I invented Booker and chose his name simply so Morgan and Seth (Moth) and his ship name could be Mother
And then @betasuppe took one look at these nerds and he was like "Absolutely not. BookMoth." And he's right of course
Also check out the first official art of these three! Credit to @betasuppe as well, I'm obsessed with it and with them and I hope everyone else loves them too
My OCs Morgan, Seth, and Booker on a double date with Obake and Kei!
It contains a few future-y things for Morgan and Seth, some things that aren't quite canon-compliant with the universe I've set up in Angel of Vengeance, but still fun!
"You're sure they're going to like me?" Booker asked nervously, as Morgan meticulously straightened his tie.
"Babe, of course they will," Morgan said.
"Kei is going to love you," Seth said from behind Morgan, zipping up her dress.
"What about Obake?" Booker asked, eyes flashing with fear. He knew all about the criminal and how he was a part of Morgan and Seth's found family. As a recent addition to that found family, Booker was a little bit worried that he wouldn't live up to Obake's high standards.
"What's not to like?" Seth asked, looking Booker over with a satisfied nod. They hadn't been sure at first, either, when Booker began flirting with the married couple. But Booker had soon won Seth and Morgan's hearts and they'd been a happy trio ever since. Seth's sister Sadie and Sadie's boyfriends liked Booker, Morgan's mom liked Booker, and their son Florian adored him. The last true test was Obake and Kei.
"Oh, I don't know, the fact that I'm not evil or a genius? I'm not cool like you two!"
Morgan blushed, "Aw, babe, you think we're cool?"
"The coolest people I've ever dated."
"Well, that's obviously true," Seth agreed, "That we're cool, not that you aren't. You're forgetting one important thing."
"What's that?" Booker asked, still nervous.
"You're a bartender. Obake loves bartenders. He loves my sister after all. You two are going to hit it off great."
"Yeah, okay, but… We're not going to a bar for our date. What if he doesn't like me if I'm not serving him alcohol?"
Morgan laughed, "He's not that shallow. You're both overthinking it. Kei and Obake will love you because we love you. I promise that's more than enough."
Morgan, Seth, and Booker had no clue that a similar conversation was happening across the city, in the Aken lair.
"What if he doesn't like me?"
"Awwww, Obake, I'm surprised you're worried about that kind of thing."
"I'm not. Not significantly, at least. It just occurred to me. He's very important to Morgan and Seth so I would prefer if we got along."
"You can't control how other people feel about you, 'Bake. You can just control how you act. So show Booker the warm and loving Obake that we know and love."
He stared at her a moment, "You're making fun of me."
"What? No, I'm not. You're part of our family. And we're a good family."
"No, we're an evil family."
"Well, you know what I mean. Booker clearly loves Morgan and Seth, he's going to at least try to get along with the people they care about. As long as you're putting in the same level of effort I'm sure things will go swimmingly."
"Last time I went swimming I nearly drowned."
"And then you moved in with me! So try to think positive."
Obake sighed and then put on a smile, "Alright. Let's go."
They met at a trendy little restaurant, well dressed but still out of place. Morgan wore a shimmery dark purple dress that hugged her curves. Kei was wearing the same purple, almost as if they'd coordinated, though her dress was a soft velvet with sheer sleeves. They were both wearing heels and they both looked divine. Seth and Booker wore matching suits and their ties matched Morgan's dress, though Booker wore a bowtie and Seth wore a half-Windsor knot. Obake wore a dark red turtleneck underneath a black blazer. It had not occurred to him to try and match Kei.
"Obake, Kei, this is Booker," Morgan said, pushing past any awkwardness and launching right into the introductions.
Booker took a deep, steadying breath and held out a hand to Obake.
"It's nice to meet you, sir."
Obake shook, maintaining eye contact, refusing to show how nervous he was as well.
"Yes… It's nice to meet you too. And you don't have to call me sir. Obake is fine."
When they stepped away from each other, both feeling like they'd navigated a minefield, Kei dragged Booker into a hug.
"We've heard SO much about you, Booker!"
"All good things, I hope," Booker chuckled. Unlike most of the group, Booker didn't have anything to hide. He wasn't a criminal, he was just a dude. He loved his partners and he liked his job and his favorite part of any day was when he was playing with Florian and the cats. To Morgan and Seth, he was already part of the family. He really hoped that Kei and Obake felt the same way.
"Oh, of course. And we can't wait to get to know you more. Let's go sit down."
They sat in a circular booth, with Obake and Booker ending up sitting right next to each other. Kei was on the other side of Obake and Seth was on the other side of Booker, with Morgan next to them. For a moment, it was awkward again.
"So, who's watching Flor tonight?" Kei asked before the awkwardness could linger.
"We left him with the robot," Seth said with a shrug, sounding serious.
Obake glanced at Morgan, who laughed.
"Florian is with my mom."
"Well, Teddy is with his sister. He misses Flor, we should arrange a playdate soon," Kei said.
They talked about the little kids for a little longer, which lightened the mood. Booker shared a photo of Flor and the cats asleep in a massive cuddle pile. Obake watched with interest, catching on to how Booker cared about Florian as much as he cared about Morgan and Seth. Obake decided right then that Booker fit perfectly into the crime fam.
Booker still felt a little bit out of place.
"How'd you meet Morgan and Seth?"
"It's embarrassing," Booker muttered.
"Aw, come on, it's not that embarrassing," Morgan encouraged.
"Well, I was at work and Morgan walked in and I was a little um.,." Booker looked flustered, "I was speechless, for a moment because, well look at her, she's amazing. And I'm not the guy who normally flirts with customers but that day I took my chance and then-"
"I told him that I was waiting on my spouse," Morgant pitched in.
"Hit me like a dagger to my heart. I apologized, of course, and we were chatting. I was trying to make the situation less awkward. And then Seth arrived and once again it was like I couldn't breathe. Like I was standing there in front of the two most attractive people I'd ever met. And then it clicked. I recognized Seth. I mean, I work with Sadie. I could see the resemblance between her and Seth. And that's when it got really embarrassing because that's when I asked them if they were poly too."
Kei laughed a little at that, it was charming to see Booker talk about navigating the awkward beginning of his relationship.
"It caught me off guard," Seth said, "But Morgan and I had talked about it before. We knew our relationship was solid and we'd told each other that if either of us found someone we wanted to date we'd entertain it, and here was this guy who seemingly wanted to date both of us… We thought we might as well give it a try."
"And Booker is amazing, so I'm really glad we did," Morgan said, reaching over Seth to rest a hand on Booker's shoulder.
"I'm really happy too," Booker said, starry-eyed, "I love this family."
"Awww, that's so cute. You three are so cute together. We're glad you're part of the family, right Obake?"
Booker held his breath a moment, hoping he'd gained Obake's approval and not knowing that he'd earned it about half an hour ago.
"Of course. I can see why Seth and Morgan love you."
The perfect push to finish chapter two of Angel Army!
"We have to be there for Seth while they grieve, and eventually we'll be able to convince them to stay alive for themself instead of just the people they love."
& here's a commission for my good friend @the-writer-nerd-ro of their charming OC, Booker! He's the newest addition to our BH6 crime family & I love him VERY MUCH♡♡♡
Thank you so much for the chance to help get some official art made of him! :DDD
