#there is a hell believe me i've seen it there is a heaven let's keep it a secret

[take-me-back-to-eden]

Bring Me The Horizon feat. Lights // Crucify Me

[kaminokilljoy]

listening to the same album over and over again like a little kid going down a slide wheeeee that was so fun I wanna do it again

[waking-hell]

Bring Me The Horizon // Blessed With A Curse

[thats-the-teen-spirit]

Controversial meme

PSA: I didn't include Count Your Blessings because there's only 6 places for albums, but it would go under cult classic IMO

[restinpeas]

album art from "there is a hell, believe me i've seen it. there is a heaven let's keep it a secret." by bring me the horizon

[take-a-ch4nce]

Bring Me The Horizon by Todd Sipes

[jimbogartisdelusionalwithlove]

Haven't listened to BMTH for so long and proper vibing with them today

[bassant-88]

Silence is Better Than Bullshit.

[alucienasmusic]

Bring Me The Horizon - "It Never Ends"

[titaniaorion]

There is a Hell, believe me I've seen it. There is a heaven, let's s keep it a secret.

[asoftepiloguemylove]

I DID WELL. I WISH YOU SAW. // ON LONELINESS AND WANTING MORE

Beau Taplin On Fire // Albert Camus The Misunderstanding // @/picturesoflittleletters (instagram) // Andrew Kozma Song of the Insensible // pinterest // The Smiths "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out," The Queen is Dead (1986) // @swollenbabyfat // Phoebe Bridgers "Moon Song," Punisher (2020) // Hélène Cixous "Love of the Wolf," Stigmata: Escaping Texts // "Mizumono," Hannibal (2013-2015) dir. David Slade // Bring Me The Horizon "Don't Go" There is a Hell, Believe Me I've Seen It. There Is a Heaven, Let's Keep It a Secret (2010) // Danez Smith Acknowledgements

[coppercrow]

So I've been thinking about the exchange between Lute and Lilith at the end of episode 8.

Lute: Adam is dead. Your deal is done and I'm in charge now. Your brat is dead and threatening the very foundation of Heaven. And if you want to stay here, you're going down there and stopping that bitch. You understand me, Lilith?

I've seen some people interpret this as Lilith and Lute having a deal to kill Adam, and that this is why Lute is ordering Lilith to go back to Hell. However I don't think that's the case at all.

From the Lute's tone and phrasing it seems to me that Adam had a deal with Lilith that she could stay in Heaven, possibly in exchange for Lilith not rallying the people of Hell against the exorcists? I feel like Adam would have fallen hook line and sinker for a deal like that - what better way to stick it to Lucifer for stealing his wife than to make a deal with her to come to Heaven.

I one hundred percent believe Lute thought this was a stupid deal. However she is clearly incredibly loyal to Adam, so let it slide. Lute was also clearly devastated that Adam died in the battle. However with him dead, Lute saw an opportunity in his death to try and stop further Hellish uprisings.

Any deal with Adam and Lilith would have dissolved with his death, so Lute is clearly trying to leverage the fact that there is no longer a deal keeping Lilith secure in remaining in Heaven in order to have her stop Charlie

The question of course remains WHY Lilith is in Heaven: did she just get sick of Hell and defect, is she playing a long game to see Heaven weakened/destroyed, or some other plan entirely? Lute clearly thinks Lilith wants to stay in Heaven badly enough that she'll be willing to act against Charlie, though whether this is true or not remains to be seen.

Either way I think that Charlie and Lucifer will both be devastated when they find she has been regardless of her true purpose.

I'm also terrified to see Lilith and Charlie interact, because I feel like whatever daddy issues Charlie has, her mommy issues are honestly probably just as bad, and unlike Lucifer I'm pretty sure Lilith won't hesitate to use them against Charlie to manipulate her...

[flonautilus]

Thinking about the way vox positions his brand and his own image -- his company stands for perfection, for innovation, for trustworthiness and progress; how hard he probably works to maintain a respectable image while wangling Val's whims. This is a man who, in a hell that respects pure brute power over anything else, created an empire based in consumer trust and playing on the human instinct to follow the herd, don't fall behind, keep up.

We know that alastor made a name for himself by almost deliberately playing a provocateur, upturning the status quo, framing himself as an unpredictable threat, and it's fairly consistent in behaviour patterns as well -- Alastor relishes in disturbing other people's sense of comfort; he turns to fear and intimidation as his first weapon.

Both of them use reputation as a tool but in completely opposite ways, and even in their personal relationships as well (another interesting point -- Alastor is much more genuine with people he does consider friends, like Mimzy and Rosie, but Vox never seems to fully let down his persona even with Velvette and Valentino? He has that big fake smile on with Velvette in ep2, and with Val he drops the smile but still plays the charming, reasonable, logical business partner -- at least until Valentino gets under his skin by mentioning Alastor. There's technically ep8 but I'm almost certain that's an exceptional case?) And both of them know very well how to play to their audiences

Well there isn't really a conclusion here but I find it really funny that in one season we're sorta already seen both of them break their own image to an extent? Vox obviously showing a total lack of composure on live tv, but also, Alastor's loss to Adam. Like I've seen some people say it's not a big deal because Adam is so strong, but the problem is that Alastor's reputation relied on the mystery of his power ("no one knows where he came from; he just started toppling overlords one day, and not small ones either"), and losing to Adam puts a definite upper limit to his power.

Basically he went from unknowable eldritch monster to like, powerful overlord sinner, but still a sinner.

Thoughts about recent leaks under the cut

You know what else is interesting? Vox's biggest asset is not his personal power (though it's almost certainly not small either) but rather the trust the people of hell invests in his brand. It makes me think that actually the primary conflict of season 2 will not be a physical battle (Adam) but a battle over the narrative. And who's the people of hell going to trust more, the overlord that's been providing them with technology and protection(?) for decades, or the princess of hell who's not here visible in public eye for ages, and heaven, who's been trying to kill them since who knows when? (obviously charlie stopped the exterminations which is a big plus on her record but that wasn't exactly a show of redemptive power was it? The strength to resist and unite yes but also the power of having hell's big daddy on your side)

And okay I'm not super sure still what vox is planning to do with hypnotizing the whole of hell, but I wager rather than any aggressive action (not his style) it'll have to do with convincing people that they really are irredeemable, that hell is the status quo and come on, do you really think those angels believe in redemption? Do you really think you can be redeemed after everything you've done? Pentious was an exception; he wasn't all that bad to begin with, and you don't think the princess' silly hotel can actually help you, do you?

And y'know what putting it this way it's suddenly clear to me why the vees are designed that way (because obviously they were planned to be one of the main villains way ahead of time) -- they represent respectively mass entertainment/social media/porn and drugs, all possible means of addiction and soft control and getting people to basically surrender to their own vices (more than hell already does of course) (gambling is another addictive means and I'm hopeful but sceptical that they'll explore it through husk)

But anyway. The Vees have much to lose if redemption succeeds (technically all the overlords do but eh). It's why I'm sorta hopeful that S2 and maybe S3 will feature a much more in-depth discussion of the topic of redemption? Who can be redeemed, what does redemption involve (beyond literally sacrificing yourself?), are there any limits to redemption?

Though putting it this way makes me think none of the vees aren't going to meet good endings ahshdd or at least they'll have to fall very very far to even get a chance at it bc why tf would you even consider redemption if so much of your power depends on people just giving into hopelessness and dependency? Not that any of them would ever want to be redeemed but...idk. and really that's a huge conflict in the show right? Charlie doesn't fundamentally understand why some people wouldn't want to be redeemed not just bc of addiction or other reasons, but the ones who benefit from the status quo (Alastor, vees, the overlords to some extent or another). And heck like Rosie and cannibal town helped stop the extermination but how much do they actually care for redemption vs getting a chance to eat angel meat? The show makes it pretty clear it's the latter. Charlie struggles to understand even Angel and it's why it's husk who gets through to him, cuz they can understand each other (but it doesn't mean Charlie's efforts are insignificant, they created the space for redemption in the first place)

And that's I think the central conflict of the show? That heaven (at least the side represented by Emilie) and Charlie believes everyone will to some extent want to be redeemed, it's just the lack of opportunities; Adam and lute and sera's side, who disdain and fear that if provided any opportunity, hell will always rise up and overturn heaven (ngl heaven and hell in Hazbin always reminded me of gated communities?); the vees who want hell under their control and in extension to convince that redemption is too far out of reach to bother; and maybe like Lilith too who I sorta suspect doesn't actually care for redemption as much as overturning heaven's authority? (But all we know of her is like a few minutes/seconds so like...)

Final thoughts but I was admittedly disappointed in the presentation of episode 6; for redemption to be worthwhile you need to show why heaven is so good, not just why hell really sucks, and imo the welcome to heaven song isn't really that convincing? It's a clever mirror to like a happy day in hell, but you can't just tell me everyone is happy every day in heaven and call it a day, like what's life actually like in heaven, rlly it just looks like a metropolitan city but in pastels?? Do people in heaven ever have personal conflicts; how are those settled; what does social life look like; happiness isn't just the lack of like addiction, poverty, pain, etc tho that goes a long way.

[mason-gaylord]

Hazbin Hotel Theory

Recently I've been trying to figure out why some characters have two black scleras, and why some only have one.

Hazbin Hotel spoilers below

Examples of one black sclera

Examples of two black sclera

My first theory is that it may have to do with their souls being sold. One black sclera means that their soul IS sold, but there are conditions in the contract in which the person may still have some sort of freedom. Like Angel Dust. His contract dictates that Valentino can do whatever he wants with Angel inside of the studio, meaning outside of it Angel is free to do whatever HE wants. This is why in Episode 6 he's able to talk back to Valentino and not get killed.

This then would mean that two black sclera means that the sold soul is under complete control from the buyer, giving the reason as to Husker's small monologue in Episode 1 about Alastor forcing him to be at the hotel, despite Alastor calling it a "favor" in the pilot.

But there's a problem with this theory. If Husk sold his soul to Alastor, then how come in this flashback in Episode 4 he's got both black sclera?

Maybe it signifies something else. Like exposure to soul contracts.

This leads to my second theory. As we see from Alastor on multiple occasions, he does in fact, have two black sclera when he's using a lot of his power. What if the black sclera comes from the purchase of a soul? Then that explains Husk's scleras as an overlord and why Angel and the little lizard boy at Voxtech only have one. They sold their souls for something. Angel's reason likely being fame, having been in the gutter more than once, as he mentions to Cherry in Episode 6 while being protective of Niffty.

But what about the overlords who own souls and don't have black eyes?

Well, it's very possible that these overlords came into the ownership of the souls by different means than purchasing them. Like a pawn shop. The soul is held as collateral until they are paid back. If they're never paid back then they keep the soul and, by proxy, own that person. Or, they could exchange them like a premium currency for goods and services from other overlords. Then the person who did not buy the soul still owns it. Or, these other overlords, like Alastor, hide their black scleras. Perhaps Husk and the few background characters I've shown above, like the mummy lizard lady, use them as some sort of statement, saying "Yeah, I've owned souls. Try me, I dare ya." but only the ones who've meddled with owning souls before really understand.

But what about the people of Canibal town? Their eyes are completely black!

That brings me to my third and final theory! It is also my favorite one.

Perhaps the blackness of their eyes has absolutely nothing to do with buying or selling souls! But instead has to do with how dirty that soul became from sinning in their lives. I've seen theories and headcanons all over the place saying that Angel Dust was part of a Mafia family. With that in mind, his one black sclera could signify that he did one sinful thing that was absolutely awful. Let's say a singular murder. That means all of the sinful acts he's done in his life came after his death and after he arrived in hell. After that arrival, he probably believed his afterlife was hopeless and that he had no reason to be a good person anymore. Many people believe that Alastor was a serial killer during his lifetime so that could constitute for his sclera. The same goes for Husk if he was addicted to gambling and it led him down a road of much worse things. And as we see with many of the background characters, their eyes are all different, so the idea it depends on their life choices really holds up.

That's why I'd also like to bring up Sir Pentious. During his time in hell, his eyes are red with black slits. Then in Heaven, his eyes have what I believe to be the default for everyone in Heaven or Hell. Muted yellow sclera and red or pink iris and pupil. This means, he has, in fact, cleansed his soul by overcoming his pride by confessing to Cherry Bomb and then sacrificing himself for those he cared about.

also, his teeth are cleaner but we aren't talking about that

But that's all I got! Lemme know if ya'll have any tidbits you wanna add and feel free to reblog this with anything you have on these theories or others on the subject.

[notmorbid]

the angel of indian lake, pt. 2.

dialogue prompts from the angel of indian lake by stephen graham jones.

i feel there may be unresolved tensions between us.

what do the boy scouts say? 'leave it better than you found it'?

i should probably be vegetarian. maybe next week.

ghosts: nature's air conditioner.

don't look behind. only look ahead.

this isn't exactly the outfit i would have picked.

from the bottom of my chainsaw heart, thanks.

thank you for listening to me all the time.

your past doesn't foretell your future.

you've never tried to survive something like this.

you can't control who you're related to.

you can't be jonesing right now if you want to keep living.

that's not the kind of luck i have.

stay where the people are.

you know who doesn't get beheaded? the one who doesn't put their neck under the machete.

what kills people who are already dead?

we must be reading the signs wrong.

sometimes lies are the only thing that can keep you moving forward.

from what i understand about relationships, they're all about cold shoulders.

if i can be in the past, then i don't have to be here.

you're a survivor, through and through.

killing rages don't always distinguish between 'friend' and 'foe'.

'when'. not 'if'.

i'd rather die from the front than the back.

it's not a good day to die.

is the world going mad, or is it just me?

this really is starting again, isn't it?

the only things worth knowing are the things you're not supposed to know.

not all crying involves tears.

make this make sense.

the new me just wants to live.

what i want is for this to be a nightmare i'm in control of.

horror can save your life, if you let it.

i don't want to hear one single thing you say. ever.

i deserve a good ending, i think.

'the hits just keep on coming'. tagline on the movie poster of my life, right there.

i'm not leaving until you make me. maybe not even then.

if you're not a born final girl, i don't even know what one is.

i need my blood on the inside.

you've done this before, haven't you?

i feel like i'm missing something obvious.

there aren't any good fixes. there's just trying to make it through one moment, then the next.

it's not something you can get used to, but it can lose its surprise.

justice is just another stupid dream. all there is is luck.

all stories end where they begin. at least the good ones do.

i shouldn't have left you. i had a choice.

i'll be holding your hand. i'll keep you here.

i would have made it hurt more, if i'd known.

i get wanting to rip enough holes in the world so that it falls down.

know who you look like?

the land doesn't want you here.

i'm not coming to hang out if there's no nicotine. be serious.

once the limelight's done with you, you're relegated to the shadows to try to deal with it however you can. alone.

i still can't even cuss right.

it's you. it's always been you.

heaven doesn't want me and hell's afraid i'll take over.

you want to fight again, don't you?

you're off your meds, aren't you?

isn't this a dream i had once? a long way back?

there's no time to hide in the past. there never is, around here.

being sorry doesn't mean you can hide from it.

so much of my life is screaming.

giving second chances is inviting your abuser in for coffee so you can talk things through.

you didn't have to believe in me. you shouldn't have.

it doesn't matter. it was a long time ago.

no amount of damage done to someone erases what they've done to you.

you hold onto what you can, and you hold tight.

action. not words.

better to let the past stay back where it is.

dad and daughter stories can be good, too. some of them have to be.

i trained you too well. you're using my logic against me.

you're so beautiful.

you can't get rid of me this easy.

can't i just hate you and let that be that?

it's not about the numbers, it's about the names. the people.

blackmail doesn't work on me.

scars prove you lived.

i remember everything, even the stuff i don't want to.

i've seen all the movies. i know all the rules.

[dracofeathers]

Calling Fic Writers! Story Idea? -Angst-

If this is already something someone has made, ya'll need to link me ASAP cause its been rotting in my brain all week (if not longer) and I very highly doubt I'd ever be able to write it properly LOL. Art? Maybe...

Please excuse my scatterbrained explanation. I'll probably be adding to this as my little angst-loving brain thinks of more details.

-----

So, after x amount of time, Aziraphale returns/escapes to the bookshop from Heaven and being Supreme Archangel....just completely defeated, dazed, exhausted and just about broken/verge of breakdown. I've pictured the scene with or without his wings. Crowley and Muriel are there (or at least Crowley) and are understandably surprised/confused.

He just collapses in a sobbing heap muttering and crying "I'm sorry" "Please" "You/we can't do this" "Why" "I don't want to fall" among other unintelligible words, but doesn't seem to quite be with it enough to attempt to explain whats going on. Maybe he'd gain very slight, brief clarity upon seeing Crowley (who has also been a mess), keeps apologizing, begging for forgiveness (from him? Her? Both? Maybe) until finally passing out.

Of course Crowley steps up and tries to take care of him, and figure out whats going on. Because no matter how mad he might get at Aziraphale, how hurt he was by the end of S2, he'll always return and help his angel, because he loves him. Also I'm positive Crowley already knows Aziraphale didn't make that choice easily, that he hurt the angel as well. Bountiful soft, care-taking Crowley here because I live for it.

Eventually when Azi is a bit more stable, (as he would often rotate between quiet desolate/defeated shell shock, and near hysterical crying in fear and grief) Crowley gets bits and pieces of what happened out of him.

The "Supreme Archangel" position was merely a sort of placeholder/fake title, not an actual promotion. Because why would they want to actually give Aziraphale that kind of power to potentially use against them and their plans? He was dangerous enough

The Metatron (and other angels) lied/manipulated Aziraphale the whole time to get him to do what he/heaven wanted. And to of course separate him and Crowley. Possible eventual threats towards Crowley and others to keep Azi "in line". Book of life?

Plans of course include the second coming as it was mentioned, but I'm sure there are others mixed in. More apocalypse starting schemes etc. Never really give the full details and kept the real plans secret. Jesus only mentioned, never seen (very suspicious). Azi tries to investigate but keeps getting interrupted or thwarted. Kept a very close eye on.

Much gaslighting/mental and emotional abuse and manipulation, slowly wearing Aziraphale down in order to break and better control him. No erasing/changing of memories cause its over done to me.

God is still MIA and no one knows whats going on with Her. The Metatron says he speaks with Her, but lets face it he can't be trusted. Definitely scheming on his own with others, maybe Hell as well?

Aziraphale never falls of course, I couldn't do that to our precious angel. He'd be traumatized enough anyway.

Aziraphale tries to be a good angel so bad it hurts, wants to believe in Heaven and "The Great Plan" but is only ever hurt and betrayed for all his efforts up there.

I WILL MAKE THESE TWO WILL HAVE A PROPER TALK I SWEAR

--------

I just really love hurt/comfort, angst and them taking loving tender care of each other. They would have a happy ending of course. This is how I cope until season 3, don't judge me xD

Also, what I was listening to during this ramble: