind of demonstrated that, if you look at Rosie and Alastors interactions in s1, how their teeth look, so on and so forth. So I think Rosie owns Alastor, and his deal has nothing to do with Roo. Rosie simply owns him. I think many people want to believe Roo owns Alastor somehow so they can keep their belief that Alastor is the strongest overlord or sinner, or that hes innately instrumental to the story, but I think his relevance is entirely driven by Rosie’s use of him to get close to Charlie for reasons unknown.

1. First, I dont think Eve or Rosie is Roo. Roo is essentially the equivalent of God for evil, like yin and yang. Ostensibly she materialized at the same time God did and her infiltration was marked by either Lucifer’s pride, or Lilith’s fall, since Lilith is considered the first sinner. This would all predate Eves creation.

Plus, with Lilith becoming the first Sinner, her power did not come out of thin air. I feel like Lilith went to Roo after she was banished from Heaven, particularly because Lucifer was too busy holing himself away in depression to build the Hell that they needed. Lilith had the drive. So if she went to Roo and sought power to effect this idea, Roo cant be Eve. And honestly I dont *want* Eve to be Roo, because it’d be kinda.. lame.

2. So for the same reason I dont think Rosie is Roo. Again, Roo is literally the root of all evil. I think she need not disguise herself as an overlord if she wanted to accomplish anything. And she certainly doesnt need to keep a close eye on Alastor to do that. I think- hear me out- Alastor is in the grand scheme not that important to someone with Roo’s level of power.

3. I think Rosie owns Alastor. Not Roo, not Eve, just Rosie.

I think Rosie herself is much more powerful than we think because we assumed wrongfully that she wasnt all that old/powerful/important of an overlord or that she was timid or docile based on her attitude. From the spoilers we know she held power in hell before alastor even died, to the point that Alastor specifically summoned her to effect this deal in Hell where he’d have that unprecedented raw power as a sinner. I think it also makes sense that hes owned by Rosie in particular because she rules cannibaltown, and he was a cannibal.

so a lot of the people I see saying it doesnt make sense because she’s a weaker overlord/alastor is the strongest overlord, ergo Rosie must be Roo, I feel like theyre trying to rationalize their preconceptions that Alastor is the most powerful. Hes certainly powerful. But Charlie’s initial story in E1 didnt insinuate he was the most powerful. He had an unprecedented amount of raw power for a sinner. Thats because of his deal with Rosie, and it doesnt stretch imagination to assume that Rosie granted him that power because she too holds it.

4. Rosie would have a reason to thwart the Hotel’s efforts.

i think all of the overlords to some extent have a problem with Charlies hotel bc the more sinners that get redeemed, the less souls theyll have, and the less power theyll have as a result. And Rosie is unlike the other overlords in that her tactic of choice is manipulation and deception rather than full on attacks on Charlie’s character or person, so she avoids provocation of an extremely powerful being by getting close. But not too close, because if something goes wrong, the blame falls on Alastor, not her. Its sensible that shes using him as an instrument for that reason. If her plan fails, she can simply rework her strategy and try again with a different instrument.

5. Rosie would also have a reason to get on Charlie’s good side and not directly thwart her Hotel efforts.

Alternatively, everyone has a potential reason to get Charlie on their good side too, since shes arguably the most powerful person in Hell at full potential (full awakening of her power will likely result in more raw power than Lucifer). She’s also naive, and the princess of Pride; theres no better way to manipulate someone who’s prideful than by playing into their pride. But this plays into my last point, shes using Alastor as a tool to get and stay on Charlie’s good side even if her plan fails.

6. When Alastor talked about unclipping his wings in the finale song, i now believe he wasnt referring to power, but instead, Rosie’s control over his actions.

There’s no evidence suggesting Alastor isnt at full power, he actually likely arrived in Hell with the full power he asked for from Rosie, which is why he’s in her debt. He hasnt “paid off his account” because she gave him that power he asked for and hasnt fulfilled her end of the deal, which as of now is unknown.

His whole verse in the finale song is basically “no i didnt die for my friends, thats not how this is gonna end. When I get rid of whats holding me back, I’ll be the one in control.” We all assumed that was about his power being restricted somehow. But I think its merely referring to the fact that he cannot act without Rosie’s okay, and her course of action for him is far different than what he’d prefer- she’s making him contain his rage for a more tactical approach to … whatever it is shes up to.

7. I do not think he’ll kill Rosie because frankly I now dont think he’d even be able to.

Again, it stands to reason Rosie only could give him that power because she wielded it herself. Alastor’s voodoo ties mightve given him more of a boost, but the fact that he went out of his way to make a deal at all with Rosie despite his voodoo ties makes me think he knew it wouldnt be enough upon his entry to hell to make him a sizeable threat.

And to assume Rosie would lose to Alastor despite her now clear advantages is a bit.. overly wishful. Experience, Rosie. Manipulation, Rosie. Knowledge, Rosie. Power, *pretty likely an even draw,* and maybe even goes to Rosie outright considering the souls she owns and the power drawn thereto- and potentially, her ability to withdraw Alastor’s granted power. In actuality, the only way Alastor would be able to beat or kill Rosie would probably be asking Charlie to do it for him as his favor.

Obviously im not omnipotent so idk. But I think people are ignoring some of this stuff in criticizing the sense of the reveal, so I wanted to express it all.

Also 8. I’m VERY FUCKING HAPPY it isnt Lilith who owns Alastor

Because too many fans already make Lilith out to be a complete irredeemable bitch and her owning alastor wouldve empowered that mindset. I could talk for ages about how fans woobify Lucifer and ignore his clearly shitty actions wrt both Charlie AND Lilith in favor of making him look like a great dad and Lilith like a horrid bitch (ever thought about why she, a sinner, would not be in hell/would go into hiding after Lucifer himself signs a deal allowing exterminators to kill ONLY sinners in a routine fashion?..) but thats a whole other topic.

[blossomthepinkbunny]

The inconstancy/misuse of the powers in HH/HB

(especially in "Oops")

In regards to the episode "Oops" of Helluva Boss and in general I just wanna say that I genuinely don't understand the misuse of the power levels in Helluva Boss/Hazbin Hotel. The strongest forces in Hell are the seven deadly sins and after that comes the Royalty and after that the overlords. Then the sinners and the Hellborn are the weakest from my understanding.

There are however some instances in the show which just don't make sense, considering the power system. Like, Charlie is the daughter of the most powerful demon in the whole of hell and troughout the show she just doesn't do anything at all. We are to assume that she has a lot of power still. Technically she should be the second strongest demon in hell. Maybe you could say, that she isn't used to her powers and is somewhat inexperienced and young, but she should still be atleast on the same level of strength as the weakest deadly sin, or Stolas I guess.

But all she does is sit around. I know she isn't the confrontational type and is actually quite the pacifist sometimes, still there are moments where she could use her powers to help her plan or just something. She never tries to protect the Hotel when people like Sir Pentious or the guys who were after Mimzy attack, thats always Alastors Job, even though one could guess that she'd be stronger than him if she would make use of her powers. Maybe she could even protect the demons from Alastor, because mindlessly killing random demons is sort of the opposite of what she wanted to accomplish (but apparently she's just fine with that? This goes back to her not being really well defined at all).

When she sees someone who she consideres her friend (Angel) get abused and harassed by someone, she doesn't do anything to help him. Maybe threaten Valentino or just use her high status to do anything. But nothing comes from her.

In the final episode it's also Alastor who has to fight Adam before Lucifer showes up. Charlie puts up a good fight when she finally decides to move but it just showes us all her potential which is never used.

This ignoring of power is so much worse in "Oops" though. The plot is that Asmodeus can't save Fizz from Crimson because of stupid, artificial reasoning. The first thing that is said is that Asmodeus is the weakest sin, which is fine but it doesn't change the fact that he could still just beat up everybody there. Like yeah he might be the weakest but he's still a SIN. He's stronger than Stolas and definitely a hundred times stronger than some random imp without special assisment.

I saw someone say that Ozzie probably sold away a lot of his power, since he often doesn't read the contracts he singes which is a nice theory but I don't consider it, since it's not mentioned in the episode. And even if he signed away more than half of his power, he should still be so much stronger than Crimson. Crimson is just an Imp and we see his group get taken out by Blitzø and Fizzarolli (one Imp with just a knife and one who can't even really fight) so the show can't even mention Ozzies power level as if it's an actual reason for why he can't do anything. We also see that he's still able to stand up to Mammon confidently in the later episode so he obviously is still VERY strong.

Another excuse they try to pull is with the legal documents he has to sign to give him some conflict and a time limit. But that's stupid too, since we know Ozzie can make Portals. He could just teleport there, take Crimson and his Imps out and be back with Fizz and Blitzø in a second. Also, Stolas is there too and he can turn demons into stone just by looking at them. Why doesn't he just do that to the lawyer guy? Then they don't have to sign and could just leave. I mean it's not as if the lawyer should even be an obstacle to Ozzie or Stolas.

The fact that Asmodeus apparently cares so much for his Partner but never thinks about any of this. At the start of the episode he's literally so worried about even the idea of Fizzarolli going to the greed ring without him and still he'd rather sit there and fill out some documents for a guy he could easily beat any second than to save his Partner who could be in ACTUAL life threatening danger!? The same goes for Stolas who we know can tell when Blitzø is in danger (from the episode truth seekers) but never has that instinct to save him here, even when Blitzø is captured too.

It's also just funny that for a place like hell, which we are constantly reminded of as this place without rules and people that care about a government, there's still that apparent necessity to completely follow Crimson's demands and the arbitrary rules he set. Especially for Asmodeus who is one of the strongest leading forces in hell, to just do whatever a random Imp wants, someone who is so many ranks under him (literally the second to last rank in hells society) is just indescribably stupid. Isn't he the one who could just make new rules? Or just decide that he doesn't want to follow certain ones, since in hell apparently no one follows a lot of rules anyways so why is it presented as if he can't do anything.

That's the thing I disliked most about "Oops" because it's so clear that they just had to make something up because they wrote themselves into a corner with Asmodeus and Stolas being so strong. There are probably more moments like this in both shows. Another one I can think of is that Stolas never helped I.M.P out in any of their missions, even though he can tell when Blitzø is in danger and would be a great help to get them out of situations. Obviously this is only brought up in one episode, because they didn't know how to resolve the conflict and then it just disappeares because it would make a lot of struggles in episodes feel weightless since Stolas can just save the Imps from any danger.

It's just another thing Vivzepop brings up and then drops. The inconstancy in these shows (in Helluva boss even more than in Hazbin) is actually annoying and makes episodes so much harder to watch.

[locustonlioden-blog]

Hazbin Hotel Episode Rewrites

Episode 1 (will be doing all of them)

Take out the “precious daughter” line. This makes no sense seeing how Lilith ditched the family and Lucifer is supposed to be super distant. We get 0 evidence these were involved, doting parents that put a bunch of effort into raising Charlie. Perhaps change it to “And now, its up to their precious daughter” meaning Charlie has taken it upon herself to mend things, instead of making it sound like she’s been coached all along for her role.

Adam and Lute are put off to find out its Charlie meeting with them, not Lucifer as usual. The meeting was arranged because of the very important matter of an exterminator angel being killed for the first time ever, and an important discussion was needed. Adam is much less a 1 dimensional comic relief dude bro.

“So, are you taking over extermination arrangements for now on?”

“Uh, no...actually, it was just kind of out of the blue that he told me about the meeting and asked me to come-”

(seriously, Lucifer supposedly didn’t know about the hotel, or at least he pretended not to, lets just assume he does but didn’t let on to Charlie that he’s watching her)

“Did he tell you why?”

“Ah, no-but, it was really convenient because you see, I have an idea that would actually END the need for exterminations-”

At this point Adam is seriously put off. They just found out demons can kill angels-this has to be a distressing revelation. Now of all times, the guy they have a serious deal with chooses to send someone who wants to talk about ENDING the exterminations? This would almost feel like a threat. So now they want out of the deal? No way! He would feel a need to reassert dominance and get things back under control. Who do these demons think they are? Cue their aggressive mocking and song, followed by throwing Charlie out as they do in the actual episode. He doesn’t even bother to explain why they are moving the extermination up. He’s not going to talk to Charlie. She has not established any sort of repertoire with him that makes him feel as though she is worth having an actual discussion with about a serious matter.

Commercial subplot: Alastor offers a deal to Vaggie in order to help make a successful commercial for Charlie.

“You’re insane, I’d never make any sort of deal with some shitlord

“Hm, such a pity, Charlie will be so let down to see how you fail to manage her project even a day without her. She has to do everything. Why are you even around? Do you really think the princess of hell needs physical protection from a sinner with a spear?”

*sighs* “You making the video for me isnt going to help that.”

“My dear, it wasnt raw power that bent all of Hells sinners to my will. You seem to know me quite well...(this is where we can reintroduce the Alastor lore Vaggie game to Angel Dust in the pilot, instead of waiting until the Mimzy episode to give anything) ...so you see, I have no problems getting things done, and I would be willing to teach you. Imagine what Charlie could achieve, and how much quicker, if she had a competent partner at her side…”

“I’m not making a deal! And you can have fun entertaining yourself with an empty hotel. Nobodys going to want to come to a place a powerful overlord like you so obviously takes as a joke”

“Well, I WILL make a worthy advertizement for the hotel, but I’m going to do it the RIGHT way, and do it for radio!”

She doesn’t make a deal here, but the seeds have now been sown. Her insecurity and feelings of inadequacy and worthlessness are gnawing. She has little feelings of self worth-would it be so bad to sacrifice herself in a deal with Alastor if it meant assuring Charlie achieves her dream? She is tempted.

Vaggie uses a little cunning here. While Alastor manipulates the inhabitants of the hotel to give fantastic line deliveries using a variety of amusing tactics, Vaggie secretly records with the video camera. At the end of the day, Alastor smugly announces that he has the radio ad all ready. When Charlie returns, Vaggie cuts in and says radio AND television ad! The ad then starts to play and is cut off by the news like in the actual episode. Alastor was initially amused she tried to make a tv ad anyway, but he sees enough to tell that she recorded him making the radio ad. His smile tightens, eyes narrow, and he fades off.

[gabrielsbubblegumbitch]

So... we know how Vox and Velvet met, but what about Vox and Val?

(Sorry if already answered)

-🐲

Okay, honestly? I don't have a strong headcanon about this. I mean, I like the common fanon that they've just met because Vox wanted to do business with Valentino when he noticed he had become powerful enough to make a good ally. BUT, I had a thought after posting this and writing about Valentino's life.

It's still kind of a work in progress when it comes to details, but what if Val was unhinged enough to actually kidnap Vox? When he was still a rising star, not an Overlord yet. He had already owned some establishments, did his research on who has money and souls, and might be a good victim. He got himself some angelic weapons and just one night snatched Vox from the club. We know it can be done; we saw Striker kidnapping Stolas, who is way more powerful than Vox.

Val's initial plan was to torture Vox until he signed off all his money and souls to him and then let him go (assuming that Vox wouldn't then be powerful enough to seek revenge). But when he started, Vox was basically like, Joke's on you, I'm into this shit. You can kill me, but I won't give you anything. This honestly captivated Val. Vox turned out to be way more interesting and sexy than he had thought.

Vox was obviously scared shitless - he wasn't ready to die; he just played tough. He was also incredibly furious because no one had ever tried to pull off shit like this. Yet, for the same reason, he was really impressed by Valentino's boldness. Being completely stripped of his powers, he decided to talk his way out of that situation.

So, they started talking, and it was pretty much a speedrun from enemies to lovers. They both realized that under other circumstances, they might have even become friends. After a very intense night of weird bonding over being incredibly evil and flirting, Vox offered Valentino a deal: He would not seek vengeance for this situation and would make Val his business partner if Valentino let him go. After some negotiations, they included the part about never using angelic weapons against each other.

As soon as Vox was free, they immediately fucked on the floor of some godforsaken warehouse because apparently, this whole situation was a major turn-on for both of them.

So, yeah, that's the idea. Maybe one day I'll turn it into a proper fic if people like it sksksks

[lifeandtimesoftrying]

The overlords’ persuasion, the Morningstar’s power, and what this means for Charlie

Hazbin Hotel's been rotating in my head since the finale and I have capital-t Thoughts about the worldbuilding (and its implications). So!

Hazbin Hotel’s power system is fundamentally divided into two parts: the overlords, whose abilities are fully tied to and determined by their connections with other denizens, and the Morningstars/other Hell-born aristocracy, whose abilities are innate and unchanging. I think this is why Lucifer is incredibly powerful while not really having power, the overlords seem to be running the show, and Charlie’s character has a lot left to come.

(This got pretty long and there are spoilers, so I’m putting it under a cut!)

Lucifer doesn’t have much authority—the meeting to decide the fate of hell is attended by only the overlords, other demons repeatedly dismiss Charlie (often even using her relationship with her dad to do so), and when we do finally meet the King of Hell himself, it’s when he’s engaged in a hobby which he clearly has a lot of free time for. When Charlie needs large numbers of allies, it’s Alastor and Rosie who coordinate to get them for her, and Alastor is terrified of Zestiel but told Lucifer “fuck you” to his face. Lucifer doesn’t have any control over his subjects.

However, he is still incredibly powerful. He and Charlie, whose powers presumably came from him, defeated Adam, and in the finale sequence he conjured the foundation for a whole hotel without any strain.

The overlords function in the exact opposite way: their powers are gained through their various relationships with other people, and can be influenced as such. Most obviously, Carmilla Carmine explicitly tells Vaggie that the best way to fight is for love, but Rosie is powerful because of the ways she can provide for people and gain their loyalty. Alastor’s known to have bought souls to do his bidding, and the Vees are all themed around ways to influence people (pornography, TV, and social media), and at least one of them also has contracts for souls.

“Hell’s Greatest Dad” illustrates both the overlords’ and the aristocracy’s perspectives. Regardless of how authentic Alastor is being in his claims in the song, it can be assumed that he’s doing everything he can to convince Charlie to work with him, and Lucifer is doing the same. However, their approaches are polar opposites.

Lucifer’s persuasion relies on his innate abilities: he calls himself “the big boss of Hell himself,” and says that he can help “with the punch of a pentagram / I wap-bam-boom, alakazam / Usually I charge a sacrificial lamb / But you get the family rate.” This emphasizes both his familial (and unchangeable) tie to Charlie and his inborn abilities, which come up again when he says “there’s no substitute for pure angelic power.”

The reasons that Alastor cites for why he should be chosen are all based in the actions that he’s done for Charlie, and the resulting relationship that they have because of those actions. He emphasizes his consistency (“who’s been here since day one”) and reliability (who’s been faithful as a nun), both of which are good traits for an overlord to have.

I think this contrast is why Mimzy has to show up when she does: there is no way to resolve the argument about whether to choose that which has been built or that which you were born with. And that’s because of Charlie. Charlie’s dad was never mortal, but her mom was. None of the overlords have been called immortal, but many of them are confirmed to have been mortal. A large part of Charlie’s arc in season 1 is her learning how to connect with the people around her and get them to believe in her. She is, in many ways, beginning to function like an overlord would. With one major difference.

We know that Husk used to be an overlord, most likely one of gambling. Gambling is really three things: chance, skill, and being able to read other people without them being able to read you. And from what we know of overlords, getting that status requires all of those traits. Chance and skill exist in any field, but the ability to see past other’s facades without revealing your own hand is incredibly important here, to the point where it’s Alastor’s whole shtick—a smile is a way of staying in control.

But where overlords try to read those around them while keeping their own feelings hidden, Charlie always has her heart on her sleeve. When she goes to cannibal town, Alastor’s advice that she always smile quickly stops working, and only after she’s processed her feelings about Vaggie by talking with Rosie is she able to convince people to follow her.

But this is still only half of what she’s potentially capable of. We haven’t seen her try to battle anyone on her own and win—the closest we got was Valentino, but she quickly backed down from that. Since a second season is scheduled, my bet is that it’ll follow her learning the extent of her innate powers, and how to pair them with her connections to others—after all, she is the only character with both mortal an immortal lineages.

[prince-liest]

Hey, since you've written a lot of Alastor-centric fics that explore him having complex relationships with other characters, I was wondering if you had any wip about Alastor & Husk, or just any hcs about them in general!! I find it interesting that Husk is the only one who knows about his deal...

And yes the fact that Alastor owns Husk' soul is pretty bad for any development in their relationship lol. But it also adds flavor to their dynamic! (and Alastor hasn't been THAT abusive with him so far in regards to their contract? He made a death threat but he didn't need to own Husk' soul to do that. He forces him to work at the hotel but Husk used to use the souls he owned like pawns he could gamble away, treating people like property he could afford to lose to other "masters", so he's not worse that Husk in comparison... That's an insanely low bar, I know)

Current WIPS, no, headcanons, yes!

I think their relationship is very interesting, and a lot of that specifically comes from Husk's side of things. I'm honestly fully putting aside the issue of how abusive Alastor has or hasn't been to him, because in the end, slavery is slavery (assuming that's the power that Husk's contract grants) even if one overlord isn't as sadistic as another (Husk himself included), BUT:

I think it's very interesting that Husk and Alastor clearly have a long-term working relationship that includes Husk giving at least half of a shit about Alastor. Their interaction during Mimzy's episode is not very long but I think it is very telling. Obviously it's telling about Alastor's intolerance toward his power and position being questioned, and it's also telling about how much Alastor has been undermined that even someone who knows him like Husk is expressing doubt... but I think its also particularly telling that it includes Husk reaching out to watch Alastor's back (before Alastor bites his head off for it).

I think it's hard to say exactly why he does it - how much of it is because he knows that Alastor getting in trouble also means Husk getting in trouble, how much of it is because Husk is growing to care about the hotel, especially after his episode with Angel, and how much of it is because he's grown attached to Alastor in a weird way over the years, but I personally like to think it's a combination of all three.

Husk was a powerful overlord and I think that's very in line with his portrayal of being someone who distances himself from people in callous ways... but ends up caring more than he intends to when he does get close to them. We most clearly see this with Angel Dust, but I think it's also reflected in his callousness as an overlord and how it turned into regret once he lost his soul to Alastor, and also how he occasionally reacts to the people he's known a long time: namely, Alastor (during the Mimzy episode) and Niffty (when she gets drunk at the club)!

I think Alastor and Husk's lives have been intertwined for a long time, and I also think that it's hard not to grow to care about another person on some level as a result, even if you also heavily resent them, especially if their well-being is your well-being. I don't think Husk likes Alastor very much (it would be hard to in his position) but I don't think he sees Alastor's ownership of his soul as having taken advantage of him so much as a natural consequences of the games he himself played with people's souls, which lets him sit in a position that to him feels less like "victim" and more like "beleaguered subordinate."

And Alastor also does put some effort into keeping things with Husk copacetic. He loses his cool and snaps at him during their confrontation, but outside of that context the attitude he maintains seems to include both being a smarmy jackass and giving Husk actual reasons to work for him other than "or else." It's technically not canon to the show, but I personally consider his bribing of Husk with drink to work for the hotel in the pilot to be canon to my interpretations, at least. It makes sense to me that Alastor wants to maintain a decent working relationship, as opposed to one where Husk would be more inclined to actively sell him out for a dime rather than marinate in his own resignation.

Anyway. Long post! But I think they're interesting, haha.