Shadows Of Heaven/Dark Prince Audio Universe

there's the barebones of a modern au in here somewhere

Samiel: claims he doesn't have a favorite (lying) but associates with Kuromi specifically because of Carys. He only knows her as My Melody's goth girlfriend and that's all he really cares to know about her. If they had phones in this universe he'd have a Kuromi phone charm just because Carys got it so they could match.

Michael: his favorite is actually Cinnamoroll but everyone associated him with Pompompurin because he's big and blond so he leaned into it. likes having really cutesy stuff while still being shredded and having RBF because the contradiction is funny. he casually rocks up to the gym with Pompompurin on his sweatpants and Megan Thee Stallion in his headphones. none of the other gym goers know what the fuck his deal is and he will never tell them.

Zazriel: pochacco. he cannot explain it. he's confounded by having a favorite to begin with because nothing about Sanrio is reflective of his style at all, but the fact that he's absolutely taken with the tiny sports dog is so out of left field that it lowkey makes him mad. Not the penguin with the bowtie? Not the hopeless romantic fish monster? Not the random little cat guy? it's the popular goddamn sports dog that makes him susceptible to pointless-but-adorable marketing shit? Nightmarish. He has a single plushie that Michael got for him after a year or so of watching Zazriel have this stupidly pointless debate with himself that he keeps on his bed. Out of spite, surely.

Custodian: doesn't have a genuine favorite because they have better things to do with their time (and are a bit of a departure from the target demographic) but has a passing fondness for Hello Kitty herself cause she's the easiest to recognize... until they're introduced to Aggretsuko. they're enamoured with her because they relate incredibly hard. While they don't rep her brand like the others do with their favorites, the brothers (who are probably the one who introduced them to anything Sanrio, tbh) have gotten them a handful of baggy graphic tees with Aggretsuko's furious, screaming face on it that they wear as pajamas.

Ilyian: this bitch LOVES Cinnamoroll; if he owns something that would have a cute little character on it, it's probably that silly little bunny-dog. hair clips, phone charms, cardigans, whatever. It's not incorporated into every aspect of his life because he's not obsessed, but it's definitely something you pick up on once you've known him long enough. other notable favorites are Gudetama because he'd love to be a lazy little egg creature that only sleeps and complains and is appreciated for having a cute butt. Alas.

Im gonna be happy with either but idk, i would love carys to finally make the push into being his own character but at the same time the kinda implied nature of carys is what draws me to him. Also, it'll be kinda jarring to go through the 16(?) Eps of him not speaking to suddenly he has a voice!

yessssssssss there was actually supposed to be more horse content in the actual fic but it got cut because the Custodian scene (where the horses are featured) was the last one I wrote while trying to fight off passing out lol

Michael's horse is a Clydesdale named Vivian. They're big and shaggy and very stupid, with a mane that hangs over their eyes and cream colored fur with brown piebald patterns. They technically belong to the Divine Order, and have been "assigned" to Michael more than really being his, but no one plans to take them back because they're not sure Vivian would take well to being reassigned after spending so long with him. Despite having one brain cell that bounces around their head like the DVD logo they're a great emotional support animal; if Michael starts getting too in his head about stuff they'll nudge him with their muzzle or lick him in the face. They're maybe my favorite of the horses just because they're big and dumb

Samiel! hes an ambisous visonary and i made his bday jan 22 (when the first SOH ep came out!!)

Carys! He is an outgoing charmer and hes bday is march 21. the first day of spring (Atleast in the northern hemaphere)

Micheal!! He is a reserved stratigist and i made his bday June 9th. pure vibes on that one

Ilyian! he is a considerate cheerleader, bday is september 24th,

The custodian!! They are an ougoing merrymaker, there bday is nov 11th

Arius! he is an ambitious rouge and his bday is feb 19th, the day obolisks of infity dropped!!

Zazriel!! He is an ambitious acheaver and hiss bday is december 12th.

Yapping + different version under the cut

Old Ilyian back study that I thought was relevant given my recent reblogs

Ilyian doodles hehee

Ilyian doodles hehee

This does include "smaller" things like when Carys becomes a Kuan-Yin fan or specific dates simply because I don't have the patiences or space to do for all of that

The 5 years in between 2021 & 2026 have just been comps for them all, no new major life changing stuff for them

(I forgot to add this but Michael doesn't go to the 2022 Olympics, & the 2026 Olympics is Samiel, Zazriel, & Carys Olympic debut)

Part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, more eventually!!

Episode 4: The Aftermath

Pre-video thoughts:

・I'm going to be deadass when I say idk if SB can actually hear the first half of this audio or if it's just for the viewer, so I'll just work under the assumption that even if SB heard Samiel he's pretending he didn't

・also, I'm doing this because Ao3 is down and I'm procrastinating writing my fic

・I'm tired asf rn & breads intro is not helping, love it though

Things I noticed / analysis:

・"Is he going to live" Samiel.. The wound is superficial, it's a scratch.. In all seriousness this does show how disconnect Samiel is from humans & how they work. He overestimates what it takes to kill a man, believing that a superficial wound will kill SB. This does also show how much Samiel cares though, I believe if anyone else was in SB's position Samiel would not gaf

・This episode mentions what I assume is dream magic (putting people to sleep), so early Ilyian mention?

・"I should've never have brought you with me. It's too dangerous, I should've known something like this was going to happen." I don't think we've seen Samiel be regretful before this, he has not once regreted any of the decisions leading up to this point. But now, because his actions have resulted in harm to SB he regrets it all. It's like he doesn't think ahead, didn't think about how keeping someone close would mean their harm.

・at the very least Samiel seems aware of his emotions constipation. He knows that his way of expressing his love his wrong and unhealthy, he's just not sure how to do it any other way. He actually gets angry at himself for only being able to express his care and affection via violence, which had been one of my gripes with his character previously. Also, I do like that Samiel's acknowledgement of his faults does not fix them, he's still majorly an asshole for a good 3-4 episodes before his kindness starts to out weight his tyrant-ness. Its a slow transition that mostly starts here, with the acknowledgement of the problem.

・ he does actually sight "a sign of weakness" as to why he's so bad with his emotions & being affectionate, Samiel truly, deeply believes that weakness gets you killed the Obsidian Cascade.

・Samiel also acknowledges that SB does not like murder and violence, and does not find comfort in Samiel killing for him

・Yeah, Samiel is so deeply in love that I think its given him whiplash. He hasn't been in love in over 1,000 years it must be so jarring to suddenly fall head over heels for a "human" servant boy. He doesn't know what to do with his emotions, the last 1,000 years have taught him cruelty, anger, and detachment and yet when he sees SB he feels none of those things. SB makes him kind, caring, and attentive but he's long taught himself to bury those emotions. So, now as they come bubbling to the surface the only thing he can think to do with them is twist them; cruelty for a kind reason, anger because he cares, detachment because attention means harm.

・"It's like you can actually see me" I quite like this line, especially with all the things bread has said about the book & how Carys' relationship with Samiel impacts his relationship with Maive & Jav. Maive & Jav cannot see Samiel they can only see the Dark Prince and so they discourage Carys relationship with Samiel. But Carys can see past the Dark Prince and to Samiel, we can see this in just the 3 chapters we have. Carys is constantly thinking about the kindness he'd seen deep within in Samiel and I wonder if it's because Carys (and SB) are Divine.

・"It's almost like it hurts to see you like this" almost? I'm pretty sure it does, Samiel.

・There's something to be said about Samiel not understanding why SB is greatful that he's alive even if he's injured, I just can't find it right now

・"that's still not good enough" sometimes I forget Samiel is a middle child with a military prodigy of an older brother & a genius little brother and on top of that, his father was a neglectful asshole who only cared for perfection.

・"what, did you think I cared or something!? Pitiful." HE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH HIS EMOTIONS. Omg he's a idiot & he always has been. Ugh he pisses me off.

・the fact he immediately contradicts his "I don't care about you" with "I'm just glad your safe" that's literally the definition of caring. He also softened his tone, he regrets what he said. Samiel & The Dark Prince have a different tone of voice and it's most obvious here, the Dark Prince is cruel and condescending, he talks down to SB & mocks him for every thinking he cared. While Samiel is softer, kinder, caring even. Samiel got caught off guard and threw up his wall, only problem was SB has already seen past & weakened that wall.

・Samiel seems to not be able to handle SB being hurt, he's planing to basically lock SB up in Bleakhold and never let him out in fear of him being hurt.

・SB pushing back on Samiel's possession clearly shows that he is well aware of his capabilities and dislikes Samiel's babying of him. SB can very well take care of himself and he knows it even if Samiel wants to deny it.

・Michael being an over protective brother will always be special to me. Michael never stops loving and caring for Samiel, even as he pushes him away. I think to some degree Michael is assessing SB to make sure he's good for Samiel.

Things I found funny:

・"what's wrong with me?" do you want that list alphabetically or chronologically?

・Samiel pretending to have just gotten there like he hasn't been monologuing for a good 5 minutes & SB having NONEEEE of it

・"because your.. My favorite servant" you can just say boyfriend

・Samiel's teasing doesn't stop even in the face of an injured SB it seems

・this one isn't one of my thoughts but someone elses from the discord, but Michael uses dream magic to get around the guards outside the tent(?) SB is in and knowing what we know about Michael and his feelings towards a certain Divine Ascendant of Dreams.. It's quite sweet. Using the magic used by the boy he's had a crush on for over a millennia and who he thinks is dead is so bittersweet.

Post video thoughts:

・chat be proud, I did this in one day!!