#why yes i do have a specific cult in mind here

[wingedcatgirl]

y'all know that harassing cultists only strengthens their ties to the cult, right? just block and report and move on with your day

[tinfoil-jones]

Gravity Falls: For Your Own Good, Ch.20

Summary: A few years after moving to Gravity Falls and having his lab built, Stanford Pines happens upon his estranged twin brother, Stanley. He mentally prepared himself to be suffocated by his brothers neediness all over again - what he wasn't prepared for was Stanley walking right past him like he didn't even notice him.

Rating: M for language, violence, and adult implications

Preface: Dialogue only, but some actions will be annotated for clarity. Cross-Posted on AO3 Here.

Believe it or not a large section of this chapter was actually one of the first things I wrote for this story, it was written out before the first chapter actually and I’ve been really excited to show it. This chapter is super long and has shifting perspectives.

This chapter also mirrors Ch.10. This is a long chapter.

First - Prev - Next

WARNING: T/W implications of past sexual assault. Implied past torture. Character death.

CH.20

“So you’re gonna show me that super off-limits study room?”

“Yes. I only ask that you keep an open mind, and please do not judge me.”

“Alright PhD, I’ll only judge you the normal amount.”

“Come inside.”

“-Woah- ahhh. You really like …Triangles, huh?”

“Stanley, you’re shaking.”

“It uh, it kinda makes me uncomfortable, not gonna to lie. Are you in a cult?”

“No. Come here, follow me to the mat in the center.”

“Okay…”

“Now, what do you think of this? Does it remind you of anything?”

“A newspaper clipping? Uh… That’s a pretty messed up car- oh, wait, yeah it does remind me of something.”

“What does it remind you of?”

“I used to have a car just like that. A red El Diablo.”

“And what happened to it?”

“...I don’t remember, actually. I’m trying to remember but it just makes my brain feel like it's on fire.”

“How did I not see this before…?”

“See what?”

“Stanley, when you were first traveling with Sanchez, were you sick at all?”

“Oh yeah, totally sick. I had this massive chest infection. Kept knocking the air mask off when I was delirious. If Rick didn’t constantly shoot me up with weird sci-fi drugs, it probably woulda killed me.”

“Don’t say things like that.”

“Where’re these questions coming from Doc?”

“I’ll explain soon, but I need to show you something else. Sit down on the floor.”

“Okay…?”

“I’m going to sit back-to-back with you. I need you to fall asleep.”

“You want me to… sleep?”

“Yes.”

“Doc, you know I got problems sleeping.”

“I doubt it will be a problem this time. I’m going to meditate, but I need you to sleep.”

“You’re not setting me up for some ritual sacrifice, right?”

“Do you trust me?”

“...”

“You don’t have to answer that. Either meditate or sleep, whichever comes first. But I’m going to meditate.”

“...Alright. But if you cut my heart out and sacrifice it to the math gods or whatever, I’m haunting you.”

(...)

“Stanley.”

“Huh? Where are we?”

“The dreamscape. Specifically, we are in your dreamscape. You could also call it the mindscape. It’s a metaphysical representation of your mind.”

“You can beam yourself into people's minds?”

“Within limitations, yes. If I were to do so when the person is awake, I could only access their surface thoughts and memories. If the person were asleep, I could go a bit deeper and see their dreams, but I wouldn’t be able to easily traverse, and some deeper, more unconscious memories can’t be accessed.”

“So… Ya brought me here? What for?”

“We can access your mind deeper. But I need your permission to do so.”

“You can un-bury all of my lost memories?”

“Yes, but I don’t want to force it. I want to help you… but I know this is painful; both not knowing, and knowing. Do you want to know your real past? Even if it meant you’d have to remember why you forgot it all in the first place?”

“...Yeah. I think- hey what’s that thing coming out of your chest? Is that a rope?”

“...Yes, how did you-”

“I think I have that same thing, hold on, lemme just-”

“You’ve never been here, how would you-.”

“See, same thing. Is it supposed to do something?”

*Ford in shock suddenly grabs at the severed ends of both ropes and tries desperately to push them back together, but the ends keep repelling each other like magnets with the same charge*

“Hey doc, I don’t think you’re gonna attach ‘em like that.”

“Why isn’t it working? It’s supposed to work. It needs to-.”

“Woah! Calm down, PhD. Aren’t we here to dig up the past?”

“Right, right. We’ll get back to that. Do I want to know why your mindscape resembles a gambling lounge?”

“I spent a lot of time in a place called Lottocron Nine before I was banned from it.”

(...)

“Have you been in my mind before?”

“...Yes, during one of your sessions with Fiddleford.”

“...What kind of session?”

“An interview.”

“Oh, thank god. So ya just… broke into my mind?”

“Stanley, I understand if you are feeling-.”

“That’s really cool.”

“...What? You’re not upset?”

“Pft, I’ve broken into houses, cars, shops, warehouses; and even the Infinetentiary, twice . A persons mind though? That’s hardcore.”

“You’re being awfully candid about your multidimensional adventures with Sanchez.”

“There’s no point in hiding it now. You learned the first time you went into my mind, didn’t ya? That's how you knew who I was talking about when I mentioned Rick.”

“You’re handling this rather well.”

“Doc, we’ve both seen some crazy shit. This dreamwalking stuff isn’t even in the top ten.”

(...)

“FORRESTER!”

“Catch you on the flipside, sucker!”

“God, I hated that guy.”

“That IRS agent… What’s his name?”

“Agent Powers, why?”

“Just putting a name to a face.”

(...)

“I don’t like remembering this.”

“Tell us where your boss is hiding, and maybe we’ll spare that ugly mug of yours.”

“You think anything you do is gonna be worse than what Jimmy will do to me if I rat her out? I’ll take my chances with your sleazy ass.”

“This ‘Jimmy’ is female?”

“Yeah. Jimmy Snakes is just a street name. Other bikers wouldn’t take her seriously if they knew from the bat she was a chick. Her real last name is Jiménez.”

“But the J is pronounced as a-”

“Yeah, but guess how everyone who doesn’t speak Spanish tries to pronounce it when they read it?”

“Tough talk, Alcatraz. But everyone's got a limit.”

*the gangster takes the lit cigarette out of his mouth and brings it closer to Stan*

“Yeah, we don’t needa see this.”

*the memory suddenly blacks out but a sizzling noise is still heard*

(...)

“Stanley, this is a pit memory. These are memories your unconscious mind has been hiding from you.”

“Do we just, ya know, jump in?”

“Yes. In a way, it is like the bottomless pit, we would fall back right where we started, or your mental defenses could forcefully-.”

“Screw that, I’m imagining stairs.”

“You can’t just imagine -”

“Violá. Stairs.”

“...”

“What? This is my mind, anything I can imagine should be possible, right?”

“It should not be this easy for you. It takes months of rigorous meditation to-.”

“Maybe it woulda been easier for you to control what's in your head if it wasn’t so far up your ass all the time.”

(...)

“I don’t remember this.”

“It’s the science fair incident I told you about.”

“This is all your fault, ya dumb machine!”

“And now you’re about to-...”

“Oh no. Oh no, no, what did I do?”

“Man, did I fuck up or what?”

“There. Alright. Good as new. Probably.”

“...Stanley. You- you didn’t ruin my machine on purpose?”

“I don’t see you anywhere, but it looks like it.”

“You only hit the table …”

“Does it matter? The results are the same.”

"Stanley, I haven't been honest with you about this incident. After this, yes we fell out, but our father overheard and-."

"And he kicked me out? Yeah, I know."

"You know?"

"Yeah... I think I always did. Just didn't wanna."

"But... I lied to you about it. I told you that you chose to leave."

"Dude. All I fuckin do is lie. I'm not feeling like being a hypocrite today."

"You're not mad at me? I turned my back on you!"

"Get in line, PhD. Rico outed me to the Aryan Brotherhood. Rick cheated on me with an Alien Hivemind. Jimmy chased me for fifty miles on the interstate on a flaming motorcycle trying to drag out my soul with bottles and chains. You got tired of my shit and told me to buzz off? Big deal!"

"I ruined your life..."

"I ruined my own life. It's kinda my thing, ya know."

(...)

“No- no. Oh, no. We can’t stay here, we need to leave.”

“This looks like the homeless shelter from Glass Shard Beach.”

“Hey- sir? Can ya help me with something?"

"Watcha need, kid?"

"I haven't been to one of these places before and its kinda-"

'Scary - no, I can't say that out loud. He'll think I'm being a baby.'

"It's kinda new to me. I heard there were phones here that don't charge ya?"

'I wanna call ma...'

"There sure is, just follow me."

"We need to leave."

"Stanley, what-?"

"We need to leave we can't stay here we need to-"

"This isn't- wait, what're ya d-? Hey!”

“Brats like you are too damn easy.”

“Back off you piece a-!”

WACK

“Why isn’t this memory blacking out, I’m trying to end it-.”

“Get offa me! Stop!”

“I don’t wanna remember this.”

“Stanley, I’m so sorry. I had no idea-.”

“Cry all you want, it won't help you.”

*the memory blacks out*

(...)

“...Do you want to talk about it?”

“ No. ”

“Okay. I won’t make you.”

“I think this pit over here is the one that… ya know, made me forget everything.”

“You are sure it’s this one?”

“There’s a giant neon sign over there that says ‘Do Not Enter: Everything is Worse’.”

“How considerate of your subconscious.”

“…I don’t think I can go any further. Go on without me.”

“Stanley-.”

“Stanford. I’m giving you permission to see that memory, whatever it is. I’m not going to kick you out of it. Just tell me what you saw after you get out, and we’ll go from there.”

“You are okay with that? Are you sure?”

“You asked me outside if I trusted ya. Here’s your answer.”

(...)

‘Moses, the fog’s getting pretty bad… can’t see shit��

‘Ain’t safe with all the curves ahead’

‘I should take a stop soon and wait for it to clear’

‘Huh? What’s up with my breaks?’

‘WHY ISN’T IT WORKING? WHY?’

‘He didn’t! That son of a-’ 

SCREECH

CRASH

Fwooosh!

‘Fuck! I gotta stay calm- I’ve gotten out of worse’

‘Ugh the smokes getting really thick-.’

‘Why isn’t the seat belt unbuckling? I don’t have a lotta time here.’

‘Where’s my strap cutter? Why isn’t it-!’

‘I’m really lightheaded…’

‘Can’t-’.

‘It’s too hot-.’

‘I’m trapped.’

‘I-I can’t breathe.’

*Stanley reaches up and pulls the picture of himself and Ford, which is on fire, off of the sun visor. It burns up into ash within his hands, which then start shaking*

"That was all I had... Now I have nothing. And I have nobody... I'm… alone."

‘I'm alone…’

‘I'm alone.’

*the memory suddenly blacks up, and then the scene changes and he’s looking at Rick Sanchez as he lies on the floor of his space cruiser. Ricks words are muffled at first*

'Where am I?'

'Who's this guy?'

'He tased me? Is this a cop?'

'Why was I in the woods?'

'Catatonic...?'

“This isn’t going anywhere. Can you tell me your name?”

'I'm alone' 

“It’s…? I... 'm alone . Wait. It’s- Stan.”

“Stan Malone huh? My name’s Rick Sanchez.”

(...)

“I do not understand… I suspected the car accident was the catalyst, but how did he escape? Did Sanchez rescue him and lie about it? What would he gain from that?”

“Nope!”

“Bill?”

“You know you can’t go anywhere without me, Fordsy.”

“Why did you wait until now to show yourself?”

“Dramatic entrance, of course!”

“...Right. Why doesn’t Stanley remember escaping his burning car?

“Because he didn’t. He died of smoke inhalation right there.”

“... What ?”

“Yeah. He died. Ironically, of suffocation. Isn’t that hilarious, Sixer? He used to suffocate you, and that ended up being the thing that killed him.”

“CIPHER! Whatever cruel joke you are trying to-.”

“Joke? I’m hurt Fordsy, I know when to be serious.”

“He didn’t die! We are in his mindscape! He’s asleep right behind me in the waking world!”

“Oh, Sixer… Your mommy was right when she said denial like this isn’t healthy.”

“STOP PLAYING THESE GAMES WITH ME BILL CIPHER.”

“Alright, alright. Here, let me give you a sneak peak of what happened between the scenes; he doesn’t remember, because it happened in his mindscape. So here’s my memory of what happened.”

“Your-?”

SNAP

(...)

“Hey there slick! Things getting too hot to handle?”

“What are you supposed to be?”

“Call me a guardian angel.” 

“Are all angels as geometric as you?”

“I took a form that would be comforting to you. I’m the symbol on the back of the money, you like money right?”

“Yeah.”

“Well there we go! I’m here to help you.”

“... Why?”

“I’m a friend of a friend. And that friend would very much hate it if you burnt to death here. Shake my hand and I can get you out.”

“What’s in it for you?”

“Like I said, friend of a friend. Just shake my hand. I’ll have temporary use of your body, and you’ll get to live.”

“I’d sooner chew up and spit out a gold chain before I fall for some Faustian bargain. No ones ever been nice to me in my entire life; there’s no reason my death would be any different. Leave me alone.”

“What about your family?”

“They won’t be surprised, there’s no way they didn’t see something like this coming. I’m surprised I lasted this long.”

“What about your brother? Your twin? You’re two halves of a whole - are you really going to leave him to live the rest of his life incomplete?”

“I’m the incomplete one, I failed by myself. But he can stand on his own.”

“Don’t you realize this will devastate him?”

“... I know it will.”

“Then why aren’t you taking this deal? Fordsy isn’t going to get over this. I know everything about him, and I’m telling you he never will. This will haunt him the rest of his natural life. The same way it would haunt you if he died.”

“If you’re such a Stanford expert, would he ever think I’d take a deathbed deal with a floating triangle in a top hat and fake eyelashes?”

“The eyelashes were a low blow. But, I’ll give it to you, slick; he does know you would never fall for flattery and trickery. But he’d also agonize why you’d give up like this.”

“There’s giving up, and there’s acceptance. Every decision I’ve ever made has led up to this. And most of them were the wrong ones. The consequences have caught up to me, and there’s nowhere to run anymore.”

“You’re choosing now of all times to accept the consequences of your actions?”

“Might as well, it’s the last chance I can.”

“You are going to die here. Stanley Romanoff Pines, if you don’t take a deal with me in the next minute you will die.”

“Guess I get one whole minute to reflect on everything huh?”

“And what would you reflect on?”

“If you’re really friends with my brother… if he ever asks about me for some reason, could you tell him that I love him?”

*a rope suddenly appears, with one end fading into Stanley’s chest. The other end appears to fade off into the distance*

“What’s this supposed to be?”

“Your twin bond with Sixer.”

“That’s a real thing, no shit?”

“Yes. It’s how I found you, actually. IQ was getting this sinking feeling of dread and didn’t know why, so I just followed it without telling him.”

“Does that mean he’ll feel it when-.”

“Yes.”

*Stanley looks at the rope before grabbing it with both hands, and pulling it in opposite directions until it’s broken into two. The end not connected to him disappears.*

“He doesn’t need to know what dying feels like.”

“...He doesn’t want you dead. He never hated you.”

“I know. But he doesn’t need to worry about supporting all of this dead weight. Ha! Get it? Dead weight! …Dead weight? It’s funny because I’m about to be dea-”

(...)

“-and he died exactly how he lived; making stupid jokes that no one but him finds funny- except for you, I can see even though you’re crying, you’re also trying really hard not to laugh .”

*Ford covers his face with his hands in grief*

“...That was a good one…”

“I waited for his heart to stop before I could take over - I can possess corpses you see, and for those fleeting minutes, he counted as one. I flexed just enough of my power to drag him out of his car - had to wait for that stuck seat belt to burn enough to rip - but all of that activity re-started his heart and brought him back, kicking me out of his body.

I had enough time to change some things - kept enough oxygen in his blood supply to prevent brain damage, deleted his fear of heights so he could climb out of the ravine, and rewired his optic nerves so he didn’t need glasses anymore - he wasn’t going to get any for himself anytime soon, he won’t need them until he gets cataracts at fifty-seven.

Anyways, that’s the real reason he was immune to that green cryptid; his worst nightmare was dying alone, and he already went through that.”

“...Why didn’t you tell me any of this?”

“You didn’t ask. Not me. Not anyone. Not even yourself.”

“...”

“You always pushed your thoughts of him into the corner of your mind, Sixer. In your journals, any mention of him you’d cross out or write in a code. I saved him because I know you care about him. I didn’t tell you what happened because you wanted him out of sight, and out of mind.”

“Bill!”

“It’s true, isn’t it? And look at that, he still made his way back to you. Either that twin bond was magnetically pulling him towards its broken half, or I left just enough of an impression on his mind that the weirdness of Gravity Falls drew him here.”

“You left an impression on my brothers mind?”

“It’s like when you crinkle paper, Sixer. You can try to smooth it out all you want, but there’s still going to be traces that something happened. There’s not pieces of me left in his mind, if that’s what you’re worried about. He didn’t make a deal with me, unlike you. He just picked up some of my tendencies. Definitely explains why he uses nicknames so much, doesn’t it?”

“This is my nightmare.”

“This is the dreamscape.”

“...Why did you repress his memories?”

“You think I did that? Sixer, he died . You don’t come back from that the same way you were before.”

“Then why would he still remember most of the last ten years of his life, but not being kicked out or his entire life before that?”

“Fordsy, you heard his last conscious thoughts, and those became a self-fulfilling prophecy. Before he passed out and then away, all he could focus on was how alone he felt. His brain did that thing all human brains tend to do; hid all the stuff that would hurt him more.”

“...No, he wouldn’t-.”

“Sixer. I know you can see the truth, you can’t hide your thoughts from me; why bother remembering himself, why bother remembering loving people when they didn’t bother to remember him, not even when he needed them the most?”

“...”

“Oh, goody, now you’re crying! Don’t worry, I know exactly what to do in situations like this. I don’t care if you don’t understand the reference, you’re not the one who’s supposed to.”

*Bill conjures up and then starts playing the Nightmare Realms smallest violin*

To be continued…

[cappulcino]

hi!! saw your requests were open!! I dont have anything super specific in mind but an enemies to lovers plot with a lucifer x angel reader would be very cool!

Sure! I was originally going to write the whole thing and post it as a one-shot here, but I got overexcited with this idea and couldn't resist turning this into multiple short chapters and already giving you the first one (idk, let me know if you'd rather have the whole thing when it's done).

Seven Days Til Fall (Part 1)

Part 1 – Part 2 – Part 3 – Part 4 – Part 5 – Part 6 – Part 7

Read on AO3

Words: 2,185

Pairing: Lucifer Morningstar x Angel!Reader

Summary: You're an angel sent on a divine mission to retrieve a powerful relic that has been stolen from Heaven. The orders are clear: gain an audience with the Devil, make deals with them if necessary, anything to return that object to the Silver City. But Hell is not quite what you expected, and neither is Lucifer.

Trigger warnings: None in this chapter (let me know if you think I should add some)

In the beginning, this assembly had seemed no different from the other monotonous celestial meetings the Divine Council liked to conduct. The session was strictly organised and full of unnecessary details, as per usual, golden light shone through the large windows, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the Silver City –routine, in short.

But now the Archangel Michael was calling your name, and you weren't so sure this would be your typical angelic meeting any more. Nobody ever called your name, it wasn't among those that mattered. Why was he calling your name?

Straightening your slouched back and wings, you answered with uncertainty. "Y-Yes?"

Michael offered a fake smile before returning to his bureaucratic demeanour, his hands joined only by the fingertips on the table.

"As you know, the Cup of Eternal Grace has been missing for quite some time now."

"The… Cup of Eternal Grace. Missing. Yes."

You had forgotten about that –your mind had surely deemed that to be another 'unnecessary detail' from one of the previous assemblies. But it was coming back to you now. The chalice, made of celestial metals and inlaid with precious stones had the power to bestow divine grace upon those who drank from it, offering visions, blessings, and, for humans, even limited immortality. And indeed, the artefact had been lost for a while.

Michael's eyes narrowed at your hesitation, but he continued.

"One of our emissaries on Earth had found a lead on the Cup tracing back to some… obscure cult. Unfortunately, by the time he got there, the humans had traded with a demon –they do like to do this for a reason that escapes me. We now have cause to believe the Cup is in Hell."

"I see," you said slowly after a short silence. You weren't sure why this had anything to do with you.

"Its presence in Hell could easily disrupt order or worse, be used to bargain with divine entities. It cannot stay there. We need someone to retrieve it," Michael replied as if annoyed to have to spell out the evidence for you.

Ah, now you understood.

"Me?"

"Yes. You."

That Heaven could have so foolishly lost an object that had the potential to tip the balance of the entire universe when in the wrong hands was already astonishing to you. But to entrust you with the task of going to Hell, assuredly face its ruler, and retrieve the Cup? That was hardly believable, and for an angel like you, who had to Believe, that said something. Why didn't Michael go himself?

"I… don't understand. I'm merely a Dominion, and the Morningstar is Your sibling, Your Grace."

"Yes, so that's your job."

That was Gabriel talking down to you as if you had just uttered the most unintelligent thing in front of the whole congregation.

"Besides, we're not going to waste our time when others have been designated for that kind of risky stuff. That would be…" He let out an inelegant snort-laugh.

"What Gabriel means," Uriel intervened in their usual soft-spoken voice, "is that angels among the higher ranks have other matters to attend to, but we cannot ask this of anyone with lesser powers. And well, it is your function to execute divine orders." Uriel paused, scrutinizing your expression. "Would we be making a mistake by putting our faith in you?"

You gulped.

"N-No."

"Good."

Plans had been made, and you were now approaching the gates of Hell. Protocol required that you banged a sort of gong by the entrance, and a dead mortal fused into the wall handed you a mallet. You had read somewhere once that the Damned made Hell what it was. At the time, you hadn't understood that meant this realm was literally made of the Damned. You winced and then, forcing the politeness out of your angelic mouth with a small "Thank you", you grabbed the tool.

The gong's echo made the other souls trapped around the gates scream and then, accompanying heavy steps, a deep voice growled.

"There's one at the door. At the gate of damnation. Is it thief, thug or–"

Squatterbloat, the gatekeeper suddenly froze in his speech when his gaze landed upon you. An angel, in Hell. Quite the unusual sight.

"Whore?"

"Peace be upon you, demon."

As you uttered them, you realised how ironic your words sounded. Squatterbloat chuckled.

"We don't accept holy brochures."

His sense of humour compensated for his dreadful looks, and you managed to stop your wings from shuddering.

"That is not why I'm here."

"Then state that business of yours."

"I seek an audience with your sovereign."

"Do you now, little cloud-hopper? I fear the Devil doesn't have time for your affairs."

You approached the gate, your wings spreading in a foolish attempt to appear menacing, your tone still polite but steely.

"I am an envoy of Heaven, and the matter is urgent. Even you cannot go against God's will, demon. Take me to your master."

Squatterbloat's eyes remained fixated on yours for an instant, and then, his keys jangled.

"Mmh. Right this way… If you dare."

"Oh, what a joyous day," Lucifer purred with a faint smile before relaxing on their throne with a sigh. "Can you feel it, Mazikeen? The innocence? So pure."

"Shall I ask for more guards to stand by Your side?"

"That will not be necessary. That little angel is no threat to Us."

You were certain the ruler of Hell had sensed your arrival –how could they not?– and your suspicions were immediately confirmed when you entered the room. Sitting regally on their throne, the Lightbringer did not even bat an eye as they eyed you and the heavenly glow that surrounded your body. If anything, they seemed… amused.

You had heard many stories about them –though most of those tales still spoke of a Samael– but you had never seen them. Imagery was forbidden in Heaven, of the Devil more than anyone else, and you had never been down to Earth to look at the various depictions humans had made of them either. Therefore, you took a moment to marvel at their appearance, so foreign and yet so familiar, and as your gaze roamed over their leathery wings, you wondered if that was what became of angels' wings after the Fall.

In fact, you wondered about so many things at once that you almost forgot your manners. But Mazikeen's insistent look quickly pulled you out of your reverie.

"Uh, yes. Apologies. Peace be upon You, Lucifer Morningstar," you greeted with a slight bow of your head. "And upon you, Mazikeen of the Lillim." It sounded even sillier than when you had said it to Squatterbloat.

Lucifer let out a small chuckle then and exchanged looks with Mazikeen. Then, as they turned to face you again, they smiled.

"It is unusual for Our Father to send His subjects down here. Almost an event, We might say. To what do We owe the pleasure?"

Lucifer's words dripped from their mouth like honey, and you weren't sure whether you found it more captivating or terrifying.

"Well?"

You shook your head and straightened your back some more to give yourself a semblance of presence, and undertook to explain why Michael had sent you here.

"Our dear brother has never liked getting his pristine hands dirty," Lucifer remarked once you were done.

They stood up, took a few slow steps in your direction with a thoughtful expression, and then stopped a mere yard away from you. The way they towered over you and the power they radiated felt overwhelming, and a shiver ran through the feathers of your wings.

"It is not a task fit for his rank," you said. And for a brief moment, you almost convinced yourself of what Gabriel had told you earlier today. Almost.

Lucifer raised an eyebrow as if seeing right through you and perfectly understanding the lack of conviction in your own words. A doubtful angel. Oh, this day could not get any better.

"Tell Us," they said, now pacing through their throne room. "What do We gain from helping you?"

The question startled you. What did the Devil gain from obeying God for once? Not another divine punishment, that's what.

"Excuse me?"

"We said, what do We gain from helping you with your task? We sure hope you did not come all the way to Our domain expecting a pretty smile to be sufficient to convince Us."

That… serpent. You clenched your jaw, resisting a sudden urge to speak from your heart while Lucifer kept on smirking devilishly.

Taking a deep breath, you chose to show yourself open to discussion instead.

"What is it You wish for, Lightbringer?"

Lucifer pretended to think about it, gazing into the vastness of their realm, and then spoke firmly.

"A single visit to the Silver City."

Your heart stopped.

"And open the gates for You to terrorise us or attack the Creator? Absolutely not."

"Then forget about the chalice."

"The Morningstar may believe angels are foolish, naive creatures, but I assure You I'm not that stupid."

Your defiance intrigued Lucifer, who gauged you for a second.

"No…" they eventually said. "Indeed. Which is why We are fairly certain you will know how to convince the Divine Council. Tell them We have no intentions of wreaking havoc in their home if that is what they are so worried about."

"Then why?" you asked somewhat harshly.

"You would not understand."

"Your Majesty, I–"

"There will be no need for further discussion, little angel. Either you manage to get Us what We want and We will do everything in Our power to help you, or the Cup of Eternal Grace remains in Hell. In which case, do not even bother coming back."

"They said what?"

"The Morningstar wishes to be able to visit the Silver City, Your Grace. Just once."

You were now standing in the bright room where the heavenly meeting that had got you sent to Hell had been held a few hours ago, alone in front of the five members of the Divine Council. You felt small, but not as small as you had felt in front of the ruler of Hell.

"Yes, we heard that part," Azrael replied rather angrily.

Somehow, their tone managed to make you feel as if you had already failed your mission, and it took a lot of self-persuasion to stand your ground. You were only repeating what you had been told, after all.

"They, uh…" You cleared your throat and tried again. "They said they had no intentions of attacking Heaven, and I think their words were genuine."

"Hello, this is Satan we're talking about," Gabriel said, exaggerating their diction as if you were mentally impaired.

"My sibling does not lie, Gabriel," Michael reminded him. The other Archangel sighed. "If you will excuse us, the Council needs to consider Lucifer's offer."

Taking the hint, you bowed and promptly left the room to find refuge in the closest chapel. Once there, you dropped to your knees for the Almighty and clasped your trembling hands so tight your knuckles turned white.

"Forgive me Father for I have sinned…"

You started repenting because you couldn't help but feel as if it would be your fault if Heaven ended up needing to make a deal with the Devil. You should have resisted and told Lucifer that they deserved their banishment from the Silver City and that never would they be welcome here again. You should have fought them if needed, though you would have been doomed –you would have died a martyr, and maybe for once your name would have mattered in Heaven. But you hadn't.

Deep down, you also prayed for the Council to give up on the Cup of Eternal Grace. Hell was a terrible place, and Lucifer a dangerous monster, your sworn enemy. You didn't want to go back to Hell. Not for a stupid goblet.

But as soon as you came out of the chapel, Gabriel was standing in front of you, his hands behind his back. As God's messenger, you knew he was here to pass on the Divine Council's decision.

"So. We have deliberated and we want you to carry on with the mission. You will go down to Hell every day, do whatever you need to do, and come back up every evening to report before compline until you find the Cup. Okay?"

You opened your mouth to answer but only managed a weak, strangled sound. Gabriel didn't give you enough time to speak anyway.

"Great!" he exclaimed as he slapped your shoulder. Then he pointed at the chapel. "Is this free?" Again, you tried to answer, but he was already gone.

Feeling an irrational anger rising inside, you decided you needed a break, some time alone spent in silence, not even in prayer. Angels, like other immortal beings, didn't need to sleep, but you wanted to forget about the world for a while. So you flew back to the Dominions' quarters to lay on your soft bed.

And there was evening, and there was morning –the first day.

[o0opumpkino0o]

Here’s a Demon twins AU that I will never write. I feel like the best crossover fics are written by people who enjoy and have a good grasp on the shows/comics/whatever they are combining and my DC knowledge is severely lacking. So this will mostly be focused on Danny. Feel free to take inspiration and make whatever changes you want, if you feel like taking a swing at it. Originally, this was supposed to be a comedic prompt that took advantage of Danny having ghost powers. But that quickly changed. 

-I’m not the biggest fan of Ghost King!Danny so I’m not writing this with that in mind but if you like it then feel free to add it in. 

-I feel like this AU would work better with Danny and Damian as rivals or having a love/hate relationship but you do whatever you like best.  

-In this AU they are not identical twins. 

-While on a mission, Danyal and Damian were separated at age 5. Damian stayed with the league while Danyal was found by the Fenton’s. 

-Danyal was seriously injured during the mission and the Fenton’s thought it would be irresponsible to leave him on his own after patching him up. And any parents that allowed their child to get so grievously injured obviously shouldn’t be incharge of raising a kid. So they decide to adopt him. 

-The league assumes that Danyal was killed on the mission. Even though a body was never found, there weren’t reports of a child matching Danyal’s description in the surrounding cities or even states and a five year old can only go so far on his own, even one with League training. 

-Did Danyal want to leave the league? Did he want to stay and protect Damian/prove himself worthy of the title or heir? You decide! Either way he ends up living with the Fenton’s, has his accident at 14, and the Danny Phantom series continues as normal.

-Over the years of living with the Fenton’s Danny starts to lose touch with his league training. Some of the knowledge sticks with him, like what specific poisons can do, etc. But most of the physical training fades away. He was five when he was taken from the League, by the time he became half-ghost, he’d spent most of his life out of it. 

-He also starts to feel invincible after avoiding the League’s radar for so long. As long as he doesn’t bring too much attention to himself, there’s no way they could find him. They probably think he’s dead anyway. And even if someone from the League showed up in Amity Park, for whatever reason, what are the chances they’d even recognize him?? As long as he lays relatively low his past will never catch up with him. 

-At age 10/12/whatever age Damian was sent to live with Bruce, the “scandal” was broadcasted across national television. While Danny knew he and Damian were the sons of the Bat, he had no idea who Batman was. It did not take long for Danny to put 2 and 2 together. 

-Unfortunately for Danny, the broadcast was airing while he was with Sam and Tucker. Any training he had to hide his emotions eroded in the 5 to 7 years he was living in Amity. His friends, understandably, wanted to know why he suddenly started freaking out and weren’t going to take nothing for an answer. 

-While he could have lied, he wanted to trust his friends and told them everything. For the most part. He did leave out what the cult of assassins he was born into was called along with most of the names of the people in the League. And the parts where he was responsible, whether directly or indirectly, for the deaths of dozens of people. But, pretty much anything else was told.  

-Miraculously, they believed him and still wanted to be friends. Danny was sure Sam would have had an issue with him being raised to kill people for the first few years of his life. But she actually thought it was pretty cool! Mostly because he didn’t actually kill anyone himself, as far as she knew. Was he responsible for slipping some poison into a target's drink? Yes, but that couldn’t be proven. Did he and his brother lower the guard of targets with their ‘lost-children-trying-to-find-their-mommy’ routine so that another member could come in for the kill? Also yes, but he wasn’t directly responsible so it didn’t count. 

-Yes, Danny did mention that his father was Batman and that the newest addition to Bruce Wayne’s family was his twin brother. So that does mean that Sam and Tucker also know the identities of a good portion of the Bat’s and Bird’s. But Danny was young at the time, thought nothing could hurt him, and didn’t quite understand the severity of having a secret identity. Once he had his accident and became personally aware of the risks and consequences of that, the trio had a meeting and got rid of anything that might have had that secret in it. Old diaries, computer journals, text messages. Everything was burned or wiped. They agreed they would never mention that secret directly, especially once Vlad entered the picture. 

-Everything was as good as it could be until about two years after the accident. Casper High won a competition for the Juniors to tour Wayne Enterprises. The Fenton’s refused to let Danny skip on the opportunity. When else would they get the chance to measure Gotham’s ambient ectoplasm or pitch their inventions to Bruce Wayne himself? Danny tried to explain that Bruce probably wouldn’t even be present for the tour and that the TSA would confiscate any Fenton Tech his parents would try to make him bring. But they didn’t listen. 

-As nervous as he was, Danny insisted that everything would be fine. Bruce/Batman was a busy man, he probably had a case he was working on that was way more important than some stupid tour. Tim was CEO and was too important to be a part of a tour. It wouldn't make sense for anyone else in the flock to be there. Gotham itself was so big that the likelihood of him running into anyone was slim and, even if he did, he and Damian weren’t identical twins, any resemblance could be passed off as coincidence. And if he noticed any stares or double takes, well, it wasn’t like it was hard for him to get lost in a crowd.  

-Sam and Tucker weren’t confident in his defense and made sure he had enough makeup on to subtly hide his face shape and any notable facial features at a glance. 

-Danny was right about the TSA forbidding most of the Fenton’s tech on the plane, the only things they allowed were the fenton phones, the emf reader to monitor Gotham’s ambient ectoplasm levels, and some gas masks his parents made in case their trip was interrupted by one of Batman's rogue. Danny was able to sneak some things on board by phasing them past TSA beforehand, but the only things the trio brought with them was the thermos and a few disguised blasters, just in case. 

-The trip actually went pretty well, the hotel wasn’t in the wealthy part of the city, nor was it in Crime Alley. It was in a safe enough area where the students probably wouldn’t be at risk of being shot if they were to wander off. But far enough away that the elites wouldn’t get annoyed at some midwest tourists. 

-Danny was also right about Bruce and the others being too busy to run into him. It turns out most of the bats probably weren’t even in Gotham. According to the guide, Mr. Wayne and co were on a “family vacation” and weren’t expected to be back for another week, days after the student’s would return to Amity. 

-Of course it would be after Danny lowered his guard that things took a turn for the worse. They were just about to board their flight back. Everyone was lined up to go! Only for the terminal to start filling with fear gas as Scarecrow and, if you were to ask Danny, an excessive amount of goons entered the building. Danny had an idea what the Bat’s were focused on during their “vacation”

-Thankfully, the trio was prepared. So, while their classmates were unfortunately swept up in the chaos; Danny, Sam and Tucker were able to slip on their gas masks and find a place to come up with a plan. Even though Danny didn’t need to breathe, even in his human form. He still slipped on his mask to keep up appearances.

-It didn’t take long for the Bats to show up. Specifically Batman, Robin and Nightwing. Batman went after Crane while Nightwing and Robin took care of the henchmen. 

-Batman seemed to be pretty evenly matched with Crane but the goons managed to separate Robin and Nightwing. Both were starting to get overwhelmed with the number of goons they were fighting. 

-Danny couldn't continue to sit back and do nothing. He was a hero, he could do something to even things out. 

-Sam tried to convince him to leave it alone, that there were other heroes who could help but she knew it was hopeless. Tucker put a hand on Danny’s shoulder and told him to be careful before the two went off to find a better place to hide. They made sure they kept their Fenton Phones on in case Danny needed their help. 

-Danny found a place to transform, went invisible, and joined the fight.

-Danny tried to stay in between Nightwing and Robin, picking off goons in their blind spots. If the other two noticed anything off with the number of goons decreasing faster than they were fighting, it didn't show in their body language.

-Just as Danny thought he would be able to get out of this fight undetected, one of the henchmen was able to rip off Damian's gasmask. Nightwing hadn't noticed yet, in the middle of his own huddle of goons. Batman was still focused on Crane. Danny was the only one who could help.

-Time slowed. It was subtle but he could see his brother's shoulders rise and fall as his breathing was starting to speed up. The fear toxin was setting in. Danny did not spend the first 5 years of his life training to protect Damian just to fail now. 

-In an instant, he flew over to his brother. Knocking out the goons surrounding him, Danny loses his touch on his invisibility as he slipped the gas mask on to Damian’s face. He mentally pleads to every Ancient he knows that his brother won't recognize him. 

-Danny realizes that the domino masks the Bats and Birds wear doesn't give away much emotion wise. But he doesn't think Damian's eyes widen or anything along those lines. Maybe one thing will go Danny's way. After all, he’s in ghost form right now. What are the odds, after all this time, his brother would recognize him?

-”Akhi?” It came out more like a breath than a whisper. If Danny’s hearing wasn't so sensitive he wouldn't have heard it. 

-Well, fuck. Maybe if he bails out now everyone will chalk it up to a fear toxin hallucination. 

-He allowed himself to fade from view but stayed close in case any goons tried to take advantage of his brother's disoriented state. 

-Nightwing was finally able to break out of the goon huddle and come to Robin’s defense just in time for Batman to take down Crane.

-Danny took that as his cue to leave and found Sam and Tucker before anything worse could happen. 

-Once they were able to regroup, Danny quickly filled them in on what happened before Mr. Lancer ushered them away to be checked over by some medics while their plane was rescheduled. 

-It isn't until the trio are back at the hotel that Danny realizes he left his gas mask with Damian. 

-Bad news, Danny’s ghost form was caught on the airport’s security cameras before Tucker had the chance to try and delete it. Good news, the cameras being out of date added with Phantom’s ectoplasm means that the footage was too distorted to make out any discernible features. Bad news, the students of Casper High know full well it was Phantom, the ghost boy. And have no problem saying it to every reporter who comes across them. Good news, most people dismiss the ghost explanation as nonsense and assume its a meta trying to encroach on Batman’s territory. 

-Casper High ends up needing to stay in Gotham for a week longer than intended. Bruce Wayne returns from his ‘vacation’ a few days after the attack and offers to pay for the extra nights and any medical bills that students might have gotten as a result of the attack. 

-During that week, Danny can’t bring himself to sleep. He keeps on expecting his brother or one of the others to burst through the hotel window and whisk him away to an interrogation. Thoughts he’s managed to keep pushed down for years are suddenly rising back to the surface. This whole time Danny assumed that, since Damian’s been living with Father for years, Damian was out of the League. Everyone knows about Batman’s no killing rule, there is no way that Batman would let Damian continue his training. But what if that was all a ruse? What if Batman was working for the League but wanted to keep his own hands clean? What if they were going to send Danny back? What if they thought Danny was a spy or wanted revenge? What if they find out he’s half ghost and believe his parents research that all ghosts are evil?

-Sam and Tucker try to calm him down. It was just his ghost form that Damian saw, whose first thought when seeing your brother’s ghost was to assume he’s still alive and living a double life? Plus, for all Danny knew, his brother could have been reacting to the fear toxin instead of Danny himself. Danny appreciated their efforts but he was still on edge. 

-Instead, nothing happens. He can’t find anyone or anything out of the ordinary during his invisible perimeter checks. There’s no attempt to communicate with him. According to Tucker, no one has tried to gain access to Casper High’s student files. Danny’s parents haven’t mentioned that Bruce Wayne has shown any interest in their inventions during any of their phone calls. Nothing.

-He doesn’t know if he should be relieved or disappointed. Batman was supposed to be the world's greatest detective. How could he not look into all of the loose ends Danny left behind, no matter how unintentional it was? Sure, most people brushed off the ghost thing. But an entire class, from the most haunted city in America, saying their hometown hero came in to save the day is something to look into. Even if it’s just to find proof to write them off. He left behind a Fenton branded gas mask for Ancients sake! A new thought started to crop up. What if they didn’t care? What if Damian already explained everything? Maybe the bats knew about Damian’s long lost/dead brother and thought his sudden reappearance, alive or dead, wasn’t worth looking into? What if they- what if Damian- wanted nothing to do with him? Can Danny even be upset? It‘s not like he ever tried to get in contact. Maybe Damian thinks Danny wants nothing to do with him. Does Danny want his brother back in his life? Every time he thought about it, it was either too good to be true or his fantasies ended with Damian stabbing him through the chest. 

-Either way, they were able to board the plane with no issue. The plane landed and his parents picked him up with nothing of interest happening. His parents dropped him off at the house, they wanted to do a quick patrol since the ghost attacks have been rising the last few weeks. There were no surprise attacks in the living room or the kitchen. No signs of anyone in the Lab. (Or any signs of a ghost getting caught while he was gone, that was a relief.) Jazz’s room looked like it did the day she left for college. The house was completely clean. 

-Now there are a few different ways I think this could go. One, Damian is waiting for Danny in his bedroom, sees Danny phase into the room and immediately has a sword to his throat. Maybe Damian was able to get away from the Manor without having to give away too much information and takes it upon himself to look into his brother’s reappearance. Maybe Damian was forced to tell his family about his late brother. Does Damian miss Danyal? Does he feel betrayed that Danyal left? Maybe Damian told his family once they earned his trust when he first moved into the manor? It’s hard to say how this goes from here or how the DC characters react since I don’t know enough about them but if you want to add on to this, please do!

[bvbblywhims]

𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐀𝐆𝐀𝐍𝐓

✿ PAIR: ʀɪᴅᴅʟᴇ ʀᴏsᴇʜᴇᴀʀᴛs x ʜɪʟɪsᴇ ɪɴᴏᴀᴅᴇɴ! ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ

✿ WARNING: violence??

I was blowing off on a whim after I read Solitary Lady. Sad the manhwa seems rushed though. My bad (⁠•⁠ ⁠▽⁠ ⁠•⁠;⁠).

𝙵𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝙿𝙾𝚅

"Those who cannot abide by my decisions deserve not the heads they use to complain..."

If the past me was told that I would be free from the chains of eternity after collecting the fragments, even they would have had their doubts.

Yet, I'm still here, forced into a coffin with a talking raccoon and summoned to another world called Twisted Wonderland. I was dressed in robes made for a cult then taken in by a crooked crow of a Headmaster of Night Raven College, a school full of males after things got "heated up" at the opening school ceremony.

Literally.

To think I would see boys that wielded possibly powerful magic run around mindlessly from the a raccoon that blows fire as if they were chickens with their heads cut off.

But day by day, I looked back remembering what that mirror told me after I stepped forward. I never thought t would ever find a talking inanimate object trembling with an expression of fear as I stared it down.

"...The nature of her soul is silent. Colorless. Soundless. There's a light that's dull, darkness yet has no shadow."

"A figure that shouldn't even exist to begin with."

The Dark Mirror wasn't wrong. After experiencing eight lives of misery of having a miserable family, and an endless journey to find rest, I wasn't meant to exist after all. Yet, I was given the power to reshape the world to my desires by the last King before he disappeared and I tried to find my place.

"Worry not, the Dark Mirror will see you safely home." Crowley, the Headmage said.

"Why would it matter? After all, I don't have a home to return to."

So why am I still here? Do the other gods tend to make me their toy? Watch me spill blood and sweat more tears just for entertainment as if this was a play? Wander again just for their pure satisfaction?

The hatred I look back from my predecessor as she killed the King, handing me her sins as I became bound to a world of immortality.

'Why do the gods always find a way to become my obstacle from finding my paradise?' I gritted my teeth biting my finger as I got settled in the abandoned Ramshackle dorm. My cursed powers of spring have returned again with the flower vines began to unconsciously climb the walls, clinging and spreading their tendrils to every surface it could find as the pink buds gracefully bloomed.

"No one must know...."

"Henchman, are you ok....?" Grim, the flaming feline that became my companion asked quietly.

I glanced at him, who stared right back at me with the familiar shaky expression of fear causing my thoughts to be put on pause. I was silent for a few seconds before sighing and walked towards him to gently give him a hug.

"I'm sorry, a lot of things have been on my mind lately....."

"...Whatever, it's not as if I was worried or anything."

I smiled.

What a liar.

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

A being with no more purpose as I began my wandering again. At least I was supposed to be with my feline companion as I did odd work here and there for the Headmage.

Yet, after the adventures of a charred statue, and fixing a magical chandelier with two peculiar first year students who were part of the trouble, Ace and Deuce from the Heartslabyul dorm, I look at them now and quietly smile.

Perhaps, life may be more tolerable.

At least I thought before encountering a problem regarding strange traditions in their dorm and a simple matter of a specific restricted tart brought by Ace to a tradition they call an "Unbirthday Party" after he ate a slice of tart after their cave escapades.

"OFF WITH YOUR HEADS!"

Riddle Rosehearts.

Ah yes. He possesses magic that could seal other people's magic to which I learned was the same as cutting off a person's head, according to Ace which intrigued me.

The Heartslabyul Prefect who follows the rules of the Queen of Hearts. A second year housewarden with a firm hand but was so uptight with such strange rules. It seemed there was a background from what we gathered from Trey the Vice-Housewarden who was surprisingly his childhood friend.

A guy with mommy issues. How lovely.

I was curious about the odd rules after specific amounts of sugar cubes added to lemon tea, painting roses red, restrictions of eating a hamburger on a Tuesday so I went investigating, sneaking into the library at night for the official rule book of the dorm, flipping through 810 rules.

Even I would criticize that it was over the top.

Which brings me now to the current circumstances as the two simpletons, Ace and Deuce, dueling the housewarden who simply flicked his wand to seal their magic again from their previous shenanigans.

I had a bad feeling something was going to happen.

Especially with that premonition I had that night.

"Hmph. You didn't even last five seconds." A small smirk formed in Riddle's lips. "That was all you had, and still you thought to challenge me? You must be utterly humiliated. I guess my mother was right. A man who cannot follow rules is a man who cannot achieve anything."

Drip, Drip.....

"Hm...." Something irritating has been gnawing at them.

"Are you faring well, [Y]?" Crowley questions their unusual demeanor.

"It's nothing, just simply can't see. I'll be at the other side...." I muttered, walking to the other side to see the view properly with Grim following behind.

Deuce argued. "Tch... We agree that rules should be followed. But forcing others to follow nonsensical rules like the ones you've enacted is tyranny!"

"Then you agree that breaking rules is wrong. And in this dorm, I AM the rules." The Heartslabyul Prefect asserted. "Therefore, those who cannot abide by my decisions deserve not the heads they use to complain!"

"Rules are meant to be followed. However, too much control destroys all respect on authority."

Why do I feel so irritated ever since gaining information from Trey?

"Too much grip turns them into rebels."

"Clearly, you were born to parents with no great magical capability. I have to wonder what sort of pitiful education left you unable to comprehend so simple a concept."

'How dare he.....'

Deuce gritted his teeth, the veins of his fists bulging from the amount of pressure he was putting into clenching his hands. "You little...."

It started with a small crack in the ground. Tendrils of thorny vines began to crept up slowly from within the soul. Their mind was blurry, as they paid no mind to the punch Ace gave to Riddle, their voices only seeming to be ringing in their ear as they talked about how he was to blame for his tyranny. Grim jumped at the sight of them turning his head to look at his companion's face the same murderous look they held that night only now it was pointed to the red-headed tyrant of a dormleader.

He was scared. Scared for her and for him.

"Myah, [Y], [Y]...." Grim kept pulling on one of their uniform socks only to get no response in return.

W̷͇̜͚̃̈͜h̴̼̳͋̍͌ͅͅä̴͎̼͖́t̵̢͔̝̥͆͝ ̷͍̼̗̄͜ẅ̶̤́̀̑̂o̵͈̟̓u̷̱̯̯̇̎̆ḻ̴͈͔͌d̶̟̝̜͂̈́ ̸̟̮̝̒́͜ḣ̴̥̳͕̱͐̈͝ẹ̶́̎ ̷̘̪̎͜k̶̙̹̭͐̚͝n̸̬̜͇̏͋o̵̖̫̰͒̒̑̀w̶̼͆̌́̕ ̶̨̦̫̈́͂a̷͚̥͐̐b̸̧̞͖̝̄́̈́o̷̥̕ͅu̷̪̓t̷̛̬̻̘̏ ̸̦̟͓̚h̴͌ͅõ̴̠̼̮̚ẇ̴͙̿̎ ̵̧͉̿I̸͈̘̺͑̅̕ͅ'̵͎̔̽ṽ̵̱̩̮͝e̶̛̤͎͗͜͝ ̶̺͉̙̾̐̾͘l̵̬̄̈̈i̶̖̇v̷̫͇͓́e̵̠̐͊̌͝d̶̡͖̈́.̷̖̥̫̱̇̔.̶̗̣̥̻̀.̷̧̼̞̠͂̓.̴͕̭͓̋͠'̸̻̰̣̩͒͘

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

"I'M the one who's right! There is NO! POSSIBLE! ALTERNATIVE!"

"Riddle stop!" Trey cried out.

"Drip, Drip...."

"That sound....." I murmured.

I watched as the dormleader begin his descent to madness. A dark aura emerges from him as ink blots begin to stain and cover him whole given his overuse of magic. Black ink corrupted him transforming his pristine appearance into something berserk as a monster similar to what I saw in the mines followed from behind.

"Tch...." Something was still itching at me.

'Am I supposed to pity him for his actions or something.....?'

"All who defy me will lose all their heads!" Riddle laughed insanely. "Ah ha ha ha ha!"

'What a useless Headmaster this college has....' I sighed in annoyance as he cried about how he could let someone Overblot in front of him, basically a consequence of over usage of magic that may lead to death if continues to use it at that state. The only good thing that Headmage was useful for was that magic barrier he put up before letting the rose trees hit us.

"What's that smell...."

"Now's not the time—....Ooh, I smell it too...." A few students on the ground were whispering as a scent of flowers filled the atmosphere.

"[Y], is that scent....coming from you....?" Deuce asked hesitantly.

"Headmage."

The said man flinched at their hard tone as they glanced at him.

"Assist the students back to the Mirror Chamber." I stepped forward with a neutral expression. "Many are injured."

"Um, hello?! 911? We've got an idiot emergency!" Cater exclaimed at the absurd statement.

"You DID hear that part about how reeeal bad things are happenin' with him, right?!" Grim argues with Cater.

"That's why we need to stop him now! I don't want that in my conscience!" Deuce backs him up.

Ace scowled. "And I'm not givin' up till I hear him say "I was wrong and I'm sorry.".

"You...." Trey sighed. "All right, let's do this. I can overwrite his magic for a little longer. In the meantime, do what you can! Headmage, please evacuate the other students!"

"Crowley, go." I urged him. "I'll handle from here."

"I don't want to lose him. There're too many things I've left unsaid." Trey murmured.

"Ngh... I'll be back as soon as I've gotten the students to safety. Stand firm until then!" The Headmage rushes towards the other Heartslabyul members to evacuate them out of their dorm.

"Such defiance, from every last one of you! I shall take all of your heads!" Riddle swung his arm, arrows of blot forming and firing at them.

Flower vines sprung from the ground creating a barrier from the fire.

"Ace. Deuce." I called out.

"Right!" Deuce gritted his teeth and pulled out his magic pen.

"Don't tell me what to do!" Despite what he said, Ace follows behind.

"You...." Riddle says angrily. "These flowers do not belong in the Rose Maze!"

"Tsk!"

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚛𝚍 𝙿𝙾𝚅

"I SUMMON THEE, CAULDRON!"

"Take this!" Ace sends out a wind gust to block the incoming barrage of ink arrows, only for a few ink droplets eating away at his clothes.

"We won't be able to last long, we should—WHAT ARE THEY DOING?!" Cater yelled.

[Y] teleported in front of him, leaving a trail of flowers in their wake. Startled by them, Riddle aims the arrows at them only for them to bring an arm up and wrap the vines around him and the blot monster. They closed their palm with Riddle gasping for air, feeling more irritated in front of him.

"You ignorant wretch!"

"[Y] Don't hurt him!"

They turn their head back to see Trey shouting wearily at her only to find a hardened expression returned back to him.

"Please...."

"I'm not planning on killing him." They deadpanned. "Only the ink monster behind him and knocking him down."

"What....."

In that moment, a vine slapped the back of Riddle's head causing him to go unconscious as the head glass of the Overblot monster blasted into pieces. The flowers beneath them carried them up to catch the Heartslabyul Prefect in their arms.

"Cutie-chan's scary...." Cater sweated, smiling nervously as [Y] walks towards them with the ink blots disappearing from Riddle.

"Myah! That's my henchman! You should 'ave see what they did in the mines!" Grim laughs.

"What are you looking so proud for?" Ace raises a brow at the feline. "You hardly did anything."

"HEY!"

"Now, that's over, please take him...." They stumbled to give Riddle to Deuce. "I might need... a short....rest......"

They fell unconscious, their body finally done with experience of adrenaline. They weren't sure who caught thembut better than landing on the grass.

Whatever.

"HENCHMAN!"

"THIS IDIOT, THEY OVERDID IT—"

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

𝙵𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝙿𝙾𝚅

I found myself in an elegant dining room, sitting at the table where someone seems to be celebrating their birthday.

'What is this....another premonition....?'

"Happy Eighth Birthday, Riddle."

I look right next to me to see a familiar redhead looking at a cake filled with mixed nuts and holding a number 8 shaped candle with my presence going unnoticed.

"Memories...."

I then glance upwards to see a woman with red hair looking at Child Riddle in a stern manner.

"This year's birthday cake is a low-sugar recipe made with nuts and lecithin-rich soy flour to improve your cerebral function." She explained.

"Thank you, Mama." He answers sheepishly before asking in a shy tone. "But, um... Just once, I'd like to try one of those tarts covered with bright-red strawberries..."

'So that's his mother.....'

"Absolutely not! Those tarts are monstrously unhealthy. I might as well feed you poison! Even just a single slice would exceed your recommended daily intake of sugar." She said with a raised voice causing his little self to flinch.

"Now, dinner tonight will be a tuna sauté rich in DHA and omega-3 fatty acids. Now that you're eight, your caloric intake should be 600 kilocalories per meal, so don't eat more than 100 grams of it. Understood?"

"...Yes mama."

I narrowed my eyes at the woman as she walked away to leave Riddle to eat. Strands of her red hair sway softly with each step.

"It should've happened to Ricardo! Not me! There must be a mistake! I must give it back to him right away!"

"BE QUIET! IF THERE WAS A SOLUTION, WOULD I STILL BE DEALING WITH THIS PROBLEM?!"

Ẉ̴͖̲͇͗̌͂̽̄̈̋̄̑̕͜͠ͅr̶̨̟̙̔̽͑̓͝͝e̵̢͎̻̣͇͛́̆͒̇̾̾̌̿̏͐̕͘͝t̸͎̅̏̏͂͗̕͝͠c̷̢̞̤̰̩̪̜̭͕̪͎̫̩͙̆̚͝͠͝ͅh̸̙͓͈̘̯͇̥̩̝̤͍̺̥͚̆̿͑̌̓͌̅̓e̵̡̘͔̜̞̞̼̞͚̼̦̻̖͖͌̈́̃̅̈́͑̀͘͠͝͝͠ͅd̴̰̫̗̩͉͇͓͇̑̂ͅ ̶̡̢̩͈̤͙̲͍̝̬̐͋̓̋̀̈́͗̚͘ṟ̸͇̻̻͎̪̝͗͌͋̇̿͐̿̀̾̕͠͠ͅê̶̺̔̚d̷͖͓͕̦̗̲̬̈́̓͛̓̒͘̕̚͜͝ ̴̮̜͆͊̈́̆͑̉̏̃̅̏̈́̚̕h̸̻̹̫̜͙̝̩̤͓̜͔̭͕̣͚͌̉̋̔͒̂̽͠a̴̬̰͚̱̦̮͍̓̌͛͑͂̈́̅̓̎i̶͉̖͔͆̃̈́̍̂̇̿̋̊͛̃̇̎͘͝ͅr̵͓̹̭̹̅̆͊͐̈̆̚̚̕͝͝

I sighed as I continued to watch Riddle's memories, taking into account how he made friends with Trey and Chenya, him being able to grab a sweet taste of a strawberry tart, skipping his studies for carefree moments before getting caught by his mother.

"Those two hoodlums must have incited this behavior! You must never play with them again!"

He grabbed her arm desperately, tears flowing uncontrollably at the thought of losing his friends. "I'm sorry, Mother! It won't happen again! So please!"

"Be quiet!" Her voice boomed, pulling her arm away from him before walking away. "You broke the rules, and now you're paying for it! Clearly you're not able to handle the freedom of independent study. I'll simply need to keep a closer eye on you."

"Because I broke the rules, my favorite part of my day was taken away from me.I vowed to never break my mother's rules again. After all, she was the most accomplished mother in the city, and therefore, the most correct."

"But mom, why....."

"Why does my heart hurt so much?"

"I want to eat a tart! It's my birthday,so can't I have some just this once?"

"I want to play outside all day long!"

"I want to make lots and lots of friends!"

"Tell me, Mom, please..."

"What rule do I need to follow to make this pain go away?"

Memories of him began to fade to black as I was stuck in darkness again and I saw Riddle on the ground breathing heavily and trembling.

"Drip, drip."

With each step of their heel, it sends ripples throughout the still ink. They stood in front of him before crouching down and placed a hand under his chin to look at them in silence.

Before slapping across his cheek.

"AGH—" The redhead hisses from the pain. "What in the world are you doing?"

"It helped, didn't it?" I said blankly, pointing at his hands. "The trembles stopped."

'Huh....?' Riddle looked at his hands.

"Look, I'm not going to sit here and say it isn't your fault because it is." This statement causes him to wince. "Following rules are only meant to be a guide for you to grow not to define you. It's not going to make that pain leave."

"People's mistakes help them learn and improve themselves to be better. So, if you've push yourself to only follow your mother's footsteps, the only thing you've been doing is limiting your personal growth if you think your mother is some God and she holds the ultimate truth just because she's successful." I remark dryly.

"Just because you were raised that way, doesn't mean others would follow behind that authority." I held out a hand. "And, if your members can fight back, then perhaps it's time for you to learn something from them."

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

I woke up first with my sight adjusting to the vision of the familiar school infirmary I know. I tried to sit up only to feel a sudden headache come up making me clutch my head.

"[Y], you're awake!" My feline companion yelled causing me to wince at the volume as he came crashing down to hug me. "Stupid henchman!"

"What the..." I answered raspily given I was unconscious for a while. "Grim..."

"[Y]!, thank the Great Sevens you're ok!" Deuce helped me sit upright, putting a hand on my back to gently get me up. "You shouldn't be getting up this quickly."

Ace flicks my head. "Geez, what a warning. "I'll just take a nap for a minute. It's been a couple of hours missy."

"Cutie-chan's ok!" Cater pats my head.

"You gave us quite a scare there...." Trey sweated before looking at Riddle. "It's only him now."

"Give it a few." I answered. "He'll be awake."

"Cutie, there's no way you could possibly know that...."

"Gah!" Riddle gasped for air as he woke up from the bed beside me. "What in the world...."

"Look who's finally awake." Ace eyes their red haired dormleader.

Cater turned back to me comically serious. "How could you have possibly known that? "

"Ah, Mr. Rosehearts and Mx. [Y] appears to have regained consciousness. Excellent." The crow cuts into the conversation.

"Don't worry, Riddle. Just try to rest." Trey said gently.

"Yo, that's just the sort of coddling that led to him going nuts in the first place! Now the garden is tore up from the floor up, not to mention that we could've died!" Ace exclaimed.

I sighed at his outburst as a jumble of voices started ringing in my ear, mixing about in the air.

"The truth is, I... I really wanted to eat the chestnut tart." The Heartslabyul dormleader clenches his fist on the blanket as tears begin to well up his eyes.

"Huh?" Ace glances at Riddle.

"And I don't care if the roses are white, or the flamingos are pink. And I prefer honey to sugar cubes in my tea, and I like milk tea better than lemon tea anyhow. And after a meal, I want to be the one sitting around talking with everyone..."

"Riddle...." Trey murmurs sadly at his childhood friend.

"And I really wanted to play with you and Chenya more, Trey." He sniffled before he started sobbing loudly.

"Riddle Rosehearts, in tears... Hashtag #WOW." Cater lowly whistled.

I sighed closing my eyes as if it'll lessen the headache even more.

"[Y], I'm sorry...."

"Hm....." I opened them to see Riddle trying to wipe what seemed to be endless tears away in sniffles to apologize.

"I'm really sorry..."

"It's fine...." I replied motionlessly before sighing again. Flowers began fluttering around me to prep my teleport."You all should talk it out...."

I then disappeared into a gust of flowers, leaving trails of them in my wake.

"Hey, she just disappeared." Cater said in surprise.

"Ah, that janitor is working overtime now if they keep doing that..." Crowley whines. "My poor vacation funds...."

"But, didn't they forget about Grim? " Ace snickers at him. "Damn you got left behind."

"Should I call her to come back?" Deuce put a hand in his pocket to pull out his phone.

Grim stared blankly at the place they once were before shaking his head.

"No, leave them be." He replied.

"I know when they're not in a good mood...."

I woke up first with my sight adjusting to the vision of the familiar school infirmary I know. I tried to sit up only to feel a sudden headache come up making me clutch my head.

"[Y], you're awake!" My feline companion yelled causing me to wince at the volume as he came crashing down to hug me. "Stupid henchman!"

"What the..." I answered raspily given I was unconscious for a while. "Grim..."

"[Y]!, thank the Great Sevens you're ok!" Deuce helped me sit upright, putting a hand on my back to gently get me up. "You shouldn't be getting up this quickly."

Ace flicks my head. "Geez, what a warning. "I'll just take a nap for a minute. It's been a couple of hours missy."

"Cutie-chan's ok!" Cater pats my head.

"You gave us quite a scare there...." Trey sweated before looking at Riddle. "It's only him now."

"Give it a few." I answered. "He'll be awake."

"Cutie, there's no way you could possibly know that...."

"Gah!" Riddle gasped for air as he woke up from the bed beside me. "What in the world...."

"Look who's finally awake." Ace eyes their red haired dormleader.

Cater turned back to me comically serious. "How could you have possibly known that? "

"Ah, Mr. Rosehearts and Mx. [Y] appears to have regained consciousness. Excellent." The crow cuts into the conversation.

"Don't worry, Riddle. Just try to rest." Trey said gently.

"Yo, that's just the sort of coddling that led to him going nuts in the first place! Now the garden is tore up from the floor up, not to mention that we could've died!" Ace exclaimed.

I sighed at his outburst as a jumble of voices started ringing in my ear, mixing about in the air.

"The truth is, I... I really wanted to eat the chestnut tart." The Heartslabyul dormleader clenches his fist on the blanket as tears begin to well up his eyes.

"Huh?" Ace glances at Riddle.

"And I don't care if the roses are white, or the flamingos are pink. And I prefer honey to sugar cubes in my tea, and I like milk tea better than lemon tea anyhow. And after a meal, I want to be the one sitting around talking with everyone..."

"Riddle...." Trey murmurs sadly at his childhood friend.

"And I really wanted to play with you and Chenya more, Trey." He sniffled before he started sobbing loudly.

"Riddle Rosehearts, in tears... Hashtag #WOW." Cater lowly whistled.

I sighed closing my eyes as if it'll lessen the headache even more.

"[Y], I'm sorry...."

"Hm....." I opened them to see Riddle trying to wipe what seemed to be endless tears away in sniffles to apologize.

"It's fine...." I replied motionlessly before sighing again. Flowers began fluttering around me to prep my teleport."You all should talk it out...."

I then disappeared into a gust of flowers, leaving trails of them in my wake.

"Hey, she just disappeared." Cater said in surprise.

"Ah, that janitor is working overtime now if they keep doing that..." Crowley whines. "My poor vacation funds...."

"But, didn't they forget about Grim? " Ace snickers at him. "Damn you got left behind."

"Should I call her to come back?" Deuce put a hand in his pocket to pull out his phone.

Grim stared blankly at the place they once were before shaking his head.

"No, leave them be." He replied.

"I know when they're not in a good mood...."

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

I didn't plan on attending the Unbirthday Party part two, or as Ace would call it "Revenge Unbirthday Party" however, given the invites, Grim wanted to go for the food so I decided to amuse and accompany him. I suppose I could partake in some cake.

"All hail our leader, the Red Sovereign himself, Housewarden Riddle!" A Heartslabyul student proclaimed.

"We salute you, Housewarden Riddle! " All the students said in unison.

"Hm. The garden roses are red, the tablecloths are white... This seems like a proper unbirthday indeed. Is there a dormouse asleep in the teapo-" Riddle cut himself off in realization. "Er, well, I suppose it's fine either way."

"Not everything has to change completely, you know. Like, maybe spread the jam on your scones, instead of on the dormouse this time?" Trey smiled to encourage him. "Let's try to set the bar at "it's great if it's this way," not "it absolutely has to be this way."

"Yes, that makes—" Riddle trails off as gust of pink flowers fluttered in the air as [Y] appears with Grim. "....sense."

"Apologies for coming about like this as we were in a hurry." I bowed before glancing at them. "I'll be sure to clean up as early as possible."

Riddle stares at them stunned.

"...It seems I better get started."

He began turning into different shades of red before he stumbling on his answer. "N-No! It's alright!"

He cleared his throat and waved it off. "I—I mean we are already delighted with your presence and the pink petals add a bit of more color to the rose maze!"

"Riddle?..." Trey sweatdrop at his friend's red face.

"...If you say so." I muttered before proceeding to find a place to sit.

"Hey, did he start clamping up again?" Ace whispered to Deuce as he glanced at Riddle . "He looks like a tomato and he's about to burst...."

"Doesn't look like it...." Deuce said confused. "If he was, he wouldn't have let them walk away like that...."

"What are you two whispering about now...." I sweatdrop.

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

Things became stranger after that.

I can see that he was trying to improve himself slowly. Though he has some habits he couldn't get rid of as I can some occasional "Off with Your Heads" every once and a while.

However, that was one thing. After his Overblot, it seems he was more perceptive around me. Every once and a while I can feel his presence trailing me, observing my actions.

One day, when it was my alone time at the library after class, I felt like I was being watched again. Sighing as I close my book, I called him over.

"I can tell when someone is observing me." I remarked, leaning my head onto my hand. "Do you think I'm some kind of animal to experiment on?"

A small sound of an "eep" came from one of the bookshelves. There was moment of silence as I waited for my observer to appear. Slowly, the sound of footsteps made their way into my ear as I opened my eyes to see the familiar Heartslabyul Prefect before me looking sheepish, holding a couple of books in his hand .

I blinked at him before tapping on the chair right beside me.

"Come sit. Or are you planning to stand like a sleeping horse?" I raised a brow.

He wordlessly follows, taking a seat in the chair beside me as I go back to reading my book. The redhead glances at me every once and while as he goes to study, taking down notes of the important parts. It was quiet for a few minutes, a gust of gentle breeze popping in from the window from time to time before I popped a question out of the blue.

"So, why have you been monitoring me?" I asked casually as I flipped a page.

The sound of a scribbling pen stopped.

"...I wasn't monitoring. I was simply.... observing you." He murmurs thoughtfully.

"Did you gain anything about me...?" Another page was turned.

"...The only thing I've known so far is how you enjoy eating a blueberry cheesecake." He answers with embarrassment.

"Pfft—"

"Uh...." Riddle stares as [Y] chuckles before gradually turning to full blown laughter at his answer.

"You laughed...."

"Hm? Oh my....." I covered my lips only for my eyes to show that I'm clearly smiling.

'Beautiful....'

"I can't understand you at all."

"Hm...." I hummed.

"You can say such malicious words with a stoned-faced look to pair...." He murmured, glancing at me. "Yet, your actions say differently as you laugh freely right next to me."

"Is that so....?"

"So why do you seem so distant with me...."

I shut my book, my expression shifting again and stood up.

"I'm afraid I can't answer that." I narrowed my eyes at him. With my back turned from him I started walking away, slowly warning him.

"Tread carefully as wandering where you don't belong will only lead to harsh consequences."

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

'Why doesn't this world let me go....'

When someone tells you to know your place, one should follow yet Riddle keeps shoving his nose into my business. He kept showing up in the library to read with me, taking me to class when we pass by each by chance when I insisted no.

I was growing irritable by the day especially with ongoing investigation of the injured students that are talented players for the Magift Tournament.

"Do you have our Prefect head over heels for you or something?" Ace asked one day when we were proceeding to Potionology together with Deuce and Grim. "I swear he's been turning his eyes to you whenever we're at like a 6 mile radius from him."

"How would I know...." I responded sharply. "I don't control him do I?"

"Wow, now I'm just saying...." Ace raises his hands, the three pausing their footsteps as they watch their friend walk to class without them. "Aren't they a ray of sunshine today?"

"Dumbass, leave them alone, they look stressed out." Deuce sighed.

"Who you calling a dumbass?!"

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

'He just won't leave me alone....'

That was it. This was the last straw. Not only did he take on the members of Savanaclaw coming to attack me when we confronted them when we realized the culprits. But took the blast of sand coming for me from Leona when he Overblotted, sending him flying and collapsing on the ground.

"RIDDLE!" Cater went running to get him

'Shit.' I teleported to him, checking his pulse only to breathe a sigh when coming to the realization that he was only rendered unconscious.

"Cater, take him to the infirmary."

Cater froze under my gaze for a moment before nodding as he.

"Hn....[Y]...."

"Tsk...." I narrowed my eyes before walking towards Leona with a scowl, remaining unfazed by the sandstorm.

Whatever I shown must have mean I broke a my flower vines scattered across the field. Thorns of their tendrils scraped against Leona's skin, small wounds opening spilling blood.

"Miss Nature ain't looking too happy...." Ace sweated at the scene in front of him as Leona roared, struggling from the choking vines.

"Myah! They're not." Grim said. "The last time I saw this many flowers was after the opening ceremony. Someone pissed them off."

"WHY DO YOU GET IN MY WAY?!"

"[Y]... Don't hurt him...."

A weak yell.

I glance back to see Cater holding up Riddle, breathing heavily as he struggled to hold up. We stare at each other for a few seconds before I turn to look at the Savanaclaw Prefect and close my palm to control my vines behind him to shatter the monster.

The second it bursted I collapsed again.

No doubt, for another dream, yippee.

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

The second I woke up, I saw Riddle beside me, blearily rubbing his eyes to adjust his vision before he noticed me. He flinched under my stare.

"You....." I stood up and stalked towards him.

"Hey, you're awake!" Ace exclaimed.

"You shouldn't be getting up, stay in bed—"

"Shut up." I deathly stared at the others who were silenced before looking at him. I held his shoulder teleporting both of us to Ramshackle. "It's between him and me."

"What are they doing...." Deuce said worriedly.

"Did Riddle actually fall for Cutie-chan...." Cater smiles nervously.

As soon we appeared inside, I immediately bolted the outside with flowers, leaving no way to escape.

"Why do you keep getting in my way?!" I shouted. "Your whole self has been adding another problem in my list so—"

"I saw it." He murmured.

"What...."

"I had a dream that night after my disgrace...." He stares right at me with a neutral expression. "A young girl with the powers of spring...."

"Playing at the hands of immortality...."

'No....no....' My face changed to one of horror.

"As her family and fiance drove her to the brink of insanity to each life when she returned...."

"Don't say another word." I grabbed his shoulders. "The deeper you go the more you'll regret."

'No one must know me.....'

"...Was it my hair that made you distant from me?" Riddle mumbled.

His mother gave it to him so what was he to do?

"Do you honestly think that was what's bothering me?!" I gritted my teeth. "I don't belong in this world, and I was meant to disappear. All of you have a place in this world while I don't!"

He gazed at me as I rant and collapse on the ground shaking, tears spilling out.

'No one must know how I feel.....'

"So don't get close because it will only result in you getting hurt."

"For I await the day where I can finally lay down to rest...."

I continued shaking before I slowly felt the sensation of someone wrapping their arms around me. He hugged me tightly as if he was trying to shield me from the whole world.

"777th Rule from the Queen of hearts states: That no Queen should make simple regrets for they are the one that rules amongst their subjects." Riddle said with a stern tone. "So I've never regretted being with you."

"So until the day you rest, please allow me to accompany you and help you smile once more...."

[sysmedsaresexist]

do you have any sources documenting programmed DID?

You know, when I was in school for social work, in order to take the 3 classes on programming, cults, and treatment, I had to have a police check and go through three interviews with faculty. Each semester, this had to be redone. Three interviews, each semester.

There's a reason that a lot of the research and articles about this are hidden behind paywalls and found in specific journals by order to clinic only.

I do have sources, and several are available through Google with proper search terms, if you so desire.

I'm sorry, but I will not be linking any.

TW for the rest of this post. You can stop right here. There's zero reason to keep reading if you already agree.

This is the most I've ever said on this topic and it'll likely be the last.

Remember to mind your spoons and take care of yourselves.

Anyways, support organizations like NCMEC! Let's bring these children home!

Some of the things from my education are still burned into my brain to this day. People can be very sick. The world is a horrible place. The mind is far more malleable than people give it credit for (without even getting close to conspiracy theories).

I would love to offer sources, but this isn't a game I want to play.

I will leave it at this. Dissociative responses start small, and are caused incredibly easily. Training this response in others is easy. This can be accidental or purposeful.

Yes, it is so easy, it can happen accidentally. This is why we needed to be interviewed, because it's so easy that anyone who took that class could go and start fucking people up royally.

I am not exaggerating, I'm not telling a story. If you think it's not possible, you don't understand dissociation at all.

You don't understand how easy it is to plant that first seed of, "just relax," how easy it is to stretch that type of dissociation, and how easy it is to mold it once you notice it happening to your victim. These abusers don't start out trying to cause DID, they're trying to create silent, discrete victims by having them dissociate the discomfort and/or memories away. That happens in a lot of ways and can take a lot of sharp turns.

And so, it happens.

There are organizations that have been doing this for a very long time (particularly within trafficking, that have been in battle with various international police forces for decades) and have it down to an art. The vast majority of the time, DID is an inconvenient accident that they'll still take advantage of, because what else can they do? They want amnesia, not alters. They want complacency, not unpredictability. They want your strength and will to be crushed, not broken off.

But they still want the money. They want the work they put in to pay off.

A lot.

And more often than not, people don't go on to tell their story, unfortunately.

[joffyworld]

Hello Intrepid Viewer, and Welcome, Bienvenidos, مرحباً to the one and only:

The only place to find your latest and newest joffenings, joffenisms and joffy hijinks!

You may have questions, and for these, we here at JoffyWorldInc. have the answers for you!

Below you will find an FAQ, Important Disclaimers and a list of Tags used by JoffyWorld and hopefully all the answers to your questions!

Also here is a link to the Ballad of the Bishops AU Masterpost! For easier access to the chronology :)

Disclaimers:

This blog operates on the assumption of an audience that is 18+. The topics at discussion in this blog will sometimes, though somewhat rarely, include mentions of sexual acts, frequent profanity and reflect the age of its creator, you have been warned.

While nearly all topics are welcome, we here at JoffyWorldInc are a welcoming and open profile. We will not tolerate blatant hate or harassment, and any attempt to carry out such vile acts will result in a block. Any mention of illegal acts is incredibly frowned upon and common human decency heavily applies, if you engage in proshipping or "illegal content" you are not welcome here I am afraid, common sense applies and we will not abide by cruelty or evil in any form. The same goes for any form of bigotry, including misandry, all people are equal in the eyes of Joffy. You do not have to agree with someone to know they are human just as you are.

Sadly, we do not have the time nor resources to vet and check the legitimacy of fundraisers. We here at JoffyWorldInc are in full support of Palestine and believe strongly in many other political issues across the world but lack the time to do the checks owed to fundraising efforts. We are sorry, but we will mention what we can where we can.

FAQ:

Who is Joffy?

Joffy is me! My pronouns are he/him (because to be frank I am him) and I am currently 20 years old but beyond that I will remain anonymous.

Why is Joffy?

Honestly, we don't know! He is here solely to spread positivity and love and he hopes you enjoy his efforts!

Where is Joffy?

Probably in your reblogs or comments! He loves to spread joy and happiness wherever he goes and if he's commented under your works of art, writing or other content you produce, it is out of love for what you do!

What is Joffy?

Joffy is an anonymous identity concocted here at JoffyWorldInc and JoffyBroadcastingCo. to spread good vibes and overall show his appreciation to the beautiful people of Tumblr and especially the Cult of the Lamb fandom!

When is Joffy?

JoffyWorld adheres to a rather loose schedule centered around the GMT timezone. Times active are usually around 1pm to 2am GMT, with some leeway either way.

Why does Joffy like, comment and reblog all my stuff?

Because you're awesome that's why! Joffy loves to see art of all forms from the raunchy to the family friendly and by God will JoffyWorld serve as the Internet's Library of Alexandria and Abbasid House of Wisdom for the things Joffy loves (mainly being Cult of the Lamb content)!

Can I follow or interact with Joffy?

Yes! He is a regular person! This charade of being a company is all an entertaining way to provide information! He loves people, he loves you, and a message or a kind word makes his day a whole lot brighter, and he hopes it does the same for you!

What to do if I find Joffy annoying?

Tell him! He is a person and quite socially inept at that so inform Joffy if you wish for him to no longer comment as frequently or turn your notifications off. Notifications are on for his favourite accounts, so you will likely see him being first to reblog and comment fairly often!

Joffy's Frequent Tags (Subject to Updates):

#JoffyJoff

Regular hijinks, the thoughts and feelings of Joffy in the wide world (usually without any specific subject)!

#AskyJoffy

The responses and asks sent by you! The dear viewer! Usually responded to the same day if not within an hour or two. Anonymous asks are welcome and asks are not restricted to any topics! Let your mind run free!

#JoffyAnnouncements

Announcements regarding the meta of this account, including updates regarding it's creator and the running of it's functions such as redesigns of the page and its' content.

#JoffyWrites

This is the tag where creative works will be stored! Don't expect fully in-depth cohesive stories or ao3 works of art, it'll mostly be short and sweet poems with possible character analysis made afterward to dive deeper into the characters, who knows?!

#Poetry!au

This is the tag similar to JoffyWrites, but specifically for the poetry about the au within the poems. This au tries to stick to canon as closely as possible, but with some elements open to interpretation there is plenty of gaps to fill!

Aaaand that's it!

Welcome to the world of Joffy, we hope you enjoy your stay. Any questions not answered in the FAQ? Feel free and encouraged to drop an ask in the JoffyWorld askbox and you will receive the answers you desire.

Thank you! Enjoy your stay!

[theteablogger]

Why do you think that Andy specifically uses fandom to build cults/manipulate people, rather than more conventional religious or spiritual ideas?

This post is pretty long, but well worth a read, and gives a number of reasons why fandom has been the most convenient avenue for Andy to abuse people. Here are a few excerpted points:

Fandom has an unending, always-increasing, EXTREMELY OPEN supply of victims. [...] In real life, people are very unlikely to come up to you, sobbing, stumbling, and generally in extreme distress, and open up to you about their extensive emotional damage, their deepest, darkest secrets and fantasies, the subjects that are central to their passions, their enjoyment of life, and (in extremity) their willingness to keep breathing for another day - yes here’s the complete list - and their extreme sensitivity to certain stimuli that will quite possibly leave them shaking, their heads spinning, and their minds wide open to all sorts of fuckery - yes, here’s the other complete list. Because that would be giving a predator the keys to the kingdom, and people are distrusting enough in the offline world that they’re hardly going to leave that open for every stranger to examine, digest, and consider at length. On Tumblr, that’s sometimes contained just in the blog header. [...] An abundance of vulnerable teenage girls and naive twentysomethings. [...] A lack of parental supervision. A lot of people in fandom are HIDING from their parents. Excellent! It means the ONLY authority figures are authoritative, wise, kindly BNFs… ones who are so concerned for socially-isolated, mentally-ill teens…

As I noted in my reblog of that post, Andy did add elements of various religions into his cults, especially as a means of explaining how "channeling" worked and why it was a legitimate practice:

Remember, when he was first getting his claws into Abbey, how he went on and on about how a “pagan priestess” told him that elves, hobbits, etc. were real? This was the person who allegedly told him that he was a “Rare Lesbian Paladin” and that these spirits were reaching out and communicating through him. Supposedly the “Great Mother” was connecting to Abbey through Pippin, which makes no sense, and occasionally he would throw in the names of a god or two that was actually worshiped by some past culture.  Apparently this evolved into an actual religious…thing. I hesitate to say “practice” because it doesn’t seem to have been organized at all, but in her AMA, Abbey elaborated a little on the Tolkien-influenced “pagan” thing he was doing with her, Diamond, and Little Sam. She also said that toward the end of their involvement, he was trying to get her into Catholicism.

[goldensunset]

while I can't say I've encountered nearly as many Radiant Garden fans as you probably have in order for that to jump to mind, I actually did find myself really agreeing with your take on it. I totally thought I was missing some cutscenes for a while, like maybe I just hadn't seen something that was in the manga or in the DS version of 358/2 days, but no. people actually do just extrapolate off of nothing. and while that's fine for the most part, I never see this level of dedication being put in for female characters. as a huge Aqua fan it's frustrating that she has so many interesting qualities that I'd love to see explored but DON'T because most of the fandom would rather extrapolate from a guy with 4 seconds of screen time than even think about her. unless she's being shipped with Terra, I guess. I think the R.G. folks are just a microcosm of that bigger issue--they'd dig into the earth's fucking mantle looking for gold in an emo boy before digging six feet down for a woman

salt under the cut (i won’t make this a habit i promise)

adjdjcnsnxn that’s an incredible way to put it i might steal that phrasing… see like again i understand the ienzo thing purely from a life situation point of view. if a lil boy was an orphan raised by sketchy weirdos in a lab and then at the ripe old age of 8 had the whole losing-his-heart-and-growing-up-less-than-human-raised-in-a-cult thing. sure i’d want to explore that too! i’d read farther into it than canon. but literally where is the passion for aqua or kairi or skuld etc etc… i mean the girls have their fans but like no one is out here constructing an entire elaborate universe out of them. like i do my best but it’s hard work… but i mean that’s hardly surprising right. that’s how the story goes

honestly ienzo fans don’t even make me mad it’s more like i get annoyed when ppl obsess over like. aeleus and dilan.. because respectfully and i say this with love. there is *nothing* there. they didn’t even bother bringing back their vas in kh3. they are filler. why do all the shifty weirdo radiant garden men draw rabid fans but heaven forbid the ladies get love. hold on *approaches hornet’s nest with a baseball bat* i think there’s something about specifically adult fictional men that- ((i reconsider and stop myself))

but like. people are allowed to do whatever they want idk at worst it’s annoying when they start attacking others over alleged mischaracterization. yes i know in your fun and admittedly interesting fantasy he acts like this. but you cannot get mad when another fan portrays him the way we see him in canon lollllllllll

[intimidating-fettuccine]

here's a question that has probably been asked before: how did you come up with you rewrites for the characters? all of the backstories you gave them are really interesting and, while I haven't read the originals in a long time, I think I like what you did more. I found your work only in the past couple days, but I like it a lot; your versions of the creeps feel the most like real people that I've found since my interest in them reignited. but yeah, love your work.

(also, I may show back up in your ask box, so may I be "embroidery anon"?)

Firstly, thank you very much!! I tried really hard to make them much more realistic/three dimensional instead of just “oohhh I like to kill people!!” Ya know? I’m glad that people like you over time have liked that aspect of them :)) Prepare for some rambling though-

As for coming up for their specific backstories, that’s a little hard to answer I think just because of how long it’s been since I started doing that. I’ve been into the creeps since I was 11 and I’m turning 23 in a couple weeks so, it’s been a long ride. The creeps grew up alongside me and I think for some of them their stories just sort of evolved in my mind over the years. I mean I’ve literally been in the fandom for longer than several creeps like Toby, Pup, Helen, etc.

The basics are just I’d look at the original story for most of them, decide what I think I could keep, and what I’d like to change. For a creep like Toby, I wanted him to still have a good relationship with his mom and sister, and I still wanted his sister to die, but for Natalie I made her brother an ally to her and someone she loves and trusts instead of one of the bad guys. But I mostly wanted to make the writing darker and more in depth, I wanted them to be darker and more realistic as people.

I also wanted different backgrounds for them, like Toby/Helen/Natalie coming from very rich and influential families, EJ in my canon growing up in a cult, Jason and LJ both being toys instead of just LJ, things like that.

The thing about rewriting them I think is that most of the OG stories are not… The best written stories ever? Most of them were written by preteens/teens and not the most realistic pieces of media. Like in Jeff’s, being burned by fire made his hair turn black and his skin turn white, which is not really how fire and burns work?? And then he went on to burn off his eyelids which also not a great idea? I’ve actually had people get upset that my Jeff has eyelids but like if he didn’t he would be completely blind and in literal agony because his eyes would be completely dried out. That’s not a great design imo, but it was also written by a child so like, that’s why.

Most of my designs just sort of pop into my head randomly though. I get an idea like for BEN I wanted him to be close to his mom, but I didn’t want her to still be living so I went okay, how do I expand on that? And that’s how I came up with my version of his story, with his mom dying young from illness and his father being abusive and resentful.

I wish I had a better way of explaining it but that’s just sort of my general thought process. I started to look at them more as individual characters/OCs instead of just the original lore, which I mean most blogs for the creeps these days have their own lore too. I don’t think my creeps are the best ones ever (except in my heart), but I also had a lot of fun writing them and coming up with their backgrounds. I got influenced a lot by songs and media and they just gradually came into fruition :) I’m glad they were good enough to reignite your interest.

(And also yes, you may take that anon name ^^)

[hamliet]

Hi I love your meta about Hazbin Hotel, and I wanted to ask what you think about specifically Lute and Adam's relationship?

I see it as perhaps a prime example of an unhealthy power balance in a relationship, but not a romantic one. I could see an argument for unrequited love on Lute's part, but it's not particularly clear. I think it's more like adoration on Lute's behalf and ego for Adam.

I also know @aspoonofsugar is working on a meta about the angels that will touch a lot on this relationship, so I'll let Sugar do most of the meta-ing here, but I will say a few things.

Adam reminds me of a cult leader--a person who uses the ideals of a religion, philosophy, or political matter to prop up themselves. He doesn't even believe anything necessarily--he believes only in what benefits himself. All things are permissible. His end is destruction, his God is his own desires, and his glory is in his shame (hence why he gets stabbed by Niffty in the dick). He only cares about sex and his own comfort. He is God in his own mind, and his pride is his downfall.

Lute: Angels make no mistakes! Adam: Yeah, I've never made a mistake in my fuckin' life!

I do think there's a deliberate irony here, and a retelling to a degree of the Fall in Genesis where Adam's character is taken from--Adam's pride, falling for the serpent's words in Genesis 3:

For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.

But the serpent here is not the literal serpent or the character of Lucifer. Instead, it is Adam's own ego and pride. It is part of his humanity, but he refuses to consider that he could have any flaws. He's flawless. He's God. (He's not, and that's why he dies.)

I do think Hazbin is deliberately criticizing white American evangelical Christianity, and I strongly suspect Adam's character is modeled after a particular category of preacher : the sex-obsessed dudebro. See Mark Driscoll; there's a whole podcast called "The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill" that details his story. And here and here for the tl;dr version. I witnessed this in real time, and know people who survived his church.

These men are almost always brought down by people exposing their own abuse of their power, yet they always crawl back. They do not care about Jesus or God or any belief. They only care about aggrandizing themselves and the world being exactly how they think it should be.

Lute is extremely deferential to Adam and tries to uphold his idiocy. You could say she's a bit of a "pick me." But like Vaggie, she's kind of a victim of brainwashing, and I feel for her. Her admiration of and love for Adam is genuine on her part. But that doesn't make it less toxic, and Adam uses that loyalty to get her to participate in mass murders and yet, when called out on it directly, humiliates Lute.

I think my favorite exchange between Lute and Adam is this:

Adam: Extermination Day is here, bitches. We're going to go down and exterminate demon ass! Lute: Destroy that ass! Adam: Prepare to slaughter every sinner in that shit hotel, and you all remember Vaggie? [The Exorcists all boo Vaggie] Exorcists: Boo! We hate her! Lute: Rip Vaggie's cunt mouth out her ass! Adam: Would you just-ju-chill, Lute. Fuck. Anyway, whoever brings me Vaggie's head gets...uh, I dunno, a million Heaven bucks. How about that, huh?

I have actually seen several YouTube critics laughing and saying "when even Adam thinks you've gone too far, you know you're whacked" and the like. Except, I think that misses the point of this exchange (though to be fair it is comedy and it is funny so I'm not saying it's a wrong impression, just that I think there's a poignant layer to this).

Is anything Lute says worse than what Adam says? Like, Adam has himself said extremely cruel things. Like this:

Oh, fuck yes! I win! Suck it, bitches! You better save the date, cunts, because we're coming to your hotel... first!

But when Lute does it, Adam is repulsed because he knows how it looks to his other followers. His followers can be flawed, after all. He can't be. He throws Lute under the bus for stating exactly what he's asking for in no uncertain terms to remind Lute who is boss, and also because he needs to maintain his position of power.

It's exactly what all these dudebro sex-crazed theobros routinely do. When one of their followers states exactly what they mean without any "heehees" or glitter, they disavow that person when in reality that person represents exactly what they've always said, just without any cloaks. And usually it's a woman. The women who side with these men get hung out to dry eventually.

[theus-what-are-you-doing]

Hello! I saw quite a few people going around doing these "About me" things and I thought it would be fun to let any mutuals know some things about me, given they want to talk about different interests as such!

So let's give this a try, I'm always open to conversation so feel free to privately message me if you want to info dump or just talk!

Name: On here, I go by Theus, and although I do have a real name, I will not be giving it to any of the Tumblr Fae today

Age: 18+ Yes, I am an adult!

Birthday: 30th June, though I usually ask for other's birthdays because I like to draw gifts for friends :D

Star Sign: Cancer

Personality type: Neutral Good, INFP-T

Current Hobbies: Drawing, Writing, Mild editing, crocheting, Singing (I won't tell you if that's good or bad singing, mind you), Roleplaying, Designing

There are a lot of fandoms here, feel free to go through and find any things you like! Warning, a lot of these are current, or previous hyper fixations or special interests, I will talk about them a lot if brought up.

Bugsnax

Cinderella Boy (Webtoon)

Cult of The Lamb

DND

Genshin Impact

Good Omens

Gravity Falls

Honkai Star Rail

Legend of Zelda (Mostly BOTW, TOTK, SS)

Little Nightmares 1 & 2

Obey Me, One Master To Rule Them All

Pokemon (Sword & Shield)

SCP universe

Stardew Valley

Studio Ghibli

That's Not My Neighbour

The Arcana Visual novel

Wizarding World (Not JKR, I just grew up with it and I like magic)

Here I'll go over my favourite things at the moment!

Colours: Purple and Green

Season: Winter

Foods: Mac & Cheese, Noodles, Bao Buns, Garlic bread

Drinks: Tea, especially peppermint or raspberry but I'm also a sucker for iced coffees

Time: That very specific 3am to 5am period where the world is quiet and the air has a nice chill. This is when I'm the most productive within my art, and probably why I'm so tired all the time.

Fandom: Cinderella Boy

Flowers: Lavender or Wisteria

Gemstones: Alexandrite or Bismuth, they're colourful af

Characters: Stanford Pines (GF), Buddy (Cb), Silver (CB), Kaveh (GI), Narinder (COTL), Snorpy (Bugsnaxs), Chandlo (Bugsnaxs)

You want to know any other favourites? Just ask!

So, I'll be putting other places you can find me here, I suppose? If it's super personal stuff, you might have to PM me to have me sharing it, might not be very comfortable other wise!

A03: TheusWhatAreYouDoing

Discord: Ask in PM, please!

Tumblr: Boo, you're already here <3

Cara: TheusWhatAreYouDoing (Inactive atm)

Commissions: I'll be setting up my commissions page soon, but feel free to ask, I do have examples and prices ready!

[ghostsandfools]

Heyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy TSBS tumblr

I feel the need to say this now, whatever is going on I don't support any specific side or anything.

I don't know what the hell is happening and I do NOT want to. I saw some posts about people getting gore in their inboxes, which is awful, and that is the extent of my knowledge. I do not want to know more, I don't have a side or opinion on this other than that I hate all this drama because of all the anxiety it's caused people I know.

If I follow someone, it's because I like their art or their writing or their jokes or their personality, not because I support their side or anything.

I kinda struggle with forming opinions on things. I grew up in a cult where we were taught to accept adults words and not question things, so I'm kinda bad at using my critical thinking skills on things that aren't obvious. You could get me to believe probably anything if you sounded confident enough, and that's why I don't want to pick a side here. I don't know what the sides even are or what they're fighting about other than that this all started from that whole Solarmoon debate, but it feels like it's escalated way beyond that now.

And if I try to figure out what's going on I could EASILY be manipulated into siding with people who don't actually have anyone's best interest in mind, and that's not what i want. Yes, I could go scroll through people's blogs and find out what happened and play detective to figure out who's "the most just" but I don't want to. I have other stuff going on outside of tumblr. I just wanna look at cool tsams art and stuff, so if you try talking about the whole controversy with me, I am not going to understand what you mean.

[one-and-a-half-yikes]

you've told us basic plot of the fantasy Au but how about the witch Au 👀?

Unless theres already a post about that if there is oppp- sorry

Oh the Witch AU has a plot, but I'm gonna be honest I never really figured out to integrate everything together lmao

The basic gist is that Fanny is (again) the protag. She's one of the most powerful witches there is in this universe, though she only was able to obtain this power via making a deal (it's NOT the Devil though that did cross my mind to add him). In exchange for this power she lost vision in one of her eyes, a flower sprouting from the socket, though she keeps that part hidden with bang of hair.

In universe she's known as the Iris Queen, in reference to purple irises sprouting wherever she has left devastation in her wake. Nobody has ever been able to kill her, and nobody is actually certain if she's really a mortal or not. I'm here to say she technically is but isn't. I mean you could kill her, but it'd be a complicated process. Especially when taking her familiar into account.

With the power granted to her, came a gift of sorts though Fanny cannot begin to fathom why the beast she made a deal with would do such a thing. The familiar is a massive snake, looks like a tree viper to be specific. It can camouflage itself and shrink to a normal size if it chooses to. What's odd is, well, everything about it. Can't put her finger on it but there's something wrong about it.

And she's right! Because that snake belongs to someone else! :D

Okay so originally, I never had an actual main antagonist for this AU. Maybe the cult but that was it really. Until like, a couple of months ago when I was struck with inspo via doomed yuri. There was no correlation between those two things btw it just happened that way lmao.

I haven't come up with a name or design for this antagonist yet but they are worshipped by a cult and are some kind of eldritch being of sorts with the ability to shift through memories, space, and time. They particularly love people with trauma though. And Fanny has a lot of it. Which makes her a prime target. Of course, it's not the only reason she's a prime target.

Remember the snake? Yeah that's theirs. As is the power granted to Fanny. You can imagine that would piss it off quite a lot. The cult understands this and a few years ago before the start of the story (in my head) Fanny was successfully captured by this cult. But she was able to escape though with the cuffs of the chains still on her.

She did come face to face with the villain though while escaping and had her ass handed to her quite thoroughly. Good news is she still got away.

Okay so where the story started to go to shit was that I needed Fanny to interact with the cult again, but more importantly, I needed her to interact with the other characters as well.

Because Cuphead, Holly, Boris & Bendy (Bendy is a familiar in this), and Alice were supposed to be the main ones accompanying her on her journey. Specifically I wanted her to meet them because she's trying to get these chains off which she hasn't been able to do for years. Her familiar is the only reason she's still alive alongside everything else I've mentioned. But the problem with the chains still on her is that using any amount of magic energy causes magic erosion (when the soul & body cannot contain magic anymore so it enters the physical body and starts to basically devour/decay it) so she can't use her powers as much as she'd like to.

(Also should say magic erosion looks like cracks forming on the body or single body part. At its worst stage the whole body or body part crystallizes and shatters. And yes the whole process is painful, incredibly so. Magic erosion can also lead to magic poisoning in some cases which is completely different and it's more like a disease or infection slowly spreading over the body. Sometimes you can get both!)

And where I have since left off with this plot is Fanny was recommended by pure happenchance of encountering another witch, a sea witch, who claims that a certain witch farther south could help her with her problem because they'd done something similar with her.

That witch is called by many names: the Blood Witch, Witch of Sin, the Scarlet Witch, etc.

It's Cuphead. It's just Cuphead.

And that's where the plot left off last I checked.

And yes, I have ��️designs✨️

Though it's only Cuphead and Fanny lol never really got around to doing anyone else's

Also! Apparently I wrote the plot for this AU but I have no fucking idea what any of this was meant to be-

THIS IS WHY WE WRITE SHIT DOWN PEOPLE!!!!! 😭💀

[thewisaaaaad]

Ok, I forgot to talk about the Sins, even though they are a cornerstone of my AU. WHOOPS

So the sins: what are they? Well they are sentient manifestations of a specific flaw taken to the extremes. For instance, there is a vast difference between being proud of a job well done, and being proud of hurting someone else for fun.

Anyways, these were a byproduct of the creation of the world. they were meant to motivate mortals, but instead they got a little out of hand because there were no limits on them. So, the Celestial Beings (or Old Gods) had the crowns made as a countermeasure, and to ensure mortals sought them out for a cure to their sins, they gave the crowns power over natural phenomena, such as the moon, the sun, and yes, death.

However, the crowns are imperfect, as all things are. Though the gods were immune to sin growing in their own hearts, that didn't mean that it couldn't come from elsewhere. And once the crowns were passed on to mortals, the sin that had festered in life wasn't simply erased.

When the gods began to vanish in the lands outside the old faith, Sin ruled. People were twisted into monsters, even objects could be affected and turned into slavering beasts, and fear ruled. That is the land that Jalala comes from. There are no cults, there are no gods. Only hell on earth, or heaven to the sinful.

Now, I wanted to talk about WHY the crowns become infected with sin. This is because, as I stated, each crown is imperfect. each has a sin that it is vulnerable to. And these sins in no way reflect the will of their bearer.

For the green crown, the will of chaos and order, its weakness is Wrath. That Sin will turn the once lush forest of Darkwood into a toxic swamp, filled with all sorts of poisons, including whispers that drive those brave or foolhardy enough to remain to attack those that trust them.

For the yellow crown, the arbiter of feast and famine, its vulnerability lies with Gluttony. The Sin burns bright, seeking to consume the entirety of the fertile lands of Anura in its blaze. The empty husks of creatures not quick enough to flee wander the wasteland, a fire burning where their stomach once sat.

For the blue crown, master of plague and cure, it falls ill to Sloth. This Sin, rather predictably, doesn't do much, but its mere presence sends the balance into dissaray. Ice coats the surface of the ocean of Anchordeep, the sheet trapping the faithful within its walls. That same sheet drops pillars of ice flowing from the surface, freezing those unfortunate enough to not see it coming. Frozen corpses drift through the quiet city, searching for a warmth they can no longer call their own.

The purple crown, emblem of war and wisdom, it falls before Envy. This Sin has no real power of its own, driving its hunger for any scraps it can claim. It turns the caverns of Silkcradle into trap infested nests, the designs stolen from the memories of jealous hunters, the halls staffed by death machines crafted in the minds of long dead inventors who wished to do away with a rival. Arcing sparks of electricity light the rooms and bar doorways, taken from a god who long held envy in their own heart.

Greed was always here. Unlike their siblings, they saw the risk that was being taken and chose not to gamble. Loosing everything was simply too likely, and so they stayed in their lane, slowly coaxing mortals into achieving better results for higher rewards. They are NOTHING like their sibling, and only takes what is offered. They cling tightly to what they have earned, and will aid the new crown to see it stay that way.

Bloodlust does not have a realm. the only thing they leave behind is bony trees that bear fleshy fruits hanging from its bear branches, and those fruits seek only to water the roots with blood.

[twentyfivemiceinatrenchcoat]

HIIII ARI !!!!!! i am finally home AND as promised, here to talk abt boxer suguru from your recent drabble >:)

ok ok ok SO i had.....many thoughts while reading this so this is gonna be more nonsense than anything coherent but i just HAD to talk to you abt it !!!!!

suguru as an angel - but specifically, one who is hurt, one who is yours to fix. i. LOVE !!!!! angel devil biblical stuff and oh my GOD YEAHAHHHHH!!!!! and just.....the fact that he is so beautiful, so radiant, in spite of (or perhaps even...because of?) his injuries, the result of violence. that something so holy can still be perfect even after damage, after being hurt, after pain and bruising and bleeding. AAAHH

healing healing HEALING!!!!! fixing him up after a fight....it makes me wonder too like.....was anyone there for him in canon??? like do you think if he had someone to help him, to bandage his wounds and rub his back and wipe the blood from his face, would things have turned out differently??? i love the way you explored it here bc like yes he is a boxer, yes he still fights but he doesn't do it for the sake of violence or bc he feels hurt (i think...???), because he doesnt have to, because he has someone there to help heal him afterwards

just.....the peace of this. i loved it. it felt so safe, so comfortable. him not wanting you to worry. the worry still being there all the same. his resistance to being taken care of, and yet letting you do it anyways. the love spilled through the cracks of their words and it's growing in the spaces between the lines and just AAHH

ANYWAYS loved this love you teehee thank you for another DELICIOUS suguru piece :))

QUINNNNNNNNN 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 YOU’RE SOOOOOO SWEET FOR THIS I LOVE YOU ……………

wahhhhhhh i’m so happy you enjoyed boxer!sugu 🥹 first of all !!!!! tysm for reading 🫂 and for taking the time to write this out !!! i was giggling and kicking my feet just so you’re aware …… anyway!!!!!!!

ANGEL SUGU!!!! yes!!!!!!!! i too am a big fan of biblical imagery :3c ……. i think suguru fits really well into a role that’s something like a martyr, so it feels pretty fitting to label him as an angel too, yk? (among other things… cult!geto is very snake in the garden coded <3) BUT YES. HE’S BEAUTIFUL IN SPITE OF/BECAUSE HIS DAMAGE …. reader truly loves him at every stage, bruised and battered or all patched up 🥹 he’s their angel!!!!!! i think there’s something very holy in the air when they meet in the locker room after a match….. something sooo ridiculously intimate in seeing him melt into their arms after being so ferocious on stage… you get me quinn <3

and obv that goes hand in hand with the healing theme!!!!!!! healing only comes after pain and both are precious in a sense …… for the record i DO think suguru could have been saved if someone had been there for him :’) this is just my own take but i think the only way to save him would’ve been to combat the isolation he felt ……… BUT ENOUGH ABT THAT no pain allowed in this au !!!!!!!! and yes hehe, boxer!sugu doesn’t fight for the sake of fighting — in my mind it’s more like …. he’s naturally really big and strong, so why not use it for something? to provide for you, or to find his footing in that kind of profession, the ups and downs…… i think controlled violence is probably . precious? in his eyes?? not exactlyyy that but having you there to fix him up afterwards is definitely the highlight for him :3c

and ofc the peace 🥺🥺🥺 wahhhhh i really am soso thankful for this response yk ….. i think i wanted to convey the peace & quiet more than anything 🥹 and again!!!! it’s all abt the line between violence and tenderness….. the tenderness that comes after violence……… when everything goes quiet. he lets you take care of him !!!!! and i think that means sooo much coming from someone as independent as sugu :’))))) he trust you so deeply ………

ahhhhhhhhhhhhh i just !!!!! love you!!!!!!!!!! tysm again for reading and for sharing your thoughts T_T you ALWAYS get it . no matter what . uncapping your scalp and leaving a kiss on your brain rn