#me while writing this: is luke

[1mnobodywhoareyou]

"your scream is kind of cute im sorry."

prompt list used for inspo here

They’re not entirely sure whose great idea horror night was, but here they all were, huddled up and watching the scariest movie any of them had seen. None of them actually like horror but that didn’t seem to matter. Alex and Willie were hiding their faces in each other’s shoulders, Julie had her face in a pillow. Luke was trying very unsuccessfully to keep his eyes on the screen. Reggie isn’t even bothering trying any more. He’s completely clocked out, lying on the couch and simply staring at the ceiling and bouncing his feet in the air. Bobby is… trying to watch the movie from his spot on the floor leaned up against the couch. But he keeps covering his eyes with his hand and peeking through his fingers. 

Reggie can hear the next jump scare building and refuses to look at the television but he takes stock of how his friends are handling it, smiling to himself in private amusement. Bobby screams when everybody jumps and Reggie can’t help the giggle that escapes. His friends all send him betrayed looks and he laughs again.

“Your scream is kind of cute, I’m sorry,” he directs at Bobby.

The statement seems to prevent Bobby from forming a coherent thought and he stumbles over his words while their friends laugh.

“It’s not CUTE!” Bobby exclaims once he’s regained his composure.

“Kinda is,” Reggie repeats with a grin.

“Shut up,” Bobby mutters, turning back to the TV.

“Make me!” Reggie surprises everybody by saying, issuing a very clear challenge Bobby’s way.

Nobody’s watching the movie any more and they’ve all directed their attention to the pair in the middle of the room. 

“Is this really happening?” Willie whispers to Alex.

“Fucking finally,” Alex replies.

“All of you shut up,” Bobby exclaims before directing his attention back to Reggie. “What did you say?” 

“I said… make me,” Reggie replies, the challenging tone still in his voice.

“Any preference on how I might do that?” a flirtatious undertone laces through Bobby’s words.

“You can choose,” Reggie sits up and sends a smug look Bobby’s way.

“This is weird,” Luke says as he stands up to leave the room, waving at the others to follow him.

Alex groans but follows Luke’s lead and drags Willie and Julie out with them.

Neither Bobby nor Reggie acknowledge their departure.

Somebody on the TV screams and Reggie giggles again. 

He clicks his tongue, “see, just not as cute.”

“I’m not fucking cute,” Bobby mutters under his breath and Reggie raises an eyebrow as he leans forward.

“Yeah. You fucking are,” Reggie is defiant in his response.

“I thought I told you to shut up?” Bobby growls as he grabs Reggie and pulls him down to crash their lips together. Reggie recovers quickly, considering he knew what he was starting. He wraps his arms around Bobby’s neck and lowers himself down to the floor, kissing Bobby back.

They’re interrupted by obnoxious applause when their friends return and pull apart to turn glares on the intruders.

“Must you?” Bobby asks, unimpressed.

“We must,” Luke beams at him. “Congrats! Took you two long enough.”

“Whatever,” Bobby mutters and Reggie lets out another set of giggles, leaning into Bobby’s side. Bobby wraps his arm around Reggie and directs a fond smile his way before schooling his face back into a scowl as his friends return to their spots.

“We still committed to finishing this?” Alex confirms and the others nod. He sighs and they all settle in as before. The only difference is that Bobby no longer has any real interest in paying attention to what’s on screen, stealing kisses with Reggie as the movie plays.

[i-am-the-avatar-of-idiocy]

I know you mentioned your asks are open. So I was wondering with the self aware obey me AU. How would the surprise guest sequences feel for them? I’m sure they’d be excited and hoping to jump out of the screen!

I thought I already wrote this! Apparently not 😭

Generally I think that they believe that you choose who it is, even if they know the truth that it’s random (beyond who you put in your team)

those who you have less powerful cards of… they WILL mess with the summons! This also WILL frustrate the others especially the more powerful demons who handle it in ways they aren’t the proudest of

you will get lines that are not in the game at all… you assume they’re Easter eggs that you’ve unlocked somehow

however some of these are more… dark… but I guess it’s a game about demons so you shrug it off

they all try to impress you and will GUSH over gifts you give them to the others and mock the others for not having it (even if they got the same last battle)

you also always seem to have at least one of characters favourite foods and gifts and even if you give them something they don’t like they will accept it gracefully

also if Luke seems to be getting an awful lot of attention in these surprise guests… well I suppose you won’t be seeing him much anymore. However this is an extreme measure as they know how much you adore him like a son. These measures will be taken in certain circumstances though, so be careful if you value his life

I also think that the demon brothers would squabble over who you prefer the most, sometimes resulting in physical fights. Lucifer lets this happen because he loves his brothers but having less competition could be nice

You always feel strangely watched when you have surprise guests and you ALWAYS get fell heart reactions and intimacy levels rise suspicious amounts but you think it must be a glitch and besides what’s the worst that can happen…

[xx0yeet-everything0xx]

im sorry but jason and reyna are literally percy and annabeth but so much more hardcore

[lightofjedi]

There's many things in SW fanfics I don't vibe with (and, like a normal person, just scroll down and mind my business) but Obi-Wan being often portrayed as this barely-holding-on, always-on-verge-of-collapsing, 24/7-sad-pitiful-repressed kinda guy really takes the cake for me seeing as I've always regarded him as being a very centered, confident, open and well-humored guy pretty much anytime he's not dealing with his murdered/turned-evil loved ones or losing absolutely everything and everyone he loved.

[celestialbackbiter]

there is ground to break

luke x apollo!reader

nsfw under the split

it still amazed you, even after four years, just how mystical camp half-blood truly was. from the rolling green of half-blood hill, to the vicious reds of the strawberry fields, to the vastness of the amphitheatre. everything in camp half-blood screamed 'blessed by the gods'.

you often found yourself thinking of the colours of the camp, especially on a day like today - when the sun shone high and hot in the sky, when there was little wind to pick the hair up off your neck and cool you, when you felt as though your own father was trying to smite you down for your wrongdoings with the intensity of the sun's rays.

it possibly didn't help that you were stood alone in the amphitheatre - which was rarely, if ever, used by other campers at this time of day because of the heat the dipped down stage brought - practice sword in hand, thrashing and jabbing and slicing your way through the air. you tried to remember what luke castellan, the camps lead teacher of sword fighting, had said to do in battle. this was, of course, in vain. you never knew what luke was saying, you never could concentrate on his lessons.

you never could draw yourself away from the way his eyes gleamed as he waxed poetic about the importance of a demigod's sword. you never could stop yourself from focusing more on the way his lips formed the words than what the words actually meant. you never could draw yourself away from how backbiter - his own dual-metal sword - glinted in the beaming sunlight and cast a golden glow on his face. like apollo had blessed him, a sign from your father that he was for you. you never could tear yourself from catching how that golden glint teetered at the edge of the scar that ran the length of the right side of his face and made it look startlingly smooth.

you never could draw yourself away from the feeling you got when luke's eyes dragged across his campmates faces, looking for any sign of recognition or life, and skimmed over your own - the way you convinced yourself he hesitated just a moment too long on you.

the practice sword glidded over your head in a twirl.

of course there was a reason for him to hesitate on you. at least in your head there was (whether that thought translated to luke's is a different question).

last winter, when camp half-blood was at the typical bare bones capacity and the campfire singalongs were seeming more and more tedious as the months to summer stretched before you; when the new year had been rang in almost a month prior; when the weather outside the invisible bubble of camp turned the weather inside to almost subzero; when all you wanted was to climb into your warm bed in your golden cabin; luke had kissed you.

your sword sliced through the air with a violent whirl that left your shoulder socket feeling a little worse for wear.

now, this kiss was not out of the blue or completely unexpected to an extent. you and luke had been skirting around the subject of relationships for a while now. not because either of you particularly had romantic feelings for each other, gods no, but because yourself and luke, in a friendly late night talk by the lake when neither of you could sleep because of the bad dreams and the lack of noise at camp that time of year, had realised you were both almost-20-year-old virgins. and this depressed you.

you had drifted toward the edge of the amphitheatre now, feet dancing along the edge of the grass in your sword play with an invisible force, almost touching the first stone step. you decided you'd had enough and sat down heavily on the hot rock, discarding the wooden sword at your feet.

you sat for a while catching your breath with your face tilted upward, sending a silent prayer to your father - apollo - to ease off with the blaring sun a little, when you glanced down at the watch on your left wrist. 12:40. you'd missed lunch. you heaved a sigh, and slumped forward in your seat, bracing your elbows on your knees and closing your eyes. blood rushed in your ears, your heart beat fast.

the sweltering summer heat on your neck suddenly lessened and you thought for a millisecond that apollo had listened, so you whispered a small "thank you" in ancient greek.

"I'm not sure what I did but you're welcome."

you started. eyes open suddenly and on your feet in a second. luke.

he stood tall in front of you, now sitting a good 6 or 7 inches taller than you since the great growth spurt of his 16th year, broad and smiling, casting a shadow on where you lept from. his dark curls were beginning to stick to his forehead at his hairline, you assumed due to the walk over to the amphitheatre.

"gods, luke," you huffed out with relief "you scared me."

he laughed and sounded heavenly, " yeah I noticed." you reached out and swatted his chest with the back of your hand, bending and picking the sword up from the ground and beginning to push past him. "you missed lunch."

you repeated his previous words back to him with a smile as you began the walk back to the main camp grounds, climbing the steps of the amphitheatre. "how long have you been out here?" he asked.

you glanced at your watch again. your stomach grumbled. "almost 2 hours apparently."

he hummed appreciatively and sarcastically stated "you looked good. almost strong." you stopped walking and stared.

"how long were you watching me, you stalker?"

"long enough to see you don't really pay attention to what I teach."

"maybe you should be better at it then." he hummed again and raised his eyebrows, looked up at you from 2 steps below.

"I brought you lunch, if you want it." he lifted his right hand to you palm side up, with an orange paper napkin parcelling something in his outstretched hand. you reached out to get it. luke snatched it back, throwing it lightly into his left hand. you scowled. "tell me I'm a good teacher."

now it was your turn to raise your eyebrows. "sorry?"

"tell me I'm a good teacher. then you can eat." you shook your head and moved towards luke on the step to take the sandwich from his hands, but he held it above his head, causing you to stumble in your feeble attempt to get it. your hand came up to his chest to steady yourself against him.

"that is a human rights violation, you can't starve me to get your way." you put your hands on your hips and luke followed them for a split second, tracing your arms back up to your face.

"good job you're not a human then, huh?" he said with a tilt of his head, another quick eyebrow raise, and a hint of arrogance, the orange napkin still in his hand.

your stomach growled again and you huffed, stomping your foot like a tantrum-riddled toddler. "fine! you're a good teacher. can I have my lunch now?" he laughed again and it sounded even better than before. he sat down on the stone next to you and pulled you down with him by your back belt loop, handing you the parcel. you blushed at the ease in which he moved you.

it was a simple ham and lettuce sandwich, a little mayo on the bread. you noticed he'd already torn a corner inch off as an offering and you smiled. "thanks." you smiled up at him.

you ate in relative silence. every couple minutes luke would say something as you chewed and you would respond brightly, half eaten sandwich shoved into your cheek with the distant memory of your grandmother chastising you for talking with food in your mouth. you finished your sandwich and suddenly luke stopped talking mid-sentence. you looked up at him with wide eyes, swallowed your last bite of food and opened your mouth to say something. you didn't know what you were going to say, any thought you had left was lost when you fully took in lukes expression, and so you closed your mouth again.

his eyes were wide and dark, the brown almost entirely swallowed by black, and his lips were slightly parted. his eyebrows were lifted in an almost shocked expression.

"what?" you asked. he sputtered a little.

"uh-" his hand flicked up like he was going to gesture and quickly retracted again back to his side. "you have-" he swallowed. "you have a little-" he did gesture this time, he pointed to your mouth. "you have a little mayo, just there." you felt the redness of a blush hit your face again.

"oh! oh!" you wiped the corner of your mouth, "is it gone?" luke laughed a little.

"no." you wiped the other side.

"is it gone now?" you turned your head slightly from side to side, your hair tickling your face where it shook a little, a smile tugging at your mouth. luke laughed again.

"no." you rolled your eyes.

"well could you help a little? I'll look like an idiot!" you faked being irate, your voice starting to rise with a faint giggle. luke's laughter started to die, and he reached out towards you.

you froze with a smile on your face, eyes wide. as his hand came closer, lukes own smile dropped completely and your eyes felt heavier and heavier with the intensity of his whole being directed at you. you closed them. you felt his fingers curl against your chin and his thumb grace the very corner of your mouth. your eyes snapped open. luke paused, a deer in headlights.

your eyes locked and it felt as though time stood still, a beat went past. two. three. lukes gaze flickered down to your lips and back up again, your heart rate picking up with it. luke mumbled something but you didn't catch it, you were too focused on him. his eyes. his hair. his mouth. his adams apple. his shoulders. everything about him made you feel exposed, more so when he began to move towards you.

luke leaned into you, hand still on your chin with his thumb having found its seemingly rightful place in the middle of your lower lip. he tugged it down a little. just enough to pull your lips apart from one another. his hand moved from your chin, sliding up your face. his palm rested on your cheek, his thumb sliding left to right on your cheekbone, his fingers spread along the side of your neck. you felt vulnerable. you felt small in lukes hand. you nuzzled your head a little further into him.

he leaned closer.

he swallowed as he entered your atmosphere, his path sure and strong, and he stopped suddenly an inch from your face. "is this okay?" he asked, now unsure of himself - it made you wonder if he thought the winters night kiss wasn't okay. you swallowed too and nodded.

"mhm, yeah-" you blinked repeatedly, too scared to close your eyes for too long in case you missed the sight of luke so close to your face, but his gaze was so intense that you couldnt quite keep your eyes open. you'd dreamt of this. literally dreamt of this, almost every day since that fateful night by the lake in late january. "yeah."

"I've never forgotten, you know." he was whispering now, searching your face for something. "I've not forgotten the night at the lake."

"the lake?" you whispered back. you kicked yourself. what was that? why had you asked that? you knew what he meant, but you wanted to know what he thought of it. of-

"the kiss." he cut off your thoughts, replaced your voice with his own. "I think about it sometimes." he stroked your cheek and then moved his hand toward the back of your head, spreading his hand out in your hair.

"you do?" your voice sounded small. he nodded slightly. "when?"

he smiled. "everyday. mainly at night." he swallowed. you followed suit. the sun felt so hot, or maybe the situation you were in - sat next to luke; thigh to thigh; foreheads almost touching; lips an inch away from each other; memories that normally only invaded your dreams or kept you in the shower too long coming to surface; memories of luke hovering above you with one hand on your hip, fingers slipped under the waistband of your pants, and the other clutching the blanket next to your head, his camp necklace swinging and landing on your throat - maybe that was what had you feeling hot under the collar.

it was that memory that made you surge forward and close the gap between you. lips meeting lips. his hands in your hair and cradling your face, yours snaking up from your side and beginning to ball his tshirt in a fist.

you felt hot all over, your heart rate raised, blood rushing in your ears for the second time today. you felt breathless and weak, his mouth moving gracefully and with precision. his hands dropped from your hair and you began to panic suddenly, starting to open your eyes, but they returned to your waist in a second and calmed you. luke pulled you impossibly closer and closer, not stopping until you got the hint and climbed onto his lap. you bracketed him to the stone step with your thighs, and he shifted in his seat to accommodate for the sudden height difference. his head tilted backwards so the connection between you didn't break. his hands stayed on your waist for a couple minutes, your right hand on his face and your left in his hair, before he moved them. he moved them down. he slid his hands into your back pockets and tugged.

he moved you closer to him once again, and your body rocked with the movement into him. your chest pushed into lukes, your hand tightened in his hair pulling a low whine out of his throat and you moaned with him. but that wasn't all you felt.

beside the stifling heat of the day, beside the feeling of yours and lukes quickening heartbeats mingling into one, beside the hands on your ass and the moan in your throat. you felt luke. you felt the one part of him you'd never felt or seen before, the part he always hid when you would accidentally walk in on him changing, tge part you would imagine touching - feeling - when the lakeside memories surfaced, and it pulled another moan from deep in your chest.

you felt him beneath you. he was hardening fast, thickening fast, and you moved to feel him again.

you moaned in tandem. luke breathed out your name, breaking the kiss.

"we should stop." you shook your head. you didn't want to stop. luke groaned in agreement.

"we-" he moved you again and contradicted his own words, you could feel him more now and it made you want him so much you could barely breathe. you moved from his lips, if he insisted on talking you should at least give him the space to do so, and moved to his neck instead. he groaned again. "we should really stop."

you broke away from his adams apple to crane your head back and look at him, mainly to see if he was serious but partly to just look at him. you enjoyed just looking at him. he didn't seem that serious.

"you really wanna stop?" you trail a hand from the back of his neck to front of him, tracing his clavicle with your fingertips and placing your hand on his chest. you didn't break eye contact with him. he just stared at you, his eyes looking a little drowsy, and nodded. you didn't believe him. "okay.

you went to lift off his lap, pushing on his chest for leverage, but his hands still in your back pockets made it hard for you to move from him.

luke pulled you back to him just as your toes touched the step below you. "don't move." he kissed you again.

you hands dug once again into the cloth of his shirt, and pulled you even further into him. luke broke the kiss again. "please don't move." he was almost begging now as he began to kiss down your throat - pleading words of "please stay" and "gods you're so good, just stay" in-between kisses to your neck and shoulders and face and lips and everywhere but where you wanted him at that moment, were making you feel dizzy with the sweet praise tumbling from lukes lips and the sinful feeling of him against you.

in the back of your mind you were thinking of the cabins, of where you could find a bed to continue this, of where luke could lay you down and use his mouth on you in more ways. but the forefront of your mind was full of luke himself. he was almost too much, the heat making things so much worse. so much more hyper-aware of every touch.

one hand had just snaked from behind you, just unzipped your shorts, fingers had just began to dip into the front of them over your underwear, when you heard voices.

you both stilled and looked at one another, you thought maybe you'd heard wrong.

you hadn't. you started to hear the distinct voices of campers coming toward the amphitheatre. "fuck." luke said, sounding what you thought was disappointed, though his hand remained so close.

"fuck." you agreed as the voices came closer.

"we should move now," luke whispered like he would be heard if he talked at full volume. "definitely."

"yeah." you breathed back.

neither of you moved.

his eyes flickered from your eyes to your lips and back again, and you felt yourself doing the same. he kissed you again as he removed his hand from your shorts and pulled the zipper back up, cupping your crotch when it reached the top and making you groan. you moved against him in retaliation.

you felt his cock pulse underneath you and luke moaned. loud and clear in the summer sun, and finally - reluctantly - pushed you gently off him.

you left his lap with ease and stood over him, for probably the first time in four years you towered over him, your hands still resting on his shoulders.

he looked up at you with wide shining eyes, his hair dishevelled and knotted, his hands on your hips. the voices got closer. luke stood.

he towered over you now, and looked down at you with an intensity that made you look away from his eyes. "hey," he said softly. "are you okay?"

you nodded, still not being able to look him in the eyes and staring instead at his camp beads. "you sure?"

you nodded again and mustered the courage to look at him properly. he looked concerned. you were fine, you felt more than fine, you felt alive. you could feel your heartbeat still hammering away in your chest, the hot air still making your hair stick to the back of your neck, your shorts feeling warmer than before. you felt like you were vibrating.

footsteps and voices had now reached the amphitheatre, it sounded like the ares cabin - you could hear clarisse arguing away with one of her brothers.

you smiled at luke, "I'm sure." and just to prove your point, you craned your neck and pulled luke down by his shoulders, kissing him quickly before pulling away again. you turned from him in a blink, and began marching your way up the steps to the top of the amphitheatre.

when you reached three steps above luke, you could see what was definitely the ares cabin venturing down the steps clad in armour with swords, spears, bows, and more weapons strapped to them. you turned back to luke - who was still stood there, looking slightly shell shocked - "are you coming or not?"

luke began to scramble up to you, tripping a little on his way. "shit!" he swore quickly. he looked at you and smiled sheepishly. you just laughed.

you both made your way back to camp, walking side by side and chatting as if nothing happened, deciding to go your separate ways with a promise to meet up for dinner.

you decided to shower, having been too warm for too long, and told luke in passing. "can I join?" he asked jokingly, beaming down at you with stars in his eyes.

you hit his chest with enough force to knock him backwards a little. "no!" you laughed. "you cannot join, you pervert!"

luke laughed too and caught his balance. "I'll just go back and be lonely then. It's fine." he turned to go to the hermes cabin. you knew he wouldn't be lonely. no one in the hermes cabin was ever lonely, there was too many of them in there.

"good." you said with a smile and disappeared into the apollo cabin.

[gaily-daily-musings]

(Force ghost Obi-Wan visits Anakin at the moment of his death)

-

Vader is slipping away, fading into the ether. Obi-Wan can feel the end of it in the Force. And yet even as he watches, Obi-Wan rages against it. He cannot let him.

Obi-Wan had come to terms with Vader and his past a long time ago. He had accepted his part in it and let go. He was a Jedi, and he had forged ahead and put his faith in the boy. In Luke. But he had never expected this. Vader–Anakin–to come back. Not after so long. It was less that he'd lost faith in Anakin, and more that it was necessary for him to be able to move on. How cruel the Force was then, to give Anakin back only to take him away again.

Obi-Wan cannot let him.

As his last words leave his mouth, taking with it his last breath, Obi-Wan rushes to his side. It would take a miracle. He, Yoda, and Qui-Gon, had all had to receive extensive training to maintain their consciousness after death. He had but mere minutes. But Anakin was the Force's son was he not? He was the Chosen One. And oh he'd believed it was Luke. And it was in a way. But also Anakin. Always Anakin. So if anyone could do the impossible, it was him.

"Obi-Wan?" Anakin's eyes widen. He has no mouth to speak anymore, caught in death's grip. Yet still his voice rings true. "Master I'm sorry! I'm so sorry I–"

"Hush now and listen carefully. We don't have much time."

Indeed, even now he could feel the way Anakin was merging back into the Force. Gone forever. Just like when he'd fallen to the Dark. Except now it was worse. Because now Obi-Wan would truly never see him again. He has no heart nor any body yet it aches. No please, he begs silently. One last time. One last miracle.

"You're in the netherworld of the Force. But I can teach you how to revisit corporeal space and retain your consciousness. A path to immortality."

"But…why…?"

Confusion and remorse burst through. Luke hugs his dead father's body to his chest.

"Never mind that! Do you wish this path, Anakin?" He cannot keep the desperation from his voice.

Anakin looks up at him. "Yes."

Obi-Wan has no breath but he feels his chest heave anyway. "Right, let us begin quickly…"

-

Yoda and Qui-Gon had manifested beside them as Anakin grew stronger and more grounded in the Force. Their voices helped steer him away from the wave which would have swept him away.

After all is said and done Anakin stands before him. Anakin, as he was. As he used to be. Obi-Wan almost cannot believe it even with the proof in front of him.

"Masters." Anakin looks around him, overwhelmed and teary eyed.

"Anakin." Qui-Gon smiles proudly. He moves to hug him. "I was watching you always. You did it. I knew you could."

Ankain squeezes back.

Yoda nods at him, a smile on his old face. Obi-Wan yearns to hold him too, but he hesitates. Unsure how to anymore or if it is even welcome. It's been so long. And there is so much to say. He's sorry he gave up on him. He's sorry he didn't try harder. He's sorry for causing him so much pain.

There is no shielding in the cosmic force. It is all open and bare. Anakin feels all of it. He is frozen in place. In turn Obi-Wan can feel Anakin’s own remorse. His guilt burns alongside everything else. But above all his soul aches for Obi-Wan's just as well.

Oh. Oh Obi-Wan wishes he could hide himself away like before. Put up a wall and meditate this away. This is too raw. Too open. He is gutted and speared and on display.

But so is Anakin.

"Obi-Wan."

They fall into each other. Their souls intertwining finally. There is love. Love. He is made of it. He radiates it. He'll never let this go again. Not ever.

-

The party lasts far into the night. Luke gives them a smile and turns away to rejoin his friends. Anakin smiles proudly at him. Yoda has already returned to the Force. Only he and Anakin remain to watch the festivities a little longer.

Obi-Wan turns to observe him. Anakin is as radiant as he'd been at 23. Curly hair, his Jedi robes in place. He looks exactly as he had been. Obi-Wan feels so old standing next to him. His eternal boy. It didn't seem fair, but Obi-Wan wouldn't have it any other way.

Anakin shifts to peer down at him as if taking him in for the first time. His eyes wander his face and wrinkles.

"What?"

Anakin reaches up to drag a hand through his white hair. Obi-Wan bristles at the touch, leaning in without meaning to. His soul has always reached back for Anakin.

"Nothing. Just looking at you I guess."

His ephemeral form makes a valiant effort at blushing. Then Anakin opens his mouth and completely obliterates any chance he had at saving face.

"Can ghosts have sex?"

They were both of and in the Force. Anakin was him and he was Anakin. It was the closest they'd ever been and ever would be. But instead of saying any of that Obi-Wan touches his beard and strokes the memory of bristles.

"Can't say I've ever tried."

Anakin grins.

[in-with-the-blues]

hello! because i am completely delusional (and i've also had a six of crows/percy jackson crossover idea in my mind for the last month), here i'll recount why i think kaz brekker and luke castellan are somewhat similar, and the parallels between them.

first of all, if you are watching the percy jackson & the olympians tv show and haven't read the books or gotten spoiled, stop reading because this post will contain spoilers for the books. and obviously, spoilers for the six of crows duology.

before i start, i'd like to say that i haven't actually read the percy jackson books, but i have seen enough spoilers and read luke's fandom wiki to somewhat know what i'm talking about, but if you feel that i'm mistaking luke's characterization, please feel free to point it out. so without much further ado, let's begin :)

the main point that i feel begins this madness of a comparison is that kaz would, at least in my opinion, absolutely be a child of hermes if he existed in the riordanverse. why? hermes is the god of boundaries, travelers, thieves, commerce, cunning, wit, and politics: all except the first two and the last encapsulate the various parts of kaz's character pretty well, and it could be argued that kaz is good at politics, given how much of crooked kingdom revolves around them, and kaz was technically a traveler when he first arrived in ketterdam with jordie, up until he crawled out of the harbour and made the city his home. the boundaries part could be related to how kaz crossed the line of morality & co when he became kaz brekker but i feel like i'm stretching it too far so i'll leave it at that. hermes is also the psychopomp who helps guide the souls of the dead to the afterlife, which means leading them to charon and the acharon/styx; kaz has a special connection (i.e. trauma) to water and death, with how he nearly died in the reaper's barge surrounded by corpses and then used jordie's corpse as a lifeboat to the ketterdam harbour, so it could be taken as a psychopomp-related theme about him? as a plus, almost all of kaz's schemes include sneaky stuff like trickery, lying and crime, so that's why i think he can be compared more to hermes rather than athena as i've commonly seen. and even though i doubt luke would be thrilled about it, he also is pretty similar to hermes.

kaz and luke, as people, have made it their lives' mission to get revenge against those who have wronged them (pekka rollins and the olympians) to the point that that thirst for revenge and the traumas that led to them have defined them as people, plus it has caused them to put in danger (without meaning to or not) the people they care about/set out to protect: kaz completely screwed up the plan to get out of the ice court because he went rogue and went looking for rollins, and later didn't take into account that rollins could be working with van eck and they all nearly died, and luke harmed a lot of demigods + annabeth and thalia, even though he wanted things to be better for them, which was obviously not what kronos was planning to do once he disposed of olympus, all because he was blind with rage at how the gods didn't move a finger to help their children in their inherently dangerous lives that they didn't ask for.

i want to point out their disrespect for authority for a bit; it's a theme in both sagas (at least from my understanding it is) how authority figures disregard children's suffering, from how the previously mentioned olympians + the titans don't really care about demigods, who are just children and in constant danger because monsters or they're sent into quests for the gods and die, and ketterdam... it is straight-up corrupt and pretty bad. anyways, what i'm trying to say is that luke and kaz are both byproducts of the societies they've been discarded by. i once saw a post that called luke what every demigod could become under the right circumstances, a nobody in the cabin of nobodies, and irrelevant enough to go unnoticed but smart enough to almost topple olympus (i don't remember the exact words they used but i'm pretty sure it's something like this), and this is what kaz is: just one of the tons of kids that get scammed and eaten whole by ketterdam, but smart enough to rise to the top and take revenge for what was done to him.

however, this is where their differences start to appear, because luke definitely had an altruistic goal when he meant for demigods to get actually noticed by the gods, but he was a radical and his hatred + kronos' manipulations turned him into something worse. sure, he had their well-being in mind, though it didn't exactly look like it when he let kronos possess him and started a war that killed lots of demigods, or when he blackmailed silena into being a spy and allowed for annabeth to hold the literal sky, but in the end he did make the right choice. kaz, on the other hand, only had revenge for himself and his brother in mind, and all the things he did to get on the road that would allow him that were terrible and of his own choice and doing. was cheating, scamming, conning, murdering, maiming, stealing and a lot else i don't remember crucial to get revenge on the man that ruined his life, even though it was very destructive for ketterdam and for kaz himself, and considering jordie would have urged him to get away from the city and make a better life for himself? it was to get revenge, but it's not like he would die from not doing it, and though turning himself into a ''monster'' was vital to his safety and life, that was his choice—he chose to be dirtyhands. luke also chose to revive kronos and go to war against olympus, but kronos also manipulated and mentally tortured luke, so not everything was a 100% on him. for kronos' sake, luke chose to become more ruthless and cruel, while kaz chose to be that for his reputation and his revenge. nonetheless, luke still is a backstabber and traitor to his friends and family, and sure, kaz's a bastard, but he always looked after the crows and didn't mean them harm. there's also the fact that luke only got out of the deep ass vengeance cave he was in when he sacrificed himself to kill kronos and told percy to not let what happened to him and ethan happen again, while kaz got his revenge + got retribution for all of the crows and then helps inej take down the slavers and pleasure houses.

(also, getting the olympians locked up in tartarus sounds like a good revenge plan, but telling the man who ruined your life that you buried his son alive and not telling him where he is until he remembers your dead brother's name, all while all you're telling's him a bluff? disturbing, yes, and that they both came to do that is just sad, but it doesn't stop kaz's scene from being iconic. anyways back to business).

kaz and luke had undeniably fucked up childhoods, but i'd like to point out what they did after The Thing happened. kaz lived on the streets and had to steal and do stuff to survive while looking for hertzoon, found him as the king of the barrel and then joined the dregs and started to create his reputation for safety and for revenge, and much later met his friends. luke had a lot of Things, so i'll go over them briefly. after he ran away from his crazy mother he lived on the streets and had to learn how to fight monsters, then met thalia and later annabeth and took care of them as family. after he met his father, he was angry and picked fights with monsters which equals danger for all. after thalia was turned into a tree by zeus, he resented the olympians even more & grieved for his friend. after he got sent into the quest by hermes and got his scar, he was furious that they denied him the chance to get glory by doing something already done and his resentment got worse, and that's when kronos slipped into his mind & everything went to hell. now, you may be wondering where the hell i'm going with this, to which i present you how they both chose the destructive path, but while luke got from good to bad to worse to good at the very last moment, kaz got from bad to worse to kinda good to his crew and to inej. basically, kaz found people who stuck with him and he in turn stuck with them, while luke completely alienated everyone, then betrayed them and lost them. however, it could be noted that the crows are outcasts so it makes sense they'd stick together, while luke's friends and family likely wouldn't agree to betray the olympians because they're their parents and they want to be loved by them, so there's no way they'd join kronos, so yeah, they had different people around them.

in conclusion, kaz and luke both got into a path of revenge that led to lots of bad things for both ketterdam and camp half-blood, kaz found people who stuck with him and decided to get better while luke nearly burned everything to the ground, then realised what he'd done to the people he claimed to protect and made the right choice. so yeah, this got way longer than i expected and i definitely have a thing for grey morality, and these two were children who didn't deserve the tragedy that befell them. i can't wait to see how they adapt luke in the show and hope that the six of crows spin-off gets saved so we can see the crows again! hope you enjoyed my very long ranting :)

[moonbythecabstan]

I edited 'Bad Omens' to the music video of 'Lie To Me' ☺️

[auradia]

am I the only one that’s sad that we didn’t get any nxx group chat messages for the new year(s)?

like I want to see them all passive-aggressively wishing each other a happy new year dammit please I need it

therefore since hyv did not bless us with new nxx groupchat shenanigans I will make my own. (under the cut)

luke and marius, stalking the gc at 11:59 PM: come on, just turn to 12 already….. come onnnnn…

the clock ticks to 12:00. and then….

NXX Groupchat:

12:00 AM

Luke: Happy new year, Rosa!

Marius: happy ne-

Marius: DAMMIT LUKE I WAS GONNA DO THAT! AT LEAST WISH ME A HAPPY NEW YEAR TOO

Luke: Alright, alright… happy new year, marius :)

Marius: hmph. i’m still gonna get you back for that.

Vyn: Why must you be so petty? I was trying to watch the fireworks and the notifications disturbed me.

Marius: well doc just have your phone on silent

Marius: it’s not that hard

Vyn: If you did not disturb me I would not have to put my phone on silent.

Vyn: Also, do not call me “doc”.

Marius: all right doc whatever you say

Luke: Wait a second

Luke: Vyn I think this is the first time I’ve seen you up after 9

Vyn: It was New Year’s Eve, and I would not want to miss such an occasion.

Vyn: Ah, before I forget: Happy New Year, Luke.

Marius: seriously??? no happy new year for me? unfair.

Vyn: Perhaps I would consider it if you did not attempt to get on my nerves daily.

Luke: Should I feel bad or should I laugh?

Vyn: You should laugh.

Marius: WOW DOC

Marius: ok but why ARE you still awake

Marius: i don’t recall you ever saying you were excited for the new year

Vyn: Oh, yes. I forgot to say, me and Rosa are celebrating together.

Luke: Wait, what???

Marius: WHAT

Artem: You’re with Rosa?

Rosa: Yeah, Vyn invited me to watch the fireworks with him! They’re really pretty :D

Luke: Why didn’t you tell me you were free? We could have spent the night together with peanut!

Marius: why didn’t you tell me missy? i’m hurt :(

Artem: I was not aware you were with Vyn.

Rosa: Sorry, guys. I thought you all said you were busy. :(

Luke: I can always make time for you!

Marius: missy, i could’ve made a space in my schedule for you…

Artem: Rosa, if you ever want to spend time with me, I can request a break so we can spend time together.

Rosa: Guys… thanks, but you really don’t need to waste that much time and effort on me…

Artem: No time spent with you is a waste, Rosa. I don’t want to hear you saying that again.

Vyn: Artem is correct. You deserve it.

Marius: wow that’s like the first time i’ve seen them agree with each other

Luke: @Rosa since we missed the new year’s, do you want to come over in a few days so we can have some fun in the snow?

Vyn: …

Artem: …

Marius: …

Marius: dang, should’ve asked earlier

Rosa: Uh… well-

Rosa: I would love to!

Luke: Yay!! I’ll text you tomorrow about it then

Rosa: By the way, thanks for the wishing me a happy New Year. Happy New Year to everyone here, too!

Rosa: I should probably go to sleep now, since the fireworks are over. Goodnight, everyone!

Marius: sweet dreams missy

Luke: Goodnighttt

Artem: Goodnight, Rosa.

Vyn: Ah, Rosa. I will prepare everything for you. Please wait, I am coming.

Marius: wow doc’s really texting instead of just talking they’re literally in the same place

Artem: That does seem quite inefficient.

Artem: Speaking of inefficiency, don’t you have work to do? I recall that Rosa mentioned that you said you were busy during the New Year’s celebrations.

Marius: wow. rude. i’m still doing work just taking a quick break

Marius: besides don’t you have work to do too

Artem: …

Artem: I suppose I do, yes. I am also simply taking a break.

Marius: copycat

Luke: Guys… just do your work

[gayemoji]

for how bad killing eve got the books are infinitely worse.

[jemiswumbo]

@ the people who sent me writing requests 1. THANK YOU !!! and 2. i am back in my writing era I am writing up a storm and I will be posting soon I promise I promise <3

[raazberry]

i was thinking about how fun it would be to live at purgatory hall so here’s a thing i wrote while half asleep about solomon, simeon and luke :)

If any of the brothers ever asked you who your favourite person at Purgatory Hall was, you don’t think that you would be able to give them an answer.

Although the House of Lamentation is quite homely, nothing there has made you feel quite at home as watching Simeon and Luke bake while Solomon struggles to find the ingredients - Luke shouting at the top of his lungs when Solomon accidentally hands him salt instead of the flour he’d asked for, and the sorcerer only laughing in turn as he imagines the taste of a salt cookie.

Simeon quietly pulls you aside sometimes, and asks - Is everything okay? They’re not being too loud, are they? And all you can do in turn, is smile and give him a big hug, because of course everything is okay. You’re with them, after all. Simeon chuckles and places a light kiss on your cheek, as you jokingly shift your head away from him in fear of getting flour on your face. You could never get tired of him, of this.

Solomon catches the two of you, and pulls you both in a hug, clearly still high off of whatever was happening in the kitchen. He wants to say so much to you - and to Simeon too, for teaching him so much, for keeping up with him, for being the only family he’s had in ages but he can’t get himself to verbalise any of it. So he just holds you both as tight as he possibly can, until Simeon complains about not being able to breath.

Solomon apologises as he gestures at the two of you to follow him back into the kitchen - no explanation for the previous hug. Not that either of you needed it.

You stand behind the counter and watch as Luke breaks a few eggs with an incredible amount of dedication - and it makes you wonder how anyone could do such a mundane task like that with so much passion. It’s just breaking eggs for god’s sake - but somehow, Luke’s determination seems to be endless.

Simeon and Solomon seem to be thinking the same thing as they stare at the bowl’s contents being mixed over and over and over again, and everything is completely silent except for the sound of the kneader hitting the bowl.

Nothing interesting happens for the twenty-or-so minutes the three of you stand there, but nobody makes the effort to go do something else, either. After a while, Luke asks you all to quit staring and just help him, which you happily oblige.

The cookies are delicious, you find out four hours later - just as you had expected. You sit in Simeon’s room as you eat them with the rest of the boys, because of course the brothers couldn’t resist Luke’s cookies. Even Barbatos complimented them, which has to count for something.

Hmm… maybe you should consider moving out and living at Purgatory Hall, no?

[obeymeow]

being neurodivergent is all fun and games until you remember those hourly quote bots on twitter and think well maybe I can't make a bot anymore but I could schedule a few quotes a day, that shouldn't be hard. it sounds fun to have a bunch of quotes of my favorite character Thirteen from hit mobile game Obey Me! and its sequel Obey Me! Nightbringer. and then you think about how arduous collecting the quotes is going to be but she's only been in the games for maybe a year and a half with little screentime and you love collecting things so you start but then you remember that you love collecting things so naturally you have ALL of her screentime in the game and suddenly you have 45k characters of quotes and are several lessons into season 4 (which is truly a trial in and of itself) but not nearly close enough to the end but you refuse to just stop collecting the quotes and make the account with the EXCESS of what you have already because you literally only have season 4 to get through and if you don't do it just seeing the bot (because now you've been informed you can make tumblr bots instead) will haunt you with that knowledge even if nobody else would ever know. this is a general anecdote of a situation that could easily happen to anyone though and not in any way related to my life

[whichwoods]

My legs are weak. There are tears in my eyes. I hope Chapter 4 is out soon. You’re writing is so good and the story is so well written…. I’m speechless. Actually..

I’m not being dramatic when I say I’d pay good money if it goes to a fund that makes it to where the universe doesn’t make us writers go through that “We wanna write but…. Do we?” Phase and it causes fics to sit unupdated for over a month LMAO

Words do not describe my love for your Lucemond. That hug at the end? I knew that shit felt fucking great

aw tysm!! 💕 i'm glad people have liked the new chapter, i'm hoping the next update will be up later this month :)

SO much relief in that hug. after weeks-long separation, and nixing communication halfway through that >:) they have a LOT to talk about

[lucy-ghoul]

................. not to rain down on anyone's parade but barely characterized 14 year old lucerys could never have the swag eleanor or henry had

[journey-to-the-attic]

s4 (jtta-ified)

i received an ask about how i might redo s4 in the lieu of how i redid s1 for jtta, but then i ended up losing the ask (i got duplicates of it for some reason and accidentally deleted the original ask as well), so i’m putting my response here in its own post--

if i was going to write a full-length sequel to jtta, this’d probably be its plot - though there'd be a bunch of like bonus one shots to fill the space between too. since i’ve already had these notes accumulating for a while, i’ve got enough detail here that i could reasonably turn it into an actual fic? essentially i’m saying that it’s no longer a impossibility, so i guess you could ignore this if you wanted to go into a potential sequel blind - but it’s also not definitely going to happen, so keep that in mind

unlike jtta, which still followed all of the plot beats of s1, i'm basically reinventing the new s4 characters and forming my own narrative around them entirely, so this is mainly free of s4 spoilers i think?? i still haven’t actually caught up, so if any of this is massively contradicting to canon... well, what else is new haha

!!long post ahead!!

s4 brings up the issue of demons in the devildom not agreeing with diavolo's policy and disliking the exchange program, but this comes out of nowhere and isn't brought up at all in previous seasons (as far as i remember)

not to mention it wouldn't fit in with what the r.a.d. is like in jtta

so instead:

the r.a.d. is populated by demons from the main devildom city, the residents of which are what you'd call modern/progressive demons. they're not necessarily young, they're just open-minded as a result of living close to the centre of the devildom's cultural development (which, before diavolo being placed in charge, was extremely slow, but has been accelerating since he became acting ruler)

to these folk, they consider the old king's rule obsolete, and diavolo is their king as far as they're concerned

so students at the r.a.d. are largely supportive of diavolo and his plan to unite the three realms (though they don't all necessary think it'll work), and most are at least neutral if not positive on the exchange program

however, the main city and the r.a.d.'s students only make up about 35% of the devildom's population, the rest of which is largely spread out in more rural settings

this larger chunk of the demon population still thinks of diavolo's dad as their true king, and is the one that disapproves of diavolo's uniting-the-three-worlds plan - you could consider them the devildom's version of old-fashioned conservative folk

once diavolo is made aware of this, he immediately begins plans to help change their minds

this is all very simplified, but basically he invites solomon, luke, simeon and ik back for another exchange year (they accept), and also extends an open invitation to the r.a.d. to all of that old-fashioned population

this is how om mephistopheles comes into the plot - here, he's part of this old-fashioned population, didn't previously attend the r.a.d., and only starts when he accepts diavolo's invitation. he's also the only one that does so

(he's considered a noble because, in the devildom, being noble just means that you're above a certain age and were associated with the old king's court, not including those who were just employed there)

(mephistopheles only came into the picture fairly late into the old king's rule, so didn't know him well, and subsequently is a little more open-minded than the demons he lives around - but not by a lot)

raphael comes in because he ends up joining simeon and luke, ostensibly just because he was curious about the devildom, but in actuality it was because the high council wanted him to keep an eye on things

especially on simeon, who's been very out-spoken about the celestial realm's issues ever since he returned from the first exchange program, as well as ik, who's been mentioned by simeon and luke a lot

and thirteen reaches out to diavolo after hearing through the grapevine about the exchange program starting again - because she's curious about the human who died and came back to life, being a reaper who deals in life and death

so that's the set up!

the main plot is that diavolo is working to garner more acceptance from that rural devildom population with the exchange students as spokespeople - mostly the original four, but he does get raphael and thirteen involved too

there's one sub-plot for each new character, which each also has some of the side characters involved, since they don't get as much spotlight in jtta

also, my version of simeon's s4 subplot would basically just be this: he's even more disillusioned with the celestial realm now than he was after the war, he's attempting to make changes to make it less of the not-great-place that it is, and the high council doesn't like that

it's not quite as serious as in the original (i'm pretty sure it involves the ring of light from s2, which isn't a factor in our version, since s2's events didn't happen), but it's still a running plot thread

the brothers are still present throughout all of this, but act more as helpers and advice-givers - since their primary arcs were all in jtta, their arcs in this plot are most background running ones

the subplots intersect with each other and the main plot, and they come in chunks for all three parties, but for efficiency's sake we'll just summarise each character's plot line separately

mephistopheles' subplot:

starts first: he arrives at the r.a.d. and has extreme culture shock because of how used to his traditionalist home environment he is

he still admires diavolo, but more subtly and also more subconsciously than in canon

behaves quite standoffishly with students who try to befriend him, doesn't make a lot of friends right off the bat, kind of hates his experience for the first few weeks

the first demon he befriends is actually wiz - who kind of speaks his whole high-class language and so is able to communicate with him, and so he joins the newspaper club

right off the bat: he and jtta mephisto do not like each other

they have completely contradictory personalities and principles, and mephistopheles wants to be a serious club while mephisto's all about the wacky joke papers

and of course they also don't like that they share a name

(normally this isn't possible, but with mephisto's backstory, the rule of each demon's name having to be unique because of magic stuff doesn’t apply to him)

mephistopheles's arc involves him moving past his ingrained prejudices against change and the other two realms, letting go of the idea of 'more magic power = superior', and beginning to use his noble position among those old fashioned demonfolk as a force for progress

(those folk respect him because he was associated with the old king)

another theme in mephistopheles' arc would be a sort of impostor syndrome - he enjoys the respect he gets from his peers where he's from, which is partly why he acts so haughty, but he also feels deep down that he doesn't deserve it

because 1. he actually believes more in diavolo as a ruler than the old king, and 2. he never actually met the old king in person

mephistopheles also slowly recognises that being a passive listener in the very archaic and often harmful views of the demons around him is pretty bad, even if he doesn't usually actively engage in it

diavolo gets involved in this arc - and, whether or not this ends up in romantic territory, so does our mephisto

they're both linked to the time before diavolo taking the throne, but mephisto's moved forward and is doing his own loony thing, while mephistopheles is still partially stuck in the past and on traditional values

because he's older, mephisto is also a representation of the fact that mephistopheles shouldn't go along with the prejudice just because he was 'bOrN In a DIffEreNt tImE', because mephisto was around for arguably even worse times, and has turned out fine by now anyway

and it's always better late than never to become a better person

so over time mephisto essentially grabs mephistopheles by the hair and YANKS him out of that comfortable, prejudice-complicit shell

(which would eventually end in either them just being friendly rivals, or mephistopheles gaining a massive crush and then them becoming tentative boyfriends)

anyway mephisto is what gets mephistopheles out of that shell, but ik and diavolo help him actually recognise, adjust, and settle into life outside it

diavolo because he's the guy mephistopheles looks up to, so he begins following his example of always being eager to learn about new cultures, putting kindness first, etc

ik because she's part of the group that mephistopheles' old-fashioned peers dislikes, and is a shining example of the fact that humans are actually pretty great and there is literally no reason for the grudge being held against her race

as a combination they help convince mephistopheles that change is possible and also desirable

(ik also serves as a link for mephistopheles to get to know the other exchange students, so overall he gets to make more friends that see him as equals, rather than just having acquaintances who only respect him because of his very loose connection to some old dude)

thirteen's subplot (though i talk more about lore than plot here haha)

technically starts around the same time as mephistopheles' subplot, but doesn't really begin in earnest until later

we’re not told a lot about what reapers are, or much about thirteen, so i’ll be making stuff up again as per usual

reapers as a species are descended from demons, but have evolved to be distinct from demonkind because 1. they lack the ability to make pacts, 2. they don’t have a demon form, and 3. they cannot create offspring using the dark matter in the third layer

reapers are created with a similar process, though - just with vivus wax rather than dark matter

vivus wax is also what their candles are made of; additionally, rather than being something used to control death, the reapers’ candles are used to observe the processes of life and death instead, and any conscious being can have a candle

one being can also have multiple candles, if multiple reapers are interested in observing them, and you aren’t going to die if a candle of yours is put out while you’re still alive

reapers can tell the difference between a candle that’s gone out because its being has died and a candle that’s been blown out because its reaper got bored of it; in the former case, they’ll often save the wax to study

what exactly the burning and the wax tells the reapers is unbeknownst to anyone but them, as they’re quite secretive about their practices (all that’s known is that it doesn’t give them information on you as a person, but rather something less tangible about the way life persists and then disappears)

not all reapers will have candles to observe, but most do, since as a species they’re inherently given to studying death (though no one knows why)

some reapers (known as underground reapers) live in cave systems around the edges of the sixth layer of hell - the one where the underground tomb is located - and are responsible for managing any punished souls imprisoned there

some reapers also live among the demons in the devildom, and they’re generally considered underground reapers as well

some reapers (known as earthly reapers) live in the human world, similar to sorcerers and witches; some will be integrated into human society (like grisella), whereas others prefer to live remotely and observe from afar (like solomon)

demons and reapers are traditionally rivals, as are witches and sorcerers (witches are traditionally allied with reapers, and sorcerers with demons)

so you’ve got an already instinctive/pre-established rivalry between thirteen and all the demons, and also a sort-of one with solomon based on both their past and the fact that they’re associated with different ‘sides’

thirteen is considered an underground reaper at the time of joining the exchange program, but that’s actually quite a recent development; up until about five years ago, she was an earthly reaper, and was one of the sort that mingled with humans and lived among them

so she and solomon serve as sort of foils to one another; thirteen, despite being a reaper, is actually more well-acquainted with modern humanity than solomon, the actual human

in the beginning, thirteen’s having a sort of conflict of identity, which is the reason she went from being an earthly reaper to an underground reaper in the first place; essentially she began to become fully aware of death’s effects on humans, how destructively some would grieve, and of just how much death creatures will inflict on each other, sometimes for no reason

as a reaper whose very existence is essentially rooted in death, it made her question her own origins, and whether there was something inherently wrongful about her species’ most basic interest for humans to fear it so much

so she joins the exchange program out of interest in asking ik about her own experience with death, having heard about an odd phenomenon from a few reapers who had a candle for her where they remembered watching the flame go out, but saw that it was still burning whenever they went back to check it

thirteen’s arc involves two things: primarily it’s developing and resolving that identity conflict, and she also plays a role in some secondary ripples involving ik

(essentially something happens that makes ik relapse a little, making it apparent that she’s still not really recovered from her own death and the existential aspects of her revival; thirteen would be the best equipped character to help her with this - along with someone else, but that’s spoilers for some future jtta stuff)

another less focal part of her arc is based on that whole traditional witches + reapers vs sorcerers + demons rivalry, relating to mephistopheles’ arc and the idea that what is old isn’t necessarily right, and that you’re supposed to judge based on the individual and not the population

there’s also some stuff based on the idea that a lot of reapers find it difficult to actually consider individuals as living beings with active existences - as in, being used to studying them based on candles that don’t tell them anything about them as people, they forget that said people exist uniquely

raphael's subplot:

probably the most underutilised so far in canon, not because he doesn't get screentime, but because he's set up with so much potential for conflict that isn't really used - i.e. him being a hitman for the celestial realm

so it's established very early on that raphael might be a danger to ik, because simeon’s aware of why he’s joined the exchange program alongside him and luke

he pulls ik aside pretty much immediately after she and raphael are introduced, and warns her to keep her guard up

his own subplot is integrated into raphael's in this case, and since it's less monumental than it (presumably) is in canon, he's not hiding it as much

it's fairly clear to anyone who pays attention that there's tension between simeon and the authorities of the celestial realm, there just isn't a lot of explicit conversation about it

so raphael's plot line is more passive for the first half of the main plot: it's mostly just a drip-feed of him being distant from everyone that isn't luke or simeon (and even then he's still kind of distant from them), plus hints that he's possibly up to no good

but, over the course of this, raphael is also slowly being dragged into befriending more folks because he has ik as a mutual friend

past the halfway point there comes more significant moments of reflection from raphael, as he begins to look past his orders from the high council and starts just living a comfy and friendly life in the devildom

eventually he talks to simeon and tells him the full extent of his orders from the high council of the celestial realm

basically it's this: keep an eye on simeon, keep an eye on who's influencing him, keep an eye on who he's influencing, and do as you see fit to if you detect a major threat. if simeon goes too far, bring him back alive.

and raphael's kind of like "i don't think anyone's a major threat, so i'm not going to do anything, but technically i'm still following my orders, right?"

and simeon basically replies "attaboy raphael, i knew you had it in you to question our home realm's questionable authorities"

the main big conflict of this whole story would be related to raphael’s arc in particular (whereas thirteen and mephistopheles’ arcs just equip them to help out)

whether or not it actually happens, the conflict would involve the possibility of some kind of celestial civil war, which gives us a whole bunch of good character fodder for both the angels and the brothers (given their own experiences with the original war)

i won’t go into too much detail on it, though - since 1. i haven’t actually fully fleshed it out yet, and 2. if i do write out this fic, i’d want this conflict in particular to not be spoiled

raphael’s arc would also involve some looks into the whole angels = good and demons = bad thing; he starts out believing that demons are inherently evil, but also doesn’t extend this view to the brothers, since he still largely sees them as the angels he knew

ik (plus luke and simeon) get him to confront this hypocrisy, and this relates back to the whole judge by individuals not species thing again

there’d also be some looks into where the angels = good and demons = bad thing came from in the first place

some other miscellaneous stuff:

the side characters (royals + purgatrio) would be having ongoing arcs based on their development from jtta, since unlike the brothers their arcs aren’t concrete enough to have a final resolution by the end of the first year, and their arcs are what tie them into the new trio’s subplots

the arc themes would be: diavolo + change, barbatos + duty in relation to his powers and what he can and can’t do, solomon + his identity as a human, luke + deciding what’s right and wrong in comparison to what he’s grown up learning, and simeon + the past and confronting the flaws of the angelic hierarchy he’s been complicit in

i’d want to have ik’s dad take a more active role in the story this time, since ik needs to have her own overall arc throughout the fic as the main character, and reconciling her properly with her dad seems to be the natural next step after her arc in jtta

of course they’ve taken steps since ik returned from the first exchange year, but the fact that ik agreed to be away for another whole year in the first place is telling as to the fact that her relationship with her dad is still at least a little distant

i don’t think zhao would come to the devildom as well, but he’d definitely be in regular contact and/or visit

there’d be an arc involving a visit to the human world where thirteen gets to meet ik’s aunt lisa, and then i get to bring back adam and jack from the satan arc for a cameo (possibly also ethan, sophia and noah?)

the brothers aren’t delegated to being background characters or anything - they also get involved in the subplots, plus have sorta group secondary arcs of their own

like i’ve mentioned before, it’s not a bad thing inherently to bring back satan and lucifer’s conflict, since it’s definitely not completely solved by their initial arc - it’s just that they kind of rehash it rather than really develop it more each time they do

so if there was a secondary arc involving it, it wouldn’t be the focal point - rather, i think it’d intersect with ik and her dad reconciling as well as some more general development for lucifer regarding his treatment of his brothers

we’d get to see more actual belpheroth developments on-screen (so to speak), since roth would be involved in belphie’s secondary arc relating from everything with him in jtta

building on that, we’d have him involved in an arc with zhao, since ik doesn’t tell him what belphie did to her, and then this arc would also involve barbatos, diavolo and thirteen

as for all the events that lead to the developments and arcs i’ve mentioned - they’d probably mostly be original, but i might borrow some plot points from s2-4, or maybe even a few pop quizzes??