#pride pair

and it was like. fucking weird? because you'd think it got changed so it won't overlap with lust pair but both are basically still haughty shorty x the manservant they yanked around but swap the eve and the servamp

and then

and fucking theeeeen

NO SAME also like i really loved the phrasing used there specifically which gave the impression Belkia himself was in Strike’s ear complaining about it lol.

“He doesn’t want to say” is such a cute way to put it because yeah sometimes your characters do just be refusing to tell you things and you gotta shrug your shoulders and go “idk man they’re not answering”

For Belkia in particular, though, i think I’m going to interpret that as Bel himself loving the name Tsubaki gave him so much he absolutely refuses to even consider anything else. That’s his dead name now, and he’s gonna make sure it STAYS dead. Like… It’s so. Sweet, I guess? How much effort he puts into killing the person he was before he met Tsubaki. He changed the way he talks, the way he looks, the way he approaches the world, everything about him is different now, and I love that. I love him.

I also love that Tsubaki’s OWN manner of speech shifted so drastically only in the last decade, because he met Belkia, and Bel had such an influence on him Tsubaki can’t help but learn to be a little more cheerful, too, a little more silly, and a lot less sullen.

Team M mean so much to me. Also god bless Tsubaki giving Shamrock a new name bc what do you MEAN he’s named GREGOR I’m in tears. For context, Gregor is the name of Kafka’s novel “the metamorphosis,” whose original German title is “Die Verwandlung” and isn’t just a character motif for Shamrock, but also the name of his specialty attack (vol 11, chapter 62, “I Will Strike Them from You”). Its subchant is The Nighthawk Star, but that isn’t really relevant right now.

Come to think of it, I never really delved into how The Metamorphosis is used for Shamrock’s character, and I think the difference in messages between The Metamorphosis and The Nighthawk Star are interesting enough in their differences it would be worth comparing and contrasting them in the context of both each other and his character. Taking notes taking notes…

This got off track as usual but. Yeah. Names are… Really important in Servamp, and you can figure out a lot about the characters not just from their names, but how the narrative treats their names, how they treat the names of other characters, but also how they themselves interact with their names. It’s a really interesting method of character exploration imo

Like, for instance, majority of the Servamps and Eves have names that complement each other, right? They match in some shape or form. The two that always stood out to me were Envy pair and Pride pair, though, for the seeming lack of connection between them, but now we know WHY that is.

For Mikuni, it’s because the name he gave Jeje was never really meant as a sign of them being partners, but intended as a punishment towards him. A reminder of his sin. Of failing to protect Kiriko. Of being a monster who drives others to insanity. But it also served to throw his own faith back into his face since the origin of it, JJ, comes from “Jesu, Joy of man’s desiring” a lively chorale you’ll often hear around Christmas time which, in the original German, expresses a very close and familiar relationship with Jesus. It’s also the song that would play from the music box Kiriko gifted Mikuni for Christmas, and collecting them was her hobby. The name isn’t about Mikuni, but Kiriko.

your original self

Hugh is probably the second most calculating and manipulative Servamp aside from Lily. Though he stays in his child's form most of the time because that's his "default" form, it is also likely he utilized it to drop people's guard and hide his true intention. Though it wasn't really stated in canon, but Algernon III is likely an aristocrat or a noble. Algernon III dislike socializing with the towns people in his old age, but that doesn't mean he wasn't taught the intrigues of noble lifestyle, and he was indeed good at it.

Information is the crucial key in a fight, so he made many subclasses to help him gather all kinds of information for him. The fake contract part was a genius move as well, no one suspected Hugh's contract with Tetsu was fake until Yumikage's deduction came out. Hugh had also admitted to Tetsu that he had been using him to get higher up information from C3 and Alicein family. Judging how Hugh stated that he decides his own name, it is likely that Hugh had used this fake contract method before to gather information and never truly had an Eve. His scheming and information gathering were way ahead of the protagonists, but he hid them all behind his childish appearance.

But despite all that, it is still hard to hate him because we know his reasoning and back story, it is also obvious that he is a kind-hearted person. He loved the boy who had brought happiness into his life in his final days, so he swore revenge on the Count and mourned for the boy ever since he was reborn as a servamp. All those planning he made was to stop the Count so no one had to suffer anymore. But most importantly, he truly cared deeply for Tetsu despite their fake contract. How he begged Tetsu to come with him despite knowing his lie was found out, his desperation when Tetsu was shot, how he stayed by his side until he regained consciousness, and those vulnerable expressions he made when Tetsu confronted him on the roof spoke more than any words.

My favorite part was when Tetsu tentatively reached out and called Hugh's name like trying to approach a scared animal, Hugh's reaction was like a helpless child gripping on his own cape for support. All his resolution and planning had pretty much crumbled at that point, as Yumikage had pointed out, he had long since lost to Tetsu.

Tetsu had always been on the passive side in their relationship since Hugh is often more proactive, but this time, he took the initiative. He knew he was no match to Hugh when it came to brain power, so he didn't allow Hugh time to think and straight out asked for the contract by tossing his chosen contract item to him. Like what he said to Mahiru when they later met up, he was there to get back what he lost.

These may be the most important headcanons I'll ever write ever, anon.

Mahiru: Simple is best! Usually won't get too fancy with it-- Likes his marshmallow with that perfect golden-brown crust. Before he would be confused why some people would burn the marshmallow so much it caught on fire but Sakuya convinced him to try it once and was surprised that it wasn't horrible.

Kuro: Would either toast his marshmallow golden-brown or where there's be some black char spots but not where the whole thing is burnt. He had the idea to put ice cream on top of his smore once and started doing that without fail.

Sakuya: He burns the fucking thing like no tomorrow and swears its one of the best ways to do it. Other than that, also normally makes a standard smore with the gram crackers and candy bar chocolate. He'll also always have sticky hands no matter how careful he is. This boy cannot make a smore that doesnt ooze onto his fingers.

Tetsu: Is very skilled at getting the marshmallow perfectly cooked. Likes his marshmallow golden brown.

Hugh: He condems under roasted marshmallows like he won't eat a whole family pack of uncooked marshmallows straight out the bag. Something about the integrity of a s'more. He has a habit of roasting the thing, sliding the crust off and eating it and repeat till there's nothing left.

Mikuni: This pretentious asshole likes to use the expensive bar chocolate on his s'mores and will swear its better. He'd probably try to make his own marshmallows to roast and after that he's even more snobbish about it. He'll still eat the normal s'more he's offered. Likes his marshmallow with a couple small charred bits.

Jeje: Will fully burn the marsh. Mikuni thinks he's a psychopath for it and God Forbid he burns one of his Eve's homemade ones.

Licht: Will eat the marshmallow no matter as long is its not fully burnt. He has tried it burnt and he rambled on angrily about how it was a slight to such a deliciously holy treat. Using the normal candy bar chocolate and store-bought gram crackers are very special to him and he prefers it that way.

Hyde: Unintentionally scorched his marshy ONCE and got kicked out of his chair for it. Perfers his the perfect golden-brown. He'll get a little bowl of hot fudge to dip his in and it's perfection.

Freya: Doesn't like anything burnt when it comes to it. Will shake up a can of whipped cream and put some on the top of her s'more. It always gets on the tip of her nose and she can't eat a smore cleanly at all wwwww

Iduna: Golden-brown to somewhat charred. Her mess is even worse than Freya's and she always gets goopy hands. She says it's part of the experience.

Niccolo: Likes his with a few char spots and a side of ice cream. Doesn't mix them but likes to eat them both as a pair.

Ildio: It literally doesn't matter, he'll eat it. Even after he starts slowing down and is able to actually taste it, he likes all forms of marshymallow so he's not picky on this front.

Misono: Ate a burnt s'more once and swore never again. Likes his marshy golden brown or a little undercooked. The high quality ingredients the Alicein get makes for an extra yummy s'more. Guess that's where Mikuni gets it from.

Lily: Actually likes his marshy golden to burnt. He likes the flavor of it. Actually perfers it being in the form of a s'more's flavored macaron with toasty marshmallow fluff filling. He likes the texture of the macaron cookies paired with a bit of the crunch of the gram crackers.

Mahiru could have sworn he fell asleep snuggled into Kuro’s chest the night before, but when he wakes up, his partner is nowhere to be found. “Probably just off to the bathroom,” Mahiru thinks, tossing back his blanket as he always does first thing in the morning, sending a tiny black cat flying across the room with a terrified yowl. 

Tetsu barely notices when Hugh changes forms at night; he’ll always find him clinging to his shirt in the morning in one way or another. He has, however, learned to be vigilant as soon as Hugh falls asleep in his hair when they’re out and about. Sometimes he’ll slip when suddenly he’s child-formed and not a tiny bat anymore, but he’ll always land safely in Tetsu’s arms and immediately cuddle up to him. 

Mikuni knows Jeje barely moves in his sleep, so he lets him nap wrapped around his neck with no fear. Tsurugi, however, will happily recount how he and Mikuni once got into a fight when they were younger, until Jeje, startled out of his peaceful slumber by his Eve’s hissy fit, transformed to send them both crashing to the ground in a less-than-dignified pile of tangled limbs. 

Iduna sometimes wakes up at night, hot and barely able to breathe. The first time this happened she nearly panicked, but by now she just sighs and struggles out from underneath the sleepy wolf she’s buried under. It’s not all bad - Freya’s fur is soft like nothing else, and wonderful to snuggle against in order to fall back asleep quickly. 

Licht reaches out in the morning, half-asleep still, searching for Hyde who he’s sure slept by his side that night. Instead of familiar tousled hair or the soft fabric of the pyjama his partner snuck from him ages ago, his wandering hands find sharp prickly spikes that were definitely not there when he fell asleep. The experience ends very painfully for both of them. 

Niccolo has learned the hard way to be wary of a sleeping Servamp. Once, at the very beginning of their time together, he tried doing something nice and carrying little pig Ildio back home after a rich lunch that sent him straight to sleep, but suddenly buckling under the weight of a grown man in his arms quickly convinced him this was not a good idea.