Your yokai watch aus give me life. I'm also loving Bear just going to his parents, sticking out his arm, and going, "I found a demon/ghost watch thing"
And more fun headcanons for you for the Bear AU:
Bear’s watch is on his wrist like Nate’s, but to match Bear’s aesthetic, it’s a far more beat up looking watch: think tape holding bits of it together
Bear’s ancestor (grandfather) is on his mom’s side
Bear’s mom, while partially doubting her kid because yokai just seem unlikely, does remember her own father having a similar watch, and a similar fascination with yokai
As a result, she asks her own mother for her dad’s old books on yokai and reads through them and shares them with Bear to be supportive
After several years (think: Bear’s late teens), she finds a dusty old lens and peeking through it, finds out the truth. She continues to happily spoil Jibanyan
Bear’s grandma, knowing her husband was right all along (and with a lens of her own), knits and sends Bear extra hats and scarves for his yokai friends.
She knits Blazion a sweater for the holidays one year. Blazion didn’t take it off for a month