#carim

Lacrymariae, the Tear Collectors.

They work for the Cathedral of Morne, influenced and driven by a high level of devotion to the goddess Caitha, and as such, they seek locations where profound grief subsists.

Tearstone rings and miracles of the goddess require tears for their creation, and the Lacrymariae visit with those who are in mourning, collecting their tears as payment for brief condolences.

Levi: In the original fic, I gave Levi a bit of competency. Levi is one of the older bros and that does shine through sometimes, and I think if Mammon wasn't able to step up, he would. Levi is doing his best in the ghost fic to support his family, but that doesn't change that he's heavily introverted and anxious. All his efforts have left him extremely tired and self-conscious, especially since many of his brothers are likely too caught up in their own grief to acknowledge his efforts. Levi sees MC as the same source of reassurance as they were in life, but also as a source of motivation. MC's influence on him has encouraged him to interact more with his family even if it's hard. I wanted to show that positive impact - and how grief doesn't always change family dynamics for the worst, even if it's painful.

Beel: Trauma, trauma, trauma. Beel not only has residual guilt from Lilith, he now has new guilt over MC, and all of that is tied to Belphie. His twin, the one person he should be closest to and understand, stole someone he loves from him. The trauma has kind of overlapped for him and Beel can't reach out for Belphie for it, but he also can't just abandon his twin. Seeing MC again, Beel wants to correct his mistake and take care of whatever form they're in. It's not necessarily the healthiest coping mechanism, but it makes him feel more in control.

Asmo: Asmo is an interesting character for me to write. He's either super difficult or I have a really clear idea of him. For MC's ghost, I wanted to show Solomon's influence on him as well as why MC is important to him. He's using a very human coping mechanism (talking to MC without expecting an answer) both to feel more connected to them and because he felt they listened to him. It's only after he sees MC that it starts to have a more unhealthy bend, but well, I guess it's justified given MC really is there? I think as a character, Asmo has a lot to share in his areas of interest (fashion, trends, parties) but due to their apparent 'shallowness' few people listen to him. So I think MC taking the time to understand what he's talking about would be valuable for him.

Satan: Okay, here's where it gets interesting. I was not planning on necromancy coming into things at first. But I literally couldn't think about what to write for Satan. Satan is not a character who would just sit around and mope, he's someone who would want to try and take action even if it seemed totally helpless. Satan also made his pact literal hours (or even less) before MC's death, so I think the rawness of that bond and the grief over 'what could've been' in particular would've driven him to act. I also wanted him to go to Lucifer when it became clear he needed help to show MC's influence again.

Belphie: He was actually the toughest one to write. I firmly believe Belphie began to develop feelings for MC (not necessarily romantic) while still in the attic. However, he held his trauma, grief, and misplaced rage higher than those feelings which led to his actions. When the justification for his rage was removed, Belphie is left to realise that he killed an innocent person (which, demon, he probably could've recovered from that) and a person that his family dearly, dearly loved, and whose loss completely broke them apart again. That guilt informs his actions for every part of the story, and leaving his shared room with Beel at the end of his section sort of foreshadows what would happen at the end.

Lucifer: Lucifer doesn't have the same close relationship with MC as his brothers do, so while he does grieve their loss and his role in it, his primary concern is his brothers (which just happens to distract him from his grief too!). Lucifer's lack of close relationship with MC is also shown in his poor understanding of them (seen in his insistence that they would be hostile). However, Lucifer has faith in Satan which changes his opinion. I have a lot to say on Lucifer and Satan's relationship, but I think that Lucifer is a lot prouder of Satan than he always shows and has a lot of respect for his learning and ability. So when Satan approaches him with the truth about MC, Lucifer is able to accept it. It also helps that the whole situation has served him quite a bit of humble pie, too.

Ending: once again, necromancy was not my original plan for this fic, but it honestly made sense. Lucifer has already broken the rules of life and death for a loved one once. They're seven of the most powerful beings not only in the Devildom, but across all three realms. And MC is one of them now. Lucifer offering his pact is his way of making it up to his family and MC for hiding the truth. Belphie's offer to leave was written shortly before I played the s3 finale, and let me say I felt so vindicated on that point. Belphie hates being alone, he's scared of being alone, but he offers to isolate himself willingly because he wants his family to heal.