#where the mc is essentially nb

[irishmammonagenda]

Death is a Debatable Thing-Obey Me x Reader

Summary: MC died 😱 and reincarnated as an angel, as per usual; chaos ensues. Word Count: 6.9k Warnings: Mention of Death, Cursing, Torture (mentioned, no torture happens) Michael is featured heavily in this, I just made up a personality for him, I don't play NB a lot (it makes me too sad) and I think he shows up there so if this is different to how he's portrayed there then L for me. Everyone except Luke was written as and can be read as Romantic(/platonic if you prefer)You can read Michael as Romantic, but I wrote him more Platonically.

post dividers from @saradika-graphics on tumblr (their dividers r really cool check them out if u havent fr (sorry for tagging you btw i just wanted to give credit)

"Absolutely not." You say, looking at your new found wings. "I did not die just to be reincarnated with the ugliest clothing I've ever seen."

"Would you have preferred to have been reincarnated as bare as Eve was in Eden?" The man you'd come to know as Michael. His dark skin shone in the blessed light of the celestial realm, his thick curly hair was pinned back in such a delicate fashion you wanted to unpin all the ornaments in it. Your fingers twitched at your sides.

"Isn't that against modesty rules or something...?" You paused, Simeon was an angel, he essentially had his ass out at all times anyway. Whore.

Michael stares at you weirdly, before playing with one of the loose strands of his hair, pulling the tight coil until it was completely straight before letting go and letting it spring back up again. Now you really wanted to mess up his hair. Just to annoy him.

"So anyway..." You start, sitting on a cloud that you fall through. For a moment you think you're about to pull a Lucifer and fall through the sky, but you manage to grab onto something and pull yourself up. That something is Michael's ankle and he's laughing at you, wiping a tear from ruby red eyes that shine just like that of his fallen brother.

"Stop laughing at me! Anyway, when can i go to the Devildom?" You inquire, watching Michael's face turn stern. He glares down at where you're lying, still gripping his ankle

"You're not returning to the Devildom anytime soon." He says sharply.

Your breath hitches. "Why not?! I have to let the brothers and Dia and Barbs and Sol and everyone else know I didn't die!"

"You did die. Why do you think you're an angel." Michael sighs, "and no. You're not letting them know you've returned."

"Why not?!" You repeat, outraged. "No offence though MC, but you´ve just died." "So?" You reply with indignation. "So," Michael says in a mocking tone, pitching his deep voice up high before letting it fall down the octaves once more. "You're barely able to walk on clouds or do anything yet. Letting you down to the Devildom is the equivalent of sending a baby bird into a den of lions."

"But...they'd protect me." You said softly, Michael's tone softens as well, laying a gentle hand on your shoulder.

"They'd also over-protect you, they've just lost you. I don't think you're ready for that smothering just after your death."

You nod. Michael's soft expression turns devious, "Plus, this way, you have plenty of time to think about how youre going to scare my broth-...the brothers and everyone else whilst proving you're alive...well an angel..."

You grin too. "Amazing point Mr Michael."

He plays with his golden locks again, an idiosyncracy. "Anytime" He grins before beginning to walk again, you grab onto his ankle tighter. "Oh and Mc?"

"Yeah?"

"Call me Mr Michael again and I'm shaving all you hair off. And trust me. Angel hair does not grow back." He smiles evilly. You shudder.

Well it turns out Michael is a fucking liar.

After being a little bit too bored during your second month of being an angel and first month of learning not to fall through the clouds in Michael's private garden that consists purely of clouds and a singular harp he stole from some poor Irish Deity, you go bored and snipped your unnaturally long angel hair up to your waist. You didn't want to go too short just yet.

In the time frame of a week you learnt two things.

One: Angel hair does grow back, maybe a tiny bit faster than human hair, and Two, Michael was babysitting the harp. Turns out the Deity was called the Dagda and he was visiting France on holidays for some reason, poor man, having to go to France and deal with all the French People there. Turns out he left the harp in Michael's hands, something about Fomoranians not being smart enough to see this one coming.

You just nodded and slowly backed away. Michaels red eyes followed you. He and Lucifer had to be twins.

Another day passed. The more you thought about it, the more Michael and Lucifer had to be twins. After having cut your hair to just below your shoulders, you found a piece of unnecessarily fancy parchment paper and a quill on Michael's desk

Holding the black quill in your hands you felt a sense of familiarity wash over you. Was that?....

No fucking way.

Michael was using one of Lucifer's feathers as a quill. You cackled.

After much deliberation you'd realised you could not write with a quill, but also that you were very good at ripping paper and making blotches of ink on said paper with a quill.

You decided to snoop in Michael's desk for a pen, instead you found a drawer titled, 'LUKE ONLY' in cursive letters, the label was stuck to the drawer so obviously you opened it.

Colouring books, letters written by Luke from the Devildom, Report Cards, Crayons, Drawings, and a pack of stickers were left in the drawer, a notepad lay next to it, Michael's cursive handwriting all over it 'Activities to do', it had things like 'Bowling' and 'Baking' and 'Gardening' and 'Teach him how to knit' and 'Arts and Crafts' and 'Prank Jesus' and 'Take him to Human Realm Cinema' and and anything else really. You cooed, your ivory wings rustling happily.

You grabbed a crayon and began to write.

WHY MICHAEL AND LUCI ARE TWINS one; same eyes two; both evil three; both hot four; satan is basically luci's son if you think about it and michael has blond hair too, if luci and michael are twins that means that blond hair is in the gene pool and thats how satn has blond hair even though luci has black hair five; both like wearing dramatic cape coat things six; both of them baby luke seven; they ha

"What are you doing?" Michael asks, startling you, and ruining your next point of 'they have hands', "Why is my drawer open?" He grabs the parchment from you, reads it and bellows out in laughter.

"We are twins you could've asked." He smiled, "also put the crayon back thats Red and Luke likes colouring in Teddy Bears red."

"Yessir."

You were a master conspiracy theorist.

In the end, you and Michael had decided on visiting the Devildom for 'diplomatic' reasons, but upon seeing the glint in his eyes it was probably more for 'dicklomatic' reasons seeing as he's an utter dickhead.

You had a veil covering your face, seeing as you were still kind of legally and widely believed to be dead.

You know, the usual.

You walked behind Michael, attempting to kick at the back of his knees, it never worked sadly. You took a deep breath as you reached the RAD council room doors.

Michael grabs you by your shoulders whispering into your ear. "Now remember MC im going to use you as a bargaining tool, so keep that veil on till i say so, got it?" He grins.

You nod, knowing that 'bargaining tool' in Michaelish translates to 'im bored and want to see a dramatic reunion'

Michael opens the doors.

You walk in with him but stand at the door awkwardly, steeling yourself so you don't immediately run into any of your idiots' arms.

Luke apparently had the same idea, as when he saw Michael, he let out a happy 'yip!' kind of sound similar to a puppy's and then ran from where he stood beside Simeon and Solomon into the Archangel's arms.

Michael catches him happily, petting his head as the young angel nuzzles into his hair, blabbering on about who knows what. Asmo takes a photo of it, everyone else stares with varying levels of fondness, awkwardness and 'meh'.

Sadly for you however, once Simeon is done greeting Michael, and Michael is now distracted by Luke introducing him to Barbatos who is apparently the 'bestest baker in the world!' (you could agree with that sentiment), Simeon walked over to you, his serene smile on his face.

"Hello, I'm Simeon, forgive me for asking, but do I know you? You have a familiar aura."

You shake your head.

"Oh, never the matter" Simeon smiles, "What's your name then. my friend?"

You clear your throat and put on a deep american accent, "Rupert...Pleasure to meet you...Simeon.."

"Are you sure we haven't met before?"

"Certain." You say in the same ridiculous voice.

Simeon nods, he excuses himself after Solomon calls him over, you turn to glance at Michael who is carrying a now sleeping Luke in his arms and gently stroking the boy's golden hair while stressing out Lucifer with questions. Satan looks on with a smirk on his face.

Glancing around the room you see similar scenes, Mammon and Levi are playing a game on the latter's switch, Asmo, Solomon and Simeon are talking, sometimes glancing at you. Barbatos and Diavolo were watching Michael annoy Lucifer, with both sometimes adding their input, causing Michael to laugh loudly then stiffle it, so as not to wake up the sleeping baby in his arms. Beel and Belphie were near the others but still off in their own twin world, Belphie was awake and watching Michael bully Lucifer from where his head laying sleepily on his twin's leg.

Raphael, Thirteen and Mephisto had been sent out on a top secret mission the day before, Michael had said it was because he didnt want to die and also did not want his death to be put in the RAD Newspapers, especially a picture of him that was less than flattering.

Even though everyone seemed joyous, you noticed an air of sadness, like something was missing. Looking at your old seat in the student council you see the amount of flowers set on it.

Against your better judgement, you walk towards it. Not noticing a few pairs of eyes following you.

When you reach your former desk, you notice a photo of you framed, it was you and everyone, a family photo, everyone was either in their demon, angel or reaper forms, you wore really cheap red horns with a halo you shoved on one of them whilst also wearing an old reaper robe. It looked ridiculous, you loved it.

"Enjoying yourself? Rupert.~" a honeyed voice startles you. Asmo, although, somethings in his voice, maybe anger, maybe suspicion.

"Uhhh.." You say in your fake american accent.

"I'm Asmodeus, avatar of lust.~ Are you enjoying yourself?"

"Guess so." You shrug Americanly, thankful once more the veil covers your whole face.

Asmo's eyes have some hurt in them, he seems...catty, probably because you, who he thinks is a random stranger is just standing at his dead loved one's desk.

L.

You open your mouth to say something, but no sound comes out, especially not when another familiar voice is added to the mix.

"Well hello. I don't believe we've met before. The name's Solomon. You must've heard of me."

Oh shit.

"Oh...I have, briefly! Hello Solomon, my name's Robert." You say in your fake deep american accent voice.

Asmo tilts his head, "I thought your name was Rupert?"

Shit.

"Oh. Yes" You quickly bullshit, "My name's got the hyphens, Robert-Rupert." You avoid eye contact despite the fact you have a veil covering your face that only lets you see out of it, so the sorcerer and demon can't even make eye contact with you, even if they wanted to.

This was getting awkward.

"You seem very familiar Robert-Rupert." Solomon says, you did not like that crafty smile.

"I get that a lot." You nod before walking away.

You walk towards Michael who, has a now awake but sleepy Luke in his arms, he sits on one of the sofas in the council room beside Simeon, with Barbatos, Diavolo and Lucifer facing them on the other sofa. Atleast you'll be safe from Solomon over here. As you walk, you notice Satan, Beel and Belphie have left. Either Lucifer was going to get pranked or Lucifer was going to get pranked but not as prankily because Beel unknowingly made puppy-eyes. Mammon and Levi were bickering quietly in a corner (shocking they could do it quietly) about who won the lat round of Devilio kart.

When Michael saw you approaching he waved you over, beckoning you to sit down in the empty space beside him, "This is an angel I'm currently training, their name is.....Steven."

Simeon tilts his head "I thought their name was Rupert?"

Michael clears his throat awkwardly.

You make your voice the deep horrible American accent, "My full name is Robert-Rupert-Steven...it's hyphenated."

Michael nods aggressively.

Lucifer, Simeon, and Barbatos side-eye eachother. Something was going on here.

"So, Robert-Rupert-Steven," Barbatos begins, his polite smile a little jagged at the edges, "I saw you at MC's desk earlier, how so?"

At the mention of your actual name, everyone there tenses up, Luke, thankfully is too sleepy to have realised, Michael quickly stands up with the small angel in his strong arms, knowing if he heard the conversation about to occur he would be upset, "I should probably go, give this one a walk around to wake him up a little. Simeon, would you like to come with me?"

Simeon nods, Michael and Him leave the council room, with Luke sleepily holding both of their hands and walking slowly along with them.

Now you were stuck with the Prince of the Devildom, the Scary Butler and the Scary Single-Dad. All of which haven't realised that it's you, and all of which thinking you are a random stranger.

"Well, Robert-Rupert-Steven?" Diavolo asks, his friendly demeanor the tiniest bit strange,"What captivated you to go towards MC's desk."

"Who's MC?" You decide to play it dumb. Bad decision, seeing as all three stiffen, Barbatos' being the most unnoticeable.

A very long 3 hour conversation went by, wherein, Diavolo, Lucifer, Barbatos as well as a certain Mammon and Levi who joined 10 minutes in, and an Asmo and Solomon who joined 12 minutes in talked about you, for 3 hours straight.

'AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.' was an accurate reprenstation of your mental state actually.

The urge to just rip your veil off right there was almost stronger than the urge to dropkick Maddi anytime you remembered she existed. Keyword being almost.

You just about made it out of the council room with your life. Now for your master plan. Scare the absolute shit out of the Anti-Lucifer-League. That'll get them back for never listening to your amazing prank suggestion of leaving random origami swans around the house in random spots. It was genius!

Breaking into the House of Lamentation was always easy when you knew that Mammon hid his emergency house key behind the garden gnome that now you saw it....kind of looked like a really bad rendition of Michael. With its dark skin, A DnD-esque robe and, a horrible smiley face painted on it, and the worst crime of all, bright yellow, almost neon hair, and also a princess tiara.

You almost cackled.

Taking the key you slowly open the door to the kitchen and sneakily sneak in. Sadly for you, it was they key to the kitchen door to the outside of the back of the house, which meant it opened in the kitchen, and since it opened in the kitchen, you awkwardly waved at Beel, who was having a midnight feast.

Beel tilts his head. "You're the Angel from earlier. What are you doing here?"

You once more, fake your Robert-Rupert-Steven voice and say, "I have Materials for the Anti-Lucifer League as they've suggested."

You are such a good liar.

"Oh," Beel nods, normally he wouldn't let a stranger into the house, but something felt...familiar...and safe with you. "Okay then, do you know where you're going?"

"Yes."

Beel nods, and goes back to eating the pudding labelled 'MAMMONS: BEEL DONT TOUCH THESE'

After much searching, you do not find the Anti-Lucifer-League, but you do unfortunately, open the door to Lucifer's office. The place where Lucifer currently is.

He looks up immediately on guard. You are not prepared to die a second time,

"What are you-" He begins, in demon form and standing up.

You interrupt him, making 'woooooh!' sounds and waving your arms about, and in your Robert-Rupert-Steven voice, you say "Wooooh! I am the....ghost of christmas past!...Woooh! and I am..." You pause, not noticing your Robert-Rupert-Steven voice has began to slip away, and your natural one has taken its place. "I am here to tell youuuuu.....to woohhhh! Take breaks more! Woooh!....and not overwork yourself! Woooh!"

Lucifer pauses, the danger in his eyes fades into disbelief. He knows that voice. He's spent the better part of a year listening to recordings of that voice and praying to his Father for the first time since the celestial war for that voice to return to him.

"..MC?.."

You've been found out. Quickly you put your Robert-Rupert-Steven voice back on, except it's gone up 12 pitches. "Who's MC?! Haha! What a weird thing to sa-"

You don't get to finish, as Lucifer pulls your veil off. His breath hitches upon seeing your face.

Your covers been blown. All because you pretended to be the ghost of Christmas past. Great.

Lucifer immediately pulls you into a hug, arms tightening around you, as if he's afraid you'd disappear. He chuckles, wiping tears from his eyes, his frame shakes. "I thought-thought I'd lost you forever...I always thought your face was angelic...-...it's fitting."

You hug him just as tightly.

But ever the menace, after about an hour or so, you look up at the Avatar of Pride, "Say, Luci?"

"Yes, my dove?"

"Wanna help me prank the rest of them?"

"Perhaps...I might help with...some setups..." He pauses, "You are telling Barbatos outright though."

You shudder. "Of course I am. I don't have a second deathwish."

Lucifer's grip on you tightens slightly, you kiss his cheek in apology. "Sorry," You grin, "Too soon?"

"Try again in another century dear."

The next day, the first thing you and Lucifer do is travel to the Demon Lord´s Castle.

Barbatos greets you in the Entrance Hall, "Oh, Lucifer," He nods in greeting at the eldest of the brothers (second eldest actually, seeing as Michael enjoys bragging that he's older by a whopping total of 2 minutes) he turns to you, who put the veil back on, "And Robert-Rupert-Steven, Welcome to the Demon Lord's Castle, although, I must ask, why you have shown up today?"

In your Robert-Rupert-Steven voice, you accidentally, against your better judgement, and rather impulsively state; "I'm here to assassinate Dia-...volo."

A portal opens, dragging you through it, and you land in the feared rumoured dungeons. Barbatos follows gracefully, now in Demon Form. Leaving a sighing Lucifer in his wake in the Entrance Hall. He decides to just journey to Diavolo's office and discuss things related to work. Barbatos wouldn't hurt you when he found out it was you so he really had nothing to worry about. Maybe you'd finally learn to stop joking about assassinating Diavolo, especally when other Noble Demons were around at Balls.

Sadly for you, you were now alone in Barbatos' Dungeons. Now what's scarier than being alone in Barbatos' Dungeons? Being alone with Barbatos in Barbatos' dungeons.

Time to run away.

As it turns out, running away isn't very easy when magic chains pin you to the wall. In your panic, you blurt out, "You know, I'd rather you pin me to the wall haha!" in your normal voice. The fear forcing your horrible puns and jokes to slip out.

Barbatos, who had been approaching menacingly calmly with a torture device pauses so fast it gives you whiplash. (Better than getting whiplash from the whip he was previously holding.)

In some display akin to a cockroach kind of squirming about after you crush it, in your chained up state you manage to twitch enough that you were able to pinch a piece of your veil's fabric just enough that it falls to the ground.

Immediately, the magic chains fall away, strong arms catch you as you stumble. "Hi Barbs..." You say breathlessly.

Barbatos looks like he'd seen a ghost. (You were an Angel, thank you very much.) After your death he had tried and tried to pull a you from another dimension. It would never work, some force stopped him each time. (To be fair, it was probably your jealous ass. No way in Diavolo were you being replaced by yourself from another dimension.)

His bottom lip trembles, much like the rest of his body, as he leans in, "May I, my dear?" You nod, giving him your consent as he kisses you so gently, as if he feared you would break or fade away.

He murmurs apology upon apology for the fact he had no doubt frightened you, he couldn't risk a threat to Diavolo, your 'death' had left him a little...tethered and emotional.

You close your eyes and kiss him again, now noticing you're in the kitchens and not in the spooky scary dungeon.

"Wanna bake cookies? Like we always used to do?"

Barbatos nods softly. "You do have to tell Lord Diavolo you're actually alive though, little lamb."

Your eyes light up. "We could make a cake! And hide me inside it!"

Barbatos sighs, but looking at your puppy eyes, he agrees. Gently he picks a stray ivory feather from your wings, making them rustle at the touch. Devil...you looked angelic.

Baking with Barbatos was always fun, but sadly he did not agree with your attempt at throwing flour at him.

"MC?" He catches your attention, bringing an ungloved hand to caress your face, "Have I ever told you that you shine brighter than all the stars in the Devildom?"

You blush and try to cover your face when he turns away to add more eggs into your batter only to find flour on your face. That sneaky bastard! Psychological warfare is illegal. And that sure felt like it.

It was on.

Apparently it was only on for you though. Though you did get a speck of flour on Barbatos' apron. That was a win, especially if you ignore the fact that your face and apron were covered in the white powder, which you were ignoring! So take that Barbatos!

In the end, the cake was beautiful, Barbatos helped you into the cake, and cut out a you shaped hole out of the layers made.

He then helped you out again, and the Flour War began again only this time with icing.

Hiding in a cake is quite a fun experience. Especially when you can take bites of your hiding space. Yum yum.

You feel Barbatos' wheeling of you stop as he reaches Diavolo's office, he knocks on the door, and as you requested, begins to film on his DDD (you had to promise the video would never get out of your hands.)

Diavolo sat alone, Lucifer had had to leave an hour before, Beel had went on a rampage in Hell's Kitchen again apparently.

"My Lord, I feel you have been feeling down, so here is a treat." Barbatos says, "And as a special treat, I will allow you to cut it yourself." He nods at Diavolo who you can just picture has stars in his eyes as you hear the demon butler walk to a corner of the room, still filming.

Diavolo brings the knife to the cake, as it cuts into it, you grab the blade and pull it forward. Upon hearing Divaolo's confused murmurs, You peek through the tiny hole the knife made, seeing Diavolo distracted, tilting his head like a child and asking Barbatos what he should do now.

You however know what you should do now.

Quick as a flash, you shove your hands through the cake, reach for Diavolo's arms and pull him in face first.

You didn't even care if it was probably treason. Diavolo's suprised screaming and Barbatos' slight surprised chuckle was so worth it.

It was worth it for Diavolo even after 4 hours, as he held you in his big arms, whilst the both of you were still covered in cake. Barbatos, the traitor, snapped photos of this and sent them to Lucifer.

On a great note, Diavolo agreed to help prank the rest of the brothers with you, much to Barbatos' dismay. (The butler was definitely going to help you with a certain sorcerer, however)

After a night and day at the castle and a very extensive bath, you recollected your veil, and snuck out (read: Barbatos and Diavolo waved goodbye to you and gave you some left over cake for the journey home) of the castle, you began your walk to Purgatory Hall.

Michael was staying there, and you needed to tell him everyone's reactions so far.

It was also a Saturday, meaning that Solomon would be out in Sorcerer's society meetings all night and morning.

When you got there you made use of the tree there and climbed up it until you saw something in Luke's room. You paused your climbing and looked in through the window.

Two figures were in the Young Angel's room.

As Luke lay tucked in in his bed, cuddling the dog plushie that Mammon had given him at a carnival last year that he claims to have thrown away, Michael and Simeon sat on his bed, the nightlight on the boy's bedside table created a gentle glow that the two elder were using to read the storybook strew across both of their laps aloud, they appeared to be acting it out ever so slightly. When Luke finally drifted off. Both Angels kissed his forehead then dimmed the nightlight down slightly, dim enough where it wouldn't hurt the boy's eyes but bright enough that the dark wouldn't scare him if he woke up in the middle of the night, keeping the curtains open for added light.

You cooed silently, your white wings rustling.

Snapping out of it, you scale across the wall before finding the spare room Michael was staying in and breaking in.

"Hello Motherfucker." You greet the Archangel.

"You couldn't pay me to fuck your mother."

"Harsh. And here I was about to tell you my escapades..." You sigh dramatically. Michael immediately smiles sweetly. Buttering you up. You cave.

After about an hour of Michael laughing at you specifically, and then changing your contact to 'ghost of christmas past' the bastard finally fell asleep.

Feeling thirsty, you snuck downstairs into the kitchen to get a drink, and also a sharpie so you could draw a mustache on Michael's face. Not bothering to put your veil on seeing as no one would be awake anyway.

As you filled up a glass of water and leaned against the kitchen counter drinking it, lost in your own plans, mainly of who to prank nest and how to do it.

You don't hear the little pitter-patter of feet until it's too late.

"MC?" A sleepy Luke stands in the doorway in cat themed pajamas no doubt gifted to him by a certain someone, he holds his dog plush loosely as he rubs his eyes with a tiny fist.

He walks slowly towards the cupboard, pouting sleepily when he realises he can't reach it, you immediately grab his favourite mug,(the one with the red tractor on it) knowing to put milk and some sugar in it before placing it in the microwave for 2 minutes.

Luke walks over to you still half asleep, resting his face on your side, you bring him in for a hug. "Simeon said you went to a happy place after you left, he always got sad when I asked when you were coming home..."

You bite your lip and speak softly, "My flight got delayed for a little while," You lie. Luke didn't need to know you died, Simeon hadn't told him in the best of ways to shield the young boy, that worked out in your favour.

You catch the microwave before it beeps, taking the warm milk out and stirring the hot-spots out of it before handing it to Luke. With his teddy now in the crook of his elbow, he sleepily took the mug before putting his tiny hand in yours.

"C'mon Luke, let's get you back to bed." You say softly, he nods tiredly.

"Will you tuck me in? And read me a bedtime story?" He yawns quietly.

"Of course."

After closing his curtains and tucking Luke in, he snuggles up to you and you read him a bedtime story, after drinking his warm milk, he falls asleep quite quickly, so do you.

A mistake, really. Seeing as in the morning when Simeon comes in to wake the small angel up and sees you there he lets out a shriek very out-of-character for him.

A shriek which wakes both you and Luke up.

Luke smiles toothily, "Oh Simeon! MC came back last night! Did you not see?"

Simeon collects himself, "I must've been asleep Luke, why don't you get dressed then come down for breakfast? Michael and I made pancakes. M-MC, why don't you come downstairs now?"

Luke nods and gets up dutifully.

As soon as you leave the room and Simeon is sure you're both out of the earshot of Luke, he pulls you into a hug which you return.

"I thought I'd lost you.." He breathes out softly.

"Me? C'mon Simmy...you know I'd never let death keep me." You laugh, he laughs breathlessly.

"I suppose not...." He captures your lips in a soft innocent kiss before leading you downstairs, hand-in-hand.

When Michael sees the two of you he offers you a pancake, far too casually for Simeon's taste.

Simeon looks between the two of you and glares at Michael. "You knew about this."

"Haha! Funny story actually! I need to go help Jesus! He's gone and ventured into another desert!" Michael laughs nervously before booking it, only coming back when Luke appears, knowing then he's safe from Simeon's wrath....

....for now.

You took out your super serious napkin and crayon that you stole from Diavolo (read: Diavolo gave you) and crossed out Simeon's name.

Your list was now as follows:

Purgatory Hall Simeon Solomon House of Lamentation Mammon Levi Satan Asmo Beel Belphie

For Satan and Belphie, you could knock out two Anti-Lucifer-League Birds with one stone. It felt a little mean to prank prank Levi and Beel...Mammon and Asmo were debatable, but you were going all out on Solomon. That'll teach him to turn you into a sheep that one time 2 years ago.

After careful deliberation and planning, (20 seconds of thinking.) You'd decided to sneak into the Sorceror's society and jokingly attempt to assassinate Solomon, and maybe fully assassinate Maddi if she was there. Not maybe, definitely.

Veil over your head, you walked in, when the sorcerer guards stopped you, you just pretended to be Michael then walked further in. Apparently they were terrified of the Archangel. Damn this society needs better sorcerers securitying it.

After stealing schedules you realised Solomon would be in a meeting right now with a bunch of no names. Oh well.

You crept into the meeting and attempted to plunge the butter knife Barbatos' gave you from the castle kitchens specifically for this in his neck, knowing he'd dodge. "This is for the Sheep Potion you Rat Bastard!" You screech like a Bean Sídhe. After half a millisecond of shock and slight anger, Solomon realises who it is behind the veil, laughing he grabs the arm you're holding the butter knife in and drags you into his lap, gently ripping the veil off of you and giving you a peck on the forehead, before he turns to the shocked and slack-jawed sorcerers that looked older than he did. "Sorry all, my adorable partner," He puncuates the word partner by pulling you closer to him, "missed me a little too much. and has-" He kisses you on the lips passionately for a moment, leaving you very much breathless and him very much chuckling, "-strange ways of showing their affection."

Bastard.

Some time into the meeting you whisper, "How are you not more shocked?"

"Well Robert-Rupert," He whispers teasingly back to you, "Remember that binding spell we did back when you were alive? It never broke. I knew the moment I saw you."

Your heart stops. "Did you tell anyone else?"

"I debated telling Asmo, but I suppose you wanted to on your own terms." He teases.

"I should've tried to stab you with a sharper knife."

Solomon laughs, "Oh and MC my love?"

"Hmm?"

His eyes glint predatorily, "You look absolutely ravishing as an angel. I can't help but want to corrupt you..."

You bury your face in his chest to hide your blush.

Bastard.

On the bright side, now a rumour that Solomon the Wise and Michael the Archangel are secret lovers has spread around the Devildom. You're counting that as a win.

Purgatory Hall Simeon Solomon House of Lamentation Mammon Levi Satan Asmo Beel Belphie

After your encounter with Solomon, you'd decided learning to just hide your angel form was the best course of action. Luckily it was fucking easy and you could've done it ages ago. Strange how Simeon and Luke never mentioned it....meh. You're pretty sure Luke just thought Michael thought you were super cool so he made you an angel. You weren't telling him anything otherwise.

´Satan and Belphie watch your fucking backs.´ was the pedal note of all your thoughts currently, you´d snuck back into the House of Lamentation, thankfully Beel was not in the kitchen, he was at Fangol at this hour.

Walking through the halls stealthily, you heard whispers as two sets of feet seemed to enter the room at the farthest end of the hallway. Lucifer´s room.

You fucking caught them.

No time to be caught in Lucifer´s room, seeing as if you were there long enough and Lucifer caught you, you would not be leaving for a good while.

So you crept up to the attic, the official Anti-Lucifer-League headquarters, you climbed the pillars to get on the roof and you waited.

Sure enough, ten minutes later, snickering could be heard coming up to the attic. Satan opens the door, letting Belphie in, both brothers in various fits of sniggering as they walk into the room.

"He'll never see this one coming!" "This is our best one yet."

From your place on the attic ceiling, you spot Lucifer filming on his DDD from the shadows of the doorway. Of course he found out about this.

"Of course it's our best one yet!"

You swing down off of the ceiling beam, swinging lightly upside down. "And you didn't invite me?" You pout.

Satan and Belphie scream, clutching onto eachother, before noticing that it's you and running to pull you down and clutch onto you instead. You notice Lucifer chuckle and put his DDD in his pocket before leaving. Traitor.

You cuddle into your two Anti-Lucifer League Brethren, maybe this wasn't so bad. (Of course it wasn't, you loved your idiots.)

Safe to say, you didn't leave the attic for a long time. Apparently people need time to process that you're not actually dead. What madness.

House of Lamentation Mammon Levi Satan Asmo Beel Belphie

You had long unentangled yourself with a sleeping Belphie and Satan, making sure to leave a:

it wasnt a dream dont worry lads im alive.

note on their chests just in case.

Sitting in the attic with your napkin and crayon in hand, you ripped the Purgatory Hall part off of it and used the back of it for that note, you scanned through the list. You should save your First Man for last, so your next options were Beel, Asmo and Levi.

Seeing as you've shown yourself to Belphie, it's only natural your gentle giant is next.

Watch your fucking back Beel. Literally

Speaking of, it's been a few hours, Beel should be coming back from Fangol practice any moment now.

As was routine at this point, you crept through the House of Lamentation's halls and quickly ran into Beel and Belphie's shared bedroom.

As Beel walked into the room, his Fangol bag slung across his chest and a pile of after Fangol snacks in his hands, you braced yourself, made a run for it, anf landed right square on his back, arms around his neck to keep from falling.

"Oh hi MC!" Beel hummed cheerfully, before his eyes widened and he dropped his snacks. "MC?!"

"Hi!"

Quick as a flash, Beel maneuvers himself in 'dying cockroach you in Barbatos' dungeons part two' and grabs you into his arms.

"I thought you died..." He said, smelling your hair as he cuddled you.

"I did. I just came back as an angel."

"Really?" His breath hitches, "Can I see?.."

You take a deep breath and your wings and halo pop out, he strokes them gently.

"You're beautiful..." He whispers, enraptured...."I think...out of all of Father's creations over the years since the celestial war...you're the most precious...."

He speaks softly, always the gentle giant, the moment lasts for just a moment, before the moment, like all moments do, has passed. Beel's stomach rumbles and you giggle.

"You should eat your snacks, Beelie.."

"They always taste better when we share." He nods seriously.

House of Lamentation Mammon Levi Satan Asmo Beel Belphie

Levi or Asmo? You bit your crayon in thought then immediately made a face. Crayons did not taste nice.

Speaking of things that did not taste nice, you remembered that one time you tried to eat Levi's controller because you were bored.

Levi it was!

You had to time this perfectly, waiting in the shadows until Levi went down to get a snack, you snuck into his room, saying the answer to his password out of pure habit, before sitting on his gamer chair and maneuvering it in such a way he would not be able to see anyone on it from the door.

When Levi walked into his room, a bag of crisps in hand, he took a few steps before you swung around "Boo!" and he screamed. Dropping his crisps.

After convincing him you were infact not a ghost (Unlike Lucifer's), you sat with him in your arms, watching anime, and getting caught up on the new episodes released.

You cuddled up to him in his bathtub that night. You grinned evilly. This gave you an idea.

House of Lamentation Mammon LeviSatan Asmo Beel Belphie

It was no secret that Asmo bathed a lot. Funfact, Angels can hold their breath for 30 minutes!

As Asmo was busy picking out which pajamas he wanted to wear after his bath, you tiptoed behind him and slowly got in his bath, hiding under the bubbles.

It took a total of five minutes before Asmo closed the door to his bathroom and got into his bath, this was your chance! Reaching out, you grabbed his foot and pulled him under.

He screeched, when got back above the surface of the water, he grabbed your hand and pulled you over.

He squealed this time, hugging you tightly.

"Oh MC darling!~ I thought you were...well never the matter~...." He punctuated each word by kissing your face all over, leaving you squirming in his grasp out of embarassment. "How naughty!~ Sneaking into my bath like that...~...not that you arent always welcome my lovely!~"

"A-asmo," You say, your clothes soaked, though you couldn't find yourself caring. "Asmo, I love you..." your voice is soft and the Avatar of Lust coos.

It was a nice night.

Time for your final victim. Your First Man. Feeling nice, you decided not to do something too mean.

Painstakingly, you made a trial of grimm from the front door to your First Man's room, more specifically; to his bed. The plan was to hide behind the door and jumpscare him while he was busy collecting the grimm.

Unfortunately for you, seeing as you weren't sure when Mammon got off his modelling shift, you'd finished far too early, and since you and Asmo were up the entire night, you were quite sleepy.

Surely a little 5 minute nap wouldnt hurt?

You woke up hours later to a sobbing Mammon on top of you, cuddling you in his arms like his life depended on it. It seems you'd falled asleep on his bed, more specifically in his nest.

In the nest you would normally sleep in while alive. (While Human technically, seeing as you are alive, just not human.)

You bring a hand to his snowy locks, he sobs harder. Like his brother, kissing all over your face softly, "Thought I lost ye' forever Hum'n" he gasps for air, his sobs quieting down, "Though' you were gone....I prayed ev'ry nigh'...." he says, voice barely above a whisper as he strokes your cheek, looking into your eyes. "I prayed ta Fath'r ev'ry nigh' since ye' died...that he'd bring ye' back te me...."

"And he did..." You say just as softly, bringing your hand up to wipe the tears from his eyes, sharing a soft kiss with him. As always, your greedy lovable bastard would want more, and you'd want nothing more than to give them to him.

And the next day when you told Michael you'd be staying in the Devildom he cheered, then told you to include him in this 'Anti-Lucifer League business' because it 'seemed fun'.

Wow. Now you knew where Satan got it from. Poor Lucifer, he just barely got away from Michael in the Celestial realm, and now he has to deal with Michael 2.0 in the Devildom.

Satan and Michael really were kind of similar....maybe it's a good thing they've only met in passing.

Moral of the story kids. Death sucks, don't do it. If you do do it, reincarnate. Bam! Problem Solved.

This is the longest ever fic I've ever wrote and probably does not make a lot of sense so I apologise for that. I also apologise for any ooc behaviour i'm still learning how to write characterisation😔✊

also i love thinking of Michael being a father figure to Luke and its very obvious

[inhuman-obey-me]

what do you think happens when a human gives a demon their soul in exchange for a pact?? would it give that demon all the wisdom? powers of the human??

From what we've seen in the game, honestly it basically mostly comes down to like...wanting human souls because demons find them shiny and attractive. And tasty? Also tasty.

However, it seems that's basically the extent of it, in terms of what demons get from human souls themselves.

(spoilers for Nightbringer below the cut)

When it comes to potentially receiving things like wisdom and power from humans, you have to remember that demons (and angels, for that matter) don't actually really...think quite so highly of humans?

Compared to demons and angels, humans are essentially considered weak beings to be guided or influenced by one side or the other -- a point that has been especially emphasized in Nightbringer.

Let's use Solomon as an example -- a human that has both power and wisdom. In fact, he has been outright known as the names "Solomon the Wise" and the "Witty Sorcerer" in OM canon, and he is the most powerful sorcerer ever to exist, in terms of power as a human. And even for all that, that's only barely enough to make Lucifer have to actually put a little bit of effort into warding him off. Lucifer has made clear more than once that, if he actually cared more, Solomon would absolutely be no match for him.

Now, to be fair, Solomon does have 72 pacts -- but none of those pacts have actually been confirmed in-game to be for his soul. We know that Asmo was just sort of drunkenly manipulated into making a pact, and Barbatos mentions in the "Tea Time With You" Devilgram that his pact with Solomon is actually about atonement. Which, by the way, is a super juicy tidbit for them to have dropped in a Devilgram and we desperately want to know more about that?? When he makes a pact with Asmo a second time in Nightbringer, that also involves no promises of his soul. And, more generally, Solomon argues in NB Lesson 17 that most pact-making usually involves having to manipulate or outsmart demons -- though, we also know from Thirteen that his soul is amazingly shiny, and that's why she also wants it.

Now, that's Solomon, who is a special case in terms of both power and wisdom. And rather than coveting those things from him, the demons of the cast treat him more like either a nuisance or a threat. Meanwhile, power is actually the reason Solomon makes the pacts -- because the pacts give him power, not the other way around.

Then consider that the average human is not Solomon, but more like MC was at the very beginning of OM -- no magic, no power, not known for any special wisdom or anything. They, and their souls, are not typically meaningfully powerful or wise to demons, who themselves are way more powerful and cleverer than anything they could get from a human. So, as with the screenshot from Lucifer earlier, it would seem it really just comes to being like a shiny gem, something demons want to collect -- either to simply own their soul for eternity or to consume it as a delicacy.

There is a way that demons can get a taste of power from humans in a pact, though, and that is when the human draws it out of them while under a pact. This is what MC did with Asmodeus when Solomon lent them his power back in OG Lesson 8, which was so fascinating to Asmo that he actually freely decided to make the pact with MC, just so he'd have more opportunities in the future to experience that power again.

Rather than being power that the demon receives as part of a human's soul, that seems to be a two-way street, since Solomon also references having Barbatos lend him his power in NB Lesson 1 in order to go back in time to where MC was sent. But in terms of power from humans? It's while they have the pact with the human alive that it matters.

tl;dr -- Demons want to collect human souls because they're shiny and tasty. Humans want pacts for power.

[melverie]

⸺ LESSON 11 ⸺

Solomon

Lucifer

two bitter exes

demons & angels (& humans)

strange feelings & soup

records of a banshee

fragments of the past

misc

- lesson 10 || lesson 12 || all posts so far -

Since season 3 releases starting July 2, I hope I can finish the recap by then ;-; I actually have a few more thoughts on the 'two bitter exes' & 'records of a banshee' categories, but I'll put them in their own posts. It also has to do with 10-A btw :) General spoiler warning for all of Obey Me Nightbringer, as well as for the original Obey Me taglist: @lonely-north-star

⸺ SOLOMON ⸺

treat for the Solobesties <3 [11-1; pic below]

Solomon says he hasn't been to the reaper's cave in a long time [11-4], but we went there in OG season 2?? Was that really that long ago??

Solomon apologizing to MC for putting them in this situation [11-8; pic below]

we learn that the rule at the Fountain of Knowledge is that no promises can be made there and Solomon claims he forgot about it [11-8]

Solomon reminds us that we can't return home even if we wanted to [11-12]. Thanks Solomon ._.

Thirteen gives MC the brothers' grimoire and adds that, since grimoires are born at the Fountain of Knowledge, that's probably why Solomon wanted to come here in the first place [11-16]

⸺ LUCIFER ⸺

apparently Diavolo and Barbatos wanted to come with Lucifer, but Lucifer somehow managed to talk them out of it. He also told Belphegor to stay with Beelzebub [11-14]

if MC tells him that he isn't actually angry, Lucifer doesn't answer and instead just looks annoyed [11-14]

he has moments where he seemingly calms down for a second only to immediately go back to trying to recreate the OG's lesson 16 incident [11-14]

⸺ TWO BITTER EXES ⸺

(hi the category title is a joke. That being said, re-read lesson 11-14 and you'll know what I mean)

Solomon calls Lucifer out on essentially needing Diavolo's permission to do anything because he swore complete loyalty to him for all eternity [11-14; pic below]--which is SO funny to me btw?? Like, Solomon is really out here acting like Lucifer wasn't actively committing treason the first time they properly met back when the exchange program first started -> that being said, he does seem to put a lot of emphasis on Lucifer having sworn his loyalty to Diavolo... -> also why is Solomon provoking Lucifer further btw, the situation does NOT call for that

Solomon mentions that Lucifer already sees him as an enemy which then caues Lucifer to fall silent and change the subject [11-14]

Lucifer casts a spell on Solomon and MC to immobilize them. I have a few problems with this because

1. I might have misremembered, but wasn't it (offhandedly) mentioned in NB season 2 that Lucifer was still learning demon magic? OG Solomon should definitely be able to easily break free of the spell then 2. Solomon easily overpowered pissed off Diavolo once 3. Solomon thought a war against the entire Devildom by himself 4. even if Solomon isn't necessarily stronger than Lucifer, the OG has stated multiple times that they are on par with each other

You can argue that Lucifer's magic was enhanced because he was so pissed and overprotective of his brothers in that moment, but Solomon is also super protective of MC. He should have absolutely been able to overpower Lucifer here -> also, Solomon later does break free from the spell, however he was only able to do so because Lucifer lost his composure after seeing the grimoire [11-16]. I call shenanigans, but that's for another post... (-> also just wanted to say that I love overprotective Luci. That was such a good moment ❤️ [11-14; pic below])

when MC decides to hand the grimoire over to Lucifer, Solomon seems saddened by their choice, and Lucifer questions if they truly know what they are doing [11-14]

⸺ DEMONS & ANGELS (& HUMANS) ⸺

Solomon asks MC to side with humanity [11-8] -> he wants the other realms to see humans as equals -> he does kind of make it sound like he won't be able to side with humanity himself for whatever reason [11-8; pic below]

⸺ STRANGE FEELINGS & SOUP ⸺

Leviathan calls Thirteen the 'mean and scary type'. Asmodeus rightfully points out that Leviathan should have no idea what kind of person she is [11-12]

both Leviathan and Asmodeus seem kind of bothered by how much Thirteen loves MC [11-16]

⸺ RECORDS OF A BANSHEE ⸺

once again, the only two brothers that originally went to free Beelzebub also happen to be the only two that now attack MC for being human. Who knows what would have happened had Solomon and the rest of the brothers not shown up when they did

while discussing the lesson @misc-obeyme (hi CC!! Thanks for letting me post this <3) pointed out that the entire situation with Beelzebub was probably orchestrated by Nightbringer to force MC into revealing the truth [discord server lol; pic below]

⸺ FRAGMENTS OF THE PAST ⸺

Solomon's past!

1. he and Thirteen met back when he was a kid [11-8] -> he was looking at her through a lattice window from the basement and shrieked when they made eye contact [11-10] 2. Thirteen says that back when they first met Solomon's soul was captivating [11-10] 3. Barbatos brought Solomon to the Fountain of Knowledge when he was on the verge of death and nursed him back to health. Once his wounds were healed, Solomon left. Thirteen doesn't know where to [11-10] 4. Barbatos gave Solomon the title as "the Witty Sorcerer" and told him that he now has to look after the Fountain of Knowledge [11-10] -> ever since then, Solomon's soul has changed 5. Thirteen says that Barbatos let him experience whatever he wanted which is why he lost his innocence and why nothing scares him anymore [11-10]

⸺ MISC ⸺

Thirteen lore Thirteen lore Thirteen lore Thirteen lo--

1. she lives in the 'Otherworld'. [11-4] Solomon says it's called that because Thirteen enjoys her freedom 2. she already has the RAD uniform because Diavolo gave it to her in hopes of her attending the school. After modifying it a little, she now wears it because she likes it [11-6] 2. each level in the reaper's cave has a different rule that must be followed, otherwise One Must Pay the Price™ [11-6] -> the rule at the Fountain of Knowledge is that no promises can be made there [11-8]. MC later promises the brothers to help them and Must Therefore Pay The Price™ [11-16] 3. she has an older sister called Candy ( @too-much-gacha is that you? XD). Solomon says he hasn't seen her ever since she fell victim to one of the traps decades ago, Thirteen claims she's fine [11-6] 4. she hated the human world back when she first met Solomon because of how depressing it was with people dying left and right due to diseases [11-10] 5. apparently reapers are supposed to stay neutral, but Thirteen does her own thing [11-16]. Queen <3

Leviathan gives us the basics on how grimoires work [11-16; pic below]

Asmodeus turns into Leviathan's personal interpreter for a second, you love to see it lol [11-16]

Satan and Luke bonding over a cat ❤️ [11-A] -> btw has anyone else noticed that they've sort of become a dup lately? They keep sharing Nightmares and events...

[daytaker]

NightBringer Satan is a Gift.

I understand everyone has their own opinions on how good/not good NB is as a game or a story or whatever, but in my opinion, Satan's characterization is soooo enhanced by it. I know that this isn't an opinion that everyone shares, but to me, Satan felt emotionally artificial sometimes in the original game (more on that below).* He felt kind of awkward and like he wanted to connect with MC but something was blocking the kind of connection they develop with some of the other brothers. (Disclaimer: I've only done season 1 of OG, so I can't speak to how he's characterized later on. I know, I know, shame. But I'm trying my best.) Getting to see what Satan is like when he doesn't have any control over his emotions makes the stiffness and artificiality make more sense to me, and they become admirable because we get to see just how hard it is for him to get everything under control.

I think they did a really good job with the pacing of his development in NB too. Satan in Lesson 1 and Satan in Lesson 19 are different, but there isn't a moment where he suddenly starts controlling his emotions better. I think there's a lot going on behind the scenes with him as far as his emotional growth and self control are concerned.

Also let's not forget some very important things about Satan that make him, IMO, one of the most interesting characters to work with as a writer:

Satan was never an angel; he had no fall from grace.

Satan was created from Lucifer's wrath---he is literally the product of trauma and self-mutilation.

Satan is significantly younger than his brothers.

He spent the first year of his life more or less trapped in a castle with his deeply emotionally wounded brothers.

He has a deep resentment towards Lucifer that sometimes defies reason---he wishes he didn't dedicate so much of his time and energy to him, but it's basically a compulsion.

He hates his deep association with Lucifer, and he hates that he has a lot in common with him.

And these lead me to some headcanons that live rent-free in my brain every day of my life.

Satan sees himself as a reminder of the Great Celestial War and everything his brothers lost in it, including Lilith.

He is divine retribution against Lucifer for his failure, for leading his brothers to failure, for letting his sister die.

He acts as a counterbalance to Lucifer's pride by bearing the weight of the shame that Lucifer can't fully accept now that he is the Avatar of Pride. Even if Lucifer pushes it out of his mind, Satan never forgets that he failed in the worst way possible.

His biggest aspiration is to become a full and complete person outside of any association he has with Lucifer. He feels like some sort of parasitic tumor that exists only in opposition to his brother, and he wants desperately to escape that role that he feels he was born into.

Anyway, Satan is great, hail Satan, all that good stuff. Did you know I have a lot of thoughts and opinions about Satan? I know, shocking. For more of my takes here's my fic about him (on AO3).

*I think Satan almost metaphorically represents certain elements of autism---emotions that don't come out the way you intend, masking and its limitations, hyperfixations that are barely under control. In Fandom Discourse(TM) there's sometimes a level of focus on more 'cutesy' autistic traits that we find endearing in characters, like social obliviousness and gleefully indulged hyperfixations. But emotional control, emotional masking, emotional seepage, emotional artificiality---these are also real and messy and often times they aren't cute and they're uncomfortable to see in yourself or in someone else. I really don't like diagnosing characters so I'm not about to claim Satan "is" autistic, but as someone who has been called essentially 'spectrum adjacent' by doctors, I relate to the awkwardness and the desire to appear normal despite knowing you're not and emotions spilling out in ugly ways---um. That got really long and personal.

[deuxadeux-if]

Oh i forgot to add and sorry I'll stop spamming.

I like the variations i notice between when you play different genders.

How you can call the dude leering a perv or how R smacks him alil too hard if you choose a female MC or getting weird looks if you choose a NB MC.

I also just really love the banter between MC and R. Sometimes you read something and it can come off so forced but their dynamic feels.. lol yes feels very natural and the awkward moments that followed if you do choose certain choices was great because.. yeah that would make things alil awkward lmao

They were being so weird i died it was adorable ngl 😩

And the variations depending on choices with the busker and how you can embarrass yourself there or embarrass yourself in the subway.

How an overly flirty mc is just embarrassing af really. 😭

I like flavor text. lol i like it when choices matter, and i think that's what i enjoyed about your demo that every choice had a geniune reaction based on that SPECIFIC choice. And that was great. I really did find it wonderful.

Last question... probably not, but i find your IF interesting, so you're kinda stuck with me ray.

With the Lyons and M being so central to the game. Is there just one path then? Joining them i mean?

And how would romancing anyone outside of that dynamic work then? Or if you reject them is it like game over end of adventure or is there a different plot for an MC that refuses the offer?

You mentioned in a different post 2 more ROs, so i was just wondering if the game is a loopdiloop, where all things lead back home basically .

You know those games where they ask if you want to do this? And you choose no... and the game's like, well, tough luck, you don't have a choice, lol

Sorry this is long.. I'm gonna go now.

Don’t apologize at all, I love these questions so much! It makes me so happy that y’all are so invested in the game already :-)

THANK YOU I always love in IFs when gender/appearance variables have little details added so I’m trying to incorporate those because I think it helps so much with immersion.

Thank you again! I def plan on flirty MC being more successful after their stats get a teensy bit higher. The busker is programmed to be a bit of an asshole no matter what, though. I just thought that would be funny ahaha!

There is not just one path! There will be ways at first (during the inciting incident type stuff) that the MC ends up interacting with the Lyonses even if they don’t go out seeking an interaction, but the MC will have choices later to interact with other characters instead.

The paths essentially are:

T Lyons

N Lyons

T & N Lyons

T & N Lyons & M Nguyen

M Nguyen

R Burns

Erin Pinsky

Theo Ferreira

And within each relationship path there will be several ways for MC to behave and alter the relationship/interactions. There will be consequences with each path, though, involving the other ROs.

[midnightsunnyday]

Spoiler warnings for the Shout Your Heart Out Devilgram but...

for those of you who expected a good romantic romp with Diavolo after being given literally crumbs these last two seasons...

The entire Devilgram is nothing but you third wheeling as Diavolo reads from an entire scroll, in front of an entire audience, how amazing Lucifer is. That's it. That's the story. Dude is literally just listing off every quality Lucifer has and at the very end, all MC is treated with is what essentially feels like to me, a pity kiss.

And considering that NB has significantly decreased in its romance, I couldn't help but feel cheated. Like, who is this for? Clearly, the DiaLuci shippers, but Lucifer behaves so indifferently to Diavolo, that it even drops the ball on that. It especially fucks up the DiaMC moment by having our entire existence in that story serve as a fucking wingman for another character.

I already ranted about this with a few others on Reddit, but the entire Devilgram just left a sour taste in my mouth, and it's gotten to the point where sometimes I can't tell whether Diavolo's obsession with Lucifer is written for laughs or purely romantic, but I'm tired, y'all. I don't even know if it's right to call it queerbaiting or not, but Diavolo says so many off the wall things about Lucifer that it's hard to interpret his feelings as anything less than friendship. Either say the quiet part out loud or stop waisting my emotions in believing these characters actually care about romancing me, seeing as you've been lacking in that aspect for MONTHS.

And I know this sounds so fickle, but as a yumejoshi we rarely get games like this where an MC is non-descriptive with the ability to self insert as we please. Despite what you assume, otome players don't tend to self ship. Most enjoy reading the story seperate from the MC and that's a pretty large sum of people in that fandom. This story is literally a slap in the face to that.

Lilke, tell me the truth, y'all. Am I overreacting? Is it crazy to assume that an otome game, or what advertises itself as an otome game, should focus on the MC and their relationship with the LIs? And if you weren't going to make Diavolo a serious romantic option, then why make him an LI to begin with? Frankly, he was better off as a nondatable because it doesn't even feel like he gives a shit about the MC. At least in the OG game, there was a balance. Now we don't even have that.

Like, fine. Give the people their fanservice, but it just feels shitty that in a game where the point is to romance characters and have them love you, you're treated as an afterthought by the characters you're suppose to be dating.

[arvandus]

Thinking about that poll about MC some more and I feel like there’s a distinction to be made between MC’s role in OG vs NB (I’m only halfway through the OG right now and completely caught up in NB). While they did good keeping MC consistent across the games, I much prefer to be in OG MC’s shoes simply because the whole devilsitter thing sounds exhausting to me. It’s reducing MC, a powerful sorcerer in training, to the housewife role. Cook, clean, keep the guys out of trouble, etc. As an IRL housewife and mom, it’s not really appealing to me and is a big part of why I gravitate towards the more responsible “older” coded characters such as Barb, Luci, and Diavolo (yes Dia has himbo energy with a touch of clown in him, but he’s ruler of the Devildom and steps up when he needs to). Like I don’t want to have to mother a bunch of grown ass demon men. At least in OG it seems MC’s presence is more “political” and special powers focused. Like be an exchange student, essentially being a representative of the human world, learn how to control and wield our magic, etc.

Although I will say a big bonus with NB is being housemates with Solomon, and I’m REALLY enjoying Barbatos in NB (but I’m sure part of that is that I have yet to get into season 3 of the OG where he originally became dateable).

[journey-to-the-attic]

Not sure how far into Nightbringer s2 you are so feel free to ignore, but how do you think IK would handle all the Sin Stuff? Esp curious considering Asmo's solution and Mammon's symptoms were quite romance-rooted, so would love to hear your thoughts on the platonic edition1

i'm up to the asmo pact-making, but i'm not yet caught up on everything after that - but i can still talk about your particular area of interest!

for mammon, i think his greed symptoms would manifest in a sort of "i don't want you to grow up" way - you know, similar to how some parents over-coddle their children because they're afraid of them flying the nest? in this case, mammon is 'greedy' for his role as big brother - for being relied on and trusted - so he'd essentially start being a helicopter brother, not letting ik do anything on her own, and get annoyed when the others try to play the role as well

mammon's solution would largely play out the same if i were to keep it faithful to nb - his greed for that reliance and trust would also be rooted in his belief that he's only been burdening/harming his brothers through his own determination to get what he wants; he sees his role to ik as repenting, and that's why he gets so intense about it

(also gives it a sort of religious theme that ties back nicely to the celestial realm being his inner world. mammon'd probably also have a hang-up in that "oh, you're going to hate me now that you've seen what a rotten being i am" - which ik would counter with "i've always known who you are and i love you anyway")

as for asmo.... i think we can keep the initial fairy-tale setting his inner world takes up; i'd say, rather than the whole deal he has with mc, he starts treating ik like a trophy pet - essentially, upon taking over, his sin counters the fact that he holds ik in high importance by placing her on a sub-human level in his mind

his lust in this case isn't carnal, but rather just a want for more - more attention, more of the spotlight, more beauty, despite already having it; lucifer's apple gives him what he wants by cutting him off before these things inevitably peter out again, because what asmo's ignoring is the fact that such things come with an ebb and flow - he wants to always be the most beautiful, because otherwise he won't always be worth something

so the whole snow-white-situation does stay, but it's resolved differently - you know how, in the original fairy tale, the apple just gets jostled out of snow's throat? ik just busts the glass coffin open and shoves asmo out of it, which does the same for him, and so he wakes up

this is more than just a brute force thing, though - she forcibly shatters the stasis asmo is in, even though this is arguably where he's at his 'most beautiful' - because she doesn't care about that part; asmo's importance is constant, so there's no need to freeze it to make it stay that way - it's infinitely more important that he's just there

[asmo-cosmetics]

tell me lit everythin about ur ships with satan cause i don't see him talked abt very much like ever at all n usually its just lucisatan, which is hot but i kno u ship satan with other characters too an i wanna hear all your unhinged thouts abt ALL of it pls

you are correct and i feel you about luci/satan especially on here because so many people are Wrong About Them

one of my first big om ships and still one of my favorites is 345 because like. they're just so sweet?? like they're clearly so close and asmo and levi understand satan so much better than anyone else and they're all each others' favorite siblings and. i feel like satan being born is really what made asmo and levi as close as they are in the first place? because they were the ones that actually took care of him and didn't just complain about him or punish him all the time. so like satan probably feels most comfortable as part of the family with them because even though asmo and levi always loved each other even as angels, satan is the reason they're so close, so he doesn't feel as much of that "showing up late" feeling with them. wahhhh

and then obviously i love those ships separately too. levi/satan is adorable because satan kind of made levi actually have to step up and be a big brother; he was the youngest for a long time, and then when asmo was born he immediately latched onto lucifer, and then the twins and lilith were also all pretty much just lucifer's responsibility, but then here's satan, and he HATES lucifer and doesn't respect mammon at all (fair) and like. oh yeah. i'm the onii-san, i have to take care of him.

but asmo/satan is ship of all time. asmo is the first one to really love satan, to really see him as their brother, to actually have compassion and empathy for him (and of course he does!! people forget asmo is also prone to fits of violent uncontrollable rage), and i really think asmo is probably who most helped him understand he was like, real and alive and a person. in nightbringer everyone keeps explaining to mc that he's just a big ball of wrath and has to learn everything else, but i don't think asmo ever thought that at all. and then when he's stable enough, satan's asmo's older brother, and he goes to satan for support just like he does with his other big brothers, because he doesn't see satan any differently?? and actually seems to trust him more?? and yeah he still really loves lucifer which is gross and terrible but like he loves satan too, as a completely separate person in a completely unique way??? oh my god. there's this card story in nightbringer where satan essentially calls asmo superficial and ugly, and asmo gets so so hurt, and it gets to me so much because like, yes i'm insane but listen, that's one of the first actually specific insults satan ever gives. one of the funniest things about nb satan to me is that he hasn't built up his insult vocabulary yet and just calls everyone a loser. but for asmo he's able to come up with one that hits asmo's insecurities. it honestly makes me think that he got cuteness aggression. like he actually thought asmo was being really adorable and he didn't have any context for what to do with that feeling and got confused and lashed out. anyways -

[fickleminder]

Omg, thank you for being interested in my little plot bunnies! TYSCATDSC was literally so good, it was impossible for me not to run with it. It's rife with so much possibility, it made me think of all the different ways MC and the brothers could have reunited, what they would have to do to mend their relationship after the fact, MC and Lilith bonding time, it's just. An amazing fic. The plot, the characterization, everything.

I too am (obviously, I guess) a sucker for MC whump. We rarely get it in game, so we have to do it ourselves. I have started writing the “good ending” version with my MC, so if it’s okay with you, I might post the MC survives!version once I finish it?

The “bad ending” where MC doesn’t survive is something I started, but I'm not sure if I'll ever finish. I will say it was Solomon who found out about MC’s death first. 2ish years after the end of the exchange program, a friend of his overhears some hunter bragging about killing the “master of the 7 avatars of sin”. He goes back to MC’s hometown to try to track them down, and winds up hearing about an unidentified body being found in the woods like a year earlier. The witch hunters essentially cut them off from using their pacts (so Satan never knew what happened to them either), tortured and destroyed their soul before leaving them in the woods. MC is just gone forever, and the way I planned the rest of the plot, it’s all the characters reacting to the fact that their soul was literally wiped from the world and no one noticed. Not the angels, not the demons, not even the humans. They died suffering and alone, their body wasn’t found for almost a full year after they died, and they were buried in an unmarked grave until Solomon came by, by chance. I hurt my own feelings writing that one and I may or may not finish it one day, but it would be a tough one for me to continue.

As for the NB headcanons, have u ever listened to The Alcott by The National and Taylor Swift? Bc there’s this whole part that Taylor sings in the chorus and it goes like “tell me which side are you on, dear? / give me some tips to forget you / could it be easy, this once? / I think I'm falling back in love with you” and that is like. The whole vibe I was working with here. Honestly, the whole song was a vibe. I think NB would happen maybe a few years after the exchange program ends. MC has gotten used to being without the brothers (minus Satan, who they are able to see every few months, when he can get away from his responsibilities) when they are sent back in time, again. NB happens same as usual, except now MC has to deal with unresolved (romantic?) feelings for the brothers who now do not know them, and their only solace (Satan) is a blank slate and rife with resentment and violent rage. I think Solomon would still come to help them, but I imagine him in a more antagonistic role; in this version of NB, I see Solomon taking advantage of MC’s broken heart and loneliness and trying to sway them to his (humanity’s) side, maybe try and get them to fall in love with him instead.

Meanwhile, in the present day, Barbatos invites the Morningstars over for tea and casually mentions that the human who held all of their pacts has been unceremoniously chucked into the past by an unknown (?) entity. That’s all I have until more lessons come out, but I love to think of all the extra angst putting TYSCATDSC!MC into the NB universe causes. Knowing the brothers intimately while they know nothing whatsoever; watching them grieve Lilith and being unable to tell them they get her back one day; going through the motions knowing that another goodbye is inevitable; torn between not wanting to get close again, and being helpless to the feelings that always seem to come around when it comes to these brothers.

I'd be 100% down to read the MC survives!version first! As much as I'm a sucker for whump, I like happy endings too!! Do take your time, and please tag me when you post it 🙏🏻

That bad ending tho, holy shit. It hurts so good omg thank you for feeding us such delicious angst!! It really encapsulates the replaced!AU so well, the way MC is just lost to them (be it by their own neglect or external forces) and they can't do anything about it until it's way too late. I totally understand if you don't finish that one; my heart aches just reading what you have so far 🥲

And I love those lyrics for the NB headcanons! MC's entire support system is just gone, and I'm super intrigued by the sus!Solomon subplot you got there. As for the brothers... oof. Imagine being reminded of the one family member they neglected for years, only to be told that they've been lost in time. MC isn't dead (at least for now), but there's no way the brothers can get to them either. They must be going insane with all the worry and guilt.

I'm holding off writing too deeply for NB myself cus we're relatively early into the story so I wanna see where it goes first, but poor MC's really getting the short end of the stick no matter what eh? Anyway, thank you for sharing more on your ideas! I'll be in the back cheering you on and sending you all the good writing mojo 💪🏻

[gaiuskamilah]

can you give examples of books that fall into the different genderlocking vs. goc categories you made?? i'm v interested

disclaimer i haven't played some of these books in years so i might be misremembering stuff lol. if anyone has any suggestions/comments lmk! just off the top of my head:

books that dont make sense unless its genderlocked: desire & decorum, a courtesan of rome, queen b; not to say similar topics can't work with m!mc/nb!mc, but a good part of the books really only work because mc is a woman for historical and thematic reasons and/or gender plays a strong part in the book overall. i guess books like the royal romance series also fall into this?

books that don't need to be genderlocked but the story is more compelling if you play as a certain gender: ride or die, kiss of death, foreign affairs; they're coming-of-age stories and i think the plot is more compelling if you play as a woman and/or trans person. i also think stories which are very career-heavy (crimes, laws, open heart) hit differently when played with certain genders because of the sexism and queerphobia in the field. i think ilitw can also fall into this specifically considering that andy is trans.

books where gender does not have any effect on the quality of the story whatsoever: it lives beneath, veil of secrets, nightbound, blades, high school story, endless summer, the elementalists, immortal desires book 1. category is kind of misleading, there's of course going to be some nuances but it's not as overt as the previous category i think.

books where genderlocking falls into gender essentialism bc of plot/lore and it's better to have them GOC: bloodbound; the lore goes that only a woman can be born a bloodkeeper which is weirdly gender essentialist. the beats are also similar to ilb's and that isn't genderlocked.

i think there's more of a grey area between category 2 and 3 than a hard line. or just grey areas in general lol

[inhuman-obey-me]

Babel-ing: An Overview of NB Lesson 44

Okay, we have a couple things to talk about with regards to the latest lesson! Some interesting worldbuilding and some moments that leave us with many questions. Let's get into it, shall we?

(spoilers for NB Lesson 44 below the cut)

In terms of worldbuilding, the main point of focus in this lesson is on Babel and its power as a "place of solace and bliss."

What does this mean in practice? Well, in classic OM fashion, it means we get to rapidly cycle through short little scenes of what each brother's individual "bliss" looks like, one at a time -- with some getting more depth to the writing than others, unfortunately.

Specifically, they boil Asmo's down to just "compliments", Levi's to "TSL", and Satan's, as exhaustingly usual, to "cats". This was presumably in the interest of time, but considering what the next three then get -- come on, really?

Starting with Mammon's, however, it starts getting a little bit more thoughtful. Considering the first three, it seemed like his would probably be something to do with money, but instead, Babel gives him a little private time with MC -- though, not that private, as it turns out everyone else was just invisible. Mostly, that just makes for a funny scene, but it does say something notable about how magic works in Babel: they entered as a group and apparently must experience all of the moments collectively as a group, even when Babel is trying to grant a wish of privacy.

Next, Beelzebub and Belphegor are implied to get their bliss in the form of happiness for each other. Belphie's consisted of Beel getting to happily eat a bunch of food, and then for some odd reason, there was an odd bit about him snubbing and frowning at all the other brothers during what was supposed to be his happy time. The game suggests this is because Mammon and Asmo started sucking up to him in hopes of also getting in on their wishes being fulfilled, and he's mad about it because of the prior "Belphie is the imposter" suspicions during the entry riddle. But even so, it's a bit strange that half his "bliss" scene consists of him being grumpy, so...that's a thing.

Beelzebub's, in turn, is to make Belphie happy - specifically, for everyone to fall asleep and share a dream of the Celestial Realm together, which is when things get especially interesting.

We have theorized before that Belphegor is the one who most seems to miss the Celestial Realm, so it brings up a question of whether Beel also wishes for them all to be back there, or whether the setting is because that's where he feels Belphie would be happiest. The brothers start reminiscing excitedly about a particular memory of Raphael going after Mammon for skipping out on work, while Belphie naps happily at their feet.

There are, however, two very notable exceptions to the brothers' nostalgia - Satan and Lucifer.

No matter which of the two you address about their silence, Asmo apologizes about the fact that Satan, not having been around at the time, probably feels out of place because he once again doesn't share the same memories that the others are talking about. Now, the game handles this by deciding that, actually, since it has been established before that Satan has some of Lucifer's old memories, he does "remember" about that particular moment, and has Belphie tug on Satan's clothes in his sleep to suggest that the brothers still think of him as part of the family.

It does not, however, address how Satan might feel about the fact that one of his brothers' representations of "bliss" consists of being back in the Celestial Realm. It probably doesn't feel great for a demon who has never been an angel to just be placed into one of the angel outfits and be told, essentially, that their happiest times were before he was born, but just with him added in now! Even if he has a memory of it from Lucifer's point of view, he's not actually part of their memories in their minds.

And although questioning Lucifer's silence brings up the same discussion, he likely would have had his own reasons for being uncomfortable in this situation. We know that he has always harbored guilt over his brothers falling alongside him. In NB Season 1, he even wanted to send his brothers back to the Celestial Realm without him, so that they could be spared from sharing his punishment! They all chose back then to stay with him and Satan in the Devildom, but it must feel pretty painful then for him to have concrete proof that one of the brothers would be happiest by being angels again in the Celestial Realm after all.

Well, that sure makes it a bit of an awkward transition when the last up is, as always, Lucifer himself! Nothing in particular really happens for his, with MC pointing out that his bliss has just been seeing his brothers happy that whole time. And for once, they also throw in a little side story based on some options for what MC's "bliss" moment is, which is nice to see for once!

After everything, Raphael (the real one this time) shows up and instantly gets accused of being Michael again, leaving him grumbling about how he'd been sent by the top seraph himself to guide them but it seemed that was not needed after all. And then we get one more very interesting nugget of worldbuilding lore -- it has actually only been their souls in Babel that whole time, and their bodies have been left elsewhere.

This, combined with texts to Solomon from Diavolo last lesson, and Thirteen this time, inquiring about his choice not to go in with the family, bring up some fascinating questions. When Diavolo had asked, the sorcerer had suggested he might not pass judgment to get in and didn't want to bring the brothers down with him. However, this time, when Thirteen asks, he is more evasive and answers that it's complicated.

It's not entirely clear if his decision to keep away from the inside of Babel is related to this bit about their souls, but it's certainly a fascinating possibility! After all, we heard a bit about Solomon's soul from Thirteen in earlier Nightbringer seasons...

Finally, there's one more detail which stood out after our return from Babel. In two separate post-story texts, Simeon and Raphael both check in on how MC is doing after their trip to Babel, with the latter in particular expressing concern about any issues and encouraging them to go to bed early to "be on the safe side."

As we discussed last time, Babel is a very well-kept secret, and on the Celestial Realm side, only seraphs are even supposed to know of its existence. It was also a seraph (Michael disguised as Raphael) who administered the judgment test for them to enter. That makes it quite interesting that, aside from Lucifer who is with us, it is the seraph and former seraph who check in on us afterwards. Could this imply something more harmful or unsettling about Babel, despite the "place of solace and bliss" description? Or is it simply a reference to the strange magic that exists in Babel?

We'll see if any more of Babel is mentioned later in the season, but considering we also haven't heard from or about Nightbringer (you know, the one this new game is literally named after) in quite some time, who knows? Time will tell if the devs will follow up on any of their plot threads, ever!

[gabrielle-writes]

Devlog 7 - 06/09/2023

LINK FOR DEMO |  PLAYLIST

So. Writing for chapter 2 has begun. I'm writing the first event for the Necromancer Path. The events are "the same" for both paths, but written from different perspectives and with different happenings around it. At the moment, there are around 8,5k words in it, both text, code, and flavor-text for variation in personality.

Regarding code, there are two things: first, there are two more choices regarding appearance, specifically hairstyle and weight, and as a result the descriptions in "Appearance" will now appear.

And the second, I coded in such a way that the game records the tendency of your personality at certain points - for example, if at the end of the first chapter you were more restless or calm - and then this influences how much your next choices regarding these traits actually influence them.

For example, you were more restless: choosing to be calm both will shift the trait more towards calm and will be noted either by people that knew you in the first chapter and/or by yourself, while choosing to be restless will have less of an impact in shifting the trait towards restless and at most will cause someone that knows you to be like "oh not again" lol. It will be done in such a way that, as the second chapter progress, your personality traits can go all the way to the other end of the spectrum when compared to the first chapter, or just shift towards the extreme of what you already were. I don't intend on locking any of the personality traits at any point, but as the history progress the choices will have less of an impact for the numbers-behind-it-all, instead focusing on flavor-text: if the trait leans towards one side, but you choose things reflecting the other, the text will reflect that what you choose is not your "typical".

My intention with this is that, yes, we tend to have our typical way of being, but sometimes we deviate for whatever reason, and people around that knows us may notice. It's hard and a lot of work, the coding and math to make it's all well-balanced and correct is maddening, but it's hella fun and rewarding to write these variations.

Regarding writing in itself... Oh my God. I've finally reached the point where the Necromancer is made aware of Gehfeer's existence; as I said when answering an ask, about the structure of the IF if I remember correctly now, MC and RO know each other, but it's more of an acquaintance/professional colleagues that occasionally see each other thing-y in general, not exactly profound. Still, they have interacted enough to form opinions and impressions on each other, and this is what the second chapter brings forth alongside building your own abilities and your reputation.

And I'm loving writing this.

How do I put? Gehfeer is Silb-Ziidre, but Gehfeer is also their own person, with their own personality and quirks, and as a result both writing them in itself and writing them interacting with other characters is totally different from writing the Undead path. And I'm having so much fun with it. For example, Gehfeer's dynamic with Lilana, with Gehfeer being a sarcastic little shit? I'm in love with it.

(This is just a short example of Gehfeer's sarcasm. Atm the test-save for the Necromancer is a nb Necromancer and a female Gehfeer)

Sincerely, I can't wait to finish writing the first event in the Necromancer Path and start with it for the Undead Path. I can't wait to write the Undead meeting Cosmos, and properly write Cosmos, instead of only notes. Of getting the proper feel of writing them and their short temper and how they fit with the people around them - I have only written before short scenes with them that I'm not even sure will make into the IF, just to try out some things.

Notes and outlines are essential for not getting lost, but they don't compare with really writing what they talk about, at least for me. It's always a discovery and an adventure, and there is always space for bringing forth more than what you had planned.

I think this is what I had to share about the progress this month.

Thank you all for the support and the patience! Love you all and stay safe! Until the next Monthly Lore!

LINK FOR DEMO |  PLAYLIST

[melverie]

⸺ LESSON 1 ⸺

unregistered

Solomon

Solomon & Barbatos

MC's magic

situation in the Devildom

demons & angels (& humans)

strange feelings & soup

misc

- lesson 2 || all posts so far -

1. As you might have seen, I'm trying to connect some plot points atm and have decided to just go through the lessons again in hopes of untangling this mess. Depending on my motivation I might do this for all 40 lessons All of them will be tagged under #mel's descend into madness because that's honestly what it feels like lol 2. This is a mix of gathering facts from the game as well as me trying to make sense of everything. I'll add the lesson references to all things actually stated in the game. That being said, I'll only add them to moments that happen in lesson 1 since that's less work for me lol 3. I'd love to hear your thoughts!! Add stuff, dispute some of my points, theorize, bring up story points that don't make add up to you--idc what it is but I'd love to hear it all!! Either share it directly on here or send me an ask if you'd rather share them as anon 4. General spoiler warning for all of Obey Me Nightbringer, as well as for the original Obey Me

⸺ UNREGISTERED ⸺

most likely Nightbringer, so I'll just call him that -> 'Nightbringer' fits into the amount of characters in their name, and just like the unregistered number, NB later in the story talks about taking MC to a place where they will be happy [1-1//chat 'Untitled' with Unregistered; both pics below]

Fun fact: "lightbringer" (aka the meaning of Lucifer's name) also fits :)

NB knows MC's name because they told him recently from NB's perspective, and a long time ago from MC's perspective [1-1//chat 'Untitled' with Unregistered]

Nightbringer talks about how nothing remains hidden from him and that they see everything (-> Barbatos, Michael, Father?) [1-1//chat 'Untitled' with Unregistered]

this is how NB describes how he sees time [1-1//chat 'Untitled' with Unregistered; pic below]. It's similar to how Solomon claims Barbatos once described time to him

⸺ SOLOMON ⸺

definitely Solomon and not some imposter because his cooking is still the same inedible mess we know him for 💖 [1-17]

he's casting some spell when MC calls him and claims it's for jumping through spacetime [phone call 'Untitled' with Solomon] -> at the very least it doesn't have anything to do with influencing the memories of the others because they already didn't remember MC before their phone call

Solomon is the one who tells us we are in the past [1-12]. I have no reason to doubt him there -> he also says that MC "just disappeared" [1-12]. No mention of anyone's reaction to this though

Solomon is also the one that tells us that we need to reforge our pacts with the brothers if we want to make it back to the [1-12; pic below]

⸺ SOLOMON & BARBATOS ⸺

had (OG) Barbatos lend him his power to come to the past [1-12]

when choosing the option that implies that MC and Solomon are dating, Diavolo response with this [1-9; pic below]. That doesn't sound like there's any bad blood between them yet, at least not from Diavolo's point of view which, in turn, makes Barbatos' behavior toward Solomon so much stranger

⸺ MC'S MAGIC ⸺

Solomon explains that MC's magic is much weaker because their pacts with the brothers aren't functioning properly since they are in the past [1-12] -> the OG already established that MC's magic is tied to their pacts with the brothers (OG's season 2 plot literally revolved around that), so it makes sense -> since they need magic to return to the present, MC is essentially trapped in the past [1-12]

MC isn't able to use the pacts at all at first [1-2, non-amnesia route], however the pacts aren't completely severed as evidenced by MC being able to use the 'Stay!' command [1-5] -> once overcome by a warm light inside them, MC is able to use the pact commands again [1-5]. Imo it somewhat plays out similarly to MC being revived during the lesson 16 incident in the OG (which was Lilith's doing)

something about Solomon's reaction to being told MC used stay bothers me. Idk what though. Then again, maybe he was just worried about MC's safety, so it could also just be nothing [1-9; pic below]

⸺ SITUATION IN THE DEVILDOM ⸺

the Great Celestial War was about a year ago [1-2] -> Mammon mentiond that it felt more like a century to him [1-14; pic below]. Probably nothing but I'm critical of every little detail at this point lol

the demon king is already out of commission, but he was still around to give the brothers their titles as avatars [1-5]

the brothers' arrival threw the Devildom in disarray [1-7]

⸺ DEMONS & ANGELS (& HUMANS) ⸺

both Asmodeus and Diavolo talk about how angels and demons technically aren't enemies anymore, yet both parties are still clinging to what happened in the past [Asmo in 1-15, Dia in 1-18; both pics below]

Diavolo says that the goal of building the school is to bring the Devildom and the Celestial Realm closer together. He generally talks about just the "two realms", completely leaving the humans out of all this [1-18; pic below]

⸺ STRANGE FEELINGS & SOUP ⸺

Diavolo says that he feels like he and MC already share a strong bond [1-18; pic below]

Lucifer indirectly expresses his concern for MC, and is honest about his feelings and worries with them (only to immediately downplay it and snap at MC, thanks Luci 💖) [lesson 1 hard mode]

⸺ MISC ⸺

the House of Lamentation has just been rebuilt in the Devildom. They also once again tell the story of what happened in that house when it was still in the human world and say that it might be cursed [1-7]. Not really all that relevant tbh

Diavolo first talks about building a school [1-17]. RIP 'The Glory Days' devilgram ;-;

Lucifer says that he doesn't trust demons [1-18; pic below]. Will be slightly relevant again in lesson 12 iirc

[supreme-burrito]

So Chapter 16 aka Satan Round 2.

At least we got some…movement of the plot with some juicy lore to boot.

But my real question is: With Mammon saying this (Satan just described Lucifer to a T after the Banshee incident), my question is ‘do all the brothers know where Satan came from.’

Spoilers if you haven’t played OG Obey Me

Satan is by the literal definition Lucifer’s son. He was the rage that came out of him when Lucifer was cast out of Heaven and originated from Lucifer’s third set of wings, hence WHY Satan has the black feather boa.

The connection is very easy to piece together: the way they stand, their horns being similar, even during this event and newest chapter even their personalities are similar when in neutral mode.

There are obvious differences that set them apart too.

You could also argue that they’re one in the same person when referencing Paradise Lost where Lucifer becomes Satan and they are one in the same person.

I believe it was in the OG Obey Me that Satan said he could comprehend a bit of what happened during Lucifer’s end in the Celestial Realm because he was inside of Lucifer.

Asmo comments that Satan was ‘late to the party’ when they all arrived in the Devildom and n this chapter Beel points out that despite losing Lilith, they got Satan in her place.

So that tells me that either nobody has stated anything about it, or nobody has deduced the obvious.

I do find it very ironic that during Lucifer’s birthday they ran an event and released an entire new Chapter revolving around Satan and putting Lucifer in a lace negligee.

We even got a third-party source (which we can only assume is an unbiased account of Solomon’s story), which is similar to the account told at the beginning of the game. Good to know his story about being locked in the basement was a goddamned lie.

So not only did he try to destroy the Devildom, he almost caused the end of the human race.

So I say to all the Solomon stans: is the gaslighting effect kicking in yet?

Ngl I think Solomon is jealous of the treatment MC got with their powers while he was outcasted by society. So he’s using his toolkit to essentially destroy MC’s happy future.

Nightbringer is not Barbatos or an evil iteration of Barbatos that ended up serving Solomon whole heartedly instead of Diavolo. The Solomon we are with now is from a completely different timeline where he was defeated by MC for trying to end the goddamn universe. And he wants revenge and once we ‘get our pacts back’ we are gonna get stabbed in the back. I just feel it.

And I think with the real Raphael showing up next chapter, I think Solomon has accelerated a chain of events that can’t be stopped. Which is that RAD is going to get formed way sooner in the timeline, thus causing NB to start clashing with the plot of the OG OB and we possibly might even get a MC paradox which is going to fuck up the entire universe. Things will be different- but it will feel similar.

Note when we first arrived and Diavolo was talking about RAD, his mind was in the very rough Alpha phases of imaging the school.

[booksopandah]

Artificial Condition by Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries 2)

NB: Last review I posted for All Systems Red, I used He/Him for Murderbot. I have since been told that it is It. Sorry I missed that, and it’ll be corrected going forward.

Man these are fun. The action sequences are usually pretty good, but the planning and tracking, the cat and mouse bit that Murderbot does is where the series really shines so far. That, and the flippant internal monologue is way less annoying than those usually are. Most of the time it’s actually funny.

Murderbot has escaped its present circumstances, essentially going rogue, in order to learn about in its past. We also get to meet a new horrifying character, a supercomputer in charge of a university research ship, with currently very little to spend its processing banks on. Naturally these two get along a house on fire, eventually, and it’s a fun little foil for our MC, as well as a very useful plot device. We also get a much more human Murderbot, whether it wants to admit it or not, but I think it’s a change for the better. On the whole, another cute little short story wrapped up. I look forward to the next one. Happy reading y’all.