#yes he was worried about getting stuck in the dream realm i get it i get it

[nanyangjj]

aaaaaaaaaaaa i'm going to scream!!! sqq in the midst of feeling horrible pain: as expected of the protagonist! THE PROTAGONIST LUO BINGHE!!!

[luffyrose]

We're back with another dc x dp, coming to you this time on my phone while hang in off the back of my couch. Is blood rushing to my head? Yes.

Either way, I had a random thought about how personally as a child, I was a little monkey, like if my parents had actually had the thought to put me in gymnastics I would probably be a menace to society. And so my thought was, what if Danny was like that too?

Danny had always been very hyper, like, bounce of the walls, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING ON THE FRIDGE-" kind of hyper. When he started to climb, hang, flip, and just about break something just to have some fun, Jazz finally tried to get their parents to sign him up for gymnastics.

They didn't.

Both had been very happy at the idea, but when it came down to it, they just forgot. And one time without actually paying attention to the two, said gymnastics was for girls, ultimately shattering Danny's budding hobby. Jazz of course didn't just let that dream go, instead finding anything she could to let him learn on his own, at the very least, she made sure he was capable enough to pick it up in his teenage years should he finally get a chance to take classes.

That didn't end up happened either.

He'd died, become Phantom, accidentally become Crown Prince of the Infinite realms, and now had to deal with superheroes realizing that something was up in Amity. More specifically, a credible news reporter finally came to the town and settled the real or not debate in one swift "WTF IS THAT-" upon seeing a giant robot hunter thing(it was Skulker).

Along with all that, his parents, or more specifically his mother, was finally noticing something was wrong. Almost two years after he died, she finally took a second to look at him, and was disturbed. So Danny, being optimistic as he can be, tries to tell them, which goes horribly wrong and ends in a lab explosion and Danny 'stuck' in the Ghost Zone. Really Jazz blew the portal up after reaching her own breaking point and immediately called CPS on her parents since Danny was never gonna come back to them.

Danny all ouchy, there goes my parents because the two destroyed their blood bond by intentionally aiming to harm him instead of the weird loophole they'd been in before. Clockwork being Clockwork yeets him over to Gotham, giving Jazz a note about it.

Over in Gotham, he's actually thrown right from a portal in the aky hurdling down toward one of the city's rogues. Whoever it is, the Batfam are like "wtf-" at the clearly confused child that suspiciously looks like they're one of the Waynes, and so they just take him back. Doesn't help that they're worried since he just got thrown from who knows where and definitely did not take that fall well- also doesn't help that he's clearly bleeding and severely injured.

Danny, after Alfred forces him to rest from injuries, is so hyper. His hyperness had gone into his vigilantism, so now with nothing to deter it, he was going crazy and he felt so stiff.

Cue one of the sibkings walking in to find the kid hanging dangerously off something and just going "hi". Dick has a new favorite(not really he still loves all his siblings the same...maybe Damian and new kid are a smidge higher, but they're younger so it doesn't count).

When he takes the kid to the gym in their house, he is literally running around and getting onto everything. Now Dick has accidentally acquired little acrobatic brother that he's determined to help out with getting better.

Best part, Danny doesn't even realize the others are like "welp he's family now" and is just thinking they're very nice for being rich. He doesn't trust Bruce too much though, sure rich people's mids could be chill(take Sam for example) but parents themselves were iffy.

No one knows how to react to the truth bombs he randomly drops without even realizing it either.

Dick, watching Danny haning upside down from a bar for the last like 10 minutes: whatcha doin buddy?

Danny: thinking about my parents.

Damian, who's also been watching the whole tome but would never admit it: Your parents?

Danny, yeeting himself off the bar with no sense of self preservation: yeah, they told me they'd sign me up for gymnastics. Never did. Claimed it was only for girls. Although I think that was the same day our oven came alive on accident and almost set me on fire so...they were pretty distracted.

Dick, staring in actual horror for many reasons: What?!

Damian, also horrified but not showing it as much: Your oven came alive...?

Danny, who still isn't paying attention and already having forgotten what he said: how do you do that thing you showed me earlier?

[dragon-kazansky]

Veil of the dreamless

Morpheus x Reader

A cursed Morpheus holds your father prisoner when he enters The Dreaming without permission. You, also able to enter the realm, take his place. Now a prionser to the Dream Lord, you do all you can to learn about the curse and hopefully break it.

{Masterlist}

{Previous Chapter} - {Next Chapter}

Chapter Six - A chance to bond

☆☆☆

You paced back and forth in your room. Matthew stood on the back of a chair looking at you. You were worried sick.

On one hand, he was pleased to see you care so much for his master. On the other hand, he was worried sick too.

Morpheus had received more than a few slashes. Lucienne had been up all night with him trying to treat his wounds, but judging by the sound of things, it wasn't going well.

Your door opens and Lucienne enters.

"How is he?" You ask, approaching her.

"He is being a pain. He won't let me do much to help him. I managed to tend to soke of his wounds, but he's still being a child when it come to others."

You frown. "Can I do anything?"

"Perhaps you can," she smiles.

You head toward his room and peek inside. Morpheus in his bed. He looks like a big lump of feathers. You enter slowly and close the door behind you. He hears the click of the door.

"Go away, Lucienne."

"It's not Lucienne..."

His head peeks up into view, and you see his piercing blue eyes.

"What are you doing here?"

"I've come to help." You get closer to the bed.

"I don't need help."

"So you're injuries are okay?" You ask.

"Yes." He moves and then hisses, indicating he's still hurt. "No..."

"Let me see."

"No." He uses his wings to hide.

"Morpheus..."

He doesn't budge. You sigh. You look up at the rose of rubies. "What is it?"

Morpheus doesn't need to look to know what you're talking about. He sighs and lowers his wings. "A clock."

"A clock?" You turn back to him.

"When the last petal crumbles, I will be stuck like this forever. It's a sick game my sibling it playing."

You use this conversation as a distraction to tend to his wounds. "Tell me."

"Desire was never particularly fond of me. Always scheming and playing games. They once had me captured for a century, and one time tried to make me kill my own kin."

"That's awful!"

He doesn't seem to notice you wrapping a wound on his upper arm.

"This was their grand plan for me. Curse me to look like a monster for eternity."

"Isn't there a way to stop it? To break the spell?" You ask softly.

"Yes, but no one is going to- Hey!" He hisses as you try to put ointment kn a wound on his hand. It stings his skin. "That hurts!"

"Oh, don't be a baby!"

"I didn't ask for your help." He grumbles.

"Well, you have it. So toughen up." You wrap his hand. "There. You should heal up in no time."

He doesn't say anything. He just sits there, brooding. You look at him and sigh softly.

"Thank you for saving me."

"You wouldn't have needed saving if you hadn't run away."

"I wouldn't have run away if you hadn't frightened me."

"I wouldn't have frightened you if you had just stayed out like you were told." He glares at you.

You cross your arms and scoff. "Look, I'm stuck in this palace as much as you are. You can at least be honest with me about things."

"I'm sorry for frightening you..."

You look at him softly. "You're forgiven. I'm sorry for snooping."

He looks back at you. "You're forgiven."

You smile.

"I have a gift for you..." He tells you.

"A gift?"

He nods and starts climbing out of bed. You go to stop him, but he stops you with a smile. "Come with me."

You stay close to him, making sure he's okay while he walks. You're worried about his wounds, but he doesn't seem bothered.

He leads you down the stairs and down another grand hall. This one you hadn't been down before. You hadn't even noticed it before. You follow Morpheus quietly.

You come to two grand doors. Morpheus looks at you with a smile. "Ready?"

"Ready."

Morpheus pushes the doors open, and you look inside. You gasp softly at the sight. You knew there was a library here, but you had no idea just how huge it was. Lucienne stands from her desk and smiles at you both.

"Wow!"

Morpheus towers behind you as you look around. You smile as you take it all in.

"This is amazing!"

Morpheus smiles. "I have all books in here. Even those not yet written."

You look at him. "Not yet written?"

He nods. "I am gifting you the library. Lucienne will still manage it, but the library is yours as far as I'm concerned."

You turn to Lucienne. She senses you want to ask her if that's really okay, she stops you with a raised hand. "It's more than alright. Feel free to use the library as see fit."

You smile. "Thank you, Lucienne." You turn back to Morpheus. "Thank you."

He looks a little sheepish. "You don't have to thank me."

"Thank you anyway."

Lucienne watches the two with a smile. It's working. They're starting to like each other. Maybe you really were the one who would break the spell. Lucienne wishes with all her heart that it would be true.

The way her lord looks at you. She is so sure he was falling in love with you. Perhaps he just needed another push.

Lucienne had an idea.

☆☆☆

@littleblackcatinwonderland - @kpopgirlbtssvt - @missdreamofendless - @intothesoul -

[nekole-doodles]

I was supposed to do this yesterday but I had homework so here is your Owl House DSMP AU dump :] (There are 2 versions btw)

"MAIN" Owl House DSMP AU: The Crow House(still coming up with a better name):

The island/demon realm this takes place in is called Essempii because Dream SMP sounds a bit on the nose considering Dream's role in this.

Tommy - Luz:

Tommy stumbles into the Essempii when Brian(Phil's crow/palisman) snatches the jar Shroud(Tommy's pet tarantula) was being kept in while he was on a walk holding Shroud's travel jar(don't worry, Tommy has a properly sized habitat for Shroud, the jar is only when Tommy wants to take Shroud out of the house. And yes I had to research proper tarantula care.)

Also, Shroud is a completely black curly-haired tarantula because it looked the closest to a Minecraft spider and was also a common species of tarantula to keep.

Tommy got in trouble a lot in school(in the human realm) for various reasons like letting raccoons into the school because he felt bad for them living on the streets, sneaking Shroud into the school and putting him in someone's hair(usually someone he found annoying), causing small fires in the science lab, and getting into fights with pricks, y'know, the usual.

When Tommy discovered the Essempii, it was on a Friday and close to summer break. He stays there for the weekend or a single day and leaves afterward. He makes a promise to come back when he's off for the summer.

Potions was the first type of magic Tommy learned to actually use and also got interested in Beast-keeping

Tommy learned about glyphs from Tubbo when they first met which I'll probably have a separate post for since I have a scene planned for it already. Basically, Tubbo knows about glyphs from experimenting but only knows the basic ones since he has the magic to not need them except for experiments. When they first met, Tubbo was using glyphs for an experiment that involved making basically a grenade. Tubbo taught Tommy the glyphs he knows and later, Tommy was able to figure out how to combine them.

Tommy's palisman will definitely be a raccoon in this AU version :))))) (In the 2nd AU version, he has a phoenix palisman)

Greek mythology isn't known in the Essempii, but Tommy read about Greek Mythology when he got bored back in the human realm.

Phil - Eda:

ANARCHYYYYYY (He's an anarchist)

He wasn't cursed by someone close to him(mostly because idk who it would be that doesn't already have a separate role). He was cursed by Admin Dream(who takes the role of Emperor Belos) for using wild magic and was going to be put into Pandora's Vault along with being cursed, chained up like a wild animal. This is the typical punishment for people who are caught using wild magic. However, Phil was able to escape and keep the curse under control. I have the perfect video to show what Phil looks like when the curse takes over but I don't have the energy to find it.

Also, I'm highly considering if Chat should be Hooty. We're definitely silly enough for it :/

His hardcore heart pendant thing is how he guages his magic

The curse didn't give him his wings. What the curse actually does is amplify hybrid genes.

Phil used to carve palismen for people in the Essempii but as the wood for palismen became more scarce, he couldn't do that anymore.

Tubbo - Gus/Willow

Tubbo mainly uses plant magic like Willow, but has Gus's general energy.

Although he mostly uses plant magic at school, he loves to use fire or explosive magic which- y'know, doesn't work out well considering plants are flammable and- yeah :/ He causes wayyyy too many fires. However, when he combines this magic, it's really useful in combat.

Tubbo likes experimenting with mixing magic and gets in trouble for it a lot but somehow finds a way to get out of trouble. After a very risky incident that nearly ended with serious consequences, he stuck to doing magic-mixing experiments in a secret lab setup in the forest(which is where he first met Tommy)

Has a bee palisman but I'm still figuring out a name

Tubbo has a garden and likes to put any weeds he pulls out into their own separate planters since he thinks they deserve to live as much as the other plants do because they're also just trying to survive(I got this idea from Tommy in Unlikely Events)

Tubbo and Tommy's shared love for animals and chaos caused them to get along well

When Tubbo isn't at school, he basically looks like a young version of QSMP! Tubbo's design

After students are able to join multiple tracks, Tubbo joins the beast-keeping and potion tracks along with staying in his current track

Ranboo - Gus/Willow

I have so much extra lore for Ranboo TvT

Even though they're in the Oracle track, they use other types of magic, mainly illusion and healing. Obviously, they are careful about when they use it and isn't as careless about it as Tubbo since they're trying to stay under the radar

They're secretly an enderian, a hybrid race that was slaughtered after Admin Dream took the throne because their enderpearls(which allowed them to teleport freely) were considered wild magic. Another big reason they were killed was because they have a natural talent for magic which Dream feared because they had the power to take him down if they worked together. Enderians were also one of the first people to discover magic so wild magic is ingrained in their culture.

To hide the fact they're an enderian, they use a concealment stone to hide their hybrid traits. Without the concealment stone, they basically look exactly like C! Ranboo but with different clothes. With the concealment stone, they look human(but with pointy ears of course) with heteochromic eyes(warm brown and muddled green), split black and white hair, and vitiligo.

Some enderians survived and had secret camps around the Essempii. The one Ranboo was born in was discovered and raided by Dream's army. Ranboo survived the attack because their parents hid them and gave him the concealment stone and a necklace that is a family heirloom. The pendant of the necklace looks like an eye of ender but smaller.

The concealment stone is kinda weak because to hide it, Ranboo broke it into smaller pieces so it could fit inside the eye of ender pendant. Ranboo uses their magic to help the illusion be more stable.

Sometimes, their magic isn't able to fully support the illusion so their mouth, hands, and eyes revert back and speckles of his black and white skin appear like freckles. To hide this, he wears a mask, sunglasses, and gloves.

They also know healing magic because they learned it back before the Enderian camp was invaded. They thought it would be useful and it comes in handy since Tubbo and Tommy always get hurt because they are chaotic and have a knack for getting in trouble.

Once they're able to take multiple tracks, they take the illusion and healing track. They want to learn how to control their illusions better to stay more concealed and they want to be able to heal Tommy and Tubbo when they get bigger, more dangerous wounds.

Okay that's it for now, I didn't realize how long this would take. I didn't even get to start talking about my 2nd Owl House DSMP AU(which is the one I like better despite it being newer and less planned). I'll continue with this AU in the next post then finally get to my 2nd AU.

[hayanwulf]

Ask for the WIP game from @infiniteeight8

I am very curious about AAA soulmates and Anchor of Stability!

aaa soulmates

So this one's frostironstrange. And it is a soulmate AU, however, Loki is not soulmates with either of Stephen or Tony. At least initially.

People are born with the most important title of their soulmate written somewhere on their body. Stephen has the title 'Soul Maker', while Tony has the title 'Keeper of Time'. After a peculiar accident, though, they both acquire this strange title written in a gibberish language neither of them understands... And they start sharing their dreams. Yeah. Can't forget that part.

A snippet under the cut, from Loki's POV.

When his eyes fluttered open next time, his body was no longer burning, his head no longer aching. He was back inside his brief reprieve; the small, sweet segment of this universe that he could call his, could call home. Their dream realm. He lay sprawled on the bed, eyes staring up at the ceiling’s design, and concluded it was Stephen’s abode. He could hear two familiar, muffled voices from the adjacent room, and exhaled a sigh of relief, for he would be able to see them both tonight. Lately he had been able to see them less and less with how much the Maw strove to keep him awake for their sessions. A few seconds later, he heard footsteps approaching the room followed by the door flying open. He felt more than saw his two beloveds settle themselves on either side of him. Anthony inhaled a sharp breath. Ah, yes.. his dream body must be reflecting his corporeal wounds. He should’ve changed them to appear normal before deciding to rest. “The needles this time,” Stephen said. Loki jerked when a gentle touch grazed the side of his throat, and Stephen retracted his hand as if burned. Loki wanted to kick himself for jumping even at a contact of comfort, on a body that didn’t hurt, no less. “That.. sorry. Christ, it went straight through the mucous membranes of the larynx. Can you even speak?” For the first time, Loki glanced at their faces. What he found there was twin looks of horror and dismay. He sat upright, pressing his back against the headboard, and took account of his injuries. He truly did look like shit. “Worry not, they do not hurt me here,” Loki said and fixed away his injuries and robes with a single thought. It was never much of an effort for him to change things inside their dream realm, unlike his mortals who often needed to be lucid in order to influence their dreamscape. “Tell me about your respective days,” he shifted the topic. They would easily take the bait if not lucid. “Stephen, you had to repair a woman’s spine, yes?” “..That was two weeks ago, Lokes,” it was Anthony who answered. “Ah.. apologies, I must have lost track of time. Then, what other exciting endeavors have you two been up to lately?” Loki asked, wearing a perfect smile on his face. Anthony and Stephen shared a concerned look. Ah. Both lucid, then.

Anchor of Stability

This one's, I suppose, kind of a Time Travel? Also it takes inspiration from Shortsnout's Tether.

Basically it's kind of reverse of what happens in Tether. Tony gets stranded in the past while quantum time traveling, and his quantum GPS breaks. Luckily for him, a certain wizard had installed a failsafe in the event that such a thing happened.

The catch is that Tony can't make big jumps in time, so he's stuck watching Stephen in different points of his life (who is the 'anchor' of the failsafe spell) and also inadvertently influences Stephen's life so much that it would go on to branch out into a different timeline than the timeline Tony came from.

When Tony does finally return home, he feels terrible for having been an asshole towards his timeline's Stephen, since he's clearly learned from his trip that Stephen is nothing like what he had assumed. Oh, and he might also be in love. Just a little.

Have a snippet of Tony interacting with a 6 year old Stephen (and his two farm dogs {the collie is border collie, and shepherd is german shepherd).

“Are you an alien? Do you keep talking to your associates?” Tony decided that he needed to take care of this problem first. In a quick and smooth motion, his quantum suit retracted back to its housing unit. The kid yelped in surprise, staggering backwards as the Shepherd dog tried to help him balance, while Collie jumped with an equal magnitude of surprise, the next moment its ears erect and tail wagging in intimidation. “Please don’t bite me.” Tony pulled himself off the ground, the pain at his side nothing more than a discomfort now. “You’re human!” The boy squeaked; he really did sound like a chipmunk. “You’re a witch! You did magic!” Tony took the moment to just properly take in the boy. He couldn’t be older than 5 or 6, had sleek black hair, and gray-blue eyes that should have looked bland but instead stood out. The eyes. They gave Tony an odd sense of deja vu... “It’s science, Chipmunk. And I’m a mechanic, not a witch. I’m offended that you thought my armor is magic.” Tony wrinkled his nose. Shoving his hands into pockets, he took a step towards the Chipmunk. And stopped when the Collie gave him a low warning growl. “You wanna send your bodyguards away for a moment?” Tony wiggled a hand at their direction. The Collie attentively traced his movements, whereas the Shepherd wagged its tail with relaxed ears. The duality of dogs. Or perhaps they were trained that way. Who knew. “So you can put a curse on me? No! I will go back with them and tell dad! He will bring the witchfinders and then they will—” “Whoa, okay, slow down Chipmunk,” Tony held his hands up in a placating gesture. “I’m not a witch, and definitely not capable of putting curses even if I wanted to. Let’s not be rash and go around telling dads about me.” “My name is not Chipmunk!” He squeaked out exactly in the voice of a chipmunk. “It’s Stephen! And you’re a witch, you just did magic! You even have a glowy thing in your chest!” Tony looked down at his arc reactor, then back up at the boy. “Alright, Stephen, do you wanna see something cool?”

[gachawolfiebloom]

Your Pursuit of Perfection

Story and Artwork By: @GachaWolfieBloom

Chapter 11: It's time to take your final bow

Summary: A few months after the events of WOTFI 2023, SMG4 starts having really bad dreams about the "Its gotta be perfect" incident. One night however, his fear allows the nightmares to break through and he gets taken to a horrific dimension. He finally meets the tv adware, who manipulates him into returning to his insane ways, intent on claiming much more than the perfect video. Now it's up to his friends to stop this madness and save SMG4. Can they do it in time or will they lose SMG4 forever? (In case you are unaware this is a sequel to the its gotta be perfect movie)

Tags: angst, its gotta be perfect, love confession, luigi, mario, meggy, melony, nightmares, scary, smg3, smg4, smg34, smg3 x smg4, tari, tv adware

"We can't just leave them there like that!"

Smg1 and Smg2 had arrived back at the Showgrounds, escaping the TV that played them like puppets. "Don't worry, we'll save them, but we have to protect the others first." The tanks were fired rapidly as Swag just kept screaming "KEEP LOADING UP THE TANKS! I WILL SHOOT DOWN THESE THINGS IF IT'S THE LAST THING I DO!" It turns out that the awful creatures that had trapped the crew came back to take over the Showgrounds and across the Mushroom Kingdom.

Chris was trying to evacuate everyone when he noticed two figures. "One and Two!? But where are the others?" They both sighed sadly and responded with such a sorrowful tone that it was surely a moment of grief. "They've been...captured..." Karen was sheltering her kids and the pets when they heard the unfortunate news. Beeg and Eggdog ran up to the meme guardians, wondering if their parents were okay. "We're so sorry you two...Smg3 is gone and Smg4 is controlled by the TV Adware."

The pets hung their heads as the guardians picked them up. This was a very sad moment, but it couldn't last forever. One snapped out of his thoughts of misery and got back to the matter at hand. "There's no time to dwell on that now. Smg4 and the TV Adware will be here soon to take over our home!"

"Don't worry, we'll be ready." Chris and Swag got the military to build defenses all around and the others were done fleeing for their lives. Shroom loaded up a gun while the teletubies took out weapons such a spears and maces. The end is near...

~Back in the nightmare realm~

"LET US OUT YOU PIECE OF CRAP!"

"Bob...that's not going to work." Saiko just sat on the floor, head in her hands as she watched Bob rattling the chains and shouting out weak commands. "WELL WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO!?" She rolled her eyes and said "Apparently overreacting like a five year old because someone here is too irresponsible."

"WHAT!? YOU'RE ONE TO TALK! YOU SWING THAT SUCKY HAMMER LIKE YOU'RE INSANE!!!"

Saiko got up and pointed a stern finger at bob in a fit or rage. "WELL MAYBE I'M JUST TRYING TO PROTECT MY FRIENDS! YOU'D THINK OF THAT!" Meggy watched as the two bickered on, desperately trying to think of a plan. "Guys! Enough!!!" Boopkins hid behind Tari while she comforted that poor little traumatized creature. "Wait!" Melony broke up the argument and urged them all to be quiet.

"Do you all hear that?" She got closer to the bars and stuck her ear out. The others did the same as a faint screaming could be heard from above them. "Oooo is it the tv guy?" Meggy pondered what unearth it could be until she recognized the voice. "No Mario...it sounds like...THREE! HE'S HERE!" They all cheered as they were relieved that he was safe and would hopefully rescue them. "We have to find someway to let Three know we're down here!"

Mr Puzzles watched amusingly as Three kicked and screamed until he noticed a purple book, slipping out of his pocket. He picked it up and flipped through the pages. "Oi! That's mine and your not allowed to look in it! Read the cover idiot!" This book seemed familiar to him as one picture in particular caught his eyes. "Ah yes. The notebook that I had sent Marty to retrieve a couple months ago."

"You did that? I'll kill you! Because of you, Four has had awful nightmares!" Mr Puzzles flipped the notebook around to reveal that wholesome sketch that Three did of him and Four, holding coffee cups. "Well you see, that's the problem. Apparently there is still a small bit of Smg4 left in my partner of nightmares." Three couldn't believe it. There was still time to save Four.

"What!? You have to set him free! YOU'RE A MONSTER!" Mr Puzzles just sneered as he shot back "Not a chance! You will watch as your beloved friend destroys your home along with all the love you have for him. Then his transformation will be permanent!" He tore the notebook, right in front of Three's eyes and tossed it onto the ground.

"NOOOOO!!!" Three watched in utter despair as the drawing and everything else that he had ever written was gone. Reduced to nothing. That corrupted Four came up to his master with a dastardly smile, twirling the key around his fingers. "I like the sound of that." The tears couldn't stop flooding from Three's eyes as the thought of losing Four forever made his heart ache.

"Now it is time for the era of nightmare rule!" Mr Puzzles cackled as he left to make his way to that soon to be powerful kingdom he had promised. Four followed behind unit he noticed a scarp of paper besides the crying man. He picked it up and studied it. Three noticed the interest and wiped the tears from his eyes. "Four? Do you remember that day when we got my notebook back!?" Four gasped as the memories came flooding back to when they sat together, drinking coffee and enjoying each other's company.

"What are you writing?"

"I'll never tell!"

That lovable idiot was fighting his way through, but the nightmares wouldn't allow it. He shut his eyes and threw the piece of paper on the ground. "NO!" Three watched in horror as he stomped his foot down on the paper and said "I will take over your home and watch as you lose all sense of hope!" He trudges off as Three sighs. "I thought you might say that..."

He takes out a gun and says "That's why I came prepared." He shot the tentacles, making them let go in thriving pain as he rushed back into the castle. Now that those two were gone, Three could make his way feely to find his friends. "The dungeon can't be this hard to find." Suddenly some barely audible screaming was heard. "That has to be them." He went down a staircase as the voices got louder. "Yes!" He sprinted down until he rushed up to a cage and...THERE THEY WERE!

"Three! You're okay!" Three nodded as he said "Don't worry. I'll get you out."

"But how? You don't have the-" Three pulled out a shiny object that looked like a "Key?" The others gasped as Mario cheered "SMG3 IS THE BEST!" Meggy stared blankly at him as he opened the cell. "But how did you-"

"I have my ways. Now come on! We have to stop that TV creep and Smg4 before they take over all of the Mushroom Kingdom!" They all bolted off as Three noticed something that Tari was carrying. "What the hell is that?" Tai giggled and said "Don't worry! He's my friend!" Three din't bother to ask as they made it out of the castle and saw a wide opening. "That must be where they got out!"

"HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO GET UP THERE!?" Three stared at his hands and remembered something. He spun around to the others and said "Mr Puzzles said that there was still a part of Smg4 left in his corrupted version. If he's still in there, we can still use our connection to teleport to him!"

"Mr Puzzles? You mean the TV Adware?" Meggy gerked her head a bit. "Doesn't matter." Three takes a breath and concentrates hard. "Come on Four...help us out here."

The Final Showdown is about to begin...

Chapter 12: The Final Showdown

[oatmeal-stans-the-trash-rat]

An Excerpt of Insecure Icarus

I haven't finished my fic for Day 7: Am I Worthy? Are You Proud? quite yet, so here's a lil excerpt from it! Will post the full fic once it's finished, correctly tagged and such. If ya want to be added or taken off the taglist, pls ask!

@loginceweek2024

General Warning: insecurity, feeling unworthy, vague religious themes, slightest bit of sexual implications, touch-starvation, violent metaphors/imagery (I guess?), dissociation mention

[Masterlist]

And now, the excerpt below the cut!

In myths, Icarus flew too close to the Sun and fell, believing his wax wings could carry him to the highest heights he longed for. But Icarus was a fool, a child. He fell because of his own ignorance to how wax melts in sunlight. 

Roman, somewhat selfishly, would call himself Icarus. And if asked why, he’d say that Logan is his Sun. 

He’d taken the role of Prince at a young age, when everyone was still forming their concrete roles and figuring out the basics of what they represented. Remus took Duke, to be different and his own, but also to still have some sort of similarity with his twin as a royal Creativity. So, yes, Roman has been regarded as a monarch for a long time. He grew into his other roles as knight and shield and bard rather quickly. One could say he’s quite the ambitious Side. He’s Passion and Creativity, of course he’s ambitious! He’s a big part of what goes into Thomas’ chosen career as a creator. He’s the one who daydreams and creates castles and dragon-witches and fairytale adventures. He was a big part of Thomas’ child-like imagination growing up. Remus has always been on the more mature side of things, regarding imagination and nightmares and ‘spicy dreams’- his brother’s words, not his- so Roman got more control over the Daydreaming Realm. He can do anything there. He can be good and worthy and praised and loved in that realm. 

So, when Thomas was younger and learning avidly about Greek myths and their lessons, there was one in particular that stuck to Roman. The tale of Icarus, the wax-winged boy who let his ambitions go too far and perished because of it. It stuck to the Prince initially because of this wings mechanic, and he and Thomas would daydream of gaining feathers and a means to soar up above all their worries. It may have been a little influenced by wanting to be out when Thomas wasn’t in a safe place to, or maybe a tad of Janus’ job as Self-Preservation and how maybe they all just wanted to be themselves without judgement and societal pressures. Now, however, Icarus is more than wings and fantasy, and now he’s a representation of who Roman’s become. A fool, overzealous and ambitious, impulsive, ignorant to every warning given to him by the wiser. He reaches for the stars when he can’t even reach hilltops. He is unworthy of things he wants… of people he wants, for him or for Thomas. He’s… well, maybe he’s always been a foolish Icarus, and the wings caught his eyes because of how impulsively free he yearns to be. 

And his Sun? Well… he supposes it depends. It’s the things he wants, and he wants too much. The things that he craves, the things he needs, and those are a lot because he is the Ego and the Ego is too much and shouldn’t want or need. Isn’t that right? That’s what he’s learned, at least. He’s never been the smartest, but he can’t be wrong about that! It’s fine. So what if he gets icy cold in a way that no fire nor blankets can fix? It’s fine. 

Then, there’s a someone who’s his Sun. He’s not sure when- maybe he’s always been the Sun to Roman’s foolish wax-wings- but he caught Roman’s eyes and the Prince can’t let go. The brilliant detective of their troupe, the wonder-brain of the famILY. Logan’s intelligence, the way he speaks so eloquently, that sheepish smile that lights the darkness like a pretty crescent moon, it’s everything about him. It’s all of him. 

Logan is Roman’s Sun, and he selfishly calls himself Icarus. 

So, because Roman should know better by now than to f*ck up and repeat obvious mistakes, he distances himself from the Sun. Roman, the princely Icarus, wouldn’t dare to burn and melt his wings because of reaching too close to such a wonder. His foolishness would taint his light; it already has because of how he’s hurt him. No, he tears out his wings before he can hurt the Sun anymore. He knows better. Wings are wax and freedom melts away as soon as you attain it. He will not let his ignorance harm the Sun. Icarus threw his wings away, too afraid of what would happen if he did reach the Sun. He cannot bear rejection from the Sun. He’d break if his Sun let him fall into the seas below, left to die and wither away in the waters. He can’t- he can’t. 

So, Icarus keeps his distance from the Sun, no matter how much it hurts and makes the unbearable cold in his chest colder.

===MORE=COMING=SOON===

Taglist: @lost-in-thought-20 @thegoldenduckie

[lightvsdark18]

Obey Me Nightbrigher 21-30

Followed Olga Gacha Phoenix's playthrough.

"I guess I'll try using my magic." Gets uncomfortable at Asmo's comment.

Looks unimpressed at Satan's question, then ducks for cover.

"Or the lid was just really stuck on."

Tenses up at the "live here with us."

"Good morning, what brings you two here?"

"I'm looking for Mr. Satan."

"Can you two not fight?"

Casts a water spell.

"What do you mean?" Was going to question him, but Satan spoke first.

Writes down, "Mr. Satan summoned a hellfire salamander and almost burn down the school if Solomon didn't show up and stop the tragedy."

"Mr. Asmodeus, please keep doing your work."

Luna writes down a note and walks towards the stairs just to slip on a rag and hurt herself. "There's no need-" Asmo convinces them to get on Beel's back.

"I twisted my ankle and he was carrying me inside."

"Orange jar, green lid, purple label."

"Thank you, Mr. Simeon."

Luna keeps that shit, (I'm not handing over good luck) but Mammon steals it.

She's confused on why he's acting like this. "That's my coin, please give it back, Mr. Mammon."

"Hey, what is with you today? Don't be so rude to your brother."

"If you're alright with me stabbing your hand."

Unimpressedly stares at him.

"How much time do we have?"

"Solomon, I don't know if I can make a pact with each brother in two months."

"Of course you can, you made a pact with Mammon in two days and the rest in two months."

"But I had Levi help me with Mammon, Mammon helped me with Levi's. Everyone else was from pure luck, luck I don't have anymore. Also, I had to wait a year to get Lucifer's pact, this seems impossible."

"Don't down play your accomplishments. I understand this will be difficult, but you have done the impossible before. I know you can achieve this task."

"Yes, I am. Where's Mr. Mammon?"

Still bitter about losing her coin. "Yes, you should go eat before we leave."

"It seems like it."

Greed? He was being greedy yesterday.

Knowledge is power.

"Father of demons?"

"I need to know more about this."

"Yes, I'm okay. Thank you. Are you okay?"

Stands in front of Levi.

Huffs. "Stay!"

Fuck.

"He's the Avatar of Greed, that's what happening. One of you, go get Mr. Lucifer. Maybe he can help." "I think we all should go get Lucifer! Let's run!"

(The conversation is a bit different from Luna saying he's the avatar of greed in the library.) Luna gets worried at the possibility of them all acting crazy like Mammon.

"Maybe."

(Lore!)

"Can you at least give it a try?"

Complains in her head.

Flicks his forehead. "I'm built different than normal humans, thank you very much."

Snatches Little D up. "I think you're being a bit overdramatic, it was no big deal."

"Or tried to."

"Um, hello."

"We're normally don't interact with other angels. We were trying to get some fresh air."

"No, I'm just spacing out."

Covers his mouth when "devil" is said.

"Why do you want to be under his wing so bad?" Are you allow to say badass in the Celestial Realm?

She chuckled at Little D's "I KNEW IT."

"Why don't you want to teach him? Beside him being signed to Michael."

"I'm Luna, and this is Little D."

You don't know the half of it.

Simeon, did you actually know this and still allowed your wings to be taken? This has to be true because I'm in the past, and in a dreamlike world. But...

Suspicious.

"Good job."

Pats him on the back.

"You will have time to learn to be kind." You have no idea.

"Good afternoon, how do you feel?"

"Not really, just surprised me."

"Actually, I travelled into your dream."

Looks away. "Only if you're mine as well."

Pats his head to tease him.

She looks to the side, her heart picking up at the chance being right in front of her. "Could we..." She looks towards him. "Make a pact?"

"I didn't really do anything."

Not listening to Lucifer's lesson, too busy doodling.

"Yes, I think it's your brothers who aren't."

Gets concerned immediately. Asmo was able to charm Lucifer? But it never worked before. Wait, I'm in the past, maybe Lucifer had to learn to resist his brother's charm. Which means this will be an issue.

"Or we're eating together as friends."

"Hey, I don't think you should use your powers on your brothers." "It's fine, Luna, just enjoy how fun this is."

Luna is running to tell Lucifer about this, and bumps into him. That was fast.

"I want to know how I ended up here with you guys."

"Who's the fast runner?"

Already pulling out her phone to text Lucifer.

Hides behind Lucifer.

Shit. "Okay." Books it out of the underground.

(I want to say his head, but I'll say his lap)

Grips his face. "Solomon, you remember what to Mammon happened with his greed? Well, the same thing is happening to Asmo. They need your help."

"Should we find Asmo?"

"I'm uncomfortable now."

Smacks him on the back of the head.

"Oh Asmo, deary ❤️" "... Really?" "I couldn't help it."

"Be careful."

"Mr. Barbatos, do we need to search for Mr. Asmodeus's Little D?"

"How so?"

"I have to wake Mr. Asmodeus."

"Are you sure the Little D would be here?"

"Why are you angry at Solomon, Mr. Barbatos?"

"Solomon, how could you..." "Luna, actually help me here."

"This is so fucked up."

"Um, no, I'm uncomfortable by this."

"Everyone has their darkness."

Solomon does the talking.

"Where's Mr. Asmodeus?"

Frowns at him. "Why do you want to beloved so much?"

"And if I say no?"

"Do you really need to be number one? Does everyone have to adore you when your family loves you?"

"But if you're not number one, the fact you're still loved and cared for by people who matter to you is what you should focus on."

What the fuck?

"Do you want to be saved?"

She looks down at Asmo, gathering all of her love for her brother in the original timeline and kiss his forehead.

"What happened?"

Crushes her in a bear hug as she feels her rips snapping.

She looks over at Solomon as he smiles and nods at her. "Could I tell you in a more private location?" "Ooh, a private location? Luna, I didn't know you were so-" "Don't get it twisted." Drags him off to his room.

"My talents?"

"I don't have a death wish." (But Lucy meowing is funny)

Luna shows off just a little bit, turning a pen into a rubber duck with sunglasses.

She got a normal ice cream flavor as possible.

(New background!)

He's an angry little guy, figured.

Crouches down and tickles his foot.

"Solomon! What did you do?!"

Flicks his forehead.

"You two are talking?"

"Why do I have to do all of the work while you just get to blow up a kitchen?"

Looks away out of Arachnophobia.

"What do you need?"

"Hello."

"Yeah, but don't rush it. Mr. Lucifer may have studied alone, but you can do better by taking your time."

"Even for a human?" Just trying to tease him.

Pokes his cheek.

"Guess it's time for me to enter his mind."

"I think we should focus on finding a way to wake him."

"Games?"

"I don't trust that treasure chest."

"Mr. Mammon, behave yourself. We need to continue on our mission."

"Excuse me, where can we find a weapon shop?"

"Where can we find the Dark Master?"

"Do you sell maps?"

Pinches the bridge of her nose.

"Can you stop looking for treasure? We're in Mr. Satan's mind, any treasure we find will be useless."

"Obviously."

"We're here to bring you home."

"I'll try."

"It's nothing."

"I didn't do anything, it was the brothers who saved the day."

"Good morning."

"It was your brothers who helped you, not me."

"There is, but I really haven't done anything to help you." "Um, a pact with you."

Hooks her finger with his.

Luna is visibly uncomfortable.

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm concerned."

"Beside personal paperwork, not really."

"I wonder why only us."

"You could say that."

"I hope we don't have a war."

"Who's paying though?"

"Something not too fancy, but has good food."

Follows behind "Barbatos." I have a feeling we're in Beel's mind.

"Number 6?"

Picks up the Little D and lift it in the air, then yeets it across the room.

"Or I can kick you like a soccer ball." Cracks knuckles.

"I would like to see you try."

Maybe he is, Number 6 can't eat me if he's dead.

"I don't know."

"I trust you, beside it will taste better than Solomon's cooking."

"Looks pretty simple."

"What happened?"

"What are we going to do?"

"How is yelling stay going to wake them?" "I guess I'll give it a try. Stay!"

Covers her eyes.

"Beel going to eat Number 6 before I shielded my eyes."

"And that someone will be me soon." She's in on the joke.

Going home.

"Because I don't have anything to do after this."

I have a bad feeling.

Looking over at Mammon while holding back her laugher.

"It's Mr. Beelzebub's choice on what he wants to do. Why do I have to go through you just to ask him what he wants to do?"

So, I have to risk losing my chance going home because Belphie wants to be a bastard. Great.

"What is the Angel's Trial?"

"You're making it seem like I'm some kind of a liar."

"I guess."

"You're going to abandon His Highness in this difficult time?"

Glares at Solomon. "You know what my answer is."

"Sure."

"But eggs aren't suppose to grow bigger."

Places hands to chest from cuteness. "Luke, you're so precious."

"It's something private, but I promise it's nothing bad."

(The fuck?) Luna went through the whole day without lying and passed. Done.

"Yes."

Fuck.

[samcat0925]

With being stuck in the human realm, what if Gus starts manifesting illusions of himself in his sleep with one of them wanting his dad to be with him and making everything okay, another being afraid of what they might find when they return to the Boiling Isles or scared that it's no longer there and trying to find solutions, and the other being filled with regrets (with one of them being about Gus having waited to confess to Matt because he was waiting to say it the day after the Day of Unity).

Now, would his friends try to wake him up since this is basically a glimpse into what's going on in his mind and they don't want to intrude or would they individually help his illusions so they could calm his mind?

I like that idea, especially since he was the first (and I think the only one) to start crying when they figured out that they were stuck in the human realm.

Gus would probably try to hide his fears and regrets from the others since he knows that they're all freaking out and he doesn't want to cause more stress for them, but those feelings start to bubble over to the point where he unknowingly makes illusions of his dreams, like his dad comforting him or something bad happening to the demon realm or to Matt.

I think that since it had been shown that Hunter and Gus were sleeping in the same room together, Hunter would have noticed it first and probably try to wake Gus up. 

If Gus wakes up from his dream;

Hunter (being the group’s honorary older brother) would try to comfort him and try to talk to him about it. Gus will probably try to minimize his worries and how scared he is to not stress Hunter out, but I think that Hunter would be able to pick up on it since he’s probably done it in the past. Hunter would tell Gus (while being careful with his words) that if he doesn’t want to tell him, then Hunter won’t force him to but if there is something bothering him, then he as well as other would like to help since they’re all scared and just want to go home as well. 

After letting those words sink in, Gus would start crying a little and tells Hunter about how much he misses his dad and how he’s scared about what might be happening to everyone back home with the collector, but he didn’t want to say anything since he knew that the group were also scared. Hunter would probably hesitate before telling him that he understood what it feels like to keep your fears and worries a secret from others so you don’t worry them, but he knows that keeping those fears and worries hidden will only make people you care about worry more. 

Hunter, while giving Gus a comforting while a little awkward hug, tells him that if he wants, they can talk to Camila and the others about how he has been feeling in the morning which Gus, feeling a little better, agrees.

If Gus don’t wake up and his dream illusions start getting worse;

Hunter will go to get Camila as well as the others and tell them about Gus’s dream illusions. They would go to Gus to see all of his night terrors coming to life like the collector harming his dad and Matty, the demon realm being a waste land thanks to the collector or after they defeat the collector, his illusion self tries to find Matty so he can confess to him but can’t find him and no one in the Boiling Isles knows where he is. 

Luz and the others, all experiencing similar feelings, try to wake Gus up because they don’t want him to go those emotions alone. Gus will walk up with a jump and see that the others are there, clearly worried about him. 

Camila would ask Gus about the dream illusions and if those were his worries which Gus would try to say that yes, they are but he’s fine since they’re going to find a way back and everything will be fine but Camila, being the awesome mom that she is, would immediately figure out that he’s scared but don’t want to worry anyone about his fears. She gives him her signature motherly hug and tells him that it’s okay to feel scared and that if he wants to let them, his friends would like to help him since they’re just as scared as he is. 

Luz and the others will comfort him while telling him that if he doesn’t want to talk about it, then they won’t force him to but if he’d let them, they would like to help him work through his fears. 

That’s when Gus breaks and starts crying while holding onto Camila like he used to when his dad would comfort him. The other just stay there while Camila holds Gus as he’s crying and letting out all of the worrying thoughts about what could be happening back home with the collector and how scared he is that everything and everyone that he loves are gone while he’s here, safe and out of harm’s way which is weird for him to be upset about since he had been dreaming of going to the human realm forever and now that he is here, all he has been wishing for it to go home.

After Gus calms down, the others reassure Gus that they all feel the same fear that everyone that they love could be gone since they don’t know what the collector could be doing to them but as long as they have each other, they’ll be able to find a way to get back home which comforts Gus. 

Sensing that there are still feelings of worry and fear in the group, Camila tells them that if it will make them feel better, they can all sleep together in the living room which they all agree. 

They all get some blankets and pillows to make a huge bed to sleep in. Luz and Amity are holding hands as they sleep while they all are hug each other as Camila is hugging Vee and Luz (this is before Hunter becomes a part of the Noseda family).

[can-of-pringles]

King and Lionheart - Chapter 3

Rating: Teen and up audiences

Warnings: Nothing that’s not in the series.

Word Count: 5k.

Summary:  Dream, Matthew, and Lee arrive in Hell.

Also Read On AO3

The dream sand surrounding them began to clear once they’d arrived in Hell. Dust gathered around their feet.

Lee ruffled her feathers as the thick fog hung around in the air. Her eyes widened at the sight of skeletal remains laying on the ground; practically embedded in the harsh terrain. Lee, as her raven self, felt small enough as was, but the vast wasteland around her doubled the anxious feeling. She tried sticking as close to Dream as he allowed, standing next to his boot and close to Matthew.

“So, Hell does exist?” Matthew asked, feeling worry in his chest.

“It does. For some,” Dream answered.

“Does that mean it doesn’t exist if you don’t believe in it?”

Dream paused to think of a response. “Did you believe in it? When you were a man?” He glanced down at him.

Matthew sighed. “Yeah. I just didn’t expect Hell to be cold.” He ruffled his feathers.

“I’m not sure what I was imagining… but not this. There’s no lava waterfalls or screams of agony,” Lee added.

Matthew gave her a wary look.

“Not that I want to see that! There’s just some stereotypes about Hell, that’s all. I guess they’re stereotypes for a reason,” Lee cawed.

“So, which way do we go?” He asked.

“I suggest we follow the damned.” Dream said.

“Now that sounds like stereotypically Hell.” She said, following the Endless’ gaze at the long winding path to the palace. Several people walked it; only illuminated by the baskets of fire they held over their heads as they trekked.

“They make you bring your own fire to Hell?” The bigger raven commented.

“Wow, that sucks.” Lee tilted her head.

“There are worse aspects to Hell.” Dream said.

“Okay, you have a point. Now, can we get a move on?” She exclaimed.

---

Dream and the ravens stood right outside the gates, watching as the damned lined up; still holding the flaming baskets.

“We’re not sneaking in with them?” Matthew asked.

“A king may not enter another monarch’s realm uninvited. There are rules, protocols which must be followed.”

“Oh, of course,” Lee muttered under her breath. She tried not to shudder at the sight of the corpse-made tunnel, each body appearing stuck together like a horrific puzzle.

Dream walked forward, not waiting for the hesitant ravens behind. They followed him into the tunnel.

One of the bodies stuck in the wall partially freed itself, causing Lee to jump and squawk in alarm. The corpse held the small mallet to ring the gong for the entrance. It handed the tool to Morpheus. The gong echoed as he rang it, causing all the frozen people to cover their ears in pain. Matthew glanced up at them, cautious of how they moved.

As they waited, Lee could hear thunderous footsteps getting closer to the gate. She tried to remain confident, keeping her feathers puffed out as a way to appear bigger than she actually was.

Dream turned once he heard the steps along with her, seeing a tall demon standing on the other side of the gate.

“There’s one at the door. At the gate of damnation.” The demon spoke. “Is it thief, thug, or whore? There’s one at the door. And there is room for one more. Till the end of creation.”

“Oh, so this is like a twisted version of Doctor Seuss, of course.” Lee thought, fighting off a sarcastic remark.

Dream walked forward through the tunnel toward the gate. “Greetings, Squatterbloat. I seek an audience with your sovereign.”

Squatterbloat chuckled. “And who you might be?”

“I am the King of Dreams. Ruler of the Nightmare Realms.”

“Mm. Yes, my clown. So where’s your crown?”

Morpheus scoffed, frowning at the insult. “Guard your tongue, demon. The Ruler of Hell will not be kind to one who insults an honored guest. And I am a guest in this realm as I am monarch of my own.”

“So where’s your ruby?”

Lee gasped, wondering if a fight was going to take place; though she struggled to imagine Dream actually fighting someone, at least finding it hard to believe he could successfully throw a punch. He just didn’t seem like the type.

Morpheus didn’t hide his shock well. It immediately turned to anger.

“Shall I use it to haunt your dreams? And your waking hours, too?” His tone lowered, appearing more threatening. He walked closer to the gate. “Or will you open the gates of Hell and let us through?”

After a minute, Squatterbloat grabbed his keys and unlocked the gate. He stepped back as the gates opened.

“Now, take us to the palace.” Dream requested.

“There’s one at the door. There’s one at the door.” Squatterbloat muttered. He led Dream in the direction of the palace. The Endless followed.

“There’s one at the door.”

---

Lee tried her best to dodge the bones and ignore how the dust and grime clung to her feathers. She followed next to Dream; Matthew walking slightly behind them, as they all followed Squatterbloat through the fog.

“Any idea where we are?”

“Yeah, good question, because it’s all starting to blend together.” She added.

“The landscape is subject to the whims of the Morningstar,” Morpheus said.

“The morning star? We have to spend the night in this literally godforsaken—” Matthew started complaining before Dream interrupted him.

“Lucifer Morningstar.”

“As in the Devil?”

“The Ruler of Hell is no mere devil.”

“So, you two know each other?”

“I just figured all you powerful guys knew each other or met like once.” If Lee could shrug at the moment, she would’ve.

“We’ve known each other for a very long time. When we first met, Lucifer was the angel Samael.” Dream explained.

“I forgot the Devil used to be an angel,” Matthew remarked.

“Not just any angel. The most beautiful, wisest, and most powerful of all angels. Saving only the Creator, Lucifer is, perhaps, the most powerful being there is.”

“Man… and we’re just going to their house basically at random…” Lee muttered under her breath. “What could go wrong?”

“More powerful than you?” The other raven continued asking questions.

“By far. Especially now.”

“Why now?”

“The last time I was here, I was an honored guest. An envoy from my own kingdom. This time, I have invited myself, and I lack my symbols of office.”

“We really are showing up uninvited! And you were the one to talk about rules and protocols,” Lee exclaimed, mostly out of worry.

Morpheus refrained from frowning. “I will handle this. You need not worry… A raven such as yourself poses no threat.”

“Thanks… I think?” Lee answered.

“But what about you…? You’re still Dream of The Endless, right? You got your sand,” Matthew said, mostly trying to reassure himself.

Morpheus halted all of a sudden, trying to see through the thick fog. He furrowed his brows and clenched his jaw.

“What’s wrong?” Matthew asked.

“Squatterbloat. He’s gone.”

Lee squawked. “What?! He ditched us?”

“All right, don’t panic. I’m just gonna fly up and see where we are.” Matthew opened his wings.

Dream’s gaze followed his flying, watching as he flew up near the trees.

“Nope, nope. Not doing that.” Matthew hovered for a second before landing on the ground again in defeat. There was no way he’d land on the trees covered with moaning corpses.

“What the… really? Tree bodies?” Lee huffed.

Dream turned when he heard the demon, seeing Squatterbloat appear right behind him.

“This way.”

Dream watched for a second before deciding to follow.

---

They traveled up a spiraling pathway, each step winding up higher. On the path, Squatterbloat crushed a skull into pieces under his foot.

“Reminder not to get close to that guy’s foot.” Lee thought.

It felt like they had been walking forever. Out of self-preservation, Lee had been mostly keeping her complaining to herself; trying to be on good behavior. One wrong move and who knew what could happen? She gets stuck in Hell or something. Maybe she’d find the lava waterfalls that way.

“I hadn’t realized how far away everything… is.” She sighed.

“Does this seem like the way to the palace to you?” Matthew asked.

Dream placed his hand against the wall as he continued walking. “A demon has a hundred motives for anything he does. All of them malevolent.”

“Demon.” He got Squatterbloat’s attention, causing him to stop and look back. “This is not the way.”

The demon only chuckled at the accusation. He continued, leaving Dream feeling more suspicious. Despite that, the Endless kept following.

A familiar voice came from one of the gaps in the structure, covered in mangled bars. Dream stopped in his tracks.

“Kai’ckul?”

He froze. His expression gave away the shock he felt. That was a name he hadn’t been called in ages.

“Dream Lord?” The voice belonged to a woman. She sounded just as surprised as he felt.

The stranger walked toward the exposed part, placing her hand on the bar. Her eyes widened at the sight of him.

She gasped. “It is you.”

Her perception of him differed from his usual appearance. His skin was now a similar dark tone to hers. His hair was longer.

“I greet you, Nada,” Kai’ckul spoke, remaining calm in her presence

“Kai’ckul.” Nada whispered in awe. The flames behind her flickered brightly. “How I have prayed for this day.”

Squatterbloat watched the interaction, enjoying seeing the Dream Lord uncomfortable; confronting someone from his past.

“I knew you would come.” There was hope in her voice.

He hesitated for a minute, knowing he would not be the savior she was looking for.

“It pains me to see you like this.”

The flames illuminated the tear streaks on her face. “Then, free me, Lord.”

Kai’ckul remained silent, still too focused on the hurt she caused him all those years ago.

“Only your forgiveness can free me.” She continued. Another tear ran down her face.

Matthew glanced up at them, watching in silence at the two’s discussion.

Lee stood close by, her raven self acting on the urge to tilt her head in curiosity. She looked away for a minute, wondering how much she should’ve been listening.

“Do you not still love me?”

“It has been ten thousand years, Nada.” He stated.

Nada grimaced. Her chest ached as more tears ran down her face. Her bottom lip trembled as she fought back more tears. She glanced down, not able to look into his eyes.

“Yes.”

That response caused her to look up at him. Her eyes widened in surprise.

“I still love you,” Kai’ckul admitted.

She faintly smiled, hoping he’d finally forgive and free her.

He shook his head. “But I have not yet forgiven you.”

Nada’s flicker of hope turned into a flame of anger. She looked away from him, furrowing her brows and clenching her teeth.

Kai’ckul struggled to hold back his own tears. He turned away.

“Come, Matthew, Lee.” Dream, now appearing as he usually did, began to walk away from Nada.

“Kai’ckul, I will not give up hope.” She exclaimed. “I will never give up.” Her voice sounded farther away the more they walked on. Fading into the background.

The demon continued leading the Endless and ravens.

---

The landscape remained relatively the same. Same thick fog and the sky was tinted with a dull grey. Though the forest was thin, fewer trees grew where they were.

Dream and the two ravens walked in silence. One thing that the two birds had in common at the moment was the millions of questions they had in their minds. Matthew was brave enough to ask first.

“So, that woman back there. Anything you wanna share with your friends?” Matthew asked.

Lee waited for his response, curious about what had happened between them.

“Her name is Nada. She was the ruler of a tribe that call themselves the First People.” Dream explained. He became silent again, struggling to speak of the past. “We were in love.”

If only Lee had her eyebrows in this form, she would’ve raised them.

“I didn’t know your kind even had relationships and dating…” She spoke.

Dream glanced down at her.

“Though I guess when you’re living for that long, it’s nice to be with others,” Lee concluded.

“It can be.” He stated, not commenting on it further.

“So, what did she do? How’d she end up here?” Matthew continued asking questions.

“She defied me.”

“Wait. You put her here?” His tone revealed shock.

Lee nearly tripped on a stick in the path. She recovered quickly, flapping her wings to help with balance. Dream of the Endless was powerful, yes, but it had never crossed her mind he would put someone in Hell; let alone someone he claimed to have loved. Her mouth felt dry, and she glanced away.

“The Morningstar is letting me know that Hell has prepared for my visit.” Dream said.

They came to a stop.

“Why are we stopping?”

Squatterbloat turned back to face Dream for a moment. He passed by him, leaving Dream to continue on his own with the ravens.

“We’re here,” Morpheus spoke.

The grand palace was seen in the distance.

---

After walking the long winding path up to the palace, they finally made it to the door. It stood tall over them, resembling a pentagram.

“Don’t know why you’d need a door this tall, who are they keeping in there? Godzilla?” Lee sighed. Her feet ached from the long journey.

“Oh, please, no. We don’t need to see a giant lizard.” Matthew shuddered.

“I was joking. Mostly.” She replied.

Dream walked up to the entrance, looking up at it. The door started to open, and the ground trembled as it did. Blood pooled out of the bottom of it, causing both birds to open their wings and fly, circling above Dream as they made it inside.

It went dark as soon as it closed behind them.

Luckily, the tunnel they were in was lit up by torches. Stairs led up to the throne room, where the being they had been waiting for stood. Lucifer. They stood with their black wings out, looking over a fire pit. Dream walked up the stairs, each step precise. Too small, Matthew and Lee simply hopped up instead.

Dream stood. He kept his hands folded in front of him. Lucifer turned around. Their white dress seemed to shine, a stark contrast to their black bat-like wings.

“Hello.” They greeted, walking down some small steps from the balcony. They reached their arm out toward the fire rising from the pit in the middle.

Lucifer stood in front of Dream, looming over him. Their light blond curls of hair framed their face.

“Hello, Dream.”

“Greetings to you, Lucifer Morningstar.”

His eye glanced towards Lucifer’s partner, Mazikeen, standing near the shadows. “And to you, Mazikeen of the Lillim.”

“Greetings, Dream Lord.” She acknowledged, turning her head to reveal the more hidden side of her face; burned in appearance.

“You look well, Dream. Are you well? And your family, Destiny, Death, Despair, and the others?” They smiled coyly.

Morpheus showed a rare, faint smile, slowly shaking his head. “I presume the Ruler of Hell knows this is no social call.”

“Have you come to join forces, then?” They tilt their head slightly. “To ally your realm to ours?”

Mazikeen smiled shyly.

“To acknowledge the sovereignty of Hell?” Lucifer added.

“You know my feelings on that, Lightbringer.” He kept his tone mostly lighthearted, not trying to get into a fight about it.

“Feelings change. Especially when one has been caught and imprisoned by mortals.” They recalled.

Dream stood in silence.

“We expected better of you, sweet Morpheus.” They put on a particularly sickly sweet tone, taunting him.

“I have come because my Helm of State was stolen from me. I believe one of your demons has it. I should like it back.” He explained.

Lucifer blinked at his straightforwardness.

“Now.” His tone was intimidating.

“Dream, if only it were that easy.”

He furrowed his brows in annoyance.

“But there are rules, you see. Protocols which must be followed.” Lucifer continued.

Lee looked up at Dream, remembering the similar words he said about that earlier.

Dream kept a polite expression, smiling to hide the anger inside.

“Which demon has your helm?” They turned away and moved toward the balcony. “Name it and we will bring it here.”

“I confess I do not know the name.”

They stood on the balcony, looking below into the pit of demons and fire. “Then we will have to summon all of them.”

They made a following motion with their hand, commanding the demons to come closer. At a distance, Dream stood next to Lucifer, looking down at the loud and fiery pit of demons.

“There, now, Dream, you may inquire. Which demon has your helmet?”

The only thing that could be heard were the screams below.

“Shall we interview them one at a time, or…”

Dream looked at Lucifer. “That won’t be necessary.”

He started walking past them. Lucifer stared below for a moment before they turned their head to look at Dream. They then shared a knowing look with Mazikeen. Lucifer turned around toward Dream as he walked away.

“It surprises us how easily you would give up, Dream. We know how you relied upon your tools.”

He stopped.

“But tools are the subtlest of traps.” They moved forward. “We become reliant upon them and in their absence, we are vulnerable, weak, defenseless.”

Lee eyed them suspiciously.

Morpheus looked back out of the corner of his eye. “Not entirely.” He glanced down and pulled out his pouch of sand from his pocket. He crouched down on one knee.

“I have recovered my sand.” He poured some out. “It brought me to Hell and now it brings that which is mine in Hell to me.” He stopped pouring.

Lucifer stood unpleased, frustrated at the Endless’s loophole.

The sand whirled up like before, transporting the past demon that took his helmet. Dream stood back up. The demon looked around before turning around to face Dream. In his hands was the helmet.

“Tell me your name, demon.”

“Do I have to tell him?”

“That is Choronzon. A Duke of Hell.” Lucifer informed.

“Choronzon…” Morpheus glared. “The helm is mine. You must return it to me.”

He shook his head. “No. It’s mine now. I traded it from a mortal for a paltry thing. It was a fair trade. I’ve broken no laws.”

Dream frowned.

“And if the Dream King wants his helm back,” he walked forward, “he will have to fight me for it.”

Dream subtly nodded. “Very well. I challenge you, Choronzon.”

“You know the rules, Dream Lord.” The demon chuckled.

“If I win, you will return my helmet.” Dream recited them.

“And if you lose, you’ll serve as my slave in Hell for eternity,” Choronzon smirked.

He went silent, thinking it over.

“I accept the terms.”

Both birds showed their surprise, cawing.

Lee felt fear in the pit of her stomach. It wasn’t that she thought he couldn’t handle it, but it was such a dangerous deal.

“And whom will you choose to represent you in the battle?” Lucifer asked.

“I shall represent myself.”

“Choronzon, whom will you choose to represent you?”

He faced Dream, treading on his personal space. Dream stared back at him.

“Hmm… I choose you, sire.”

Lucifer smiled, looking forward to the challenge.

Dream remained silent as Lucifer walked behind him. They now appeared to be wearing a similar outfit, but in black.

“Apologies, Dream, but the laws of Hell demand that I become his champion.”

He looked at them.

“But if you would not fight me.”

Dream looked back at Choronzon.

“I have accepted the terms.” He turned back toward Lucifer, his clothes changed similarly as well.

“What is this, a fashion show? Battle of who can be the most emo?” Lee whispered to Matthew, getting a hush in response. She understood, not wanting neither Dream nor Lucifer to overhear.

“Let the challenge begin.” Dream spoke. He stood face to face with Lucifer, looking up at them.

---

Now standing on the balcony, Choronzon held the helm up to show the cheering demons below. “Welcome, ladies and gentlemen. Today, for your entertainment and delectation, a formal challenge.”

The cheering grew louder.

“The challenger is Dream.”

The demons booed.

“Once the Master of the Realm of Sleep.”

Dream looked back at the ravens, getting an idea. Conveniently, Matthew cawed to get his attention.

“As the challenged, I’ve selected my champion, Ruler of Hell, Lucifer Morningstar…” Choronzon continued.

Dream followed Matthew and Lee back to the stairs.

In the background, the demons cheered Lucifer. They smiled. Mazikeen cheered as well.

“...To represent me in a contest of skill, confidence, and transformation. The oldest game.” The Duke explained.

The demons cheered more.

Dream crouched down in front of the ravens, away from the loud cheering.

“Matthew, Lee, I need you two to return to The Dreaming.”

“What? No!” Matthew protested.

“Why?” Lee questioned.

“It’s the only reason I allowed you both to come here.” His tone grew more frantic.

“So we could leave you?” Matthew exclaimed.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea…” Lee worried.

“If I should not be able to leave this place, I would not have Lucienne left alone with no word of my fate. Not again.”

“The sand will take you back,” Dream explained.

“I’m not going back.” He stomped his foot. “We’re staying right here.”

“That’s right!” Lee added.

Lucifer appeared behind them. “Morpheus, am I interrupting a preliminary bout of some kind?”

Dream looked up at them.

“Just a ringside pep talk, Your Majesty.” Matthew bowed.

“Mmhm.” Lee agreed, maintaining her best behavior.

Dream looked at the ravens again.

“We came here for the helm and we’re not leaving without it.” Matthew insisted.

“We shall see.” Lucifer smiled.

Lee glanced warily at them before looking away again, trying not to shudder in their presence.

Before Dream could argue more with the birds, they flew back towards the main area; landing on top of one of the columns.

He stood back up, an annoyed expression on his face due to the ravens not listening to his instructions.

The cheering below seemingly rumbled around the room, clear excitement for the challenge.

“I guess this is all the entertainment they get down here? I could think of worse punishment for them, like watching Riverdale or something…” Lee muttered, watching from above.

“River-what?” Matthew asked.

“Doesn’t matter. Be glad you don’t know what that is.”

“As the challenged, I set the meter and take the first move,” Lucifer spoke. They stood face to face with Dream, preparing for the game.

“Very well. Make your move.” Dream responded.

Lucifer remains silent, thinking of what to start with.

“I am… a dire wolf. Prey-stalking, lethal prowler.” Lucifer smiled.

The Endless prepared for his move. “I am a hunter.”

“Wait a minute, I… I don’t understand. They’re just describing things?” Lee whispered to Matthew, who tilted his head in response.

“I don’t know. Maybe they can see something we can’t.” He suggested.

“I just don’t understand how this is entertaining.” She sighed.

“Horse-mounted. Wolf-stabbing.” Dream continued.

As he described in the attack, Lucifer received the injury. They bent over slightly, groaning in pain. Mazikeen had a worried expression on her face.

“What the… so they can feel the attacks?” Lee sounded baffled.

“I guess so?” The other raven said.

“So that means he can be hurt…” She tried keeping the fear out of her voice.

Morpheus stared at Lucifer. There was a bit of blood in their palm from the wound in their chest. They clenched their fist, looking back up at Dream. He blinked, preparing himself for what they’d throw at him.

“I am a serpent. Horse-biting…”

In their game, a snake slithered out of the shadows; biting the leg of the horse, causing it to neigh and rear up in alarm.

“...Poison-toothed.”

Affected by the venom, Dream gasped; appearing slightly sickly.

The two ravens watched in fear. Lee paced a little.

“I am a bird of prey.” His turn was next. “Snake-devouring, talons ripping.”

Lucifer flinched from the pain. They gasped as they felt cuts on their cheek. They looked up at Dream, feeling anger boiling inside.

“I am a butcher bacterium.”

Dream widened his eyes in surprise.

“Warm-life destroying.”

He fell to the ground on his knees, groaning in pain.

Lucifer smiled.

Lee almost let out a caw but refrained, not wanting to somehow get Dream in more trouble.

Morpheus looked up at Lucifer. His skin appeared paler than usual, almost grey. He had multiple open wounds.

“Are we really just going to stand by and watch this?” Lee hissed to Matthew.

“We have to! We don’t have a choice.”

“Well… it’s hard to watch.” She fretted.

“I know, kid.” Matthew sighed.

“I am a world.” Dream rasped.

In the game, they stood in an open grass field; vast. There was the sound of life thriving in the background.

“Space-floating, life-nurturing.” Now appearing as he usually does, Dream stood opposite of them.

“I am a nova.” Lucifer opened their wings. “All-exploding, planet-cremating.”

Their attack involved a huge fire crashing down, causing Dream to shield his face. In the game, he was destroyed. As he screamed, skin burning, Lucifer stood perfectly fine; fire appeared behind them.

Dream fell to the ground, severely burned. Everything around him appeared to be a wasteland. He tried to get up but failed.

“I am a universe.” He whispered with his little remaining strength. “All things encompassing, all life embracing.”

“I am anti-life.” Lucifer countered. “The Beast of Judgement.”

Everything in Dream’s vision turned to darkness.

“The dark at the end of everything.” They finished.

Outside of the game, Dream lay collapsed on the floor; almost corpse-like in appearance. Lucifer stood in front of him.

“No!” Lee whispered.

“What will you be then, Dream Lord?”

Dream’s breath trembled. He barely had the strength to move, struggling to sit up.

“I…”

He collapsed again. Lucifer didn’t hide their triumphant expression.

“I…” His voice was barely audible. “I…”

“Oh, that’s it!” Lee flew down. Matthew followed. They walked toward Dream.

“Boss?” Matthew sounded worried, standing in front of his face.

“Dream?” Lee tried nudging his arm with her beak, feeling fear in her chest.

“Hey, boss!”

“Still with us, Dream?” Lucifer taunted.

“He is, and it’s his move, Your Majesty,” Matthew asserted, sounding challenging at first. When he remembered who he was talking to, he eased off the arguing tone; bowing his head.

“There are no more moves. What can survive the anti-life?” They pointed out.

Lee held off the urge to glare at them, instead focusing her attention on trying to help Dream.

“Hey, boss. Listen to me. You know what can survive the anti-life? You.” Matthew started. “Dreams don’t fucking die. Not if you believe in them, and I believe Dream of the Endless would never leave his ravens here alone, in Hell with Lucifer.”

“Please, Dream. Get up!” Lee pleaded.

He glanced up at Lucifer.

“I… am…”

Using all of his remaining energy, Dream slowly got back up. The ravens watched, relieved he wasn’t done yet. They both cawed.

“Hope.” Dream uttered.

Lucifer stared, displeased. Light shone brightly as Dream slowly stood back up, face to face with them.

“Hope.” They repeated.

Dream now appeared his usual healthy self. Light shined behind him before it eventually faded. Lucifer seemed surprised at his strength to recover.

“Well, Lightbringer? It’s your move.”

Lucifer furrowed their brows, grimacing.

“What is it that kills hope?” He asked.

They stayed silent.

Lucifer looked at the Duke. “Choronzon, give him his helm.” Their tone was angry. Upset at their loss.

“No. I won’t.” He backed up toward the balcony.

Mazikeen walked toward him, looking happy to cast him back down below.

“It’s mine. Please.” He begged.

Mazikeen grabbed the helmet in one hand and grabbed him into a chokehold with the other. Choronzon struggled in her grasp. The demons cheered, not caring either way as long as they got entertainment in some shape or form.

Mazikeen smiled and dropped him. He fell into the pit, screaming. Mazikeen walked closer to the edge and watched.

Dream walked toward her and glanced down at his helm in her hand. She turned around and handed it back. He accepted it and gives her a short nod in return.

“Thank you, Mazikeen.”

She walked back from the balcony. His gaze followed her and then Lucifer.

“Thank you, Lightbringer. The Ruler of Hell is honorable, indeed. I will not forget this,” Dream spoke.

“Honorable?” They fumed. “You joke, surely.”

Lucifer walked near him. “Look out there, Morpheus.”

He looked back into the pit.

“The billion Lords of Hell stand arrayed about you.” They stood next to him, then turned to look at him face to face. “Tell us. Why should we let you leave?”

Lee’s heart raced. The game was fair. Why were they still challenging him?

Dream stared at them.

“Helmet or no, you have no power here. After all… what power have dreams in Hell?” Lucifer pondered aloud.

He remained silent, thinking of how to respond.

“You say I have no power here.” Going along with it, he nodded shortly; a slight frown in confirmation. “Perhaps you speak truly.”

“But to say dreams have no power in Hell…” He started. His tone was confident. “Tell me, Lucifer Morningstar,”

They glanced down at him, feeling the anger rise.

“What power would Hell have if those here imprisoned were not able to dream…” Morpheus leaned closer, threatening their personal space to intimidate them. “...Of Heaven?”

Lucifer ignored the urge to fight. However, their expression didn’t hold their anger back. They stay silent.

“One day, Morpheus… we shall destroy you.” They vowed.

Dream tilt his head and bowed slightly, confidently accepting the threat like it wasn’t a huge deal. He smirked. “Until that day, Lightbringer.”

He turned away to leave, leaving an angered Lucifer behind. Now holding what he came there for, he walked out of the palace.

The ravens followed.

---

“You did it! I can’t believe you—well, I can believe, it’s just that… you were awesome!” Lee cheered once they were far enough away. She flew around him before settling on the ground.

They stood on the outskirts of Hell. The wind blew around them.

“I’m so glad you didn’t die or lose. I… um, I got really scared for a second.” She confessed. “But you won!”

“I thank you for not losing faith in me.” Dream replied.

“You think Lucifer will come after you?” Matthew asked.

“Why?”

“Because you just publicly humiliated the Ruler of Hell.”

“Yeah, you did roast them pretty good,” Lee snickered.

“No. Not for now, at least…” Dream said.

The Endless finally placed his helmet on, remembering the familiar feeling of wearing it.

“Can you even see in that thing?” Matthew asked.

“He has a valid point. You look like one of those Kiwi birds, except more… edgy,” Lee added.

He ignored her comment.

“I can see the ruby.” His voice was muffled.

Using the pouch of sand, he teleported them out of there.

---

The sand took them to some sort of storage container full of all sorts of crates and things. The two ravens landed on a shelf.

“Weird…” Lee whispered.

Dream took off his helm. There was a glowing red light coming from a box on the shelf.

“Is that it?” She asked. “It sure is… bright.”

Matthew tapped the box with his beak. Dream took a cautious step forward. He grabbed the box and set it down on the ground. He ripped off the lid, relieved to see the ruby inside; glowing. He picked it up.

“Ooh,” Lee exclaimed. “No wonder you wanted that gem back.”

The ruby glowed more, giving off a strange aura. Morpheus furrowed his brows in concern.

“Something’s wrong.”

“What?” Matthew fretted.

The ruby in his palm glowed brighter. “Someone’s altered it.”

Before he could do anything, it glowed and its altered power launched them all back. Dream crashed into boxes behind him.

---

John opened one of the storage container doors, walking in. He approached cautiously, finding the glowing ruby on the ground. He picked it up and continued walking forward. Both Dream and the ravens lay on the ground, unconscious.

Matthew started to wake up, groaning from the pain. The door creaked shut. Matthew managed to get up, shaking it off. The lock on the door clicked. He glanced at Lee, still lay unmoving. He pecked at her to wake up.

Lee awoke with a start. She jumped up and ruffled her feathers. “What the fuck just happened?”

“I don’t know. One second he was just holding the ruby, and then now we woke up.” Matthew said. “Well, some of us woke up…”

Lee groaned in pain. Her eyes widened at the sight of Dream laying still unconscious.

The birds worked together to try to wake him up. Matthew nudged his arm and Lee pulled on his coat.

“Boss. Boss!”

“Wake up!”

[shieldkeeper]

FFXIVWrite2022: Prompt 27

Writing Prompt: HAIL  Words: 752

Sometimes, when Garen gazed over at the horizon, the sun setting lazily past ocean’s edge… his eyes grew misty and glazed as once reminisced over long lost days.

He remembered well how much of a troublesome kid he was from the get go. Always getting into this and that where he was not supposed to be. From causing a ruckus in the streets, to finding himself in dangerous waters (literally and figuratively!), to multiple apologies between himself and his parents. He was rambunctious and wanted to get in on anything and everything.

The moment he was old enough to hold his own, he went many times on a little fishing trip or another with his Da or would visit Limsa Lominsa’s inner city markets and the like with his Ma. Then, when he was of adult age at the earliest… he was ready to take on the world. No need to hang back at home where nothing was happening. He wanted to be out there, fulfilling dreams of his own and traveling the world over.

There… wasn’t enough time for him to appreciate those little days, however. He grew up with no siblings at the time and thought only for himself. What he wanted to do. And what he wanted to do was get away from a dreary life stuck in the same place.

Da grew so busy at times. Always needed for something and pulled away to his work as lead fisherman of his jurisdiction. Ma was always sick and could do so little for herself. Just enough to go about her day as easygoing as possible, but never one to leave the house for long. Likely to have rather stay in bed or stay on the couch knitting rather than go outside.

It drove Garen a little crazy… he wanted for company. Yes he could leave the house at any point as most kids did, but sometimes… sometimes he wanted for his kin’s attention!

At some point, he pestered the pair throughout his younger days. Constantly trying to learn more about them and where they grew up, their upbringing, if they had any brothers or sisters, where was grandma and grandpa, so so many questions!

He learned that Da’s family were right drifters who namely lived abouts in Limsa for a time. His mother passed away before Garen’s birth though Da hadn’t been really close to her to begin with. Not when said mother had many partners and likely many children than he was still finding out about to this day. Again, none or very few he kept in contact if at all. Apparently his father was a hyur and made for him to be taller than most lalafellin men, but that was about it.

Ma meanwhile… dear Ma… she hailed from a place known as the southern sea islands. A far away place from La Noscea’s shores and a place she could no longer survive the journey to visit if she so wished. The waters between here and there were dangerous ones. The only reason she ever dared tread them was to gain access to this city’s better medicines… and for falling for a pirate of a husband who no longer lives that life.

She was a single child with loving and doting parents. Always wanting the best for her, even if it broke their hearts to let her go. She sent many letters to them and vice versa when able. Not only that, she was still sending these letters up until the day she died… holding one final letter to give to Garen.

“Do not worry for me, my child.” He recalled upon her deathbed with tears in his eyes. “I have lived and loved. Far longer than I dare ever hoped. My only wish… is that you may one day complete my journey home. Whether there’s anything left there or no…”

She wanted for him to go to her homelands. To complete the cycle and maybe even meet his grandparents if they were still alive. She always did speak of the southern seas with high regards, of their culture and customs which she had taught all of her children including him.

“You would love it there.”

Garen shook his head from the old days and focused on the new. His siblings were all just about of age where they could care for themselves. He was finally free to roam the realm as he so wished.

Mayhaps it was high time indeed to visit the southern sea isles…

[fruggo]

Hello ! I saw the enemies fo lovers things and I wanna request if possible

“ rich coming from the guy who tried to kill me three days ago. “

With frank if you would and thank you

yessirrr i love frank sm it’s not ok. also umm i may have accidentally written friends to enemies to lovers or something idk. and though i wouldnt necessarily call you friends at the start, you werent really enemies yet???? idk🐸just ummm yeh i love frank

also help how do i not go overboard???? i feel like i made this way too long, please help and i am sorry

warnings: canon-typical violence, swearing, frank being a bastard but then you’re like awwww he’s a cute bastard aaaaw

~~

Things were weird with Frank, and they always had been from the moment you stepped foot in the Entity’s realm. He always tunneled you relentlessly, and that made you think of him as a big asshole, but there were some strange details tacked onto the sentiment that greatly confused you, should you think about it for more than three seconds.

Sometimes, it seemed like he went easy on you in chases, like he put in no effort. He would chase you for a while, let you waste his time, and then leave without even getting a hit on you when he definitely had the ability to.

And you hated saying this, but when he handled you, it almost felt…gentle. Granted, he was a killer, and his job was to murder you, but your experiences with him did not quite line up with those of the other survivors.

They always described trials against Frank as “stepping on legos in the middle of the night” or something akin to that. You never felt like that, though—when he chased you, it felt fair. Almost as if he played nice with you. And more often than not, the killer would let you go when he caught you. The reason remained a mystery to you until quite a bit later.

This trial, Frank was in 100% bastard mode. You had begun to think of his trials as quite easy due to his seemingly calm nature around you, so you were rather caught off guard when he downed you in the first 30 seconds of the match and tossed you onto a hook, no gentleness whatsoever.

You wanted to yell at him and ask what the fuck was wrong with him until you realized this was his fucking job, and this is how he should have been treating you all along. Maybe you had just been imagining it all, but you could have sworn he used to leave you alone more than this. Something just felt different.

After you were unhooked, he went for you again. And again. And then you were dead, completely wiped out of the trial. Frank had demolished you with no remorse.

You knew it was silly to feel betrayed, but you really couldn’t help it. In such an insane and hellish place, anything that could be even remotely perceived as kindness seemed like so much more of a big deal than it truly was. So Frank’s supposed “gentleness” with you had felt somewhat like a friend doing you a selfless favor. Of course, it was not a selfless favor, and it was certainly nowhere near kindness, because he was still a killer chasing you with a knife, but your standards had really lowered in this place.

After that trial, you were back to hating Frank for tunneling and bullying you (like you probably should). You began to understand the survivors’ saying about the legos—and you hoped that Frank would step on some legos too, because he fucking sucked sometimes.

And for a while, that’s just how it was. You nearly forgot how he used to go easier on you, and how you used to do okay in his matches. Now every time you were pit against each other it just felt like you were being stuck with a bunch of pins; you never had any time to breathe or rest or do literally anything. He just went after you until you were gone, and there was next to nothing you could do about it.

Everything changed very suddenly during a trial at Ormond.

You were expecting the same old routine with this asshole—chase, blah blah blah, die. You hardly had energy to fight back anymore.

So when he arrived out of breath at the killer shack, somehow knowing you would be here, Frank was surprised to find you relaxing under the window with your arms loosely crossed, a disapproving scowl upon your countenance. It was enough to make him hesitate in his tracks.

You let out a deep breath, refusing to break eye contact with his mask; you kept up that menacing frown for as long as you could, trying to make him feel guilty (who knows if it was even possible for him to feel guilty? But it was worth a try).

“Just kill me,” you said, voice steady and seemingly unbothered. Underneath the surface, you were trembling, but you stood your ground. “That’s what you’re gonna do, isn’t it? You’re going to chase me until I’m miserable and kill me off as soon as you can?”

Frank went still, not even fidgeting with his knife like he usually did; he was intrigued by your sudden confidence.

You went on. “I’m really sick and tired of you, you know that? I’m sick of you and your bullshit. Why can’t you treat me like everybody else? At first, you went easy on me. Now you just torture me with your stupid mind games, and frankly, I’m sick of playing! I’m done with you—I don’t care anymore! Just kill me, and I’ll get out of your way, okay asshole? Mori me if you want. I don’t give a shit.”

You put your hands up exasperatedly, fully expecting him to take the offer and just send you back to the campfire right then and there. But the man sighed, pocketed his knife, and sat down right next to you as if this were a normal thing for him to do.

You scooted a few inches away out of instinct. Frank noticed, but he chose not to say a word about it.

It was a long time before he said anything, and when he finally did, you wanted to punch him so bad.

“It’s complicated,” he mumbled. And that was all.

Oh, yeah? It was complicated? You scoffed, hanging your head with a bitter smile. “Oh, okay. Sure.”

Silence again.

Awkward, suffocating silence.

And then Frank got up and left. You were unbothered for the remainder of the trial, not even a scratch or bruise on your body.

~~

Sometimes you simply did things, and you didn’t know why. This thing that you just did was irrational, stupid, unplanned, unwise, and everything in-between, and you knew it was, but frequently you just had no impulse control. Perhaps it was the Entity’s influence, or maybe you had always been this way—you couldn’t really remember.

How did you get here again? Why were you laying on the ground? And why did your leg hurt so fucking much?

Oh, yes. Yes, yes, you remember now.

Funnily enough, it seems as though the Entity, along with certain killers, did not like it when survivors tried to enter their side of the forest! But you did it anyways, and it appeared that you had suffered the consequences. It’s not like you had put much thought into it; where was the point in that when nothing mattered anymore and you were stuck in an endless cycle of death?

You remembered entering the killer’s woods, looking around, and doing…something. What was that something? You couldn’t be sure, but then you remembered somebody coming up to you and probably definitely hurting you. Yep, your leg definitely was in a lot of pain. You couldn’t even look at it. Did you pass out for a while? Maybe. How long were you out for?

You lay still there for a while, thinking. Man, it really hurt, and boy, were you miserable. Maybe more miserable than you’d ever felt here. The Entity normally healed wounds immediately, but perhaps you had just angered it so much you deserved to suffer.

Oh, dear! You seemed to be passing out at this time. Yes, that was almost certainly what was happening. Black spots danced across your eyes as your body began to feel distant and numb, but you didn’t feel very worried about it. In fact, you felt like making jokes right now, but you had nobody to make jokes to and you probably couldn’t even speak.

Just as you began to accept it, there was a strange thumping sensation vibrating through the ground growing closer…and closer…

Footsteps! That’s good!

Oh. Not if it’s a killer. That’s not good, probably.

But you had no way of protesting when you felt yourself being picked up, because those black spots in your eyes were dancing a lot faster now, perhaps something akin to an Irish jig, and you also couldn’t feel your limbs.

Then you were fast asleep again, dreaming of Irish dancers who were actually big fluffy cloud people wearing leprechaun clothes. Nobody but you would ever know this, and it was going to stay that way.

On the bright side, it made it a lot easier for your rescuer to carry you to safety like this.

~~

When you awoke once more, you were horrified to find yourself in the Ormond lodge of all places. You knew immediately what had happened and were determined to escape as soon as possible.

Your injured leg proved to be a huge problem, however, and you collapsed the second you attempted to find freedom. Trying again, you collapsed once more, and probably maimed yourself further in the process.

Hearing the commotion from the second floor, your least favorite member of The Legion descended down from the main stairs, refusing to look directly at you even as he scooped you up and plunked you (gently) back onto the couch, which was rather comfortable (not that you would ever tell him that).

So he was playing it cool, huh?

Okay. You could play it cool, too. You were cool. Smooth as butter.

No. You really couldn’t be cool in a situation like this, and plus, your mind was still a little woohoo since whatever accident had occurred. Suddenly you blurted out, “Frank, I hate your guts.”

And he had the audacity to laugh. He laughed at you! He did the man chuckle thing, as if what you were saying was funny. No! You were completely serious! You did hate his guts!

Perhaps your face showed how upset you were, because he started to apologize (still laughing).

“Maybe you should go back to sleep,” Frank said after calming down a bit.

No. You couldn’t go back to sleep. You did not want to experience dancing cloud people dressed as leprechauns ever again in your life, for the rest of eternity. Never again.

So you shook your head violently, refusing to give an explanation, which just provoked Frank to anger all of a sudden. If you went back to sleep, he could have some alone time while the rest of The Legion was gone. He kept pushing, and you kept resisting, and he pushed and you resisted, until finally he gave up and let you off with a warning. If you made him mad again, he was throwing you out in the snow.

Fine with me, you said. Okay, I’ll do it right now, he said. No balls, you said.

So then Frank casually went to scoop you up in his arms again, and you started to freak out and beat your hands against his chest until he put you back down. He was was awfully mindful of your hurt leg for someone who was about to throw you into the snow.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry—please don’t throw me out,” you fussed. You thought he wouldn’t actually do it. You didn’t know it, but you were right—he was just messing with you because it was funny seeing you scared.

After a bit more griping back and forth, Frank began to grow concerned about your leg. He didn’t know how to bring up the topic because things were so odd between the two of you; this was your first interaction since the brief encounter in the shack. But he swallowed his pride, because the wound seemed to be getting worse by the minute.

“Hey, do you want me to, uhh…get some supplies?” Frank asked awkwardly. When you didn’t understand, he continued, “Your leg? It looks like it hurts…I could fix it if you want.”

You barked out a laugh at his words, unbelieving of this shift in attitude. “Rich coming from the guy who tried to kill me three days ago,” you snickered, genuinely finding it amusing.

Frank took offense. He was trying to be nice for once, and you thought it was funny. And his situation really was complex, whether you chose to believe it or not. Maybe he should just tell you to get it off of his chest.

“Listen,” he said, voice laced with seriousness. “When I told you things were complicated, I meant it.”

Sensing the mood change from his tone and body language, you stopped smiling and decided to pay attention to him. Just this once. Never again. After this you could go back to hating him.

Frank continued. “The Entity was going to start…well, hurting me, if I didn’t start doing better in trials. I really didn’t want to sacrifice you, which is embarrassing to admit, but I’ll say it. And I don’t think it liked that.”

You were surprised. And also relieved that you had been right all along—he had been going easy on you at first.

“Why me, though?” you asked, confused. “Why wouldn’t you want to sacrifice me? What about the other survivors?”

If the slight tilt of his head at your question didn’t answer it for you, the way he started tapping his feet and cracking his knuckles so nervously did.

Boy, if looks could kill, you would have died instantly at the scowl Frank sent your way; you grinned pridefully at the realization that this man was down bad. You couldn’t see the expression behind his mask, though, which Frank was thankful for.

He hated every second of this, but you loved it. You reveled in his embarrassment.

Leaning forward on your hands, you begged, “Tell me more! I want to hear all about your feelings for me.”

“I could stab you right now, you know that?”

“But you won’t. You liiiiike me!”

“What are you, eight years old?”

“No, but I am severely injured and have lost a lot of blood so I am not necessarily in the right headspace at the moment.”

“You make a fair point.”

“So tell me! What’s your favorite thing about me?”

“Your ass.”

“No, really.”

“Okay, your ass and your hair.”

“You know what, Frank, I still hate your guts.”

“No, you don’t.”

You paused for a moment. It was probably the blood loss talking, you decided later, but you said, “No. Maybe I don’t.”

[silverflame2724]

Accidental Martial God WWX

That was exacty what I meant actually but I do have a few more povs if you want.

LQRs reaction to a demonic cultivator ascending, JGS and JGY reaction to the Yin Tiger Tally moving completely out of reach, WQ pondering the true requirements for ascension given WWX doesn't have a golden core yet ascended, WWX musing on Godhood and on his new followers both the good and the more disturbing worshipers.

Maybe LWJ protects the Wen Remnants because WWX asked him to in a dream and after he succeeds (13 years later) he ascends and is finally reunited with WWX.

Lan Qiren did not know what to think. Wei Wuxian, his most troublesome student, a demonic cultivator, had ascended. He’d ascended. How was that even possible? Were the Heavens blind? Why would they allow someone like Wei Wuxian to ascend?

From what Lan Qiren had thought, only those who are righteous and followed the correct path in life like the Lan clan’s founder, Lan An, would be worthy of ascending.

Either the qualifications for ascension were lower than he thought or Lan Qiren had been horribly mistaken about Wei Wuxian’s personality and motivations for using demonic cultivation. That last thought made Lan Qiren feel very uncomfortable.

He’d always been harsh on the boy and disregarded him, even - he ashamedly admitted - punishing him harsher and more frequently than others.

He’d thought he was in the right because of how Wei Wuxian was but…..

But if he was wrong then Lan Qiren owed him an apology.

………………….

Jin Guangshan wanted to scream out in frustration seeing Wei Wuxian ascend. That brat had the Stygian Tiger Seal on him - according to his spies - and now that he ascended, the Seal went with him.

He had had so many plans on bribing Wei Wuxian to his side or killing him when he refused - as well as stealing the Seal - and then taking over the cultivation world, lording over it as he was always meant to be.

Now those plans are ruined. He sighed. Hopefully that bastard son of his can finally prove his usefulness and give him countermeasures or he might retract his favor from him.

……………………

Jin Guangyao’s first thought upon seeing Wei Wuxian ascend was: Oh shit. I have to go make up new plans to help Father.

He knew his father wanted Wei Wuxian and the Seal and didn’t really care how he obtained both or either, just as long as no one traced it back to him. He sighed. This was going to be a big headache. But at least the plans on putting his father as Chief Cultivator were going smoothly. He could only imagine what his father would do to him if even this failed.

..............................

Wen Qing had still been in Yiling, making plans to relocate her family, when the news that Wei Wuxian had ascended had reached her.

Her first reaction was, That’s impossible.

Because it was, right? Wen Qing should know. She cut out his core, after all. But to think he was still able to ascend while he was a demonic cultivator made her wonder what the requirements were for ascending. Perhaps it’s an honest heart? Self-sacrificing tendencies? Or is it a sacrifice of some sorts? She paused. What if.....it was a trial? To test a person’s will? What Wei Wuxian had suffered was.....horrible. Could it have all been just a test from the Heavens?

If that was so, the Heavens really are cru--- 

“A’ Jie, we have to go! Some Jin were spotted nearby!”

Wen Qing gritted her teeth. Members of the branch families of Qishan, regardless of whether they were innocent or not, were captured and subsequently tortured to death by the Jin and sometimes the Nie. Because her family was all in Yiling, they were safe.......but only for now. They had to hurry and escape.

Wen Qing sent a quick prayer to Wei Wuxian, hoping for her family’s safety, and tucked the rest of her belongings in her qiankun pouch, remembering to wrap her arms in bandages to hide the needles she might need to paralyze any Jin that came close.

....................................

Wei Wuxian’s first thought when he landed in the Heavens was, What the fuck.

Then he looked around and looked taken aback and wary at the unfamiliar faces around him. Where the fuck am I?

“Hello.” A rather stoic-faced man greeted.

“Hello.” Wei Wuxian parroted back. The person in front of him didn’t seem to be a threat so he felt a little tension loosen from his shoulders. “Um, Xiansheng? I’m afraid I don’t know where I am?”

“You have just ascended.” The man replied, throwing Wei Wuxian aback.

“Are you pulling my leg?” Wei Wuxian asked. “How is that even possible! I don’t even have---” He swallowed. I don’t even have a core.

“I do not lie. Come, we are wasting time. We must get you washed up and dressed for the induction ceremony.” Seeing Wei Wuxian still frozen, the man sighed, signalled for some people to pick Wei Wuxian up and dragged the struggling man to some quarters.

After absentmindedly washing, drying and changing himself, Wei Wuxian noticed some differences in his body. He wasn’t....cold or hurting anymore. And - he touched his back - he could feel his back! After having his muscles and nerves shredded by Zidian, he didn’t think he’d ever be able to sense touch on his back or even move without pain! But now he can!

He heard the urging of some people and grumbled.

“You will become a god of demonic cultivation.” Was the first thing he heard when he stepped out of the room.

Wei Wuxian choked. “Excuse me?!”

“I said what I said. Now then, if you would please concentrate, you should be able to hear the prayers of the people below.”

Wei Wuxian felt like everything was moving a little too fast for him, but nevertheless complied. Immediately after, a flood of prayers hit him at full force.

“Wei Wuxian!” That was Jiang Cheng! “….Have some fun up there.”

“A’ Xian, do be well. Shijie isn’t there to take care of you so do be well.” Wei Wuxian refused to cry.

“Wei-Xiong! I hope there’s someone up there to supply you with you know what *winks*”

How does someone even wink in their prayers? Wei Wuxian thought amusedly.

“Wei Ying.” That was Lan Zhan. “Wei Ying, I will—be well.”

Ah, Lan Zhan. Always concise even in your thoughts.

Wei Wuxian was a little teary. As much as he was glad to not be a part of the cultivation world considering all the rumors, he did regret leaving behind those that cared for him.

That thought was much more cemented upon hearing…….

“Ah, Lord Wei, the pinnacle of evil, the role model of all demonic cultivators!” Wei Wuxian’s eye twitched. “Please hear my plea for more power! I need it, I need it to destroy everyone who harmed me!”

“Wei Wuxian, I wish to gain power over resentful energy so that I may tear my enemies limb by limb!

“Give me money! You’re a god, aren’t you? Be useful for once and give me some gold!”

“Tch. If I’m going to pray for anything, then it’ll have to be the Seal. You’re a god, now, right? So you have no need for the Seal. Just give it up.”

No matter the good or bad, Wei Wuxian heard the wishes and prayers of the people down below and while some were innocent enough, there were those that wished for death, destruction, tools for torture, power, money, women…….you name it.

It made Wei Wuxian feel a little disgusted with humanity. He cut off his focus from the bad and focused on the prayer he received from his friends and family.

“Wei Wuxian, I heard you became a god.” It was Wen Qing. He hadn’t heard her voice in a long time. “I know this might seem shameless of me after all I did to you, but please. Please guarantee the safety of my family. We’re being hunted down and—”

Her prayer was abruptly cut off, before coming back in full force with notes of desperation. Her family had been captured and taken to Qiongqi Path! Wei Wuxian panicked. He didn’t know how to escape from this place and try to go help her.

The…..person who was watching over him evidently knew what he was thinking about and merely stated that gods cannot interfere with the mortal realm. So he was stuck.

But that didn’t mean he was out of options.

It took a few days, but he managed to wheedle out how to help: via dreams. He merely needed to get into the mind of one of his followers and tell them to help. Much like those prophetic dreams Wei Wuxian had read about as a kid.

So he buckled down, thinking of the best candidate to help him.

……………………………

Lan Wangji looked at the landscape around him and concluded that he was dreaming. Though, it was a little odd that he was aware that he was dreaming. Not that he hasn’t realized he was dreaming before - especially in those many fantasies he had of Wei Ying - but to be aware that this is a dream and to see nothing but a flat landscape was pretty out of the ordinary. 

Anyway, he digressed. What was going on?

“Uhh, Lan Zhan? Can you hear me?”

“W-Wei Ying?!” Lan Wangji couldn’t be blamed for stuttering. He wasn’t expecting this!

“Phew. Oh good, you can hear me. Anyway, Lan Zhan, I gotta be quick about this because I’m kinda sorta bending the rules here, but do you think you can go to Qiongqi Path and rescue Wen Qing and her family?”

“Okay.”

“Huh? Just like that? Not even going to ask me for a reason, er-gege?”

Lan Wangji’s ears flushed red at the address. “If Wei Ying wants to save them, you must have a good reason. That’s enough for me.”

“Ah, Hanguang-Jun.” The title was spoken fondly. “Always so good. I’ll tell you anyway. Wen Qing and her family sheltered Jiang Cheng and I after Lotus Pier fell and even brought back Jiang-shushu and Yu-furen’s bodies! That’s a debt I cannot repay.”

“I understand. I will help.”

He couldn’t see Wei Ying, but could practically feel the amusement from him.

“Wei Ying.”

“Yes?”

“Are......Are you well?”

“Of course I am. I’m actually feeling so much better than before.” Wei Ying grumbled, “I’m not even in pain anymore.”

“You were in pain?” Lan Wangji asked worriedly. “Wei Ying, why didn’t you say anything.”

“Lan Zhan, there was nothing you or anyone else could do to alleviate my pain. It doesn’t matter now. I’m okay.”

Lan Wangji was still worried and wanted to speak to him more, but---

“Ah! Looks like my time’s up!” Wei Ying exclaimed cheerfully as the dreamscape wavered. “See you, Lan Zhan!”

Lan Wangji nodded. “See you, Wei Ying.” I’ll catch up to you soon.

.

.

.

And 13 years later, Lan Wangji kept his promise.

___________________

I didn’t edit this so I’m hoping there’s not too many grammatical errors lol. 

[inhuman-obey-me]

not a request, but do any of the mods have opinions on Raphael in game?? I’m really hoping the devs are hinting to a new character but 👁👄👁 idk. He seems to have a chip on his shoulder regarding humans and Beel described him as “sarcastic”. I just (grabby hands) want some conflict

We got a lot of various tidbits about Raphael in Season 3, and it certainly seems like he’s being set up as a more major character for Season 4! From what we've seen so far, it seems perhaps less that he has a chip on his shoulder about humans in particular and more ... that he gives us yet another look at how the Celestial Realm operates/behaves. 

So yes, let’s talk about ✨ Raphael ✨.

(spoilers for everything below, of course)

We’re first introduced to Raphael after Solomon’s cooking does some weird dream time-travel shit and wake up to Angel!Asmodeus finding us in the Celestial Realm. 

One of the first things he does is check to make sure that MC isn’t with Raphael, as he’s currently avoiding him since he went to a human world party. And what does Raphael think of an angel sneaking off to go to a human world party?

Raphael thinks it’s a wicked and immoral thing to do. Interesting. 

As you meet the other brothers as angels, Raphael's name is mentioned a few more times, all basically around the fact that he's going to get on their case -- especially on Asmo's. Mammon mentions that he saw Raphael walking around looking for Asmodeus and he had his spear on him, which Asmo is not too happy to hear. Asmodeus also mentions that Raphael has probably been badmouthing him to Lucifer, and Lucifer later tells Asmodeus to take care of the situation lest he find himself "at the pointy end of Raphael's spear".

So, we get a pretty clear picture that Raphael is pretty strict and enforces the angel ways by, well, force.

( Fun Fact: There is a probably a reason Asmodeus in particular seems to be the one shown getting in Raphael's crosshairs -- in the Book of Tobit and the Testament of Solomon, Raphael is the angel that thwarts Asmodeus and his demonic, dastardly plans. )

But Asmodeus isn't the only one who didn't get along with Raphael. During the test to get your first star for your sorcerer's license, Beelzebub makes a mention that Lucifer and Mammon used to go and gang up on Raphael together, arguing with him. This is the first hint we see that Lucifer didn't actually get along with Raphael either.

Later, during the second Celestial Realm "trip" (the fairy trick), this is reinforced by a bit more direct information from Lucifer in regards to Raphael. When Satan and MC run into Angel!Lucifer, he starts complaining about how Raphael is dumping a bunch of work that is not Lucifer's responsibility on him, probably as harassment since the brothers are always getting into shenanigans. Truly, he never got a break huh. It's Lucifer who says that Raphael always has something snide or sarcastic to say to him.

A bit later, Lucifer also talks about how he doesn't really have many angels to ask for advice, listing the other seraphs and noting that Raphael in particular is "generally snide and unpleasant".

So, pretty safe to say -- Lucifer did not like Raphael and the two did not get along.

The next tidbit we get about Raphael's personality and who he was is when going to the amusement park with Belphegor to meet Diavolo, and this one is slightly different. Belphegor recalls a moment where he got lost in the Celestial Realm and ended up stuck in a tree. Who came to save him? Surprisingly, Raphael!

When you ask Belphie if he liked Raphael, this is his response:

Belphie seems to extend the most grace in regards to Raphael, but mentions how he always looked sullen & irritated and that at times, he seemed like he could be a demon in disguise. He basically is constantly bossed around by Michael and looking after his every need and whatever he says.

So! We've gathered that Raphael was/is a snide, sarcastic, unpleasant, irritable, and overworked high-ranking angel. The brothers for the most part did not get along with him, and he seems to strictly adhere to the Celestial Realm's way of things.

So, that brings us to Raphael's role in the story . . .

When Barbatos visits Luke at the Angel's Halo to pick up some coffee to take over to Serenity Manor, Luke mentions that he's been worried about Simeon. He says Simeon has been spacing out a lot, and seemingly avoiding Michael.

That's when Barbatos asks if Michael made the request for Simeon and Luke to come to the human world in person, and surprisingly, Luke responds no -- it was Raphael who said it. Or at least, it seemingly was, as Luke cuts himself off due to his cupcakes being ready to take out of the oven.

The subject is dropped and the scene moves on. We see a text conversation between Barbatos and Lucifer (in the Fantastic Three chat) afterwards, where Barbatos mentions he has something he'd like to discuss with Lucifer while he's over. Presumably, it's about his suspicions on what's going on with the Celestial Realm.

From there, the rest of season three plays out, and then we get to the after credits scene.

And lo and behold who shows up? Raphael. And Simeon is ... not thrilled to see him.

Given what we know of Raphael's personality, plus Simeon's expression here, we can safely assume he says that line rather mockingly. "Brother" seems to be a general term angels use with each other, like brethren of an order, but it almost seems to sound like a threat here. Remember your place kind of vibes.

Simeon puts on a polite smile and says he's so glad Raphael could stop by, and then we get an ominous text conversation between Diavolo and Lucifer to end the season. Diavolo has received troubling news from the Celestial Realm, news they should be concerned about, news about Simeon.

Now, Season 3 has had numerous scenes showing that Simeon is feeling a bit distant from the Celestial Realm. We have:

Luke's concerns earlier, about him spacing out all the time and avoiding Michael

Simeon's mysterious meet up with someone that Belphegor thought he recognized

Simeon's confession that his happiest time in the Celestial Realm was when the brothers were still angels

The fact that Simeon was demoted -- he used to be one of the highest-ranking angels as a seraph, but was demoted to archangel at some point (you can read our two fics here and here which expand on our headcanons and thoughts around this)

Simeon's PTSD-like reaction to seeing God/Father during the boogeyman incident, which shows someone's biggest fear, and is convinced that the boogeyman was showing his fear and not Lucifer's (which we agree with)

We also saw in Season 2 that Simeon has no issue talking back and being snarky to Michael. All in all, we can pretty confidently conclude that Simeon is on thin ice at best, and at worst? He's very likely in some real trouble.

So Raphael showing up at the Angel's Halo to greet Simeon in such a manner certainly makes it seem like he will have a much bigger role in Season 4, and if you're looking for conflict, he's probably come to deliver.

He is the strict, snide, sarcastic, unpleasant angel that does all of Michael's dirty work. He upholds and enforces the Celestial Realm's ways, which we know includes looking down on demons and certainly doesn't seem very forgiving to misbehaving angels either.

Raphael isn't here to be Simeon's friend.

Lesson 60 Hard Mode shows that Michael has sent a sealed envelope listing the next two exchange students that will be arriving in the Devildom from the Celestial Realm, and Asmodeus and Mammon both express shock at the two names they listed. They obviously recognize them. Could one of them be Raphael? Maybe, but it's not clear. Guess we'll just have to wait and see when Season 4 comes out.

Either way, we too are certainly looking forward to some conflict and major stuff going down in the new season. 👀

[multifandomfanficss]

Perfect

Doctor x Reader (Platonic!Jack x Reader)

Prompt: When on an adventure with the Doctor and Jack the reader is attacked by an alien called a Psyfon, a race with psychic abilities who feed off of emotions. The reader gets stuck in their perfect dream realm and the Doctor has to save them before they die in there.

Warnings: Dead family members.

A/N: Pretty much any Doctor can be used, but I mostly thought of 10 and 11 while writing it. The aliens were inspired by the Djinn from Supernatural. I was also inspired by Doctor Who: The Infinite Quest a little bit so if you’re a fan of the main series you should totally check that out. Also please let me know if I made an error in pronouns. I tried to make the reader gender neutral so everyone could relate. 

You had been traveling with the Doctor for a while now and had run into Jack not long after you met him. When you first met Jack, an old friend of the Doctor’s, you didn’t believe him when he said he had known the Doctor for over a century. Judging by his earthly appearance and his age there was no way this could be true, but after watching him die you quickly learned of his immortality. 

You met the Doctor when he saved you from the Cybermen. Sadly he couldn’t save your family from such a terrible fate, but he got you out just in time. Ever since then they had been your biggest fear. Jack and the Doctor had lived for so long they both knew what it was like to lose the people they cared for most...nobody knew better than the Doctor. They helped you get through the pain that came after such a big loss. The Doctor would often hear crying coming from your room during your early nights on the TARDIS when he sat up late in the console room and he would be at your side in seconds to comfort you. He was always there for you no matter what. You wouldn’t have gotten to this point without him. By now the nightmares had gone away, mostly, and the scars had stopped bleeding, but they were still there. They would always be there. This history was a part of you forever, your history, and you were just lucky enough to have the Doctor in it. If you’re being completely honest with yourself you had grown a little bit of a crush on the Doctor. I mean who wouldn’t? He’s the Doctor. You loved him, but you would never tell him. You were happy living with his ignorance. Life was better in the bliss of your friendship. 

It had been just a normal adventure with your two best friends, Jack and the Doctor, but then again nothing was ever really normal with them. You were separated from your boys as your ran down a long dark corridor. Your shoes slapped against the cold, hard pavement as you rounded the corner. When you looked behind you there seemed to be nothing chasing you anymore. You stopped to catch your breath. 

The three of you had been investigating a series of psychic attacks that were leaving people brain dead and full of a strange blue goo. You weren’t sure what kind of alien could do such a thing, but you knew you had to find out. 

“(Y/N)?!” I hear Jack yell in a hushed tone. His voice echos throughout the empty building. You turn to look for him when you start to hear ringing in your ears and a giant pounding in your head. You feel your eyes close as your body hits the ground. 

THIRD PERSON POV

Jack stood next to (Y/N)’s body with his gun aimed at the monster while the Doctor crouched down to check their pulse. 

“You better hope they’re still alive!” Jack said as he shoved his big gun in the monster’s face. Usually the Doctor would object to pointing guns at people, but he was so worried about (Y/N) he didn’t have time to care about Jack’s manners. 

“What did you do to them?!” The Doctor asks standing up to look at the alien. They were from a species called Psyfons, a group of aliens who feed off the emotions of other people. 

“Don’t worry, they’re only sleeping,” the alien slurred. 

“For now,” they added. Jack hit the alien with the butt of his gun and knocked them out. The Doctor gave him a disapproving look.

“You should be happy. Knocking them out was the least I could do” Jack joked. The Doctor rolled his eyes and dropped down to (Y/N)‘s body again. Jack joined him this time. They were sweating. He placed his hand over their forehead.

“They’re burning up” Jack stated the obvious. 

“Yes, I know I-I I have to do-do this thing-“ The Doctor starts stuttering. 

“Then do it!” Jack cuts him. 

“But I can’t! I swore I’d never do it again! Not since-“ He started to get a little choked up.

“Since what?!” Jack questioned. 

“Not since Donna” The Doctor finished sadly. Jack put a hand on the Doctor’s shoulder. 

“It’s the only way to save them” Jack told him.

“It was the only way to save her too” The Doctor says sadly.

“Maybe it’ll be different this time” Jack suggests.

“We don’t know that” The Doctor says coldly as he puts his hands to (Y/N)’s head and enter’s their mind. 

(Y/N)’S POV

You wake up laying in the grass in front of your old house. You hear the sound of birds and the sun is just a little too bright for comfort, but it’s home. You take a deep breath of the fresh air. You smile, but you’re confused. You look over to see the Doctor standing in the TARDIS door. Jack is nowhere to be seen. 

“Where’s Jack?” You ask. 

“Oh, popped off to see his friends at Torchwood, I suppose” The Doctor tells you. You nod as you look back to your house. 

“And we’re home because...” You wonder.

“The Psyfon knocked you out. I figured this would be a nice, safe place to rest for a while” He reminds you. 

“And I couldn’t just rest in the TARDIS?” You ask.

“I thought this would be a nice surprise” He says. 

“What year is it?” You ask. You doubt he would be able to bring you to a time period where your family is alive, but it never hurts to ask. 

“2021” He answers.

“So they’re not here” you say sadly.

“Who’s not here?” He asks.

“My family” You say becoming more sad, but more confused by the second. How could he just forget like that? You know he’s lived for a long time, but surely he wouldn’t forget something this important to you. Would he? He gives you a confused look.

“Doctor, my family is d-“ You’re cut off by the sound of a door opening. 

“You didn’t tell us you were coming!” You hear a voice say. You stop dead in your tracks and you go white. It can’t be. 

“Mom?” You say as you turn around to see her. You run to her and engulf her in a giant hug. 

“Woah, what’s that for?” Your mother asks delighted, as you practically knock her down. 

“I just missed you. That’s all” You say as you try to hold back your tears. 

“Where is everybody?” You ask, as it suddenly dawns on you that your family is alive. 

“Your father went to go pick up your brother and sister from school” She informs you. The Doctor comes up behind you and takes your hand. He squeezes it, giving you a big smile. He is an impossible man, but you never knew he could do something like this for you. 

“Why don’t you two come in? It’s almost time for tea” Your mother invites you in. You gladly accept, of course. You watch your mother go into the kitchen as you pull the Doctor aside into the living room and hug him tightly. 

“Thank you” You tell him. That’s when you start to let go of a few tears. 

“I figured it was time to go home” He says happily. The hug lingers a little longer than usual. He just holds you. Then he places a quick kiss to your cheek, just missing your lips. Your face goes red. This is completely out of character for your relationship with the Doctor. Sure you had always wanted to be something more, but he didn’t need to know that. You didn’t want your relationship with him to change. You figure it’s best to just dance around the subject. You pull away and clear your throat. 

“So, um...how did you do it?” You ask.

“Do what?” He asks looking lovingly into your eyes. 

“Bring my family back?” You ask with a slight chuckle.

“I didn’t” He says simply. That’s when your head begins to ring again. 

“Let me in, (Y/N). That’s it.” You hear the Doctor’s voice, but his lips aren’t moving. Suddenly there is a light and the Doctor shifts uncomfortably. He cracks his neck and stretches out his arms. 

“Good thing there was a body here for me to jump into or else that could have been disastrous” He comments. You give him a confused look. 

“Oh, yes! I’m sorry (Y/N), but none of this is real” He says plainly. 

“What?” You ask. This all certainly looks and feels real. The sound of a kettle whistle comes from the kitchen. The Doctor sniffs the air. 

“Is that tea?” He asks. 

“Tea’s ready!” Your mom calls from the kitchen. 

“Doctor, you need to tell me what’s going on right now” You demand. He looks into the kitchen and makes a face.

“The Psyfon. It put you in a dream state so it could feed off your energy and emotions. You’re dying in the real world. Turning to goo” He held out the last word as he made a face of disgust and interest. He gave you a sad look as he started to put the pieces together, of where you were and who you were with. You started to feel your legs give out from underneath you. The Doctor guided you to a chair. 

“I want to stay” You say numbly. 

“(Y/N), none of this is real” He starts.

“I don’t care. I want to stay” You repeat. 

“You’ll die in here” He begins. 

“Time works differently in dreams. I could easily spend my whole life here-“ You try to rationalize it.

“You’ll never see me again” The Doctor tries. 

“There’s a version of you here-“ You try, but are cut off again. He crouches down to your level and takes hold of your hands. 

“(Y/N), none of this is real. It will never be real. Your pain balances out your beauty. There wouldn’t be one without the other and that’s what makes you human and you are SO human. This is all in your head. You will be alone in here forever. Please just come home with me. There are people there who will miss you. Come back with me, back to the TARDIS, please!” He results to begging as a last ditch effort. 

“How can I go back when everything is so perfect here? I’m perfect here. I’m not a mess. I can just be me” You start to cry. 

“You’re always perfect to me and that little bit of mess makes you human. It doesn’t lessen your beauty or your creativity or your kindness. It just adds to who you are as a person” He says, wiping away a tear.

“Please. Come home with me” He begs. You nod in response as he gives your hands a squeeze. He gives you a sad smile. You stand together and you hear the doorbell ring. 

“That must be your father. He forgot his keys again” Your mother laughs as she walks to the door. The door opens and the Doctor pushes himself in front of your as three Cybermen crash through the door. 

“DELETE” One yells, as it kills your mother. 

“NO” You scream, as the Doctor tries to keep you from running towards her.

“She isn’t real! Come on!” He yells over the sound of pounding Cybermen feet as he pulls you out the back way to the garden.

“Where’s the TARDIS?” He asks. 

“It’s on the other side of the house!” You say as you pull him around the building. You lay your eyes on the beautiful blue box as the Doctor shoves his key inside. 

“YOU WILL BE UPGRADED” The Cybermen shout. Once unlocked, you push your way through the doors to find a hollow Police Box. 

“Why is this happening?!” You cry. The Doctor places his hands on your shoulders. 

“The dream is turning into a nightmare to try to keep you here. (Y/N), come on. You have to think. What’s keeping you here?” He asks.

“My family is dead!” You cry.

“Yes, something else” He tries to think. You look at his thinking face. His beautiful thinking face and it strikes you. 

“I’m in love with you” You blurt out.

“What?!” He looks back at you with a confused look. 

“The version of you here. I think he felt the same way” You give him an embarrassed look. He lets go of a big breath. 

“Well...” He starts as he tilts his head. 

“I suppose if admitting the way I feel gets us out of here then the real me doesn’t feel very different” He finishes quickly. 

“Wait, what?!” You respond. He gives you his classic Doctor smile before the Cybermen fade. Everything fades. The world goes black. 

You wake up crying with a pounding headache in your bed in the TARDIS. The Doctor rushes in just like old times. 

“It’s okay. I’m here” The Doctor tells you as he sits on your bed and wraps his arms around you. 

“I just had the most insane dream” You start to tell him. 

“Well...” His voice fades. 

“Doctor, was that real?” You ask him. He pulls back to look at you. 

“In a sense, yes” He goes on to explain the effects the Psyfon had on you and how he went into your mind to save you. He explains how you were unconscious when you came out of the dream state and that he brought you back to your room on the TARDIS to rest.

“Where’s Jack?” You ask.

“He’s bringing the Psyfon to the Shadow Proclamation for me where they will be tried for their psychological attacks. They won’t hurt anyone anymore” He promises. After you’ve calmed down somewhat he gets up to leave the room. 

“You should get some rest” He says opening the door. 

“Wait! Doctor, do you think maybe you could stay with me? Just until I fall asleep?” You ask. 

“Of course” He responds as he awkwardly climbs into your bed and wraps his arms around you. You almost forget about your confessions until he kisses you on the cheek. 

“Goodnight, (Y/N)” He says sweetly.

“Goodnight, Doctor” You say as you drift off to sleep to the sound of his dual heartbeats. 

[devildomdisaster]

I'm sending this assuming that requests are open. If not, feel free to ignore this, haha

Can I request the bros reacting to mc getting annoyed and worried during a thunderstorm, and when they ask why mc answers with something akin to "my dog is terrified of thunderstorms, so it's become instinct to find him and comfort him"?

I've been slow to answer requests lately. Sorry, this took so long.

Lucifer:

Your constant pacing is annoying him. Lucifer can’t figure out why you are so agitated, and your pacing is starting to distract him from the paperwork he has to have done by morning. “It’s just a thunderstorm, Mc please.”

You whip around to glare at him so quickly he is taken aback.

Nothing in your expression says fear, and to be honest, Lucifer is relieved you don’t seem to be afraid of the storm. He hadn’t handled the situation well and he wouldn’t ever want you to think he cares so little for you that he would brush aside your fears as if they meant nothing.

Now that he is thinking clearly again he changes tactics.

“Mc, my dear, what has got you so upset?”

“My dog hates thunder, and I always have to comfort him during a storm. He’s not here. But I can’t help but worry. And it’s just instinct now I guess.

Lucifer seriously considers bringing your dog to the Devildom.

But the trouble that would get him into, the paperwork, Diavolo, the chance that some sort of harm could come to your pet dissuades him from that idea.

“I’m sorry mc.” and he really does look distressed that he can’t help you.

Until he realizes that Cerberus isn’t the biggest fan of thunder either. Cerberus’s room is more protected from the noise of the storm but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t like attention and comfort during a storm.

Lucifer takes your hand and silently leads you down to Cerberus.

You are understandably reluctant at first but Lucifer assures you that Cerberus is completely docile while he is around.

Soon you are snuggled up against the three-headed dog and Lucifer is finishing his work on the ground next to you.

Mammon:

Mammon bluntly asks you what has you so annoyed

“Oi human, what’s got ya all antsy?”

The way he says it makes you want to fight him just a little.

But he’s a demon and there’s no way a human could scare him with a little glare. Well normally your glare might scare him just a bit, but the look in your eyes now is tempered by the worry that is so clear on your face.

He drags you to his room and has you explain exactly why you are so worried.

Mammon asks you all about your dog.

He somehow distracts you by getting you to tell him all kinds of cute and funny stories about your dog.

You end up sitting with Mammon for hours, music playing in the background, almost completely forgetting about the storm.

He definitely wants to meet your dog now.

He’ll even go to Lucifer to get permission to visit your home in the human realm so you can both see your dog.

Levi:

You are distracting him from his gaming and it takes Levi a second to process that you might need his comfort.

“If you are going to be a distracting normie, could you at least not pace in front of the screen Mc?”

You apologetically move away from the screen towards the door.

“W-Wait! I didn’t mean you should leave! What’s wrong?”

You hesitate not sure if you want to tell him now, but then you spot Henry in his fishbowl.

“My dog hates thunder,” you say refusing to look at Levi and staring at the fishbowl instead “I usually have to go find him when a storm starts. But he’s not here, and I dunno… I think it’s just like instinct to comfort him but I cant so…”

Levi gets it.

He has so much love for his pets. Even the ones that grew into giant demon-eating monsters that don’t even recognize him.

He’d do almost anything for them.

You can’t go comfort your dog, but maybe Levi can comfort you?

He’ll try, even if he is blushy and nervous.

You’ll spend the storm exchanging stories about your pets and watching animes that are eerily similar to your situation. Like ‘My demon dog hates storms but I’m in the human realm and now the storms make me anxious because I can’t help but worry about him.’ and ‘My crush is worried about her pets and I almost messed everything up, but don’t worry I think I can help!’

Satan:

It’s no secret this demon is more of a cat lover.

But he still cares about your dog because he cares about you.

Blunt demon 2.0

Straight up asks you about your behavior as soon as you start acting weird. Although he is much more polite about it than Mammon.

“Mc, is there something you want to talk about? You seem distressed.”

“No!” you snap “Yes? Maybe? I don’t know Satan. This storm is driving me crazy! Every fiber of my being tells me I need to go find him. But he’s not here and I can’t help but worry and I know you mean well but there is nothing you can do to fix this.”

“Oh, well I don’t know if I would say there is nothing I can do. But who is he, kitten?” he asks gently, trying to understand

“My dog.”

You stare at him as he goes rummaging through the piles on one of his bookcases. After several minutes he turns triumphantly to you holding an ornamental metal hand mirror out to you.

It looks beyond old, and it’s surprisingly heavy and sturdy when he hands it to you.

“Just think of your dog and look in the mirror.”

“Like beauty and the beast?” you joke.

“Where do you think the ‘beast got the mirror in the first place?” Satan asks.

“I-What? You mean you-”

Satan’s eyes glint “That’s a story for another time, but yes I gave the ‘beast’ his magic mirror. But the fairy tales butchered the actual story,” He sighs.

You look in the mirror as instructed and see your dog with your family, tale wagging, dashing across a grassy field after a ball.

You smile “Thank you, Satan. This really helps.”

“Anytime Mc”

Asmo:

Asmo is telling you about his latest Devilgram post and how his followers “simply loved seeing the picture of you on the Ferris wheel with him,” when the first clap of thunder rolls through the air above the house of lamentation.

When you jump up at the sound Asmo thinks you’re afraid of the storm.

He carefully places the top to the nail polish he was using back on the bottle before focusing on you. “Darling, are you ok?”

You shake your head, pacing to the door then back to your vacated seat on Asmo’s bed.

“Mc darling can you tell me what’s wrong?” Asmo analyses your expression quickly, he’s looking for fear but doesn’t find any.

“It’s the storm,” you murmur “My dog can’t stand thunder and I’m used to going to find him when a storm starts. But I can’t really do that here so I’m stuck not knowing what to do with myself.”

“Oh Mc, that’s absolutely adorable!”

You glare half-heartedly at the demon.

“Don’t look at me like that!” Asmo pouts “I can’t help but react when you act so sweet.” he hums in thought for a moment.

“Is there someone taking care of him now?”

You nod “Yes, but I still worry sometimes.”

“I know darling. How about we go ask Lucifer if you can go for a visit tomorrow?”

You perk up at the thought and Asmo grins “Good, then we’ll do that first thing tomorrow morning. But for now, do you think we can distract you with a movie and some facemasks?”

Beel:

Beel doesn’t want to intrude, but he can’t help it when your mood starts affecting him.

He can’t enjoy the snacks he just bought when you seem so upset.

“Mc… will you tell me how I can help you?”

The sincerity of his question shocks you for a moment.

You blink up at him, feeling heat blooming in your cheeks.

“I’m sorry Beel, I didn’t mean to ruin your snacks”

“It’s ok Mc, you're more important.”

“It’s just that storms bother me. My dog hates them and when I can’t be there to comfort him I get… well like this.”

Beel nods and asks if you’d like to do something to take your mind off the storm.

“I don’t really know if I can just forget about the storm, you know?”

“That’s ok, how about we make some comfort foods then?”

Beel has you choose some music to play in hope of concealing the sound of thunder and you end up talking about your dog and cooking your favorite foods.

Beel is content helping out even if you aren't in the best of moods as long as he can help cheer you up just a bit.

Belphie:

Belphie is already annoyed that the thunder is keeping him from sleeping.

So your mood fits right in with his.

You can both be anxious/ annoyed little terrors together.

The rest of the brothers are giving you both plenty of space.

Somehow having someone in a similar mood as your own is helpful.

You can both be a little snappy without the other being offended or impatient.

You probably end up in a pile of pillows and blankets with Belphie. You're both a little restless but eventually, the comfort of the blankets and Belphie’s warmth calm you.

He’ll make sure you’re ok, with gently probing questions to find out what caused your mood.

He can’t exactly help your situation, after all, he doesn’t have the power to bring your dog to the Devildom and he doubts Lucifer would let him anyways.

But he can, and will let you talk if you want, and if not he’ll support you in silence.

He likes it best when you are happy but he knows there are problems he can’t solve.

He’ll ask if you’d like to dream about being home with your dog and if so he’ll influence your dreams.